Now and then I run into a blog that tries to get it right but stumbles here and there. “Stumbling here and there” is what we humans do. To err is human, right?

Most of us with blogs have had this experience: we edit, proofread, spell check, read it again, and feeling we’ve covered all the bases push that “publish” button. Only then do we see the mistake, the name we didn’t get right, the link that isn’t working, etc. So, back we go, hoping we can correct our errors before anyone sees it.

Today I found a blog post that seemed perfect to discuss on Marketing Taxi: “The Important Rules of Business Coaching.” We all want to know what the rules are, how they might complement whatever “rules” we currently follow, or if — as some might suggest — there are no rules.

Here’s the link– the actual blog post is useful. I don’t know if it is original material, but that’s not why I mention it. The problem is that the blog itself is not ready for prime time. In the header it reads, “Let us healp you Earn Some Wealth.” Beneath the blog name, “Earned Wealth,” we have those ubiquitous Latin fill-ins “Lorem/Ipsum/Dolorem.” Not exactly the way to build confidence in the author or the wisdom he/she is trying to share with us.

Certainly this is an egregious example of not being ready for one’s readers. However, it makes a point worth making: sometimes the most glaring mistakes are the ones we miss.

For several weeks I had a blog sidebar that was getting pushed down to the bottom of the page. I never saw it because I always used my main desktop computer to work on the blog. Only when I loaded the blog into my laptop did the error show up. Goodness knows how many readers also saw it. So now I review all my web sites and blogs on both computers, each with a different OS and web browser.

In the spirit of ”what are friends for,” perhaps it would be proper to drop a friend a carefully-worded note if we do see something out of kilter on their blog or web site. Besides being a good reason to touch base, your friend will appreciate your thoughtfulness — after the initial embarrassment wears off.

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This is especially important for online businesses because customers often feel more assured when they can walk into “brick and mortar” stores and offices. Even if the company is selling an intangible service, the company somehow seems more “stable” because the customer can physically see and feel the business surroundings.

By offering a service guarantee, you can increase customer satisfaction and retention by reducing consumer risk, improve service quality and establish service standards for your business. An effective service guarantee can have a substantial impact on your bottom-line.

But which is more effective — an unconditional or specific guarantee? And what is the difference between the two?

A major challenge is to design a guarantee that is appropriate for your business situation. Guarantees specify what the consumer can expect (the promise) and what the company will do if it fails to deliver (the payout).

The pure unconditional guarantee does not specify either the coverage or the payout (e.g. Satisfaction guaranteed. Period.) The most common unconditional guarantee does not specify the coverage but does specify the payout (e.g. Satisfaction guaranteed or your money back.)

The pure specific guarantee details both the coverage and the payout (e.g. Delivery by 10:00 a.m. or your money back.)

Finally, a specific guarantee might contain a detailed coverage and an unconditional payout (e.g. Delivery in 30 minutes. Period.) although it is seldom used in practice.

The guarantee selected will have an impact on the costs and benefits for your firm.

What marketing researchers have discovered is that when it comes time to select a firm, consumers prefer the unconditional guarantee. To them it signals that the firm offers higher quality overall.

When it comes time to actually use the guarantee, consumers prefer a specific guarantee for both its clarity and ease of use.

The researchers concluded that if a firm were in the process of choosing which type of guarantee to use, the creation of an unconditional guarantee with a specific payout would have the greatest positive impact on the business.