Archive of posts - Amanda Athuraliya

A Step-by-Step Guide to the Consulting Process 01 October 2024 | 15 min read
A Step-by-Step Guide to the Consulting Process

Effective consulting helps organizations tackle challenges and achieve their goals. Consultants provide expertise and fresh perspectives to address issues like market changes and internal struggles. Read More

12 Mind Mapping Techniques for Clarity and Creativity 24 September 2024 | 14 min read
12 Mind Mapping Techniques for Clarity and Creativity

Mind mapping is a powerful tool that helps you organize your thoughts, solve problems, and boost creativity. Whether you’re brainstorming ideas, planning a project, or studying a complex topic, mind mapping makes it easier to break down information and see connections between ideas. Read More

How to Create a Winning Product Marketing Strategy 10 September 2024 | 22 min read
How to Create a Winning Product Marketing Strategy

Creating a winning product marketing strategy is crucial for ensuring your product stands out and reaches the right audience. Statistics show that 95% of new products fail to make a significant impact in the market, largely due to inadequate marketing strategies and a lack of understanding of customer needs and market trends. Read More

Strategy Explorer: What It is and How to Use It 03 September 2024 | 12 min read
Strategy Explorer: What It is and How to Use It

Strategic planning can be a complex process, but with the right tools, it becomes easier to manage. The Strategy Explorer is one such tool designed to help businesses and teams map out their strategies clearly and effectively. Read More

10 McKinsey Frameworks for Effective Strategic Planning 27 August 2024 | 24 min read
10 McKinsey Frameworks for Effective Strategic Planning

Strategic planning is crucial for any organization aiming to achieve long-term success. McKinsey & Company, a global management consulting firm, has developed several frameworks that help businesses navigate complex challenges and make informed decisions. Read More

70 Effective Marketing Tactics Examples to Boost Your Business 06 August 2024 | 17 min read
70 Effective Marketing Tactics Examples to Boost Your Business

Marketing tactics are the specific actions you take to make your marketing strategy work. While your strategy outlines your goals and overall plan, tactics are the practical steps you take every day to connect with your audience, increase brand awareness, and drive sales. Read More

The Ultimate Guide to Strategic Decision Making 22 July 2024 | 10 min read
The Ultimate Guide to Strategic Decision Making

In today’s fast-paced business environment, making strategic decisions isn’t just about choosing paths—it’s about shaping the future of organizations. This guide is your roadmap for navigating strategic decision making. Read More

The Best Vision Board Apps to to Realize Your Dreams in 2024 15 July 2024 | 10 min read
The Best Vision Board Apps to to Realize Your Dreams in 2024

In 2024, turning dreams into reality has never been easier, thanks to the rise of digital vision board apps. Whether you’re aiming for career success, personal development, health improvements, or any other goal, vision board apps can help you visualize your aspirations and stay motivated. Read More

Your Practical Guide to Group Decision Making 15 July 2024 | 11 min read
Your Practical Guide to Group Decision Making

Group decision making is an essential process in various settings, such as businesses, non-profits, and educational institutions. This guide aims to offer a comprehensive yet easy-to-understand approach to effective group decision making. Read More

Your Step-by-Step Guide to Crafting the Perfect Wedding Mood Board 10 July 2024 | 8 min read
Your Step-by-Step Guide to Crafting the Perfect Wedding Mood Board

Planning your dream wedding involves bringing together countless ideas, inspirations, and visions into one cohesive and beautiful event. Amidst the whirlwind of decisions, there’s one tool that can help you streamline your thoughts and visualize your perfect day: the wedding mood board. Read More

How to Create a Gantt Chart: Complete Guide with Templates 03 July 2024 | 14 min read
How to Create a Gantt Chart: Complete Guide with Templates

Gantt charts are an essential tool in project management, providing a visual timeline for tasks and milestones. Whether you’re managing a small team or overseeing a large-scale project, Gantt charts can simplify complex processes and improve communication among stakeholders. Read More

What are the 7 Ps of Marketing and How to Use Them 03 July 2024 | 12 min read
What are the 7 Ps of Marketing and How to Use Them

Effective marketing is essential for business success, requiring a strategy that encompasses all aspects of operations. The 7 Ps of Marketing - Product, Price, Place, Promotion, People, Process, and Physical Evidence - offer a comprehensive framework to help businesses achieve their goals. Read More

What is a Decision Matrix and How to Use it? 03 July 2024 | 9 min read
What is a Decision Matrix and How to Use it?

