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Providing Excellent Customer ServiceBy Staff on June 30, 2008 | No Comments
It can be said that everyone has had a great customer service experience at some point in their life. Whether it was when you went out for pizza or took your family out to one of the local restaurants, you have come across someone that has wowed you with their customer service .
When you think about what customer service means to you, what do you think about? Do you see someone being professional with you and catering to your every need? Do you envision a person or company that is there for you when your product is no longer performing at the standard that you expected it to? Customer service can come in many different shapes and forms. It means different things to different people.
There are companies that have an entire department devoted to helping others. When you research the company online and need to talk to someone about some issues they have been having, you look for the customer service line. The people on the other end of the phone, email or letter are trained in order to assist you in every matter pertaining to the issue at hand.
Companies can succeed or fail based on their level of serving their clients. The moment or moments the company loses touch with their service to the public the harder it is for that company to succeed.
How does one provide excellent service?
• Having a professional demeanor no matter how the customer reacts
• Being able to find a solution for them when it seems like there is not a solution
• Knowing how to caterer yourself to match their lifestyle
• Understand what is important to the person in which you are speaking to
• Knowing when to speak and when to listen
• Practice makes perfectSome people believe that most of it is a skill that is possessed from their birth. There are many people that have a good knack for getting to know those people that are around them and finding out what makes them tick. The better a person is with taking care of the clients they have the better it is for the business. Just think how great it would be for businesses if everyone that was employed by them would be good at taking care of their customers.
Going into a retail environment is different than going into a restaurant. What do you expect out of a retail environment when you go in?
• A friendly hello as you enter
• Someone to ask to help you within a decent amount of time
• That person that greats you, to be able to help you find what you need
• Making the sales process easy to go through understand and know what to do next
• Someone telling you thank you for coming in.When going into a restaurant, you might expect something a little different.
• To be seated in less than five minutes of entering
• Not be seated by the kitchen
• When you are seated, your server comes soon to take your order
• After the order is placed, the food and drinks come quickly
• During your feasting, your glass of beverage, never is empty
• You look for your server to present your check at the right time. To early denote they want you to hurry up. Too late, shows that the server is not paying attention.
• When leaving the restaurant, being thanked for coming inCustomer service can come in many different ways. Everyone has encountered great service and some have encountered horrible service. Hopefully we all encounter more great days of service than not.
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Applying Quality Assurance To Our LivesBy Staff on June 28, 2008 | No Comments
Quality assurance has been defined as a process that allows a person to take meaningful and deliberate steps to attain a specific target or ambition. Many companies use quality assurance employees or companies in order that they know at all times that their company has the highest standards for products and employees.
A big question that a lot of people might have is, if quality assurance helps so many companies and is so effective in creating successful businesses, why do individuals not take these same tactics and apply them in their everyday lives? It is a great question, and one that should be asked by anyone seriously wanting to improve their life and relationships. If people were as careful with the choices they make in their own lives, whether big or small, as they were picky about the people who work under them or the type of image they put across at work, they would see huge improvements in their lives.
Take the above mentioned definition of quality assurance , for instance. It is a process. So many people think they have to do things right the first time, and if they do not, they give up. While trying your hardest and trying to get it right the first time is a good idea and shows strength and focus, you have to realize also that you are human, and mistakes happen constantly. If you do not succeed the first time, or even the second, all you can do is try again. If it is important enough to you, you will try until you get it right, it is that simple.
Not only is it a process, but it is a process of meaningful and deliberate steps. These steps are very small many times, so small that you might not even see them. If you have problems in your life, or a theoretical mountain you have to climb, it may seem initially impossible, and you might feel like giving up before you begin. But every step, even if it is tiny, gets you a little closer to where you want and need to be. The steps are meaningful because they are personal to you. Only you can decide what each step you take will be, and therefore mean to you. The steps are deliberate because you decide to take them, you choose to take them. It is a choice, not something you fall into by accident, or let happen to you. When you realize that you truly have this control, and that you can make big things happen by controlling smaller seemingly unimportant things, you will gain load of self confidence and a great feeling of empowerment that is priceless in getting you to your goal.
And this is the last part of the definition of quality assurance , your goal, or target. It is also somehow the first part of the process as well, in that you have to know what your target is before you can even think about beginning to aim for it. Possibly you have decided on a target already, or maybe you do not even know what you want. Whatever the case, you have to know what it is you want, what is your ambition, before you can begin the long path to excellence in both your life and your personal relationships. And once you know, remember to always keep it in your sights.
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Your Hard Work Pays OffBy Staff on June 27, 2008 | No Comments
No matter what you hear out in the business world, it is hard to make a buck these days. You need to be able to come up with ideas that no one else has thought of or beat other companies to the punch. If you are looking for a magic fairy to grant you three wishes of success, then you need to return from never, never land.
Running a business is hard work. You have to put a lot of your heart and soul into what you do. Many people say that you have to have priorities in life and working or your job is a low priority. In reality, working and your job should be one of your highest priorities. Family, your choice of faith and your friends are the most important things that most people look at. Without your job and without income, your faith is tested and your family goes through hard times. Most business owners understand that and know they have to make decisions within their company to grow the bottom line.
How much are you willing to spend to see the maximum return? Many people feel that they need to spend a lot of money in order to get a big payoff. When the truth is if you invest well, you will get a great value out of your investments. People use a mystery shopper program to find out and weigh how their business is doing from the client level. You live or die as a business at the client level. If you do not take care of your clients, they do not pay for your services and if they do not pay for your services, you do not have a business.
You have decisions to make. You can follow what other businesses are doing or you can lay your own path. By you using a program like a shopping program, you can see your company change for the better. Just because you use the feedback of a mystery shopper as most companies do, does not mean that you are following behind them. You can get a completely different response from the mystery shopper .
So much information can be given back from the mystery shopper that you can use to turn your business around. The information you receive is at your disposal and how you use it can make a huge change in your day to day business. What the mystery shopper will see and hear will not always be what you want to hear. The great thing about having them on your payroll is that they are an unbiased opinion on what they see. Having someone on your staff that is affiliated with you and the company might not give you tough criticism that you might need.
Sometimes a gentle push in the right direction can help a determined business turn for the better. A client can really appreciate knowing that the company they are investing in is taking all the necessary steps to grow the business. When it comes to being smart with their money investors want to know that their money is being invested well. No one plans to lose money when they are trying to conduct and grow their business. When you are not being successful, what do you do then? Seeing the money stopping from flowing as well as it once did is not pretty site and could also mean the end for you as a business owner.
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How To Make Money Mystery ShoppingBy Staff on June 26, 2008 | No Comments
Get paid to shop! What? you ask. How can that be? Usually shopping involves spending more money than people care to admit, not increasing ones cash flow. Yes, this is true, but mystery shopping is a whole new animal. With mystery shopping it is possible to actually get paid to shop. It is also a fun, interesting and easy way to pick up some extra money while giving yourself permission to get out there and experience the services that your local community has to offer and report back what you found satisfactory as well as what you found displeasing. Essentially, not only do you get to eat and shop while you make money, but you also get to complain about crappy service! Wow! You probably do all of those things already, you just do not get paid for it.
If you do find a certain wicked satisfaction in pointing out an establishments flaws, it is likely that the last statement got your attention, and attention to detail is one of the skills that you will want to posses if you decide to begin mystery shopping . Understand, though, that it is not a brutal verbal or written hack fest or a barrage of negative statements about a company just because you did not like the food. The ultimate goal is not to see which of the best restaurants you can be assigned to eat at or which of the finest department stores you will be chosen to do your report on. The ultimate goal of mystery shopping , aside from you making money, is to report your experience as a customer honestly, with clarity, detail and non biased feedback.
