Quotes from Chip R. Bell

People who lie, cheat and steal in relationships are communicating that they have such an inferior view of themselves that they are not worthy of another's trust.

Deep inside every customer is a treasure trove of half-baked ideas, creative capacity, and ingenuity-in-the-raw.

Curiosity is the secret map to accessing and mining your customer's imagination.

Be absorbed in what your customer is saying; be inspired by what your customer is meaning.

Never assume you know what your customers value or that their preferences will remain static.

Remember, a great conversation with a customer is not debate practice. Be a learner, not an interrogator.

Partnership elasticity stretches the relationship so it can breathe, grow, and expand.

In the world of innovation, wacky wins; logical loses.

The opportunity to co-create is a gift you give your customer as a way to summon their imagination.

Access to inside your customer's imagination comes with learning and discovering together, out loud.

and "What can we do to help keep you fresh and renewed so you can better handle the challenge of dealing with customers all day?" Remember that focus groups can be virtual online, not just face to face.

One of the surest signs of a bad or declining relationship with a customer is the absence of complaints. Nobody is ever that satisfied, especially not over an extended period of time. The customer is either not being candid or not being contacted. —Theodore Levitt Business School Professor, Harvard University

We are really anxious to do all we can to improve our service, and your feedback would be very helpful.

unanswered! 7. Don't take sides. If you find yourself in the line of fire between the customer and your employee, take the high ground. Instead of choosing sides, your best approach will be to try to collect facts and make a decision based on the performance, not the people involved. Remember that win/lose situations leave losers (and negative

Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning. —Bill Gates 6 Little Things Mean a Lot It's not the one thousand dollar things that upset the customer, but the five buck things that bug them. —Earl Fletcher Sales and Management Trainer, Volkswagen Canada

Wise organizations realize that by crafting processes, practices, and policies that play fair with customers, allow people to feel heard and respected when there are problems, and create the feeling that customers' best interests are being looked after, they build the ultimate competitive weapon: the fervently loyal customer who evangelizes to all within earshot (or Internet connection) about their organization. More leaders are also being won over by

Study after study shows that employees leave organizations primarily because of poor relationships with managers, not because of pay, benefits, or other factors. How well you train, coach, empower, and support your people—and whether you show appreciation for the hard work they do each day in the trenches serving customers—makes all the difference not only in retaining your best employees, but also in creating memorable experiences for customers.

A partnership is the paramount confederation for creating and nurturing innovation.

Envision what the path would be if the best answer lay inside the imagination of the customer.

In a judgment-free arena, there is an evident invitation to surface imaginative ideas, perspectives, and insights.

Co-creation partnerships that prosper reject selfishness; they are all about "How can I serve you?

Let your co-creation partnership run free in the wild meadow of originality; it will be fenced in the stable of practicality soon enough.

Invite your customer to take risks in the pursuit of inspired innovation, and be your customer's net when they step onto that high wire.

Help your customer lighten up, let go, kick back, and save perfection for a rare picture day.