Halloween Ideas

What is Halloween?

Halloween (also spelled Hallowe'en) is an annual holiday celebrated on October 31. It has roots in the Celtic festival of Samhain and the Christian holy day of All Saints. It is largely a secularr celebration but some have expressed strong feelings about perceived religious overtones.

The day is often associated with the colors black and orange, and is strongly associated with symbols like the jack-o'-lantern. Halloween activities include trick-or-treating, wearing costumes and attending costume parties, ghost tours, bonfires, visiting haunted attractions, pranks, telling scary stories, and watching horror films.

Haloween Costumes:

Halloween costumes are traditionally those of monsters such as ghosts, skeletons, wicthes and devils. They are said to be used to scare off demons. Costumes are also based on themes other than traditional horror, such as those of characters from television shows, movies, and other pop culture icons.

Trick or Treating

Trick-or-treating is a customary celebration for children on Halloween. Children go in costume from house to house, asking for treats such as candy or sometimes money, with the question, "Trick or treat?" The word "trick" refers to a (mostly idle) threat to perform mischief on the homeowners or their property if no treat is given. In some parts of Ireland and Scotland children still go guising. In this custom the child performs some sort of show, i.e. sings a song or tells a ghost story, in order to earn their treats

What's Your Name Again?

Let me ask you something. Which do you think is more important - the people whose names you already know, or the members of your health club whose names you don't know yet?
Most people think it's the members names that you already know, but it's not!

If you don't know somebody's name that's a member of your health club, you better learn their name very quickly and start remembering it.

Knowing a person's name is very important and although most people don't even realize it on a conscious level, deep-down they're thinking "wow, he must really care about me - I love that feeling".

As wishy-washy as that might sound, it's completely true.

Think about it, what other places know them by name? The grocery store doesn't, clothing stores don't, their gas station probably doesn't, nor do 99% of the other places they visit on a regular basis!

So if you start talking to them by name, it creates an instant bond between you and the prospect.

And think about it - if you were the prospect, would you rather stay at a place who already knew your name and you were pretty much friends with, or would you pick the place down the street who might be a few bucks cheaper, but wasn't personal and friendly towards you?
I don't know about you, but I'd pick the place that was personal with me every single time!
Here's what I do to be even more personal with some of my clients. And keep in mind, this doesn't work for ALL clients - you have to get to know them first and see their personality, and make a judgment call.

This is what I do:

When I start to get to know a client that I think has a fun personality, I'll make up kind of a nickname for them. There is an older guy who comes into my health club who kind of resembles George Clooney, so instead of calling him by his real name I'll say "Heyyy George Clooney, how's it goin buddy?"

Do you see how much of a different relationship I have with him as compared to how most business owners treat their clients?

Now you also have to be a little careful when using this approach, so be forewarned.
Although it's extremely effective as a client retention strategy, and will probably even get you a lot more referrals than you're used to seeing, you can't go TOO far with it.

For example if a very attractive girl comes in you can't call her by some porn stars name or say anything specifically about her body. All you have to do is encourage her that she looks great, that's it.

You need to learn the line between encouragement and sexual harassment. Unfortunately in today's society that line is very, very thin - so always be more safe than sorry. Watch the persons face and body language as you give them the compliment and if it's negative even in the least bit, don't ever say anything like that again.

For most people that won't be a problem, I just wanted to let you know that sometimes it is an issue so you need to be careful. But that shouldn't deter you from complimenting your gym members and joking around with them!

Brian Cannone is a consultant with Fitness sales Training a health club operator, multiple fitness website owner and fitness event organizer, began his full-time career in the fitness industry in 1991 and continues to manage health clubs in today.

Benefits of The Virtual Chat Application

Dear Reader,

Let's take the real world scenario and try to mimic it in virtual world of internet. Just imagine that you are passing by the shop and at that shop someone invites you to ask something and show preparedness to answer your questions. What will be your reaction? Let me answer this: Most probably, you will ask something and you might get interested to buy something if you get some interesting information or discount. For most of the people, this will be normal & natural behavior.

Let's mimic this same kind of behavior in virtual world by virtual agent. If someone comes to your web site most probably, that person is having little interest in your products or services. If you can somehow engage them in talking with you, then there are fair chances that you can get new business from that visitor.

So what will you do the engage them in talking with you ? There are 2 options available to you:

1. Be online & chat with your visitor on your web site. You can use free online tools for this. This can be considered as live chat operator services.

This option provides highly personal online customer care service. You can hire dedicated live chat operators from outsourcing companies.

2. Be online through virtual chat operator & let the virtual chat operator to chat with your visitor & try to provide as much information as possible. During this process, you can get the phone number & email from the web-site visitor as well.

Answering Service - Top 8 Tips to Assess Performance Before You Hire

An answering service is only as good as its customer service representatives. When you hire an answering service, the service staff is directly responsible for communicating with your customers and can have a significant impact on your business reputation and customer satisfaction. While customer-friendly and knowledgeable staff can improve customer loyalty to your brand and increase profits, unprofessional representatives can lead to loss of client base and business reputation. Therefore, it is pivotal to assess the performance of customer service representatives before hiring an answering service. The following criteria are designed to assist you to achieve this goal and help make every call a great one.