Making decisions, especially critical ones, can be challenging. Whether you’re deciding on the best software for your team, selecting a vendor, or choosing a location for a new office, the process can be overwhelming. Read More

Comic Strip Ideas to Spark Your Creativity 25 June 2024 | 7 min read
Comic Strip Ideas to Spark Your Creativity

Comic strips are more than just humor on paper; they’re a creative outlet that blends storytelling with visual artistry. Whether you’re a seasoned cartoonist or a beginner looking to explore the world of comic strips, finding fresh ideas can sometimes be challenging. Read More

How to Make a Comic Strip: Comprehensive Guide with Templates 25 June 2024 | 10 min read
How to Make a Comic Strip: Comprehensive Guide with Templates

Creating a comic strip is an exciting way to express your creativity, tell engaging stories, and connect with readers. Whether you’re inspired by classics like “Peanuts” or modern hits like “Calvin and Hobbes,” making your own comic strip can be a rewarding experience. Read More

Decision Tree: A Step-by-Step Guide with Examples 19 June 2024 | 12 min read
Decision Tree: A Step-by-Step Guide with Examples

Today, in our data-driven world, it’s more important than ever to make well-informed decisions. Whether you work with data, analyze business trends, or make important choices in any field, understanding and utilizing decision trees can greatly improve your decision-making process. Read More

What is Product Portfolio: A Step-by-Step Guide With Examples 13 June 2024 | 9 min read
What is Product Portfolio: A Step-by-Step Guide With Examples

Optimizing your product portfolio is essential for any business aiming to stay competitive and grow. A well-managed portfolio helps you allocate resources wisely, meet market demands, and maintain a balanced mix of products that align with your business goals. Read More

Mapping Market Potential: BCG Matrix in Marketing Strategy 16 May 2024 | 5 min read
Mapping Market Potential: BCG Matrix in Marketing Strategy

The BCG matrix in marketing helps businesses analyze their product lines or business units to devise optimal investment strategies. By categorizing products into four distinct quadrants—Stars, Cash Cows, Question Marks, and Dogs—the BCG Matrix helps companies allocate resources and adjust their market approaches based on product performance and market dynamics. Read More

What is BCG Matrix: A Comprehensive Guide with Templates 16 May 2024 | 11 min read
What is BCG Matrix: A Comprehensive Guide with Templates

BCG Matrix offers a methodical approach to managing a company’s portfolio of products and services. It helps businesses understand the balance between market growth and market share, and guide them in resource allocation and strategic decision-making. Read More

How to Create a Winning Customer Experience Strategy 09 May 2024 | 10 min read
How to Create a Winning Customer Experience Strategy

In the fast-paced world of business, there’s one thing that remains constant: the importance of customer experience (CX). In fact, studies show that companies with a strong CX focus outperform their competitors in terms of revenue and customer loyalty. Read More

What are Customer Journey Touchpoints and How to Identify Them 09 May 2024 | 10 min read
What are Customer Journey Touchpoints and How to Identify Them

Identifying and effectively mapping customer journey touchpoints are crucial steps in enhancing the customer experience and fostering brand loyalty. By understanding every interaction a customer has with your brand, you can create a seamless and personalized journey that not only meets but exceeds their expectations. Read More

Customer Pain Points: How to Find and Solve Them 01 May 2024 | 13 min read
Customer Pain Points: How to Find and Solve Them

