Episode Summary:

Focusing on the myriad of possibilities within the hospitality industry, Geoffrey Toffetti discusses the unique challenges and opportunities with incremental revenues, including upselling tactics. Engagement and effective training of frontline employees have proven to pay high dividends, not just for the organizations but for the employees themselves. The conversation delves into the transformation of customer service standards over the years, implicitly hinting that true customer satisfaction and incremental sales go hand-in-hand. Geoffrey Toffetti elaborates on their Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) offerings that integrate learning management systems, which empower hotel and restaurant employees to excel by engaging customers effectively and increasing profitability.

Key Takeaways:

Employee Empowerment: Proper training and incentive systems can transform employees into top earners and significantly improve staff retention levels.

Service First Philosophy: Sales should be viewed as a service to the customer, enhancing their experience rather than just a transactional necessity.

Technology and Training: FPG provides powerful tools and training to ensure teams can maximize their potential, reflecting positively on both revenue and customer satisfaction.

Consistency in Service: Achieving consistent exemplary service across every interaction is key to fostering customer loyalty and positive experiences.

Notable Quotes:

Episode Summary:

In this insightful episode, Ginny discusses the creation of UX marketing, explaining how it revolutionizes traditional marketing strategies by prioritizing user experience. Listen in as Chris and Ginny dive into the impact of AI in marketing, exploring how brands can maintain their human elements amidst rapid technological advances. Ginny also reveals her unique perspective on how storytelling can counteract the disconnect created by AI tools and establish authentic connections with audiences. This episode is a must-listen for entrepreneurs and marketers seeking to innovate their brand strategy and leverage the latest tech in user-focused marketing.

Key Takeaways:

AI and Trust in Branding: Discussion around how excessive use of AI can erode trust and the importance of maintaining a human connection to strengthen brand loyalty.

Storytelling as a Solution: Highlighted the importance of storytelling in marketing to foster genuine connections and mitigate the adverse effects of the uncanny valley.

Ginny’s Background and Insight: Ginny shares her diverse background in mobile app development, design, and architecture, detailing how these experiences shape her innovative marketing approach.

Tools for Efficiency: Demonstrated the use of AI tools developed by VDS Digital Agency to streamline social media content creation and improve marketing efficiency.

Notable Quotes:

In the heat of a blistering summer, Aberdeen’s police are struggling: half the force is off sick, all leave has been cancelled, someone’s firebombed a hotel full of migrants, and there’s a massive protest march happening this Saturday.

With officers dropping like flies, Detective Inspector Logan McRae is forced to juggle cases and run a major murder investigation with a skeleton staff of misfits, idiots and malingerers until the top brass can arrange back-up from other divisions.

It doesn’t help that the Aberdeen Examiner has just been bought by Natasha Agapova, a tabloid media tycoon, hell-bent on blaming local police for everything. And she’s more than happy to fan the flames.

But, as bad as everything seems, it’s all about to get much, much worse . . .

* * *

About the author

Stuart lives in the wilds of northeast Scotland with his wife Fiona; cats Gherkin, Onion, and Beetroot; some hens; some horses; and an impressive collection of assorted weeds.

God’s Amazing ABCs cleverly connects each letter of the alphabet to a specific Bible story, introducing young children to biblical tales through the familiar format of the ABCs.

The rhyming and rhythm of God’s Amazing ABCs allows for quick, enjoyable reading that will draw in both children and parents alike. These Bible couplets will capture a preschooler’s attention, imagination, and heart, while teaching them Bible stories in concise, memorable rhetoric.

Parents can enjoy making memories with their children, reading poems about God’s Word on a level each boy and girl can appreciate. Adding this book to a child’s library will reinforce their early learning, introduce them to numerous Bible stories, and is sure to be a treasured keepsake for years to come.

About the author

She has taught preschoolers, elementary students, teenagers, young adults, as well as those in prison. While teaching preschool she started writing poems to enhance the Bible stories for her preschool students. This began the several year journey of poem writing, which resulted in this book.

About the Guest(s):

Episode Summary:

Jordan discusses his distinctive “Life and Death Story Model,” offering a fresh perspective on crafting narratives that captivate audiences. He shares insights into the techniques necessary for building stories that resonate emotionally with people. Using his extensive background in theater and screenwriting, Jordan teaches writers how to explore themes and develop unique voices in storytelling. The episode further explores the importance of understanding character transformation and addresses the often-overlooked page craft in screenwriting. Throughout the conversation, Chris and Jordan highlight the role of storytelling not only in professional writing but in day-to-day communication, making this episode a valuable listen for anyone looking to enhance their narrative skills.

Key Takeaways:

The “Life and Death Story Model” emphasizes high-stakes narratives and provides writers with clear, structured guidance.

Mastery of page craft, the formatting and presentation of scripts, is crucial in professional screenwriting.

Storytelling is an integral part of everyday life, influencing careers, relationships, and personal growth.

Differentiating oneself in writing involves developing a unique voice and brand, focusing on themes, and personal expression.

Notable Quotes:

This “wild and utterly engaging narrative” (Melanie Mitchell) shows why Silicon Valley’s heartless, baseless, and foolish obsessions—with escaping death, building AI tyrants, and creating limitless growth—are about oligarchic power, not preparing for the future

Tech billionaires have decided that they should determine our futures for us. According to Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Sam Altman, and more, the only good future for humanity is one powered by technology: trillions of humans living in space, functionally immortal, served by superintelligent AIs.

In More Everything Forever, science journalist Adam Becker investigates these wildly implausible and often profoundly immoral visions of tomorrow—and shows why, in reality, there is no good evidence that they will, or should, come to pass. Nevertheless, these obsessions fuel fears that overwhelm reason—for example, that a rogue AI will exterminate humanity—at the expense of essential work on solving crucial problems like climate change. What’s more, these futuristic visions cloak a hunger for power under dreams of space colonies and digital immortality. The giants of Silicon Valley claim that their ideas are based on science, but the reality is darker: they come from a jumbled mix of shallow futurism and racist pseudoscience.

More Everything Forever exposes the powerful and sinister ideas that dominate Silicon Valley, challenging us to see how foolish, and dangerous, these visions of the future are.

About the author

Caught in a web of dangerous deception, Beth Brockton is forced to flee her hometown. Without a word of explanation, she abandons her identity and all that she holds dear, including her fiancé, Sam Andrews. After she briefly returns for her mother’s funeral two years later and escapes to her safe haven once more, Sam is determined to find her and discover the secrets she guards. But Sam is not the only one searching for her, and in order to protect her loved ones, Beth must confront her terrifying past to ultimately shed the sinister bonds of the. . .

About the Guest(s):

Marla Bace is a certified business and leadership coach with over three decades of experience in driving real results. As a former award-winning Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) and Chief Experience Officer (CXO), Marla is renowned for providing real-world coaching and proven growth strategies. Her expertise lies in guiding accomplished professionals and business owners through practical and values-aligned decisions. Her coaching methods blend emotional intelligence and executive strategy, aiming to enhance influence and measurable results in a business context. Marla is dedicated to putting humanity at the heart of business success, empowering others through clarity and accountability.

Episode Summary:

Through robust conversations, Chris and Marla uncover the nuances of leadership presence and the imperative roles emotional intelligence plays in modern business. They delve into how self-awareness and self-management are the bedrocks of competent leadership, influencing everything from decision-making to team dynamics. With insights on navigating professional diversity and enhancing team collaboration, the conversation emphasizes developing leadership traits that resonate with today’s workforce. By weaving in engaging anecdotes and practical advice, Marla provides a blueprint for listeners interested in advancing their leadership capabilities and fostering meaningful workplace relationships.

Key Takeaways:

Self-Awareness Cultivation: Understanding one’s strengths and weaknesses can enhance leadership effectiveness and improve team collaboration.

Leadership Presence: True leadership is about authenticity and influence, not performance and perfection.

Constructive Feedback: Leaders should be open to critique, using feedback to grow and support their teams more effectively.

Transformational Force: Emotionally intelligent leadership transforms organizations, aligning business objectives with collective team efforts.

Notable Quotes: