Collegewise

Their bad customer service is good for your small businesses

Bad customer service is rampant today, especially with bigger companies who know they have more than enough customers already.  But that's actually great news for small business owners.  Customer service is one place where small businesses have advantages big businesses don't have.  We can look great by comparison if we want to, and we don't need lots of resources, time, or money to show our customers that we care about them and their experience with us.

Here are just a few easy, open opportunities for any small businesses--from a counselor to a caterer to a cardiologist--to make people happy. 

1.  You can do what you say you're going to do. 

If you promise that you'll have the proposal to them by 2 p.m. tomorrow, get it there by that time even if you have to pull an all-nighter.  Finish the job by the deadline you quoted even if you have to work overtime.  Small businesses don't have layers of people and policies to stop us.  We can do whatever it takes to just do what we said we were going to do. 

2.  You can actually appreciate their business.

Nobody feels warm and fuzzy when an automatically generated email tells them "We appreciate your business!"  Small business owners can look a customer in the eye and say, "I'm so glad we're going to get to work together." 

3.  You won't try to get away with, "We apologize..."

Apologizing on behalf of your organization just shows that no one person is willing to take responsibility for the problem.  When a small business owner says, "I'm so sorry--I feel terrible," that's a lot more sincere than "We regret any inconvenience this may have caused."

4.  You can ask them about their experience.

You don't feel like a company cares about your experience just because they send you an online survey with "Your feedback is important to us!" in the subject line.  But if you went to a restaurant for the first time and the owner called you the next night just to see if you enjoyed your dinner, that would make an impression.  It's easier for a small business to do that than it is for a big, bloated company. 

5.  You can actually care what they think.

When I call and tell the nameless person at the cable company that the technician never showed up today, am I ruining his day?  Is he going to lie awake at night and feel bad that they let me down?  Probably not.  He's got too many calls and too many complaints to take them personally.  But not the small business owner.  She'll lie awake, worry, and work like crazy to make things right.  And her customer will thank her for it. 

Best of all, small business owners don't need a company retreat to talk about doing these things.  We don't need meetings and memos and middle managers signing off on big customer service initiatives.  We can just decide it's important and start paying more attention to it. 

Not all big businesses are bad.   And small businesses aren't immune to bad customer service.  I get that.  But customer service can be a huge advantage for small businesses if we do it right. 

Which seniors would you bet on?

If you had to place bets on which graduating seniors were most likely to be successful in life, who would you bet on?

You'd probably bet on a high achiever, someone who spent the last four years working and succeeding like crazy.  It would likely be someone who took the hardest classes and earned the highest grades, who succeeded in their activities and made an impact on their schools.  Chances are, it's someone students and teachers like and respect, who will be missed next year.   Students like that are a good bet, and probably the one that I'd place, too.  But here's a question.

Would you change your bet if they weren't attending prestigious colleges? 

If the smartest kid at your school turned down an offer of admission from Princeton and went to Oberlin or Colorado College or Juniata, would you change your bet?  I wouldn't, and I hope you wouldn't either.

The traits those kids showed that earned your bets (and the same traits that likely got them admitted to prestigious colleges) are what will make them successful in the long run, not the names of the colleges they decide to attend.

That's what you can learn from those successful seniors.  You don't have to be a straight-A student yourself to emulate their work ethic, attitude towards learning and commitment to activities.  Develop those traits and you're going to be successful no matter where you go to college.  

When colleges ask you where else you are applying

Some colleges will ask you on their applications or during interviews to name the other colleges you're applying to.  Sometimes they'll even ask why you've decided to apply to each of those other schools.  This can feel a little bit like a potential date asking you who else you're interested in and why.  You don't want to lie but it feels like you're doing something wrong by keeping your options open.

But don't worry about it (for the colleges, I mean--you're on your own for the dating scenario.)

Unlike a potential date, no reasonable college will ever hold it against you if you aren't ready to pledge your love to them only.  They know that most students apply to more than one college.  As long as you aren't leading them on and pretending to be interested when you're not, they won't take it personally that they're not necessarily the only one for you. 

So when a college asks, tell the truth.  Be proud of where else you're applying and share your real reasons why you're doing so.  Telling a college which other schools are on your list along with a good description about why you think you'd love attending each of them is the sign of a mature, savvy college shopper.  It shows them that you're excited about your college future and that you know there are plenty of great schools out there where you could be happy and successful. 

It won't make you seem any less interested in this particular school.  In fact, being confident and excited about all your options will probably make them all that much more interested in you.

Are you stressed about choosing your college?

Wise words from Jay Mathews in his post, "Stressed by choosing a college? Read these 5 tips."

Your future success doesn’t depend on whether your grandmother has heard of your college...Those prestigious colleges were good at recruiting students who had the character traits, such as persistence, humor and charm, that produced success in life. But students with those qualities who went to colleges rarely mentioned in the rankings did just as well. It is your character that makes the difference. Work hard, and all will be well."

When college applications ask if you've visited the school

If you're a soon-to-be-senior applying to college this fall, here's something to check.  Do any of your chosen colleges ask, "Have you visited our campus?" on their applications?  To find out, check the colleges' websites and see if you can still access last fall's applications.  If they ask the visit question, it's one way that a college determines just how interested you really are.   

