How now to connect with male customersGetty Images/iStockphoto
He's not your buddy, he's your customer
If you try to connect with your male customers by referring to them as "buddy" or "dude," you're missing the mark, pal. That's the advice from customer services consultant Jeff Mowatt, who says you should aim to be viewed as a trusted adviser or reliable supplier. That kind of lingo undercuts your goal. Jeff Mowatt.com
Positive notes top negative ones, 4-to-1
Organizational change consultant Lawrence Miller says research has found that learning in a classroom occurs best when there are 3.57 positive messages to every negative one. He urges you to try for a similar 4-to-1 ratio of positive-to-negative interactions with your employees. Industry Week
No place on slides for spreadsheets
Spreadsheets don't belong on PowerPoint slides, says presentations expert Dave Paradi. They are analytical tools, not communications tools. When they're put on a slide for quick input to an audience, they are confusing rather than informative. Dave Paradi's PowerPoint Tips
Scrap those wiggly letters as an anti-spam tactic
Don't be captive to Captcha, the anti-spam measure that forces online users to try to puzzle though indecipherable script on a website and type out the letters as proof that they are human.
For example, there's a Captcha replacement called Are You Human, which substitutes simple games for the user to play.
Solve Media has another option: Visitors are asked to enter part of the text in an advertisement or answer a question from the ad, which earns the site owner some money from the ad at the same time as avoiding spam. Online Tech Tips and How Tricks.com
Harvey Schachter