Highest career strike rate

 Andre Russell   165.56 (1,757 balls)    2010–present

Fastest 50

 Yuvraj Singh  12 Balls vs England 2007

 Chris Gayle    12 Balls vs Adelaide Strikers 2016

Highest innings totals

Rank	Score	Team
2	260/6 (20 overs)	Sri Lanka v Kenya
3	254/3 (20 overs)	Middlesex v Gloucestershire
4	250/3 (20 overs)	Somerset v Gloucestershire
5	248/3 (20 overs)	Royal Challengers Bangalore v Gujarat Lions

Cricket Fact #15

Only 4 Indian batsmen - Gundappa Vishwanath, Mohammed Azharuddin and Saurav Ganguly, Sehwag have scored centuries on debut for India, and then scored centuries again in their careers.

Cricket Fact #14

Shikhar Dhawan Scored the Fastest century on Test debut

Cricket Fact #13

FIRST FACE-OFF

Geoff Boycott was the first cricketer to face a ball one-day cricket history. Graham McKenzie was the bowler.

Cricket Fact #12

Sachin Tendulkar played for Pakistan before India

Can you imagine Sachin Tendulkar playing for Pakistan before India? This happened during a practice match between India and Pakistan at the Brabourne Stadium in 1987 where Tendulkar came on the field as a substitute fielder for Pakistan.

Cricket Fact #11

All four innings of a test on the same day

The 2000 Lord's Test between England and West Indies saw all the four innings being played on the same day. This feat was repeated 11 years later in the famous Cape Town Test where South Africa bowled out Australia for 47. 

Cricket Fact #10

There's only one person who witnessed Jim Laker and Anil Kumble taking 10 wickets in an innings

As a 10-year-old Richard Stokes witnessed Jim Laker taking all 10 wickets in the 1956 Old Trafford Test against Australia. Forty-three years later he was in India watching the India vs Pakistan Test and saw Anil Kumble taking all the 10 wickets in an innings. These were the only two Tests Stokes has watched in his life. 

Cricket Fact #9

Australia beat England by 45 runs in the first ever cricket Test as well as the Centenary Test in 1977

Australia beat England in the first ever Test match by 45 runs held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in 1877. Hundred years later the opposition were the same, the venue was the same and the result as well!

Cricket Fact #8

Lala Amarnath is the only bowler to dismiss Don Bradman hit wicket in Test cricket

This happened in the 1948 Brisbane Test.

Cricket Fact #7

The cricket lord, Sir Don Bradman hit a total of 6 sixes in his entire career.

Cricket Fact #6

In the entire history of recorded Cricket, only four players have played on all ten batting positions for a team; names include Lance Klusener, Abdur Razzaq, Shoaib Malik and Hashan Tillakaratne.

Cricket Fact #5

Mahendra Singh Dhoni has never scored an ODI century outside Asia.

Cricket Fact #4

Sunil Gavaskar was out off the first ball of a Test match thrice in his career

Sunil Gavaskar was the first batsman to reach 10,000 Test runs and he ended his career scoring 34 Test centuries. But did you know he was out three times off the first ball of a Test? The bowlers to dismiss him were: Geoff Arnold (Edgbaston, 1974), Malcolm Marshall (Kolkata, 1984) and Imran Khan (Jaipur, 1987). 

Cricket Fact #3

Vinod Kambli's Test match average is better than his childhood friend Sachin Tendulkar

Vinod Kambli played only 17 Test matches which included two back to back double tons. Kambli’s Test average is 54.20 while his childhood friend Sachin Tendulkar averages 53.78 after 200 Tests.

Cricket Fact #2

 Chris Gayle is the only batsman to hit a six off the first ball of a Test match

In the 137 years of Test cricket no cricketer has ever hit a six off the first ball of a Test match. Audacious Chris Gayle achieved this feat against Bangladesh in 2012 off debutant Sohag Gazi.

Cricket Fact #1

Shahid Afridi used Sachin Tendulkar's bat to hit the fastest ever ODI century

Shahid Afridi was flown in to play for the Pakistan team from West Indies to Nairobi in 1996 and didn't have a proper bat. That's when Waqar Younis gave 'Young Afridi' Sachin Tendulkar’s bat. Afridi hit 11 sixes and six boundaries with the bat and scored a 37-ball century against Sri Lanka which was the then fastest ODI century. The record, broken later by Corey Anderson (36 balls), now belongs to South Africa's AB de Villiers (31 balls)

What Is Personal Growth and Why You Need It

You might have come across the term personal growth and wondered what it means.

