There are 4 types of exchange between people: theft, an unequal trade, an equal trade, and an exchange that overdelivers. Only the last two build a queue of customers.
How do you build a queue of customers and grow your income?
The better we get at earning money, the more every other area of our life benefits: family relationships, health, emotions, rest, experiences, and self-fulfillment.
To create the conditions where people actually want to become your customers, you need to understand one fundamental thing: there are 4 types of exchange between people — theft, an unequal trade, an equal trade, and an exchange that overdelivers.
Let’s look at a concrete example. You ordered a microwave online:
- Theft. You paid a deposit on a marketplace, and the scammer disappeared. You’re out money and feel cheated.
- An unequal trade. You paid for it and picked it up from the delivery point. You brought it home, unpacked it, and found a crack in the glass. It doesn’t really affect how it works, but it’s visually annoying. You’re unhappy and leave the seller a negative review.
- An equal trade. You ordered the product and it arrived intact. It works with no defects. You’re satisfied and leave 5 stars.
- An exchange that overdelivers. Along with the microwave, they threw in a nice plate as a gift. You’re delighted. You leave 5 stars not just on the marketplace but on Google Maps too. You tell everyone about this wonderful shop with great service.
If we want a queue of customers to form around us, we need to learn how to consistently deliver exchange #3 and exchange #4.
It’s really not as hard as it sounds. The key is to put yourself in the customer’s shoes and ask: “How would I want to be treated in this situation?”
If you make even a small effort to genuinely care about your customers, you’ll stand out against the backdrop of everyone else’s poor service. You’ll have almost no real competition, because most goods and services come to us either defective, late, or with bad service.
One of the reasons I like living in Ukraine is that there’s barely good service in any industry here. It’s very easy to earn customer loyalty just by doing the basics well.
The key is learning not to see every customer as a walking wallet, but first and foremost as a person with their own problems and needs. If we learn to genuinely care about customers, they in turn reward us with money, gratitude, a good reputation, and referrals.