Online Customer Service

Blog World '09: Tips from Social Media Pros

Las Vegas was host to Blog World '09, the nation's first and largest conference on blogging. While it may seem imprudent to put the shenanigans of Sin City nightlife under the microscope of the most public medium in human history, the ...READ»

Barneys and Friend

Sheldon Gilbert helps the hip department store decode the desires of its online customers.READ»

• First Class Mail
• The State of Mobile Advertising

Journal-ist: Freedom of Choice

From the journals, studies on why we shop online, how clicks-and-mortar stores can build trust, and how negative reviews can be overcome.READ»

• Now: April 2008
• MEET: World Retail Congress
• Numerology: Tax Time

Fast Talk: Privacy Warrior

Dr. Deborah Peel Founder and President, Patient Privacy Rights Austin, Texas Dr. Deborah Peel, 56, a practicing psychiatrist, founded Patient Privacy Rights, a consumer watchdog organization. She began fighting for medical ...READ»

Fast Talk: Bush's Record Collector

Dr. Robert Kolodner National Coordinator for Health Information Technology Department of Health and Human Services Washington, D.C. Dr. Robert Kolodner, 59, advises HHS Secretary Michael Leavitt on health IT initiatives and ...READ»

Fast Talk: Bureaucracy Breaker

Colin Evans President and CEO, Dossia Portland, Oregon Colin Evans, 55, is a 27-year Intel veteran who's on loan to Dossia, a nonprofit consortium founded by several major companies, including AT&T, BP, Intel, and Wal-Mart, ...READ»

Fast Talk: Clean-Up Hitter

Stanley Crosley Chief Privacy Officer, Eli Lilly Indianapolis, Indiana Stanley Crosley, 45, installed an aggressive new system at Eli Lilly after the company suffered a privacy breach in 2001. Last year, the International ...READ»

Fast Talk: The Protector

Harriet Pearson Chief Privacy Officer, IBM Armonk, New York Harriet Pearson, an attorney and former engineer, became the first major-company chief privacy officer in 2000. "More and more employees and their spouses are going ...READ»

Celebrity Blogs: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

As if they don't already get enough publicity, celebrities are increasingly joining the ranks of the blogosphere. Here we spotlight some of the best -- and some of the worst.READ»

2006 Review of Business Innovation, Digital Media and Trends

Will Paris Hilton's new cosmetics line survive her bad girl image? Will the Zune be a threat to the iPod? These were just a few of this year's business questions to be answered. Here we review ten business innovations, digital media products, and trends from 2006.READ»

Crash Course: How to Dominate, Differentiate, and Meet the Market

What do your customers really want? In an interview, Ryan Mathews, coauthor of the forthcoming book "The Myth of Excellence," offers some surprising answers. Forget the lowest price or the biggest discount. Show a little respect -- and tell the truth.READ»

New Rules: Why Values Beat Value

What do your customers really want? In an interview, Ryan Mathews, coauthor of the forthcoming book "The Myth of Excellence," offers some surprising answers. Forget the lowest price or the biggest discount. Show a little respect -- and tell the truth.READ»

One is Silver and the Other's Gold...

Startup company Silknet Software and American stalwart Bowne Co. strive to balance service and tradition.READ»

Born Again

Bowne Internet Solutions is learning to balance tradition and technology in order to create a customer-friendly financial-services solution for the 21st Century.READ»

Help Yourself!

Silknet Software trumpets a seamless solution for self-service and mass personalization.READ»

Easy Money: Mint.com CEO Aaron Patzer is Merging Personal Finance with Web 2.0

Aaron Patzer is taking on Quicken by merging personal finance with Web 2.0. Can he get twentysomethings to be smart with their cash? READ»

Sweating In the Hot Zone

Imagine what life would be like if your product were never finished, if your work were never done, if your market shifted 30 times a day. The computer-virus hunters at Symantec don't have to imagine.READ»

Business Blogging for Beginners

Creating a business blog is a lot like hosting a cocktail party: You're networking with customers in a low-pressure setting and, at best, nurturing great relationships. How to make your company's blog the talk of the town? We asked experts Elizabeth Albrycht of Blogging Planet and Andy Lark of the Lark Group for the lowdown on blogging style and etiquette.READ»

Found Money?

If you take intangible assets into account, annual productivity could rise 1-2%. That's, well, just tangible enough to consider seriously.READ»

The Net/Net

A go-to guide of the products and services featured in this month's issue.READ»

How to Really Make a Revolution

Why the Internet didn't fuel a true revolution.READ»

Fast Talk: Smart Shops

Just in time for the holiday rush, we asked top retailers: Why is the customer experience so lousy? And what can we do to fix it?READ»

How MapQuest Gets You From Here to There

It's not all algorithms. Think geographers driving around in a Ford Taurus.READ»

" Please Stay on the Line"

What do call-center companies tell each other? Press 1 to find out.READ»

How Google Searches Itself

Google has become one of the hottest companies in Silicon Valley by helping millions of Internet users search the Web smarter and faster. But how does this wildly popular search engine find the new ideas that will keep its business moving forward? By ''googling'' itself.READ»