Articles 1 to 10 of 121
Trying to Lose Weight? Look Around the Table, Not Just On It
Standing next to a chubby pal might make you feel better about yourself, but it also could make you eat more -- or less -- depending on how big your buddy happens to be and how unbridled that person is at the buffet table. In fact, the weight and habits of a stranger in line ahead of you at some fast food place could impact your lunch choices, too. A team of researchers that included W. P. Carey marketing professor Andrea Morales has discovered that it isn't merely the amount of food your tablemate orders that may affect your own eating decisions. Your companion's dress or trouser size is likely to carry considerable weight, as well.
From Provider to Partner: Service Relationships that Transform Businesses
"Attract more customers, retain the ones you have, and expand existing relationships." That is the magic formula for growth, according to Synovate's Chief Loyalty Architect Dr. Larry Crosby. "Everybody wants growth," he said, but with limited budgets and fierce global competition, attracting and retaining customers is easier said than done. The real key, according to Crosby, is the third part of the equation -- the cultivation and development of existing relationships. Crosby was one of the featured speakers at the "Creating Value Through Service" symposium organized in Shanghai by the Center for Services Leadership at the W. P. Carey School and Fudan University's Center of Service Marketing and Management.
Overcoming the Challenges in Migrating from Products to Services: Facing the Enemy Within
Charging for services involves an organizational shift. Stephen Brown, director of the Center for Services Leadership, says companies must move away from what he calls the logic of manufacturing -- how to make things, how to cut costs, how to increase efficiency -- towards a logic focused on addressing customers' needs. Unsurprisingly, the product-dominant firms themselves prove most resistant to this shift. "A service logic focuses on how to help customers solve their problems. This requires a deep and intimate understanding of customers beyond what most product-dominant companies have ever even considered," said Brown.
Product Companies Becoming Profitable Services Providers
Many companies have been shifting away from a sole focus on products and have added services in order to drive continued growth and differentiate themselves in an increasingly saturated marketplace. In fact, services account for 80 percent of the U.S. GDP and similarly high percentages in the GDPs of other developed nations. In China, where the Center for Services Leadership recently hosted a symposium on the subject, services now account for 40 percent of GDP, up from 34 percent a few years ago. The key to a successful move into services, experts say, is to recognize that running a service business is not the same as running a product business, and that the transition will not happen overnight.
The New Frugality: Will It Last or Languish?
Parsimony is a little like dancing, according to marketing Professor John Lastovicka. It's something anyone can learn, but some have more talent for it than others. What's more, the truly penny-wise take pleasure in their penny pinching. But, he adds, frugality is a tough road to walk, one he believes will be "difficult to make popular during times of plenty." Lastovicka is one of the few researchers who's examined lifestyles of those who scrimp and save -- work that's especially timely during a recession.
Arizona Cardinals' Super Bowl Trip Provides Timely Boost for Phoenix Economy
"Victory is contagious, and food always tastes better when you win," says Ray Artigue, the former senior vice president of the Phoenix Suns, who is now a professor of practice in the marketing department at the W. P. Carey School of Business and director of the W. P. Carey MBA Sports Business Program. With the Arizona Cardinals playing in this weekend's 43rd Super Bowl against the Pittsburgh Steelers, merchants will be selling a lot of food, beer, wine and other beverages this weekend in Phoenix. Fans are also snapping up truckloads of Arizona Cardinals caps, jerseys, t-shirts and other memorabilia. Although it's hard to measure the impact of the game on the Cardinals' home town, the extra cha-ching at cash registers couldn't have come at a better time.
Sending Clear Messages: Communicating the 'Core Idea'
People who know Mike Figliuolo likely were unsurprised when he founded a training and development firm called "thoughtLEADERS, LLC" in 2004. Up to that point, every stage of his career led seamlessly to the next, as he groomed himself in teamwork, delegating, structure, strategy and leadership. "My background is critical to the firm," he explained. "I spent so much time in meetings, listening to presentations that were poorly communicated and left me and other participants unsure of what the message was, what the next step should be and how their research backed up their hypothesis." Figliuolo was a speaker at the 19th Annual Compete Through Service Symposium, sponsored by the Center for Services Leadership at the W. P. Carey School.
Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh: Customer Focus Key to Record Sales During Retail Slump
Wearing faded gray jeans, a gray striped shirt and black sneakers, Tony Hsieh hardly looks the part of a $1 billion company's CEO. But as Hsieh addressed a session of the 19th Annual Compete Through Service Symposium sponsored by the W. P. Carey School of Business, those in suits and leather shoes took notice of the witty but reserved 34-year-old with an uncanny business sense who a decade ago built a $265 million Internet advertising company and then sold it to Microsoft. Hsieh now is head of Zappos, an online company founded in 1999 to sell shoes, which has since expanded into clothing, housewares, cookware and even electronics. But more than merchandise, Zappos is selling customer service and corporate culture.
Podcast: Persuading Nervous Customers to Buy
With the economy continuing to falter, consumer product and service companies are looking for every edge to bring in business. Robert Cialdini, a professor of marketing at the W. P. Carey School and author of "Yes: 50 Scientifically-Proven Ways to be Persuasive," talks about the psychological tendencies that determine whether you or your company can persuade a customer to buy your product. In uncertain times, people want to know what the experts say, and what other people like them are doing.
Geek Squad: Best Buy's Corporate Mythology
We all know the Best Buy brand -- the big-box stores have been around for 30 years, populated by employees wearing blue shirts, selling products emblazoned with the yellow tag. Around 10 years ago, services began taking center stage -- derailing some industry leaders and empowering others. It was time to do something different. Best Buy leaders "started looking at how to get closer to our customers," said Sean Skelley, senior vice president of services for Best Buy Co., Inc. They came up with the concept of "relatable mythology," a story that connects the business to its customers. Skelley was speaking to customer-service leaders attending the Compete Through Service Symposium, an annual event hosted by the Center for Services Leadership at the W.P. Carey School of Business.
