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Tighter margins, higher stakes: The case for investing in customer loyalty
It’s no secret, 2025 is off to an eventful start with tariff uncertainty, nagging inflation, and global supply chains in flux. From retailers to the hospitality industry, these economic challenges hit margins hard and force business leaders to have tough conversations around pricing and budgets.

In this post, we make the case for investing in customer loyalty as a long-term strategy to protect revenue, reduce churn, and increase customer lifetime value.

The economics of customer loyalty

In a margin-squeezed economy, investing in customer retention is a far more efficient growth strategy than chasing new acquisition (important too!). In fact, retaining an existing customer can cost 5 to 25 times less than acquiring a new one.

Repeat customers are also significantly more valuable: in retail, they can generate 3–10 times the value of a first-time buyer, and in hospitality, they often spend more and drive referrals.

Just as important, reducing churn by even 5% can boost profits by 25% to 95%, making loyalty a critical margin-preserving tool in high-volume, low-margin industries like retail and hospitality.

Happy customers are willing to pay more

With price increases almost inevitable, loyalty offers another major advantage: price elasticity. When customers have a strong emotional connection to a brand, they become less price sensitive. They’re less likely to comparison-shop or abandon their cart over a small price difference, and more willing to pay a premium for the experience, reliability, and consistency they’ve come to trust.

Alchemer’s Research Solutions Team recently conducted a brand loyalty market research study and found that 80% of participants would be willing to pay more for a product or brand they love. That’s not just a nod to brand preference—it’s a bottom-line opportunity.

In retail, this translates to fewer markdowns, stronger margins, and higher average order values. In hospitality, it means guests who book directly, upgrade rooms, or return for repeat stays. Choosing your property again and again, even if you’re not the cheapest option in town. Ultimately, loyalty softens the blow of rising costs and turns price pressure into pricing power.

Loyalty and feedback go hand in hand

Loyalty doesn’t happen by accident. It’s built through intentional listening and consistent follow-through. In industries where customer expectations are high, and competition is fierce, feedback is your most direct and reliable line to what truly matters to your audience.

When you opt for structured, ongoing feedback loops, not just one-off surveys or occasional reviews, you move from guesswork to clarity. You uncover pain points before they escalate into churn. You surface unmet needs that, when addressed, turn a satisfied customer into a loyal advocate. And most importantly, you demonstrate that customer input isn’t just collected, it drives real change.

In a time when customers have more choices than ever, showing that you’re listening, and proving it through action, is one of the most effective ways to deepen loyalty and differentiate your brand.

How to invest in loyalty during challenging times

When margins are tight and resources are limited, the smartest loyalty investments are the ones that deliver clear, measurable impact. Alchemer gives organizations the tools to build meaningful, data-driven relationships with customers by turning feedback into action at every stage of the customer journey.
1. Meet customers where they are: With multi-channel feedback tools, you can collect insights across every customer touchpoint—whether it’s a mobile checkout survey, an in-app feedback prompt, a kiosk at checkout, or a post-stay email. From web and mobile to SMS and email codes, Alchemer makes it easy to gather feedback in the moments that matter most.
1. Go from insights to action, fast: Alchemer’s end-to-end platform allows brands to not only collect data but route it to the right teams instantly. With integrations into CRMs, marketing automation, and support tools, feedback doesn’t just sit, it powers real decisions and real change.
1. Optimize loyalty programs with real-time input: Loyalty programs only work when they evolve with your customers. With the right mobile feedback tools, it’s easy to meet customers in the moment, whether they’ve just completed a purchase, redeemed a reward, or stayed at your property. These real-time insights help you refine rewards, remove friction, and deliver the experiences your customers actually want, keeping them loyal and active.
Ready to see how Alchemer can help? Request a demo or read how we can help you build a brand health tracking program!
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22/04/2025
Inspired by the Masters? Bring Your Work Hustle to the Golf Course with Mind Caddie, Now $99.99.

