What is UP with your USP? Are you standing out?

Super star drummer Mark Schulman (see picture), currently with PINK on tour and Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympic athlete ever were also speaking, so it was quite special. HOF was the first company to take a commodity like diamonds and give it a USP (Unique Selling Proposition). They pioneered a special way to cut diamonds that makes them sparkle more than a typical diamond. I am a believer! I was excited to see an HOF store filled with neat items and the sale was good enough even people in the jeweler business were excited. I got my wife an amazing diamond pendant on a necklace. Boy does it sparkle! It looks like it has it’s own spotlight! Yes, she was thrilled!

Continue Reading →

The Impact of First Impressions

In the old days before social media, an unhappy guest had a hard time venting to more than a few friends, writing a letter to the company and the Better Business Bureau. Now the game has changed in a big way. There are endless ways to post a bad review on all the 3rd party room booking sites like Travelocity, Trip Advisor, Expedia etc. YELP, Twitter and Facebook. Google Reviews are actually tied into each Motel 6 property on their own booking site Motel6.com. There is a also a new wave of sites like ConsumerAffairs.com, PissedConsumer.com and Complaints.com. Those bad review live forever on line and someone who had a bad experience is 10 times more likely to leave a bad review than someone who had a great experience is to leave a good one.

There are no secrets! You cannot HIDE!

Here are four keys to creating a great first impression.

Continue Reading →