Just because one of your chosen colleges asks the question doesn't mean you necessarily have to buy a plane ticket to visit (though if it's within driving distance, I'd strongly consider going).  But it does mean that it's even more important to show that college that you really are interested and not just tossing an application in haphazardly.  Here's a related post that might help.

Five ways parents can help juniors prepare for college applications

One year from now, today's juniors will know where they're going to college.  If you want the process of getting there to be smooth, enjoyable and successful, here are five ways parents can help your juniors prepare.

1.  Have the family college discussions now.

Applications need to be filed sometime between September and January.  Now is the time for your family to talk about which colleges will be on the list.  How much can you afford to pay for college?  Do you and your student agree on what types schools would be best?  Do you want to visit any of those schools before your student applies?  It's too late to have these discussions later this fall when your student should be working on applications.  Have the discussions now and you'll give your student the opportunity to start and finish the applications early.  

2.  Put your student in charge. 

Part of students preparing for college means taking charge of their lives and not letting their parents take care of everything for them.  Let your student know that you're going to let them take the lead, that while you'll be there to encourage and advise them, you're not going to research schools and fill out applications for them.  The more that students take charge of their own admissions process, the more successful they're going to be.

3. Use the summer to get organized. 

Summer is the perfect time for a student to research colleges' application requirements.  One way a lot of families do this together without violating tip #2 is to have the student do the research, present her findings, and the parent organizes them into a spreadsheet or regular old fashioned file.  Most colleges list this information very clearly on the admissions sections of their websites.  Have your student find the application deadline dates, the lists of what each college requires for an application to be considered complete, and what standardized tests are required (and if your student hasn't taken them yet, have him sign up for fall testing dates).   Don't rely on a college guidebook for this information; it's important to go to the source and get it from the colleges themselves.  This takes some time, but believe me, it will be a lot less stressful to do this at a leisurely pace during the summer than to scramble when your student is back at school this fall. 

4.  Encourage your student to ask for advice.

Yes, a student should take charge of his or her own college process.  But part of that ownership means asking for help and advice along the way.  Encourage your student to talk to his or her counselor, to ask colleges about their requirements if your family has questions, or to speak with older students who've already completed the process.  And of course, remind your kids that you're in their corner, ready to help them with anything they need as long as they're still taking the lead.     

5.  Start enjoying the ride.

Your student is going to reflect how you treat the college admissions process.  Lead by example and be excited.  Don't act as if an acceptance from Yale or USC or Ohio State will be the only outcome worth celebrating.  There are hundreds of good colleges out there, most of whom accept B and even C students, just about all of whom will offer a wonderful education for a student that's willing to work and take full advantage of what they have to offer.  Treat the process for what it is, an exciting time in your student's life.  Your entire family will enjoy this process much more. 

A good lesson from a senior parent

From the parent of a Collegewise senior who's deciding between five different colleges--University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Colorado-Boulder, University of Washington, University of Oregon and Loyola Marymount University.

We visited them all and bought five t-shirts from five different colleges.  We'll all get sweatshirts once she picks her school."

This kid can't possibly have any doubts about whether or not her parents are excited for--and proud of--her.

Three things not worth sacrificing for test prep

Test scores are important at lots of colleges.  But they're never important enough to sacrifice any of the following in the name of preparing for the SAT or ACT.

1) More money than you can afford.

You don't necessarily have to take an expensive course or hire a private tutor to improve your test scores.  There are plenty of short courses, books and even free online test prep options.  Effort expended is more important than dollars spent.

2) Time that could be spent getting better grades, or playing better basketball, or painting better pictures.

Test preparation needs to fit into the rest of your schoolwork and your life.  Choose your time of year to prep wisely and apply some good time management when you do.  If you feel pressured to ignore other important areas of your life, sacrifice the test prep first.  

3) Self-confidence.

Some kids are not good test-takers.  While they can certainly improve, efforts to transform poor test-takers into great test-takers usually don't work and make those kids feel badly about themselves. Put in some appropriate time and work hard to improve your scores.  Even if you're not happy with your results, be happy with your effort.  Then move on to other things you enjoy.

Celebrating with--and cooking for--a future college freshman

From the Framed Cooks blog...

Extreme Comfort Food is what is called for when your teenager...the baby you birthed for hours on end, the toddler who called you Mama and held your hand when you crossed the street, the grade-schooler whose hair you fixed in pigtails and whose Pokeman lunchbox you filled with millions of pb&j sandwiches, the teenager who goes with you to get your nails done and who tells you when you are singing the wrong words to Single Ladies...when she gets The Envelope."

More thoughts, pictures and a recipe for butter chicken follow in the rest of the post.

College planning simplified

There's a lot to consider when planning for college today.  But if you want to...

1. Have more college options...
2. Get more financial aid and scholarship money...
3. Enjoy the ride to college with less stress and more excitement...
4. Be more successful during (and after) college...
5. Have an amazing four years of learning, growth and fun...

Start by picking the right colleges.

Spend less time worrying about how to get into just the prestigious schools.  Spend more time finding those that are most likely to appreciate who you really are and what you've done.  Move beyond name-brand recognition and find colleges that fit you.  And if you need help finding those schools, visit your high school counselor and just ask...

"What colleges do you think would be right for me?"