Understanding customer pain points is important in any business context, as these are the specific problems that potential and current customers experience during their journey with a product or service. Read More

How to Improve Customer Experience: Tips, Tools, and Templates 01 May 2024 | 10 min read
How to Improve Customer Experience: Tips, Tools, and Templates

In today’s competitive market, providing exceptional customer experience isn’t just a bonus — it’s a necessity. Studies have consistently shown that consumers are willing to pay more for a better experience, and they’re quick to abandon businesses that fail to meet their expectations. Read More

How to Set up a Customer Experience Management Framework 01 May 2024 | 13 min read
How to Set up a Customer Experience Management Framework

Despite 82% of marketers believing they meet customer expectations, only 10% of customers feel their expectations are truly met. This disparity highlights the critical need for a robust customer experience management framework that bridges the gap between customer perceptions and business assumptions. Read More

How to Make a Family Tree 20 March 2024 | 8 min read
How to Make a Family Tree

Have you always been curious about your family history and where your ancestors came from? Creating a family tree chart is a great way to learn more about your lineage and discover interesting stories from your family’s past. Read More

Work Log Templates to Boost Project Efficiency 07 February 2024 | 7 min read
Work Log Templates to Boost Project Efficiency

Staying organized, whether in life or work, is essential to boosting productivity and being successful. Whether you’re managing company projects or handling your own tasks, one tool that can make a big difference is the work log. Read More

Creately Scores Big at 2024 G2 Best Software Awards! 06 February 2024 | 2 min read
Creately Scores Big at 2024 G2 Best Software Awards!

We’re beyond excited to share some fantastic news with you! Creately won multiple awards at G2 2024 Best Software Awards by landing among the top software products worldwide - all thanks to you and your reviews. Read More

Profit and Loss Templates to Optimize Financial Decision-Making 31 January 2024 | 7 min read
Profit and Loss Templates to Optimize Financial Decision-Making

A Profit and Loss statement summarizes your company’s financial performance in a concise and meaningful way. With this guide, we’ll explore what is a profit and loss template and give you a step-by-step guide to understanding and using this key financial document. Read More

Skills Matrix Templates to Optimize and Manage Your Workforce 31 January 2024 | 7 min read
Skills Matrix Templates to Optimize and Manage Your Workforce

In today’s dynamic business landscape, staying competitive requires a keen focus on your team’s skills. And you can use a skills matrix to identify skill gaps, plan training programs, and make sure your workforce aligns with your organization’s goals. Read More

Expense Report Templates for Efficient Expense Tracking 03 January 2024 | 9 min read
Expense Report Templates for Efficient Expense Tracking

Navigating the complexities of financial management can be a daunting task, especially when it comes to tracking expenses. This is where expense report templates come into play, serving as a crucial tool for businesses and individuals alike. Read More

Your Comprehensive Guide to Creating Effective Workback Schedules 07 December 2023 | 7 min read
Your Comprehensive Guide to Creating Effective Workback Schedules

Understanding the concept of a workback schedule is crucial for any project manager looking to streamline their project delivery process. Essentially, a workback schedule is a project management tool that helps teams plan the steps necessary to meet a project deadline, starting from the end goal and working backward to the present day. Read More

Your Complete Guide to Business Process Analysis 16 November 2023 | 8 min read
Your Complete Guide to Business Process Analysis

Business process analysis (BPA) serves as a guide for organizations to closely examine and refine how they work. By dissecting the way tasks are done, BPA helps companies find more efficient methods, eliminate unnecessary steps, and improve overall performance. Read More

The Practical Guide to the Stage Gate Process 02 November 2023 | 11 min read
The Practical Guide to the Stage Gate Process

Innovation is often the key to success in a competitive business landscape. For organizations to stay relevant and meet customer needs, they have to keep developing new products, services, and processes. Read More

The Easy Guide to Business Process Management 26 October 2023 | 11 min read
The Easy Guide to Business Process Management

Business process management (BPM) is an effective strategy for improving efficiency, streamlining operations, and achieving strategic goals. In this easy guide, we’ll explore what is business process management, its various types, essential process steps, templates, the wide-ranging benefits it delivers and more. Read More

Divergent vs Convergent Thinking: What's the Difference? 12 October 2023 | 8 min read
Divergent vs Convergent Thinking: What's the Difference?

Divergent and convergent thinking are key components of problem-solving and decision-making, often used across different fields. They represent two different ways of approaching challenges: one focuses on generating many ideas, while the other narrows them down to find the best solution. Read More

Tips for Improving Team Participation in Meetings 12 October 2023 | 8 min read
Tips for Improving Team Participation in Meetings

Meetings are essential when it comes to sharing ideas, making decisions, and fostering team synergy. However, meeting participation isn’t just about showing up; it’s about actively engaging, contributing meaningfully, and making sure that your time and expertise are effectively used. Read More

Weekly Meetings: How to Make the Most of Them 12 October 2023 | 9 min read
Weekly Meetings: How to Make the Most of Them

Weekly meetings are great for keeping everyone updated, fostering collaboration, and making informed decisions. However, they can also be a source of frustration, time-wasting, and disengagement when not carried out effectively. Read More

The Brainstorming Guide 23 September 2023 | 20 min read
The Brainstorming Guide

Introduction to Brainstorming Have you ever encountered a challenge that felt impossible to overcome, dreamt of starting a business from the ground up, wanted to create a solid plan, launch a product, or hoped to write a memorable story? Read More

6-Step Guide to Crafting the Perfect Communication Plan 20 June 2022 | 10 min read
6-Step Guide to Crafting the Perfect Communication Plan

A communication plan is a key to developing an effective and consistent messaging strategy. It helps guide the process of setting measurable goals for your strategy, profiling your target audience and creating and successfully delivering your message. Read More

How to Run Successful Brainstorming Workshops 21 September 2023 | 5 min read
How to Run Successful Brainstorming Workshops

A brainstorming workshop is a structured and collaborative way to come up with ideas, solve problems, and innovate. Whether you’re a business leader seeking innovative solutions, an educator looking to spark students' creativity, or simply someone eager to explore new horizons, running an effective brainstorming workshop can be a game-changer. Read More

How to Use Brainstorming in Business 21 September 2023 | 14 min read
How to Use Brainstorming in Business

Brainstorming in business is an indispensable tool; it helps ignite creativity, align goals, and sharpen problem-solving skills. From coming up with new product ideas to mitigating risks, brainstorming is used to find solutions faster in every business, big or small. Read More

What Comes After Brainstorming 21 September 2023 | 5 min read
What Comes After Brainstorming

After brainstorming, you take the ideas you generated and turn them into actionable plans and solutions. What comes after brainstorming is a structured process that makes sure that creativity is harnessed effectively to address the problem or achieve the desired goals. Read More

7 Step Recruitment Process for the Hybrid Age 01 July 2022 | 15 min read
7 Step Recruitment Process for the Hybrid Age

Increasing candidate flow and conversion rate has become a common challenge in many organizations. To attract the right talent at the right time, you need to have an efficient recruitment process in place. Read More

Easy 6 Counseling Genogram Editable Templates & Examples 04 August 2023 | 4 min read
Easy 6 Counseling Genogram Editable Templates & Examples

Counseling Genograms are strong visual aids that can reveal important details about a family’s dynamics, relationships, and historical events. They are essential in many counseling contexts, assisting therapists and clients in understanding the complexity of family systems and locating probable stress and trauma origins. Read More

71 Genogram Questions for Productive Client Interviews 26 July 2023 | 8 min read
71 Genogram Questions for Productive Client Interviews

Whether you are a mental health professional seeking to enhance your therapeutic approach or an individual eager to gain a deeper understanding of your family roots, this post will help you with a comprehensive collection of genogram questions. Read More

