CHICAGO – June 29, 2010 – Imagine you’re driving through Detroit on a rainy night in a rental car, and suddenly you crave Indian cuisine – make that excellent Indian cuisine – with a parking garage nearby.  It’s a perfect scenario for employing Earthcomber’s patented technology, letting your mobile device serve up relevant suggestions based on your explicit preferences.

Restaurant review giant Zagat Survey today licensed Earthcomber’s technology for its digital guides, including the popular iPhone, Android and in-car GPS units. According to Earthcomber attorney Anthony Dowell of Dowell Baker, PC, the arrangement comes in a private settlement, closing a patent infringement suit in US District Court.

“Zagat is all about personal tastes and people’s experiences, so it only makes sense they recognize the power in showing people what they truly want, when they’re around it,” said Jim Brady, president of Earthcomber. “Our system is ideally suited to provide highly customized timing, place and taste technology to serve Zagat’s users.”

Zagat applications use GPS to find nearby restaurants – matching according to cuisine, decor, service and cost – and also has the option of allowing subscribers to browse top-rated lists and make instant reservations.

Earthcomber’s own award-winning applications are based on a patented system that keeps an ongoing mobile search for individual personal preferences. When the system finds a nearby location with anything users desire, it alerts them. The company has provided such services since 2004. Earthcomber is available for common web-enabled mobile devices, and in dedicated smart phone applications including iPhone, Android, Blackberry, Nokia and others.

Zagat is the leading provider of consumer survey-based information on where to eat, drink, stay and play, utilizing ratings and reviews based on the opinions of over 350,000 surveyors.

Contact:

Jim Brady, President, Earthcomber: press@earthcomber.com | 708-366-1600.

Eliza Cross, President, Cross Media, direct: eliza@sprintmail.com | 303-889-9873.

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The organization serves people who cannot effectively read standard printed text because of visual impairment, dyslexia or other physical disability.  Here are some examples of how text might appear to a dyslexic person:

Along with creating audio versions of fiction and nonfiction books, RFB&D records human voices reading the textbooks used in schools from coast to coast, in every grade level and every subject area.

Bob Janowski, Production Director for RFB&D

Considering that the organization has 5,000 volunteers who donated over 332,000 hours of service last year, I’m embarrassed to even mention my measly one-hour volunteer stint – except to say that if you love books it’s a very rewarding and enjoyable way to donate your time. 

After a lovely chat with the Denver RFB&D office’s Production Director Bob Janowski, I settled into the recording booth with Phyllis, an experienced volunteer who patiently showed me the ropes. She handled the technical end while I read a short story from Colorado author Pam Houston’s book, “Cowboys are My Weakness.” Phyllis and I were both so enthralled with the story, we ignored the one hour timer and stayed late to read and record to the story’s conclusion.

If you’d like to learn more, RFB&D has plenty of volunteer opportunities at its seven regional offices; click here for more information.

“There is no better way to thank God for your sight than by giving a helping hand to someone in the dark.”  – Helen Keller

Professional photography is a business investment that will easily pay for itself. While it’s true that the evolution of the digital camera and editing software has made the technology more accessible, customers can still spot a do-it-yourself photo a mile away. Professional photographers have the equipment, education, experience — and artistry – to frame, light and compose the image to showcase products, settings and people in the best possible way.

I was on the judging panel for an architectural design competiton for a number of years, and inevitably the winning designs also happened to have splendid photography. The entries that were submitted with amateur snapshots could have been superior design-wise, but it was too challenging to see what we needed to see in the poorly lit, uncropped photos; in truth, they just weren’t in the same league with the professionally photographed entries.

I’ve also seen first-hand how simply having great high-resolution images available to send at a moment’s notice can be the overriding factor that lands a feature story — and in one case, a cover story — in a national magazine.

Invest in top-quality photography and your images will shine. I’ve listed some of my favorite professional photographers in the sidebar to the right, and if you need additional references just let me know.

How does a teenage pop star transition her career, image — and even let go of her insanely popular Hannah Montana persona – as she reaches adulthood?

“People take me seriously because I take myself seriously.” ~ Miley Cyrus

He’s one of the wealthiest, most successful men in the world. Like me, do you ever look at Donald Trump and think to yourself, “He could afford the best stylist in the world! Why doesn’t one of his advisors help him do something with his hair?”