Personal growth is also called self-improvement and self-growth.

What is personal growth?

This term refers to various techniques for improving one’s habits, behavior, actions and reactions.

Here are a few examples to clarify what is personal growth:

• Learning to control anger
• Learning to overcome procrastination
• Learning to overcome laziness
• Learning to be more polite and considerate
• Becoming a more responsible person

Personal growth also means:

• Learning new things and developing new skills
• Changing your mindset and becoming more positive

Successful personal growth requires motivation, the desire to improve, and the willingness to strive to make changes. You also need to be willing to get out of your comfort zone, and sometimes, do things that are uncomfortable, but are for your own good. An open mind and the desire to learn and grow are also important.

Personal growth is an ongoing process that starts from birth, but mostly shaped by parents, teachers, and the environment. However to make the most of it, you need to become aware of the process, know what it is, and take the right steps to grow and improve yourself.

Sometimes, problems and difficulties are the triggers that awaken the desire to grow, and lead to making changes in one’s life. At other times, people are inspired to take steps toward personal growth after reading an inspiring book, watching a movie or reading about people who achieved success.

This often leads people to new paths, to making changes in their lives, expanding their knowledge and self-awareness, improving skills, and developing new ones.

How Do You Learn Personal Growth?

There are many books, articles, workshops and coaches teaching personal growth. If you find this topic interesting, and something you want to do, you can find all the information you need by searching for it on the Internet.

Personal growth can help you in all areas of your life. It can help you at work. It can change your attitude toward work, and therefore, open new opportunities for advancement.

Personal growth can help in growing emotionally and mentally and becoming a more considerate, loving and positive person.

It can also help you see your mistakes and negative habits, and lead you to correcting and changing them.

There are many techniques for personal growth, such as creative visualization, repeating affirmations, developing a positive mindset and meditation. Personal growth also involves counseling, coaching and reading.

A very simple and useful method for personal growth is to look at your behavior and your life with an open and unbiased mind. This will show you what changes you need to make in yourself and in your life.

Looking at how people behave and act can also help you. In this way, you can recognize positive and negative traits of character and become aware, whether you possess or lack them, and in this way, learn what you need to improve in you.

People are different from one another, and what works for one, might not work for another. This means that you must explore the various techniques and ways for personal growth to find what is suitable for you.

How to think positive.

16 Tips Teaching How to Think Positively

1. Display a more positive emotional and mental attitude toward yourself, other people and situations.

1. Refuse to participate in negative inner dialogues. It's just a waste of time and energy.

1. Don't allow disappointments, difficulties and obstacles affect your moods and state of mind.

1. Refuse and reject negative thinking. Either replace negative thoughts with positive thoughts, or engage yourself in some activity that will divert your attention from the negative thoughts.

1. Don't allow what people think and say affect your mind and mood.

1. Associate with people who bring something of value into your life. Avoid people who sap your energy and enthusiasm. If you can't avoid them, learn how stay detached when your are in their company.

1. Say positive things about yourself and about other people.

1. Compliment people when you feel they deserve it.

1. Have faith in yourself and in your abilities.

1. Try doing things in a new or different way. Doing things differently will help you be more creative and therefore, more positive. Go to a different restaurant, eat different food, change the way you dress, start reading a new book or find a new hobby.

1. Read about people who overcame hardships and succeeded in life. This will help you think more positively.

1. Set goals no matter how impossible this might seem at the moment and keep yourself busy working on them.

1. Each accomplished goal, no matter how small it might be, will bring you more confidence, self-esteem and positive thinking.

1. At least once a day, think and try to come up with more ideas on how to think positively in various situations.

1. Be careful what mental images you allow into your mind. How you see yourself and your circumstances in your mind, make a difference in your thinking and attitude. Looking at the mental images in your mind, what you imagine, is like watching a video. Eject the old disc and insert a new and better one instead.

1. Analyze your behavior and attitude, and ask yourself why you are repeating the habits or attitudes that you dislike. There is no need to follow patterns of behavior that you don't like or don't make you any good.

When you learn how to think positively, you gain the key to changing and improving your life.

