The leadership of an organization has no job more important than making sure everyone knows the importance of the customer. CEOs who want real job security should try to please customers, not shareholders.

Unless a customer sees improvement, there is no improvement. It doesn't exist.

Unless you let someone know what action has been taken, the customer is never going to perceive a difference. You've got to close the loop. If the customer isn't aware of the fix, then the remedy doesn't exist.

Customers who complain are not nitpickers or looking for discounts, they're committed to your organization. Someone who isn't committed to your company wouldn't bother complaining.

Companies shouldn't try to invent new ways for collecting customer feedback. They already have countless customer interactions available to them, ranging from salespeople to technical reps. What's important is to provide some structure to these interactions and share them with everyone in the organization.

Although most companies start out with a strong focus on customers, as the organization grows beyond a dozen members, people may stop looking outward and become preoccupied with internal processes.