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Making Technology Double-Duty at Tasks

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Today was a great day for me as I learned a bit more on how to use my camera to enhance my blogs and my business writing. Instead of working harder, I am learning to work smarter and make my computers and accessories work for me instead of against me. And by that I mean setting up my systems so that everything is working cohesively and seamlessly.

That means, when I take my photos to upload to my blogs, I can use my computer’s software to make the photos go straight to my blog posts. I usually take my laptop computer with me everywhere I go, so doing that is more of a convenience for me than it is anything else. I have found that home-based workers who have their laptops with them all of the time are far more productive than at other times. And yes, that works for me too.

I am a very, very busy mom, writer and household manager (like that word?) so having things work as a unit is very important to me. I also like to have as many gadgets as possible that can make my life easier as well, so as long as I can be productive, I am a happy camper.

 

Halt the Pity Party

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Here I was this morning feeling “woe-is-me” for myself because of my weight (number). But then I read a blog post by one of my healthy journey friends that put things right back into perspective for me. My friend is struggling severely with his weight and has been for just about all of his life. He lost his dad to complications with bariatric surgery and he struggles with those same demons (among others) of dying an early death due to his size.

I read his post this morning and afterwards, I immediately said a prayer for his strength and a prayer for me to stop mumbling and complaining. Sometimes we just don’t realize how things are until we see/hear the struggles of others.

So if you’re sometimes like I was today and find yourself feeling sorry for yourself, take a moment and just think about where you are and where you could be. I don’t point this out to embarrass my friend or anything like that, but I point it out to help us, ALL of us, put things into perspective and stop complaining so much. We all have our health, no matter what the situation may be. We all have loved ones around us. We have our homes, jobs and a fair amount of blessings that we can certainly be thankful for every day. So today, I choose to be thankful for what I DO have, rather than be sad for the things that I’m missing.

What about you?

What do Customers Really Want?

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When you are operating a small business, it may seem hard to get customers, or, to even keep the existing ones remotely satisfied. It’s often a challenge not just for the large corporations but for the small ones as well. How do you really acquire and maintain good customers. What do customers really want?

I was plagued with this just on last week. I was trying to make a purchase through an online vendor that I have been doing business with now for over 9 years. I placed an order for the product and waited, and waited, and….waited. Nothing happened and I couldn’t get anyone in the Customer Service Department to help me or to even figure out where my order was. It seemed every time I talked with someone,I had to tell my story all over again from the beginning. It was starting to become annoying after about day #2. Wasn’t anyone taking notes and logging my complaints?

This little ordeal with my vendor taught me a little something about my own business. Customers really want what? They want service. Plain and simple. If you provide your customers with actual customer service from knowledgeable service reps, they will feel that their account is in solid and knowledgeable hands and they will actually prefer to do business with you.

The best way to run a customer away is to not know nor care about their account. Do everything you can to provide exceptional customer service and they will keep coming back for more of your products or services.

So what finally happened with my vendor and my product? Well, I did receive it about 8 days later. But i was so disgusted that I had already gone out and purchased another product, so I returned it. If customer service had been a little more “servic-ey”, I may have been compelled to do business with them.

Always provide excellent and genuine customer service.