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Unique knowledge sells stuff

The other day I was waiting in line at Starbucks and noticed a display of coffee mugs that were selling for $8.95. My first thought was that another coffee cup was the last thing I needed. And, if I were going to buy one, I likely wouldn’t pay full price.

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Add value, not fees

According to this article, all major U.S. carriers, aside from Continental and Southwest, have added a $10 surcharge to most of their fares for travel on three busy days around the Thanksgiving and New Year’s holidays: Nov. 29, the Sunday after Thanksgiving, as well as Jan. 2 and 3. Rick

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Building loyalty through value at the LEGO® Store

My two oldest boys recently attended a cousin’s LEGO® Star Wars™ themed birthday party at the LEGO® Store. When they returned home, each was carrying a bright yellow LEGO party goodie bag and proudly wearing a LEGO name tag that had been personalized with his name. I asked them how

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How an investment in customer service paid for itself

In the February 19, 2009 issue of BusinessWeek, an article titled Customer Service in a Shrinking Economy featured customer service enhancements at BMW dealerships. Specifically, the automaker rolled out Wi-Fi service at its dealerships last year with the intent of giving customers an inexpensive way to pass the time while

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Expressing genuine interest pays off

There is a restaurant in my neighborhood named Wine Experience Café & World Cellar. This restaurant is unique in that two-thirds of the space is used as a bar area and dining room and the other third is used as a liquor and wine store. The owner, Eldon Larson, had

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Customers are quite adept at learning their place

Earlier today, I stopped by one of those cookie specialty stores to pick up an order of one dozen cookies that had been decorated as pineapples. (In case you’re wondering, the pineapple serves as a symbol of hospitality and warm welcome.) As I’m preparing to pay, the clerk said, “So

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Unique knowledge drives more sales

Consider the job knowledge that is expected from a typical waiter at a fine dining restaurant. For instance, he or she might be expected to know the menu items well in terms of ingredients, sauces, substitutions—that sort of thing. The waiter would also be expected to know about aspects of

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Unique knowledge drives sales

A couple of years ago, I was shopping for a garment bag for my wife. Her job required travel and her current bag was showing serious signs of wear and tear. I stopped into one of those mall luggage stores and the salesperson showed me a black Tumi garment bag.

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