Favorate Holiday Spot: Chicago

©Laurel Delaney 2012, "Chicago, State and Randolph Streets"

"My favorite holiday spot - Chicago." ~ Laurel Delaney

What's Fueling Growth in Southeast Asia?

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The article below is the first of a three-blog series on Southeast Asia.  It examines Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

While this series will provide plenty of social and economic color on Southeast Asia, it is not intended to be read as an exhaustive course study on any one particular country. Rather, it should be viewed as an outline that offers the reader a glimpse of the region, and collective emerging countries that don’t get their fair share of mainstream media attention. 

Learn more here.

How to Stave Off the Recession? Trade Globally.

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What the world needs now is not love sweet love but more trade - international trade that is.

Director-General Pascal Lamy, in his annual report to members on developments in the international trading environment, said: “The world needs a renewed and stronger commitment from all Governments to revitalize the multilateral trading system that can restore economic certainty at a time when it is badly needed. The policy determination to resist inward-looking policies seems to be faltering in some countries, even as the world economy needs more trade to stave off recession.”

Learn more here.

Note:  Information presented covers the period mid-October 2011 to mid-October 2012.  The full report is available on the WTO website.

China's Vegetables Are From Mars, Fruits Are From ...

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A spin off from Men Are From Mars, Women From Venus, now we are learning that China is preparing to grow vegetables on Mars.  Looks like the men will be eating well.

Chinese astronauts are preparing to grow fresh vegetables on Mars and the moon after researchers successfully completed a preliminary test in Beijing, state media reported.

Read the full story here.

Small Businesses With a Global Reach; Google Lends a Hand

Where Are the Fastest Growing Cities in the World?

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Where are the fastest growing cities in the world?

The top 50 fastest-growing cities, by GDP per capita, are practically all in the developing Asian world. The top 18 are in China. The rest are in China, Indonesia (Jakarta), India (Chennai), and Australia (Perth).

Where are the fastest shrinking cities in the world?

Of the world's fastest-shrinking cities, 42 of the bottom 50 were in the EU. The others included Dubai, Adelaide, Australia, and Albuquerque.

What does it mean?

Consider taking more of your business into Asia in 2013.  If you are currently doing business in Athens, Lisbon, Florence and Valencia, expect a sales and profitability drop at some point.

Read the entire article here.

Related:  Global MetroMonitor 2012

How to Improve Customer Service the World Over?

Photo courtesy:  ©Laurel Delaney 2012, "Whole Foods Customer Suggestions"

Improving customer service can be as simple as tacking up a bulletin board (as shown above at a Whole Foods Market in Chicago) and letting customers say what they want to say.  Who knows, you might end up with improvements on the way you do things and some great ideas!

The goal is to bring out the best from your global customers and stakeholders by giving them an area to share and discuss feedback.

What have you done lately to improve customer service?  Let us know -- especially any online platforms you've developed -- and we'll post your ideas here.

Related post:  How to Provide Great Global Customer Service

Thanks, Happy December 1st and have a great weekend!