Who ranks the worst when it comes to customer service? Well according to a recent Fast Company survey, Wal-mart, Cingular, and Sprint PCS are the top three offenders. How much longer can wireless companies keep treating it’s customers poorly? Oh I know. When VoIP and other new technologies make them get their act together.

Until then, here’s to crappy cell phone service!

(Source: Fast Company)

I’ve just topped the 500 post mark in just under 6 months of active blogging. That’s the most writing I’ve ever done in that short of a period. I enjoy it so much, I think I might try to be a writer someday. Lindsey seems to be okay with it too ’cause she thinks of it as “less dorking around” which is a good thing (although I still dork around).

My gaming blog, has been getting considerable attention over the past little while. It got just under 40,000 unique visitors for the month of September and is now averaging 2,200/day. Little compared to big sites, but big compared to going from 0-40,000 readers in five months. It’s still growing and it should be fun to see where it could go from here.

I’d like to consider myself somewhat creative. Credit my mother for that. But never in my life have I expressed that creative side like in the basic form of writing. I’m used to using a guitar, dreamweaver, photoshop, and other tools. With writing though, the tools used are rudimentary in comparison like a keyboard, pen, or pencil. It’s an enjoyable, yet challenging experience that I hope to get better at it.

The following items should come and go as quickly as Vlogs did:

1. Podcasting. seems like anything with “pod” in it will do well. This should die off soon though due to no business model whatsoever.
2. Space Tourism. Maybe someday, but this ain’t happening anytime soon.
3. Outsourcing. You have nothing to fear as long as you keep learning. Local workers are always more valued, even with the internet.
4. China Rules The World. Yeah they’re getting big and that’s okay, but remember even Japan didn’t surpass the US economy in the 1980’s like people said they would.
5. HD-DVD’s. Sure, let the manufactures fight over which technology will be used next (Bluray or HD). Only problem; customers haven’t been asking for it.
6. Celebrity Clothing Brands. Yawn. This isn’t going anywhere.

(Source: Business 2.0)

I just read an article on how the biggest US disasters since the San Francisco earthquake in 1989 have actually helped municipal economies. In under three years, all affected cities, including Miami, Los Angeles, and New York, the per capita income has rose, total employment was up, and the home values go up. Here’s hoping for a repeat in New Orleans.

Now if we can only do something about those levees.

(Source: Forbes)

Every needed to write something but didn’t have access to a word processor on your desktop? No worries, the open-source Writely will help you there and will even allow you to file share, blog, or collaborate with your online writings. You can even import your word files.

Very cool. Not sure if it will replace word processors, but it could definitely have it’s place.

(Source: Writely)

They just might be able to. I don’t know about huge sums of money but blogging might just be one of the best wages per minute out there. I currently run two blogs in my spare time. This one and a gaming site that that keeps me young at heart. Dubbed Infendo, the site is averaging close to 35,000 unique visitors per month (around 1,200/day) and growing very fast. While this is small peanuts compared to larger blogs, it’s a start.

According to the below Wired article, it takes about 10,000 visitors per day to make decent money off ad sales. By decent I mean around $2,500 per month, which isn’t bad considering blogging only takes about an hour a day but you gotta be consistent with postings. The Wired article is very insightful and highly recommended.

Weblogs inc salaries – said to be the Walmart of blog salaries.

Gawker Blog salaries are said to be anywhere from $3,000-10,000/month due to their very high traffic. Some of their blogs get close to 6 million unique visitors per month though. That means lots of ad sales.

(Source: Wired)

I just came across a nice little pop band call The Pernice Brothers. The music is soft, easy going, and very relaxing. I purchased their first single “There Goes The Sun” off iTunes, but you can download it free and legally by right clicking here and “save target as.” It’s a really great song.

Always nice to find a new little band.

How good is your eye for design? Head over to the Fake of Foto test to find out. I got a 7/10 in deciphering if an image was computer generated or real.

Take The Test!

JetBlue passengers that were on Wednesday’s flight 292 were able to watch their emergency landing via on board satellite TV. JetBlue says they have a policy of not censoring their TV. Would you want to watch live TV of your plane’s crash landing?

(Source: ZDNET)

In an effort to chase iPod Shuffles and Nanos, Dell jumps into the low-cost flash MP3 market with DJ Ditty. Here’s a news flash for you Dell: you’re not hip enough to name a product “Ditty.” Actually, that name isn’t even hip, it’s too forced kinda of like bling. And you lost any street cred you may have had way back with your played out “Dude…” campaign.