Disclosure: Our goal is to feature products and services that we think you’ll find interesting and useful. If you purchase them, Entrepreneur may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners.

Take the same focus and determination that makes you a shark in the office out on the golf course when you use Mind Caddie to up your mental golf game. Packed with short audio lessons, guided exercises, and performance tracking, the Mind Caddie app helps you hone in on the mindset that makes you a successful golf player. This usually $209 app is now just $99.99, so don’t miss this undervalued investment in your success.

On the course and off

Getting a round in with your colleagues is about more than seeing who makes it under par. It’s the time that puts a social face on your business connections. It’s the much-needed movement in a week spent sitting before screens and reports. It can also be a mental exercise in focus and confidence when using Mind Caddie for performance coaching on and off the course.

Golf is as mental as it is physical. When you tap into the Mind Caddie app’s proven coaching methods from Karl Morris — a performance coach for Ryder Cup captains and PGA Tour, European Tour, PLGA, and Ladies European Tour winners — you learn the tools to help yourself achieve success. The program is structured in a way that helps you track your improvements and build mental resilience, all backed by scientific study.

Using the app to improve your game

You’ve already tried tutorials and swapping clubs. Now it’s time to use the simplest tool you’ve got: your listening ears.

Listen to the short audio golf lessons to practice mental strategies. Use guided exercises to build confidence and focus. Follow the step-by-step course to develop yourself as a player. Then, track your performance — what gets measured gets improved, after all. You’ll see the proof in your own performance increases. Transform your mind, transform your game.

A better golf game is out there, and you can play it for just $99.99 with Mind Caddie, now discounted by 52%.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

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20/04/2025
How to Avoid the Perils of Short-Term Thinking For Long-Term Success

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

At my company, Jotform, our intern program is serious business.

When a new class of interns signs on to work with us, their first week is spent in training, getting them up to speed on who we are, what we do and how we do it. Then, we team them up with experienced staff and get them working on their own projects. By the time they depart our offices to return to the classroom, we’ve planted the seeds to make them successful employees.

Working with interns is a time- and resource-consuming proposition. But it’s also an investment. Some of our best employees are former interns; standout workers who we knew had the potential to learn and grow into bigger roles.

Sometimes, it might be easier to hire candidates with the experience we’re looking for. To me, that’s a prime example of short-term thinking, a mindset that can seriously harm your company in the long run. By nurturing young employees, we not only save money on recruiting a prestige hire that may or may not work out; we also develop the talents of someone we already know we want on our team.

Too often, though, leaders go with the easier-sounding option; the one that sounds most appealing right now. Here’s why that’s a mistake.

Related: Why Long-Term Strategic Planning is the Lifeline Your Business Needs Right Now

Focus on sustainable growth

If your company, like mine, is built around Software as a Service (SaaS), building a subscriber base requires a lot of time — and a lot of happy customers — to reach sustainability. This is one of the hazards of taking outside investment — it creates the illusion of success without actual organic growth.

The cautionary tale that looms largest in my mind is that of Theranos, the doomed blood-testing startup that was valued at $9 billion. Theranos was subsumed by hype, but in the end, the technology the company was theoretically built around didn’t even exist. Eventually, Theranos evaporated into a giant cloud of fraud allegations and even a lengthy prison sentence for its founder, Elizabeth Holmes.

Theranos is an extreme case of VC funding gone awry, but it does show what can happen to a founder under extraordinary pressure to produce results quickly, and the mirage of success that VC funding can create.

Rather than taking outside funding, I advocate for bootstrapping. It’s less glamorous, sure, but it also fosters real, sustainable growth, enables innovation and builds resilience. Most importantly, you have the freedom to operate on your own timeline, gather user feedback and focus on developing a product that really works.

Related: Focusing on Speed When Building Your Company is a Mistake. Here’s Why.

Beware of the scarcity mindset

Short-term thinking doesn’t just come from a desire for instant gratification. It can also come from fear.

