Understanding the Customer Experience

Customer eXperience (CX) is more than customer service centers or doing a customer satisfaction survey. Having the best price or product is great, but lots of other companies can claim the same.  It is a strategy to become more successful by making business about every interaction the customer has with your product, service, brand, and company.  The goal is to make every interaction pleasant for the customer so they feel good and return to buy more.  

• "61% of consumers say their priorities keep changing as a result of everything going on in the world. As a result, the way they interact with brands is evolving, and so too is the idea of customer experience.." from Accenture Insights and Research 

The customer experience starts with marketing materials that attract their attention.  Marketing can be digital or print.  The old marketing rule of seeing your brand at least three times before they buy my still ring true, but the methods for getting that attention have changed.  Businesses can not rely on only one marketing effort that has worked I the past, they must use multiple channels to not only communicate with current customers but to reach potential new customers.

• On the Adobe for Business blog post explaining customer experience management, they explain "For today’s customers, their experience matters as much as your offerings. In fact, 86% of consumers say they’re willing to pay more to receive a superior customer experience. And 64% are more likely to recommend your brand if they have a great experience, leading to increased referral business and higher return on investment." 

The customer experience means more than getting them into a physical store, to attend a sales meeting, or buy from a website.  It consistently delivering a brand experience that makes customers want to come back.  Loyal customers continue to drive business revenue only as long as they feel they are getting more than just a regular product or one-time service for their money.  Remember they can always go elsewhere for a similar product or service if they are not getting a satisfactory experience with a company and brand,

• "80% of customers value their experience with a company as much as its products or services." is just one of the many statistics presented in the Customer Onboarding blog by OnRamp.

Communication is important to any customer who has a problem anywhere during the sales cycle or after delivery.  If the customer reports a problem, they must be kept in the loop on how it is being solved.  The quickest way to loose a customer is for them to have a bad experience and believe no one is listening to their complaints.  When considering word-of-mouth, a really great or a slightly bad experience is often communicated faster than a good one - especially with social media making it easier to complain.  Communication with the customer is also important when considering improving a process that involves them or developing a new product that replaces a popular version.  So consider asking for feedback from those that order often to make sure the proposed updtes still offers them the value they expect.

• According to Hubspot blog, a provider or customer satisfacton surveys and map templates to plan the customer journey "Excellent customer experience leads to loyal customers, who are likely to sing your praises via word-of-mouth marketing, which 92% of people trust more than advertising." 

If the goal of great customer experiences is met. It may lead to customers giving great reviews and encouraging others to buy from the company as well. Word-of-mouth marketing then expands from social networking through company resources to trusted individuals sharing their experience with others who might be interested in what you offer.  Sales go up, profits go up, and companies stay successful.  Customers should always be treated like they are kings and queens, because without them there are no sales nor profits. 

Five Forward Thinking Business Trends

 Business leaders are looking to find the newest trends for pushing their organizations into a profitable future and sustainable ptograms.  These trends will be considered when developing corporate visions and roadmaps.  Each blog post or magazine article they read will state the the writer's or edtitor's predected top five or ten trends.  All the materials may list two or three of the same items and then the remaining ones will be different from the last article read.  From reading many December 2024 and January 2025 blogs and articles, below are the most repeated items.

AI, which means Artificial Intelligence, is at the top of almost every list.  However, there seems to be some confusion on how this should be implemented in non-tecnical business. AI typically promises more than it can deliver, as has seen in badly written business articles and college term papers that were so obviously sourced and plagiarized.  However, AI does do research well - it just is not creative as an author.  In other words, do not let the old repuation AI got in past years deter consideration of AI for now and in the future.  AI technology has come a long way in a few short years and now provides tools that can help businesses.  The trick with AI is to find people who really understand it and for management to ask lots of questions to make sure it is a business fit that makes sense before investing in AI implementation.  Although AI can provide for easy research, quick problem solving, and increased productivity; it often uses lots of energy so there is that hidden cost to be aware of.

Customer Experience has resurfaced as another top trend.  Why customer service and satisfaction ever left as a key business component is a curious circumstance of cost cutting.  Why would anyone want to alienate customers just to save money?  There is no profit without customers!  

Technology (which is not only AI-related) still makes the trend list too.  It is called differenet things, but it is still all technology related!  Concerns about cypersecurity is still high.  Then there is the tasks of:updating current information systems, cleaning-up security data and inactive accounts, making websites and on-line stores more user friendly while impriving response time, updating handrware and software, and make sure the IT (information technology) staff consists ot people qualified to get it all done.  

Workforce is another common theme when talking business trends.  Some of the "experts" claim it is retention that should be the main concern of management.  Whereas, others talk about motivation or having the correct personnel with skills needed, which has always been key to an organization's success.  Skill needs may be technical or they could be social.  Technical is necessary for IT and AI, as well as various types of technicians and engineers needed for certain types of companies.  Social and team-building skills are important where collaboration, creativity, and innovation are desired.  Communication skills are extremely key to service companies, sales departments, marketing plans, and where organizations want to make customers a priority commitment. 

Another issue to consider is Deglobalization, which only a few of the articles referred to as economic resilience or geopolitical shifts.  This has already begun in the United States of America and in many Eurpean countries.  Due to tarriffs, taxation, politics, and other multi-country business issues; small niche companies and local businesses may soon do better than the bigger global companies when looking at profitability and increased market-sharepercentages. 

NOTE to Readers:  If you feel an important trend was left off this list, please add it as a comment to this post so others can learn about it and do research, if they desire.  Please include in the comments why you believe it is a trend that should be considered,

Real Marketing Options for Every Business

 

If you have tried lots of marketing options presented in articles or given to you by "next generation" advisors, have you had success?  Maybe a little, but probably not a lot.  So did you waste your money on marketing?  Again, maybe a little if you learned what not to do but for sure if you are still listening to people who are giving you the wrong advice for the type of business you have.  What works for big businesses may not work for small businesses.  What works for selling retail products direct to consumers/customers - does not work for selling products and services to corporate clients.    

If your company is a small business, instead of hiring a consultant, try some of the ideas in 14 Cheap and Effective Small-Business Marketing Strategies.   Notice this article does not mention social media until option 10 and then only as a way to continue the efforts from other options.  Do not jump on a social media platform immediately because someone told you it worked for them.  To be effective  social media must provide something for the reader and must target the people you want reading your posts.

• You may also want to check out blog posts on Marketing via: Website, Blogging, and Video Media  or On-line Press Releases and Article Directories for more more tips related to options 5-10 in article above.

If you are Business to Consumer (B2C) retail seller or service provider, 7 Tips for Consumer Marketing emphasizes digital areas such as ecommerce stores and social media for brand awareness.   The article briefly explains the basic differences between B2C and B2B marketing.  It targets getting customers and repeat business through special offers , customization, and using various strategies to market and grow your business.

If you are Business to Business (B2B) product or service provider, according to The Ultimate Guide to B2B Marketing you should to concentrate on understanding your competition and the standard sales cycle to actually get sales.  The guide compares B2B and B2C marketing differences in a simple chart.  It also explains what you must do before marketing and then explains how to build a multi-faceted marketing strategy.  Social media is more for business brand awareness and most likely will not directly result in sales, but it can be the first place corporate leaders and buyers may find out about you if your marketing plan is done well.  

• B2C or B2B, you may also want to check out blog posts on Marketing via:  To Blog or Not to Blog…that is the Expert’s Question or What Is the Best Alternative for Social Marketing?
  

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Business and Politics: Boycott Likely, BUYcott NOT

Even as many corporations see great losses and a few go bankrupt, their leadership is still failing to recognize that politics in marketing for business is not a good idea.  Using ESG index and DEI initiatives as indicators for business is driving too many out-of-business by alienating customers and landing on "Go Woke Go Broke" boycott lists. Those alienated customers are now looking for entrepreneurs who start-up businesses with either the opposite politics or preferably no politics at all.

Business magazines, newspapers, and blogs are taking note and urging companies to return to concentrating on profits over politics.  

• Newsweek article "As 'Woke' Businesses Face Right-Wing Wrath, Culture War Capitalists Cash In" emphasized  consumers are "are likely to boycott over a political position they don't like but are not likely to "buycott" over stances they agree with." Newsweek also published  "Now Conservatives Embrace Boycotts and Regulations" and "Go Woke, Go Broke? Millennials Say It's True" which suggests this generation greatly disagrees with the supposed new marketing genius of young Gen-?.  
• In blog post "Go Woke, Go Broke: 8 Examples of Companies Facing Consequences," a digital marketing professional explains "From a business mindset, politics should be a big no-go zone. If you are silent about an issue, you might receive pressure from a few activist groups, but things will likely quiet down soon enough, and people will forget about it."
• New York Post shared a former CEOs opinion in article "Woke, Inc: Why I’m blowing whistle on how corporate America is poisoning society." where he notes "... the answer is to do the hard work of rediscovering who we really are."
• The liberal-left VOX media website admits "ripple effects of conservative consumer activism are real" in finance and business article "The conservative boycott playbook is kind of working."

If businesses want to survive, company leadership needs to stop listening to bad advice, research the facts, and understand that politics in marketing can kill their profits and possibly drive them out of business.  Corporate leadership needs to get back to basic business concerns and strategic planning based on items key to success.

Some companies claim they are supporting social issues  because their human resources think it might get younger people to be interested in working for the organization as employees. But, does it get loyal or competent employees? Which matters most to the bottom line - customers or employees?

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Who Controls American Business, Media, or Government?

Do you ever wonder who really controls American business, media, or government?  For business: you might say it is American entrepreneurs starting new enterprises, or you may think of those running franchise opportunities in America and abroad, or you may say the rich citizens who already own big successful companies.  You may even look at Wall Street to see what is currently on-top or research billionaires to determine what they are into.  For media: you might think along the technology lines of social media (aka Big Tech), or entertainment media (aka Hollywood), or you might consider journalistic pursuits (aka Main Stream Media).  For government, you may believe in "we the people" democracy as the major stakeholder or the republic and who laws are created to protect.

For every example, you are most likely thinking it is United States citizens who have achieved the American dream.  Some may even consider international and global reach as the people in control.  Then there are those that worry Communist China is really the one gaining control of American business, media, and government.  Is the USA hurling towards crisis inspired by a new type of economy based on marketing propaganda instead of quality products and preformance-based service? If it is USA citizens (native-born or legally naturalized) controlling corporate strategy, the American dream will continue to grow.   If it is not, then either environmental and growth restrictions of globalization or communist government-owns everything will be the future resulting in the crushing death of the American dream.  

Who do you think controls American business, media, or government?  Is de-globalization the answer to save USA or European businesses?  Share your thought in comments on this blog post.

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Are Social Media Outlets Hiding Information From Users?

In the past few years, we have learned that most social media providers are not about their users or about promoting free speech as was designated as their original purpose for existing.  No, they are a business with customers who are not necessarily the same as their users.  Most social media outlets are about profit through advertising dollars and promoting the beliefs/values of the outlet's owners.  Social media  platforms keep changing who they allow to voice opinions on their networks and what they will allow the remaining network audience to see.   A few of these actions may be directed at preventing "misinformation" or encouraging  "disinformation" to appease the government or other powers, but more are about controlling what facts social media users see. Whether hiding select information is done at the direction of owners, advertisers, or politicians is not shared with their users.  

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Well-known social media platforms continue hiding information from users by constantly changing how the information is displayed.  When hiding started in 2020, Facebook users were encouraged to either view a "fact check" or "alternative view" article first before clicking through to what they wanted to view.  Twitter did something similar with a friendly warning pop-up when users wanted to share "questionable" items and forcing user to choose to continue by clicking option in pop-up or outside of it to cancel communication.  Now, the user sometimes also may click an additional option on the post to see one-time view of the article image link or video link.  To prevent the complaints, users are allowed to go to a "security" option to turn-off the platform's latest change or opt-out of tracking history. 

     Example of Twitter Popup when Retweeting Website/Articles 

     Example of Twitter Text on select Website/Video as of 3-4-2022 

     Example of Twitter Text on Blocked Video Sites as of 6-1-2022

     Example of Twitter to Change View Settings (from above) to Prevent Blocking 

     Example of Twitter Terms to End Accounts for ANY/NO reason effective 6-10-22

Are these new changes letting users control more of what they see or is it still about the social media outlet keeping control of that?  Will users take the 2nd or 3rd click/step required to see the hidden information from selected sites?  Will other platforms choose to change "sensitive" view options that make it sound like users will see pornography instead of platform-deemed "questionable" information.  Are social media owners hoping users will not exercise their personal choice by making the extra effort to click again?  Is the reason platforms are requiring the extra clicks so they can track user choices better or find out what is most popular topics?  Will any of it make a difference to owner's profits, advertiser's bottom-line, or to the user's free speech?  Do social media users still have the option to gather their own facts and form their own opinions? 

Articles and videos continue to get blocked, not because they have been individually "fact checked," but due to the main URL of the .com/.net/.org being targeted for reasons known only to the social media provider.  Or in the case of a video, it might it be a particular YouTube (and competitors), TV, or cable channel suppression.  So where do users go to find truth/facts or lies/fiction now?   

Yes   that's a lot of embedded questions above that are definitely NOT hidden from view!  Why?  Because  questions make you think.  If you think, then you can form your own opinions.  Sharing opinions in an acceptable and respectful way is allowed freedom of speech. The user should have the opportunity to decide, not the social network outlet.  History will tell us if the user's decision is important to the platforms they use.

NOTE:  Twitter changed ownership in 4th quarter 2022, now transparency of past and current processes is ongoing under the new management that is promoting "freedom of speech" but not necessarily freedom of reach?  See December 2022 deletions and solutions articles plus January 2023 infographic, regarding #TwitterFiles compiled data of free speech suppression and hidden truths for political reasons currently being ignored by mainstream media news that proves partisan censorship. 

ADDED NOTE: What about Facebook/Meta Media Mix? FB uses a little italicized i to make it look like users can get more related topic information, but often it tricks people by showing a list of prejudiced articles that express the social media owner's views. Although, upon occasion, it will share if a link site has/hasn't an FB page or other recent videos from that site only if it is "news" site.  But they still limit or outright  block free speech of most vocal conservatives, medical experts, Christians (formerly religious freedom to Bible), and politicians that do not buy into Zuckerberg's obvious malarkey meant only to get FB owner more money - not actually help people. In 2021, Facebook Admits in Court That ‘Fact Checks’ Are Just Opinion - in other words, what the boss wants communicated or NOT.  Then the following year, at Congressional hearing, Facebook CEO blames the government for selected censorship.

Google is no longer in the social media game, but are they a "Big Tech" who is still censoring topics in searches and pushing political ads as actual news? What about those MSN searches, will their AI bots censor even more?

UPDATES: Did DNC government try to crush USA citizens' FREE SPEECH?  Will it ever be fully restored on social media platforms? Will the government and "Big Tech" try to do it again?

What Is the Best Alternative for Social Marketing?

Businesses are getting conflicting messages on what to do with their social media accounts.  Articles paid for by the social media companies say profits are up.  However, customers have left Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and others citing: their censorship of posts, too many ads, or increasing restrictions.  Technology changes, cyber-security issues, and varying user needs are being reflected in multiple new platforms are being designed and redesigned.  New social media and other interaction alternatives seem to be coming out on a more frequent basis.  

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It seems that social marketing is not what it used to be.  Where is the profitability for companies to continue to have a social media presence with specialized pages or advertisements?  What are the best alternatives for different types of businesses to reach the customer-base they want?  If you have questions about what to do now,  you may find some answers by reviewing the posts and articles below.  

• Social Media Trends You May Want to Incorporate Into Your Marketing Strategy
• Brands move away from traditional social media platforms, as video content increases 
• Smart Insights: Social media marketing trends 
• 5 Social media marketing myths you should stop believing
• Harvard Business Review: The Era of Antisocial Social Media 
• Why brands are turning away from big Instagram influencers
• Are you ready for the mega-shift from social media to private media?

If something peaks your curiosity, you can refine your own web search using concepts and ideas presented in the text of an article or post you read.

Is Deglobalization the New Business Solution?

Over the past few decades, world trade opportunities led many companies to see globalization as a way to increase sales growth and potential profits.   Moving manufacturer to countries where labor was cheaper or regulations less strict seemed important to cost cutting efforts and again increased profits.  

Due to the world pandemic and economic ramifications causing a break in the supply chain as well as rising shipping rates and import/export costs, some corporations are not only rethinking globalization.  There are questions how to work during global isolation.  Plus many organizations are also considering deglobalization as a possible economic resolution.  

Is the new concept of deglobalization the most recent answer to companies changing the way they do business?  Will deglobalization decrease or increase investment opportunities?  Are the business trends really moving from a history of worldwide marketplaces and returning to home base operations?  If the trend in more national than global, how does this impact future product marketing and sales?  If the trend is more local than world-wide, what does that mean for human resources departments and employee placement?  What does it mean for building factories, moving manufacturing, customer service, and more for logistics, productivity, and quality? 

What do you think?  Have you read any good articles that helped your compnay make decisions regarding globalization or deglobalization?  If you have, please share article sources and hyperlinks in comments on this post.

FYI: NEW answer on Chief Executive Net 2023 China: The Decoupling Is Here  

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Committing to Corporate Citizenship

Investopedia defines corporate citizenship as "the social responsibility of businesses and the extent to which they meet legal, ethical, and economic responsibilities, as established by shareholders."  So how does citizenship impact profit, after all profit is the reason most businesses exist.  However, putting profit over people can eventually cause a company to loose some customers, which does impact the bottom line.

Most organizations understand meeting legal requirements and how the economy affects them, in order to stay on business but do they understand social responsibility?  For decades companies have been training employees and leadership in business ethics  and corporate values.  The clearest way to understand social responsibility is it is taking corporate ethics and values outside the company and into the community.  This can be done via charitable activities and contributions, which may be done corporately or by sponsoring the actions of specific employees.  

There are five stages to developing corporate citizenship: Elementary, Engaged, Innovative, Integrated, and Transforming (similar to the stages of team-building).  In between each the five stages, companies develop the four C's: Credibility, Capacity, Coherence, and Commitment. 

Entrepreneur says the initial cost of becoming socially responsible in stage one will negatively affect profits, which is why many companies move no further than elementary stage.  However their article uses the case that consistent  citizenship can build a good corporate reputation that may eventually lead to profits in a socially conscience environment.  To ensure that corporate citizenship happens within the company, it is important to include it in long-term strategy planning and goal setting.  However, be careful in how you use your citizenship actions and contributions in marketing on social media and corporate websites.  Aligning unwisely to the wrong types of non-profit organizations or causes can result in looking unpatriotic or overly political, which may result in possible boycotts and lost business.  

Want more information on how to create corporate social responsibility (CSR), watch the 1 hour video Corporate Citizen: Risk & Internal Controls by Strategic Business Leadership (SBL). 

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Patriotism in the Workplace

A 2018 Gallup polls on American pride and various new articles summarizing the polls claim patriotism is declining in the USA.  The major decline is based mostly in one political party, although article writers make different guesses as to why this may be so.  However, multiple social media posts over the past few months seem to indicate that US citizens are concerned over current events but still proud and patriotic.  So where should businesses stand on patriotism?

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An American industry seen as unpatriotic might lose business and may find it hard to recruit new employees.  American companies can turn around public opinion of themselves and help increase patriotism by showing they are proud of the country they do business in.  Although there have been a few articles stating the youngest job seekers want to work for more liberal companies, there have been no conclusive studies or data presented.  However, most people (regardless of age) looking for jobs probably would prefer to work for an organization that has the same values as they do.  Companies that want economic growth tend to take risks in business but remain conservative in their political approach.  After all, capitalism allows for creation of new businesses and new innovations to help existing business to successfully continue.  In other words, profit is king in business.

Even so, it is important that American-based companies show good citizenship.  One way to do that is for leadership to prove that they value the country they live in, the rights of its citizens, and patriotism.  Some ways businesses can show patriotism include:

• Fly a USA flag outside the company buildings
• Keep politics out of marketing
• Recruit military veterans who have gotten the training or leadership skills the organization needs
• Support local and/or national military and veterans charities
• Provide time-off options for patriotic holidays
• Hire military spouses as telecommuting employees or part-time workers
• Do not force political parties, views, or issues on others
• Encourage employees to productively work as a team and not get political
• Put the flag and/or company history on corporate website
• Encourage employees to exercise their right to vote.

Politics in Marketing Can Kill Business

Have you seen ads mistakenly promoting political agendas as current social issues that they support?  Have you been considering showing similar support for the short run in your marketing?  If you have, then think again before reacting.  This type of political marketing can backfire on a business.  Consider ticket and sponsor losses of the NFL when they appeared to take a political side.

Before you change your website, ads, and social postings, do your research and consider the implications for your business.  Is the political issue or current socialistic opinion being supported by hundreds rather than thousands, by thousands rather than millions?  News reports can often be misleading. Is the group or charity you are considering making a difference?  Is the movement making a difference, is it  peaceful or violent?  Did it physically destroy property, loot other businesses, or hurt people? Is it really a social cause or a political agenda?  However those actions are perceived may reflect on your company as a supporter.   How many customers do you want to get?  How many are you willing to alienate?  How many are you willing to lose?  If you make the wrong move/impression, the company page on social media may blow-up in your face instead of in your sales. Have you researched the issue to be sure it is real and not a lie or hiding a different political agenda?

Instead of using the political issue or socialized opinion "of the week" or month to build an advertising campaign, look for a way to use your marketing budget for the long run to build business.  Create marketing that builds-up you brand instead of promoting the brand of others.  How do you do this?  Sell your value, create brand recognition, and build trust with current and future customers.  Most customers are interested in WIFM (what's in it for me), so sell the value of your product or service.  Build your advertising and social media presence around being known for what you do, and repeat that in multiple formats and places.  This reputation is key to create name recognition and service/product reputation.   Steer away from ads that leave people thinking "That was an interesting commercial.  What was it for?" If you want to build customer loyalty, do it through brand trust.  You have to have trust in your compnay first, an uninformative or misleading advertisement makes people think you are covering something up, therefore killing any chance at building trust.

Still considering putting your political views to grab attention by supporting current issue?  If you are, you may want to read the articles and tips below before you spend your marketing money.
How Social Media Can Kill Your Business
Politics and Marketing
SBDC 8 Steps To Marketing Your Business

Most Americans Think Social Media Sites Censor Political Viewpoints

Will you let your business be hurt by putting an irresponsible statement in a box promotion or funds into a questionable process/policy? If you move too soon, you may lose business.  If you have already made the wrong move, better backup and hope to reduce/reflect backfire from the larger population not supporting the statements which may be your greatest potential for customers.  It is ok to have a personal political view, however advertising it in your marketing can result in: lost capital now, future loss of consumer business, which means no freedom to innovate and grow your business.  Only a foolish leader makes decisions out of fear or not checking for all the facts. Make sure social media people know to avoid politics and hopefully  avoid boycott and other outcries from customers/readers.

If you have funds you wish to donate anonymously or publicly, make sure they provide a helpful service to society.  Consider ecology and help save the planet.  Or help people by feeding the hungry or housing the homeless.  Before you donate, verify the legitimacy of the charity; as well as their values, goals, and past spending results.  If tax deduction is also important to you, verify what the organization qualifies for since most charitable deductions are not be taken at 100%.  Political contributions are not tax deductible. 

According to the marketing "rule of seven" it takes awhile for people to notice an advertisement.  The more you share information with people, then it may become believable to them even if it is just a cleverly disguised sales pitch.  Be ethical and honest with your potential clients, make sure you statements are truth not lies just for profit.  Dishonesty catches up with a compnay as disillusioned customers will leave in droves and make their dissatisfaction and distrust  known on social media so new customers think twice before buying.

