One of the most frequently quoted movie lines in business circles comes from Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. Jedi Master Yoda instructs Luke Skywalker to use The Force to raise his spaceship out of the swamp. Luke …
Point the Way to Higher Sales
Recently, another speaker and I were driving from a hotel to a nearby conference center. Although the directions we had received were murky, we could see the conference center from the hotel, so we figured it couldn't be …
Liar, Liar, Selling Car Tires
I was just reading the latest column by Tom and Ray Magliozzi, the hosts of the Car Talk radio show. There was a letter from a man who brought his BMW to his dealer because one of his (fairly new) tires blew out through …
Customer Loyalty—A Bargain
Remember when 25 cents was really worth something? Here are a few things you can’t buy for a quarter anymore: • Loaf of bread • Candy bar • Deck of cards • Shoe shine • Can of soda • Newspaper • Ice cream cone • …
Sales Going to the Cats
I saw something in the grocery store yesterday that caused me to wonder if perhaps the apocalypse is nigh. A nationally-known pet food company has introduced a line of appetizers for cats. I’ll repeat that in case you …
Good News About Bad News
There’s plenty of depression about the recession. The National Federation of Independent Businesses just released the results of their latest monthly survey, which showed that, despite the reports of “green shoots,” …