In particular, the scarcity mindset, an idea developed by Princeton University psychology and public affairs professor Eldar Shafir and Harvard University economist Sendhil Mullainathan, explains how having limited resources — be it time, capital, etc. — narrows our mental bandwidth, creating a tunneling effect that allows only the space to focus on short-term goals.

“Every psychologist understands that we have very limited cognitive space and bandwidth,” Shafir explained. “When you focus heavily on one thing, there is just less mind to devote to other things.”

Founders, especially in the early days of starting a business, are constantly at risk of developing a scarcity mindset. After all, who ever really feels like they have enough resources? But the consequences of caving to scarcity can be grave: Short-term thinking not only stifles creativity, it can lead to knee-jerk, ill-conceived decisions you wouldn’t have made if you were thinking clearly.

Don’t let a scarcity mindset become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Instead, practice cultivating an abundance mindset. A great place to start is by focusing not on what you don’t have, but on what you do. If you’re a bootstrapped founder, you have the greatest of all resources: Time. Give yourself the luxury of trying out different ideas, and not beating yourself up if they don’t work out the way you hoped. The best ideas come from experimentation.

Remember also that change is incremental, so don’t assume you can overhaul your way of thinking in a single day. Pick one area in which you feel like a scarcity mindset is holding you back, and start there.

Related: This Is How Thinking About Abundance Has Helped Me Build a Success Mindset

Envision the future

Short-term thinking is an easy trap when the future seems so theoretical. Maybe you love pizza — sure, you know it’s not great for your health. But when presented with the opportunity to enjoy eating it today, your future self has a way of dimming from view.

Researchers have found that those with the ability to see and empathize with their future selves possess the quality of “self-continuity.” In other words, if you can see your future self as clearly as your present self, you’re more likely to make decisions that are beneficial in the long term.

So how do you make the future seem less abstract? Try conducting a self-interview. You can do this by envisioning sitting down with your Future Self, and asking them where they would advise your Present Self to focus your time and attention. What do you want to accomplish in 10 years from now? In 20 years? In 50 years? By identifying these long-term goals, you can start to plan accordingly in the present.

It’s easy to fall into the trap of short-term thinking. But by focusing on sustainable growth, practicing an abundance mindset and making the future as tangible as the present, you can make decisions that will serve you in the long run and keep your business growing for years to come.

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20/04/2025
A new OnePlus tablet just cleared the FCC, but it’s not the one we were expecting
Ryan Whitwam / Android Authority

The OnePlus Pad 2 with its keyboard cover and stylus
TL;DR

A new OnePlus tablet has been spotted in an FCC listing, labeled as the OnePlus Pad 3R.

The listing doesn’t reveal much about the tablet’s hardware specs.

A new OnePlus Pencil was also filed alongside it, and both products could launch soon.
For the past few weeks, rumors have been swirling about a new high-end OnePlus tablet. Most signs pointed to it being a follow-up to last year’s OnePlus Pad 2 — possibly a “Pad 2 Pro” with flagship-tier specs. But now, a fresh FCC filing suggests OnePlus might be heading in a different direction entirely.

As first reported by Droid Life, a new OnePlus device has appeared in the FCC database under the model number OPD2408. The listing identifies it as a tablet and includes a label that clearly names it the “OnePlus Pad 3R.” Also appearing in the FCC database is a new stylus under model number OPN2405, officially named the “OnePlus Pencil.”

The FCC documents mention support for dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and wireless power transfer (WPT) on the tablet, though it’s unclear whether that last bit means we’re getting actual wireless charging. That’s still a rare feature on tablets, so it’s best to stay skeptical for now. The device is described as working in both standalone and keyboard-laptop modes, and the hardware/software builds are listed as OPD2408_11 and OPD2408_15.0.0.61, respectively.

