Category Archives: Customer relations

Common sense pricing

  Value pricing Now we all know (I hope) that when we offer a knowledge based service we bill for value. So if you deliver a huge cost saving to a manufacturing business by helping it re-source its raw materials … Continue reading

Posted in Business planning, Customer relations, marketing | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Advice, logic, principles and beliefs

Yes, business is tough at the moment, so it is hard to believe that some owners are making more obstacles for themselves rather than trying to make running their business more profitable and less stressful. Somehow people get ideas in … Continue reading

Posted in Business planning, Customer relations, marketing | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Why we must manage our business relationships carefully

“Almost all of our sorrows spring out of our relations with other people.” – Arthur Schopenhauer Certainly I think that we can bring misery on ourselves by bad behaviour which upsets others. The other day I was in a local … Continue reading

Posted in Customer relations, Sales | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Small business is a life of hard knocks: discuss!

I wrote a little while ago about the tough economy  and what might we do in the face of it.  We can all write the best advice we can and we can try to take advice in a positive way. … Continue reading

Posted in Business planning, Customer service, marketing, Sales | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

New beginnings and old habits

Tonight we will no doubt have some Saturday Night Fever to celebrate the coming New Year. Never can I remember so much doom and gloom in the media about the next twelve months. There are two ways of looking at … Continue reading

Posted in Business planning, Customer relations | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Why we need to be realistic about our business ambitions

“We pay a price for everything we get or take in this world; and although ambitions are well worth having, they are not to be cheaply won, but exact their dues of work and self-denial, anxiety and discouragement.” LUCY MAUD … Continue reading

Posted in Business planning, Customer relations | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Why we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover or a colleague or prospect either

First impressions First impressions are important. When meeting someone in business for the first time I am sure we all do our best to present ourselves well. That is simple commercial sense. Sometimes if we get a poorer impression of … Continue reading

Posted in Business planning, Customer relations, networking | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Why managers and workers need to respect each other

Respect is our starting point Respect is one of the most important qualities we can have in business. We need to respect our clients. We need to have their respect by delivering quality service; the very best we can do … Continue reading

Posted in Customer relations, management | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Conversations make team work

As you may remember, I believe that there is a difference between hearing and listening. Listening is the bit where we actually take in what someone is saying rather than just appearing to be polite by giving them time. Listening … Continue reading

Posted in Business planning, Customer service, productivity | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Your customers are not a process

Most of us here provide a personal service to our customers, whether that is as in my case providing help and support with my clients’ businesses and taxes, or for you perhaps web design or delivery of packages. In a … Continue reading

Posted in Customer service | Tagged , , | Leave a comment