In a marketplace where lenders are demanding record-high FICO credit scores – Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are averaging around 760 on approved mortgages this year – are you a little fuzzy about what can push your scores up or down? more

Millions of small-business owners use some type of paid search advertising to attract customers and prospects to their business or website. Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising – also called search-engine marketing or simply paid search – can be an effective, low-cost way to gain visibility online. more

You have been making value perceptions and value judgments your entire life. more

Since many boats have automotive-type engines in them, it would seem to make sense to have them repaired at a garage that services, well … automotive engines. Such was the case with the owner of an inboard-outboard boat who wasn’t happy with the engine work being done by his boat dealer and who chose instead to have his boat tuned up by his local auto-service station. After all, they had done great work on his cars, so why not? more

When a new sales representative is hired, a company provides what is known as orientation and ramp up. Once those elements are complete, the company believes the salesperson can go out and begin earning money. more

Customer-service expert Ron Kaufman has a radical notion that great service shouldn’t be as hard as it seems to be for so many businesses to deliver. “Service is everywhere,” said Kaufman. “But there’s a disconnect between the volume of service we need and the quality of service we are giving and receiving. Businesses have turned a simple concept into a catastrophic cliché. They remain blind to the fact that true service comes not from demands and dashboards, but from a basic desire to take care of other people.” more

Are some appraisers failing to see the improvements in real estate values under way in local markets that have recently bottomed out and turned positive? When multiple bids push a house price thousands of dollars above what the seller is asking – not unusual in neighborhoods where demand is particularly robust – are appraisers still coming in with values below the agreed-upon contract number? more

I’m all Apple all the time. Since 1984. more

When a small business receives a customer complaint it has two basic choices: Treat the complaining customer like a pain in the neck, or use the complaint as an opportunity to improve. more

In the real estate brokerage field they’re known as “setups” or “pinball” homes, and this spring’s improving conditions in some markets could be stimulating more of them. more