Colleague.biz

Business Use for Instant Messaging? - Yep, apparently Lands End uses it to answer customer questions as they browse the catalogue company's website. The cheery representatives will even use IM to redirect the customer to a particular page on the website if necessary.

I see IM working its way into law firms too. The other day was illustrative. I was on the phone with an important client in one of those situations where I couldn't get off the phone no matter what happened. A call came in on my other line, and I ignored it. Thirty seconds later I was paged by the receptionist. I had to E-mail her to let her know I was on the phone, and we traded E-mails so that I could (1) find out who was looking for me (2) tell her to tell the person to call back in 10 minutes. All of this took more time than it should have. Instant Messaging would have been much faster. Of course, now I suspect most law firms will view IM as some sort of frilly toy.
[Ernie the Attorney]

Currently Reading:

1:37:07 PM

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Flawless Consulting by Peter Block is one of the better how-to books on consulting I've read.

Following my theme of not looking for a job, maybe what I'm really doing is looking for many jobs. I spent a couple of years in the late 1990s working for a small consulting company, so I know how hard it is to do the job right and get paid. There are all sorts of trade-offs between:

telling the client what they want to hear so they'll pay you and telling them what they need to hear so you can do your job
getting the client to take responsibility for the project and losing control
providing a plan that looks good and one that actually works for the long term.
Block provides a well-structured book, taking you through the culture and mindset of consulting. He uses a scenario approach to make his points, and provides a variety of check-off lists and tools. He spends a good number of pages on contracting (very important) and on the 50/50 split in client/consultant responsibility that is required for success. Along the way are lots of good tips for how to handle project meetings, work corporate politics, etc.
It's a bit expensive, at $42, but I recommend it for anyone thinking seriously about doing independent consultant work.

See also: Roman History Reading Group / Currently Reading | Amazon.com: So You'd Like to know what books I am currently | Amazon.com: So You'd Like to know what books I am currently | Amazon.com: So You'd Like to know what books I am currently | Amazon.com: So You'd Like to know what books I am currently | Amazon.com: So You'd Like to know what books I am currently | What Really Matter?: Currently reading | Currently Reading Books @ BetterBizbooks.com | The Online Reading Club | sandlund.net: What am I reading ?

Interesting BookBiz TidBits from M.J. Rose

10:55:25 AM

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There are some good ideas in today's Wired News column by M.J. Rose, and some validation for authors like Hugh Madison at American Invisible.
Before 1998, it was rare for established publishing companies to bid on self-published fiction. But in the last 18 months, thanks in great part to authors' ability to use the Internet to market themselves, more than three dozen self-published novels have been picked up by major houses. [...]
Also, a very entrepreneurial idea from Florida-based Chapter-a-Day: sending out excerpts from popular business books via daily e-mail:
The business of book clubs: From Good Morning America to the White House, book clubs are flourishing. And now businesses want them too.
Wells Fargo already has one. So do sales and marketing executives in Minneapolis-St. Paul.
Chapter-a-Day, a Sarasota, Florida, company that builds and maintains online book clubs -- sending out daily book excerpts for libraries and book stores -- is getting as many as a dozen inquiries a week from corporations. [...]
I love this idea. It's a variant of the book summary/abstracting services offered by several companies. I think the bite-sized nature of this makes it very appealing. One of my favorite services comes from Audio-Tech Executive Summaries and is called Business Briefings.
It's on CD rather than e-mail, but every month they review some 300+ publications and send out a very interesting bite-sized summary of ideas, concepts, research, and publications that are or will affect business. It's one of the most interesting services I get, and I think it's because of the bite-sized nature of things.
Self-Publish Stigma Is Perishing. Major houses gobble up rights after authors create a buzz for their work. Also: Book clubs that work for business ... and more in M.J. Rose's notebook. [Wired News]

See also: Blunt Force Trauma | Blunt Force Trauma | Blunt Force Trauma | Blunt Force Trauma | Blunt Force Trauma | Blunt Force Trauma | Blunt Force Trauma | Blunt Force Trauma