If sales of your products and services have been diving off a cliff or are just plain flat, there are other paths to improvement besides simply reducing prices. To find the clues that lead to those answers, you will need to do a little detective work. Good detectives don’t typically rely on just luck and […]
Category Archives: Small Business
Aesop knew what he was talking about
As a child, I remember hearing countless stories, including the fables attributed to Aesop, the ancient Greek writer. In his tales, Aesop used animals to represent various human traits. He’d then end each story with a simple moral — a life lesson meant to inform and instruct. One such fable, often credited to Aesop, told […]
A coffeehouse state of mind
I’ve always wondered how fancy coffee shops could charge so much for a product that is worth pennies on the dollar. But I recently had an eye-opening experience that caused my opinion to sway. While feeling slightly impatient waiting for a cup of joe, my attitude was shockingly transformed by the laid-back atmosphere, the enchanting […]
First to market, lasting success? Not a guarantee.
Being first to market is no guarantee you’ll succeed. The business annals are littered with tales of cutting-edge companies that eventually lost out to newcomers who built a better mousetrap that redefined the game. Google is a great case in point. By 1998, when Google burst on the scene, search engines and directories such as […]
The surprising value of a lifelong customer
How many customers do you have? A florist might say 1,000. Printers — well, we have a few, too, right? How much is your average sale? For realtors (according to Google) — about $260,000. For florists (I’m guessing here) — $100. Printers… well, you know what you spend with us. So think about it this […]