Build your brand with customer service

Branding. For many people the term brings to mind expensive ad campaigns and high priced consultants. It’s the stuff of business school case studies that have no place in the real world of a small business that’s scrambling to launch a product and make payroll.

Why is it important to build a brand?

Wikipedia will tell you that a brand is the "name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller's product distinct from those of other sellers." Marketers know that a brand is so much more. It’s a promise to the customer. You know what you’ll get when you purchase that brand. Take Apple. You know you’ll get a cutting-edge tech product that’s well-designed and easy to use. And comes in gorgeous packaging. Your brand is what sets you apart from the competition.

When small businesses compete with larger, more established companies — with bigger budgets — they need a secret weapon. Some companies do this with a revolutionary business model, like Nest or Trunk Club. While others rely on their unique personality like Blue Bottle Coffee or Virgin America. Either way, it’s all about creating a competitive advantage and stand out above the crowd.

Brands need to be unique, memorable, and consistent. And visible. But traditional broad reach advertising isn’t usually an option for growing companies with little or no dedicated ad spend. So, how do today’s small business go about building their brands? Through social channels, online reviews, smart public relations, and search engine optimization. And through awesome customer service.

Make awesome service your secret weapon.

Customer service can help you strengthen your relationships with customers, even when these relationships are at their most fragile. It’s an opportunity to show customers you care about them because you listen and respond quickly. In fact, many customers prefer to do business with SMBs — even if it costs more — because having a relationship with a person, and putting a face to the business is meaningful to them.

Consider GetFeedback, which makes engaging, mobile-ready online surveys. The company competes in a crowded market with heavy competition, but considers customer service to be a key part of its differentiation. By offering simple self-service support and lightening-fast response times — often from the company’s founders themselves — GetFeedback has built a well-respected brand in a short amount of time.

Use customer support to extend your voice.

Customer service can also help you promote a unique brand personality which makes customers feel connected with your brand and more likely to engage with you, which translates to increased loyalty. Some of the most successful startups blend their standard responses with personalized communications to reinforce their unique and memorable characteristics.

Like BarkBox, a monthly subscription box of treats, toys and products for the family pooch, which empowers its support team to extend their brand through every communication with customers. BarkBox’s agents are encouraged to add life to outbound emails with phrases like “pooches gracias” and “pawesome” that convey their brand personality even while corresponding about less sexy things like shipping status.

Use service to gain evangelists.

Who doesn’t judge a product by who else is using it? In the past, companies scrambled for celebrity endorsements. If Michael Jordan wore Nike sneakers, then legions of school kids needed to also. Today, customers are more likely to be influenced by their friends and peers and to judge a brand by who is using it. That’s why it’s so important to look at every interaction as a brand building moment. Just about everyone’s heard the stat that it costs five times more to get a new customer than to retain an old one. But also remember, any marketing that your customers do on your behalf is absolutely free.

Although it’s easy for small companies to delay putting a customer support solution in place, it can be the secret weapon that helps your business stand out from the crowd. Start smart and make customer service part of your DNA from day one.

Motivate your small business customer service team for success.

In today’s uber-connected world, even small customer service issues can go viral. That’s why many small businesses are taking a step back to re-examine their own help desk support processes. Are they motivating and measuring their support teams in ways that incent better service? Or are they priming them for the next Internet customer service disaster sensation? Here are some tips from successful small businesses for ensuring that your customer service agents are helping — not hurting — your business:

Listen to customers throughout the lifecycle.

Every customer interaction is important, especially in today’s world where these interactions are heightened by social media. It’s critical that you listen to customers and understand what they are saying, instead of pushing a particular service call script or agenda. Taking this opportunity to have a conversation and offer a positive experience every step of the way increases loyalty among customers.

Some companies never close support tickets, so they always have a reminder to follow up with a customer and make sure they are happy. GiveForward, an online fundraising platform that has enabled thousands of people to raise millions of dollars for their loved ones in need, knows the importance of sticking with customers. “For us, talking to customers isn’t just about answering their questions. It’s also an opportunity to offer advice to make their fundraising more effective, which is more valuable to them than a 5 minute response time, and creates a lasting impression that will stick with them,” explains Erica Ahorn, Director of User Relations and Fundraising Coach. By working with customers throughout their entire experience, GiveForward maintains a high Net Promoter score and has an impact that’s really beyond measure.

