Surely you have experienced the changes taking place in retail businesses. From self-checkout at grocery stores to kiosk ordering everywhere from restaurants to hotels, the pace of implementation is amazing. But it leads to this question – do these investments improve customer service, or are they efficiency efforts aimed at reducing costs at the expense…
When manufacturing started leaving America en masse for China, Vietnam, India, –offshore– in the 1990s, America lost more than the occasional manufacturing plant, they lost control of entire supply chains. Many companies have spent the last few years realigning their supply chains to be less reliant upon offshore manufacturers. The decision for US vs. offshore…
The 4th annual Most Trusted Brands report was recently issued by Morning Consult, with Band-Aid earning the top spot (again) as the most trusted brand. Brand trust, as defined by Morning Consult, is based on customer responses to one question, “how much do you trust this brand to do what is right?” As the report…
For those in B2B businesses, have you ever thought about sending out an invoice and putting a line at the bottom for a tip? If you did that, how hard do you think your customers would laugh at the idea? B2B businesses would never do that, yet are more likely to provide appreciable service levels…
Can competitive advantages help a company compete when there is one company in the market that is so big and dominant that it is thought of as the 800 pound gorilla? We’ve had a number of clients significantly grow their business attracting customers away from bigger competitors by showcasing significant value propositions based on validated…
Scroll to bottom to add a comment Everyone knows that loyalty programs are offered by airlines and hotels. In fact, it’s hard to compete in these industries without offering some type of loyalty (or frequent user) program. Buyers have come to expect the perks and benefits that come with such programs. Which means those programs…
Vistage Florida recently established a Chair Emeritus program to recognize those Chairs who have upheld and promoted Vistage standards for excellence through years of chairing groups, and thus made a significant contribution to the organization. She had been previously honored by Vistage International as being one of the 50 most influential people in Vistage’s first…
In the first half of my career, I worked for a major international airline. That’s when I got to see firsthand the value of learning what customers must have if they are to choose you and remain with you. I quickly observed from our thousands of passenger surveys that there was one thing that had…
Elon Musk made massive headlines with his $44 billion purchase of Twitter. Many critics of the purchase tout that Musk doesn’t appear to have much of a plan to make money (Twitter has lost money in each of the last two years). I’ve been fortunate to be involved multiple times with CEOs who have purchased…
I wanted a new sofa for our outdoor porch. I shopped around until I found the perfect fit and match for the rest of the patio furnishings. I saw the sofa online and then called the store to see if they had it there to go “see and touch.” The salesman told me “If you…
