One of the things I love about my local CVS is how open and airy the store feels. If I recall correctly, it’s part of the group of newer CVS stores that have lower aisle heights, brighter navigational signage, and generally less clutter than the old stores. Unfortunately, all of that changed when the holiday […]

Say you walk into a restaurant and ask for a table. If you have a medium or large party, perhaps four people or more, there’s a good chance they’ll ask you a simple question: “Is your entire party here?” Answer “Yes”, and they’ll seat you promptly. Answer “No”, and they’ll instruct you to wait around […]

While I don’t field that many sales inquiries myself, I’ve been on enough calls and read enough emails and chat transcripts to recognize what makes for a good lead. Among other things, the prospect has a need for our products and a budget that enables them to make a purchase. Conversely, there are some attributes […]

During a recent trip, I came across two venues with rather unfortunate window placements. First, the Fort Lauderdale International Airport. When you’re waiting for a flight at the end of terminal 1, nearly every inch of the wall consists of huge windows without any tinting. It’s often quite sunny in Florida, so this design renders […]

A few months ago, I bought a portable DVD player to take on long trips. It was a surprisingly affordable purchase, and I’m very pleased with the product so far. One thing annoys me, though: having to take the disc out when you’re transporting the player from one location to another. Actually, that’s not accurate […]

When people have the freedom to choose how much they pay for something, it’s quite common for the vendor to provide a suggested amount. For instance, I’ve seen this approach applied to tipping in restaurants and donations to a charity. The business or organization prints a suggested or recommended amount that customers should contribute, presumably […]

I haven’t used eBay in years, but I always admired one simple feature they provided on their website. Since most auctions end at a specific time, and so much bidding happens in the last few minutes or even seconds, eBay had a link to view their “official time”. By using that data, there was no […]

After arriving at the airport for a recent trip, my wife and I walked up to the line where they check your boarding pass and ID. I gave the airport employee two IDs and two boarding passes. She examined each ID, looked at the boarding passes, and gave them back to me. Before we got […]

If you run a local business, it usually makes sense to provide lots of photos on your website. Aside from pictures of the inside of the venue and your products, customers often look for photos of what your location looks like from the street. By using that visual cue, customers will have an easier time […]

When you’re setting the rules for a public place — like a library, airport, or train station — it makes sense to prohibit behaviors that are likely to annoy a bunch of people at once. For example, you can’t play music out loud in most venues, since everyone else can hear it and they have […]