Managing disputes with clients and customers
Regardless of where you work, there always seems to be problematic customers. So how do you manage these occasional disputes with your customers? The key is to resolve such disputes before they escalate and get out of hand. Here's taking a look at some key steps in managing disputes with clients and customers.
The first step is to try to avoid disputes all together. Some disputes are just bound to happen, but avoiding them all together can save you a lot of time, headaches and money. Some guidelines to avoid disputes are:
- Deal with customer complaints fairly
- timely and professionally
- Make sure all employees treat customers with respect and show good customer service when interacting with them.
- Develop and train employees on how to negotiate with customers.
- Comply with all representations and other promises made to your client or customer.
- Have easy and fair ways with addressing customer concerns, such as: return policies and in-store credit if necessary.
- Always treat customers with respect and kindness.
What are some common disputes seen in small businesses?
Products:
- quality
- service
- price
- packaging
- delivery and customer service
Financial:
- the ability and willingness to pay accounts
Leases:
- the term
- relocation
- price increases
- quality of location
Breach of contracts:
- termination period
- quality of product
Misleading conduct:
- failing to meet expectations
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Trademark searches - how you can conduct them: Featured Article
Why you need to do a trademark search
When it comes to doing a trademark search there are a few different reasons why you will need to conduct the search.
Here are the main reasons why you need to do a trademark search:
- The main purpose of the trademark search is to determine if someone has already trademarked the trademark that you are intending to use. The reason that you have to do the search to ensure that the trademark is not already registered is because the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office will not register the same trademark twice.
- Another purpose for doing a trademark search is to ensure that your trademark is not similar to another company's trademark, to help avoid trademark infringement. The reason for this is that if your trademark is similar to another companies then the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is going to reject your application because of trademark infringement. What this means is your trademark is going to be denied because it is too close to another company's trademark and that means that consumers can confuse the trademarks.
What is a common law search?
Most of the trademarks that you will be searching for are going to be found in the federal government's record because a lot of companies actually register their trademarks because that option provides you with more protection. But since you don't have to legally register your trademark to use it you can still own a trademark because of common law trademarks. So in order to do a detailed search not only are you going to need to conduct a federal trademark search, but you are also going to need to conduct a common law search.
A common law search for trademarks involves searching beyond government records. Common law searches can entail checking phone directories, yellow pages, industrial directories, state trademark registers, the internet, and many other places. The reason that you are searching through all of these places is because you are trying to determine if a certain mark is being used by others when they have not filed for federal trademark registration.
Continue reading "Trademark searches - how you can conduct them: Featured Article"Trademark law basics: Featured Article
What is a trademark?
A trademark is a word, symbol, or phrase that is used to identify a particular manufacturer or seller's products and distinguish them from the products of another manufacturer or seller. For example the trademark "Nike" and the Nike "swoosh" are both used to identify shoes and other products that are made by Nike and to distinguish them from shoes and products that are made by another company. But if a mark is used to identify a service rather than the products, such as "Jiffy Lube", then they are called service marks, but they are treated the same as trademarks.
In some cases trademark protection can extend beyond words, symbols, and phrases to include other aspects of a product, such as its color or its packaging. A good example of this is the unique shape of the Coca-Cola bottle that serves as an indentifying feature. These types of features usually fall under the term "trade dress" and they can be protected if consumers associate that feature with a particular manufacturer rather than the product in general. But these features will not be protected if they have any type of functional or competitive advantage. What this means is if the bottle is easier to stock or easier to grasp because of its design it cannot be protected under the "trade dress" laws.
What sources of law govern trademarks?
No matter what kind of trademark you are applying for they are governed by both state and federal law. In the beginning, state common law provided the only source of protection for trademarks. But in the late 1800s, the United States Congress enacted the first trademark law for the federal government. And every since that has happened the federal laws for trademarks have done nothing but expand, and they have also pretty much taken over the area that was initially covered by state law. In fact the main federal statute is the Lanham Act, which was enacted in 1946 and was just recently amended in 1996.
How to step up your management skills
Managers have an important job in any business. It is through the managers that schedules are made, company goals are met, and employees are managed and developed. A lot of times managers get into those positions will little or no training on how to carry out such tasks. If you are a manager looking to better your managing, then here are five important tips on how to step up your management skills.
Be organized:
Get a planner if you don't already have one. Write down appointments, daily goals, things that have to be accomplished that day (a "to do list"), things to talk to your employees about. Prioritize this list and with every item you finish, then cross it off and move to the next one. Don't make this an overwhelming list, just keep it simple, but with enough information to get things done throughout the day. Being organized in all aspects of your work will help step up your management skills tremendously.
