"Secrets of Customer Relationship Management: It's All About How You Make Them Feel"
By James G. Barnes
(Published by McGraw-Hill Trade. 1st Edition Sept 2000)

An examination of the quantifiable relationship-building techniques that neighborhood retailers use again and again to keep business flowing for generations, putting those techniques to use for the general business environment. Provides help in gaining customer trust and loyalty. DLC: Customer relations.

"Developing New Services: Incorporating the Voice of the Customer Into Strategic Service Development"
by Caroline M. Fisher
(Published by ASQ Quality Press, 2003)

The voice of the customer has long been recognized as an important driver for successful businesses. Likewise, there is a great deal of information on the benefits of quality function deployment and how it can revitalize an organisation. However, little has been written that connects the two together effectively to create a full understanding and show a process for effectively integrating the two disciplines. This is the focus of Developing New Services: Incorporating the Voice of the Customer into Strategic Service Development, which explains how to incorporate the voice of the customer into product and service development and use the results to give strategic planning for the organisation.

"Customer Culture: How FedEx and Other Great Companies Put the Customer First Every Day"
by Michael D. Basch
(Published by Financial Times Prentice Hall; 1st edition, 2002)

Everyone talks about creating a "customer-centred culture". In Customer Culture, the executive who pioneered the legendary customer culture of FedEx shows exactly how to go beyond talk and make it happen. Drawing on lessons learned at FedEx and at companies ranging from UPS to Cisco to the newest startups - Basch shows how to teach customer focused cultures with the vision, values, goals, relevance, feedback and actions needed to succeed.

"Improving Customer Satisfaction, Loyalty, and Profit : An Integrated Measurement and Management System"
by Michael Johnson, and Anders Gustafsson
(Published by Jossey-Bass, 2000)

This book shows managers how to break down the walls between customer service and other
organizational functions and integrate their functions. It demonstrates how, by tying together their customer value chain to create a cohesive customer measurement and management system, companies can create both happy customers and the organizational know-how necessary to keep them happy.

"The Anatomy Of Buzz"

By Emanuel Rosen
(Published by Doubleday, 2000) 

A new study by Emanuel Rosen, Vice President of Marketing for Niles Software, shows just how important word of mouth or Buzz is when customers choose from competing products.  For movie-goers, 53 percent follow the recommendations of friends, while 58 percent of car buyers rely to some extent on the advice of others.  For products such as Palm organisers or mobile phones, the enthusiasm of the others counts for 65 percent of purchasers.  The reasons for the importance of Buzz are that customers can hardly hear advertising messages due to the overall volume of advertising ‘noise’, customers are skeptical of what companies tell them, and customers are connected through networks of friends, associates, relatives, and other contacts.

"Counterintuitive Marketing : Achieve Great Results Using Uncommon Sense"
by Kevin J. Calncy and Peter C. Krieg
(Published by Free Press, 2000)

Roland Rust says this book is "counterintuitive" because it goes against the grain of all the "one minute manager" and "go with the flow" management prescriptions that we have seen too many of lately. The authors question whether downsizing, a business technique for increasing profits by cutting costs, allows for growth and, if not, is thus self-defeating. They instead recommend marketing existing as well as new goods and services as the way to expand. The authors discuss the differences between marketing plans based on tradition and those based on science and pose 100 questions for business leaders to consider when evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of their firm's marketing efforts.

"The 7 Universal Laws of Customer Value: How to Win Customers & Influence Markets"
by Stephen C. Broydrick
(Published by Irwin Professional Pub, 1996)

Providing helpful insights from a broad scope of businesses, this straightforward guide succinctly demonstrates how readers can distinguish themselves from the competition and ultimately increase market share. Written by a customer specialist, this book will help readers learn from practical, no-nonsense ideas--so profits will soar and innovation will flourish.

"Rethinking the Sales Force : Redefining Selling to Create and Capture Customer Value"
by Neil Rackham, John R. Devincentis
(Published by McGraw-Hill, 1999)

Shows how the successful sales force breaks away from traditional thinking and transforms itself into a complex business processes with multiple sales approaches and selling models that meet the demands of today's sophisticated customers.