Like it or hate it, my hunch is that The Donald chooses to keep his trademark comb-over because it’s become part of his brand. He (and others) good-naturedly joke about it, and his one-of-a-kind hairstyle is as much a part of his image as his classic line, “You’re fired!”  

Think of others in the public eye who have memorably chosen to accentuate a unique style or personal feature, from Lauren Hutton’s infamous gap between her front teeth to Madeline Albright’s pin collection to Elton John’s round glasses.

You may not need Donald Trump’s hairspray budget to pull it off, but what trademark attribute might you emphasize to support your image and strengthen your brand? If you need ideas, let’s talk.

     This beautiful sign now hangs in the world headquarters of Cross Media, and I thought you might like to hear its story.

     People who’ve mourned the death of someone dear know what a thrill it is to receive an unexpected reminder of their loved one. After our grandpa Poppy died, Nanny let each of us grandkids pick out one of the flannel shirts from his closet to keep. I wear mine still, holding close the memory of Poppy flyfishing on a Colorado mountain stream in an Orvis plaid shirt and his well-worn fishing vest. Our neighbor Bill told us tearfully this week that a stranger had just contacted him to share the story of how Bill’s father had saved his life during the invasion of Normandy. He smiled through the tears and said it was the best Christmas present he’d ever received.

     I understand. Through the wonders of Facebook, we keep in touch with the delightful family that bought Dad’s house after his death. They regale their online friends with tales of the old house’s quirks, and share photos of their kids playing in the yard. It’s oddly comforting to stay connected with Dad’s former house. Facebook can be a mixed bag, but when the husband, Brent, sends a message asking if we’d like to have the “Cross” sign Dad made for the house, I’m ecstatic. We arrange to meet near highway I-25 the next time Brent comes to Denver.

     I call my sister to share the news and discuss what we should do with the sign; she and I have plenty of experience in divvying up Dad’s stuff. Unlike some families you hear about who end up in court over the process, we have reverse non-arguments that go like this:  “Dad would want you to have this lamp; please, you take it.” “No, it would look perfect in your living room; I want you to have it. Really.” Anyway, we talk about the sign and she insists that I should have it. I want her to have it. We banter back and forth and reach a compromise. “I’ll take it for a little while,” I say, “and then you can have it for a while.”  A few days later I drive to the industrial area of Denver on one of the coldest days of the winter to meet Brent.

     Black snow is piled on the curb, trash sticks out of the chain link fence, and an old Firebird rests on cinderblocks; our meeting place looks like a sinister scene from a Hollywood movie set. Dad had a gift for lightening up a dark moment; on a bleak day like this he probably would have said, “Boy, this is Grimsville!” Brent is waiting in his car. He jumps out and puts the sign in my hands as I stammer to express our gratitude, and then he is gone and I am back in my car.

     Even though it hung on the house out in the elements for years, the silver sign is still stunningly beautiful. I run my hands over the smooth finish and wonder how Dad made the letters so perfect.  The old grief resurfaces for a minute and my eyes fill with tears; I touch the small, fine cross carved in the center of the “O.” Dad was not a religious man, although later in life he sometimes referred to a higher power. Still, I suspect he added the cross mainly as a design element. It’s a small, restrained detail that makes the sign distinctive, and Dad had a gift for that, too.    

     As I trace the letters I see the thin scar carved on the inside of my right hand, a permanent reminder of a night long ago when I had a dishwashing accident.  As I plunged a sponge through hot soapy water into a beer glass, it broke and the jagged edge sliced into my hand. My dad drove over and took me to the emergency room, where the doctor said I needed a few stitches. I was scared half to death. Dad pulled a small, dog-eared piece of paper from his wallet and unfolded it; it was a cartoon he’d cut out of the New Yorker.  The little drawing showed a woman holding a leash attached to a small dog that had wrapped itself around a man’s face. “I think he likes you,” the woman said in the caption. The combination of jangly nerves and the silly cartoon sent us both into spasms of laughter, and I thought I would die right there laughing in the ER. The doctor thought we were both nuts.

     I turn the sign over and gasp; a dozen white, cottony spiders’ nests cling to the wood on the back. My first instinct is to fling it out the window, but I look closely and the nests seemed to be unoccupied. Dad had a million funny expressions, and what he probably would have said at that moment is, “Eeek-o-rama!” Laughing and crying both, I start the car and pull away from the deserted street.

