Dealing with customers and clients (especially difficult customers and clients!) can be one of the most challenging aspects of the business world. And since my friend Rich Gallahgar is developing a new book for AMACOM on how to handle your very worst customer situations, I decided to have the CarolRoth.com contributor network of entrepreneurs, advisors and experts share some of their worst customer/client situations and how they handled them, as well as general tips on how to deal effectively with these issues. Their answers are presented below in no particular order and some may even be included in Rich’s book!

You may notice some of the same ideas listed, but I kept them separate, as something in the way one is framed may resonate differently with you. Continue Reading;

I know that I am not the only one with ostrich tendencies when it comes to looking at the numbers for my business. During the good months, I can’t wait to tally the revenue and during the bad months – well, you might say that I put my head in the sand.

Like many of you, I have something that Carol would refer to as a job business. I have basically created a business to support me and I am OK with that. However, if my business is only bringing in the revenue of a jobbie, that is not OK and the rest of my life will suffer. I have bills to pay, conferences I want to attend, and adventures to have. Continue Reading;

Collaboration has become the new competition and whether you are looking to leverage someone else’s intellectual property or make more use of your own, licenses and partnerships can provide a great starting point.

Creating an effective partnership of any kind is truly part art, part science.  While I always advocate getting professional help, I also think it’s important for every entrepreneur to still have a basic understanding of what you are getting into. Here are some common terms and features that you might see in your agreement. Continue Reading;

Innovation

Don’t Just Focus on Made in America, Focus on Innovated in America  Carol’s latest on HuffingtonPost.com.

Pricing

Why Your Pricing Means Everything  “Competitor pricing is a guide, not must.” By Chris Eh Young on his blog.

Networking

Networking on Purpose (usually)  How to use social networks to purposefully build business opportunities by Steve Woodruff on his blog.  Continue Reading;

As companies struggle to have their messages heard in a crowded marketplace, there is continued pressure to be bold, be clever and take extreme or unusual actions to reach the other party.  However, as a business owner, while having someone pay attention is half the battle, you do have to use some discretion in your marketing.

This is a case study of email contacts made through LinkedIn.  One of my connections, who is in the financial services industry, was approached for a “connection” on LinkedIn.  While he didn’t know the woman, it appeared that she was in the headhunting/executive search function in the financial industry from her biography, so he accepted the connection, thinking she might be a good future resource.

Sometime later, he received a LinkedIn email with the subject “Help me and I will give you $500”, seeking a candidate for a financial advisor position.  He deleted the email and didn’t think much else of it.

However, about four weeks later he got another LinkedIn email with the subject “WTF?” Continue Reading;

Does the term factoring bring to mind an X-Factor spin off?  Perhaps the combination of factor and finance conjures up your own personal episode of Fear Factor?

While it doesn’t involve reality TV, factoring can improve the reality of your business.  If your business has receivables, then factoring is a way to get cash quickly.

What is Factoring?

In its simplest form factoring is the sale of accounts receivable (money due to a business) at a discounted rate to a third party (the factor) as a means of financing (i.e., obtaining cash to help you manage your business).  Still too much financese?  Let’s walk through an example. Continue Reading;

So, you want to write a book and have “the best idea ever” (it’s always the best idea if it’s yours, isn’t it?).  But you may be wondering, as I have been asked quite a bit lately, how do you find an agent to represent you?  Agents can be helpful to get your book proposal in front of traditional (and in many cases, non-traditional) publishers and help you to structure a deal and review the publishing contract.  They can also serve as a “bad cop” during any negotiations, which is important since you want to have a strong relationship with your publisher.

Here are three different ways that you can go about securing a book agent: Continue Reading;

Can you handle a big O? Sadly, many entrepreneurs can’t.

Instead of bringing them life, they shrivel up. They just roll over rather than enjoying the moment. You see, they fear the big O.

How can you get a release from this fear? Prepare for the big O before you experience it.

By the way, you realize that we’re talking about Obstacles, right?

Let’s discuss four ways to get past the obstacles that you will inevitably face as an entrepreneur.

On top

When you are faced with a big O, you may want to climb on top. And while this may sound strange, you may need help. Continue Reading;

Now that the excitement from the holiday season has officially died down and that wintery feeling of dreariness has set in, I keep getting asked about good ways to kick-start motivation in employees. Since I’ve talked a lot about employee motivation in the past, I thought that I would put together a short, condensed list of a few easy ways to improve productivity and energize your workers.. Continue Reading;

Carol on Kitchen Table Talks

Carol Roth and Throwing Away the Map. This week Carol joined Chris Brogan and Joe Sorge on Kitchen Table Talks for a lively conversation. Says Chris Brogan, “We don’t even need a show when Carol’s here. She is the show.”

Carol on CNN

Carol Roth on Piers Morgan talking Rick Santorum Sweeping Romney, GOP primary CNN Longer clip and quite amusing.  Continue Reading;