综合商务英语B1 课件 Unit 7 Customers

综合商务英语（第1册）Unit7

（第二版）Customers目录CONTENTS1Lead-inThreeQuestions2TextA

CustomerValue3ExercisesReferenceKeys4TextB5WhatIs“Customer”?CaseStudyLead-in第七单元1Lead-inThreequestions1.Whyarecustomersextremelyimportanttoanorganization?2.Whatfactorsinfluencecustomervalue?3.Doyoucaremoreaboutpriceorqualitywhenyoubuyadictionary?Howaboutbuyingapairofjeans?Open-mindedTextACustomerValue第七单元2QuestionsonTextA(1)Isittruethat“customervaluemeansthecustomersarevaluableassetstothebusiness”?(2)Canyoutellthedifferencebetween“desiredvalue”and“perceivedvalue”?(3)Inthewayofdeliveringcustomervalue,howcanbusinesseshelpcustomerstoachievemaximumcustomervalue?(4)Aproductorservicecanprovidevalueinmanyways.Pleaselisttwowaysabouthowtomeasurecustomervalue.(5)Somebusinessesusetheterms“sacrifice”and“realization”toexplaincustomervalue.

Couldyougiveaspecificexampletoillustratethisprocess?QuestionsonTextA(1)Isittruethat“customervaluemeansthecustomersarevaluableassetstothebusiness”?--No,itisnottrue.Customervalueisthebenefitthatacustomerwillgetfromaproductorserviceincomparisonwithitscost.(2)Canyoutellthedifferencebetween“desiredvalue”and“perceivedvalue”?--Desiredvaluereferstowhatcustomersdesireinaproductorservice.Perceivedvalueisthebenefitthatacustomerbelievesheorshereceivedfromaproductafteritwaspurchased.QuestionsonTextA(3)Inthewayofdeliveringcustomervalue,howcanbusinesseshelpcustomerstoachievemaximumcustomervalue?--Businessescanlowerthepriceoftheproductorserviceandimprovethequalityoftheproductorservice,thusachievingthemaximumcustomervalue.(4)Aproductorservicecanprovidevalueinmanyways.Pleaselisttwowaysabouthowtomeasurecustomervalue.--Aproductorservicecanprovidevalueinmanyways.Alongwithhelpingacustomersavemoneyorprovidingenjoyment,italsocouldsavetheconsumertime,provideabenefitthatcouldnotbeobtainedwithouttheproductorincreasethevalueofsomethingthecustomeralreadyowns.QuestionsonTextA(5)Somebusinessesusetheterms“sacrifice”and“realization”toexplaincustomervalue.Couldyougiveaspecificexampletoillustratethisprocess?--Youpay100yuanforadinnerinarestaurant.Thedinnerandtheenjoymentyougetfromthedinnerarethe“realization”whilethe100yuanisthe“sacrifice”.U1:TextACustomerValue1

Customervalueisthebenefitthatacustomerwillgetfromaproductorserviceincomparisonwithitscost.Thetermmayalsomeanlowprice,receivingwhatisdesired,receivingqualityforwhatispaid,orreceivingsomethinginreturnforwhatisgiven.Q1:

Isittruethat“customervaluemeansthecustomersarevaluableassetstothebusiness”?WhatIsCustomerValue?2

Customerisnotanobjectofmarketing;customeristheonewho,ifpleased,paysyoursalary,and,ifexcited,bringsyoujoyandinspiration.Ifitcreatesvalueforcustomers,itcreatesvalueforbusiness.

TheImportanceofCustomerValue3

Thecustomervaluewassomethingtotakeintoaccount,especiallyforus,becausethecustomerwasnumberoneinourbook.Youneedtomakesurethatyouaregivingoutgreatcustomervaluesothattheyarehappytocomebackformore.Youshouldtrytostrivetohavethebestcustomervalueyoucansothatpeoplewillgiveoutgoodwordofmouth[1]advertising.