Smiling and Customer Friendly Behavior: When customer service representatives smile during conversations with clients over the phone, their inflection and tone changes and becomes more welcoming and friendly. This makes the callers feel at ease, and gives them the impression that they are valued and respected, which in turn, helps to build loyalty and reputation in the market.

No Eating or Drinking During Conversations: Eating or drinking while answering a phone call is unacceptable and unprofessional. It can disrupt the flow of the conversation and significantly lower your companys' reputation and impression on customers.

Putting Callers on Hold: Answering service staff often has to put callers on hold, to transfer them to other lines or find the requested information. However, this must be done in a polite manner. Informing customers as to where they are being transferred and their expected wait time conveys a favorable impression about your business and your commitment to your customers.
Listening to Customers: Representatives should listen carefully to customers and pay close attention to their requirements. They should seldom ask for repetition of information as this can annoy the caller. Professional representatives also let the customers know how attentively they have been listening to them, by repeating the main points to the caller.

Clarity in Speech and Solution: Representatives should speak clearly and fluently, so that customers can understand what is being said. Additionally, they should give clear and unambiguous solutions to problems of the customers and not beat about the bush.
Professionalism in Tone and Speech: Answering service representatives should always speak with customers in a polite but professional manner. Though it is important to make the customers feel at ease, too much informality in language can give a bad impression about your business to your clients.

Reviewing all Issues: Before ending the phone conversation, customer service representatives should cover all aspects of the customers' query. Professional representatives take down notes during the call to meet this requirement. Important information must be repeated to enable customers to understand it.

Terminating a Phone Call and Hanging up Last: Professional customer service representatives will always give customers the chance to finish saying all that they want to say, inquire or clarify. They will terminate the phone call only after the client has ended the phone conversation. Hanging up the phone in haste while the client is still speaking can have severe negative effect on your customers' satisfaction.

Thoroughly evaluate answering service staff on the above-mentioned criteria and hire an answering service only after you have tested the quality and performance of its customer service representatives.

Call Center Solutions Delight Customers

Modern era developments maximize market opportunities, but require efficiency in services. Here comes the role of customer center solutions. They improve upon immediate solutions and ensure customer satisfaction.

Call centers different business activities, but primarily for customer support through voice-based responses and internet transactions. Online call center solutions enhance business opportunities. It is achieved through sophisticated functioning and CRM integration. They are cheap alternatives to Client's own efforts and mechanism of operations. Manual correspondence is time taking, less-reliable and delays processing. Online centers are address for increase in profit

Integrated software creates better business opportunities, and interactive voice response system optimizes call management with immediate response to inbound calls. Most call center solutions work online; to promote advertising, campaigns, promotional offers and better control on all activities. Higher flexibility and larger control on activities are two main factors contributing to success of call center solutions and in turn to the Clients involved.
Web management through latest e-care tools enable responsive email campaigns and automated reply. One to one chat is one of the greatest customer interaction services. Clients convey first hand latest information through online chatting and customers give almost appropriate feedbacks. Online form-filling activity needs lot of assistance, provided better through online call center executives. Online professionals assist customers in completion and submission i.e. assisting in overall activities for ease.

Professionalism is enhanced through online bpos. Timely e-commerce solutions like credit-card authorization, product order enquiries, promotional schemes, FAQs, product enquiries, are some very popular call center solutions.

All online bpos and activities ensure security with industry standards for maintaining confidentiality in business transactions.

The best part of bpos solution is promptness in services, as well as responses from client's customers. Outsourcing such activities not only enhances a client's business activity but also makes the Company popular and efficient amongst the varying business activity.

Online activities are another way of interacting with customers within no time for best possible response. Both inbound and outbound activities are promoted through call center solutions. It's compulsory to have correct solutions for a firm's activity for maximum possible returns.
Jack Morkel is well known author has written article on Customer Support, Offshore Customer Care, Outbound Telemarketing Call Center, Call Center Services and many other subjects

Best Wishes to Kor and Mar

MANILA - Sen. Manuel "Mar" Roxas II and broadcaster Korina Sanchez on Tuesday afternoon exchanged "I do's" at the Sto. Domingo Church in Quezon City. The ceremony started at 4 p.m. Tuesday as thousands of guests and well-wishers arrived to witness the union.

Crowds outside the church cheered and shouted "Korina!" as Sanchez, wearing a Filipiniana gown, stepped out of the bridal car. A white sheet held up by several ushers prevented people from seeing Sanchez until the start of her bridal march.

The Philippine Madrigal Singers sang “Ave Maria” as the entourage marched toward the altar.

As she was walking down the aisle with his brother, Sanchez shed tears of joy while Ray An Fuentes' “Umagang Kay Ganda” was being played in the background. Roxas, who was waiting at the altar, was also seen wiping away tears.