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NFL Blunders in Business Again and Takes Other Sports With Them!

A few years ago, the NFL Made Business Blunder which lost them and sponsors lots of money because they were seen as unpatriotic.  They eventually took a stand and their fans and customer base began to slowly return.  Due to coronavirus this year, they can not sell tickets, so they are trying to be "relevant"  with a new marketing campaign.  Will this cost them  customers again?  Will the #BoycottNFL cry across social media start again as more people check the historical records of the National Football League on politicizing social issues?  What will it for them to separate their business from player politics?

Other sports leagues or teams (NBA/WNBA, NASCAR, MLB, etc) besides NFL are starting similar campaigns as well.  Some are even considering changing the names of teams.  Are the name and logo changes a politically correct idea or a marketing ploy to pave the way to try to generate income through new sales of re-named sports gear since they cannot sell tickets?  What will their customers/fans think of name changes?  Will they buy into the media hype or continue to abandon professional sports?  Will fans begin to boycott other sports as well as their sponsors and advertisers too?  Will the league owners lose money when sponsorship goes away?  Will the players now lose their bloated million dollar salaries?  Will professional sports eventually go from being big business back to a low cost athletic-based pastime fro fans?  Or will USA sports decide their business would be safer if they go back to separating themselves from political agendas as UK sports do?  Forbes suggests Case To Separate Sports And Politics For More Fans And Higher Ratings.

Headlines below show a few of the results from political activism in American sports.

• NFL Game Attendance Crashes to 15-Year Low
• NFL TV Viewership Down and Study Suggests it’s Over Protests
• NFL Season Begins With Player Protests As Opening Sees Low Ratings, Fan Backlash
• NFL opener ratings tumble to 10-YEAR LOW as league pays price for politicizing sport
• NFL ratings plummet. They need to plummet more.
• NFL drops the ball as TV ratings take hit over ‘woke-ism’
• Beyond the Ratings a New Poll Shows Professional Sports Are in Real Trouble
• Public Favorability Towards The U.S. Sports Industry Has Collapsed
• NBA & MLB Find Out The Hard Way ‘Taking A Knee’ Must Stop Or It’s Game Over
• Pro Sports Teams That Skip Anthem in Texas Now in for a World of Hurt

2024 NEWS:  NFL obviously thinks their fans have a short memory.  In 2024, NFL teams decide the national anthem "The Star Spangled Banner" is not good enough for them.  They decide to play alternative tunes before it or instead of it.  #BoycottNFL has started to tend again.  When will AMerican citizens drop high-pay football and only watch school sports or drop football al together and just keep the national pastime as Baseball...

Always Check the Facts Before You Share the Story

With the increase of "fake news" and revival of "yellow journalism," it is important to check the facts before you decide to share a story even if you are leaning towards it as a possible truth.  Spreading distortions,  libelous stories, and downright lies is irresponsible behavior.  Even if you know the story is satire, you need to make that distinction before you hit the "share" or "retweet' button in order to not mislead other readers.  Not everyone understands sarcasm and therefore they might retaliate.  Going viral is NOT worth the harm it can do to yours or another's reputation.

So how do you check the facts?  In the past, we could rely on journalistic ethics and real research to check the facts and verify statistics.. However the desire to sell stories has changed the media from presenting impartial facts to generating sensationalism and repeating social media to not get scooped on a story.  As proof of this, we were incredulous when TV news shows added a Twitter feed or Facebook trends to their news hour.  Of course they had to spend time saying what was true, false, or unproven.  Doing so took away from "real news," weather, and sports because there was no guarantee people stayed tuned for that last part of social media reports.  So some reputable networks have finally discontinued that ridiculous source of news.  Forbes Survey Of Journalists Suggests Accuracy Is More Important Than Being First shows discontinuing that was the right thing to do.

Formerly, the daily newspapers provided details we did not get from TV reports.  However, many print newspapers have gone on-line and have to compete with other web sources to get your attention.  Therefore, they may provide sensational headlines to get attention before presenting the details.  Unfortunately many people are lazy about getting all the news and only read the headline plus the first paragraph or two.  So they do not get the full picture or miss where something was fully presented or falsehoods disputed.   Hopefully, if you want the full story, you check multiple sources to be sure.  According to Business Insider chart, these were the most and least trusted news outlets.

One source historically considered impartial in finding the facts was Snopes.com.  Then Forbes magazine told us that we cannot trust them in the article Fact Checking the Fact Checkers.  In the past, many of us used that site for finding out if a story was true or false.  After reading they considered a a skewed story on their site as TRUE after reviewing the full video (story supposedly based on a few  minutes near middle of the hour) and written transcript portion that they said proved the story, I saw a definite misconstruing and misinterpretation of what was said to support a falsehood.  What the story quoted the presenters as saying was never actually said.  For anyone who understands English, the result of fact checking should have been FALSE.  Or they could have at least responded MIXED and said a slip-of-the-tongue seemed to be misunderstood by people not listening closely or reporters were choosing to take a statement completely out-of-context.  Other popular (supposedly non-partisan)  fact-checking sites include:  AllSides, PolitiFact, MediaBiasFactCheck, and NewsGuard. So now, not only do you have to double-check the facts of the story, you must verify the accuracy of the fact checkers!