4

Therearetwoaspectstocustomervalue:desiredvalue[2]andperceivedvalue[3].Desiredvaluereferstowhatcustomersdesireinaproductorservice.Perceivedvalueisthebenefitthatacustomerbelievesheorshereceivedfromaproductafteritwaspurchased.Q2:Canyoutellthedifferencebetween“desiredvalue”and“perceivedvalue”?ResourcesofaBusiness5

Customervaluecanbeexaminedatdifferentlevels.Atalowlevel,customervaluecanbeviewedastheattributesofaproductthatacustomerperceivestoreceivevaluefrom.Atahigherlevel,customervaluecanbeviewedastheemotionalpayoffandachievementofagoalordesire.Whencustomersderivevaluefromaproduct,theyderivevaluefromtheattributesoftheproductaswellasfromtheattributeperformanceandtheconsequenceofachievingdesiredgoalsfromtheuseoftheproduct.ResourcesofaBusiness6

Customervalueisthebenefitwhichmightbemeasuredinmonetaryterms,suchaswhenaproducthelpssavethecustomermoneythatwouldhavebeenspentonsomethingelse.Abenefitalsocanbedifficulttoquantify,suchastheenjoymentthatacustomerreceivesfromaproductorservice.Theterm“customervalue”shouldnotbeconfusedwith

thevalueofcustomerstobusinesses.Itreferstothevaluethatthecustomersreceive,nottohowvaluablecustomersare.Q3:Inthewayofdeliveringcustomervalue,howcanbusinesseshelpcustomerstoachievemaximumcustomervalue?HowtoDeliverValuetoaCustomer7

Somebusinesspeopleexplaincustomervalueasrealizationcomparedwithsacrifice.“Realization”isaformaltermforwhatcustomersgetoutoftheirpurchases.Sacrificeis

whattheypayfortheproductorservice.Q5:Somebusinessesusetheterms“sacrifice”and“realization”toexplaincustomervalue.Couldyougiveaspecificexampletoillustratethisprocess?Realizationvs.Sacrifice8

Aproductorservicecanprovidevalueinmanyways.Alongwithhelpingacustomersavemoneyorprovidingenjoyment,italsocouldsavetheconsumertime,provideabenefitthatcouldnotbeobtainedwithouttheproductorincreasethevalueofsomethingthecustomeralreadyowns.Forexample,ifaself-employedwomanbuysacomputerthatallowshertosavetimedoingtaskssuchascreatinginvoices,keepingrecordsormanagingabudget,shemightbeabletodevotemoretimetotheaspectsofherbusinessthatmakemoney.ThiscouldallowhertoincreasehermonthlyprofitsbymorethantheoriginalMeasuringValue8

costofthecomputer,makingiteasytoidentifythenetvalue[4]thatshereceivedfromherinvestmentofbuyingthecomputer.Q4:Aproductorservicecanprovidevalueinmanyways.Pleaselisttwowaysabouthowtomeasurecustomervalue.MeasuringValue9

Businessesofallsizesusecustomervalueaspartofagreateranalysistodeterminehowwelltheyareservingtheircustomerbase.Detailedresearchmightincludewhatcustomersgenerallydowiththeproductstheypurchaseorhowtheyuseservicestoincreasethevalueoftheirassets,suchasrealestateorcars.Businessesalsolookatthepricesoftheirproductsincomparisonwiththevaluethatcustomersreceivefromthem,inordertopricethemcompetitivelyandtomaximizeprofits.UsedbyBusinesses10

Whenabusinessidentifiesthevalueitsproductsorservicesprovidetocustomers,itmightconsideracustomervalueproposition[5].Thisbasicallyisapromiseofbenefitstocustomerswhobuytheproductsorservices.Examplesofcustomervaluepropositionscanbeseeninadvertising.Companiespinpointthebenefitsthattheybelievecustomerswillrealize,andtheydisplaytheminadvertisementsinthehopeofattractingmorecustomers.Lawsthatensuretruthinadvertisingmakeitillegalforcompaniestoadvertisegreatlyexaggeratedorfalsecustomervaluesfortheirproductsorservices.PromotingtoCustomers11