"What Customers Like About You : Adding Emotional Value for Service Excellence and Competitive Advantage"
by David Freemantle
(Published by Nicholas Brealey, 1998)

Making the most of potential through emotional attachment. Having just been sent a copy of David Freemantle's latest book I can totally recommend it. David uses live examples from many different companies across the world and it is one of those management books that you don't put down. Page after page of common sense combined with a real understanding of the problems that organisations are having as we approach this new age of opportunity. David explains has given many examples of organisations that can prove that by caring about people you can be incredibly successful. A great read for any leader that wants to unleash the potential of people across the business. We are all still learning and David's book leaves you with the feeling that with belief anything is possible. richard.brimble@mcmail.com from Halifax, West Yorkshire, UK

"Customers for Life: How to Turn that One-Time Buyer into a Lifetime Customer"
by Carl Sewell, Paul B. Brown
(Published by Pocket Books, 1998)

Carl Sewell's proven methods can help entrepreneurs turn their employees into service superstars, develop effective advertising, and, most importantly, keep customers coming back for more.

"6 Keys to Achieving Success through Customer Service"
by John L. Myers, Tara A. Blanc
(Published by Heritage Pubs., 1999)

This book speaks to those on whom the success of our brand really rests, those on the very front line of contact with our customers.  This book is a guide to help you learn and practice service skills in six key areas: attitude,
communication, product knowledge, appearance, personal standards, and initiative. It helps customer contact people uncover their knowledge, polish skills and put them to work, and helps develop a professional service manner.

"The Complete Idiot's Guide to Great Customer Service (Complete Idiot's Guide To...)"
by Ron Karr, Don Blohowiak
(Published by MacMillan Distribution, 1997)

The book is aimed at showing any business person how to develop customer service programs.  Chapters include how to train service personnel, handle complaints, create a service culture in any sized company, and develop service strategies that bring out the best in the business. Don Blohowiak and Ron Karr are consultants in management, customer service, and sales training.

"Strategic Customer Care : An Evolutionary Approach to Increasing Customer Value and Profitability"
by Stanley Brown
(Published by John Wiley & Son Ltd, 1989)

This book explains the three stages in the evolution of customer care. Readers are guided through the process of acquiring customers, retaining them through segmentation and management of the relationship, and targeting their most significant marketing efforts to the most profitable segments.  Outlines successes and failures of companies, including Sears, CIBC, AT&T/Matrixx, Kodak, and FedEx.

"Moments Of Truth"
by Jan Carlzon
(Published by Harper Collins Reprints, 1989)

The president and CEO of Scandinavia Airlines (SAS) shows how to adapt to the new
customer-driven economy. "The best book on leadership by a CEO."--John Naisbitt, author of
Megatrends.  The CEO tells the story of turning around an airline by focussing on the moments of truth, or the points where customers come in contact with the company.

"Brand Leadership : Building Assets in the Information Society"
by David A. Aaker and Erich Joachimsthaler
(Published by Free Press, 2000)

Implementing strategic brand leadership, the authors maintain, requires a radical shift in an organization's culture, its structure, and its systems. In the book, they outline what this shift is all about, and discuss the important components of brand leadership: defining and elaborating a brand identity; designing the brand's architecture to achieve clarity, synergy, and leverage; building a brand beyond the obvious route of advertising by incorporating such aspects as sponsorship and the role of the Internet; and organizing the entire company around global brand leadership as opposed to merely the creation of a global brand. 

"Ogilvy On Advertising"
by David Oligvy
(Published by Random House, 1987)

One of the all time great books about advertising.  This is one of those books that you want to hold, look at and absorb.  Olgivy translates what customers value into messages that they remember and respond to.

"The Balanced Scorecard: Translating Strategy Into Action"
by Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton (Published by Harvard Business School Press, 1996)

"Customer Relationship Management: Making Hard Decisions With Soft Numbers"
by Jon Anton & John Anton
(Published by Prentice Hall College Division, 1996)

This book documents and demonstrates cost-effective techniques that the authors have used to assist company managers in accomplishing strategic customer relationships management. It makes the link between Customer Relationship Management and Customer Value Management providing future or practicing non-technical corporate managers with the tools to better retain customers by backing their “hard decisions” with the “soft numbers” used to measure customer relationships.

"Developing New Services: Incorporating the Voice of the Customer into Strategic Service Development"
by Caroline M. Fisher, James T. Schutta
(Published by American Society for Quality, April 2003)

The voice of the customer has long been recognised as an important driver for successful businesses. Likewise, there is a great deal of information on the benefits of quality function deployment and how it can revitalize an organisation. However, little has been written that connects the two together effectively to create a full understanding and show process for effectively integrating the two disciplines. This is the focus of this book, which explains how to incorporate the voice of the customer into product and service development and uses the results to guide strategic planning for the organisation.