This morning, I read the online bio of a principal at an agricultural company who had this to say about Twitter: ”Twitter cultivates an Attention-Deficit-Disorder society of obsessive info-junkies who cram their lives with so much superfluity that two-sentence blips are all that they can digest before moving onto the next bright-n-shiny distraction. It just seems kind of dopey to me.”

What’s ironic is that Twitter can potentially be one of the most rewarding and effective social media outlets available today. Unlike Facebook and MySpace which are all about me, me, me, Twitter at its best is more about “here’s something that might interest YOU.” Twitter, more than any other form of social media today, seems to attract more users who are interested in contributing to the greater good and helping/sharing with others.

Yes, there are spammers and MLMers on Twitter, easily identified because they follow you and post messages like “Just deposited my weekly commission check – how kool!” or “Are there any cute guys out there who wanna chat?” But there are also plenty of really amazing people on Twitter sharing blogs, ideas, photos, information, videos, research, articles, essays, discoveries, experiences, questions – and answers, lots of answers.

Media mogul Martha Stewart was reportedly initially hesitant about Twitter but today has more than a million followers. “It’s pretty phenomenal, and I’m quite astonished at the ease with which you can get a following like that in this day and age,” she told New York Times columnist David Carr. She, too, acknowledges Twitter’s value as a vehicle for useful information. ““People will get bored if you only use [Twitter] to sell,” she says. “I think they won’t get bored if you use it to inform.”

Clearly, social media can be an important component to a well-rounded marketing plan. If you’re curious about how Twitter can play a useful role in your promotional efforts, let’s talk.

The next time you need a conversation-starter at a cocktail party, here’s a foolproof topic. Simply bring up the subject of bad customer service and see if everyone in the group doesn’t have a doozy of a tale to share. For instance, I recently cancelled my Vonage VOIP phone service. My decision had nothing to do with the company, its product, or its service; I just wasn’t using the extra phone line since my clients tend to call me on my mobile phone; the Vonage line had maybe rung a dozen times in a year. I double-checked the terms on the Vonage web site and read that a $39.99 fee was charged if the service was cancelled before one year of the order date. No problem; I was cancelling after the one year period so I made the call.

I expected the voice mail maze trying to guide me to any other option except speaking with a human. I expected the foreign call center, the friendlybut hard-to-understand representative, the canned script she read, and her repeated attempts to keep me from ending the service. What I didn’t expect was her announcement that the company was, indeed, still going to charge me a $39.99 cancellation fee even though more than a year had passed. When I protested, she explained that newer customers can cancel after a year with no disconnect fee, but customers who signed up prior to May 29, 2009 have to wait 2 years to cancel without a fee. Ah, now I understood! New customers don’t pay, but your more loyal, long-term customers do pay.

Last week, my good friend Laura Fallbach needed to return an item she had purchased online from Abercrombie and Fitch. She read the fine print  (seriously, 4-point type) on the company’s website but couldn’t find a customer service number to call regarding a return. She called the local retail store, and was told that A&F now handles those types of service issues exclusively by e-mail. Still not believing, she called the A&F order line (yes, they will still accept your order by telephone) and was told that she would have to write out her customer service issue in an e-mail; there is no actual person you can talk to about a return. When she finally acquiesced and sent her inquiry by e-mail, how long did it take for customer service to respond? A cool 3 days. In fact, A&F made the MSN Money’s Customer Service Hall of Shame list this year, and the article reports that sales are down 30%.

If it seems like every company from the airlines to the cable company to your bank is trying to stick you with extra fees, and if you feel like great customer service is becoming as rare as a herd of unicorns — take heart. In an uncertain economy, big companies sometimes make budget cuts and seek revenue gains in unhealthy places. Small businesses, on the other hand, can seize this opportunity to take a pro-customer, superlative-service approach and gain new business and happy, loyal customers.

It’s easy to get caught up in all the technological advances and time-saving devices our modern world offers, but savvy business owners remember that in the end, it’s still all about the customer. Especially now, the personal, human touch wins out over the automated response every time….which would make another great cocktail party topic.

Do you have any stories of exemplary–or atrocious–customer service you’d like to share? I bet you do, and I’d love to hear from you.