American and International Info Resources

Without people you are never going to run a large business and without the right people you are never going to own a successful one. Employing people is not like buying a piece of machinery; as they do not come with money back guarantee or an instruction manual. You can’t just switch them on when you need to, or run them continuously for 24 hrs a day and then trade them in for a newer model at will. However employing the right people for your business can truly take you forward ahead of your competition. But before you decide whom, you need to decide should I?

Take Billy he is a self employed electrician and a very good one. He has spent 20 years working for large companies and had previously decided to set up on his own. He wanted a better quality of life, see the kids more and be in control of his destiny. He does great work and is much in demand, so he decides it is time to employ for the first time. He takes on 2 further electricians and a trainee to keep costs down. Within another 12 months he is now employing 10 people, including a secretary, for invoicing and answering the phone.

His turnover has now massively increased and he is now a true businessman with much respect in his local business club. But Billy is unhappy, as he looks down at his books and diary he realises, that although his turnover has increased, his profits have not, and is taking home pretty much the same wage as he did as a self-employed electrician. This is not all; he is working more hours and can’t take holidays in case something happens whilst he is away. His diary tells him, that he no longer goes onsite, except to fix work that an employee has not finished to standard. He is now a manager of people, a motivator, a social worker, a good guy, a bad guy, an administrator, but there is one thing he no longer is; that is an electrician.

Billy now has now learnt that it costs more than just wages to employ someone. There are insurances, courses, safety procedures, national insurance, work clothes, tools, travelling expenses and holiday pay etc. But one of the biggest lessons he has learnt is that none of his workforce ever works as hard as he hid, or has the flexibility that he had. He blames his workers for this, but none of these issues are his work force’s fault. They are entitled to be safe at work, have their national insurance paid and have holiday pay. And if they wanted to work as hard and have the flexibility of Billy, then they would set up their own business instead of being employed. This means that each job that Billy invoices for is no longer as profitable as the ones he used to do himself. Where as he would stay back and finish a job, his workforce wants to finish on time, then go back or charge you overtime. The list goes on and on. He has over 20 years experience of being and electrician, but not one day’s experience of becoming an employer at the point he took his first employee on. Even now, 12 months later he is still serving his apprenticeship.

Billy could have saved himself some grief by deciding why he wanted his business to grow as he had left employment for a better quality of life. He could have spent more time talking to his fellow businessmen about the real issues of employing people and not just those you read on a free brochure.

Then if he still wanted to go ahead, he then could have chosen whom he employed. Should he employ a manager for example, who has experience of managing people to fit in with his own needs, or take fewer people on and subcontracted some of the work out at busy times? A realistic business plan and cash flow predictions would have given indications of his potential earnings and what course to take, or even to decide if the extra commitment of employing was even worth it.

If you relish the idea of a large business, then you probably have no choice to employ, but make sure you do it right first time. Only employ those who want to be employed and trust me; family and friends are not always the best option. Understand the money factors to the full, and accept you will need to put extra time into your employee’s career and well-being. Heath and safety, pensions, employment law are all subjects you will now need to be an expert in and of course how to mange with respect. In most cases if you look after them, they will look after you, but when there are exceptions; deal with them quickly, professionally and to the law.

People do not just work for their wage packet at the end of the week anymore. How they are treat, their workmates, pride of work location, working conditions etc. all play a part in whether someone wants to work for you or not. And in some professions getting the right qualified personnel can be like gold dust, so you may have to give out more than you want to sometimes to keep their loyalty.

But get the right people, treat them well and you could take on the world!

Mark is webmaster for Business Consultant North East and Business Courses and Management Advice.

You can have the best products, the plushest offices, the best location, but unless you are a ‘customer focused’ business, all of this counts for nothing, you will never really hit the heights you deserve.

So what can you do to build a business which focuses outwardly on the customer, and not inwardly on the business?

Build Passion and Commitment

The first building block is passion and commitment. This is the very foundation stone of a customer focused business. Without passion and commitment the structure you will build above will be weak and prone to collapse at the first sign of stress.

The passion and commitment has to come from you and your staff. All of you have to totally believe in the concept of the customer being the centre of everything you do. From the moment you step into work everyone has to do whatever it takes to satisfy the customer.

As the key person in the business what can you do to build passion and commitment? Lead from the front and set an example. Keep the concept at the top of the agenda and demonstrate it in everything you do. Keep talking about it. Celebrate all the great examples of putting the customer totally in focus.

Build Processes Around Your Customer Not The Business

All great businesses have clearly laid down processes on how to get things done. Whether you have a formal Process Manual or a Quick Reference Guide, which sets out your processes, a clear procedure provides confidence and clarity for both your staff and the customer.

But don’t just build your processes around making things easier for you, build them to make things easier for the customer. Look at every step in the process and ask yourself, “Can we do something to make it even easier for the customer to do business with us?” Are there steps which can be refined or even eliminated all together? Be inquisitive, bold and challenging!

Build a Relationship

Building a relationship with your customer is at the very heart of a customer focused model. Build a strong, firm relationship and you will have a customer for life. The basis of relationship building is A.B.C. - Always Be Communicating. Here are some ideas on building an enduring and profitable relationship through ABC:

• Make a point to periodically call your customers. Set up a diary system to provide you with a regular reminder or prompt. Call them even if you have nothing sell! A strange concept perhaps but you never know what will come out of the conversation

• Issue quarterly newsletters telling them about your latest products, what you have planned for the future, a customer profile, news about new employees. Find anything which would be of interest and at the same time binding both of you closer together

• Make it a point during any conversation to find out something about the business you didn’t know before. File away any interesting fact and think how you can use it in the future. Imagine how powerful it would be when you ask how the idea they mentioned in your last conversation was going!