Has journalism moved from being an extension of the English department to under Political Science or Marketing?  Is sensationalism more important than communication of the facts?  It is shame that you have to be distrustful of your news sources in order to be a responsible person and citizen.   Please do not accidentally or purposefully spread lies.  Remember always check the facts and/or statistics before you share a story! As much as possible, you want to be right so you are not shown to be wrong in the future.  You also want to be honest, which:  shows integrity, gains respect, and builds trust.

For more reasons to research for bias, see Harvard Business Review long article "Why the News Is Not the Truth."

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Ten Tips for Wonderful Webinars

Webinars are a great way to share knowledge or give presentations to multiple audiences at one time.  People from multiple locations can connect at the same time to hear your message without travel requirements or tie zone issues.  Consider webinars as an e-learning option for training and as a marketing tool for sales prospecting.  Below are ten tips to help you have a problem-free webinar.

10 Tips for Wonderful Webinars

1. Select a webinar platform.  If the organization hosting the webinar does not have a webinar/virtual meeting provider, you will need to research ones that might fit your need.  Most platforms offer a free short trial period you may use to host a small webinar to get started.
2. Alleviate technical issues.  Presenters should use a landline connection over WIFI option to prevent possible downtime. For the best voice sound, use a microphone headset rather than the mic inside your computer.  Turn off any pop-up notifications to prevent distractions during presentation.  Also be in a room where there will be no background noises or voices to interfere with the audio.  
3. Have a technical assistant or moderator, if possible.  This allows the presenter to  concentrate on delivering content rand answering questions over clicking on the computer.  Verify with each other when the pre-webinar check-in time together will be , presentation expectations, and any post-webinar activities.
4. Provide a short speaker bio, if you have a moderator who will be introducing the webinar.  This is especially important if there will be several speakers in a panel or webinar series.  It gives the moderator relevant data on presenter to share before introducing the current topic.
5. Keep it short at 30-60 minutes, but no more than two hours.  People get tired of staring at a screen even if the topic is absorbing.  If your message requires more time, consider making it a multi-part series over a few weeks instead of a long session.
6. Promote the webinar.  Webinars target to a specific group should be communicated via email to target audience.  Open webinars may be marketed via email and/or on social media.
7. Have a photo of the presenter to include with bio and show on introductory/closing slides.  This way the audience knows what you look like.  This will allow you to skip having a presenter camera on you when you are speaking.  Presenter cameras are geared for emulating face-to-face meetings, not for presentations where speaker may be glancing down at notes or on-line ressonses.
8. Prepare a slide show for display during the webinar that is interesting and informative.  Keep slide text as concise as possible, use appropriate statistics,  have relevant graphics often, and use animations/transitions to get attention.  In virtual presentations there is no eye-contact so you will need show more slides and spend less talking time per slide than if you awee doing a live presentation.You may want to give the audience the option of downloading a copy of the slid es to follow-along and make notes.
9. Practice your presentation for attention-getting delivery and with your assistant for technical delivery.  With the technical practice session, include testing pauses for: audience to read statistics or graphs, taking polls, giving quizzes, and answering questions.  
10. Consider recording the webinar so that people unable to attend the original virtual session or missed part of a series has the option of watching at a later date.  You may want to limit the amount of time the recording is available to eliminate the possibility of people seeing out-of-date information.

To Blog or Not to Blog…that is the expert’s question

I have been blogging for over 8 years now and get lots of questions from other speakers, authors, or small business owners about whether it makes sense for them to create a blog.  Some want to use their blog as a marketing tool for their products and services, or to get more hits to their business website, and others just want to share their expertise without the work of writing an article or full-blown book. Most potential writers are not even aware of the additional effort that is required when working with editors on book and article publication.  

Hopefully, I have covered the marketing and small business issues in my former blog post Marketing via Website, Blogging, and Video Media and my article Will Your Business Benefit from a Blog?  If not, send me your specific question in comments to this post and I will try to answer it or provide a good link.

For those wishing just to write to share their expertise, there was some information in the article above for consultants.  However, there were other related questions that require more information to answer.  See examples below.

