According to the graphic LinkedIn included in an email they sent to me, 7% fewer people are listing merchandising as a skill on their profile.
Wonder if there were a substantial number of people who moved on to other career opportunities and no longer want this on their profile.
If search engines are nearly at parity in terms of quality and people have preferences based on how results are displayed…
It is worth exploring the possible addition of templates for how search results are displayed.
Not everybody sees information the same. Some people like more spacing so they can read and comprehend what they see.
PayPal Launches Pilot In-Store Payment Service:
PayPal, the electronic-payments division of eBay, said it is testing an in-store payment system with Home Depot that allows shoppers to purchase items without cash or a conventional credit card.
(Via WSJ.com: US Business)
This is a development worth watching. Retailers are pushing back on interchange fees and there is an opportunity for new ideas to take hold with some big players.
Prediction: Disruption to the credit card payment system is coming.
In 2011 I completed the reading of 41 books. Approximately 75% of them were conventional paper books, while the other 25% or so were digital books (Kindle).
Fascinating article.
Postal Service to test lockers, following Amazon’s lead:
Credit: Courier Express & Postal Observer
The U.S. Postal Service plans to start testing its own locker system for packages, similar to the lockers that Amazon.com has been rolling out on a trial basis, according to a report this week by the Courier Express & Postal Observer news site.
USPS will test the system at a variety of locations in Northern Virginia under the name “gopost,” according to the site.
(Via GeekWire)
Questions:
What if the USPS placed these lockers in high density areas, areas that had access to a warehouse nearby?
Could the USPS do same day delivery of items from a warehouse a few miles away to a locker close to where you live or work?
What kind of premium could be charged for such speedy service?
Would people value it enough for the USPS to make money?
Other thoughts
Time will tell if something like a more centralized delivery system could work. For a while I’ve thought that the USPS would put some sort of locker-box (Like the ones apartments have) up the street for the 50 or so house on this block. Mail could probably be delivered in less than 15 minutes for the whole block rather than what is probably an hour now. Certainly there would be much less walking for carriers. The USPS delivery vehicle could probably be parked less than 25 feet from the locker-box and perhaps as close as 5 feet.
Training and development for employees might be one of the best investments a company or organization can make. People feel valued when they get training that will enable them to do and become more, in their job and in life. Even if the employee leaves in a few years, the investment could still payoff if the employee has a good feeling about the firm. In that case, they might find and refer a proper candidate to replace themselves after they depart.
Fine-Tuning the Perfect Employee – WSJ.com:
“Companies have long devoted resources to training and development, either internally or through partnerships with universities and community colleges.
But many companies cut back on programs or cancelled them altogether to save money during the downturn.
That appears to be changing: According to the American Society for Training and Development, U.S. employers spent 36% more on learning and development in 2010 than in 2009. Direct expenditures for learning, as a percentage of payroll, rose to 2.7% in 2010 from 2.3% in 2006.”
Build your own BRAND! Create your own customers. The kind that pick you over all other alternatives. Delight them to no end, they will share their delight with others because it makes them FEEL GOOD to share something special.
N&C: The text above was a comment I wrote to a Seth Godin post I sent to my Evernote account. His post can be found here.
T-Mobile: iPhone-related defections ‘an area of concern’:
Bellevue-based T-Mobile USA boosted its profits and added to its customer base in the third quarter, but the company this morning warned of future repercussions from its status as the only major U.S. wireless carrier not offering Apple’s iPhone.
(Via GeekWire)
I was one of those defections. My contract expired the same day the iPhone 4S was first available for customers (Friday October 14, 2011). On the next Tuesday (Late late Monday night) I ordered a 4S via the Apple website and Friday morning about 10 AM FedEx delivered it. There were claims that devices would be shipping in 1 to 2 weeks. The one I ordered was built, packed, shipped and delivered halfway around the world in something like eighty hours give or take three.
If T-Mobile was in the running to get the iPhone I might have waited a few more months. There was a report that a high up at T-Mobile said that the iPhone would not be coming to T-Mobile anytime soon. That statement was essentially the nail in the coffin for staying with them.
Could square be used on my own device to pay bills?
Example steps
Open Square.
Enter my payment recipient company (or select from a drop down list of companies one has a prior business relationship with).
Enter account number for payment (could be a typed in number, a barcode or a QR code).
Swipe my own credit card to apply payment.
Bill paid, records kept, stamps not used.
BRILLIANT!
FN: Could also envisions something like scanning a QR code for each payment, loading a few in, then swiping ones credit card just once to pay multiple bills faster.
FN: = FootNotes
Kevin Fox’s Offer to Google Reader:
Is there anyone, anywhere, who thinks the new Google Reader is an improvement?
(Via Daring Fireball)
The guy behind the Reeder app is probably very happy with it.
iPhone, iPad and Mac versions.
I bought the Mac version for $9.99 about 24 hours ago. So far I am very happy with it. Am considering the iPhone version for $2.99.
D.L. Damore 