• Do memorable things. Send birthday or anniversary cards to your key contact, a simple thank you note for doing business with us, send articles or newspaper cuttings, which you think will be of interest to them

Build a Culture of ‘Wanting To Know’

If you are to build a reputation for being customer focused you should be making an effort to find out on a regular basis what they want from you. This can be achieved by either an informal phone call or a more formal survey via mail or e-mail. Find out what they like about your business, what they don’t like and what changes they would like to see.

Having gathered together all the information, suggestions and ideas, set out an action plan to follow up. Once you have acted upon the workable suggestions, get in touch with the customers again and tell them what you have done in response to their comments. This will demonstrate that you have taken their ideas seriously and really care about what they think. Powerful stuff!

Being customer focused can be very rewarding and help in building a great business. Which of these steps are you going to put into practice today? Remember this - let the customer be your focus and you will become their focus.

Small Business Success is a resource dedicated to helping small business owners be more successful. If you are looking for a regular flow of ideas and tips then subscribe to Small Business Success a free newsletter, which provides you with quick tips, ideas and articles. Visit http://smallbusinesssuccess.biz

The Truth

Lets be honest you decided to click on this link for one of the following reasons:

You want to improve your golf game (score).
You were intrigued by the prices we offer compared to Name Brand equipment.
You want to finally have a set of irons or a driver that is custom fit to your swing.
With that being said, I want to tell you that you have come to the right place, and our Buyer’s Guide will help you in ALL of those areas. And lucky for you it will not be in the typical complicated jargon that most Fitting guides are arranged in. This will be in a straight forward step by step process, that will have you on your way to a better, more enjoyable game in no time.

The Problem(s)
Golf is actually a simple game our brains and golf magazines just make it more complicated then it needs to be. The majority of golfers have the same problems that need to be fixed. But most of us come to the solution in the wrong manner. We tend to think that if something new comes out it must be better and that the higher the price on the equipment you buy means the better the equipment must be. Then we tend to blame ourselves when that $1200 set we purchased does not lower our score.

We want you to remember that the Pro shop salesmen that sold you your set has most likely never built a set of clubs and most likely does not know what the specifications of the Pro-line shafts are. The shaft is the motor, and who wants to buy a Lexus with a Yugo motor under the hood?

The Solution
Whether the problem you are having with your game seems to be simple or complicated. It most likely can be fixed by looking at your present game and equipment from only a few different angles.

You could feel like you have the best swing in the world and the following variables could be killing your game. Club Head Style, Shaft Choice, Shaft Length, Grip Size and Flex are the major components to properly fitting a golfer and if ONLY ONE of these variables is not matched up to your swing you could be in for a nightmare of bad habits to come.

Take only a few minutes out of your day to look over the following Self-Help Guides and we promise that you will not only improve your game but you will be become the most informed golfer on your block.

Club Head Style

Did you ever say to yourself, “I don’t feel like my swing is that bad, why can’t I still break (80,90,100).” Well if you do then CLUB HEAD STYLE might be one of your problems.

Technology has come a long way, so if you are still playing irons that are 5 years old or more you most likely could benefit from the advances in new iron head construction. Here are some of the variables of a head that have an impact on making the game a little easier for the average golfer. Click on each title for how each one can help your game. Yes, we know this is a lot of information for just the first section but take it step by step and let it sink in a little.

Offset

Offest is the amount the face of the club sits back from the hosel, this aids in helping reduce a slice with your clubs. Generally the better golfer you are the less offset you want. However this is not always true. For some reason the better your score gets the less you start liking the look of the iron head sitting that far back from the hosel. It is a hand control issue more then anything else. When you feel like you are the one actually in control of the club you want there to be less and less offset on your new sticks. But for a Mid to High handicap player offset can be a MAJOR factor in making solid contact more often. And the best analogy I can give you is if you were a baseball player would you rather have the feeling of hitting a home run or a broken bat single. Solid contact plays a major role in ditance and accuracy control. So if you are constantly having that broken bat single feeling with your irons you might want to consider going to a head with more offset.

Perimeter Weighting

You might have noticed the trend in the cavity design of new irons lately. Irons in past years had more of the weight behind the impact area of the cavity. Today’s irons have more of the weight towards the perimeter of the cavity. This is what is called PERIMETER WEIGHTING . If you always hit the ball dead center perfect, you would want a small sweet spot and no perimeter weighting so you could put as much physical mass directly behind the impact point of the ball. This would make a very long shot. However, if you are off even just a millimeter your shot will go astray. By having an iron that is perimeter weighting you are maximizing the forgiveness of your irons. So unless you play 4 to 5 times a week you most likely do not hit the center of the sweet spot 100% of the time. Therefore you might want to consider the amount of perimeter weighting you need on your irons.

