Whoever is in control of sales to the end-user is the real one in control. A contractor can switch distributors and/or manufacturers instantly and likely not suffer much, but the "buck stops here" on the shelves of distributors if the ones who sell to end-users go elsewhere to buy product. That is w...

Tales from the Corporate Frontlines: Career Opportunities for New Graduates This article relates to the Career Opportunities competency and explores issues such as internal growth opportunities, potential for advancement, career development importance, and the relationship between job performance an...

We are bombarded with thousands of marketing messages daily?on television and the radio, on the internet, in magazines and newspapers, on billboards and other signs, and even at the bottoms and on the backs of receipts. The world is, indeed, a very noisy place. And in order to get heard, we need o...

Q. What`s the single, biggest change exhibitors can make to move more prospects closer to a buying? A. Exhibiting firms can make their most credible, "main differentiating benefit" the most obvious, prominent (aka BIG) message in everything they display, give away, or discuss. Problem: Exhibiting...

Being a leader must be one of the most rewarding careers you can ever do.  Not only is the work interesting and challenging, but you are impacting the direction of many people and the direction of your company.  You are able to see that you are making a difference in something very big.

In t...

Client satisfaction starts with meeting or beating the contractual obligations of the relationship. There are also some intangibles that can help you to over deliver to a client. Meetings In most organizations it?s easy to deliver additional value around meetings, because statistically, most compani...

Some 30-odd years ago, MLS listings were printed on small cards that fit in shoeboxes, and Realtors were their gatekeepers. Thanks to the Internet, agents as well as consumers have access to all kinds of information.
As a result, real estate firms are changing the way they interact with custo...

Essential to your success as an effective, engaging communicator is learning not only what to say, but what not to say. The following guide examines several sentences, phrases and questions that stand in your way of connecting and communicating with confidence. Do you remember me?
If you walk ...

How To Gain FREE Advertising That Will Make You Rich! Okay-Just What Exactly Is ?Free Advertising???? Before I get into the specifics of actually HOW to get free advertising - it?s important for you to completely understand exactly what free advertising is. ?Free Advertising? is any mention, listing...

The sinage marketplace is competitive! Consequently, some companies are going to focus on price and neglect quality. To complicate the situation, companies that produce stock vinyl banner material offer a bevy of different materials based on weights/thickness, color, reflective properties, ink abs...

It?s no secret that the United States has a nursing shortage, one that promises to grow to alarming proportions. Too many nurses are retiring, and too few are entering the profession. To compound the problem, within the next 5 to 10 years, over 76 million Baby Boomers are scheduled to retire from th...

Having spent the last few years of my career in the staffing and recruiting industry, I?m asked all the time by friends and relatives if I can help them find a more desirable job. I?ve helped my fiancé get a job, helped my college buddies get jobs after graduation, and even helped a few high school ...

We are seeing a drying up of consumer dollars in our markets. But remember the dollar is only an instrument of trade; it is merely a leveling point for evaluation. The dollar creates intrinsic value in everything we desire based on the value we and everyone else in a market sector places on that ite...

Once you have accomplished your task of getting in the door and getting the job the real job of career advancement begins! You will soon learn (if you haven`t already elsewhere) that corporate politics are ALWAYS surrounding you. If it is not your boss who is fearful of you taking his job it is your...

Will it be inflation or deflation as the major trend for the coming decade? What about Peak Oil and the skyrocketing cost of energy? Will the Dollar continue to do well, or will it finally collapse under the weight of the twin deficits? Better yet, how is one to plan for financial security in the ...

You finally did it. You made the decision to leave a career that makes you dread every Monday morning and pursue one that you feel is your true calling. Congratulations! Making the decision was the hard part, right? Unfortunately, no. You?ve convinced yourself that this is the right move?how do you ...

When innovators talk about thinking outside the box, they mean coming up with creative ways to solve problems - new ways to look at things. How do they do it? How can you do it too? We first have to ask what the "box" is. Then we can look at how to get outside of it. The "box" is the normal way of d...

Don`t let anyone talk you into going to college when all you really want to do is be a chef or tear apart a car engine. Some times our society pushes the wrong thing on us. You have to say no way! If you really want to learn a trade instead of college, just do it. Many people make a great living wor...

When you?re starting a business, you might wish for a lot of things, like having more than enough customers or not having to do marketing. But wishing is weak willed, having no momentum behind it. When you wish for something, you?re not coming from a place of having a strong vision. Instead, wish...

You?ve had many years of training in your craft as a performer, singer, actor etc. but if you still feel haunted by the ravages of Performance Anxiety your career may be in serious jeopardy. Performance Anxiety, that familiar nemesis to all performers is often experienced as some or all the followi...

In previous articles for marketing-minded financial planners, I`ve discussed what to say to a reporter over the telephone. However, if you are phone-shy or time-challenged, it`s better to send an email than to do nothing. Many reporters favor e-mail anyway, so use it. Call the media outlet or check ...

Most people don?t think it makes a difference which long distance provider they choose anymore. But, fact of the matter is, if you are still using one of the big three, you could save up to 60% on your monthly phone bill. If you know what you are spending, you have already made the first step toward...

A lens is simply a device for focussing the scene in front of you onto the camera?s sensor. All cameras have lenses. Some are built in (as in compact cameras and prosumers) and some are detachable (as with SLR cameras). All of them do the same job. There are different types of lenses. Standard lense...

Businesses in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and the Carolinas have been harmed or destroyed by recent hurricanes. Many suppliers and service vendors for these businesses have overcome great obstacles to keep their operations going. Businesses that rely on these support vendors w...

I had a health scare in December. As it turns out, everything`s perfectly okay. But the possibility of things not being okay really knocked me for a loop. For the first time ... ever ... I thought about what would happen to my business if I suddenly weren`t around to take care of it. What an eye...

It is sometimes valuable to bring the sales manager into this step of the collection process. Information concerning the delinquency can often be obtained from the sales department. Tips for Commercial Collection Letters: When writing commercial collection letters, these points should be considered:...

A department manager in a struggling company recently summed up what`s wrong with many organizations. Contemplating his firm`s abysmal performance, he told me: "We have lots of projects, goals and priorities. We`re constantly making lists and setting action plans. But we seldom see anything through ...

You may be astonished to realize that retrenchment may occur more than once during the life of the modern day worker. In fact, career advisors report that we could expect to be made redundant up to three times during our working life. As common as retrenchment is, when it happens, no one likes it....

There are few clerical products as time saving as address labels. For any project, these little marvels add professionalism without sacrificing efficiency. Address labels are by far one of the most effective supplies when it comes to the office. When you arrive at the office supply store you may b...

Many sales problems can be solved by improved marketing. Selling harder is often not the solution. More . . . or just better . . . marketing may be what`s needed. Marketing presents a special problem for any company that has not yet developed a professionally staffed marketing department. This artic...

Office chairs come in all shapes, sizes and colors. Ergonomics tells us about a healthy design for the office chair. Chairs can come with adjustable parts. Yet, the human body also comes in a variety of shapes and sizes. Some are tall some are short. Some require a bigger chair width and some would ...

Is it the dawning of the Age of Aquarius? For years, predictions have indicated that humanity is readying itself for a golden age, a so called new age that is right around the corner just waiting to roll in. According to these forecasts, the air we breath will be clean and our environment pure. H...

In today`s competitive world of business, it takes moxie and pizazz to sell a great product, idea, or service. This list will provide you with ten unusual and creative marketing strategies which will help you to stand apart from the competition and to increase your visibility. 1. Celebrate the Wacky...

It is well known that inadequate hand washing can lead to the spread of germs. However, as cleaning professionals it is sometimes overlooked how important this is in our industry. Even if your cleaning staff is wearing gloves, it is still important that they spend the extra time necessary to make su...

1: Original and Fresh Content
Present your visitors content they cannot find anywhere else. Not all your content has to be 100% original, but a good percentage of your site should have original content. People are more likely to read information they haven?t read before. Add new content to your ...

Accessibility: Is your website causing you to loose potential clients? With millions of people going online everyday the potential for your business is almost unimaginable! However, the great challenge is creating an environment that is positive, effective, and accessible to all of your potential c...

Whether you are just starting your first job or your 10th job, you will find that office politics is consistent in all companies. Office politics is something that is inherent in any company you may work for. It?s part of the culture and you won?t be able to avoid it. So just how do you survive offi...

In the first part of this two part article, I talked about the importance of character in leadership. After all, the best leadership involves the people bonding with the leader in deep, human, emotional ways. The passive way of looking at character is that the bonding won`t happen if the people ar...

You may have heard many times, that getting the e-mail addresses of your website visitors and following up on them can spark up your sales and unleash a tsunami of orders. But this is easier said than done. Most website visitors use fake e-mails. Most will not give up any of their e-mails at all. B...

Whether you are working at home, in the office, or in your car -- your ability to produce results with the least amount of stress, is directly affected by your physical environment. A functional desk that is ugly can be as much of a deterrent to productivity as a beautiful desk that is not function...

Contrary to popular belief, the best use of business cards is not making origami or collecting dust. But, in this article you will find 5 of the most effective ways to use your business cards on a daily basis! When Joe Girard, the world`s greatest salesman, was selling cars he would frequently go...

In the consumer marketplace, people may pay extra for a designer label, a recognized brand or products with celebrity endorsements. When a business invests in capital equipment, however, all the above becomes meaningless unless the equipment performs, meeting or exceeding expectations. While price, ...

Every company is thinking of a better idea how to introduce their company in the market. But because business postcard is widely known for its capability to capture the interest and to gain more clientele, every single creative style of business card is maximized. Thus, giving us problems in creatin...

There`s another term for it, but I prefer OPGI for three reasons: 1. Nobody`s ever heard of it and it arouses curiosity, 2. I think it`s more complimentary to the people involved, 3. It`s less likely to turn people off than "swipe" file. So what DOES OGPI stand for? It stands for Other Peo...

If you?re ready to kick your career or business up to the next level, then make it a goal to become a powerful presenter. People view savvy communicators as being more capable, intelligent, and knowledgeable than those individuals who have difficulty in communicating their ideas. You can quickly g...

Network marketing is experiencing tremendous growth in the business arena today. Many more companies are benefiting from the networking systems used to get product to the consumer. In fact, individuals are reaping the rewards in this business drawing greater attention to the amazing income potenti...

One of the greatest forms of advertising is to create stationery that advertises your business. Just think, you would be exposing the Post Office and others in between to your business! First let`s create a folder to put your work in. Go to `start` -- `Documents` -- go all the way to the top and...

Warning: Lying on your resume could cost you your job and your freedom. Picture this. You?re sitting at your desk working away happily at a company you?ve been employed with for ten years. You?ve had several promotions and you?re now a Sr. Assistant Manager. You?ve got your eye on a top manageme...

You bet a name is important. Many small business owners try to come up with a clever name for their business rather than one that explains what they do. And, nine times out of ten, that is a mistake. Your business name should give your prospects some idea of what your business is about. One of the ...

Please feel free to publish this article and resource box in your ezine, newsletter, offline publication or website. A copy would be appreciated at bobkelly@TNI.net. Word count is 895 including guidelines and resource box. Robert A. Kelly © 2003. Get PR Off the Bench Something that results in ...