Conversation Agent - Valeria Maltoni

When Customers Say Yes

When customers say yes -- when they're engaged -- continue listening and talking; in other words, continue the conversation. This may seem counter-intuitive for people who grew up thinking that when your customer says yes, you should quit talking. You should never oversell, but should still ask for the order by allowing customers to tell you when. Yet it's a different dance, this of conversation, one where you lead, and let your customer lead, too. It may be uncomfortable at first. Traditionally, marketing has been about the brand being the leading party. You may step on your customers' toes as... Read more →

Guides as Souvenir

Grab the 2011 Collector's Edition When I offered this free resource a few months ago, many readers took the time to write about how inspiring this blog has been for them over the years. Many of you are new to this site -- welcome. If you would like a portable version of the themes discussed here, here's the souvenir version. Enjoy. Of course, this is an idea you can execute for your brand and business as well. + For a proposal delivered with confidence, contact me today. Read more →

Reducing Complexity, Innovation Approaches, and Proposing Better Solutions

Define the problem properly, and you're already well on your way to developing a creative approach to tackle it. Whether you're learning a new body of knowledge, looking for new ideas to implement, or taking advantage of technology, problem solving requires first a good understanding of the issues -- so good that you can articulate it simply to others. Then, you can classify the kind of process you need to tackle it, gain the proper expertise and skill, or utilize your experience to work on proposing a better solution. Three different domains, one conversation. Reducing Complexity, Innovation Approaches, and Proposing... Read more →

How to Build Your Creative Confidence

[TED Talk, 11:47" - watch on YouTube] A couple of years ago I talked to a recruiter who was seeking connections to talented candidates on behalf of her client, IDEO. My first reaction was, wow, I would love to work there. She thought the position was for a more junior person... so although we made a connection at a personal level, the opportunity went to someone else. IDEO is the place where some of the creative professionals I have been following for quite some time have found a home. Working with positive, "can do" people does reinforce our sense of... Read more →

How People go About Hiring Products and Facebook IPO

When it comes to getting things done, we still rely on search. Google still makes most of its revenue from people searching to hire a product or service to do something. While we use social networks to stay connected and share with others, it is conversions and not conversations that make the economic world go around. As the Facebook IPO is fast approaching, the social network's greater stickiness is of temporary comfort if the ad revenue doesn't follow. People may be spending more time there, however ads in the middle of a social stream are just noise when they're not... Read more →

Most Marketers Still Not Making Data-Driven Decisions Surveys Find

How do large corporate marketers collect and use data? Are practices in marketing measurement and ROI changing? How about the integration of digital and traditional marketing? Has the excitement around big data brought about a shift in how marketers conduct their business? These are some of the topics for investigation in a recent study conducted by Columbia Business School’s Center on Global Brand Leadership and the New York American Marketing Association (NYAMA). The short answer: there is still a big gap between where organizations would like to be and where they actually are in capturing, analyzing, and using data to... Read more →

Answering Common Inquiries About Content

Three kinds of inquiries I receive regularly: write about us give us your content allow us to post Many of you find the contact form for consulting work. In that case, I'm happy to provide a quote and scope of work. If that's not what you're after, the quickest way to find out what is accepted for review and publication is by following the link to -- submit your question on the top menu. In all cases, the best outcomes come when the ask is appropriate. Note the term "pro" is part of the word. Making the ask Don't know... Read more →

Why Experience is Key to Customer Loyalty

Whenever I travel, I'm reminded of the many amazing opportunities that come from being able to reach many parts of the world relatively easily. Let's face it, things can go wrong with the weather and with technology. It is how an airline -- or any company, for that matter -- handles customer fairness that will make a big difference to its bottom line. Will they have to discount fares more deeply so people will do business with them again next time? There is plenty of room left for improving customer experience in the travel industry -- airlines, hotels, car services,... Read more →

Business Lessons I Learned from my Mother

My mother was Miss Romagna. Her name is Anna Laura. I wanted to have her purple blue eyes and ready smile. She has the welcoming spirit of a woman always ahead of the times and comfortable in her own skin. In addition to being a mother of three (all girls), she has had multiple careers -- accounting, sales, public office, geriatric care, and beautician; some overlapping for years. Mother really gets communications -- the listening part especially -- the organization of work, along with the care of the individual. Whether she negotiated credit rates or the recovery of the elderly,... Read more →

Fair Pay, Participation Value, and The Intention Economy

Do you know the pay scale for your industry? I'm not talking about the job wanted ads -- those may mislead you and take you down the generic path. You're not generic, you have specific skills, and you should be able to calculate market value. Just like with salary, where you don't have a cut and dry answer, interaction and involvement are not exactly the same thing. Community participation has highs and lows, and they may not follow the touted 1% route. How active are people online? Has it changed in the last couple of years? Marketers can optimize campaigns... Read more →