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Blog with a Lot of Potential
Posted on July 29, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
There's nothing quite so satisfying as finding a new blog to add to one's ever-growing subscription list. Wait, that sounds a little pathetic. But I do mean it. Sigh.
Check out Wendy Maynard's blog, "Kinetic Ideas," because that's just what you'll get from her.
July 29, 2005 in audio publication, award winning design, award winning magazine, award winning newsletter, Award winning publications, Blogging Tools, Building Customer Intuition, company newsletter sample, create a newsletter | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Outsource for Expertise, Not Just Ease
Posted on July 27, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
Inside of a newsletter are many, many words. Those words must be relevant to your readers. Those words must be written (and re-written) by somebody.
And the writing is just the beginning. The words must be edited, copy-edited and proofread. The words must have a consistent style and tone. The words must correctly project the image that your company projects.
This takes two things, to get it done right:
1. Time
2. Expertise
Reason number three for outsourcing your newsletter: professional writing and editing services at your disposal.
3. Professional writing and editing services at your disposal.
2. You're working with experts; you can let go of the worry.
1. Because you're so flippin' busy.
July 27, 2005 in award winning blog, Award winning publications, Blog Outsourcing, blog publish, Blogging Tools, Building Customer Community, Building Customer Intuition, company blog, company magazine, company newsletter, company newsletter sample, Company newsletters, Company publication, Corporate Blogging, create a newsletter | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Only the Best For You
Posted on July 26, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
Probably you already subscribe to all of the marketing blogs Forbes lists as the best. But go ahead, broaden your horizons--check out some art or literary blogs.
Thanks to Cymfony's Marketing Insight for pointing the way.
July 26, 2005 in award winning blog, award winning magazine, award winning newsletter, Award winning publications, Blog Outsourcing, blog publish, Building B2B Relationships, Building Customer Intuition, Business publications, company newsletter, company newsletter sample, corporate magazine, create a newsletter | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Catch Success Fever With Webinar Tomorrow
Posted on July 25, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
What happens when author Susan Lucia Annunzio and editorial director Susan Fisher come together to discuss success? An aural spectacle the likes of which have never been heard! And that's a promise.
Actually, the two will go Susan-to-Susan in a discussion about Annunzio's book: "Contagious Success: Spreading High Performance Throughout Your Organization." Fisher will interview her, and then you'll have a chance to ask questions, too, because--that's right--you're invited.
Since you already know the what and the who, here are the answers to the rest of your likely questions:
When: Tuesday, July 26th at 1 p.m. CST
Where: On the web and in your telephone
How: The magic of technology (if you email me, I'll give you instructions for log-in)
Why: Because I like you
You can read Susan's review here.
July 25, 2005 in audio publication, award winning magazine, award winning newsletter, Award winning publications, Blog Outsourcing, blog publish, Building B2B Relationships, Building Customer Community, Building Customer Intuition, bulk email marketing, company newsletter sample, corporate magazine, create a newsletter | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
On the Road Again
Posted on July 22, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
BeTuitive's fearless leader, Todd Smart, is criss-crossing the country talking to people about the value of e-newsletters and segmentation for a targeted, relevant message.
Check out the article in DMNews, and see if you'll be able to catch Todd when he comes to a city near you:
August 9: Kansas City, MO
August 18: Phoenix, AZ
August 23: San Diego, CA
August 30: San Francisco, CA
July 22, 2005 in audio publication, award winning magazine, award winning newsletter, Award winning publications, Blog Outsourcing, Blogging Tools, Building B2B Relationships, Building Customer Intuition, bulk email marketing, company blog, company magazine, company newsletter sample, corporate magazine, Corporate newsletter, create a newsletter | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Absolutely Something: That's What Blogs Are Good For
Posted on July 21, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
I had the chance to interview Peter Davidson of the BeConnected blog this month for the BeTuitive newsletter and ask him some burning questions that might be on your mind as well.
From establishing credibility to reading metrics, Peter leans back in his virtual chair, lights up his virtual pipe and holds forth on a broad range of blog topics.
Here's your chance to listen in, and then really impress your kids at the dinner table (and your colleagues at the conference table) with your extensive knowledge about this up-and-coming means of communication: the blog.
July 21, 2005 in audio publication, award winning design, award winning newsletter, Award winning publications, blog publish, Blogs, Building B2B Relationships, Building Customer Intuition, bulk email marketing, Business publications, company blog, company magazine, company newsletter, company newsletter sample, Corporate publications, create a newsletter | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Cheers and Jeers and Everything in Between
Posted on July 20, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
I'm back! And here is the great semi-okay thing that happened in my absence: The bug in my account is fixed has the appearance of being fixed, but is not really, and I feel a lot more comfortable posting. I'm still going to take a crash course in html because, seriously, I just should.
I'm swamped right now catching up on all of the stuff that I missed out on during the first two days of the week, but here's two completely random things that might actually work better on Peter's blog, BeConnected, because they're all about customer intuition:
- You know that commercial with Mandy Patinkin in it for Crestor? Why does he have to say "That's about half" after he tells us it does something (lowers cholesterol or something) by 52%? Has Crestor intuited that its target audience is kind of dumb?
- Today my intern went to Chipotle for lunch, and I had him pick something up for me. What I wanted when I went to the website was to find the burrito-fixin's bar. I wanted it to look exactly like it looks when I'm at Chipotle, and I'm standing on the other side of the counter choosing black beans or pinto beans. And that is exactly what there was. How often does that happen--that you want something, and it's just there?
More on e-newsletter outsourcing tomorrow.
July 20, 2005 in audio publication, award winning design, award winning magazine, Award winning publications, Blogging Tools, Building B2B Relationships, Building Customer Intuition, company blog, company magazine, company newsletter, company newsletter sample, corporate magazine, create a newsletter | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Family Time
Posted on July 15, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
I'm heading off to the Wisconsin Dells to chill with my family for a long weekend. On Wednesday, I'll be back all rested and sunburned and ready to disperse marketing knowledge.
July 15, 2005 in award winning design | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
“Contagious Success: Spreading High Performance Throughout Your Organization”
Posted on July 14, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
By Susan E. Fisher
Business books are a lot like self-help books: They make some pretty obvious points telling you to do things you already know in your gut that you should be doing. Just as the hottest books making the self-improvement rounds counsel you to take control of your life so you can lose weight or make money, today's popular business books urge businesses to empower their workers to raise productivity and profits.
“Contagious Success: Spreading High Performance Throughout Your Organization” by Susan Lucia Annunzio provides no startling revelations; the basic premise tells you what you know instinctively. Boil down her 256-page tome into a sentence and you get this prescription: “Value people, and you’ll get better business results.”
Yet, the book is a fresh departure from the hollow analysis of the too-many formulaic volumes cramming the self-help and business books shelves. Its clearly articulated points are backed by considerable analysis and hard numbers. Annunzio’s Hudson Highland Center for High Performance studied more than 3,000 “knowledge workers” from Georgia to Shanghai in companies from Abbott Laboratories to Zurich North America.
The hard data alone would make the book worthy material for any managers or entrepreneurs eager to up their organization’s performance. Annunzio takes the book to the next level by serving up the lessons provided by the study as a simple, easy-to-digest guide.
The management consultant identified the characteristics that make high-performing workgroups soar: valuing people, optimizing critical thinking and seizing opportunities. “For the first time, quantifiable proof that there is a direct correlation between how you treat people and financial results,” the author claims.
Certainly, it is sad to think that businesses actually need quantifiable proof to realize there’s a meaningful link between how you deal with employees and financial results.
Still, the point should be well taken and used as a springboard for the other useful guidance Annunzio offers:
- The workgroup (defined as a unit that works together on a temporary or permanent basis with common goals and shared experience) is the core unit of the company, not the individual.
Business, the book notes, is a team sport. If you have a great player in a lousy squad, chances are better that the failing team will bring the great player down, rather than that the great player will convert losers to winners. Focus on developing great workgroups.
2. Great workgroups are made, not born.
Organizations must deliberately create environments for workgroups that can sustain high performance. The right environment is much more about providing respect than resources. “Treat smart people as if they are smart people,” the book counsels. High-performing groups create a “learning environment in which people can take risks, generate new ideas, make mistakes and learn from them.”
3. Don’t clip the wings off high-flying groups.
Nothing sends great performers sputtering to mediocrity faster than micromanaging and hording information, leaders who act in their own self-interest and companies that have short-term, rather than long-term goals. Give high-performing groups the support they need.
In short, “success is contagious,” as Annunzio writes in the opening sentence of the book. But, success does not spread like the stomach flu in a nursery school class. Instead it has to be nurtured in something of a corporate Petri dish.
To take the analysis that direction, Annunzio and her able team of researchers would have to take a slightly different tack and segment the types of workgroups they study.
Of course, Annunzio and their team are happy to help with the task. The Hudson Highland Center for High Performance will benchmark your company against the findings of the study. Their experts promise to pinpoint “the three aspects of your company’s work environment that require immediate attention.” Check out the company’s offer on the Web.
So create a work environment that lets smart people act smart, and your company will reap the benefits.
Learn how to spread high performance throughout your organization. BeTuitive Marketing invites you to a special question and answer webinar session with “Contagious Success” author Susan Lucia Annunzio at 1 p.m. Central on July 26. Just let us know by emailing us. You will receive instructions with more details.
July 14, 2005 in award winning magazine, award winning newsletter, Award winning publications, Blog Outsourcing, blog publish, build credibility, Business editorial, Business newsletter, Business relationships, Corporate newsletter, Corporate publications, create a newsletter | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Ladies and Gentlemen, once again, Susan Fisher
Posted on July 13, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
Susan Fisher, editorial director for BeTuitive, has reviewed another book for our company book club. Is your success contagious? Do you want it to be?
Find out what Susan Lucia Annunzio's book, Contagious Success: Spreading High Performance Throughout Your Organization, has to offer in her review, to be posted tomorrow morning.
July 13, 2005 in award winning design | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack