Fergie's Foresight for Customer Loyalty
When Sir Alex Ferguson was still a publican in Govan, a customer came into 'Fergie's' one day offering a new pair of binoculars for just five pounds. Ferguson bought it on the condition that the customer would drink his beer with him and not across the road at Rangers legend Jim Baxter's pub. This way, he got three of his five pounds back in sales in addition to the binoculars (Ferguson 2013: 20).
Which stratagem did he use?
Number 24: “Borrow the road to conquer Guo”. This means gaining access to the enemy's rear in the sense of creating a liability in this case (Senger 2004: 307-342).
The binoculars were the foot in the door to get access to the client's purse. By accepting the five pounds, the customer entered into a moral obligation to spend the money at Ferguson's pub instead of Baxter's. Ferguson thus promoted customer loyalty and secured not only the binoculars but also probably the regular turnover that the customer's regular beer consumption would bring him. Furthermore, he could also hope for good fringe business in the future when money was short again and the thirst was strong (Ferguson 2013: 20).
Sources