Alongwiththebasicideaofcustomervalue,othertermshelpfurtherdefinethatvalueprecisely.Relativeperformance[6]identifieshowacompany’sproductorserviceprovidescustomervalueincomparisonwiththatofcompetitors’productsorservices.Accesscost[7]issomethingthatbusinessanalystsaddasanestimatedcostoftheeffortinvolvedinapurchase.Valuepropositions[8]oftenincludetheselevelsofdetailtohelpmanagerslookathowwellabusinessisservingitsintendedaudience.RelatedConceptsattribute/'ætrIbju:t/n.Anattributeisaqualityorfeaturethatsomeoneorsomethinghas.特性eg.贪婪是人类行为的正常特征。—Greedyisanormalattributeofhumanbehavior.payoff/'peIɒf/n.Thepayofffromanactionistheadvantageorbenefitthatyougetfromit.（某行动的）收益eg.如果这种材料能够广泛用于光学行业，那么这一突破将带来巨大的回报。—Ifsuchmaterialsbecamegenerallyavailabletotheopticsindustry,thepayoffsfromsuchabreakthroughwouldbeenormous.pinpoint/'pInpɔInt/v.Ifyoupinpointthecauseofsomething,youdiscoverorexplainthecauseexactly.准确指出（原因）eg.查明死因几乎是不可能的。—Itwasalmostimpossibletopinpointthecauseofdeath.estimate/'estImeIt/v.Ifyouestimateaquantityorvalue,youmakeanapproximatejudgmentorcalculationofit.估计

eg.我估计治疗的总费用将从9000美元增加到12500美元。—Iestimatethattotalcostfortreatmentwillgofrom$9,000to$12,500.StructureofTextAIntroductionCustomervalue:thebenefitthatacustomerwillgetfromaproductorserviceincompariosnwithitscost.Realizationvs.SacrificeMeasuringValueUsedbyBusinessesPromotingCustomersRelatedConceptsTheImportanceofCustomerValueCustomerValueHowtoDeliverValuetoaCustomerwhatisdesiredqualityforwhatispaidsomethinginreturnforwhatisgivenTheMeaningofCustomerValueExercises第一单元32.Paraphrase:Replacetheexpressionsofthebold.(1)

Thecustomervaluewassomethingtotakeintoaccount,especiallyforus,becausethecustomerwasnumberoneinourbook.takeintoaccount:takeintoconsideration,tobeconsideredWeshouldtakethecustomervalueintoconsideration,becauseforuscustomersarethemostimportantonesinbusiness.2.Paraphrase:Replacetheexpressionsofthebold.(2)

Youshouldtrytostrivetohavethebestcustomervalueyoucansothatpeoplewillgiveoutgoodwordofmouthadvertising.giveoutgoodwordofmouthadvertising:passtheinformationofaproductbyoralcommunicationYoushouldtryyourbesttoachievethemaximumcustomervaluesothatpeoplewillpasstheinformationoftheproductbyoralcommunication.2.Paraphrase:Replacetheexpressionsofthebold.(3)

Whencustomersderivevaluefromaproduct,theyderivevaluefromtheattributesoftheproductaswellasfromtheattributeperformanceandtheconsequenceofachievingdesiredgoalsfromtheuseoftheproduct.theattributeperformance:theperformanceoftheproduct’squalitytheconsequenceofachievingdesiredgoals:thesatisfactionofachievingdesiredgoalsWhencustomersfindsomevalueofaproduct,theyfindvaluefromthequalityoftheproductandtheperformanceoftheproduct’squalityaswellasthesatisfactiontheygetfromtheuseoftheproduct.2.Paraphrase:Replacetheexpressionsofthebold.(4)Theterm“customervalue”shouldnotbeconfusedwiththevalueofcustomerstobusinesses.(5)…shemightbeabletodevotemoretimetotheaspectsofherbusinessthatmakemoney.notbeconfusedwith:beseparatedfromTheterm“customervalue”shouldbeseparatedfromthevalueofcustomerstobusinesses.devotemoretimeto:spendmoretimeonsth.…shemightbeabletospendmoretimeontheaspectsofherbusinessthatmakemoney.3.