You do not simply say The food was okay. The lady was nice. I like the clothes, etc. The reports are based on actual details of the experience, such as the trash cans were overflowing, the counter tops had crumbs of food on them, and it took 12 minutes to be seated, the waitress got my order right without having to write it down, the salad was warm, etc not your personal or critical opinion. Places that you may be asked to report on vary, and can include fast food and full service restaurants, retail shops and video rental stores, gas stations, movie theaters and even hotels, casinos and health clubs. Any business where customers are greeted and serviced in some manner can potentially be an assignment. You may not make a million dollars doing it, but you will be paid, provided you do not go over your budget and just buy stuff for the sake of buying it. Remember, you can shop for yourself later. When doing an assignment, your attention to detail, your time management skills and your openness to receive information are the critical factors, not the color of the dress you are trying on.
If you are a detail oriented person who has a flexible schedule and the ability to manage your time well, mystery shopping might be something for you to consider when looking for unique ways to make money. In doing so, you will be fulfilling a great need in your local community by assisting many companies in improving, and you will also be paid to eat and shop. It truly is a win-win situation.
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Secret Shopping Can Fit Into Your HobbiesBy Staff on June 25, 2008 | No Comments
Photography and traveling were two things that Ava loved to do. She had worked for many years to finally be able to make a profession of photography. She loved to take her camera and a lunch and just drive all over the countryside, through small towns and back roads where she could find hidden treasures of pictures just asking to be taken. When she did begin doing it professionally, she found that the reality of it was a bit different than she had thought. She had imagined it being a romantic life where she made millions by snapping ingenious pictures that she just happened to come across in her day to day life. This was not true to life at all, however. She found that it was hard work and she found that traveling, though fun, got old very fast. She was weary at the end of every day, and she had to begin doing weddings and graduations on the side for extra money.
Ava was not going to give up on her dream, though. But she knew that she needed a job in the meantime that would allow her freedom to travel, and that would work flexibly around her schedule. How in the world would she find such a job, she wondered?
When talking with a friend one day, she heard her say that she had been a secret shopper a few years ago. Ava had never heard of a secret shopper before, so she asked her friend about it. Ava found that the job name was basically also the job description. You merely pretend to be an ordinary paying customer and shop at a store or business somewhere locally or otherwise. After observing certain outlined criteria given to you beforehand and making note of it, you return home to fill out a simple report and send it to the company you work for. Ava could not believe her ears. A secret shopper ! It had been there all along and she had not even known it. What was the best part was that she would still be able to travel whenever she needed to for her own purposes, and a secret shopper position would work around her schedule, not the other way around.
Ava immediately applied to be a secret shopper , and after filling out some information and being interviewed, she was hired. She found that she could choose personally from a list of places to do jobs. It was basically a first come first serve basis. The woman who hired her told her that she could choose only local jobs if that is what she wanted, but it was not required. She could travel as far as she felt comfortable doing. From then on Ava took jobs that served her purpose for photography. If she would be out of town for photography that day, she chose a job shopping in a town nearby to it. If she would not be doing photography that day or if she would be doing it locally, Ava chose a shopping job locally as well. She could not believe how convenient this job was, and that she had never known it existed at all! What was more, the extra income allowed her to invest more time and money into her photography business. She could not have asked for a better solution.
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The Rippling Effect of Secret ShoppingBy Staff on June 24, 2008 | No Comments
As a human being, you have the capacity within you to live true to your vision. What your individual vision is and how you choose to carry it out, however, are determined by you. Choosing jobs that can make a difference in the lives of others is one way that you can live your vision. Secret shopping is one such job, though you may at first miss the connection. How does secret shopping make a difference in the quality of other peoples lives? It does so by pointing out the superstars, as well as the potholes, in a company or organization. The magnificent effects of secret shopping grow bigger the farther out they spread, just like ripples on a pond.