Build a self-service knowledge base for more than just deflection.

These days practically every company has built an online knowledge base where customers can easily get answers to their support questions. For many small businesses, this is a cost-effective way of providing service that they eagerly push customers to. While some customers prefer to help themselves first before contacting an agent, others resort to the online knowledge base only as a last resort when they can’t get a real person on the phone. Whatever your customers’ preferences are, in today’s social, mobile world they still expect a high level of service however they reach you. Be sure to invest in help desk tools that give customers a high level of service, not just a cheap way to get them off of the phone.

Companies like Rdio and ZenPayroll have created beautiful online help sites which include content rating. By including ratings, you can see where customers want more information, continually work to improve that content, and strengthen your relationship. “Our online help center is a key part of our effort to make payroll delightful for customers,” says Steve Johnsen, Compliance and Support Lead.

Use support interactions to educate customers.

Customer service calls don’t just have to be about answering questions. Some companies take these interactions as opportunities to educate customers about their products or services. While deflecting future calls is certainly a positive outcome, that shouldn’t always be the end goal. It’s about helping customers have a deeper understanding and appreciation for your product, and a closer relationship that will translate to increased loyalty down the road.

For Asana, which makes tools to help businesses manage tasks and projects more productively, educating customers is a key goal. Like many companies, Asana aims to go above and beyond to make its customers happy. But educating customers and building a long-term relationship with them is also a top priority. According to Brian Boroff, Head of User Operations, “At Asana, our goal is to deliver customer service that more than just support — it’s a long term relationship that starts very early and goes on forever.”

Make customer satisfaction your #1 measurement.

Many companies are changing the way they look at measuring agent performance and moving from case closure to customer satisfaction as their primary metric. Instead of looking at how quickly you can get customers off of the phone, or how many calls you can process in a day, look at how you happy they are. Take a long-term perspective by measuring satisfaction after agent interactions and cases are closed, so you can get a better picture of how your service organization is helping your business over the long haul.

For One Kings Lane, an online marketplace with top-brand, designer, and vintage items, a luxury customer service experience is an important part of the package. Customers expect a white glove experience and Alexis Chapman, Director Customer Operations, wants to make sure that they get it. With one-of-a-kind and vintage items, it isn’t realistic that the company can effectively resolve an issue on the first call. “We don’t measure our team on whether they can close a case at first contact,” Chapman says. “We encourage our agents to talk to customers as long and as often as it takes to make them happy.”

Don’t let bad customer service tarnish your brand. Think about how are you measuring your support efforts to ensure success, and remember to make sure you motivate and measure your support team to drive customer happiness.

7 customer service principles that can change your business

Welcome to the era of the customer. In today’s world it’s all about creating awesome experiences. If you want to be successful, you need to throw out the old way of thinking of customer service as a cost center and start thinking about customer service as an opportunity center.

After all, after a positive customer service experience, 69% of Americans would recommend that company to others. Here are seven principles for awesome customer service that can help you deliver the best experiences, every time.

1. Support customers as a team.

These days, customer service is a team sport. And not just for your support team — for your entire business. You need to train everyone at the company on your customer support tool so they can answer questions and they can all pitch in when times are busy. Sure, you’ll want to pass highly technical cases to the experts, but everyone needs to be able to help out. And, successful startups can tell you that when everyone spends time on the frontlines it’s easier to stay aligned around customers, and maintain service levels when things get busy.

2. Listen to customers (and share their ideas).

What information do you need to answer people's questions? Encourage your team to never hesitate to ask questions when talking to customers. The more they know about your customers and their needs, the more of an asset they are to both your company and your customers. What’s more, your customer support team can be one of your best sources of feedback, and a key driver of product innovation. Some successful startups have the customer support team present their latest findings at every company meeting.

3. Be a real person (not a robot).

Robots are cool but people would rarely choose to have a conversation with them. And when 75% of customers believe it takes too long to reach a live agent, [Harris Interactive, Customer Experience Impact Report] you need to show them that you aren't a machine! Encourage agents to add some personality to their emails. Or to fill the quiet time when they need to pull up account information by asking customers how the weather is, whether they have any vacation plans, or who their favorite football team is. Basically anything that shows a friendly, more personal face to the customer.