Vocabulary:Completethejobintroductionwiththewordsandexpressionsinthebox,andyoucanmakeyourownjobintroductiononthebasisofthewordsandexpressionsinthebox.a.takeintoaccount b.attribute...to

c.givecreditto

d.devote...to

e.dedicated...tof.

payoff

g.purchase

h.perceive(1)Whenpacking,please_____

thattheboxesmustbeabletowithstandroughhandlingandtransportoververybadroads.

a(2)She

_____herfirstalbum_____

WoodyAllen.(3)

Tomgladlygaveuphispart-timejobto_____himselfentirely_____ hisart.(4)Childrenwhodobadlyinschooltestsoften_____themselvestobefailures.(5)Iwantto_____myEnglishteachersinhighschoolandelementaryfordoingsuchagoodjob.a.takeintoaccount b.attribute...to

c.givecreditto

d.devote...to

e.dedicated...tof.

payoff

g.purchase

h.perceive

e

d

h

c(6)I

_____

allthis

_____

thefactthatwhatshouldhavebeenformethehappyjoyousdaysofchildhoodwerespentonachickenfarm.(7)

Itisachallengingtasktoachieve,butthelong-termcan_____betremendous.(8)Especiallyinthefaceofsluggishconsumer’sdesireto_____,thepriceisstillthemosteffectivemeansofpromotion.a.takeintoaccount b.attribute...to

c.givecreditto

d.devote...to

e.dedicated...tof.

payoff

g.purchase

h.perceive

b

f

g4.Cloze:Decidewhichofthechoicesgivenbelowwouldbestcompletethepassageifinsertedinthecorrespondingblanks.[A]delivery[B]prompt

[C]referred[D]offering

[E]highly

[F]elements[G]depending[H]even

[I]confirm

[J]available

[K]reluctant[L]readily[M]Often

[N]derives

[O]accessThecustomervaluepropositionincludestheoveralladvantagesorbenefitsthatacustomerderivesfromdoingbusinesswithaparticularvendor.Sometimes

(1)___toasavalueaddproposition,theconceptaddressesnotonly

basicssuchasprice

forthegoodor

Cservice,butalsorelatedissuessuchasthequalityofserviceandsupportprovidedtotheclient,(2)___deliveryofthoseproducts,andtherelationshipthatisestablishedbetweenthecustomerandthesupplier.Manyofthe

(3)___thatareincludedinacustomervaluepropositionaredesignedtoattractcustomersbyofferingthemsomethingthatisnotreadilyavailablefromthecompetition.

(4)___,theseadded

B

F

M[A]delivery[B]prompt

[C]referred[D]offering

[E]highly

[F]elements[G]depending[H]even

[I]confirm

[J]available

[K]reluctant[L]readily[M]Often

[N]derives

[O]accessvaluesarelittleextrasthatarehardtoobtainwiththatparticularproductorservice.Forexample,theofferingmayincludeacustomerservicevaluethatinvolves(5)___tocustomersupportpersonnelsevendaysaweek,twenty-fourhoursaday.Ifthecompetitiononlyoffersaccesstocustomersupportduringlimitedhoursfivedaysaweek,thisis(6)___likelytocatchtheattentionofprospectiveclients,aswellasentice

OE[A]delivery[B]prompt

[C]referred[D]offering

[E]highly

[F]elements[G]depending[H]even

[I]confirm

[J]available

[K]reluctant[L]readily[M]Often

[N]derives

[O]accessexistingclientstonotstrayfromthefold.Theexactcompositionofacustomervaluepropositionwillvary,(7)___ontheindustryinquestion,andwhatthecompetitionoffersasamatterofcourse.Thismeansthatthepropositionwillhelpacustomer(8)___thatthevendorofferseverythingthatis(9)___fromthecompetition,plusafewbenefitsthatarehighlyunlikelytobefoundelsewhere.Often,these

GI

J[A]delivery[B]prompt

[C]referred[D]offering

[E]highly

[F]elements[G]depending[H]even

[I]confirm

[J]available

[K]reluctant[L]readily[M]Often

[N]derives

[O]accessvalueaddedservicesareextendedatnoadditionalcosttothecustomer,whichservestomakethem(10)

___

moreattractive.H[A]delivery[B]prompt

[C]referred[D]offering

[E]highly

[F]elements[G]depending[H]even

[I]confirm

[J]available

[K]reluctant[L]readily[M]Often

[N]derives

[O]access5.

