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Businesses with a culture of openness and free-flowing information fare better in challenging economic times, says Quint Studer, author of Straight A Leadership: Alignment, Action, Accountability. That’s because employees feel more connected to the big financial picture and, as a result, work harder and are more efficient. Read More

In today’s highly competitive business environment, understanding your target audience and how your product or service offerings differ from the competition’s is especially important. That’s where customer satisfaction research comes in. You need to ask your customers how your company is performing in their eyes, rather than make an educated guess about what they think of your business. Read More

Defining your company’s brand enables you to present the most important facts about your business in a compelling way, helping you to better connect with your target customers. But that’s certainly easier said than done, says Erin Ferree, founder of elf design. Read More

Is your company a great innovator? According to business development expert Dan Adams, author of “New Product Blueprinting: The Handbook for B2B Organic Growth,” the true litmus test is customer engagement. “Too many companies fail to factor the customer into their innovation efforts,” he says. Read More

Letting your good manners show isn’t only for face-to-face meetings with customers. You should take advantage of every opportunity to show your appreciation, especially as part of an email marketing strategy, says Steve Adams, vice president of marketing for Protus, a provider of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) communication tools for growing businesses and enterprise organizations. Read More

A new study from Network Solutions and the Center for Excellence in Service found that social media usage among small businesses increased to 24% in 2009, up 12% over 2008. Seventy-five percent of respondents said they have a company page on a social networking site like Facebook or LinkedIn, and 50% believe it will make them money in the next 12 months. Read More

In today’s tough economy, it’s no longer enough to generate great ideas for your growing business. To get ahead, you have to communicate effectively to customers as part of the relationship marketing process. That means connecting on an emotional level. “You have to learn to show your value,” says Maribeth Kuzmeski, author of The Connectors: How the World’s Most Successful Read More

Every sales professional talks about referrals being one of the most successful sales techniques, but few actually pursue them. According to Jim Cross, author of Bacon & Eggs: How to be Totally Committed to Your Sales Career, referrals should be considered a by-product of excellent customer service standards. If you’re not asking for referrals, he notes, you’re only cheating yourself. Read More

If you haven’t jumped on the social media marketing (SMM) bandwagon as part of your brand-building strategy because you think it’s just a fad with no real bottom-line benefit, think again. SMM is a vital addition to any PR campaign. It can lead to more customers and higher sales — the exact payoff every business needs. Read More

In a public speaking role, your goal is to deliver a specific message and make it stick with the audience. But in an effort to save on travel costs, more businesses are shunning in-person events for webinars — live presentations delivered over the Internet. So how do you catch and keep listeners’ attention? Read More