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Three Best Ways to Sell Excess Holiday Merchandise

Management and Operations Ten Worst Communication Blunders of 2009 From a steady review of major news events, here are the ten worst communication blunders of 2009. BusinessKnowHow.com Management and OperationsProductivity Coach's Corner: Clear the Clutter, Create OpportunityThe following is a specific key to success in lightening the load on your body and mind. This is a practical activity, one you can do to reduce the unnecessary physical and psychological stress you may be carrying around right now. Wouldn't it be worth it to invest less than one half of an hour to regain some confidence and control? M... [Read Full Article]


Five Ways to Survive the Holiday Season

The holidays are officially here! With Christmas just three days away, last minute shoppers are scrambling to buy gifts. Malls are crowded, lines are long, and finding parking takes hours. With all the stress that unfortunately comes with the holidays, there are a a few tricks that can be done to help you survive the season.1. Be Patient & FlexibleFor most, shopping during the holidays is one of the most stressful times of the year. The pressure to find the perfect gift for someone builds up on customers and often leaves them frustrated. Realize this as a small business owner and/or employee. You need to give your customers extra patience during this busy season. Understand that they might talk back at you, be rude, or even argue. It is nothing against you, just the frustration and stress of the holidays speaking. Be nice and patient with every customer at all times. If a problem arises, take a step back and think it through. Be flexible and creative to find resol... [Read Full Article]


Fending Off Empty Holiday Shelves

Government, Politics, and the Economy No Rebound Yet For Smallest Businesses Confidence among America’s smallest business owners fell to the lowest level since February, according to the latest Discover-Small Business Watch. BusinessWeek.comManagement and OperationsDisaster Protection: The Need for Small Business ContinuityBusinessKnowHow has reprinted the latest edition (Fall 2009) of Disaster Recovery Journal and the article “The Need for Small Business, Business Continuity” by Mark R. Lupo. BusinessKnowHow.com Management and Operations [Read Full Article]


Small Biz Tip: Holiday Marketing: Customer Service

Tips from November 13, 2009 The Small Business tips today discuss the importance of customer service in your holiday marketing. Hire additional help if you know you are going to be busy. Many students are looking for seasonal work; attempt to reach out to them. Make sure you've updated your voicemail to include any special holiday hours. Consider adding weekly promotions to the recording! Reiterate the importance of great customer service, especially the holidays. SMILE! It's the simplest way to bring cheer and joy to customers. Have a holiday meeting with your staff. Go over the holiday promotions and what they'll need to know to help customers more efficiently. Daily Overview: Boost your customer service during the holidays: hire extra help if you need it, smile a lot and make sure all of your staff is on the same page and are aware of your holiday promotions. [Read Full Article]


Forget Your Big Idea. Be Simple.

Government, Politics, and the Economy Retail Sales Rebound Into Xmas as Shares Show Consumer Not Dead From the recent spike in sales, it's beginning to look a lot like the retail holiday season will be happier than predicted. Bloomberg.comManagement and OperationsWhy Unemployed College Grads Should Channel Their Inner Entrepreneur Recent college graduates who are unemployed should think about taking to their entrepreneurial skills and start their own business. BusinessKnowHow.comManagement and Operations [Read Full Article]


Small Biz Tip: Customer Service: Employee Training

Tips from October 16, 2009 The Small Business tips today discuss training your employees to provide exceptional customer service. Every employee is a representative of your business. Give them reasons to respect your brand, business, & customers. Go over situations that could arise; get feedback from experienced employees. Show your customers you're ready for anything. Employees that know all situations can help customers immediately instead of asking management. Be knowledgeable. After an unusual situation occurs, talk to employees about how to handle the situation in case it happens again.  Daily Overview: Proper employee training will give your business an edge on providing exceptional customer service. [Read Full Article]


Small Biz Tip: Customer Service: Turning to Social Media

Tips from October 14, 2009 The Small Business tips today will talk about how turning to social media will improve customer service. Twitter allows for up to the minute updates for openings, new products, sales, and limited time offers. Customers talk about experiences on Twitter: provide exceptional service and personalize to get great buzz. Use Twitter to build up your small businesses by retweeting testimonials & customer satisfaction stories. Build a community of customers with a Facebook Fan page. Ask for feedback & give new Fans coupons. Daily Overview: Social media is an excellent way to keep up in real time and positivity about your biz. [Read Full Article]


Customer Service and the Internet

Great customer service has become much more important to businesses with the popularity and increased influence that the internet now has. The internet provides an instant outlet for customers to rant or rave about a specific product, service, or business. Though not just for consumers, the internet has made providing customer service a lot easier for a business. So, what do you need to be aware of when coupling the internet with your customer service? What kind of options should you be looking for? How exactly can you provide customer service? Let's take a look. Accessibility 24/7/365 - At the very least you should have a website that has your business name and information on it. What you must keep in mind is that this then puts your business out there for consumers to access any time and any day of the year. Make sure you have a phone number, address, and hours of operation on your homepage in a place that all visitors can see. This wa... [Read Full Article]

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