The Naked Brand: The Future of Marketing

The Naked Brand takes aim at traditional advertising and its future. With their constant use of technology and social media, today’s consumers are smarter and more invested in what they buy and marketers are taking advantage of this newly empowered customer by creating transparent and positive stories about their companies and products. Check out the video link above…

Would you work for a jerk?

 Twitter’s CEO Dick Costolo as he explains  how the principles of improv apply in business.

3-6-9-? Steps to solving a problem

NO Problems, NO Business. Problems are an everyday part of every business and personal environment.  So, how many steps do we really need to take in order to implement optimal problem solving?

Six steps to improve collaboration at your workplace

Collaboration is a big theme in small business for a reason:

IT WORKS!

People thrive in an environment that frees them to collaborate. When my employees experience job satisfaction, customers reap the benefits. However, implementing this approach requires a paradigm shift, which changes the focus from individual accomplishment to team success:

The truth about lies

Pamela Meyer shows the manners and “hotspots” used by those trained to recognize deception.

Should Small Businesses Scrap Strategic Planning?

Kaihan Krippendorff is a strategist, speaker, consultant, best-selling author of several books, a  recognized expert on innovation, strategy, and creativity, appearing in key business media outlets including Fox Business, National Public Radio, Bloomberg Businessweek, Bloomberg Radio. Got them all?

Undoubtedly, these badges entitle him to train top level executives and work with the leadership teams of leading corporations including Microsoft, Johnson & Johnson, Citibank, L’Oreal, United Technologies, Kraft, and Experian.

We look up to those companies, admire – if not envy – their magnificent power and study their practices in order to learn  winning strategies and tactics. Hence, it came with a shocking surprise when Kaihan published an article on Fast Company Blog in which he argued that small businesses should look at strategic planning from a totally different perspective:

“What fast-growing companies need is strategic thinking–not strategic planning. Here are three things smaller companies can do to develop an adaptive, opportunistic approach to strategy.”

How to protect your trade mark?

First things first

If you want to protect your trademark before you make it public, try to think the opposite way. Actually, in order to file your claim to your trademark with the United States Patent and Trademark office, you must be able to prove that you have been using it. You will need to show that your trademark has appeared on products that you sell and on promotional materials that are related to your services or products. 

The Franchisee Manual from Down Under

Over the past three years, businesses operated as franchises have suffered from some of the underlying factors that have been a drag on the economy. The International Franchise Association (IFA), however, sees indications of some acceleration in the number of franchise businesses in the US for 2012:

Carrots & sticks are so last century!

When it comes to motivation, there’s a gap between what science knows and what business does. Our current business operating system— which is built around external, carrot-and-stick motivators— doesn’t work and often does harm. We need an upgrade. And the science shows the way. This new approach has three essential elements: (1) Autonomy— the desire to direct our own lives; (2) Mastery— the urge to make progress and get better at something that matters; and (3) Purpose— the yearning to do what we do in the service of something larger than ourselves.

A must read for every manager, Daniel Pink: Drive – The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us

Hard-pressed airlines try to improve quality

15 largest U.S. carriers show improvements in basic performance measures, according to latest Airline Quality Rating report

When it comes to on-time performance, baggage handling, and fewer customer complaints and overbooked flights, U.S. airlines are performing at their highest level in at least 22 years, according to a study released today. And discount carriers, such as AirTran, Hawaiian and JetBlue led the industry on those basic measures, as they did the previous year.