Their product design and marketing teams should be fired.

(Source: Tom’s Hardware)

How is it going to end? You can ask that about a lot of things in life. Books, business ventures, ball games, and… ballets? Enough of the b’s, my point is that great endings can really change the outlook of an entire event.

For example, I really enjoy watching baseball. Yeah, yeah, I know a lot of them are juiced up cheaters, but for the ones who aren’t and for the shear genius that is the game of baseball, it has very exciting moments. It also has very dull ones. The other day, I watched a game between the Nationals and Mets. It was a very boring game until the last inning. It had such a good ending that I was even glad I watched the first 2 1/2 boring hours. It made it seem worth it.

And what about a great endings? About Schmitt starring Jack Nicholson has one of the greatest endings I’ve ever seen. The majority of the movie is very dry, sad, and at times embarrassing. But what an ending. I’d like to say more but I don’t want to ruin it.

The take away from this, is that I hope whatever it is you are doing today, tomorrow, or even this year has a great ending. Put forth your best efforts and when you come out on top, it can make the gray days you experienced seem brighter. Here’s to good endings.

It has been said that a good salesman needs to show potential buyers the value in what they are buying. While this may be the case, I’ve recently tried to rethink this methodology.

I work in sales. I’m constantly struggling to show potential clients the value in what I sell. I’m passionate about my product otherwise I wouldn’t have gotten into the IT business. Over the past year, every one of my clients already knew to some extent the value of databases and websites prior to my closing the sale. Now I helped them see additional value and overcome any concerns, but for the most part they understood.

So does a good salesman just help rather than sell? Or is it really up to him to show the value of the product? I would appreciate your thoughts.

If you’re not reading this post through an RSS reader, you’re missing out. RSS has completely changed the way I use the internet. Not since instant messaging took off in the late 90’s has something changed the “information super highway” quite like the way RSS feeds have.

Rarely do I “browse” sites anymore unless they don’t publish RSS which is common with business sites. But when it comes to news, sports, and blogs, all updates come conveniently to my desktop via Sharp Reader in a nice little pop up. I know to the second when something new is posted.

If you’re not sure how to setup an RSS reader, it’s as easy as email. Just click on the Sharp Reader link, install the program, and start inputting your favorite websites into the URL, then hit subscribe. That’s it.

I went to the Doctor today to get some relief from this nasty cold. That was okay, but was better was the excellent pharmacist at Rite Aid. He was a very funny, congenial, and jolly man. I even got to use the fancy massage chair in the waiting room while I got ripped off on over priced medication.

At least it made the experience a little more enjoyable.

I’m sick with a cold, my internet is down and my ISP is saying it could take several days to repair (i’m at a store posting this). Without a connection, I can’t do my job. Murphy’s law really does work and when it rains, it really does pour.

Hopefully I can be fully operational very soon!

If you ever wondered how people came up with those clever little blogger buttons, the wait is over. Although I still prefer to do them manually in Photoshop (see the three I have below) you can now use a simple website for all your button making needs. And you don’t have to know a thing about graphic design.

Check it out!

Networking: leveraging your family, friends, and associates to drive new business. We all know that, but what about executive networking?

Executive networking takes traditional networking a step further. Rather than soliciting a name and contact information from your friend, why not have them contact the referral on your behalf. I recently did this with an existing client of ours. He was happy to email his referral on my behalf. Call it an introduction or icebreaker, and it’s a lot easier entrance in the door that way.

Thanks Robert.

We’ve all heard about asking for referrals, what about putting a system in place to increase the number of those referrals? I’ve recently been developing a system where I’ll offer a discount at signing if the buyer will provide some names of people they feel could benefit from our services.

I know this is big in the financial services industry, but have any out there put this into action with good success?

(Source: Business Know How)

Denver was a really cool place. I had been there before, but never saw the sites like I did this time. A friend and I walked the 16th street mall, chilled at ESPN Zone, and went to a couple of Rockies games. Very fun indeed.

My goal to visit all 30 Major League Baseball parks: 6 down, 24 more to go.

Well, I’m off to Denver to catch a couple of Rockie’s games with a friend. It should be exciting. I think I’m only going to eat hotdogs! I’m also going to try and catch up with an old childhood friend that starts at left field for the team; Matt Holliday.

To all those that stop by, thanks. It’s nice to know a few of you have taken interest as I speak my mind and try to become a better writer. Hopefully that can happend soon. Have a great weekend!

Robert and I are developing a new internal project management system so we can better track and manage our clients. The system will help us become even more organized and allow us for more timely delivery of our projects. It will also allow our existing clients to find out where their project stands in real time, and share critical information and files.