4. Be honest about what you don’t know.

Nobody likes a know-it-all, and especially a know-it-all that doesn’t really know it all. This is especially true for customer service agents. If your agents aren't sure whether a problem is actually a bug or how to troubleshoot it, it's okay for them to let the customer know that they’ll get in touch with the right person to investigate and circle back when they have an answer. When you maintain an open dialogue with your customers and keep them informed at all times, you'll earn your customer's commitment to your company.

5. Be empathetic.

You might think empathy is just a touchie-feelie hippie notion, but it’s also smart business. In today’s technology-driven, often impersonal world, empathy can be your competitive advantage. When you have an empathetic culture, employees have a better understanding of market needs. Tell agents to put themselves in the shoes of the customer when they are working on a case. Their empathy will show, and customers will appreciate it. Remember, according to McKinsey, 70% of buying experiences are based on how the customer feels they are being treated.

6. Know your product.

The more your agents know, the more of an asset they are to your customers and to your company. Make training a key part of your culture. Some companies onboard every new employee — not just their customer service agents — with a one week product bootcamp to ensure they know their products inside and out. Remember, according to American Express, customers are two times more likely to talk about a bad experience to their friends than they are to talk about a good one!

7. Remember every second counts.

Customers hate to wait! Be sure to give your agents the help desk solution they need to help customers as quickly and efficiently as possible. Reducing the time it takes to assist a customer also directly reduces the time that other customers must wait. At the same time, make sure that agents are not solely measured on call times. Be sure to motivate them to solve issues and make sure that customers are truly satisfied customers.

What is Customer Service? (And why is it important?)

Make customer service a competitive advantage with Desk.com. It’s the fastest and most cost-efficient way to support your customers.

Wikipedia will tell you that customer service is “the provision of service to customers before, during, and after a purchase.” And BusinessDictionary will tell you that it’s “All interactions between a customer and a product provider at the time of sale, and thereafter.” But what is it really? And why is it important to you as a fast-growing business?

Customer service is every interaction with a customer.

Customer service started out as help offered at a desk at the back of a department store, and evolved with the invention of the telephone. In today’s hyperconnected world, customer service is more than just the helpdesk agent that answers your questions when you call an 800 number for help. It’s grown to encompass every interaction that a customer has with a brand. It includes phone, email, chat, web forms, and social communications, as well as self-service support sites. And it happens before, during, and after a sale.

Awesome support is critical for small businesses.

In a world where small businesses need to do more than just sell products—they also want to build relationships—customer service is a key part of the promise that your brand makes to a customer. It’s more than just providing answers. It’s helping customers even when they don’t know they need help. It’s teaching them how to do more with your products. It starts with a smile and a friendly word, and finishes with sharing your expertise—even when it has nothing at all to do with your products. And for small businesses, customer service can be your secret weapon.

Multi-channel support is tablestakes today.

In recent years we’ve seen explosive growth in social networks. More than 3⁄4 of online users interact on social networking sites. Their friends are there and they expect their favorite brands to be too. As a result, services like Twitter, Facebook, and Google+ have become popular support channels. Not only do customers ask for help on social channels but they also share their opinions with friends and family on social channels. It’s critical that today’s small businesses offer multi-channel customer support across email, phone AND social networks, so they can offer help, solicit customer feedback, and participate in conversations about their brand.

Self-service support is an essential part of support.

Today’s customers like to find their own answers, at their own speed. More than 90% will check a website for answers before emailing for help, so your website can make a huge difference in how you are perceived. Self-service could be existing information or information provided by fellow customers. Some of the most common types of self-service are FAQs and searchable knowledge bases, but user communities are also a cost-effective way to offer help while building relationships with customers. This is a must-have in today’s world.

How Light Bulbs Work

Before the invention of the light bulb, illuminating the world after the sun went down was a messy, arduous, hazardous task. It took a bunch of candlesor torches to fully light up a good-sized room, and oil lamps, while fairly effective, tended to leave a residue of soot on anything in their general vicinity.

When the science of electricity really got going in the mid 1800s, inventors everywhere were clamoring to devise a practical, affordable electrical home lighting device. Englishman Sir Joseph Swan and American Thomas Edison both got it right around the same time (in 1878 and 1879, respectively), and within 25 years, millions of people around the world had installed electrical lighting in their homes. The easy-to-use technology was such an improvement over the old ways that the world never looked back.