Sole Width

Sole width is another factor when considering your next iron set purchase. Put simply the larger the mass on your irons the easier it is to be grabbed in a tighter lie out of the rough. A narrower sole is easier out of tight lies and wider soles are easier from plush lies. That is why we tend to recommend a mid to wide soled iron and more blade style wedges. The majority of your wedge shots are going to be from tighter lies or you might have to carry a bunker and still be able to stop it quickly on the green. So for your SW and LW you might want to consider looking in our wedge section and choose from a more traditional shaped wedge.

Heel to Toe Length

This iron attribute is more cosmetic then anything else. But it does affect forgiveness. Some players like the look of a more compact iron, although a longer heel to toe design has a larger effective hitting area. So if you are the kind of golfer that is looking for the maximum amount of forgiveness you might also want to consider a longer heel to toe design.

Face Height

Face Height is similar to Heel to Toe length. If you are looking for the most forgiving iron you should take face height in consideration.

SHAFT CHOICE
Shaft Choice is the most important dynamic to improving your present game and equipment. We know that you are hearing this a lot lately, but this is one statement your buddy is right about.

Most recreational golfers think that flex is the ONLY thing they need to worry about in regards to being fit properly. You don’t know how many times we get the guy saying, “Give me x-stiff in my driver, and he hits the ball 175 yds off the tee. Or the guy that says, “Well my buddy saw me swing and he said I need stiff.” First things first, don’t listen to the buddy who just read a “Golf Digest” and thinks he’s the golf guru, but still shoots 20 strokes worse then you do. I personally think that custom club builders are the most knowledgable in the business in regards to being able to properly fit a golfer. That is our job, to properly fit and build irons and woods to a golfers swing. Pro Line shops are there to sell equipment and have most likely never built a club . So we would hope you would call someone in our field before having “Harry the Hacker” giving you a backyard fitting.

Ok, enough of the rambling by us lets get down to how we are going to help you become not only a more knowledgable golfer but a better golfer as well.

Kick Points

Ball flight is a problem for many golfers that are not even aware of it. Many golfers are losing 3-5 strokes a round just because they have too low of a ball flight pattern. No, we do not want you to have a high BALLONING ball flight. But, yes you do want a more penetrating higher ball flight that lands softly. Think about the shots that you have to play over a bunker with the pin tucked closely behind . With too low of a ball flight you might land on the green but not be able to stop the ball before you have run it 30 ft past the pin. You happily walk up to the green, pray for a two putt and go to the next tee box. But what if you could have played that same shot and been able to stop the ball 10-15 ft past the cup. You might have been able to sink a one putt and saved one to two strokes on that hole alone. The tables below show which shafts give you the ball flight you are looking for.

Shaft Torque

Just because a shaft says stiff flex does not mean that it is the right shaft for you, even if you fit that criteria. Torque comes into play as well when properly fitting a shaft to a golfers swing speed.

Think about a $4 graphite shaft that is a stiff flex and a $40 graphite shaft that is also a stiff flex. There has to be a reason why that shaft is more expensive . Generally it is for a couple reasons : Better materials, better tolerances, and more precise kick points and torque tolerances for the flex it should correspond with.

To get the maximum distance and control out of your shaft you need to have the right torque rating . If you hit the ball 275 on average without roll and are playing a 2.5 torque stiff shaft you are most likely not getting everything out of that shaft as you should be. Remember torque is the amount the head turns on the shaft from right to left. If you do not put enough load on the shaft to maximize the 2.5 torque rating you are not allowing the shaft to load and unload to its maximum capacity. Therefore you are not getting the maximum distance out of your new stick.

Most hitters need “a little pop” to help the clubhead release properly through impact. Players should not get carried away in thinking that lower torque means better control. The following chart will assist you in getting the right torque rating for your next driver shaft. Remember that this rating is more precise for higher quality shafts, due to the fact that they rate there shafts more accurately.

Shaft Weight

DON’T PAY ATTENTION TO SWINGWEIGHTING SO MUCH. To many golfers get caught up in trying to get that D2 weighting they hear about . But remember every golfer likes a different feel . Some like more feel in the head some like their weight more evenly distributed throughout the entire club. And remember also that irons and woods are different . I prefer a lighter feeling head on my driver, so by the 14 th hole I don’t feel like I am lugging around a 2 X 4 . This way I feel like I am in more control of my game throughout my entire round. This is just one opinion, but the point is to have you start actually thinking about the clubs in your bag in a different light . Think about it, if you could afford a $5000 suit that was totally custom fit to your body and money was no issue then you would do that for yourself. Well why wouldn’t you completely customize your driver or new irons if you could afford it. Oh yeah you can!! With the prices we sell our equipment for, you can customize your clubs in every aspect possible.

SHAFT LENGTH

Shaft length is very important but typically shaft length in drivers is where most golfers are making their mistakes . However for your irons we do not want you tailoring your swing to your clubs . There are enough variables to be worried about in golf, the last thing you want is to have a perfect swing and equipment that does not match up.

Do you find yourself choking up more often then not? Or do you wake up the morning after your round with a sore back? That is your body telling you that you need to get your clubs custom fit. In addition, that is also your body telling you it is having to change its motion to match up to your equipment. NOT GOOD. If you take your body out of its natural rhythm, BELIEVE me your game will never be allowed to flourish.

Below is a list of problems that could be occurring due to the wrong length shaft:

Clubs Too Long

Low Hook - Tends to make the toe of the club stick up. This causes the heel of your club to grab first which turns your toe in causing the right to left spin on the ball and the lower ball flight.
Higher Ball Flight Then Normal - Many times golfers with too long of a club will tend to try to over compensate, which causes them to stand too tall and lean back on their downswing. The leaning back can cause extra loft to be added to the head which can cause a high shot with a loss of distance.
Super Fat Shots - Your body has to compensate for the extra length if your clubs are too long. But since this is not your bodies natural motion it will tend to forget about 40% of the time. So when your body forgets that extra length makes contact with the ground a hair to soon. This is what will cause those Super-Fat shots.
Worm Burner - This is the opposite of the Super-Fat shot . In this instance your body actually over compensates for the length and stands too tall. You then make your contact in the center of the ball. This will cause that screaming worm burner or the shot that flies 60 yds. over the green.
Clubs Too Short

Push Or Slice - Too short of an iron will have to toe pointing down into the ground. This causes the toe to grab to early and pushes your heel forward. This causes the left to right spin or the open face which causes the push or slice.
Catching It Thin - If you are catching it a little thin more often then not. You might have a set of irons that are a little too short for you.

SHAFT FLEX

Imagine taking your 9 yr old sons clubs out to play in your next tournament. Or imagine playing with the long drive Champions driver. You think you would be able to perform as well with their equipment? Most likely not. And one of the reasons is because the flex of those clubs most likely does not fit your swing speed . Flex is the amount the club flexes from front to back. Torque is the amount the head twists from right to left (FOR RIGHTIES). So both components are important when it comes to picking the right shaft for your game.

Too flexible of a shaft and your going to have less control, and you will produce a draw or a hook.

Too stiff of a shaft and you are going to lose some distance, and you will produce a fade or a slice.

We would love to give you a table that shows exactly what swing speed corresponds with what shaft flex. But unfortunately every shaft company goes by different standards . So a UST Gold 75 stiff might play a whole flex stiffer then a Penley Graphite Light Stiff. The following tables are a good rule of thumb for the majority of shafts on the market.

About the Author

When you visit www.golfideas.com you quickly get the feeling that these guys have the right stuff. But it is not until you call them until you get the full effect of why they are still around after 6 years online.

The name of your cleaning business will be used in all your
advertising. You are the business name. Consider your
competition and the business names they use. How does it
relate to the information you know about them? What about
what you assume about them without even knowing them or the
work they do? What do you look for in your local Yellow
Pages, periodicals or Internet directories when searching
out a business to do work for you? This is how your
potential clients are going to be feeling about your
business name.

Names including maid or housekeeping generally attract
people wanting light cleaning, picking up, and doing the
laundry and the dishes.

If your business name includes cleaning, people who would be
interested in you are not thinking about laundry and dishes
- they’re looking for good, thorough cleaning.

Your business name may include a benefit. If your vision
includes houses or offices that sparkle, you may want to
include it in your business name. You will actually get
inquiry calls and new clients because of it.

Your business name is really important and must not be
changed after you start using it. If you change it and
people recognize that you did, they begin to wonder
immediately why you had to change your business name,
assessing it was for negative reasons.

Gail Metcalf built her cleaning business from the ground up.
Learn more with The House Cleaning Pro Turnkey System and the Pro
Tips and Tricks. Site Map available on The House Cleaning Pro
website. Permission is granted to reproduce this article but
credit must be given to the author. No part of the article
content can be modified, and a link must be provided to:
http://HouseCleaningPro.com

Hampton Court Palace is placed to the south-west of London, on the edge of the River Thames, boarded by wooded areas and beautiful grounds. Hampton Court Palace, Henry 8’s dazzling riverside home is positioned in well over four-hundred acres of woodland and gardens.

Calling to mind the ambience of over four hundred and fifty years of legacy, costumed staff can be glimpsed inside Henry eights & King William thirds brilliant own residences. The sights, noise and aromas of the amazing Tudor kitchens where feasts were made for Henry?s dinning room of well over 900 individuals can also be viewed. Hampton Court London can be purchased via Enjoy England, The official website for tourism in England.

Hampton Court Palace has been separated into 6 routes or excursions. The Maze at Hampton Court Palace which is located on the River Thames to the west of London City is in all probability the most familiar hedge maze in the world.

Hampton Court palace has a ghastly tradition & is allegedly occupied by quite a few ghosts, including two of Henry 8ths wives & a nursemaid to his family. Hampton Court Palace keepers & employees will be around to show guests to their elected state accommodation for a cava and canap?s greeting. Costumed staff will declare the evening dinner and guests will be asked to go to their reserved seats for a superb 2 course meal with the best fine wines.

Hampton Court Palace has over sixty acres of official gardens besides the five-hundred acres of royal wooded areas. The royal grounds go back to the sixteenth Century, when the first Privy Garden was installed between 1530 & 1538 for King Henry VIII.

Ever heard the saying “Penny-wise and Dollar-foolish”?

Well bargain priced website hosting may just represent the
perfect example of watching a jar full of pennies while
bucket loads of dollars fly out the window!

When I launched my first website way back in the “dark ages”
of 1997 I paid almost $150 a month in hosting and data
transfer charges.

My web host watched how many files I uploaded like a hawk
and always seemed to send their hefty invoices earlier with
each passing month.

I’m obviously not the only one who felt that way, because
suddenly a whole industry of “bargain” web hosts sprang up
all over the web.

On the surface they all sound great, especially when you
think you can go from $150 a month down to $4.95 a month!

Five bucks a month sounds great, until you realize the
amount of data transfer (number of page views) and bandwidth
(the amount of data transfer your host allows in a 24 hour
period) you get for that low price severely limits your
ability to do business.

This realization - along with a panic attack and a quick
lesson in how data transfer and bandwidth get calculated -
usually comes at the least convenient time.

When you exceed your limits, a bargain host usually just
shuts you down with no warning.

Most webmasters realize they’ve made a mistake by choosing a
bargain host when their site suddenly gets shut down in the
middle of a big promotion because of a traffic spike.
Believe me, everything just stops!

Here are a few bargain hosts that provide good service, but
you really need to really check the fine print for how much
bandwidth they allow.

www.FeaturePrice.com

For $24.95 a month you get to host up to six independent
websites with a single account. You get unlimited data
storage, unlimited email and a variety of other higher end
services, but their bandwidth policy seems hard to
understand.

www.HostSave.com

Host Save is another low price hosting company that delivers
a wide range of services for only $6.95 per month. They
recently raised their allowable data transfer, but their
policy on how much bandwidth you can use at a given time
seems non-existent.

www.DotEasy.com

For $25 DotEasy offers a domain name purchase along with one
year’s hosting. Sounds incredible until you read the fine
print to discover they limit you to 1 Gigabyte of data
transfer a month. Not much data once you start getting
reasonable site traffic.

The moral here? Either be prepared to have your business
shut down mid-stream if you get successful, or pay a few
extra bucks each month to ensure you have enough bandwidth
and data transfer.

At a minimum, specifically ask and read the fine print about
the host’s bandwidth and data transfer policies before it’s
too late!

© Jim Edwards - All Rights reserved - http://www.thenetreporter.com

Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the
co-author of an amazing new ebook that will teach you how to
use fr^e articles to quickly drive thousands of targeted
visitors to your website or affiliate links…

Simple “Traffic Machine” brings Thousands of NEW visitors to
your website for weeks, even months… without spending a
dime on advertising! ==> “Turn Words Into
Traffic”

In this day and age, your business card is a Web site. When people hear
of your company or wish to seek further information on it, they want to do
so on their own time, online. From there they can e-mail you with
questions, or place an order if you offer products online as well. In fact,
with the amount of trade that can be achieved through a Web site, it’s no
wonder that so many “brick and mortar” small businesses have made
the jump to E-commerce.

The decision to launch a Web site for a business owner has gone from
“if” to “when,” in just a decade. However, the expectations of your
average site visitor have also changed in that time. Cheap, home-made
Web sites are no longer acceptable. The site you create for your
business is a stamp on its credibility; therefore the process of designing
and launching one must be taken seriously and considered to be an
earnest business investment.

If you were to invest in new equipment, new vehicles, or even new
employees for your business, you would take the time necessary to seek
out the best, most cost-effective, most-qualified selection. You certainly
wouldn’t buy the first truck you saw at the dealership, or hire the first
person who walked into your office. The same time and care must be
taken when choosing a Web designer. Here are some tips to finding the
right designer, asking the right questions, and what to expect when
launching a Web site for your business:

Do not race to find a Web designer. What’s the rush? Finding the right
Web designer is like finding the right architect to build a new business
office. The time you spend looking at Web sites, asking friends and
colleagues, and viewing portfolios is well worth it if you consider what it
would cost to rebuild your site with someone else when the designer
you hastily hired fails to meet your needs.

When you see a Web site you like, check out who designed it. This
information is usually available in the bottom of the page. Or, contact the
business and ask. If they are happy with the job done by the designer,
they’ll be more than willing to refer you!

When you do narrow your decision down to a few designers, check out
their Web sites for look and feel and thoroughly examine their portfolios.

Bring samples. Surf the Web and determine the kinds of things you like
and don’t like before ever walking into the office of a Web design firm. If
you have an idea of what you want your site to look like, express it -
even if it means providing an embarrassingly rough drawing on your
own. Web designers are very creative people, but if you don’t give them
some direction, they’ll create without your input.

You have to be specific. Don’t tell your designer you want a “cool” site.
While it’s true that you may want a cool site, you should bring to the
table the types of things you imagine to be cool. Your designer is there
to help you determine the best style for your site, so don’t be afraid to
provide specific examples of how you’d like your site to look.

Get it in writing. As with any other business partnership, you must get
everything in writing. This means going beyond the initial contract you
and your designer sign. Keep notes during meetings and save every e-
mail and written communication. There may be times when things are
decided during “casual” meetings, such as when certain site elements
will be completed, or something as simple as adding a graphic or two.
By tracking these conversations, you will have a record to return to if
things go off track or off schedule.

Web Design Firm or Independent Programmer? Web design firms are
not your only option when it comes to launching a Web site. There are
many independent programmers out there who can provide the same
service as a design firm, and for less money. Most of these programmers
worked for design firms before striking out on their own.

There are advantages and disadvantages, of course. Independent
programmers may be less expensive, but you are limited to receiving
only the service that particular programmer is skilled in. If you decide to
add a component to your site that your programmer cannot develop for
you, you’ll have to pay someone else to do it. Most design firms employ
programmers of all capabilities in order to meet customer requests, and
their services are part of the deal when you hire the firm.

Independent programmers are harder to locate than design firms. Part of
what makes an independent programmer less expensive is the fact that
he or she does not have the same overhead as a design firm.
Advertising is expensive.