For example, say that Allison has her intention set on doing her very best secret shopping assignment, which happens to be a rather mundane trip to a local pizza parlor. Allison goes into the pizzeria, pays attention to detail and takes excellent mental notes about the fact that the shop was busy. The mentally marked that she had to wait for several minutes before she was greeted and seated, and the girl who brought her water to the table was very short tempered, nearly spilling it as she slammed it on the table. Allisons list of what could be considered complaints was long, but she knew that this was for the overall good of the company.
The waitress, though she was obviously busy and short on time, was extra exuberant and made jokes, smiled and tried her best to be prompt and attentive, which Allison also made notes on. Overall, the experience left Allison feeling that the restaurant could indeed use some more help. The kitchen looked rather messy, and she noticed greasy pizza pans piling up to the side of the sink. However, the young waitress had been superb. Allison left feeling that she had some very good feedback to offer this company. She turned in her report, and the ripple effect began.
After receiving the report, the manager hired several new employees, and using the acclaimed waitress as their mentor, trained each of the employees to deal most effectively with the customers. The waitress had her self esteem go through the roof, and her good vibes rippled out to others. The new employees felt good about their jobs, and there was a new sense of pride in the shop that had been missing previously. The shop was cleaner. Dishes did not pile up. Customers were immediately greeted, seated and well taken care of, thus they left happier, tipped better and the shop began to thrive.
Like ripples on a pond, what began as an inconspicuous job assignment soon had affected hundred of peoples lives. Secret shopping is only one of thousands of jobs that can be done with pride, attention to detail and attentiveness to other people and their needs. No matter what your job may be, make it your intention to treat other people as you would like to be treated, and show them the respect and gratitude that you, yourself would like to have. This is a magnificent way to live a life of purity of purpose. Intend peace, good communication, understanding and gratitude, and you will watch those characteristics ripple out, on and on, and return right back to you tenfold.
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Rising Costs Of A Home Based BusinessBy Staff on June 23, 2008 | No Comments
Bills are piling up, child care expenses are through the roof and your sense of self has disintegrated into a pile of paperwork at your bosses feet. You feel more like a wage slave than a successful human being, and no matter how many hours worth of work you put in, you always come away with too much month at the end of the money, as the saying goes. You hate your job, and you want nothing more than to find something that you can do to make money from home. You want the perfect home based business .
You may have seen the get rich quick schemes, and even fallen for one or two. You may have tried taking surveys on the Internet only to find yourself sitting for hours and hours answering ridiculous questions and getting nowhere fast in the realm of payment. Perhaps you signed on with a multi level marketing company only to find out six months and 900 dollars later that the man who created it has been arrested for credit card fraud in the past. Chances are high that you have tried at least a few so-called opportunities in your quest for a home based business that meets your needs and pays your bills. And you are not alone.
Millions of people long for a home based business that will afford them flexibility, time with their children, personal freedom and good old cash. In their job exhaustion, all they can see is that escaping their awful job and returning home to work would be perfect. But would it really? There are many factors to consider when embarking upon a home based business , and legitimacy is just the tip of the iceberg. If you start your own company, whether it is an in home dog grooming business or a freelance writing career, you are going to have to put a tremendous amount of time, effort and focus into that business before it begins to generate the kind of income that will enable you to quit your day job.
In addition, there are costs associated with running a home based business that you may not have thought about. Your utilities will go up, as there will always be someone home. Most likely your phone and Internet bills will also rise. If you are on the go, from client to client, your fuel costs will escalate as well. And what about your children? Will you be able to adequately care for them all day long and save on daycare while you are working? Or will you be constantly pulled away from your work, distracted and unable to concentrate? Most people who work from the comfort of their home are anything but comfortable, because their home is where their job is, and there is no escaping their business.
Sometimes the answer to job overkill is simply a change of perspective. Sit and write out exactly what it would take for you to succeed in business for yourself. When it was all said and done, you would be self sufficient, but do you really have the stamina to begin and follow through with a business? When you realize the hard work involved, it may be just as beneficial for you to just seek some other kind of employment, or move to a different department at work. Sometimes all it requires is a change of heart about your job and what it does give you.
