Many companies identify with causes hoping to make an emotional connection with customers. But does this really have an impact?

The employee-customer encounter can be quantified and summarized in a single performance metric

Companies can improve performance by optimizing employee and customer engagement -- even in this sluggish economy

Handling customer complaints can be a very challenging responsibility. After all, you're not going to hear anything pleasant from your clients anytime soon. And you'll probably have to endure everything from mild ranting to full blown swearing tantrums.

The difference between an outstanding business and a so-so business lies in good customer service. The better you treat your clients, the more your business will continue to grow. But how do you actually pamper your customers to retain them? What are the examples of good customer service?

As a student of people and ideas I have to admit that what two guys are doing in a Northeast Florida Starbucks is absolutely genius.

The other day as I tried to pay for my green tea at my local Starbucks the cashier said, "Don't worry about it sir. Those guys over there are paying for it today."...

Some things will change, and some things won’t. But one thing’s for certain: the consumer is now in charge.

Difficult customers are the bane of every shopkeeper's existence. Everyone knows the policy that "the customer is always right." Unfortunately, the most difficult ones make it a point to rub this in your face. But there are tips for dealing with difficult customers you can follow to keep your head cool and your shop peaceful.

Amid a frenzy of recession-driven cost cutting, here’s one area where companies should increase budgets: creating dialogue with customers

In this rough economic climate, it’s more critical than ever that you and your customers know why your company is in business, says a marketing expert

In additional to a monthly mailer, you should think about a quarterly mailing that is more personal in nature. Let your customers know what is going on in your life. It is like sending a personal letter to each of them. Olympia Funding is very successful in using this technique; they call this "Letters from the Heart".

The Power of ten simply means that anything you do should be done in tens. It may seem quite simple but if you think about how many follow-up calls you should do in any day plus the number of new calls to be made and the number of new appointments per week, you are already on your way to success in sales.

You may wonder if the car dealer has gone overboard with his service and perhaps he has in a way. The customer can decline his offering at any time but at least he is there to offer it. You can go overboard with your willingness to please but you cannot go overboard with a good customer service policy. You really want to over deliver your promises but you do not want to under promise what you will do.

What do you need to know about follow-up?

Following-up with connections, marketing campaigns, networking, or phone calls is more a matter of discipline and time management, Ninety-nine out of one hundred people I know really do not know how to follow-up. Most of the lack is due to not knowing what to say or thinking they are begging for the business. In reality, you go to events and do marketing campaigns to get business and you need to follow-up.

Before you make a presentation or explain to others what it is that you do, you need to know your audience.

What is worse than wearing a tuxedo to an event when everyone else is attending in shorts?

Yes, times are tough, and companies are wielding the axe. But every cut has an impact on more than just today’s bottom line.

Don’t you just love a freebie? I know I do. I’ve been in two situations recently as a customer, when I received an unexpected freebie.

Let me ask you a simple question - do you want your customers to say positive things about your business to other people? I bet you do, because as we all know "word of mouth" is one of the most effective and low cost ways to find new customers.

When was the last time you had really great customer service? Perhaps it was when you bought something in a store, checked in at a hotel or the airport or even made an enquiry over the phone.

Let's face it; handling sales resistance or objections, as some people like to call it, is the hardest part of the
sales process. Here are 3 simple steps to deal with resistance; or to put it another way - indifference. Customers rarely object to your sales proposal they are often only indifferent to it. You usually encounter indifference because potential customers:

Don't you just hate it when you lose out to a competitor on price? One of my clients recently asked me what to do when one of his salespeople quotes for a customers order and then finds that a competitor gets the order by offering a lower price.

Have you read any of the articles in the media about 'stress at work' and how many work days are lost because of it? There are many reasons why people get stressed and dealing with other people is one of the main causes of negative stress.  Dealing with customers, your boss, the people who work for you and other colleagues can be extremely stressful.

Don't you just hate it when things go wrong? You have an angry customer to deal with who's been let down by some aspect of your product or service. It may even be an internal customer, a colleague or even one of your team who's unhappy with your service to them.

I'll always remember the first sales course I ever attended and the definition of selling that was drummed into my brain.

The easiest way to know if a product is ‘legit’ is to simply purchase it yourself and see if it’s worth its salt. Put yourself in the shoes of the customer and see if the product really adds value or if it solves whatever problem the market wants solved.

FB’s a really great tool to connect and keep in touch with people. Previously, I wasn’t too much of a fan with all the social networking sites (even when I became an Internet marketer) but after using and interacting with people through these social networking sites, I’ve come to love it. If not just for the saying “Hi!” to old friends, then at least just to be curious about what people are up to.

I’m sure you’ve come across websites where just as you’re about to leave, a window pops up and this friendly operator chats with you to entice you to stay on site and hopefully purchase the product on offer.

In fact, your autoresponder is so important that when one millionaire Internet marketer was asked which one of his websites made him the most money, his answer was - “None of them. My autoresponder list is the one that makes me the most money.”

The luxury brand uses hard data on employee and customer engagement to create its image and ambience -- and to drive measurable results