In his homily, Fr. Tito Caluag reminded the couple to love and serve one another throughout their married lives. "I believe that giving one's self to love brings blessing to one's self and to society," he said.

A veritable who’s who of the Philippine society attended the wedding ceremony. Political and show business personalities as well as representatives from various political organizations and non-government organizations have been invited to the event.

Among those spotted at the church were Randy David, Rey Langit, Pitoy Moreno, Paeng Nepomuceno, Vehnee Saturno, Bayan Muna Rep. Satur Ocampo, Secretary Ronnie Puno of the Department of Interior and Local Government, Basil Valdez, Wilson Tieng of Solar Films, ABS-CBN President Charo Santos-Concio, former Senator Letty Ramos Shahani,Ralph Recto, Lily Monteverde, Teodoro Locsin, former President Joseph Estrada, Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri and his wife, US Ambassador Kristie Anne Kenney;

Broadcasters Bernadette Sembrano, Ina Reformina, Willard Cheng, Alex Santos, Ted Failon, Joey Villarama, Julius and Christine Babao, and Doris Bigornia, former Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban, former Senate President Franklin Drilon, Congressmen Teofisto Guingona III, Antonio Cuenco and Neptali Gonzales, Lopez family patriarch Oscar Lopez. Fernando Zobel, Rizal Gov. Casimiro Ynares III and wife;

Jacqui Aquino, Maurice Arcache, Viel Aquino, Joselito Payumo, Joey Lina, Lauren Dyogi, Greggy Araneta and wife Irene Marcos-Araneta, Cesar Purisima, Karina David, Renato Constantino, Sister Mary John Mananzan, former Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban, Fr. Tito Caluag and Rodolfo “Jun” Lozada.

White roses and sampaguita, Sanchez's favorite flowers, adorned the church. Sponsors and guests wore Filipiniana attires.

Fans and supporters of the couple also gathered in church ground to get a glimpse of the bride and groom.

The principal sponsors are Chief Justice Reynato Puno, former Senate President Jovito Salonga, Eugenio Lopez III, Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, Jorge Araneta, Ms. Rosa Rosal, Helen Costales, Ruby Roxas, Cecilia Lazaro, and Maria Fores.

Roxas’ 16-year old son, Paolo Zaldarriaga, stood as the senator’s best man, while Dang Cecilio-Palance was the matron of honor.

The ring bearer is Kris Aquino’s son, James Yap Jr., while Miguel Sanchez and Matthew Garcia are the coin and Bible bearers.

In their earlier interviews on radio dzMM, both Sanchez and Roxas could not contain their excitement. "Hindi na yata mapipigilan ito," Sanchez said.

"Parang bungee jumping. Para siyang isang malalim na malalim na talon tapos hindi mo talaga matitiyak kung ano ang kala-landingan mo. Pero dahil mahigpit ang pagkakatali sa iyong binti ng lubid ng pagmamahal, alam mong ligtas ka na la-landing…. it's really a very exciting adventure," Sanchez added.

The senator, for his part, said he felt both tense and excited after waking up on Tuesday, knowing that he would be a married man at the end of the day.

"Ang unang agenda sa abot kaya ng panahon at tuhod ko ay magkaroon ng mga anak...Ang sarap isipin na sana may mga chikiting kami at nakaupo kami sa sofa. Nai-imagine ko ‘yong Sunday lunch na magkasama kami at mga anak namin at mga apo sana. Komportableng-komportable ‘yong imahe sa puso ko at sa kaisipan ko. Kaya dumating na 'This is it!'" he said.
There will be no grand reception after the ceremony. The senator from Capiz and the veteran broadcast anchor decided to donate the money to 6 charity organizations providing assistance to victims of typhoons “Ondoy” and “Pepeng.”

After the ceremony, the couple is set to meet with their guests in the courtyard where food and refreshments will be served.

Reports said more than 200 police have been deployed in the area to maintain peace and order.

Reference:

abs-cbn news

Extend registration deadline to accomodate typhoon victims

Opposition senator Francis "Chiz" Escudero on Friday asked the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to extend the registration deadline for new voters two weeks after October 31, specifically in regions and other areas devastated by typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng.

Earlier this week, the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) revealed that more than 4 million people or nearly 900,000 families, were affected.

"The Comelec should consider the fact that thousands lost their homes, belongings, members of their families as well as friends. They are still rebuilding their lives," the 40-year-old senator stressed.

"While I'm certain they want to participate in the next national elections, most have other priorities for the moment," he added.

Based on figures from the Comelec, around 2.8 million of an expected 4 million new voters have registered as of this week, with the deadline set on midnight of October 31.

Roughly 45.6 million of the country?s estimated 91 million population are qualified to vote on May 10, 2010.

Escudero, who is chairman of the Senate Electoral Reforms committee, also said the turnout so far should also convince the Comelec to establish more registration centers in schools, barangay halls and other public facilities