Is the Customer Always Right?

[Beowulf]

And, of course, an infinite number of monkeys with typewriters would produce and infinite number of Complete works of Shakespeare.

and infinite copies of every other piece of literature, poetry, low brow prose, blog posts, source code, ingredient lists, shopping lists and blackmail letters too*.. such is the nature of infinity.

my favourite "infinity" misconception/quote.. the line from Forbidden planet..
"10 times 10 times 10.. The number ten raised almost literally to the power of infinity"

one ponders.. how ALMOST.. and How LITERALLY as wouldn't they need LITERALLY an infinite number of dials? I'm sure I saw less than 100.. which is under a Googol ! big.. but not infinite

*oh not to mention obscure and slightly out of place mathematical musings and movie quotes

[geoff332]

As a general rule, most rules for business aren't particularly useful. There are usually so many ifs, buts and maybes attached that their application in any given situation is limited.

This one started life as a mantra for big department stores. It started with Marshall and Fields in Chicago and was imported from there to Selfridges (Selfridge worked for Marshall and Field before he started Selfridges, so he may have coined the phrase himself). It was used in advertising; and, like most advertising, it shouldn't be taken too literally. It was meant to mean that the stores would be customer oriented and for the staff to treat the customers as important.

Since then, it got popular and, unfortunately, got picked up by marketers who have a tendency to believe their own advertising. So it moved from being a mantra that reinforced a customer-centric culture to being a more literally idea. Sam Walton, for example, famously used it to guide Wal-Mart's no fault returns policy (which, it seems, never really worked the way it was described - more marketing, I think).

Then, to make matters worse, the customers started believing it, and thought they were literally always right too. Unfortunately, every customer who believes this is wrong - a subtle irony probably lost on many customers. This produces a dangerous cycle of bizarre demands from customers, which the provider cannot fulfil, resulting in the provider being blamed for the customer's bizarreness.

The original intention - that services and organisations should focus on looking after their customers - is a good one. That's one that I do think the UK is well behind many of the other countries I've lived in. However, taking, "the customer is always right" too literally is mostly a recipe for disaster.

[Dreadful Scathe]

My sole reason for going to dancing was because I wanted to meet women and maybe find someone, and get out of my rather blokes-only pub routine.

My sole reason for going dancing was because i was wanting to learn to dance - i just happened to meet my future wife there

[Andy McGregor]

The original intention - that services and organisations should focus on looking after their customers - is a good one. That's one that I do think the UK is well behind many of the other countries I've lived in. However, taking, "the customer is always right" too literally is mostly a recipe for disaster.

As a seasoned marketeer I take the view that the customers are always right. However, you need to make the decision "who are my customers". Your product can never be all-things-to-all-men. And you can not argue with your customers views - they are your customers and that's how they think. For them they are right.

Many years ago I was marketing the market leading laxative. A massive proportion of our customers were women. When I took over managing the brand I went back to first principles as I knew nothing about how it was perceived by consumers. After conducting massive market research surveys I was amazed at the difference between the thinking of men and women regarding bowel function. I also realised that the previous male brand managers knew nothing about our customer. My "customer" was "right" in her attitude, no matter how wrong it seemed to me. Based on our new knowledge we changed everything, the packaging, the message, the marketing, the medium, etc. The following year profits on the brand went up from £1.8 million to £2.8 million!

[Andy McGregor]

My sole reason for going dancing was because i was wanting to learn to dance - i just happened to meet my future wife there

That also where I met your future wife. Do you think I'm in with a chance?

[Beowulf]

My sole reason for going dancing was because i was wanting to learn to dance - i just happened to meet my future wife there

My sole reason for going dancing was because I wanted to meet my future wife there - i just happened to learn to dance

[philsmove]

My sole reason for going dancing was because i was wanting to learn to dance - i just happened to meet my future wife there

The question must be asked
Why do singletons, who don't want to find a partner, want to learn a partner dance

[Dreadful Scathe]

The question must be asked
Why do singletons, who don't want to find a partner, want to learn a partner dance

How many "singletons" that you have known don't want to find partners? ever ?

And, more importantly, what has that got to do with wanting to learn to partner dance? What about partner sports? Many of them will involve the same sex. Are you suggesting people who want to play tennis regularly, are closet homosexuals? I think using "partner" as if it always means "sexual partner", makes you sound like a victorian clergyman

[Barry Shnikov]

(which is inferred by the sentence, without actually being stated within in until now)

"...inferred by the sentence"? Tsk tsk. And you legally trained, as well...

[Barry Shnikov]

If this was true I'd be a total babe-magnet. I'm not attending dance class to "pull" in any way whatsoever. And I've never had a "pull" or even a nibble

Hmm.

Is a 'pull' the same as a 'tug'?

[Andy McGregor]

Hmm.

Is a 'pull' the same as a 'tug'?

Having watched a few tugs in action they seem to be pushing.