For any business to make a profit and survive, it must have enough (loyal) customers. Dr. Michael LeBoeuf’s decision to write this book entitled “How to Win Customers and Keep Them for Life” is therefore commendable. LeBoeuf is an author, business consultant, and professional speaker with international publications. For more than twenty years, he was a professor of management at the University of New Orleans, retiring at age forty-seven.

Businesses ranging from Fortune 500-sized corporations to small banks and medical offices turn to LeBoeuf whenever they need robust, practical ways to live and work smarter.

The author says that the book contains everything you need to know about successful sales, as well as how to win customers for life. The book is about how to transform the people of any organization into a motivated and customer-motivated team. According to LeBoeuf, the success of any business organization depends largely on knowing the answers to critical questions such as “Why do some people buy once … and never return?”, “Why do some people become customers strong and stable? “,” How do you turn an angry or complaining customer into a happy and satisfied one? “,” What are the five best ways to keep customers coming back? “, Etc.

This author says that one of the most important keys to long-term business success can be summed up in the phrase “Quality Customer Service.” However, he adds, there is a painful awareness that outstanding service is too rare. LeBoeuf argues that the reason for this is the result of these three problems: (1) employees don’t know the basics; (2) moments of truth – those crucial customer contact points that can make or break a business – are not being properly identified and managed; (3) poor reward system: Most managers do not reward workers for providing excellent service.

He says that a typical company hires a person to do a job, pays them a fixed salary, and gives them little to no incentive to go the extra mile for clients. LeBoeuf adds that in these types of situations, the attitude of the typical employee degenerates into indifference or even contempt towards customers.

This book is divided into three parts. The first part is thematically labeled “The Basics” and contains nine chapters. Chapter one borders on the world’s biggest trade secret. Here, LeBoeuf emphasizes the importance of customer care and satisfaction awareness as a secret to customer retention and business success.

“Take a moment and consider how valuable customers are. Only they allow you to earn a living the way you do. Treat them well and satisfied customers will be your best source of advertising and marketing,” he says. .

LeBoeuf emphasizes that when most people think of business success, they think of dollars, cents, statistics, facts, and figures. However, educates, all those measures of success are determined by the behavior of customers and the employees who serve them.

In chapter two titled “Better than selling,” LeBoeuf says that the principle of “better than selling” is to focus on what customers want and need, helping them buy what is best for them and making them feel good about it.

He educates that this principle is important to everyone who works and not just to those in sales. In his words, “You can work in a warehouse, in a laboratory or on a production line and rarely, if ever, do you see one of your clients. But that client is paying your salary …”

In chapters three through six, the author examines concepts such as the best customer you’ll ever get; the only two things people buy; buying a lot more when they buy from you; and the importance of customer perception.

Chapter seven is based on asking the golden question to win new customers. Here, LeBoeuf argues that if rewarding customers is the key to winning and keeping them, then naturally it follows that the surest way to win more customers is to provide rewards that no one else is providing.

According to him, virtually every successful entrepreneur you ask will tell you that finding and fulfilling unfulfilled desires is the name of the game when it comes to winning customers. LeBoeuf adds that “finding viable and profitable answers to the golden question is more of an art than a science and often involves a great deal of risk.” It offers tips on how to stack the odds in your favor in this regard.

In chapters eight and nine, LeBoeuf advises on the need to ask the platinum questions to keep customers for life and also offers five best ways to keep customers coming back.

The second part is generically called “Managing the moments of truth: Ten strategies ready for action” and contains ten chapters, that is, chapters ten to 19. In chapter ten, LeBoeuf discusses what to do when the customer shows up, calls or ask. The most crucial contact of all is the first contact the customer makes with your business, because if you lose it here, it will likely be lost forever, says the author. Offers tips on how to make a positive first impression.

In chapters 11-14, LeBoeuf discusses what to do when the client is angry or defensive; what to do when the client has special requests; what to do when the client cannot make a decision; as well as what to do when the customer has objections to the purchase.

In Chapter 15, based on what to do when the customer gives signals to buy, the author says that it is very common for salespeople to spend half an hour selling their services and two hours buying them. There is a time to talk, a time to listen and a time to close, educates, adding that the best time to sell is when the customer is ready to buy. LeBoeuf discusses how to recognize and reinforce buy signals and verbal buy signals.

In chapters 16 to 19, you analyze analytically concepts such as what to do when the customer buys; what to do when the customer refuses to buy; what to do when the customer complains; and what to do when the customer is going to be disappointed.

The last part is summarily labeled “The Triple Win Reward System” and contains three chapters, that is, Chapters 20-22. In Chapter 20, titled “What Gets Rewarded, Gets Done,” LeBoeuf states that people behave in the same way as the reward system. teaches them to behave. “The biggest obstacle to effective performance in most organizations is the huge mismatch between required behavior and rewarded behavior. Organizations of all kinds fall into the trap of expecting A, rewarding B, and wondering why they get B.” , reveals the author.

In Chapters 21 and 22, LeBoeuf focuses his analytical search focus on how to stay focused on the customer, as well as the quality customer service action plan. According to him, when it comes to providing excellent service, many of today’s business owners and managers find that the quality of their service is deteriorating and needs to be improved. However, he adds that instead of making a serious commitment to improving it, they opt for Band-Aid solutions.

Stylistically, this book is excellent. Apart from the simplicity of the language, the depth of the content is commendable. The fact that the text is segmented into three well articulated parts facilitates its study. At the beginning of each chapter, LeBoeuf uses a legendary quote or classic allusion for conceptual reinforcement. It also uses thoughtful illustrations to achieve analytical clarity.

However, the book design needs to be improved. Also, “Y”, the coordinating conjunction to add, should have been used in place of “&” in the book title to convey linguistic formality.

Generally, this text is a classic. If you want your business to survive by knowing how to win and retain customers in the New Year, you should read this book. It is strategically revealing.