Staff MotivationKeeping staff motivated is good for business. Here are some examples why:Motivated workers are more productive and higher productivity usually means higher profits.In a service industry, workers who are well motivated will provide a better level of customer service, keeping the customers happy. Stadf who are well motivated are more likely to stay with the company. They grow in experience and become even more valuable to their employer.If a business successfully keeps the staff it has, the cost of recruiting and training new staff is reduced.How can a business provide for these needs?4 Steps used to Evaluate New Product IdeasStep 1. Gather new product ideas. Ideas can come from individual inventors looking to sell their ideas or gather a royalty on the sale of the product. Many companies encourage individual inventors to submit ideas on their websites. Ideas can also come from within the organization. Sometimes ideas come from a formal research effort or sometimes from people on the factory floor. The more product ideas you have, the more options you have and without good options to choose from, it is impossible to make a good decision.Step 2. All new ideas need to be screened to insure that the idea supports the strategic direction of the company. Even though an idea looks interesting, if it doesn’t support the strategic direction of the company, it must be discarded.Step 3. Make a business assessment of where best to spend time, money and effort in product development. Wendell Leimbach of MLE Consulting uses a matrix for strategically evaluating new product ideas, which I haveStep 4. Take the ideas and turn them into product concepts. It involves researching customer requirements. It also involves testing the concept to determine if the concept will meet the needs of the customer. Marketing will analyze market potential and possible price points. This is also the step where engineering gets involved in producing concept drawings, models and possibly even prototypes. It also involves the engineers and accountants working together to develop estimated product costs and possibly even tooling costs. All this is done in an effort to determine whether or not it makes economic sense to continue to explore the development of an particular idea.Time ManagementGood time management is essential if you are to handle a heavy workload without excessive stress. By using time management skills effectively, you can reduce work stress by being more in control of your time, and by being more productive. This ensures that you have time to relax outside work.The central shift of attitude within time management is to concentrate on results, not on activity.To this end, it embraces a range of skills that help you to:Assess the value of your time, understand how effectively you are using it, and improve your time use habits;Focus on your priorities so that you focus on the most important jobs to do, delegate tasks where possible, and drop low value jobs;Manage and avoid distractions; andCreate more time.Time Management helps you to reduce long-term stress by giving you direction when you have too much work to do. It puts you in control of where you are going, and helps you to increase your productivity. By being efficient in your use of time, you should enjoy your current role more, and should find that you are able to find the time to relax outside work and enjoy life.A great advertising campaign can transform your company by turning on new audiences and keeping your name in the forefront of their everyday lives. Selecting an ad agency that is in tune with your vision can be an overwhelming task at first, but by asking the right questions and staying involved in the creative process, you can choose an ad agency that is committed to your company's success.Step1 Write down some key words or ideas about your business that you would like an ad agency to build a campaign around. Send out a request for proposals to multiple ad agencies in you area and request a face-to-face meeting with a select few that catch your attention based on their financial speculations and brainstorms.Step2 Focus on the total package that the agencies are offering during the meeting. It's easy to be dazzled by their stellar presentations but there is more to advertising than just aesthetics. The agency you ultimately decide on should understand how your company fits into the marketplace and the various ways they can address each facet of that presence to maximize revenue. Step3 Gauge the size of the agency against the size of your company. The larger the company, the less likely your needs will be adequately addressed since their focus will be on more prominent accounts. Select an ad agency that is small enough to make you feel like a priority.Step4 Assess their interest in landing an account with you. Before throwing a bunch of creative ideas at you, a good ad agency will have done some background research into your company and be eager to discuss it. It's a good sign if you can sense the enthusiasm emanating from the group.Step5 Ask to see their work for other accounts. Be on the lookout for campaigns that are campy or gimmicky in nature. Humor is an important element of advertising but the agency you select should also be able to take a modest position with their clients, too. Step6 Have a discussion about your expectations and see how they respond. Constructive criticism is healthy but if you find yourself getting bullied in the meeting, it is time to move on to another prospect.Step7 Tour the offices of the agencies you are interested in. See if the staff looks upbeat and excited about their job. Better yet, if you can picture yourself fitting into their work environment, then you will probably develop a healthy (and profitable) working relationship with your team.THERE is an alliterative saying I learnt in the Air Force: Prior Preparation Prevents Pretty Poor Performance.The 6P Rule is central to many things, especially those requiring structure and excellent organisation.I. Pricing Strategy1. the product itself: the cost of producing plus your expecting profit2. similar products, the rival firms: What are their prices? What are your product’s competitive advantages? In what a spect does your product superior to others? This can add extra value to your product.3. target customer: Whether they are wealthy or not? Can they afford the price?Ex: How to ensure that price levels for new products are set appropriately?○1 The first problem is who your target customers are. Their income, occupation, preference.○2 Do market research to make sure whether your target customers can afford the price level. There are mainly four ways of doing market research: survey, telephone interview, observation and questionnaire.○3 Test your product in a small region. Find out how it sells, get the feedbacks of the customers. Decide whether to make any adjustment.II. Product PackageEx: The importance of packaging products appropriately○1 Traditionally, the purpose of packaging a product is to protect the product or to make it convenient for carrying, as some products are liquid or sticky.○2 Today, the package add value to the product, especially to the consumer goods. The package is the product’s f irst impression to the customer. They may judge the quality of the product by its package and decide whether to buy it or not. Sometimes, a gorgeous package is a symbol of identity, especially when the product serves as a gift or present.○3 You have to packaging your products appropriately so that your products can stand out from the crowd and be bought by the customers.III. DiversificationEx: The importance of product diversification to the success of a business.这时你可能对product diversification并不是很熟悉，可以举一些案例，比如, the case of coca-cola: despite of its regular cola, it produce diet cola for people who get diabetes or adiposity problems. 然后借以说明product diversification的作用。
