The customer is always [blank].

S.T.A.R.T. Here?#1 – “The customer is always [blank].”

Welcome to my blog about all things “customer!” Understanding their needs and preferences. Attracting and retaining them. And, mostly importantly, providing them with the experience that they want and deserve. In my experience, this is the key to any successful and sustainable strategy.

So, let’s S.T.A.R.T./start here. If you were to complete the title above, what word(s) would you insert? When I do speaking engagements, I often ask this question. And the answer I get most often is?“The customer is always right.”

It’s not a bad answer and it takes us back in history to when customer service and customer experience became a serious topic in business. The phrase was originally coined by Harry Selfridge of Selfridge’s Department Stores (London) in the early 1900s. It signaled an absolute revolution in business thinking by putting customers first. Until then, the motto of the day was?caveat emptor?– or “buyer beware” – as merchants were often unscrupulous and always had the upper hand in commerce.

Selfridge astounded the competition by introducing radical innovations such as trained sales staff, a returns policy, joint promotions with major suppliers, and a complaint line that went right to his office! He would do anything in his power to satisfy a customer. He heavily advertised customer service as his competitive advantage. His approach was wildly popular with both the public and the press. He built an empire on both sides of the Atlantic before his competitors had to adapt out of necessity.

Then his approach started to spread. In France, they added their own spin by saying “the customer is never wrong.” After WW2, the Germans started a movement around quality and efficiency with the motto “the customer is king.” Later, the Japanese initiated their Kaizen (continuous improvement) movement with the motto “the customer is a god.” I think they took that one to the limit! But the trend was irreversible.

But is the customer?really?always right? I would say no. Decades of research since the 1980s tells us that some customers can be unreasonable, toxic for employees, and bad for business. After all, if you ask customers open-ended questions about what they want, they’ll give you some variation of:?“I want it all. I want it now. And I want it for free.”?(You don’t need an MBA to know that this is not a good business model.) Of course, customers don’t really believe or expect that. However, they do expect?Value?and a positive?Customer Experience (CX)?in exchange for their money, time, and/or attention. This blog will explore these concepts in depth.

My answer to the original question is?“the customer is always the starting point.”?When you start from the perspective of understanding what good value and a positive CX look like to the customer, you begin a journey that accrues benefits to all stakeholders. In my view, nothing else is sustainable – or even desirable. Sure, money can be made other ways by serving narrow interests.

But that’s not why I’m here. And, if you’re reading this, I’m guessing you share this perspective.

And that’s why S.T.A.R.T. Here starts here.

See you next week.

Thanks. - Paul

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S.T.A.R.T. stands for?Strategic, Tactical And Random Thoughts. And you can find it?Here. The blog is published every Wednesday on my website (www.paulmlodzik.ca) and also posted to my LinkedIn page. If you prefer to receive?S.T.A.R.T. Here?in your inbox, send “subscribe” to?[email protected].?