If you think you would rather use an independent programmer than a
design firm, return to your friends and colleagues and ask around. If you
resort to an online directory or your local telephone book, use the same
process of selection as you would a design firm: ask to see samples and
a portfolio. However, getting a programmer recommendation from
someone you trust is best. Not all programmers are created equal and
an impressive portfolio does not convey an individual’s customer
service skills.

Making Edits and Changes: the waiting game. When you hire a Web
design firm to create and launch your business’s Web site, you are at
the mercy of their busy schedule. You must request edits and changes
be made for you, and they may not be made as quickly as you’d like
them to be.

Some Web design firms provide customers with site administration tools
that allow you to make simple changes and updates as needed. This
type of technology can be more expensive, but worth it if it gives you
more control of your site.

Understand what you’re paying for. Determining the look and feel of
your Web site (the design) and actually building the site are two different
processes of launching a Web site. Be sure to understand what is
included in your contract and what will cost extra. If you wish to add an
eNewsletter sign-up, will it cost more? Will you be charged for every E-
commerce transaction? What will it cost to accept credit card payments
on your site? These are the questions you need to ask when negotiating
prices and deliverables.

You may be responsible for setting up your own business’s and then
work with a programmer to incorporate it into your site. Web hosting fees
are an additional cost you must consider, as well.

Find out if your site is being built from scratch or from templates. Many
designers use pre-made templates, which can bring down the cost of
building the web site. Designers who create your site from scratch may
actually own the source code, which limits your ability to move the site
later on, if you wish to. Be sure to ask your designer up front how he or
she intends to build your site and get written or legal documentation of
the ownership source codes so you don’t run into disputes down the
road.

Be patient, but attentive. Designing a professional Web site is not an
overnight project. It takes time to create and construct the Web site you
want. However, every day you and the designer spend tweaking the site
is another day you are unable to advertise the site, attract visitors to the
site, or sell products online. Be patient with your designer, but keep track
of the agreed schedule.

I also recommend hiring an attorney who is versed in E-commerce
businesses. You will need one to write the “Terms and Policies” for the
web site, as well as proofing the site for any legal complications that
may come up.

Imagine your Web site as a storefront. If you were building a brick and
mortar business on main street, you would: 1) find the right contractor; 2)
have an idea of how you want your business to look and what you want
it to contain; 3) expect the project to take time; and 4) be prepared for
set-backs in scheduling. These are the same responsibilities and
obstacles you will encounter while designing your business’s Web site.

Creating a Web site for your business is an exciting and worthy
undertaking. Take the time to do it right the first time, because there is no
fun or enjoyment in having to do it all over again if you don’t. For some
additional tips, review the Web Site Starter Kit at HYPERLINK “http://
www.inc.com“. To view “cool” and award-winning sites for
ideas, check out HYPERLINK “http://www.designfirms.org/awards/”.

Karen Torbett is founder of Venture Point, LLC http://www.VenturePointOnline.com. She spent almost a decade running
someone else’s company before she achieved her goal of business
ownership. Now, Karen helps entrepreneurs like her seeking to buy or
sell a business on their own. Contact her at:
Karen@venturepointonline.com.

While Adobe is the most known maker of PDF tools, your business will be much better off, if you select third party tools to work with PDF documents.

ABC Amber PDF converter

Priced at eleven dollars, this tool may very well be the cheapest PDF software on the planet. ABC Amber PDF Converter is a powerful tool which allows you to convert PDF to any document format (HTML, CHM, RTF, HLP, TXT, DOC, DBF, XML, CSV, XLS, MDB, DB, MCW, WPS, SAM, RFT, WS4, WS7, WRI, etc.) easily and quickly. You can export all pages or just selected pages, as plain text or as preview pictures.

Download: http://www.deprice.com/abcamberpdfconverter.htm

GuaPDF

Write the name down if you ever forget the password to the protected PDF documents. This is a utility that allows you to bypass the security on PDF documents. Both protection methods are bypassed:

* restricted operations on file can be disabled (instantly, any Acrobat version up to 6.x, even with 128-bit encryption)

* password encrypted file can be decrypted (in a several days or weeks, Acrobat ver. 3.x, 4.x, 40-bit key).

Download: http://www.deprice.com/guapdf.htm

PDFCamp Pro

PDFcamp (pdf writer) installs as a printer driver, making the creation of PDF documents as easy as printing. This gives users a simple way to share any type of Windows document through the standard, universal PDF format. PDFcamp (pdf writer) answers the need of corporations and individuals for an easy to implement low-cost and rapid PDF creation solution.

PDFcamp (pdf writer) Pro includes all of the features in PDFcamp (pdf writer) plus:

* Supports three modes for creating PDF files:

- User interface to manually select output filename

- Automatically convert many files to PDF at one time, without user intervention

- Use BatchToPDF software to create PDF files

* Bundle BatchToPDF software.

Batch convert .doc, .html, .txt, .rtf or any printable files to PDF files on the fly; convert any type and any number of documents to PDF files at one time!

- Supports command line operation (for manual use or inclusion in scripts)

- Supports drag and drop files

- Easy to use; integrates into Explorer right shortcut menu

* Convert multiple files (.doc, .html, .txt, .rtf, .tif, .jpg, etc.) to PDF at one time (batch conversion)

* Batch Word to PDF conversion

* Custom Windows applications, including Visual Basic/Visual C++/Delphi/etc., can easily interface with PDFcamp (pdf writer) and control the PDF file name without user intervention.