How to Make a Genogram | Genogram Tutorial 18 July 2023 | 7 min read
How to Make a Genogram | Genogram Tutorial

Whether you’re a therapist, counselor, social worker, or healthcare professional, understanding genograms can greatly boost your ability to comprehend and analyze family dynamics. Read More

How to Run a Marketing Retrospective 05 July 2023 | 8 min read
How to Run a Marketing Retrospective

Marketing retrospectives allows teams to analyze, learn from, and improve their marketing processes. Whether you’re an agile marketing team or follow a mixed methodology, regular retrospective meetings are a vital ingredient for success. Read More

54 Retrospective Questions for Your Next Meeting 25 June 2023 | 12 min read
54 Retrospective Questions for Your Next Meeting

Retrospective questions are crafted to foster reflection and ignite engaging discussions in a retrospective meeting. They serve as a guide for teams to evaluate their processes, uncover potential areas for enhancement, and generate practical insights. Read More

10 Effective Ideation Techniques for All Teams 01 July 2022 | 12 min read
10 Effective Ideation Techniques for All Teams

Every organization needs a steady supply of fresh creative ideas to stay relevant and ahead of their competitors successfully. As necessary as it is, generating good new ideas isn’t as easy as getting everyone in the team into a room and spending 3 hours to come up with barely anything. Read More

7 Essential Visual Tools for Social Work Assessment 01 July 2022 | 8 min read
7 Essential Visual Tools for Social Work Assessment

There are many social work assessment tools that help social workers with examining their clients and their situation. In this post, we will be looking at several visual tools that help understand the clients’ relationships and situation in-depth. Read More

AWS Architecture Diagrams and Use Cases 20 June 2022 | 6 min read
AWS Architecture Diagrams and Use Cases

What is an AWS Architecture Diagram? An AWS (Amazon Web Services) architecture diagram is a visual representation that illustrates the design and structure of a system or application built on AWS cloud services. Read More

Create a Detailed Marketing Plan With 6 Effective Templates 10 May 2018 | 12 min read
Create a Detailed Marketing Plan With 6 Effective Templates

Want to make costly marketing errors and waste time and resources? Start without a marketing plan. A marketing plan is not only an essential part of your business plan, but it is the roadmap that will provide your team focus and direction in all their marketing efforts. Read More

Customer Journey Map: Definition with Examples 21 January 2020 | 16 min read
Customer Journey Map: Definition with Examples

Improved customer service, customer loyalty, and increased ROI; 3 things that every organization wishes they could achieve overnight. It’s possible, although not overnight, but with the right tools and the effort. Read More

Database Model Examples to Visualize Databases 20 June 2022 | 15 min read
Database Model Examples to Visualize Databases

A database diagram is the very foundation of a database design and development effort. It represents the basic structure of a database; how information is stored, categorized and managed within it. Read More

Free Timeline Templates to Edit Online and Download 20 June 2022 | 3 min read

Looking for an easy and efficient way to visualize your projects, plans, or events? Check out Creately’s Free Timeline Templates! These customizable templates are perfect for professionals, students, and anyone in need of a clear and concise way to present information over a period of time. Read More

How to Create a Product Roadmap in Easy 8 Steps 01 July 2022 | 18 min read
How to Create a Product Roadmap in Easy 8 Steps

From what originated as a guide map for cyclers of New York City in the 1890s, later being adopted by Motorola in the 1980s to align their product and technology development, roadmaps have come a long way in assisting businesses to stay relevant and competitive in a setting where customer needs change frequently in pace with technological advancements. Read More

How to Do a Competitive Analysis | Complete Guide with Competitive Analysis Charts 20 June 2022 | 15 min read
How to Do a Competitive Analysis | Complete Guide with Competitive Analysis Charts

Table of Contents What is a Competitive Analysis? Importance of Doing a Competitive Analysis How to Do a Competitive Analysis with Visual Techniques Identifying and Categorizing Top Competitors Categorize Your Top Competitors Using a Mind Map Analyzing Competitive Landscape SWOT Analysis PEST Analysis Porter’s Five Forces Analysis Analyzing Competitors’ Market Positioning Value Proposition Canvas Perceptual Map Conducting Competitive Intelligence Analysis Comparing Competitor Products and Prices Radar Chart Compare and Contrast Charts Competitor Price Analysis When to Use a Competitive Analysis Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them What are Your Thoughts on How to Do a Competitive Analysis? Read More

How to Make a User Flow Diagram 27 February 2020 | 11 min read
How to Make a User Flow Diagram

User flow diagrams are indispensable in mastering user experience. They allow you to understand how users interact with your app or website, and the steps they take to complete a task or achieve a goal on your website. Read More

Sales Process Mapping: Optimize Sales processes for better ROI 01 July 2022 | 9 min read
Sales Process Mapping: Optimize Sales processes for better ROI

Table of Contents What is Sales Process Optimization Sales Process Optimization Tips External Add Diagrams to Sales Pitches Proposals Documents Show How They Can Benefit from the Solution You Provide Explain the Sales Process Sales Process Optimization Tips Internal Map Out Complex Sales Processes Analyzing Sales Funnel with Flowcharts Identify Your Prospects with Account Maps Map Out Your Internal Sales Processes Create a Customer Journey Map No matter what industry you are in or how mature your business is, building a competent sales team and an effective sales process takes a lot of work. Read More

The Complete Guide to Virtual Strategic Planning 01 July 2022 | 7 min read
The Complete Guide to Virtual Strategic Planning

2020 is almost over (*audible sigh*). Although it has not been very kind to us, it has taught businesses many lessons, the most important one being that the future is unpredictable, and you can’t be prepared enough. Read More

The Easy Guide to Creating an Operations Manual 01 July 2022 | 6 min read
The Easy Guide to Creating an Operations Manual

A standard operations manual is essential to streamlining your business. It defines the roles of employees, what they are responsible for, how to carry out a process, what to do in case of an emergency and so on. Read More

The Easy Guide to UML Deployment Diagrams 21 October 2021 | 6 min read
The Easy Guide to UML Deployment Diagrams

Deployment diagrams are used to visualize the hardware processors/ nodes/ devices of a system, the links of communication between them and the placement of software files on that hardware. Read More

The Practical Guide to Working from Home as a Team 22 April 2022 | 31 min read
The Practical Guide to Working from Home as a Team

During the pandemic remote working enabled to keep the work going on across sectors in a situation where offices had to be closed down physically and maintaining social distance among people became mandatory. Read More

The Ultimate 8 Change Management Tools for 2023 20 June 2022 | 12 min read
The Ultimate 8 Change Management Tools for 2023

Change is never easy. Especially in a context of business, as it affects a lot of aspects. In order to ensure a smooth transition from the current state to the desired state of business, you need the correct change management tools and resources at hand. Read More

Types of Cisco Network Diagrams with Examples 01 July 2022 | 8 min read
Types of Cisco Network Diagrams with Examples

Cisco network diagrams are used to visualize the topology and design of Cisco Networks. Commonly used by network and system administrators and IT professionals, Cisco network diagrams are drawn using Cisco network symbols and icons. Read More

Value Stream Mapping - Ultimate Guide On VSM 01 July 2022 | 18 min read
Value Stream Mapping - Ultimate Guide On VSM

This value stream mapping tutorial aims to help you familiarize yourself with the concept of value stream mapping. It offers a detailed overview on everything related to VSM, from its origin to steps you should follow when carrying out a value stream map analysis. Read More

What is Business Process Reengineering (BPR)? 22 November 2019 | 14 min read
What is Business Process Reengineering (BPR)?

Business process reengineering is a crucial element in the agenda of many large as well as small companies in many industries, with manufacturing and banking/ finance being the leading sectors. Read More