Newsletter/Blog
![Panera’s Cost Cutting Is Costing Them Customers](https://estarrassociates.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Panera-symbol-from-1000-logos-1080x675.jpg)
Panera’s Cost Cutting Is Costing Them Customers
When my biweekly cleaning service arrives to clean our house, my son AJ and I go out to lunch to get out of their way. Panera is among the restaurants in our regular rotation. We have long considered it one of our healthier options. I love soup and salad for lunch. AJ...
![Your Brand’s Future Starts Here…](https://estarrassociates.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/edi-libedinsky-1bhp9zBPHVE-unsplash-resized-1080x675.jpg)
Your Brand’s Future Starts Here…
I never paid attention to the type of plane I was flying in until March 12, 2019. That was 2 days after Ethiopian Airlines 302 crashed, killing all 157 people on board. It was the second Boeing 737 MAX crash in 5 months. Forty-eight hours after the crash Boeing had...
![The High ROI of Handwritten Thank You Notes](https://estarrassociates.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Cronin-Cards-Thank-You-Card-Image-800x675.jpg)
The High ROI of Handwritten Thank You Notes
Handwritten notes’ ROI comes in the form of customer retention, repeat business and word-of-mouth marketing.
![Alex and Ani: A Billion-Dollar Brand at 10, Barely Alive at 20](https://estarrassociates.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Fionas-Alex-Ani-collection-did-not-survive-brand-adolescence--971x675.jpg)
Alex and Ani: A Billion-Dollar Brand at 10, Barely Alive at 20
Two days before my daughter Fiona’s bat mitzvah in June 2013, my mother-in-law’s cousin Beth dropped off a beautifully-wrapped, 3 ½-inch square box. Inside were two Alex and Ani bracelets. One charm had a script initial F, the other had a Jewish star. I had never...
![How Canceling Meetings Can Hurt Your Personal Brand](https://estarrassociates.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/repeated-cancellations-hurt-your-personal-brand-newsletter.jpg)
How Canceling Meetings Can Hurt Your Personal Brand
A consultant friend recommended me to one of his colleagues who was searching for podcast guests, urging him to interview me. The colleague and I scheduled a 25-minute, get-to-know you meeting, standard with podcast hosts to see if you are good fit. The meeting was...