Download: http://www.deprice.com/pdfcamppro.htm

John Deprice was one of the earliest adopters of the PDF format. He keeps a small archive of helpful PDF tools at http://www.deprice.com/utilities.htm

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal raised the question: Who’s to blame for inept managers?

The answer, of course, is the superiors who hire or promote them — but not because they intentionally select or retain poor performers. Every leader knows that his or her own success depends on putting the right people in the right positions. It’s easy to blame a manager’s poor performance on his or her boss, but more often than not, managerial incompetence isn’t obvious to superiors. Instead, fault lies with the systems used for evaluation and the alternatives available for dealing with performance failure.

Despite their widespread popularity, standard 360 evaluations and psychometric tests are poor substitutes for informed, thorough evaluation. Standardized assessments and tests are promoted as rapid, economical alternatives for determining competence and assessing performance. Consultants and salespeople alike tout them for their objectivity and accuracy.

In reality, the typical 360 evaluation is far from objective. How can a group of very different people, with very different relationships to the subject and very different priorities, be expected to evaluate an individual professionally and objectively?

Additionally, reliance on these measures can cause you to miss crucial information about how senior executives and managers think and how they relate to others on a day-to-day basis factors that can make or break your organization’s ability to perform. While 360s can appear relatively cheap and quick to implement, a poor evaluation system can have very expensive repercussions.

The second problem is the alternatives available for floundering executives. “Cutting poor performers loose” is a lose-lose proposition as a first-line response. If the alternative is firing, superiors may be reluctant to acknowledge a problem and even colleagues and subordinates might shrink from responsibility for destroying a career. When alternatives, such as a different position or behavioral coaching are available, problems are much more likely to be identified early on.

Every executive has strengths in some arena. The first key to effective leadership is correct placement. If an executive doesn’t have the talent for one area, he or she should be given the opportunity to do a different job. Richard Branson, billionaire founder of the Virgin Group of companies, believes strongly that if an employee is not excelling in one area of the company, he or she should be given the opportunity to do well in a different Virgin Group job. At Virgin, firing is seldom an option.

Coaching, too, can make a difference. It’s understandable that company leaders would hesitate to throw good money after bad by investing in coaching for problem managers. However, many organizations indiscriminately assign rising managers to executive development programs regardless of the specific needs of the individual. This is clearly a waste of time and money. Highly targeted and personalized executive coaching can be far more cost-effective in developing leadership competence.

Today’s organization can’t afford to lose quality people due to managerial incompetence.

But wasting time affixing blame won’t help. Greater investment in effective evaluation and coaching is a drop in the bucket compared to the expense of recruiting and training new people - not to mention the ultimate cost of employee disengagement and apathy.

Dr. Robert Karlsberg and Dr. Jane Adler are senior leadership consultants and founders of Strategic Leadership LLC. They work with senior executives to maximize performance, facilitate transitions and accelerate major change initiatives. Contact them at 301-530-5611 or visit http://www.PsychologyofPerformance.com

Historically, customer service was delivered over the phone or in person. Customers didn’t have many choices, and switching to competitors was cumbersome. Today, these methods are but two of the many possible touch points of entry for any given interaction. With all the options the Internet brings, competition is literally a click away. If, as has been reported, 65% of your business comes from current customers, then in order to stay in business, you best focus on winning the satisfaction and loyalty of those customers.

With continued attention on customer service, customer retention, and lifetime value of the customer, it is no surprise that contact center operations continue to increase in importance as the primary hub of a customer’s experience. The contact center is still the most common way that customers get in touch with businesses. In fact, Gartner reports 92% of all contact is through the center.

While much attention has been focused on the technology and benefits of providing multiple channels for customer contact, little consideration has been directed to handling the human part of the equationtraining Customer and Technical Service Representatives to field more than just telephone communications. With the explosion of e-commerce, the need to reinforce keeping the human element in the equation is paramount. Certainly now more than ever before in history, customer-centric service is a necessity.

Twenty five years from now customers will still be human beings, still be driven by desires and needs. Virtual environments do not create virtual customers. Except for the simplest transactions, some customers still need to be connected with and nurtured by a live person. Amazon.com has learned this. They employ hundreds of traditional customer service representatives using phone lines to help customers with questions that cannot be dealt with online.

With the ability to handle simple transactions available by using sophisticated, self-service technology, customer calls, faxes, and/or e-mails are more complex, more complicated, sometime even escalated, heightening stress levels.

At the same time, research has identified the Customer Service and Technical Representative as one of the ten most stressful jobs in America today, with job stress costing employers an estimated $300+ billion yearly in absenteeism, lowered productivity, rising health insurance costs and other medical expenses (up from $200 + billion just ten years ago.)

A recent NIOSH study reported that 50% of employees view job stress as a major problem in their lives–double from a decade ago.

Lines of demarcation have blurred and change is rampant in today’s center. Why? Because of our cell phones, voice mail, faxback, PDA’s, and e-mail. We are now more available and accessible than ever before. The lines are no longer clear as to where our jobs or projects begin and endthey can follow us home again and again.

In today’s competitive marketplace there is little difference between products and services. What makes the difference–what distinguishes one company from another–is its relationship with the customer. Who has the awesome responsibility for representing themselves, their companies, perhaps their industry in general? Front line representatives.