How to set policies for office relationships, coming to work sick, etc.
Setting up policies for your business is probably one of the most important things you can do to help it run smoothly. Employees need to know what to do in any situation and how the company stands regarding it. Clear policies will help your business recognize and avoid potential risks to your employees and ensure that you abide with the law. They will also help to create an environment where issues are dealt with fairly and consistently.
You are probably wondering where to start and what to do when setting policies for your business. Here is how to set policies for office relationships, coming to work sick and other important matters.
Plan ahead
It is important to have all policies and procedures in order before you hire your employees. You will easily be able to solve any problems just by referring to the business handbook. This is a much easier way to handle things then waiting until the last minute to try and fix it.
How to keep queue times short for customer service
One main complaint customers seem to have time and time again is that most stores they shop in have long lines they have to wait in. Checkout lines and customer service lines alike can be long and frustrating to stand in. Whether it is the busy shopping season or not, there are some things you can do to keep your customers happy. Here are some tips on how to keep queue times short for customer service.
Better technology
One way to speed up queue times is to have more updated technology. Some businesses continue to use older equipment that may take longer to ring a purchase up or return an item in a customer service line. This problem can easily be solved by upgrading to faster digital equipment and programs. With just using faster technology, it can cut wait times down substantially. This alone can get customers in and out in a faster manner.
How to ensure no one is padding their time clock
Your employees' time is your company's most precious resource. Time is a vital component in the cost of doing business. But what happens when your employees are being dishonest about their time? This can essentially cost you hundreds and thousands of dollars per year. There are some specific ways you can know if they are cheating your time clock or not. Here is how to ensure no one is padding their time clock.
There are many instances where employees are "padding" their time clock. What this essentially means is they are not clocking in and out at the right time during their work day. Padding a time clock can be done a few different ways:
Personal time
One common way padding is done is when employees take breaks or take personal time without clocking out. For example they choose to: talk on the phone to friends, email or chat online, go out for a smoke break when they are on the clock and should be doing company work. This is one of the most common ways people pad the time clock.
Deciding if you should go to an automated call system
If you run or manage your own business and you would like to ensure all your customers are taken care of, deciding if you should go to an automated call system might be the way to go. There are some things to look at first to see if your business would benefit by switching to an automated call system. Here are some guidelines to look at.
An Automated Call System can be critical to your business. Automated call systems are a crucial part of phone systems that handle customer care numbers. They are essentially a telephone facility that manages all incoming calls and handles them based on the number called. This ensures that the high demands of customer calls are taken care of quickly and professionally. If you find that keeping up with all customer calls is beginning to be an almost impossible task, then deciding if you should go to an automated call system could make things easier on you and your company.
Many companies offering sales and customer service support use automated call systems to validate callers, make outgoing responses or calls, forward calls to the right individual, allow callers to record messages, gather statistics of users, it balances the usage of the telephone lines along with a number of other services. A large number of calls are received constantly through these customer care numbers. Management of these calls is critical when it comes to achieving long-term productivity goals. This guarantees the callers to convert into potential customers or clients if calls are handled in a professional manner, without keeping the callers constantly waiting.
Continue reading "Deciding if you should go to an automated call system"Creating a unique style of management that works for your staff
The success of your business depends largely on a unique style of management that works for your staff. The right management makes a tremendous difference for your business. With the right management team and the right staff, you can be very successful. There are surely some key things that go into creating a unique management for your team. Here's a look at creating a unique style of management that works for your staff.
So, how do you get started?
Selection process:
Select the candidates that will make up your management. Have one-on-one meetings with each one of them. Make sure that they are the individuals that you want managing your staff. You should pick those people that have unique and positive things to bring to your business. Remember, good personalities, skills and experiences are all important things to look at.
Working with managers of other departments
Each corporation has mangers that have to work with other managers in different departments. It is inevitable that department issues can arise when trying to collaborate with other managers. Building trust between departments makes working with other professionals easier. Building trust between managers makes it easier to value one another.
Holding regular meetings makes it easier to work with other departments. This allows each manager to discuss their department issues. Having open communication between the departments will help the overall production of the company.
Keeping your priorities straight with each department is also a must do. Everyone likes to think the project their department is working on is the highest priority. When the department managers meet together, they can discuss department issues and their deadlines. Many conflicts can arise from insufficient scheduling between departments.
Continue reading "Working with managers of other departments"Steps for proper conflict resolution
Conflict is viewed many different ways. Conflict is definitely a part of human interaction and can have a positive or negative influence. The biggest question is how do you resolve conflict? Managing conflict requires a safe and supportive climate where people can express ideas and opinions without scrutiny. Let's go over some steps for conflict resolution:
Create a Supportive Environment
People must feel free to discuss their concerns and ideas without being belittled by coworkers. The ultimate goal is to come up with a mutually acceptable compromise. Having your team working together to create a constructive solution is essential. Of course you will have conflict between staff, but try a few tips.
