Blog
Be fearless when asking for help; especially from the Big Shots
Well, since I’m stuck here in Columbus thanks to that no-good ground hog, I just read an article in BusinessWeek this morning called “The Art of Doing It Yourself,” which said, “Share your ideas with those who have done it before. You can learn a lot from the experiences of seasoned entrepreneurs, and they are much more approachable than you think.” I couldn’t agree more. It reminds me of…
First Impressions Get Faster: Scott Ginsberg Featured in Today’s Wall Street Journal!
It’s 6:00 AM here in Columbus. I’m delivering the closing keynote at the Ohio Workforce 411 Conferencein about 6 hours. Couldn’t sleep last night. I was too excited about the article in the the Wall Street Journal by Jeffrey Zaslow called “First Impressions Get Faster.” I WAS going to share the link to the article in this blog post, but I couldn’t view the online text unless I became…
The best birthday wish I got yesterday came from…MBNA Elite Rewards?
Just got my new MBNA Elite Rewards Credit Card in the mail. When I called the 800 number to activate my account, I was prompted with the standard recording which requested, “Please enter your account number to expedite your call.” I punched it in and pressed the pound key. Two seconds later the woman’s voice on the recording said, “Thank you…and we would like to wish you a happy…
Leave it to my mother to make Valentine’s Day more approachable
God bless my mom. She loves to go all out for Valentine’s Day, mainly because it also happens to be my birthday. (Yeah, I know. Insert corny joke here.) During our Sunday night hoo-rah, she made it a point to include all invitees in a game called Conversation Cards. According to the rules: “The object is to give people an opportunity to learn more about their friends, spouses, boyfriends…
If you’re a service provider who’s even thinking about writing a book, read this first!
I’ve been writing a regular column for RainToday.com for several months now. If you haven’t heard of these guys already, here’s what they’re all about. RainToday.com is the premier online source for insight, advice, and tools for service business rainmakers, marketers, and leaders. Based in Framingham, Massachusetts, RainToday.com’s core offerings include: Free articles by well-respected marketing, sales, and service business experts on core topics in selling and marketing professional…
I think People Watching should be an Olympic Event
Scott Adams says, “People are idiots.” Scott Ginsberg says, “People are fascinating.” (Although some of them are idiots too.) But today I observed an intriguing example of human behavior at Starbucks. I sat in a corner chair with my Grande Carmel Apple Cider – the perfect drink on a bitterly cold day in St. Louis – and while I journaled and listened to some tunes on my Ipod, I…
5 Ways to Become a Better Conversationalist
Some people are just GREAT conversationalists. Period. They can talk to anybody, anytime, anywhere about any topic. And maybe it’s because they’re funny, interesting, outgoing, brilliant, up with the news, ask great questions, listen attentively and the like. But effective, engaging conversation also stems from preparation. Last week I attended a seminar hosted by my friend Dale Furtwengler. One of his key points was called “Get An Eclectic Education.”…
And now for our word of the day: ubiquitous
Great word: ubiquitous. It means “existing or being everywhere at the same time, constantly encountered or widespread.” Some synonyms include: everywhere, pervasive, far-reaching, copious, continual, everyday, familiar, persistent and recurring. Why do I bring this up? Well, first of all, it’s a fun word to say. In fact, try it right now. Really quick – say it out loud: ubiquitous. Just do it. Don’t worry about the guy sitting…
Accessible = Approachable = $$$
“Gee, you guys are tough to get a hold of…” “I finally tracked you down!” “I’ve been trying to get in touch with you for weeks.” This is not good. When your answer the phone and hear one of these comments, it means that your caller, potential customer, raving fan or transient website visitor who would just LOVE to talk to you, who FINALLY got a hold of you…
What’s in a name? Sometimes nothing…
After watching yesterday’s Superbowl and its entertaining commercials (way to go Big Ben!) it’s fascinating to think about companies who spend millions of dollars creating a catchy, memorable new name for their hot new item…and compare it with businesses whose brand success comes from, ironically, having no name at all. I remember studying this topic in one of my marketing classes at Miami of Ohio. Actually, I think Roethlisberger’s…