That’s about all the FCC confirms on paper, but it’s what’s missing that makes things interesting. Prior leaks about this device hinted at a powerful tablet, possibly a rebadged version of the OPPO Pad 4 Pro, which was launched in China.

That model features a 13.2-inch 3K+ display, Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, up to 16GB of RAM, and a massive 12,140mAh battery. OnePlus often mirrors OPPO’s hardware under a different name, so expectations were set for something similar, if not identical.

So, where does the “Pad 3R” name come into play? That’s where things get a bit confusing. In the phone lineup, OnePlus typically reserves the “R” moniker for slightly trimmed-down, mid-range versions of its flagship devices, such as the OnePlus 13R compared to the full-fledged OnePlus 13.

But if this is truly the tablet with all those rumored high-end specs, branding it as “3R” instead of “2 Pro” suggests OnePlus might be rethinking how it positions its tablets.

Still, all we know for sure is that a new tablet, possibly called the OnePlus Pad 3R, is on the way. And with both the tablet and stylus now clearing the FCC, it might not be long before we see an official announcement.

Got a tip? Talk to us! Email our staff at news@androidauthority.com. You can stay anonymous or get credit for the info, it’s your choice.
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20/04/2025
The Puzzle Fun of A Little More to the Left Continues in Cupboards & Drawers

And that fun continues in Cupboards & Drawers. One of the fan favorites of the original game was organizing those parts of the home. So you’ll get enjoy 25 new puzzles.

There are more to the puzzles then you’d think. There are puzzles nested within puzzles and secret compartments. There is even a new functionality where there are multiple steps needed to organize a single level.

For a break, there are also four “Pet the Cat” interludes.

Designed for the iPhone and all iPad models ALTTL: Cupboards & Drawers is a $2.99 purchase on the App Store now.

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19/04/2025
Use Custom Workouts to Take Control of Your Fitness on the Apple Watch

With the app, you can create custom, structured workouts that are available through the Workout app.

Using the app, you can create the perfect workout for you tailored to your goals. You can add work and recovery steps to group and even put them on repeat. All of the steps can be customized with goals like distance and time. It’s also possible to set target alerts like pace, heart rate, power, and more.

You can select from all activity types that are available on the Apple Watch.

HIIT fans can also tap exercises to create a routine. Each exercise is displayed with an animation highlighting the muscles targeted. The step-by-step instructions will show details like difficulty level, exercise type, focused body parts, and any necessary equipment.

You can also adjust exercise durations, rest intervals, and the number of rounds for HIIT.

Once you’ve created the perfect workout, it can be transferred over to the Apple Watch and started in Workouts. As a fun touch, you can even send custom workouts to other Apple Watch users to enjoy, even without the app.

When on your iPhone, you can use a home screen widget to see what exercise is for today and the completion rate for the week. There are three sizes to choose from.

Custom Workouts is a free download now on the App Store. It’s just for the iPhone.

There is an optional Custom Workouts Pro subscription available for $1.99 per month or $14,99 yearly. A lifetime unlock is $24.99. There is a free, seven-day trial with the yearly option.

Subscribers can access more than 100 exercises and 40 workout types. You can also take advantage of advanced workout customizations and scheduled workouts.

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19/04/2025
All the features I want to see
Ryan Haines / Android Authority

With another launch season approaching, I’m focused on what might be coming down the pipeline. The Samsung Galaxy Watch line, in particular, has plenty of room for improvement this year. While the company’s smartwatches have been strong contenders in the Wear OS market over these last few years, a few key upgrades could really help the next model stand out. Here’s what I hope to see in the Samsung Galaxy Watch 8.

The return of the rotating bezel

Kaitlyn Cimino / Android Authority

Like many fans, I’d like to see Samsung bring the rotating bezel back to the Galaxy Watch 8 series. It’s one of Samsung’s most distinctive hardware features, first introduced on the Gear S2 and most recently seen zipping through Wear OS tiles on the Galaxy Watch 6 Classic. The design offers an intuitive way to navigate the interface without relying solely on touch, which is especially handy after sweaty workouts.

In a market where most smartwatches lean heavily on swipe gestures and digital crowns, the rotating bezel helps Samsung stand out. Last year, the company launched an Ultra model instead of a Classic, and to my despair, the pricey new sibling skipped the iconic feature. Bringing it back this season on a Classic variant would go a long way in keeping Samsung’s signature smartwatch feel alive.

Improved heart rate tracking

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

Better heart rate accuracy is near the top of my list for the Galaxy Watch 8. While the current sensor does fine for steady workouts like runs or walks, it still struggles during cycling or any activity with a lot of wrist movement. I’ve seen noticeable lag in readings, especially when cadence picks up, which makes it hard to trust the data for things like interval training or even recovery insights. It’s not a dealbreaker, but for a watch that pitches itself as a serious fitness tracker, I’d love to see more consistent performance.

More importantly, Samsung needs to step up here if it wants to keep pace with Google and Apple. The Pixel Watch 3 already delivers some of the most accurate heart rate data I’ve tested, and Apple’s Watch Series 10 is highly reliable. Both brands are likely to launch equally powerful next-gen models.

Better battery life

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

I look forward to the day I can write one of these lists without mentioning battery life, but that day is not today. Power efficiency remains a major talking point for nearly every smartwatch. While I’ve found the Galaxy Watch 7 will last about two days with moderate use, its performance varies, especially during GPS activities. Compared to competitors like the OnePlus Watch 3 with its dual-chip architecture or the TicWatch Pro 5 with its dual-display technology, the Galaxy Watch 7’s battery life is good, but not great. I want the 8 to last more than 48 hours on a single charge, even with heavy usage.

Thanks to sleuthing on South Korea’s product safety platform by XpertPick, we already have an idea of what we might see on the next model. Listings reveal two batteries, EB-BL330ABY and EB-BL505ABY, which are likely tied to the standard Galaxy Watch 8 and the Watch 8 Classic, respectively. The EB-BL330ABY battery has a rated capacity of 435mAh, which is slightly larger than that of the 44mm Galaxy Watch 7.

More reliable GPS accuracy

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

Accurate GPS tracking is another area where I’m hoping Samsung will improve the Galaxy Watch lineup. I was excited when the Galaxy Watch 7 introduced dual-frequency GPS, which typically enhances reliability in challenging environments like urban areas or trails with dense foliage. In reality, though, the watch’s performance can still be inconsistent. In real-world tests, it’s recorded me everywhere from the wrong side of the road to running inside buildings.

Samsung’s biggest Wear OS competitor, the Google Pixel Watch 3, also struggles more than I had hoped, which only makes it more important for the Galaxy Watch 8 to improve so it can stand out. Meanwhile, the Apple Watch delivers accurate GPS tracking, as do Garmin’s devices. For the Galaxy Watch 8 to become a viable option for serious endurance athletes, it needs to provide reliable and precise GPS tracking.

Full access for all users

Kaitlyn Cimino / Android Authority

Finally, I hope the Galaxy Watch 8 offers full access to all features for non-Samsung phone users. While Samsung’s watches are packed with great functionality, some premium features are locked behind a Samsung phone. Features like Samsung Pay, advanced health tracking including blood pressure detection, and even some customization options are either limited or unavailable for those of us using phones from other brands. It feels like a bit of a missed opportunity, especially when greater inclusivity would make the Galaxy Watch line a stronger Pixel Watch rival. Though unlikely, I’d love to see Samsung open the Galaxy Watch 8’s features to all, regardless of phone brand, so users can take full advantage of everything the watch has to offer.

What do you want to see on the Samsung Galaxy Watch 8?

4 votes

Will there be a Samsung Galaxy Watch 8?

Ryan Haines / Android Authority
While Samsung has yet to officially confirm the Galaxy Watch 8, regulatory filings suggest its imminent arrival. As mentioned, batteries likely corresponding to the lineup have been certified by SafetyKorea, suggesting shoppers will see both a standard Galaxy Watch 8 and a Watch 8 Classic. We’ve also seen entries in the GSMA’s device database, including one reference tying model number SM-L505U to a Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic, as spotted by Smartprix. These certifications point to a summer launch for the Watch 8 series, which would make sense given the company’s launch schedule historically.

Galaxy Watch 5 series — August 10, 2022

Galaxy Watch 6 series — July 26, 2023

Galaxy Watch 7 series — July 10, 2024

We will most likely see the new generation announced and the company’s Summer Unpacked event. My best guess is that this will take place in July, though I’ll keep this hub updated as we see more leaks and rumors surface. We could also see a second Ultra model land as well as a sequel to the Galaxy Ring.
Should you wait for the Samsung Galaxy Watch 8?

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

We’re now in that awkward window where upcoming launches are just months away, and buying an existing model feels a bit silly. If you’re currently eyeing the Galaxy Watch 7, I recommend holding off. With the Galaxy Watch 8 on the horizon, it’s worth waiting for the next iteration, especially considering the useful upgrades it could bring, like improved battery life, more accurate tracking, or even new features. Plus, once the new model lands, you can expect the price of the Galaxy Watch 7 to drop. In other words, you can save cash by simply waiting a few months.

That said, if you want a watch on your wrist sooner rather than later, the Galaxy Watch 7 ($299.99 at Amazon) is a good buy for Samsung phone users. For a more durable device and a larger battery, Samsung also has the Ultra ($649.99 at Amazon) in its lineup. The Google Pixel Watch 3 ($349.99 at Amazon) is the best Wear OS smartwatch available overall, but the OnePlus Watch 3 ($329.99 at Amazon) offers the best battery life. Of course, if you’re an iPhone user, your best bet is the Apple Watch Series 10 ($386 at Amazon).
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19/04/2025
Build the Perfect Watchface for Your iPhone Home Screen With Tinker

The app makes it easy to create a face. You can use your own images to design the hands, background, centerpiece, and more to make it unique. Even if you don’t have any images in mind, you can select from a wide variety of pre-made options in the library.

In just a few minutes, I was able to create a beautiful timepiece for my home screen.

As a fun plus, all of the widgets you create with the app can also be used in the iPhone StandBy mode.

Tinker is a free download now on the App Store for the iPhone.

There is an optional, one-time in-app purchase of $4.99. That will allow you to create unlimited watchfaces instead of the maximum of two with the free version.

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19/04/2025
The One Mistake Is Putting Your Brand Reputation at Risk — and Most Startups Still Make It

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Most entrepreneurs and business owners understand they need a comprehensive communications strategy to reach their target customers. However, all too many think that only means branding, marketing and advertising and forget to include public relations (PR). In particular, many small businesses and startups neglect this part of the communications equation.

This has always been a mistake, but that’s even more true today. Here, I explain how PR impacts brand credibility and customer trust, as well as how those seemingly ineffable factors connect to your hard revenue numbers.

The problem with investing solely in marketing

Investing only in marketing and ignoring PR is a problem because marketing drives awareness, but PR builds trust — and without trust, awareness doesn’t convert.

One study has put the number of consumers who believe advertisers have integrity at 4%. Customers’ trust in conventional advertising is also plummeting, especially for members of the younger generations. As Wharton Magazine reports, 84% of millennials not only dislike traditional ads but also distrust them.

Research also shows people don’t pay attention to ads and actively avoid them. According to consumer research firm Bulbshare, 63% of Gen Zers use ad blockers, meaning they don’t even see ads online. If they do come across one, 99% say they hit “skip” when given the choice.

In short, today’s consumers are savvy. They know how to follow the money trail and identify conflicts of interest. Indeed, the Content Marketing Institute has found that 80% of corporate decision-makers prefer to glean information from articles that are more objective rather than ads, which are recognized as biased and self-interested.

Meanwhile, today’s consumers increasingly prioritize ethics. B2B services company BusinessDasher explains that 84% of customers weigh companies’ ethics and values when considering a purchase, and 63% say they would like companies to adopt more ethical practices.

For companies that would like to expand their market reach, these statistics send a clear signal. Investing only in advertising and marketing is unlikely to move the needle. To develop a good reputation for your brand, you need to do PR.

Related: How to Make the Most of Your Public Relations

PR: Ethical strategic communications

PR differs from other communication strategies like branding and marketing because it specifically focuses on developing your organization’s positive reputation and earning consumers’ trust. While ads and marketing campaigns may attempt to tell people about the business’s great reputation, good PR shows them. It enables the business and its spokespeople to demonstrate ethical conduct rather than just making claims to this effect.

For instance, while a top PR team will draft and release press releases and media advisories on a company’s behalf, they will also seek out opportunities for the company’s leadership to serve as expert sources in the media. When the public needs help understanding current events and a journalist turns to a company’s spokesperson for expert analysis, the viewers understand that this person and their company are trustworthy. In addition, they come to rely on and appreciate the spokesperson’s valuable advice.

In the course of such an interview, the company’s representative may never even mention their product or service. By demonstrating their willingness to share important information, however, they signal their care for the greater good, their own sterling character and that of their company. This forms positive connotations in viewers’ minds. People come to associate the spokesperson and company with credibility and garner their trust.

Behaving in an ethical manner and showing goodwill tends to be more convincing than merely claiming to be good. This is how strong connections with customers can still be forged despite today’s cynical environment.

Related: How You Can Leverage These PR Strategies to Build Your Company’s Credibility and Trust — Even When Under Attack

How PR contributes to revenue growth

To be clear, PR is not a direct method of boosting sales or generating leads. Instead, it works in the background, burnishing your brand’s reputation and predisposing people to think highly of your company. This can pay off in the end, however.

Take Sears, Roebuck and Co. as an example. When the brand partnered with The Oprah Winfrey Show to provide Christmas gifts for 100 foster children, the results were staggering. After the episode aired, customer surveys showed an 11% jump in positive sentiment toward the brand — and people said they planned to spend 39% more at Sears.

The final impact? That single PR moment helped generate $13 million in new revenue.

In addition, father-daughter co-authors Al and Laura Ries studied 91 launches of new products in their book “The Fall of Advertising and the Rise of PR.” Those campaigns that incorporated PR were more successful than those that only deployed marketing approaches. Indeed, they conclude that PR is a better investment than advertising for most businesses.

In my own experience leading a PR firm, I can attest that campaigns sometimes generate so much new business that clients can’t scale fast enough and have to pause our services while they catch up with demand.

Enter the limelight with PR

Hiring a PR firm, especially one that can show a track record of success in your particular industry, is indispensable to make your brand image shine. This strategic communications approach avoids the common missteps of advertising and marketing while aligning with today’s customers’ preferences for ethical business practices.

For these reasons, more businesses should consider taking PR firms up on their offers of a free consultation call. There’s nothing to lose and the limelight to gain.

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19/04/2025
Expand Your Vocabulary With the Word Building Game Next Letter

Getting started is easy. Each games starts with a randomly chosen letter from A to Z and give possible next letters. Some of those are valid to create words while others are not. When you select a valid letter, it adds to the words and earns points. An invalid word deducts points.

That process continues until a complete word is formed. You can submit the word to head to the next round or try to extend it. The round continues until no further extensions are possible, leading to a new random letter.

As a nice touch, the game is playable without an Internet connection, making it perfect for a long flight or a car ride without Wi-Fi.

Next Letter is a free download now on the App Store. It’s for the iPhone and all iPad models.

There is an optional in-app purchase of $9.99. That will unlock additional themes, detailed statistics, and more than 190,000 words with definitions.

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18/04/2025