by Cathy Miller | Jul 31, 2023
Have you become so accustomed to bad service that good experiences are customer service surprises? How can you avoid a negative view of your own customer service? One way is by surprising your customers – in a good way. The following are examples of customer service...
by Cathy Miller | Jul 30, 2023
COVID may have killed the idea of customer service speed. Just getting someone to answer is a major challenge. Yet, companies still track metrics for speed. Like how long it takes for a representative to pick up a call or the time it takes for a webpage to load....
by Cathy Miller | Jul 13, 2023
What communication pet peeves drive you nuts? Is it when someone calls you by the wrong name? Or the person who never returns a call? Whether in our business or personal lives, communication missteps make our blood pressure skyrocket. Even more maddening is how simple...
by Cathy Miller | Jul 2, 2023
The origins of words and phrases are fascinating. At least to this word nerd. But what if the word or phrase you use is rooted in racist or biased meaning? Would it change your mind about using that phrase? We all use throwaway, everyday phrases to make a point or...
by Cathy Miller | Jun 22, 2023
Don’t you love when a blog post or how-to article shares business examples of key points? Anyone can slap up a bunch of rules. But how do they work? And will they work for your business? Good business examples nourish clarity and understanding. Emphasis on the...
by Cathy Miller | Jun 11, 2023
If I show you my writing slip ups, will you show me yours? Although I call myself a writer, I am far from immune from the sly slip ups sneaking into unsuspecting sentences – or headlines – or tweets – or almost anywhere. My fingers tremble over the...
by Cathy Miller | May 30, 2023
Do you remember the last time you attempted a do-it-yourself project? Assembling furniture Installing new software Setting up your first blog Did the simple-to-follow instructions leave you feeling stupid? You are not alone. User manuals are the poster child for...
by Cathy Miller | May 22, 2023
Do you feel like the phrase positive customer service is a contradiction in terms? Especially after the pandemic. Customer service has become another do-it-yourself response. Forums of users searching for help (from who knows who) Customer service agents without...
by Cathy Miller | May 15, 2023
You have a huge project and need help. So, you pull together a Request for Proposal to gather competitive bids. What comes back is less than stellar responses. What went wrong? The following explores missteps that sabotage how you create an RFP and what you can do to...
by Cathy Miller | May 8, 2023
Jennifer follows the information technology department of Martens Products. She has been tracking them for what seems forever. While doing her weekly status check, Jennifer sees the company’s site has a Request for Proposal (RFP) for a new project. Eureka! One...