The point is to change your mind about the jobs that you do, not to chuck your job entirely. Stop hating and start loving the fact that you are responsible enough to hold down your job. Find reasons to like the work that you do, or change it up so that you have a fresh perspective. You can always start a small home based business after hours. Just see where it takes you. With creativity and passion for what you bring to your clients, you might just turn your hobby into a full time gig. Fire your boss, eventually. But until you can kick him in the can and say farewell forever, change your attitude about what you currently do for a living and buy yourself some time to come up with a home based business that you will truly love and adore.
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Paid Internet SurveysBy Staff on June 21, 2008 | No Comments
When it comes to getting some dollars for your opinion, a paid survey is the way to go. Not every company offers this service as a part of their package deal. If you can find a company that is there to help other companies succeed and they offer a paid survey option that would be a good company to join.
Many companies are looking to get the insight of multiple customers or specific groups that may bring that company some additional revenues. Nobody as of yet, has been able to figure out every single customer that comes through their door and their exact needs. In fact there are companies that feel they can just succeed by their reputation. Unfortunately in the current world, that is not always the key success.
It is slightly comical how some companies feel that their name on the product is all they need to stay in business forever. Some companies have done a lot of work in the past getting people to see their brand as the top brand or the top service to purchase. Most top brands rely on their quality and their history. The problem with the theory that their history will lead them into the future to success is as naive as it can be. Most top services or brands are usually more expensive than their next competitor. Their competitors have gotten smart and made some tweaks to their product or service. Now their quality is almost as good if not the same as the big brands that are marginally more expensive. For companies relying on their history to set their place in the future, you company will be history.
That is why some companies provide a paid survey for customers to fill out to let them know what they should do to improve themselves. Most surveys take a little bit of your time to fill out. There are some surveys that can take up to an hour to fill out. The companies want to get as much information out of you that they can possibly get that that you will consent to.
When companies are paying for you opinion that means that their conventional way of gaining insight is not working to well for them. There are many companies that ask you to go on line to their personal survey website to tell them what you thought about their service or products. Let us just be honest, most people through away the invite to the survey because they do not see the value in giving their opinion. If you have been to a major store that had a huge corporate backing, you will be offered a monetary gift if you can let them know what you thought about your shopping experience. Amazingly, the majority of people pass on it. They do not believe that they will get the money and they had decent service so they do not feel the need to say anything. We all know if the caller or customer had a bad experience, they would be on the phone with the mom, dad, sister, brother, cousin twice removed, and their psychiatrist. It is just so hilarious that most of the time, the customer is unwilling to share with the company or their family on the great service they received.
You can find links for a paid survey to take all over the internet. The key is making sure that the paid survey you take, you are honest and willing to help the company you are taking the survey for grow.
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Stay At Home Moms Need Time Off TooBy Staff on June 20, 2008 | No Comments
There is nothing more important than family. Family can be there for you no matter what you may have done wrong and will be there to give you a high five when you do something great. They can be there for you when you have your lowest point and when you are at your highest point. The thing is that they are there. In this day and age, not every family has both parents involved in the everyday life of the children. Even if both parents live in the house together, not both parents participate in their lives.
The world is demanding and requires for some people to work more than they want or stretch their selves so thin that they eventually break. If you have one or more kids, it is very difficult sometimes to find time after you get off of work to play with your kids because you are so tired from working all day. When your kids get to the point where they want to participate in all kinds of sporting, theatrical or parties, you are thinking how you are able to be involved in everything. At the same time, how are you going to pay for all the things that they will want to do?
Some families have decided to have one of the parents stay in the home in order to help keep life balances and less stressed. Usually the families that do this have one person having a job that can support the family. If you look at reports and such on the internet you will find that the mom is usually the one that stays home. Let us take a closer look on how important the stay at home mom is.
There are so many families that have a stay at home mom in our great nation. Many people believe that having the mom at home, life will be a lot better. They believe that mom is more organized, thoughtful, creative, and is better at multitasking than the man of the house.
By no means, is the role of the stay at home mom easy. Every family is different and their lifestyles are not the same. There are some moms that even though they stay at home, they still have to work or create some method of income. Some moms make telephone sales calls or do some type of business from home. So just think, in some families on top of driving everyone around, making sure the house is well kept, and trying to keep the family getting along, they have to make money for the family as well.
The stay at home mom is crucial to the sanity of most households. With their organizational skills, they are able to plan ahead. Most moms try to anticipate the what ifs and create plan b through z. Most moms keep the family sane by being a positive force in the home by ensuring everyone is taken care of spiritually, physically and mentally. As most of us know, it is no easy task trying to keep everyone in the family taken care of without forgetting or missing out on some event or promise.
At the same time, the stay at home mom has to feel appreciated and needed. They also have needs and need to relax and take some time off every now and then. They are human even though some believe they have superpowers. If you have a mom that stays home, give her the appreciation that she deserves.
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Dad Is A Paid ShopperBy Staff on June 19, 2008 | No Comments
Most men steer clear of shopping for fun. Men often view shopping in a negative way. They are missing out, however, on an excellent opportunity to earn money from home as a paid shopper .
Being a paid shopper is a great way to earn extra money. It requires no previous experience or special knowledge. The assignments can be fit into your current schedule. Even though the companies who hire these shoppers need men and women of all ages and backgrounds, the majority of the applicants are women.
When a man goes shopping it is for a specific purchase. They rarely come back with more than the item they went out to buy. Men decide they want something and then go to a shop to purchase it. If the item is not available, he returns empty handed. To women, this is hard to imagine. When a woman says she is going out shopping it is often for entertainment. She cannot possibly know what she is going to purchase until she knows what the shop has to offer. Men do not understand this concept.
Men do go shopping even if they do not enjoy it. There are men who frequent the supermarket, usually on a reluctant errand for their spouse while others are shopping for themselves. They may only be purchasing their weekend six pack and chips for the big game, but it is shopping. You will find men at the mall as well. Many are there to purchase a gift for the wife or girlfriend. Others are there to purchase something for themselves. Men shop for themselves when they need something like footwear or sports equipment or electronics.
This one track mind concept makes the male a perfect candidate to be a paid shopper . His reluctance to browse and shop just for the fun of it gives him an advantage. He is sent to purchase a specific item at a particular store keeps him from being sidetracked. He will not spend the entire day and a whole paycheck on impulse buys.
Many companies hire these shoppers to obtain a feedback on their employees and services. Retail chains, hotels, restaurants and banks need impartial evaluations on staff behavior, the quality of their service and the cleanliness of their shop.
Men are more suitable to some assignments than women. Companies needing shopper input on the mens toilet facilities, the mens fitting rooms and the mens changing room at the gym require a male presence. A female would not be a secret in these situations.
Other situations where a paid shopper is needed includes eating at a restaurant or having a drink at a bar. A company pays you to visit a cinema or spend the night at a hotel or even on an all expenses paid vacation. Men and women can both evaluate these types of assignments.
Men and womens opinions are needed to evaluate businesses. Aside from retail shops and supermarkets, bowling alleys, theatres, banks, gas stations, taxi companies, gyms and skating rinks among other services all need honest evaluations on their services. Many men frequent these types of establishments. The owners want to be sure that men, who make up over half of their customers, are satisfied with the services they receive.
A typical paid shopper assignment a man might enjoy would be to visit a bar, sample a beer, buy a snack and visit the mens room. Men would enjoy getting paid to drink beer and eat snacks.
Companies are looking for men to be a paid shopper . It is a billion dollar industry and men can get a small part of it. They can be paid to purchase electronics, go to the gym and buy beer at the supermarket.