Last week, Jay Baer wrote a post about how brands are responding on social media. Jay’s premise was that companies that can respond within minutes on the social sphere are sending out a far more positive message than those that dilly-dally. It’s a really interesting read, and the comments after the post sparked a great debate about Jay’s premise, and if we weren’t setting companies up to fail by jumping to action as soon as their name is mentioned. One of…

When was the last time someone asked you what you want? What you’d prefer to have, over what their perception thinks you’d like to have? Are you looked after by the services you use on a regular basis? If not, why not – isn’t it about time you were? I’m a business owner, but I’m also a consumer and a customer. So why am I told what I need instead of being asked what I need, as a customer? When…

Customers and employees are your two most important ingredients in a successful business. Without one, you can’t have the other. Customer service is an especially hot topic for me, as I’ve worked in improving how service is measured and improved at a few companies, where previously it was maybe in third or fourth place when it came to that company’s priorities. Your employees are your best customers, and your customers are your best employees. They’ll defend you; market for you;…

Here’s a question for you. If you’re in business, how do you treat your clients? Or, to look at it another way, how do your clients treat you? Is it with respect and shared passion for doing the same work, or is it just having a need for each other and no more? When dealing with a client, do you meet your deadlines or do you constantly offer excuses why their project isn’t ready? Do you work closely together, listen to/make…

If my friends are correct, I’m pretty fortunate that I don’t live in the U.S., have an iPhone and AT&T as my carrier. When I speak to people like Tim Jahn and Michael Schechter, they mention the crappy coverage and dropped calls they have to suffer on Apple’s baby thanks to the AT&T network, even though the fault may lie as equally with Apple as it does AT&T. Being in Canada and on a BlackBerry, I guess this is something for…

One of the things we’re always advised to be wary of is that social media puts us in the spotlight 24/7. As businesses, we need to be focused on our customers and their needs, and as customers we now have an “in” to the businesses that provide us our goods and services. This have been a double-edged sword in many examples, with customers taking out their grievances in very public places whether the grievance was warranted or not. Yet it’s…

We’re told (and tell our clients) that one of the key benefits of social media is that it’s allowing a channel to be opened between customers and business, and vice versa. But is this new openness simply leading to abuse of the system? Are people now using this new voice they have to bypass proper channels and cause as much havoc as they can, purely because they have the ability to? Take a look at Doug Meacham’s recent experience with…

Are you a hero to someone? Do you make your business superheroes to every one of your customers, or treat them as heroes? Going that extra mile can make all the difference. I found that out last week when two people who I already respected immensely joined the ranks of superheroes. Michael Schechter, someone I’ve connected with through Twitter yet never met personally, is a superhero. As some of you might know, I recently won a tagline competition where the…

Image by threecee via Flickr Yesterday I mentioned that I see myself as a chartered bus driver, and this blog as the bus with you as the passengers. I wanted to let you know that without passengers, buses don’t really have a need for existence, so your travels with me are important. I want to expand on that a little and look at you and the buses you drive, and how you can help your own passengers. Everyone Is On…

Twitter is one of the most effective tools on social media at the moment with a variety of uses. Personal, business, branding, communication – all these and more can be found using the micro-blogging site. So why does it continue to be such a hard sell to businesses? Can it be simplified?