E-CTranslation:TranslatethefollowingsentencesintoChinese.(1)Youneedtomakesurethatyouaregivingoutgreatcustomervaluesothattheyarehappytocomebackformore.(2)Atalowlevel,customervaluecanbeviewedastheattributesofaproductthatacustomerperceivestoreceivevaluefrom.你只有为顾客提供最大的价值，顾客才能再次光临。从低一点的层次来说，顾客价值是指顾客认为能够从某个商品特性获得的价值。5.

E-CTranslation:TranslatethefollowingsentencesintoChinese.(3)Customervalueisthebenefitwhichmightbemeasuredinmonetaryterms,suchaswhenaproducthelpssavethecustomermoneythatwouldhavebeenspentonsomethingelse.顾客价值可以通过金钱来衡量，比如，一个产品帮助顾客节省下来的钱可以用在别处。5.

E-CTranslation:TranslatethefollowingsentencesintoChinese.(4)Businessesofallsizesusecustomervalueaspartofagreateranalysistodeterminehowwelltheyareservingtheircustomerbase.(5)Lawsthatensuretruthinadvertisingmakeitillegalforcompaniestoadvertisegreatlyexaggeratedorfalsecustomervaluesfortheirproductsorservices.商家用顾客价值来分析顾客是否对服务满意。法律确保广告的真实性，规定公司夸大、虚假宣传产品或者服务是违法的。6.

C-ETranslation:TranslatethefollowingsentencesintoEnglishbasedonthecuewordsinbrackets.(1)财务管理应考虑环境的适应性。(take...intoaccount)(2)跨国公司的竞争优势来源于其垄断结构及由此带来的垄断结构利润。(derivefrom)Financialmanagementshouldtakeenvironmentaladaptabilityintoaccount.Thecompetitiveadvantagesofamultinationalderivefromitsmonopolystructureandtheprofitsthemonopolystructurebringsabout.6.

C-ETranslation:TranslatethefollowingsentencesintoEnglishbasedonthecuewordsinbrackets.(3)企业在致力于促进知识共享时必须考虑本企业现有的企业文化因素。(devoteto)(4)严格地说，企业文化和组织文化不应该混为一谈。(beconfusedwith)Enterprisesmustconsidertheexistingcorporate

culturefactorswhiledevotingtopromoting

knowledge

sharing.Inastrictsense,corporateculturecannotbeconfusedwithorganizationculture.6.

C-ETranslation:TranslatethefollowingsentencesintoEnglishbasedonthecuewordsinbrackets.(5)现与你方联系，希望与你公司建立互利的业务关系。(inthehopeof)Wearewritingtoyouinthehopeofestablishingbusinessrelationshipwithyou.Role-play:IntroduceaNewProducttoCustomersProductintroduction:Introduceanewproducttoyourcustomeraccordingtothefollowingquestionsandmakenoteswhennecessary1.Talkaboutyourcompanybriefly.2.Whatarethedistinctivefeaturesoftheproduct?3.Whatistheproductmadeof?4.Whatfunctionsdoesthisproducthave?6.Whatadvantagesdoestheproducthavecomparedwith

other

similarproducts?7.Howmuchdoesitcost?8.Wherecancustomerspurchasetheproduct?9.Whatabouttheafter-salesserviceoftheproduct?Ladiesandgentlemen:

Goodmorning.Itismyhonortointroduceanewproducttoyou.

First,pleaseallowmetomakeabriefintroductiontoourcompany.Ourcompanyisoneofthebiggestcosmeticcompaniesintheworld.Now,I’dliketorecommendournewproduct—SOO,whichmeansSupperOlive-Oil.Theoliveoilwassoexpensiveandrarethatonlynoblescoulduseitatthattime.Butnowyoucanhaveitbecausewehaveloweredthecost.SOOhasmanymagicaleffectsonbodyReferenceKeytoRole-playbeautification.Itcanwhitenyourskinobviously,andprotectyourskinagainstdryandcoldair,andtheharmfulradiationintheofficecube.Anditonlycosts199dollarsforsuchaproduct.Youcanbuyitonlineorinthestores.Togetmoreinformation,youcanvisitourwebsiteorcallourcustomerservicehotline.

Thankyouforcoming.Hopeyoucanenjoyit.Thankyou!ReferenceKeytoRole-playTextBWhatIs“Customer”?第七单元4QuestionsonTextB1.Thereisasmalldifferencebetween“customer”and“consumer.”Whatisit?2.Doyouagreewiththefollowingstatement:Peoplewhohireaprofessionalarealsocalledcustomers?3.Whyarecustomerprofilestakenintoaccountbybusinesses?4.What’sthedifferencebetweeninternalcustomersandexternalcustomers?5.Doyouthinkthecustomerisakeypartoffiguringoutyourmarketingmessageandstrategy?QuestionsonTextB1.Thereisasmalldifferencebetween“customer”and“consumer.”Whatisit?Consumersarepeopleorbusinessesthatuseoruseupgoodsandservices.Customersaretheeconomicbuyerswhobuygoodsandservices.Customerscanalsobeconsumers,

buttheycanalsobecustomersontheirown.QuestionsonTextB2.Doyouagreewiththefollowingstatement:Peoplewhohireaprofessionalarealsocalledcustomers?No,Idon’tagree.Consumersarepeopleorbusinessesthatuseoruseupgoodsandservices.“Clients”isoftenusedtodescribecustomerswhohavearelationshipwithasupplier.Also,peoplewhohireaprofessionalarenotcalledcustomers,butclients.Forexample,alawyerhasclients.QuestionsonTextB3.Whyarecustomerprofilestakenintoaccountbybusinesses?Businesseslookatcustomerprofilesregularlytoimprovetheirmarketingstrategiesandstocktoattractthemostcustomers.Withthisinformation,businessescangetclosertotheircurrentcustomersandreachouttocustomerstheyhaven’tyetreachedtobringinmorecustomers.Understandingcustomershelpsbusinessesmakebettermarketingandadvertisingplans,makeproductsandservicesthatmeetcustomers’needsandwants,andkeepcustomerssotheycandobusinesswiththemagaininthefuture.QuestionsonTextB4.What’sthedifferencebetweeninternalcustomersandexternalcustomers?Internalcustomersarepeopleorgroupspartofacompany’sdailyoperations.Theyareusuallyemployeesorotherfunctionalgroups.Externalclientsaredifferentfromthecompany’sinternaloperations,andtheyareusuallythepeoplewhowanttobuyacompany’sfinalproductsandservices.QuestionsonTextB5.Doyouthinkthecustomerisakeypartoffiguringoutyourmarketingmessageandstrategy?Yes,Ido.Nomatterwhatyousellorwhatkindofbusinessyourun,thecustomeristhemostimportantpartofyourbusiness.Bylookingatyourcustomers’complaints,feedback,andopinions,youcanlearnalotaboutwhatyourtargetmarketwantsandneedsfromyourserviceorproduct.U1:TextBWhatIs“Customer”?Customer1

Aclientisapersonorbusinessthatbuyssomethingfromathirdparty.Themaingoalofabusinessistogetagroupofcustomerswhobuyfromthemagainandagain,bringinginmoney.Asthecustomerisresponsiblefortheinflowofmoney,manytradersandbusinessmenrefertothecustomerasGod.

WhoIsaCustomer?2

Customerdefinition:Acustomerisapersonorbusinessthatbuysgoodsorservicesfromanotherbusiness.Customersarecrucialbecausetheygeneraterevenue.Withoutthem,businesseswouldgooutofbusiness.Everybusinessfightstogetcustomersbyadvertisingtheirproductsheavily,cuttingcoststogetmorecustomers,ormakinguniqueproductsandexperiencesthatpeoplelove.SomeexamplesareApple,Tesla[1],BaiduandTikTok.

