Keep Your Customers Happy

If you have customers of any kind, it's important to understand these truths:

A customer's questions are not threats or challenges to your authority. Don't treat them like they are. When customers challenge the validity of a particular policy or question the rationale behind a decision, it's not a personal attack. Don't go into counter attack mode.

Your customers are the people who willingly give you their money in exchange for a product or service, and chances are, your product isn't indispensable. There's probably another like it out there somewhere, so it's not in your best interest to treat your customers like you own them for life. The reality is, you don't. Any sensible business person should know this.

Great business people understand the value of their customers. Good customers are the ones who buy your product or service, are loyal to your brand, and are satisfied with the quality and value of what you're providing them. Great customers, by contrast, are the ones who push your buttons. They ask the hard questions and challenge stupid policies, and that's what makes them great. They're beyond being happy with the product. They've moved into a psychological frame of mind where they view themselves as your partner in business. They're partnering with you to improve your product, service, brand strength, quality, value, etc. These people are the ones who will make your company great...if only you will listen.

The problem isn't that most companies under appreciate these customers. The problem is that most companies hate these customers. They're perceived as trouble makers, complainers, and generally disagreeable. Not so. Customers like these are the people who want your product or service to be the best that it can be so that they don't look bad when they recommend it to their friends and tell other people about it. What company doesn't want this positive word of mouth from it's customers?

Do not make these customers mad. You need to keep these people happy. Why? Because they are the most vocal and most invested constituents in your company. If you make them angry, they're still going to be vocal and they're still going to be fully invested, but their focus will change from investing in your company's success to doing everything in their power to bring the giant down, including telling every single person they know how terrible your product or service is, regardless of whether that evaluation is true or not.

Bottom line: keep these people happy. How do you do that? Listen to them, and genuinely consider what they have to say. Train everyone in your company to listen to them and incorporate their feedback. It might mean the difference between your company being here today or being gone tomorrow.