Monthly Archives: March 2015

What You Need to Know About Hiring Freelancers and Small Business Taxes

March 25, 2015 | 2,316 views

What You Need to Know About Hiring Freelancers and Small Business Taxes

What You Need to Know About Hiring Freelancers and Small Business Taxes

Over a third of Americans work as freelancers, according to Freelancers Union, a nonprofit organization. That equals 53 million people who help companies like yours avoid hiring full time employees for certain tasks, such as marketing or graphic design.

 

Have you ever hired a freelancer in your business? Chances are you have. Small businesses see tremendous benefit from bringing independent contractors on board for short-term projects or work that does not require an internal, full-time employee.

 

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How to Use Social Media for Customer Service

March 18, 2015 | 2,516 views

How to Use Social Media for Customer Service

How to Use Social Media for Customer Service

Imagine this: your customer leaves your business and has a poor experience. Instead of telling your staff, she tells her friends on Twitter. She vents about the negative feeling instead of tackling it head on. Do you respond?

 

67% of consumers use brand’s social media accounts for customer service, according to a recent J.D. Powers & Associates study. Today’s customers are constantly perusing their social media accounts and engaging with their friends/followers. If you’re not monitoring social media and using your accounts for customer service, you could be missing a tremendous opportunity to turn negative experiences into positive ones.

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How to Train Your First Manager

March 11, 2015 | 2,611 views

How to Train Your First Manager

How to Train Your First Manager

Congratulations! You’ve just hired your first manager. Now what?

 

Training your first employee is hard enough. Training someone with as important responsibilities as your manager is even harder. Get started on the right foot with these training tips.

 

Get the Lingo Down

There’s nothing worse than trying to learn a new job and a new language. If you use technical speak and jargon in your daily activities, teach it to your manager before you begin training. That’ll help him learn faster and everything will progress more smoothly.

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How to Instill Great Customer Service Habits in Your Staff

March 6, 2015 | 2,966 views

How to Instill Great Customer Service Habits in Your Staff

How to Instill Great Customer Service Habits in Your Staff

Did you know that:

 

1. Most businesses only hear from 4% of their dissatisfied customers. The remaining 96% never voice their complaints. Source: Ruby Speaks

 

2. It is 7 times more expensive to attract a new customer than it is to retain a loyal customer. Source: White House Office of Consumer Affairs

 

3. Almost half of customer service agents are adequately prepared to resolve a customer issue when it arises. Source: Forrester

 

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