RecognizingCustomers3

Businessesoftenfollowthesaying“thecustomerisalwaysright”becausecustomers

aremorelikelytocomebacktobusinessesthatmeetorexceedtheirneeds.Asaresult,manybusinessescloselywatchhowtheircustomerstalktoeachothertogetideasfor

improvingtheirproductlines.Therearemanywaystogroupcustomers.Customersareusuallyeitheroutsideorinsidethecompany.4

Internalcustomersarepeopleorgroupspartofacompany’sdailyoperations.Theyareusuallyemployeesorotherfunctionalgroups.Externalclientsaredifferentfromthecompany’sinternaloperations,andtheyareusuallythepeoplewhowanttobuyacompany’sfinalproductsandservices.

ConsideringCustomers5

Businesseslookatcustomerprofilesregularlytoimprovetheirmarketingstrategiesandstocktoattractthemostcustomers.Customersareoftenputintogroupsbasedontheirage,race,gender,ethnicity,incomelevel,andlocation,whichcanhelpbusinessescreateaprofileofthe“perfectcustomer”or“customerpersona[2].”Withthisinformation,

businessescangetclosertotheircurrentcustomersandreachouttocustomerstheyhaven’tyetreachedtobringinmorecustomers.6Consumersaresoimportantthatschoolsanduniversitiesofferclassesonhowtheyact,whattheylike,andwhatmakesthemdifferent.Theylookatthereasonswhypeoplebuyandusegoodsandservices,aswellaswhatthatmeansforbusinessesandeconomies.Understandingcustomershelpsbusinessesmakebettermarketingandadvertisingplans,makeproductsandservicesthatmeetcustomers’needsandwants,andkeepcustomerssotheycandobusinesswiththemagaininthefuture.

HelpforCustomers7

Aseller-customerrelationshipthatworkswellneedscustomerservicetoensurecustomershavegreattimes.Agoodorbadcustomerserviceexperiencecanmakeorbreakbrandloyaltythroughonlinereviews,wordofmouth,andfuturebusiness.Customerservicehasgrowninrecentyearstoincludereal-timeconversationsthroughinstantmessaging,texting,andotherchannels.Therearealotofcompaniessellingthesameorsimilargoodsandservicesonthemarket.Customerservice,whichhasbecomeakeypartofhowmostbusinessescompete,setsthemapartfromeachother.ThisisoneofthemostimportantpartsofSigmaSix[3].

CustomersversusConsumers8

Peopleoftenusethewords“customer”and“consumer”interchangeably,almostthe

samething.Butthereisasmalldifference.Consumersarepeopleorbusinessesthatuseoruseupgoodsandservices.Customersaretheeconomicbuyerswhobuygoodsandservices.Customerscanalsobeconsumers,buttheycanalsobecustomersontheirown.

ImportantPointstoKeepinMind9

•Anorganization’scustomersaretheindividualsandentitieswhopurchasefromit.

•Somebusinesseskeepacarefuleyeontheirinteractionswithclientstodiscovernewwaystoimprovethequalityoftheirproductsandservices.

•

Thewayafirmservesitscustomerscouldprovideitwithanadvantageinthe

marketplace.

•

Marketgoodsandservicesthatareconsumedorusedbyconsumers.

HowMuchIsaCustomerWorth？10

Nomatterwhatyousellorwhatkindofbusinessyourun,thecustomeristhemostimportantpartofyourbusiness.Therewillbenosalesiftherearenocustomers.So,theyareaveryimportantpartoffiguringoutyourmarketingmessageandstrategy.

WhyIsItUsuallytheCustomerWhoHastheUpperHand?11

Thefirstreasonwhythecustomerisalwaysrightisthattheydecidewhetherabusinesswillbesuccessfulornot.Forexample,customercomplaintscouldhurtyourbusiness.Bylookingatyourtargetmarket’scomplaints,feedback,andopinions,youcanlearnalotaboutwhatyourtargetmarketwantsandneedsfromyour