It drives me crazy the way some companies treat their customers - as well as their employees even. An employee who isn't treated with respect may not treat a customer with respect and then there goes all value of even having a business, right out the window. All I can say is, if you want your business to fail, then forget about customer value. And if you want to succeed, then customer value should be your highest priority.

A profitable business has and shows respect not only to their employees but to their customers as well. In showing this respect you build a bank, and in that bank you can find return respect, appreciation, friendliness and willingness. All this adds to the recipe of having positive customer value. Having this value is a cornerstone to achieving repeat customers and less hassle. It saves time for all involved. If a manager or CEO or whoever can show that they care, then that gets passed on down the line to an employee straight to the customer.

Customers are the only reason a business stays alive. I don't imagine that a business owner would ever go and buy enough of their own products to keep themselves afloat, so they have to rely on someone else. If you show no appreciation for the person who visits your store or online store front, even if nothing is purchased, then you need to step back and reconsider why you are doing what you are doing and either shut down business or provide what any customer needs.

Keep in mind that as soon as anyone walks into you store, they are immediately a customer, with or without a purchase. There is no rhyme or reason to have to continually find new business because of the loss of customers. To do so only means more costs to run your business and these are unnecessary costs that only inflate your overhead, giving less profit.

Develop relationships, be courteous, make them important to you and let them know that. There are so many ways to show appreciation to get value. Why not have a customer appreciation day a couple of times a year? Maybe it will be an in-store party complete with a cakewalk and prizes. Why save this only for grand openings? Maybe at holiday times, spend the extra bit of profit to buy little holiday-related cheers to hand out, or simple "thank you for doing business with us" notes that aren't printed on the back of a receipt.

If you want your business to succeed, then cater to those who will come to visit. Think about what you want when you walk into a store. Keep in mind what you dislike about the treatment you may receive from other businesses, and know not to do that. Put out a suggestion box, and it make conspicuous. All these things show you care, and the end line will be that you build value in your customers which promotes repeat transactions as well as free, positive advertising via word of mouth.