The Leaderboard

Assess conflict before attacking it
Savvy leaders know it's critical to assess a conflict before attempting to resolve it, Dan McCarthy writes. Conflicts of emotions, needs and values each have to be handled differently, so first determine the type of conflict and then select the proper response, McCarthy writes. Great Leadership (2/20)

Sales Strategies

Stay ahead of competitors by paying attention to customers
You should adjust your sales process to meet your customers' needs rather than focus only on what your competitors are doing, writes Drew Zarges. "The company that disrupts the industry is not typically seen as a competitor," he writes. "It is the emerging company with a radical model -- dismissed as a niche or fluke." Sales Benchmark Index/Sales & Marketing Effectiveness Blog (2/26)

Salespeople should evaluate performance to improve skills
The best salespeople don't just accept feedback; they crave it, this blog post says. In addition to seeking feedback from outside sources, they should evaluate their skills and look for opportunities to improve. NaturalTraining.com/The Blog (2/27)

Daily Data Points

Pending home sales, capital goods orders point to U.S. strength
Pending home sales in the U.S. rose 4.5% last month, three times as much as economists had predicted. In a further indication of a U.S. economic rebound, orders for capital goods, excluding defense and aircraft, increased 6.3% in January, the biggest gain in just over a year. Reuters (2/27), Reuters (2/27)

This Week's Sales Cartoon

On the Road

Airlines push premium in-flight amenities to draw business fliers
Business-class amenities are getting more attention from airlines amid growing competition for lucrative corporate demand, this feature says. The latest offering comes from Delta Air Lines, with its upcoming "Westin Heavenly In-Flight Bedding" program developed in partnership with Westin Hotels and Resorts. The New York Times (tiered subscription model) (2/25)

App Update

Waze app allows users to share road-closure information
The Waze navigation application is adding a feature that allows mobile users to document road closures. Waze will crowdsource the information, then make sure there is a certain threshold of reliable users confirming the closure before the road is flagged. Waze says its users made 30 million traffic reports in the U.S. last year. TechCrunch (2/27)

Making Small Talk

Son's lawsuit says parents left him "unloved"
A 32-year-old Brooklyn, N.Y., man is suing his parents for more than $200,000, saying they made him feel "unloved and beaten by the world." He also wants them to mortgage their home to buy him two pizza franchises. He agreed to drop charges if the family will sit down to dinner with him. WNBC-TV (New York) (2/23)

Editor's Note

SmartBrief blogs from FedGIS and ARPA-E
SmartBrief is blogging from the Esri Federal GIS Conference and the Department of Energy's ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit this week. Here are a few topics we're writing about on SmartBrief's SmartBlogs network.

• From #EIS13: Steven Chu, the "blocking and tackling" Energy Department secretary
• Map book highlights how feds harness GIS
• From #EIS13: Michael Bloomberg on the urgency for renewable energy after Sandy

SmartQuote

Far too many companies look to their peers for innovation. This is a short-term view." -- Drew Zarges, writing at the Sales & Marketing Effectiveness Blog Share: