Influx

Forbes covers some of the highlights of a recent WSJ article that explored the secrets behind the success of the Apple store. It basically comes down to a few simple thing- having a powerful brand has to be key, but control and attention to detail follow closely behind. “Apple’s control of...

In a great post from The Economist about the language of air travel the author discusses how insider language creates a disconcerting experience for air travelers. For a category, where service is supposed to matter, the failure of language to bridge the gap and create more humanity and warmth is a...

Many companies are obsessed with their customer satisfaction scores and look to make customers satisfied. Software company, 37signals believe that's satisfaction is a pretty low bar and believe the right criteria is happiness. Here's 37signals belief system around happinessHere's how people get...

With hundreds of un-differentiated brands in the category, hotel chains are finally going back to their roots and realizing that after years of neglect, service is the one thing that they can focus on that really makes a difference. According to the NYT, hotel chains are experimenting with new...

Companies that try to make progress within a highly political and negative culture have a very tough time. They constantly find themselves placing more energy into selling and navigating choppy internal waters, than being externally brilliant. Without a positive internal culture, life is extremely...

Zappos is a brand that flies under the radar. It's a brand that's been around for close to 10 years and has been building leadership in the somewhat unlikely area of online shoe sales. The secret of its success appears to be due to the attention the company places on doing the simple things well,...

In 2004, Alex Frankel took us on a journey inside the mysterious world of brand name development process with his first book, Wordcraft. In his latest book, Punching In-The Unauthorized Adventures of a Front-Line Employee, Alex examines the world of America’s front-line employees based on his...

We all know the feeling of wanting to talk to a live person, when we get placed in phone tree hell. Nophonetrees.com is planning to help by offering a web service that allows people to get the right number to get in touch with a live human being. The website looks a little hard to navigate and not...