- Inspire your staff. Having positive influences around the office helps to encourage employees. When staff has a mutual respect and behavior toward one another, conflict tends to disappear.
Making Decisions about Raises
After you have hired a new employee, you are faced with the decision on setting the employee wage. Of course, this is never an easy choice to make on setting the employee wage and it is the same choice you toil with when you decide on raising employee wages. Making decisions on this requires time and evaluation. There are two basic approaches to giving raises:
- Give everyone the same percentage or dollar amount raise
- Give employees different raises based on performance and equality between base raises.
One way to tell if you are paying your employees fair wages is to compare your companies' employee wage amount with your competitors. Do some research on what jobs are out there and what the starting salary is at for their jobs.
When starting the evaluation process, you primary concerns will probably be related to hoe much the employee wage is at now. You want to pay your employees enough to keep good ones, but at the same time you don't want to pay too much that your business's cash flow is jeopardized. When debating a few concerns, make sure to look at the overtime laws and minimum wage laws to be in compliance.
Continue reading "Making Decisions about Raises"What is trademark infringement?: Extended Entry
Trademark infringement can cost your company thousands of dollars. Many companies accidentally embark on trademark infringement without knowing they broke any rules in the first place.
What is a trademark?
When a manufacturer creates a symbol, word, or phrase to describe their product or company image, they have a legal right to trademark their products. This can identify their products to be separate from other company's products. Some companies can go as far as trade-marking their colors or design of certain products (such as a bottle).
The purpose of a trademark is to help consumers easily identify their product or company. Consumers can look for a product by a symbol, such as the Nike "swoosh". In order to qualify for a trademark, the symbol or mark must be distinctive. There are 4 categories defined by the courts in order to qualify for a trademark:
1. Arbitrary or fanciful - These are given a high degree of protection. This mark bears no logical relationship to the product, such as the Nike "swoosh". This mark is identified with athletic shoes, but it does bear an inherit relationship to the shoes.
2. Suggestive - These are also given a high degree of protection. This trademark is suggestive of the product, but does not describe the product. Such as "Victoria's Secret", it is suggestive of women's lingerie but it doesn't come out and state this.
3. Descriptive - This trademark clearly describes a product. A good example is "Dish Network", it represents satellite television. A descriptive trademark must tell you something about the product and can only be obtained if they have a type of secondary meaning.
4. Generic- This mark describes a general category that relates to the underlying product. A generic mark is not protected at all by the trademark laws since they are used only useful for identifying a product.
Your symbol or image must fit into one of those categories in order to obtain legal protection under the trademark laws.
How to trademark a logo: Extended Entry
Many people think that to trademark a logo all you need to do is to register the trademark. But in actuality to trademark a logo requires many additional considerations then registering a trademark that is simply a slogan trademark. The basic difference between registering a slogan trademark and a logo trademark is that trademark logos require that a design search be performed for the trademark or company logo. This is to ensure that the logo doesn't already exist and that your design is not going to infringe upon another companies design. During the search you are going to want to enlist the help of a trademark lawyer so that you can be sure that your logo does not infringe upon other trademark logos and then after the search the attorney can advise you on whether it is safe to proceed with your plan to register the company name as a trademark.
When it comes to doing trademark searches you can hire a trademark lawyer to do a very comprehensive search or you can do a search by yourself, which is the cheaper option. To do a basic search to see if your logo is already somebody else's trademark or if your logo is too similar to somebody else's trademark all you need to do is go to the United States Patent and Trademark Office's website at www.uspto.gov and do a search. But the best news is that you don't even have to do a search before you try and register your logo. But you want to keep in mind if the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office determine that your logo is already being used by somebody else or is too similar in design they will deny your application and your filing fees will not be refunded.
How to preserve your trademark: Extended Entry
If you are going to take the time and energy to obtain a trademark and properly register it with the federal government then you are going to want to make sure that you preserve your trademark. One of the best things about trademarks is that they are protected for life, but you do need to make sure that you renew the trademark on occasion by filing a trademark renewal application. One thing that you need to know about renewing your trademark is that the protection is good for about a period of ten years, which means that every ten years or so you are going to need to renew your trademark to maintain your protection. This process will help to preserve your trademark, but you are also going to need to make sure that you constantly use your trademark. The reason for this is in order for your trademark to be protected and in order to renew it you have to give the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office proof that the trademark is being used, otherwise they can cancel turn the trademark into a generic trademark because of abandonment.
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