Rembrandt’s Blog

With the competition in today’s business environment, it’s essential to get your priorities straight. And one of your key objectives is probably to increase sales…so how do you get an edge over others in your industry?

The key is to focus on customer service. Did you know that people are creating lists to tell you how to bypass voicemail automation to get through to a human being? Check out www.gethuman.com.

This is a great list, but it’s really pathetic that we have to “figure out” how to get our questions answered about a product or service that we’ve purchased.

What happened to good, old-fashioned customer service?

Well, I have good news. More businesses are now boosting their customer-service efforts to increase sales and customer loyalty. For example, I recently purchased some swimwear on sale for the first time from www.athleta.com.

The items ended up being too big so I called their customer service number, ready for a hassle. And can you believe it?

I was connected to a trained, customer service representative immediately who actually sounded like she cared and valued my business. The company exchanged the merchandise quickly, and now they have a loyal customer.

It just goes to show you the power of caring and providing your sales people with the right customer-relationship skills… so with this in mind, take a moment to review how you and your team members treat customers.

By making a few simple changes to cater to the needs of your customers, you just might see a sudden increase in sales.

Have PR or copywriting questions? Please let me know. I’m here to help!

It’s early in the morning, and so far, it’s been a crazy week. I’ve received many calls from new entrepreneurs looking for PR help so I decided to make a list of some free resources.

I don’t usually send you to my other blog from here, but times are tough, and I think you’ll benefit from this information.

For a list of free services and discounts to help you conduct your own publicity efforts and boost sales, check out this entry at http://www.startupnation.com/blogs/index.php/2009/01/14/free-pr-tools-for-do-it-yourself-publicity/#comment-17622.

As I always say, you can garner some great publicity by doing it yourself. (Reporters would rather talk directly to a business owner than a publicist,  you can share your passion for your business and tell a unique story, etc.).

It takes some time, but you will save money. And hopefully, you will boost sales.

And as always, if you have questions along the way, please let me know! Thanks, and all the best!

With all of the negative, economic news, you may be working extensive hours and spending a lot of time worrying about bills, new sales and what the future entails for your family and business.

It can be overwhelming. I know that I started to feel this way last week (even with the start of the New Year) so I knew it was time to take a break.

I decided to spend the weekend scuba diving. And at first, it was very difficult to put my phone aside and stop thinking about all of my deadlines and work projects.

But then, I looked out at the beautiful beach and watched the dolphins jump over the waves. And after spending just a few minutes swimming with the fish, I relaxed. What bills? What economy? There are so many things in
life that are much more important.

I returned home a new woman. And guest what? When I turned on my computer, there was a feature story about my client in The Detroit Free Press, http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009901110380.

I’d been working on this for a long time so it was great to finally see it in print. And even better, there were two e-mails in my “In Box” requesting my copywriting and PR services.

It just goes to show you that things can turn around if you give yourself
time to relax and get a new perspective on life. Now, it’s Monday morning, and I’m energized and ready to accomplish my goals. Are you?

If you have questions about your PR and copywriting efforts, please let me
know here or at www.rembrandtwrites.com. I’m here to help. Thanks!