Understanding Customer Relationships

Relationship marketing is a useful concept for understanding customers, but this paper looks at customer relationships from a different - and more holistic - perspective . It examines the extent to which the metaphor of personal relationships can be applied to interactions between individuals and companies, focusing on the customer relationship from the viewpoint of the customer rather than the supplier .

There are clearly limits to how far we can apply the metaphor of personal relationships to customer relationships - the relationships we have with organisations have different meanings from our relationships with family and friends, and do not determine our happiness, and even our health .

Despite these differences, personal relationship theory provides some useful frameworks for thinking through customer relationships, and there are some fundamentals which link both - the importance of honesty, being treated as a human being and keeping promises . Further, good personal and customer relationships require understanding and effort from both parties .

Ultimately, businesses need to consider how the types of bonds they have with their customers and the nature of the benefits they provide help drive their desired business outcomes .