What are the colors in the visible light spectrum?

Light can move as waves or as particles, but the light you can see is best explained in terms of waves. Waves come in varying sizes, and the sizes are measured in wavelengths. A wavelength is the distance from one point to a corresponding point on a subsequent wave, like from the peak of one wave to the peak of the next, or from a trough to a trough. The only wavelengths that you can see fall between 400 and 700 billionths of a meter. All of the colors that you can perceive fall within that range. Despite this, waves can be much larger, like radio waves, and much smaller, like gamma rays. The visible light spectrum is just a small part of the overall spectrum of waves.

Light waves are also measured according to their frequency, which is how many waves can pass a given point in a given amount of time. Frequency is measured in Hertz, or Hz for short. When it comes to visible light, your eyes can pick up anything from 430 trillion Hz -- which you understand as red -- to 750 trillion Hz -- which you see as violet. There are other, higher frequencies that you can't see, and there are lower ones that you can't see either.

Facts about the world war

The Pentagon has a plan for combating a zombie apocalypse.

What is a Boss?

A boss is a person who exercises control over other employees in a workplace environment. Over time, the term has come to have negative connotations, (note words like bossy and mob boss), and many people who now lead others in the workplace prefer to be called supervisors, foreman or forepersons, leads, or managers. “The boss” may refer to the person who is the head of a company, not merely in charge of subordinate workers but in charge of all lower level managerand supervisors, sometimes called middle management.

Some people don’t mind being called bosses, when the term does not occur out of disrespect. In such cases, it can merely mean the person has authority over subordinates. Yet it is more common to see people labeled as bosses who possess and abuse authority. When a manager becomes overly bossy, he or she is a boss in the worst sense of the word.

What is Brown Nosing?

There is a fine line between maintaining a good working relationship with a superior and becoming an overly ambitious toady, lackey, or suck-up. The act of using excessive flattery and other shallow behavior towards a superior strictly for professional or personal gain is known as brown nosing, and it is routinely denounced as a desperate ploy for attention in business circles. Some bosses may respond well to this behavior, but others see it as a marginal employee's attempt to climb the corporate ladder ahead of more deserving candidates.

Brown nosing gets its name from a rather rude, even if appropriate, source. Kissing up or sucking up to a boss, especially in a very obvious and shallow manner, can also be called kissing the boss' butt. It quite literally refers to the remnants of fecal matter that would linger if such a degrading and humiliating act were actually performed. The term suggests a willingness to perform any act, no matter how degrading or repulsive, in order to curry favor with a superior.

What Is a Goldbricker?

A goldbricker is a term used to describe an individual or situation in which some effort is made to pass off something of limited worth for something that is considerable more valuable. As it relates to an individual, the term is usually applied to someone who is creating an illusion of being productive but in fact is accomplishing very little. When applied to a situation, goldbricking often involves the adding some elements that create a perception of worth by enhancing appearance in a deliberate attempt to deceive.

The colorful reference to goldbricking comes from an old practice of taking bricks made from various materials and coating them with some type of gold product. The idea was to provide the illusion that the bricks were actually made of solid gold, conveying a sense of wealth and opulence. Over time, the term was expanded for use in reference to just about any situation in which the illusion of value was projected without there being any real evidence of that value. For example, a home that has received considerable attention in terms of a new paint job on the exterior and the creation of an attractive landscaping in the yards, but has rather severe problems in terms of the plumbing, wiring, and foundation could be considered a goldbricker.

What Is the Difference between Corporate Culture and Organizational Culture?

Corporate culture and organizational culture, in fact, have very little difference, as they are used somewhat interchangeably in describing accepted norms in companies and organizations. Just as different countries value different lifestyles and social behaviors, the acceptable code of conduct may vary greatly depending on the organization. That being said, however, there are still underlying norms that remain consistent throughout both corporate and organizational culture.

There are many factors that may determine the particular culture adopted by a company. Some of these factors include general attitudes, beliefs, and personal characteristics of employees. In addition to this, the actual brand vision that executives wish to convey may significantly contribute to company norms. For example, a company that sells extreme sporting equipment will differ in vision from a company that sells fine silverware.

