Logic Models: What Are They and Why Would Anyone Except Mr. Spock Care?
from The Fieldstone Alliance
Chances are, if you've gotten a grant lately or chatted with a program officer, you've been pressed to talk about your program's "logic model." I commiserate with those of you who work intuitively and worry that logic models will get in your way. The fact that some people don't approach problem-solving with the linear, algebraic mindset of evaluators doesn't make their performance ineffective - it just means they don't think linearly. More

Volunteer Interviewing Techniques
from CASAnet
One of the most neglected areas of volunteer management training has been that of effective interviewing of volunteers. This is unfortunate, since good interviewing skills are essential to performing that most crucial of all volunteer management tasks, matching a potential volunteer with a task and working environment they will enjoy. Even more unfortunate is the fact that much of the management training which does exist on interviewing deals with employment interviewing, which is actually based on a totally inappropriate approach for volunteer interviewing. More

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How to Get the Best from Your Volunteer Work Force
from Charity Village
This is an older article, but also a brilliant example of common sense. Guest lecturer Bruce Raymond made a case for the care and feeding of volunteers while speaking at an NSFRE luncheon. Addressing volunteer burnout (how to detect it and what to do about it), he offered professional fundraisers and volunteer chairs the following no-nonsense tips. More

Two Major Trends in Retail Emerge
from The Gourmet Retailer
The economic signposts are everywhere - an increase in cheap "staycations," a surge in filling, low-cost foods like bulk rice, macaroni & cheese, and dry pasta; an uptick in the misery index, which hit 7.7 percent by year-end; a boost in price comparison Web site visits; a 30 percent bump in TV viewing; and a decline of 2.5 percent in all-outlet shopping trip frequency in 2008. Consumers are hunkering down for the long haul, marshalling their resources and using time-proven tactics for stretching their budgets, says a new report from The Nielsen Company: "Channel Shifting in a Tough Economy" by Todd Hale, SVP, Consumer and Shopper Insights, James Russo, VP of marketing, and Laura Marro, client director. More

Looking to Other Retailers for Display Inspiration
from The Specialty Retail Expert
A store that recently caught the author’s eye is C.O. Bigelow, who has created fantastic, creative merchandise displays. A step up from Bath & Body Works (their sister company), they sell mid- to high-end bath and body care products, including cosmetics. Their store is a creative mix between modern design and old world and it's the fresh combination of old and new that really makes the design work (including the antiques they've brought in to use as display pieces). More

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How to Greet Customers
from Gene Mage
It is astounding that any business would neglect training personnel how to properly greet a customer. Why would you, the business owner, manager, or not-for-profit administrator pay someone to offend your customers? You did not purposely neglect this training. You got busy. The person seemed nice when you hired them. Nobody complained, so you assumed that everything was fine. Well everything is not fine with your front-line customer service personnel. And if you do not do something about it soon, you customers will flee in droves. Your unhappy customers will not demand to see the manager. They will quietly take their business to a place that treats them with dignity and respect. By the time you hear about an “incident” it is often too late. How should front-line personnel be trained to greet a patron? Here are some tips you might try at your next staff meeting, and begin modeling how you greet customers yourself. More

MAGAZINES!!! Display the top-selling/profit magazines in your gift shop. McKnight Sales Co, Inc. has been specializing in servicing hospital gift shops for over 45 years. More