Author Archive

‘Giving Tuesday’ phenomenon and other nonprofit stories of the week

What is #GivingTuesday? We have a day for giving thanks. We have two for getting deals. Now, we have #GivingTuesday, a global day dedicated to giving back. On Tuesday, December 2, 2014, charities, families, businesses, community centers, and students around the world came together for one common purpose: to celebrate...

22 of the Best Mission Statements in the World

The main purpose of a mission statement is to clearly and concisely answer the question, “Why do we exist?” and to lay out your overall company goals and how you will achieve them. And it does it all in a quick, easily understood – and easily shared – statement. To...

This Week’s Trending Business Stories 12-2-14

The art of online apologies and why Elizabeth Lauten failed miserably at hers: The apology was what people who have been caught say. It carries this hard-to-shake implication that she was not REALLY sorry about what she wrote, but instead was sorry that people were outraged by it.  Here are...

Fascinating News from the Nonprofit Sector

Venture Philanthropy:  $3.3 Billion Investment Payout for Cystic Fibrosis.   The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF) cashed in on one of its biggest venture philanthropy efforts, selling future royalty rights for $3.3 billion — 10 times the revenue that the charity typically generates in a year. “This is a transformational moment for...

This week’s trending business stories

Popular posts that impact you and your business Top 10 Stores For Best Black Friday Deals (Surprise: Not  Walmart!) – Forbes.   The personal finance site WalletHub surveyed 5, 525 Black Friday ad scans from 22 of the country’s biggest U.S. retailers. Their results show mall stalwarts JC Penney and Macy's...

Do You See a Trend?

Valcort 35 Keys to Business Growth:  # 7  Have a process to identify industry trends that will impact a customer’s opinion of you.  Wayne Gretzky was the greatest ice hockey player of all time not only because of his physical skills, but because he consistently saw where the play was...

Trend Savvy

21 great ways to keep up with trends that will impact you and your business We contended in a recent post titled Do You See a Trend? that companies best prepared for the future are those that most accurately forecast industry, technological, and sociological trends.  How do you do that...

An Earful of Change

Valcort 35 Keys to Business Growth:  #6  When you talk with your customer, listen carefully, capturing their comments and any information that helps you understand their buying habits and unmet needs. “WHY won’t you JUST LISTEN TO ME!” she said in a tense, high pitched voice. And with that outburst from the...

Making the best of customer touchpoints

Valcort 35 Keys to Business Growth: # 5   Have a fully coordinated, customer sales approach, drawing a customer into an engaging relationship at every point of contact.  One of my beautiful daughters had a modeling gig for Lands’ End recently that put her in the popular catalog and on the company’s...

Why selling your products is a bad idea

Valcort 35 Keys to Business Growth:  #4  Have a clear understanding of how each of your products and services relate to the other and to the company as a whole.” I watched as my 10 year-old son dug around in a bin of hundreds of small and odd shaped little...