The ability of a company to provide human-to-human connections–back and forth live communication–continues to be critically important. The fact is voice is the most natural and powerful human interface, real time or otherwise. That isn’t going to change any time soon. To the customer, people are inseparable from the services they provide. Actually, the person on the other end of the phone is the company. It is no wonder, then, that companies with superior people management, invest heavily in training and retraining, reinforcing the human element.

Yet customers still leave. The latest statistics on why are:

• 45% because of poor service

• 20% because of lack of attention.

This means that 65% of your customers leave because of something your front line is, or is not, doing.

• 15% for a better product

• 15% for a cheaper product and

• 5% other

This is the good and the bad news. It’s bad news because that’s a high percentage. On the other hand, it’s good news because there is something you can do about itit resides on the human side.

It is agreed that people, process, and ’state of the art’ technology are what make companies work. For me, the people process is most important. After all, it’s the people who truly make the difference.

Never lose sight of the fact that we are human beings, not merely ‘human doings.’ The fact is 70% to 90% of what happens with customers is driven by human nature, having nothing to do with technology. Technology is meant to enable human endeavors, not to disable them.

Extraordinary service or lack thereof, separates the good from
the great companies. As more and more organizations are turning to the contact center as a strategic player in the competitive landscape, it is in the throes of re-inventing itself to step up to the plate and become the heart of a company’s customer facing operations.

Empathetic Responsiveness

The ability to put yourself in another person’s shoes and see their point of viewnot agree with them, not make them right and your company wrongbut hear what they are saying. After all, basic needs of all of us are to be heard and treated with dignity and respect.

I think of a call as an ABC process. ‘A’ represents the customer presenting their question, request, complaint or problem. ‘C’ is the ultimate resolution. Most times ‘B’ is either skipped or left outbecause of metrics, calls in queue, or simply because you know the answer before the customer is even finished speaking. ‘B’ is where the agent acknowledges what they hearbe it upset, anger, frustration, or fear. Or, a simple ‘thank you for taking the time to call and bring this to our attention.’

After all, if a customer calls in to complain, you have the opportunity/challenge to turn them around. If they don’t call, and only complain to other people, you have no opportunity. Does going through ‘B’ take longer? Not at all. It allows you to move the customer to a more productive interaction and close the call. I’ve heard many customers repeat their opening paragraph (A) over and over, while at the same time the agent is trying to get them to resolution (C). Red alert! Red alert! Acknowledge what is behind the words and you will move them quickly to ‘C.’ I believe you can’t go from A to C without going through B.
If all customers wanted just the facts (and some do), they could ascertain the information online. Most customers (people) want the human interaction, someone to hear them, someone to care. A simple, “I’m so sorry that was your experience. My name is Rosanne and I’m going to do my best to help you right here and now.”

Self Service

When asked the question in a recent study, “What is the biggest barrier your company encounters to self-service effectiveness?” only 14% of the customers replied they don’t know about it.’ This means that the 86% who do know about it and attempt to use it (1) find it too hard to navigate, (2) can’t find the answers, and/or (3) don’t trust the system or the answers they do find.

Research shows that customers prefer to deal with companies who are the most consistently accessible. When customers experience a level of service from email and chat support, for instance, that equals or exceeds voice support, then and only then will they gladly migrate to those channels to resolve their problems and inquiries.

To increase customers’ satisfaction, be sure to:

1) Phone: Have a ‘zero out’ option on your system

2) Website: Have your phone number or a button to speak with a human

3) E-mail: Rephrase the issue in the opening paragraph.
Purchasing Process

In an interview with Delia Passi Smalter, the former publisher of Working Woman and Working Mother magazines, we found very interesting statistics regarding female demographics (Incentive Magazine, 2003). It seems that women are making over 85% of consumer purchases and influencing more than 95% of total goods and services. Smalter distinguishes the purchasing process women and men go through. The biggest one, she says, is that women need to feel more of a connection to the TSR; they need to trust the corporation and the brand. Price becomes secondary. Women take in a lot of information, including recommendations from friends and family, company and brand reputation, feelings about her contact person, and how the brand will impact her life. Not so for men. Men take a systematic approach, allowing outside influence to some degree, but mostly they are focused on price.

One of the most influential documents in the world, the U.S. Constitution, begins with “We, the people…” Yes, ‘we the people’ are what makes the difference.

ROSANNE D’AUSILIO, Ph.D., an industrial psychologist, and President of Human Technologies Global, Inc., specializes in profitable call center operations in human performance management. Over the last 20 years, she has provided needs analyses, instructional design, and customized, live customer service skills trainings. Also offered is agent and facilitator university certification through Purdue University’s Center for Customer Driven Quality.

Known in the industry as ‘the practical champion of the human,’ the 4th edition of her best selling book, “Wake Up Your Call Center: Humanize Your Interaction Hub,” is hot off the press and available at http://www.human-technologies.com, Purdue University Press, Amazon.com, or your local bookstore. Her second book, Customer Service and the Human Experience (co-authored with Dr. Jon Anton), is available at http://www.BenchmarkPortal.com/human.

Rosanne is also a Certified Call Center Benchmarking Auditor through Purdue University’s Center for Customer Driven Quality. She sits on the Editorial Advisory Panel and is a columnist for Call Center.