Leanne Hoagland-Smith

When it comes to online shopping, according to Retail Dive, consumers want the buying experience to be easy. The question for any small business is whether they have or don’t...

Is your small business swimming ahead, with or behind the economy? One of the joys of writing this weekly business column for now more than 11 years is being able...

Are you marketing to the right people? In a recent blog, Seth Godin made this observation about people in businesses who are “writing for people who don’t read.” If your...

Noted business expert Peter Drucker said, “The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well the product or service fits him (her) and sells itself.” In...

Many business professionals have been exposed to “Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.” Abraham Maslow, in his 1943 paper, “A Theory of Human Motivation” in “Psychological Review,” proposed his hierarchy of needs....

Two local banks earned top customer satisfaction ratings per J.D. Power's 2018 Retail Banking Satisfaction index rankings for Chicago, Naperville-Elgin. Wintrust Community Bank ranked second and First Midwest Bank ranked...

Most small businesses have the opportunity to receive online feedback or reviews about their products or services. Some very smart small business owners realize the importance of any negative criticism...

Did you know that April 29 began National Small Business Week? Celebrating nationally small businesses began in 1963 and today continues through the efforts of the U.S. Small Business Administration...

The phone rings. As a small business owner or salesman, you are in the midst of paper work or answering emails. You reach to answer it and say hello. Now...