17 Quotes That Help Define Customer Moments

It doesn’t take an MBA for a small business owner to understand that every moment spent with a customer is a defining moment – an opportunity to turn a one time sale into a long term relationship. But while we have our defining moments, our customers have theirs too.

Who’s responsible for them? If you’re a solo business, the opportunity is yours alone. When you have employees and sales people, it’s likely you entrust those moments to your customer service and sales teams.  I hope you’ve chosen people who represent your brand, your culture, your purpose, because although they will be creating the experience, you will be held accountable.

But it’s not enough for them to understand you and the company.  They must also understand the customer.  Who buys from you, and why. They should understand the underlying need – and know needs may vary from customer to customer.  In fact, whether they’re dealing with one or one hundred customers, while they may purchase the same product or service, their needs often different because their reason or circumstance may be different.

These 17 quotes help express the true realities we should keep top of mind.  After all, a customer’s defining moment, determines ours as well.

1.  “Do what you do so well that they will want to see it again and bring their friends.” –Walt Disney
2. “There is only one boss: the customer. And he can fire everybody in the company from the chairman on down, simply by spending his money somewhere else.” –Sam Walton
3. “There is a spiritual aspect to our lives—when we give we receive—when a business does something good for somebody, that somebody feels good about them!” –Ben Cohen
4. “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.” –Warren Buffett
5. “The result of a business is a satisfied customer.” –Peter Drucker
6. “The most successful organizations are the ones that make it easier to do business with them.” –Scott McKain
7. “It is not the employer who pays the wages. Employers only handle the money. It is the customer who pays the wages.” –Henry Ford
8. “What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.” –Zig Ziglar
9. “When the customer comes first, the customer will last.” –Robert Half
10. “There is a big difference between a satisfied customer and a loyal customer.” –Shep Hyken“
11. “People may hear your words, but they feel your attitude.” –John Maxwell
12. “We see our customers as invited guests to a party, and we are the hosts. It’s our job every day to make every important aspect of the customer experience a little bit better.”  -Jeff Bezos
13. “Don’t find customers for your products, find products for your customers.” –Seth Godin
14. “Every company’s greatest assets are its customers, because without customers there is no company.” -Michael LeBoeuf
15. “Quality in a service or product is not what you put into it. It is what the customer gets out of it.” –Peter Drucker
16. “The customer’s perception is your reality.” –Kate Zabriskie
17. “If you are not taking care of your customer, your competitor will.” –Bob Hooey