It will also automate our sales pipeline which will make my job a little easier. Better working through technology. (Thanks Robert!)

Why is it that graphic designers always try to complicate things? Architects and product designers generally adhere to fundamentals and commonly accepted practices. But it always seems like graphic designers go off the deep end the majority of the time. (see Intelligent Design)

Design Observer obviously gets it.

(Source: Design Observer)

More Google speculation. This is probably just some linux desktop or concept art, but you gotta believe this could be a reality. I’m cool with Google and all, just don’t like how they’re starting to act like a Microsoft company.

A computer monitoring system saved a drowning little girl in Whales. Better living through technology.

See the pictures

Get ready for GoogleNet. That’s right, expect the information giant to step into the ISP industry and really mess up the model ’cause their likely to offer the service for free. Why would they do that you ask?

Simple. Google makes money off advertising. If they know where users are going on the internet, they can become a better advertising company, charge more money, and control more content. They’ve already purchased some wi-fi companies and it could become a reality in the very near future.

(Source: Business 2.0)

Funny story: I went to the post office today at noon to ship a package. I had the guy put a “fragile” sticker on it, to which he immediately threw the box rather hard down below the counter!

Blake, meet 11,800 feet. 11,800, meet Blake.

I had the chance yesterday to hike the 11,800 foot Mount Timpanogos in Utah County. It was quite the hike. It was a great feeling to make it to the top and get away from all these electronics I usually like to play with (had to bring the iPod though).

See Photos

As with many of you, the situation in New Orleans has weighed heavily on my mind over the past few days. My father-in-law who works as a naval officer recently provided good insight as to why the federal relief took, and is taking so long.

1. Command and control. He said the federal government waited for Louisiana to ask for help which they did not do until late in the week. The federal government should have taken the initiative though after seeing the images of New Orleans that I saw on Tuesday night. He even says a lot of officials still don’t know who’s in charge of what.
2. International priority. He said that the federal government seems to care more with foreign aid when the “world is watching” than if a disaster happens in our own backyard. If this is the case, then that is very said. We elected these individuals to care for US citizens first, then the rest of humanity.
3. Social prejudice. He said he also felt the sense of “we told them to get out.” Only problem is the poor couldn’t and still can’t get out. This isn’t the first time in US or World history for that matter that the poor have been left behind, irregardless of their race.

I feel the government, especially President Bush is to blame for the delay. However, I do not feel this situation is similar to a terrorist attack like many reporters are saying. Terrorist have nothing on the havoc that Mother Nature can render. If you still feel the need to blame someone right away, blame the category 5 Hurricane Katrina and the civil engineering of a city that’s 10 feet below sea level, yet right next to the sea.

Hurricane Katrina was bad. The flooded wasteland of New Orleans is even worse. My wife and I had a chance to watch some news coverage tonight on the status of the city. I can’t believe my eyes, and it feels eerily similar to how I felt after 9/11. What makes it even more difficult though is that the water hasn’t receded, impeding evacuation efforts.

The city is now a lake, 80% of which is submerged in water. Looters are everywhere. They are even firing shots upon helicopters, police officers, and hospitals. It’s simply chaotic. It’s like Lord of the Flies only it takes place in a drowned, once flourishing metropolitan area. It’s been four days since the storm hit, and I’m perplexed by not seeing images of military convoys entering the city with food and supplies, then exporting individuals to safer ground. It just appears that very little is being done. When will we see these images?

Will people move back? Who can wait 3-6 months even years to rebuild a city that’s already well below sea level? What will the future hold for New Orleans? Even more important, when will the government be able to evacuate all the refugees. It looks like a Battle of New Orleans for a third time. Only much worse.

(Flickr Images)

The American Red Cross as well as local religious and civil groups are now taking donations for relief efforts in the gulf coast. The New York Times is reporting that Hurricane Katrina is the most devastating natural disaster in US history. Thousands are said to be without a home for several months in New Orleans. Our help, even if a little, goes a long way.

DONATE NOW! (Red Cross)

You can get your name sent on the first voyager mission to Pluto. Although it’s not scheduled until 2015 (who schedules stuff 10 years in advance?) the flight will send a compact disc full of submitted names to Pluto.

I hope we’re not still using CD’s in 2015 but I’m sure NASA still will be. They’ve been using the same suites, jets, and food since like the 80’s. High Tech!

Send Your Name!