The company culture at an extreme sporting equipment retailer may be more relaxed, perhaps even striving to recruit employees that convey the adventurous vision. The fine silverware company may want to create an image of excellence and may instill this in employees. A customer in the store selling silverware may be greeted with, "Hello, sir," or "Come again, ma'am," whereas the same customer going to buy climbing gear at the extreme sports store may hear, "What can I help you with, man?"

What Is Organizational Buying Behavior?

Organizational buying behavior has to do with the purchasing decisions made by a business or other type of organizational entity. While sharing some characteristics with the buying behaviors of consumers, the purchasing habits of an organization are often influenced by a number of factors that are associated with the culture of the entity as well as the nature of the industry in which the organization functions. Understanding the nuances that motivate a particular organization to utilize certain processed and approaches to buying goods and services can help sales professionals determine the best strategies for connecting with the organization and making sales.

One of the key factors that influence organizational buying behavior is the culture of the business or organization. For example, if the general culture of a business tends to be somewhat conservative, there is a good chance that the business relies heavily on its cash flow to make purchases and less on lines of credit in order to secure the goods and services needed for the operation. When this is the case, the focus is often on securing quality products at the lowest prices possible, so they can be purchased without placing a great deal of stress on that cash flow. When the company enjoys a steady stream of revenue from sales and investments, this approach can often mean that vendors with low prices, low interest charges, and more liberal payment terms on invoices may be in an ideal position to attract the attention of this type of entity and build a long-lasting relationship.

Another aspect that will often influence organizational buying behavior is the prevailing culture within the industry in which the organization participates. This means that buying habits will often be shaped by any governmental regulations that may have to do with that industry, as well as how competitors are functioning and maintaining a certain share of the market within that industry. In order to remain in compliance with government standards and compete with others in the same markets, a company or other type of organization will often adapt to the current environment in both how it produces goods and services and what steps are taken to secure the resources needed to manage that production.

The organizational buying behavior of any entity is subject to change over time. Shifts in the economy, changes within the industry, innovations in technology, and the appearance of new government regulations can prompt changes in buying habits as the entity adapts in order to survive the new circumstances. For this reason, salespeople often reassess the potential of a potential client based on what is happening with the organizational buying behavior currently exhibited by that prospective customer, and plan the approach accordingly.

What Is Brand Culture?

Brand culture is the set of symbols, values and behaviors that a specific company or brand reflects. It is the organizational culture of the business. According to numerous marketing studies, consumers of the products prefer to buy brands that possess symbols, values and behaviors that match their own culture, values and behaviors.

In short, brand culture is a marketing concept. Not only is it important for the company brand to reflect cultural beliefs to the external audience, it is also imperative that it reflects in the internal environment as well. In other words, the employees and actions of the company must match the brand culture reflected in the brand itself.

For example, assume there is a company that recycles ink cartridges and cell phones for non-profit organizations. In return for organizations that mail these items in for recycling, the recycling company pays the organization cash. As part of the internal branding, this company also operates on a zero-waste initiative.

This means that not only does the company encourage recycling and eco-friendliness externally, but it also embraces the brand culture internally. In addition to recycling the products, the company also recycles or reuses 100% of the materials that come in the door. The employee cafeteria houses coffee mugs instead of disposable coffee cups. The kitchen and cafeteria also uses metal utensils instead of plastic ones. Employee engagement in the values that the company stands for is strong in this particular business.

Importance of a Continuous Process

The practice of internally based branding has faced some criticism, and depending on how it’s presented, it can feel gimmicky and trite at times. If the training and branding approach appears to be based on slogans or production goals, it isn’t likely to fulfill its goals. Many business experts believe, however, that internal branding that is done well can increase employee satisfaction and, in turn, company success. The most successful approaches are usually based on longevity, and have an eye toward to the future; they may start with something like a training day, but in most cases the messages taught are meant to be a long-term part of the culture, not just a once-in-awhile reminder or infusion. Corporate leaders usually need to look for ways to unobtrusively emphasize and teach the core concepts continuously in various settings, and should expect the process to take some time to take root.

What is Building Awareness and Loyalty?

Employee satisfaction and retention is typically on the list, which is one place where companies can often see immediate gains. Companies with strong branding practices tend to have lower worker turnover and higher overall job satisfaction. Happy employees who both understand and believe in the core mission behind their work often perform better; the company also expends less in recruitment and training to fill empty slots, which can add to the bottom line as well.

