Questions About Affordable Care Act Open Enrollment? We Got You Covered.

Open enrollment for health care insurance, whether you’re getting benefits through an employer, a state program, or are self-funding, has never been an easy proposition—and adding the Affordable Care Act (aka “Obamacare” or “ACA”) to the mix in recent years has not simplified things a bit. From what you read online or hear in the daily news, together with what you think you know from trying to keep up on all the changes, information, and misinformation, it’s enough to drive any reasonable person . . . well . . . bananas (monkey pun intended)!

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Your Evolving Brand: Can it Stand the Test of Time?

Sometimes it’s fun to look back and wonder, what was I doing on this day a year ago, two, three . . . you get the idea. Looking back is a good way to see how or if your thinking has changed or if you’ve made the progress you’d planned on (or not). Perusing the Monkeyz Blog archive, I found Does Your Brand Story Have Lasting Power? from September 2015. In this blog, I revisit how the BOM name came to be and how important it is for businesses to develop brands over time that can stand the test of time—that can evolve with you as your business/brand adapts to changes in the marketplace. I also comment on how work should be fun . . . or else why bother? It was all sage advice then, it remains sage advice a year later. Enjoy!

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Winners Stay True to Their Brands

My Oakland Raiders started off their 2016-17 NFL season with a victory, and my LA Dodgers are four games up on the Giants as I write this. All is good (for the moment) in the Paul June sports multi-verse. Yes, I know—they really aren’t “my” teams, but it’s hard to think of them otherwise when they’re sitting pretty in the standings.

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Stay Well, Be Well All Year Long

As summer winds down, all of our beach bodies and good eating habits run the risk of taking a back seat to back to school and back to work responsibilities. As we get busier, and as we return to our normal habits, work routines, and school schedules, it’s easy to lose sight of rest, relaxation, …

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Customer Service: Your Golden Opportunity to Exceed Expectations

When this King Monkey decides to part with his hard-earned dough, he expects to be treated well. I don’t think I have unrealistic expectations. I simply expect the product or service I buy to deliver on its promise—that’s first and foremost. If it’s supposed to slice and dice, then it darn well better slice and dice as advertised. But there’s more to customer service than simply being satisfied with the product. Delivering a quality product or service is a given. There’s the whole customer experience to consider from start to finish, ranging from how you greet customers at your store (whether it’s a virtual or bricks and mortar venue), to how you treat them, to how fluid and seamless the process of purchasing and receiving your product or service is. Every step along the way is a golden opportunity to shine—a chance for your brand to exceed expectations and to endear yourself to customers. It’s an opportunity to build loyalty, trust, and enduring relationships—but it’s also an opportunity to fail.

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How Does Your Brand Design Help You “Go for the Gold?”

In the minds of consumers when everything is equal about a particular product or service, what’s left? What distinguishes one brand from the rest of the chatter? Quite often, the decision to buy a product or service is based on emotion—on the ability of a brand story to strike a particular chord with target buyers …

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Entrepreneurs Can Learn from Olympic Athletes’ Pursuit of Greatness

The Opening Ceremonies for the Rio Olympics are this Friday. Are you excited? I am (beach volleyball kicks off bright and early Saturday morning), though also a little apprehensive. The obstacles facing the Rio Olympics are well documented. In case you’ve been up in the jungle canopy the last few months, here’s a quick rundown of some of the ongoing issues that have been reported:

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Write Search Marketing Content for People, Not Computers – Barrel O’ Monkeyz

A common misconception about effective search marketing is that you need to pack your content full of keywords so search bots will take notice. Sure, your content needs to contain keywords and phrases your target buyers will use to find you, but not to the point incoherence. What good will it do for a search …

Source: Write Search Marketing Content for People, Not Computers – Barrel O’ Monkeyz

Holiday Gift Ideas from the Barrel O’ Monkeyz Team – Barrel O Monkeyz

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The Act of Giving is What Matters Most – Barrel O Monkeyz

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Source: The Act of Giving is What Matters Most – Barrel O Monkeyz

 

It really should come as no surprise that numerous studies back up the notion that “giving is better than receiving.” It’s been common knowledge as far back as biblical times (“It is more blessed to give than receive” Acts 20:35) if not earlier. And one of the most compelling facts studies reveal is that the amount we spend on giving, whether it’s $5 or $500, doesn’t seem to matter. It’s the act of giving that matters most. With that in mind, I’ve put together a list of 10 non-traditional ways we can “give” to others this Holiday Season (and any season for that matter), and it won’t bust your budget. You won’t find any “buy it at the mall” or “Shop your nearest Macy’s” pronouncements below. That kind of gift-giving seems to come naturally. What you’ll find instead are ideas and approaches to gift giving that might not be top-of-mind for most. – See more at: http://barrelomonkeyz.com/the-act-of-giving-is-what-matters-most/#sthash.JwvpjyiG.dpuf