My thoughts and prayers go out to all those in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and any others that have suffered or experienced personal loss due to Hurricane Katrina. We look forward to having you back up and running and wish you the best.

Thanks also to the US Coast Guard and other rescue teams.

Project Management is a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling time, resources, and people. It’s basically either a manual or computerized process that a company or individual uses to deliver a product or service on time. This could be completing a task at work, building a house, or developing a large database.

Project management is ideal and extremely useful for projects that take two months to several years to complete. Its primary goal is to better track and save on scarce resources such as time and money.

This is an area that has a lot of potential for us. Especially in the IT sector given that roughly 95% of IT projects are overdue and over budget.

If I still can’t have a Labrador retriever, this will have to do. Nintendo just released a new video game/ simulation where the player takes care of a pet puppy. Sounds straightforward enough (Tamagotchi anyone?). But the real enjoyment comes from the interaction you take with man’s “digital best friend” in the form of voice commands. You can give you dog a name, call it by name, and on cue, it will “roll over” “lie down” and “sit.” Very clever and fun.

I’ve never interacted with software quite like I have with Nintendogs. The creators of Super Mario Bros., Donkey Kong, and Zelda really make the game come “alive” and it is a pleasure to play.

Now if I can only get that real dog… Honey?….

Designing sites differently for men and women may strike some as sexist or old-fashioned. Choosing designs or designers based on gender raises even more issues. Nevertheless, gender differences play a large role in the way men and women design and view websites.

Researchers at the UK’s University of Glamorgan have identified many differences in the website design preferences of men and women.

Men prefer:

• Straight lines and shapes
• Simpler and darker color schemes
• Formal or expert language with few abbreviations
• Images featuring motion

Women prefer:

• Rounded forms
• Brighter and more complex color schemes
• Casual language and tone
• Informal photographs

Good to know for designers and psychologists around the world.

(Source: IT World)

What is it with companies renaming things? I know my company has been guilty. Why not just keep phrases the way they used to be?

For example, no one is a salesman anymore. You are either a consultant, account manager, or the very long VP of Business Development. I’ve recently starting telling people in a concise manner what I really do for a living: “I am a database salesman.” Does it sound unexciting and bland? Yes. Does it matter? No. Because by telling people what I really do, they are more likely to cut through the ambiguity, remember what I do, and maybe even send a referral!

Need another? Brand management. You mean you design logos? It’s not like logo design is rocket science and needs a fancy name. Apple’s logo is an apple with a bite in it. Clean and simple just like the definition of logo.

What examples can you think of?

Google has launched a new instant messaging system called talk. I think the market is doing fine with AIM, IM, and Skype though so I’m displeased Google thinks they need to get involved. It does fit with their obvious strategy of “owning” all the content on the internet.

“Don’t be evil.” Just get insanely huge and eventually become less good.

(Download: GoogleTalk)

And buyers are proving that. For those who don’t know what CRM means, it stands for customer relationship management. It’s basically a fancy name for some type of client database. It can be developed as a standard “installed” program or hosted as web software on a website. The hosted kind has more than doubled over the past year due to cheaper costs and easier implementation.

Griffio has developed several CRM’s for companies like Thomasville and ADT, but you don’t have to be a big company to see the benefits. CRM’s make a company run smoother and cheaper. They are definitely a great business tool for keeping your customers happy.

(Source: Red Herring)

My wife Lindsey comes from a great family. I recently was talking with her entrepreneurial aunt that runs her own candy factory. I have been running Griffio for over 2 years now and she couldn’t have been more excited to know that we are still going strong (95% of all new businesses fail within the first year). She offered words of encouragement and was very supportive, something a growing entrepreneur doesn’t get too often.

Here’s to all those who have supported Robert and I over the past couple of years. Your support is golden and we hope to be around for many more years. So if I may echo my aunt’s thoughts: “Go for it!” or “Keep it up!”

As you may know, Lindsey and I our expecting our first child this October. We attended a prenatal class on Saturday and during the break decided to turn in our pre-admittance form. This was so we wouldn’t have to do it the day of the delivery.

On the form, there is a question that asks if you have a preference for a pediatric (kid) doctor. Since this is our first baby, I decided to ask the nurse if she might recommend an MD. She said “Legally I’m not allowed.” How does that work? You can’t recommend someone who does good work? That’s what the business world is based on. If someone does good work, they’ll get recommended. How did bad doctors luck out in the medical world from good competition?

And by the way, I’m still taking recommendations for pediatricians in Provo, Utah.

Robert and I have recently set some development goals to learn new web technologies. First on the list, AJAX. What’s that you ask? It stands for “asynchronous JavaScript and XML.” You’ve probably seen it used on Google Maps and a few other sites.

AJAX basically lets you load data or new page results without refreshing the page (i.e. what takes place when the screen flashes to load new content. You can also incorporate graphics and motion, hence it’s a great replacement for that sticky and sometimes annoying flash you see.

Robert is already off to a great start, so we look forward to including this useful technology on our upcoming projects.

Need a good product, service, or company name? Head on over to Igor’s site and download their name guide for some good ideas and proper techniques. It could be very useful if you’re not going to end your company with Inc., Co., Enterprise, or even Vandalay Industries.

Tell me where that last one comes from and you’ll have yourself a good Friday.

Robert and I have just wrapped up a prototype web application that automates search engine marketing. It’s very nifty and we’re really pleased with how it’s turning out.

With that said, I’d like to give thanks to my partner, friend, and lead developer at Griffio, Robert Bradford. He was trained as an accountant at BYU and learned programming the practical way to make his accounting tasks easier. He takes the same approach with all our clients and it truly shows in his work. Not a programmer, but a “make-things-easier” guy…

When you can’t do it alone, get resourceful. As some of you may know, Keane is one of my favorite bands. They are a trio but when playing live have the fullness of an ensemble. After their guitarist left, they relied on software to pick up the slack rather than bring on more hands. The result? A non-watered down, enhanced live performance.

Good technology can do the same in the business world too.

(Read The Power of Three)

Here is a sampling of attitudes and attendant behaviors that can promote good customer service within a company. It’s even good for life occurrences.

• I appreciate your business. Greet the client with enthusiasm unfeigned. Use their name and don’t use the excuse “I’m bad with names.” Make an effort.
• I will devote my full attention to your needs. Sometimes I multi-task while listening to my wife Lindsey. It’s worthless and really frustrates her. Give the person/client your full attention. Stop other activities, listen, and clarify with questions.
• I will take ownership of your needs. Don’t pass the buck here and don’t keep transferring the client to another person.
• I will be knowledgeable and professional. Provide insight to help a person get what they are looking for. If you don’t know, get someone who does.
• I will be responsive to your questions and requests. (learn more) fulfill commitments and responses in a timely fashion. This includes emails and voicemails and will show the client that you value their time.

Hopefully the above attitudes will take your customer service policy off your wall and put it to action. It takes work, but those around you will reap the benefits and will reward you for the added effort.

[Source: CMO Magazine]

Chief marketing officer’s say the top two skills they will be looking to hire over the next 12 months will be the always number one “sales force” positions at 34% of all new hires and “creative graphic designers” at a close second with 33%. Designers, get those resumes ready.

Businesses will always need good design to sell their products and services but it’s still nice to see them give it more attention.

(Source: CMO Magazine)

Pure Vida, an online retailer, opted to invest in a custom online database for it’s information system. It cost around $40,000, almost six times the cost of the best off-the-shelf package priced at $6,500.

However, the system helped increase the company’s sales from $100,000 to nearly $4 million in under five years. Talk about ROI. To be fair, custom software isn’t for everyone, but if you are serious about your business, the above example could easily become a reality through a custom software solution.

Griffio is currently helping a local firm cut their total process time of just one application by 95%. I know it sounds like drummed up marketing numbers, but it’s the truth. From 20 hours to 1 hour with good, made-to-order software. It’s those results that make our work meaningful.

(Source: Technology Review, July 2005)

I guess I’ve been living in a cave for the past year, but apparently Google released a text-message search system for your cell phone about a year ago. Called “Google SMS” the service allows you to search and get a reply within 1 minute via text message. Want to know what movies are playing but not around your trusty computer? Just plug in your zip code and type
“movies” and you’ll get instant results.

Just send a text message to 46645 (googl) with your search term as the message and you’ll get what you need. Wa-la.

Learn More

Growing up, I had a good friend named Rob Hugo. We called him “Bab” but he was also known as “Sausage” ’cause he got sick once after eating and that’s what came up. Anyway, he was a rambunctious, bright, and very funny kid. I owe it to Rob for one of my all time favorite synonyms for less-than-smart individuals: Schaef (pronounced “shafe”).

Legend has it that Rob had an not-so-bright friend with the last name Schaefer. Anytime someone screwed up or did something unruly, they were dubbed a Schaef. So the next time someone does something to make you mad, frustrated, or upset, take it out on them by calling them a schaef. It will feel good, be less offensive, and hopefully after this, add a little history to your vocabulary.