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Lisa Doyle

ABC Fox Trot Recap

The results are in—ABC’s sponsorship of the Batavia Mothers’ Club Foundation Fox Trot 5K Run/Walk was a success!

Tags: fox trot

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Posted: 4/28/2008 | Comments (2)

Charles M Cooper

Nigeria or Bust: Update Number One

Talk about fast! My new friend Abbey, the banker in South Africa with the plot to make me fabulously well-to-do with the multimillion dollar account of a dead man has written back to me with a load of questions to put his mind to rest that he's not going to get cheated. Check out this next level in the scam process and learn a little about protecting yourself on the Internet.

Tags: email, scam, 419, nigerian

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Posted: 4/25/2008 | Comments (2)

Charles M Cooper

Nigeria or Bust: No Such Thing as a Free Lunch

The widespread use of e-mail has made online scams easier and easier to perpetrate. Your spam filters will catch a lot of these but sometimes one of them gets through, like this morning. Come with me on a journey into one such scam, learn how you can avoid being a victim and join me in having a little fun with this online predator.

Tags: email, scam, nigerian, 419

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Posted: 4/25/2008 | Comments (16)

Lisa Doyle

ABC Sponsoring Local 5K Run

For the second year in a row, America's Best Companies will be a Platinum Sponsor of this year's Fox Trot 5K Run/Walk in Batavia, Illinois. Join us on April 27 and cheer on the runners as they earn donations for the Batavia Mothers' Club Foundation.

Tags: fox trot

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Posted: 4/24/2008 | Comments (1)

Charles M Cooper

The Power of Your Brand: A Public Relations Morality Tale

It is nothing new to say that you need to protect the image of your brand, but 23 years ago that lesson was driven home with uncommon power—and violence—by the debacle that was New Coke.

Tags: image, brand, pepsi, coke

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Posted: 4/24/2008 | Comments (3)

Charles M Cooper

Earth Day 2008

Happy Earth Day! Take a look at how it started and what you can do to celebrate.

Tags: earth day, history, how to, environment

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Posted: 4/22/2008 | Comments (1)

Charles M Cooper

Everything Old is New Again: The Buy Local Movement

The “Buy American” movement seems to have some new life. The fervor for all things local, ranging from farm stand goods to civic involvement, seems to be everywhere today and for small businesses across the country, that is great news!

Tags: buy american, history, walmart, local

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Posted: 4/21/2008 | Comments (1)

Charles M Cooper

Newsletter Usability: Making Your Reader Experience Even Better

It has long been known that an e-newsletter is a useful addition to your marketing and public relations efforts. They are, after all, a warm, powerful communication medium that encourages a strong, lasting relationship between you and your readers. There is some new clarity in the world of online newsletters thanks to research coming from the Nielsen Norman Group in their latest report on Email Newsletter Usability. Check out what they had to say and how your own e-newsletter can benefit.

Tags: marketing, newsletter, spam

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Posted: 4/18/2008 | Comments (3)

Charles M Cooper

Energy Issues: Now What?

Oil and gas prices reach records highs--again--and aside from the folks getting rich from speculating on the market, people are hurting because of it. The question is this: What are you prepared to do about it? We want to know how you and your small business are coping, how do you keep going strong? Who knows? Your response may draw you into the pages of America's Best magazine!

Tags: oil, energy, economy

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Posted: 4/16/2008 | Comments (1)

Charles M Cooper

The Battle for XP

If you had a product that worked well, did nearly everything you asked of it and offered greater satisfaction than you had from previous versions; how would you like to be told that you would have to switch to an obviously inferior product because the maker would no longer supply or support the thing that works so well for you? That is the situation that XP users are in as Microsoft begins to drive its customers to Vista, whether they like it or not.

Tags: microsoft, xp, vista, linux

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Posted: 4/15/2008 | Comments (7)

Charles M Cooper

The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of…Well, at Least the Stuff That Chicken and Waffles are Made Of

There is an old saying that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Unfortunately, the sincerest form of flattery doesn’t necessarily work in the world of business. Chicken, waffles and trademark infringement are colliding in Chicago. Who will come out on top? What can you learn from it all?

Tags: trademark infringement, roscoe's

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Posted: 4/11/2008 | Comments (1)

Charles M Cooper

Gas Prices and Online Shopping: There is a Connection

If you have a brick and mortar establishment, there is a facet of your product delivery scheme that you may have overlooked: Gas prices for your customers. Think about it: As the price of fuel rises, customers are less interested in getting into the car and driving out to your establishment. What can you do? Read here to find out.

Tags: gas, economy, customer service, marketing

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Posted: 4/9/2008 | Comments (5)

Jim Tracy

What's Special About Your Town?

Do you remember the fun you had shopping with just $5 or $10 of birthday money when you were a kid? I do. Some of my happiest memories were the Saturdays I spent shopping with my Aunt Connie 30 years ago on the northwest side of Chicago. Five or ten dollars went a long way back then.

Tags: jim tracy, peace corner, american dream

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Posted: 4/8/2008 | Comments (1)

Lisa Doyle

Thanks, Merci, Gracias, Danke, Grazie, Agradecimentos

April is International Customer Loyalty Month, a great time to show your customers that you appreciate their patronage. The key is to make your customers feel as though they are more than mere customers. Make them feel special as people and they will be back time and again. Here are five easy ways to show your customers that you value their repeat business.

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Posted: 4/7/2008 | Comments (4)

Charles M Cooper

Is Insourcing Coming Back to the U.S.?

OK, now I am impressed. Senator Hillary Clinton—who hasn’t really done much to catch my attention so far—has come up with an “insourcing” agenda for American business in the 21st Century. I am glad to see that someone is actually talking about this issue. I have to wonder if talk will turn to action.

Tags: insourcing, clinton, mccain

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Posted: 4/4/2008 | Comments (1)