So, today a woman and her son (around 3-6 years old) came into the store I was working at today. I know I’m probably being a little childish, but I don’t care. That lady can go stuff her head in a chamber pot filled with the smell of week old urine. I don’t wish her worse just because she had a late toddler-aged son with her who didn’t do anything to me. But yeah. So, I’m at the register busy doing what, I can’t remember. But point was that I was busy enough to not be able to help her immediately. So, the other employee took care of her, and I thought her transaction would be complete by the time I was done so I put her entire existence out of my mind. She no longer existed to be helped. Few moments after I’m done, I think I hear someone yelling so I look around and the female dog is at the last register looking at me. So, I walk on over to her and ask her if she wants some balloons because she’s standing in front of the register in front of the balloons and not at the first register, WHERE I WAS AT. So, fine. She then proceeds to tell me she wants a Spider-Man balloon so I take it out. Then, I ask if she wants any other balloons, and she says that she wants the happy birthday balloon, “like I told you” she says. Here, I get a little irked because I think to myself [Female dog, I don’t know who you’ve been talking to, but you sure as death didn’t say anything about no “happy birthday balloons” to me. Literally had to ask you if you wanted balloons in the first place], but ok. I ignore that little crazy-talk comment she made there. So, I grab the balloon and start asking again if there’s any other balloons she wants and she starts asking me about how the color of the balloon doesn’t match the color scheme of the spider man balloon, right? [Lady, just pick one and tell me. Don’t ask me about whether it matches. I didn’t even know how to match my clothes for the first 13 years of my life.] Anyways, I tell her no and she decides she doesn’t want the balloon, so I put the happy birthday balloon back. When I go back to the first register, I see there is a two l person line so I take care of the first person and she proceeds to skip the second person. I usually tell the customer that is skipping that there is a line and to go to the back, but this time I just wanted her to leave quickly, so I said nothing when the customer just let her pass without saying anything. After I ring her up, I go back to the helium tank and start blowing the Spider man balloons up. I now see there is suddenly a longer line, about 5-7 people. I, slightly panicky because of the line that is steadily growing longer, inflate the balloons and give them to her. Here’s where she really got on my nerves and I slightly become confrontational. I handed her one balloon and she begins to tie the balloon string. I’m still holding my hand towards her, still clutching the second balloon. And she’s taking her sweet time tying the balloon string. All the while telling me absentmindedly, perhaps, that it’s my job to tie the string to make it easier for her to hold the balloon. I’m really irked now, because no, that is not my job. You can hold the balloon perfectly well without a beautiful, intricate knot. But, whatever. I ignore her comments because I don’t like talking more than what is considered politely necessary when I’m at work. As I’m holding the balloon, I notice the line is growing steadily longer, so I put a heavy object on the balloon string and start walking towards the first register where I’m logged into. She then begins to yell at me saying “You’re not done here. This is your job. You’re supposed to tie the knot.” And I can no longer ignore her absolutely self-centered comments and start arguing like the 20 year-old child that I am. I start interrupting her complaining by walking towards the first register and telling her in a very dismissive and rude voice that that isn’t my job and when she says the same annoying thing again, I repeat the same thing I said back. “No, that isn’t my job.” Because it’s true. My job is to ring you up, blow up the balloons, and give them to you. If you want some customized shit, do it yourself. That is NOT MY JOB. Fucking hell (gonna have to tag this for the curse words). I usually try to be neutral in all aspects, but this bitch really pushed my buttons. I just feel bad for the kid now. The kid was just standing there and trying to help his mom out when she sent him to get my attention. Hope he grows up to be a better person than his mom… Customer that I was trying to help while she was being her useless and self-centered self was an older man who was pretty cool about it. I wasn’t being soft-spoken in my little outburst, so he heard the commotion and scoffed when he found out why she was showing signs of throwing a tantrum. Told me he agreed with me and that he couldn’t work at the place because he slapped someone who got rude with him. Really liked that dude. Cool dude. submitted by /u/IraMorsNox [link] [comments]
Author: Franz Malten Buemann
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How to Make Money with Ezoic (Step by Step Guide)
submitted by /u/KKJA102 [link] [comments]
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Cultural distress (and consumerism)
For decades, marketers (and politicians) have been working to amplify cultural distress, a hack on our emotions.
Not the tragic emotional distress of being unable to care for your kids, find a place to live or deal with trauma, but the invented cultural distress of modern industrialized societies.
This is the easily created shame of not having a new suit to wear to the garden party, or having to use an old model smartphone instead of the new one. It’s the dissatisfaction of knowing that something ‘better’ is available, and the invented discontent that comes from the peer pressure of being left out or left behind.
Or it might be the social shame that comes from not having a big enough presence on social media, or the fomo that watching other people presenting nothing but happiness online can create.
It can be amplified with a sort of nostalgia for times when everything was perfect, or anxiety about a future when we imagine we won’t have enough.
Fear of this sort of cultural distress pushes us to simply spend money to avoid it. It’s easier to lose your life’s savings and peace of mind to end-of-life care than it is to simply draft a living will. It’s easier to give in to the high-pressure tactics of a real estate broker than it is to look squarely at the feelings that you might not actually get this particular house. Making a budget is hard, paying for not making one is easy.
It turns out that selling an easy and convenient way to avoid social pain is a nearly boundless formula for corporate growth. And so people with a lot of resources are still unhappy, because they succumb to invented narratives about cultural distress–and then, once they buy something to avoid it, discover that it’s still there.
Marathon runners don’t complain about the tired, because getting tired is a necessary component of a well-run race. And human beings are always going to find moments of cultural distress, and it’s up to each of us to decide what to trade (in the short run and the long run) to deal with it. Perhaps it makes sense simply to acknowledge that it’s present.
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Marketing Automation
Hello I’m sharing this because I believe that if you can automate your businesses its the best thing that can happen, since you can create passive income. Moosend is my favourite platform to use since it’s easy to use and its efficient. There are a wide range of benefits, such as able to create better landing pages, able to get faster and better conversion rates. https://moosend.grsm.io/pricing-plans6445 To see their pricing. https://moosend.grsm.io/creation To see their tools. submitted by /u/DrHanns [link] [comments]
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What is campaign management?
A campaign is an effort to increase conversions, engagement, and loyalty. Campaign Management allows users to define a target audience and then create, execute, manage and track campaigns to achieve their marketing goals. Campaign management is the process of planning and executing the development, monitoring, and fulfillment of an advertisement or marketing campaign. During this experience, you will learn how to set strategic objectives and targets while developing a campaign that resonates with customers to bring in more business. Managing a campaign is one of the most important parts of running any digital marketing program, whether it’s a traditional marketing campaign, like an email newsletter, or a social media post. Marketing and Campaign management is a challenging business. A critical aspect of campaign success is properly managing changes in its plan. submitted by /u/assiduusglobalinc [link] [comments]
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ozma.io, a low-code solution to build your custom CRM software from scratch
Hello everyone! 🙂 This is my first article, that I would like to share in this group My name is Kirill, and I am the founder of ozma.io – a low-code platform for CRM and ERP solutions. We are a startup based in Amsterdam and we are looking for your feedback on our product. I am launching this article and I would be very honored if you will share your thoughts about it in the comments under this post! You can as well check our demo or free trial version (limit – 5 people) submitted by /u/Kirmark [link] [comments]
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How to Boost Your Ecommerce Growth with SMS Marketing
How good is SMS marketing for ecommerce? What results can online retailers achieve with using SMS notifications? Check out our latest blog post to find out!
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Leveraging Keyword Mapping to Optimize the Buyer’s Journey
Learn how to easily get an expert’s grasp of keyword mapping and apply it to your business and buyer’s journey.
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What Are Agile Metrics?
Agile marketing focuses on creating high-value deliverables by working in short bursts to achieve goals. An agile marketing process is also constantly iterated to ensure productivity and efficiency.
Measuring the success of an agile marketing process is critical as it helps monitor processes and ensures everything is on track — this is where agile metrics come in.
In this post, we’ll discuss:What are agile metrics?
Importance of Agile Metrics
Types of Agile Metrics
Key Agile MetricsWhat are agile metrics?
Agile metrics is a tool that helps marketing teams measure the progress and productivity of marketing activities, stay on track, and address roadblocks. Agile metrics are most effective when tailored to the specific needs of individual projects.
You can use agile metrics at both the team level and individual level. At the team level, they help assess the overall health of marketing activities and identify potential bottlenecks. At the individual level, they can help identify areas of improvement for each team member based on their progress.Importance of Agile Metrics
Agile metrics are important because they help track progress and identify areas for improvement.
Agile metrics also:Increase productivity by providing visuals of project timelines so stakeholders can understand what comes next.
Build accountability and transparency between stakeholders because everyone knows what’s expected of them and their teams.
Improve communication between team members because agile metrics give specific insight into project progress so people can begin conversations based on metrics and data.
Help managers and leaders identify risks and potential problems early on from historical agile metrics data, helping them correct processes and save time.Types of Agile Metrics
There are three main types of agile metrics, and we’ll outline them below.Scrum Metrics: A Scrum is a process where work is done in sprints to quickly deliver small projects that make up larger projects over time. Scrum metrics analyze sprint effectiveness and show how much work was completed during a given sprint.
Kanban Metrics: Kanban processes use visual cues to track progress over time. It usually is based on a project board that is divided into columns that represent stages in a workflow. Kanban metrics help you understand workflow effectiveness, organize and prioritize work, and the amount of time invested to obtain results.
Lean Metrics: Lean processes help decrease the amount of time it takes from when a task or project is requested to when teams complete it. Lean metrics measure productivity and quality of work output, helping get rid of activities that don’t benefit outcomes or getting work done quickly.Key Agile Metrics
Below we’ll go over some of the most common agile metrics.
1. Sprint Burndown Chart
Type of Agile Metric: Scrum
A sprint burndown chart shows the work that remains and has already been completed in a designated sprint. It also shows the amount of work that has been completed over time.
Sprint burndown charts provide a visual for this data and can predict a team’s likelihood to complete their work in the time available.Image Source
2. Cumulative Flow Diagram
Type of Agile Metric: Kanban
The cumulative flow diagram is a graphical representation of work in progress. Specifically, it displays the work already completed, the work currently in progress, and tasks that have yet to begin. The diagram helps you visualize how stable your process is and helps you identify problem areas to address.Image Source
3. Cycle Time Diagram
Type of Agile Metric: Kanban
A cycle time diagram displays the amount of time it takes to complete a task. It helps you identify areas where your process can be updated and streamlined for future productivity and understand the effects of the strategies you implement.
As your overall goal is likely to have a shorter cycle time across all projects, the diagram will help you understand the length and identify areas for improvement. Cycle time is a smaller section of the lead time metric, which we’ll discuss below.
4. Lead Time
Type of Agile Metrics: Kanban
Lead time is the time it takes for a task to be completed from start to finish. It builds off of the cycle time metric but adds on the amount of time between when a task or project was requested to when it was started.Image Source
For example, you could use the lead time metric to analyze how much time it takes from when a new marketing copy is requested to when it is delivered.
5. Velocity Chart
Type of Agile Metric: Scrum
Velocity is the rate at which a team can deliver work during a sprint. It measures how fast teams complete a task and identifies whether they are on track to meet deadlines. It can also predict a team’s future abilities, helping ensure you don’t commit to a timeline you can’t achieve.Image Source
A lower velocity means it takes teams more time to complete a task, so it could be worthwhile to identify areas you can streamline to speed up the process.
6. Burn Up Chart
Type of Agile Metric: Scrum
A burn-up chart tracks progress over time. The graph features two lines, one that displays the projected amount of work and another that shows actual work completed.Image Source
This metric helps you compare expectations to how much work is delivered, which can help you understand team efficiencies and identify areas for improvement.
The right agile metric helps you and your teams stay productive and focused.
Choosing an agile metric depends on the specific needs of your marketing activities. Once you choose one, you’ll get a bigger picture of your team’s productivity and marketing processes, helping you identify roadblocks, optimize your strategies, and meet your business goals. -
Offline Marketing: Should You Leverage It in a Post-Pandemic World?
Since the start of the pandemic, marketing strategies have relied heavily on online tactics —leveraging tools like social media, email, and digital ads. But what about marketing outside of the digital space, otherwise known as offline marketing?
Is there still value in marketing via billboards, print ads, and broadcast commercials? In a post-pandemic world, whenever that may be, there’s a chance offline marketing could make a comeback.
Here’s what marketers need to know about offline marketing and how it can be leveraged.What is offline marketing?
5 Offline Marketing Strategies You Should Use
Business Cards
Community Engagement
Event Hosting
Press Releases
Free WorkshopsSo why should your company still incorporate offline marketing into its strategy, especially in the digital age?
One reason is that it’s tangible and allows marketers to physically reach their target audience in a way that online marketing can’t. You can hand out flyers, put up posters, and send direct mail to people’s homes. Sometimes, physical items relating to your brand can leave a more lasting impression.
For example, the local Papa John’s in my neighborhood has a deal with my apartment complex. Whenever a new tenant moves in, they get a Papa John’s magnet and menu inside their welcome gift bag. Both the magnet and menu have the local restaurant’s number and hours.
I didn’t know of any other pizza places in the area, so I pinned the items to my fridge, and every time I was craving pizza I would call that particular Papa John’s location.
Offline marketing can also create a personal connection with your audience. For example, you can sponsor and host fun, engaging local and in-store events that let you connect with your consumers in person.
But most importantly, the best marketing strategies combine both online and offline marketing to reach an audience through as many channels as possible. For example, let’s say your company hosts an in-store event to connect with customers offline. That offline marketing strategy can also be used to create online content via video highlights of the event.
Another factor to consider is that online channels may not be available to everyone in your market, such as older consumers who are less likely to be tech-savvy — so offline marketing with business cards or pamphlets will make your brand more accessible to that demographic.5 Offline Marketing Strategies You Should Use
Here are a few offline marketing strategies you can use to reach your target market:Business Cards
Business cards are a tried and true offline marketing method. A business card with a distinct design can set your business apart from competitors and reflect your brand’s values and mission. Make sure everyone in your company has their own business cards to give away at any time —you never know when they might run into a prospective client.
You may be tempted to try online business card generators to save a little money. While those can save money, you’re better off opting for local designers or print shops to create cards that are truly unique to your business. That way, you can customize the layout, color, texture, font, and more.
Pro Tip: Use a color other than the usual white for your business cards, and make sure every card has the same logo, font style, and colors for a unique but uniform look as well as brand consistency.Community Engagement
Offline marketing lets you create a more personal connection with your audience — especially if you incorporate community engagement in your strategy. Using your platform and resources to help others within your community can increase brand awareness and solidify your brand’s reputation for being responsible.
An excellent example is the annual Stuff the Bus event hosted by First Coast News, a TV news station in Jacksonville, Florida. Every summer right before back-to-school season, First Coast News partners with United Way of Northeast Florida to raise money and school supplies to be donated to local schools. The event helps the station establish itself as an integral part of the community it broadcasts to.
Pro Tip: Carefully consider the organization or service you involve in this strategy to ensure it aligns with your company’s values and image.Event Hosting
Event hosting is a great way to market your brand offline because events can promote outreach as well as opportunities to network. You’ll have the chance to engage with potential clients in person and connect with potential business partners or collaborators.
One example is RDC World’s annual DreamCon anime convention in Arlington, Texas. RDC World is a group of content creators who gained a huge following on YouTube making viral skits geared toward Black anime and comic book fans. To meet its fans in person and to provide other content creators a chance to network, RDC World started DreamCon.
The con attracts more guests each year and has grown to include appearances from celebrities, voice actors, and other viral content creators. The convention, as well as RDCWorld, is now a staple among Black anime fans.
Pro Tip: To get the most out of your event, incorporate digital marketing tactics like live streams and short-form videos for platforms like TikTok and Instagram.Press Releases
A simple but effective way to boost brand awareness is to send press releases to local journalists in your community. Make a point to build relationships with them and get them interested in your brand. Once you find the contact information for your local journalists and publishers, start sending press releases that advertise your brand and any upcoming events you are hosting such as conventions, workshops, or fundraisers.
Pro Tip: Invite the press to special meet-and-greets and tours of your business to build an offline connection.Free Workshops
You want consumers to know your brand is made up of experts in its field — one way to do that is by offering free workshops. A workshop can be in the form of a TV or radio appearance where you present valuable information while expanding your reach. You can also write regular columns for your local newspaper or magazine that give tips and advice pertaining to your market.
This marketing tactic builds trust with your audience. If they know you’re an expert in your space, then they’ll trust that your products or services are top-notch as well.
Pro Tip: When handing out flyers or other offline marketing materials, make sure to include a section with useful tips regarding your industry.
Digital marketing isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, but offline marketing should still be a part of your strategy to meet your audience wherever they are. In a post-pandemic world where more people will drive past billboards or look for workshops to improve their craft, you’ll want to be the brand that catches their eye.