Additionally, when employees feel more connected and proud of the company they work for, they will generally spread the word to others. Loyal employees are also likely to perform much better on the job than those who feel no pride in their work or who don’t believe in the work their company is doing.

What is internal branding?

Internal branding is a corporate philosophy that focuses on bringing the company’s core culture, identity, and premise to its employees as well as its consumers, and usually looks to make workers at all levels “ambassadors” or true representatives of the company and its ideals. Most people are familiar with external branding, which can include things like logos, slogans, and the general “feel” of a product or company. These elements are usually carefully designed to work together to help the customer make certain associations and connections when it comes to specific products or services. The premise is the same for internal branding, but rather than looking to teachcustomers about the company, the goal is to help employees understand and really live into the mission. It often involves some degree of training, but also includes a lot of culture-based education and teambuilding. In most instances the aim is to create a workplace that reflects the larger values of the corporation, whether they’re evident to the customer or not.

Important Business Valuation Metrics

New investors are often bewildered and confused by the financial jargon of business valuation. Confusing, strangely named ratios can simply be Greek to a newcomer to the market. Here are three of the most basic business valuation metrics used by investors that you should know.

Market Capitalization

Market capitalization is the value of a publicly traded company based on current market prices. It is calculated by multiplying all outstanding shares by the share price. For example, you start up a company called XYZ, and you divide your company into 100 publicly traded shares. One share of XYZ costs $5 per share. Therefore, your market capitalization would be $500.

There are four categories for market capitalization:

• Large Cap companies have a market cap of over $10 billion.
• Mid Cap companies have one between $2 to $10 billion.
• Small Cap companies have one between $300 million to $2 billion.
• Micro Cap companies have one under $300 million.

Market capitalization can be deceiving and must be measured in correlation to other important business metrics. Just because a company’s market cap is soaring doesn't necessarily mean that it is justified - it just means that the stock price is increasing at a rapid pace, thus increasing the company’s weight.

Price-to-Book Ratio

Let’s say your company, XYZ, has $500 in available cash. Remember that you issued 100 shares at $5 each. In this situation, the price-to-book ratio is now 1. That means that for each outstanding share, there is $5 in cash to back it up. It is calculated by dividing the share price by the cash (book) value per share. Let’s say your company’s shares increase in value to $10, but you still only have $500 in cash. Dividing $10 by $5 would now give the company a price-to-book ratio of 2.

Legendary investors such as Benjamin Graham and Warren Buffett have been followers of the book value principle. Graham famously taught that if a company is fundamentally sound and its price-to-book ratio falls below 1.0, then it is a good value investment, since logically, barring other capital losses, a company’s stock price should be worth at least its book value, if not higher.

What's Next for Facebook?

Having already attracted Hollywood’s attention with the 2010 movie “Social Network”, loosely based on the Facebook story, the saga continues developing with the company’s upcoming IPO. What does the future hold for Facebook as it makes the significant transition from private to publicly held company?

Facebook’s meteoric rise from its birth in a Harvard dorm in 2004 has already affected its 845 million customers, and with its IPO, the company’s performance will begin to affect a whole community of investors. According to its S1 IPO filing with the SEC, the company made a profit of $1 billion last year and will probably earn more after its IPO.

Significant Changes for Facebook After the IPO

Some analysts foresee Facebook being less innovative as the company opens itself up to the scrutiny of its new shareholders. Also, due to the expected exodus of its brightest talent as employees and managers cash out and leave the firm, the company will be challenged to remain ahead of its competitors in retaining its talent.

Furthermore, Facebook employees — many of which came from other large firms such as Google — who cash out and leave the firm, may move on and use their newly acquired wealth to start up their own companies, creating additional competition for Facebook.
Once Facebook goes public, the company will be pressured to show increasing revenue. Presently, Facebook’s revenue comes primarily from advertising, with $3.8 billion made in 2011, and apps selling products on the Facebook platform for which the company takes a 30 percent cut.

Facebook’s network is a marketer’s dream come true, which will most likely have the company create new types of advertising vehicles and targeting applications for advertisers to take advantage of on their platform. With Facebook’s enormous client base, getting the word out for a product will be that much easier for advertisers.

Possible Takeovers of Other Companies

With the expected windfall of cash from the IPO, in addition to liquidity in its newly issued stock, Facebook will be in a prime position to take over other companies in related businesses, as well as its competitors.