1.   Since I have written four business books, I have had some people ask me what they should do if they want to write a book but are not sure they have enough to create one or are not sure if there would be interest.  To those people, I say “Start a blog.”  Writing for the blog will let you organize your thoughts and not require as much dedicated time as creating chapters in a book.  From the blog, a writer can see if there is interest in the topic by tracking statistics on views and comments.  Then in a year or two or regular posting, they should have enough text to begin organizing and editing for chapters in a book.
2.   A book has been authored by an associate and they need ideas to promote it or wish to connect with their readers somehow.  Then I say “Start a blog or get on Twitter – and regularly update.”  A blog allows them to use excerpts from their book, expand on items in the book, and start a conversation with their readers.  I also suggest the author set-up their author page on Amazon and feed from their blog to there as well.  Twitter allows them to promote their blog or book, as well as hold a different kind of conversation with readers. If they plan to use Twitter, I suggest checking out my post series titled A Twitter Journey.
3.  A hopeful blogger wants to start a blog but is not sure how to go about it.  In this case, I say “Search for and read similar blogs.”  Looking at other blogs from people who hold the same type of expertise can help them formulate what they have to say in a different way and what type of posts seem to work well in successful blogs. I tell them they should start by searching for blogs by people they know are experts in the topic they are considering.  If that does not yield enough to get them started, then search for posts or articles that have certain subject-related keywords in the titles.  If they decide to start a blog, then they should begin by researching blogging tools and read other how to blog successfully suggestions.

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Something to watch out for when blogging is SPAM comments that can hurt your site reputation.  Check out these other blog posts for how to manage that issue on two different popular free blogging tools.

• Stop WordPress Comment Spam with These Pro Tips
• 4 Easy Steps to Stop Spam Comments in Blogger

Getting the Most Benefit from Trade Shows and Conferences

There are lots of trade shows, expositions, and conferences that business people are invited to attend.  Ever wonder what value attending one might have for your business?  If you already know the value of attendance, do you know how to get the most out of the experience?  Below are 8 reasons to go to these events and some ideas on how to get the most out of attendance from the book Wholesale 101 (on Amazon #ad) by Jason Prescott.

Reasons to Attend:
1.       Create and develop relationships with new partners
2.       Become an information magnet
3.       Attend seminars and networking events
4.       Work your way to the top of the supply chain
5.       Explore differences in working with international versus domestic suppliers
6.       Discover the latest trends
7.       Make invaluable contacts
8.       Stimulate your mind and have a blast!

Ideas to Get the Most from Attendance (most from book plus a few from me :)

• Wear comfortable clothing and shoes as you will walk a lot
• Dress in business casual because you are a representative your company
• Take lip balm and breath mints as you will be talking to lots of people
• Bring a camera to take pictures of interesting booths and exhibits to enhance your visual memory later of what you want to follow up on (way better than just a business card)
• Bring a voice recorder to dictate personal notes and capture great ideas (turn into written notes later)
• Use a roller bag rather than a tote to easily transport all those handouts and vendor materials
• Bring your business cards so you do not have to fill out vendor forms
• Get vendor business cards and write product you want to follow-up on the back so you do not forget why you have the card
• Gather other attendee business cards so you can build a network of advisors (be sure to list why you might find them helpful on back of their card immediately)
• Bring shipping labels with your name and address on them to give to vendors so they can mail you a catalog once you both return to your offices
• Have a smart phone or tablet handy to look of websites of vendors for more details after leaving their booth

Entrepreneurial Tips on Marketing and Sales

In Michael Dalton Johnson’s book Rules of the Hunt (on Amazon #ad); he gives his opinions and advice on starting a business, sales, marketing, and more. 

Below are a few of his 30 ideas for marketing and his 8 reasons why your sales may be lost.

A Dozen Marketing Ideas

1. Marketing pros can accelerate company growth and generate revenue.
2. There can be too much information on your brochures.
3. Use the “tell them 3 times” rule for creating good copy:  tell what you are going to tell them, tell them, and tell them what you told them.
4. Good service justifies price/value.
5. Sell them on the benefits to them, not the product features.
6. Offer satisfaction guarantees.
7. Send follow-up notes and be sure to proofread.
8. Direct mail gives buyers something to hold in their hands.
9. Build a contact database by giving subscribers guarantee of privacy as well as a reason to sign-up.
10. Clichés sell – use them wisely in advertising copy.
11. Keep it personal by using “you” often or where possible the reader’s actual name.
12. Forget image branding – the goal is to sell not increase awareness.   However, use photos and images that capture the spirit of your marketing message.

8 Reasons for Losing Sales and How to Overcome Them

1. Your sales pitch is boring. Use visuals and examples that show them how much they will save or how your product can help them.
2. You insult the customer’s intelligence. Treat them with respect and ask open-ended questions rather than try to manipulate.
3. You are uniformed about your prospect. Take time to visit their website and learn about their competition.
4. You are talking to the wrong person.  Make sure you are meeting with the decision maker.
5. You do not listen to what your customers are saying.  Pay attention to what they are saying and how they are saying it.
6. You do not understand your customer’s needs.  Find out their needs and concerns and show how your product can help.
7. Buyers do not like you.  Invest in rapport-building skills.
8. Potential clients do not know you or your company.  Get referrals and name drop current customers.