If you want to be truly successful, your focus must be on growing your company through attracting and retaining customers. The result will be a business that is increasingly successful.

Think about a time when you received poor customer service—one that left you feeling uncared for, unsatisfied, and unhappy. Left with a bad taste in your mouth from a complete lack of value, it’s safe to say you probably won’t do business with that company again. If you haven’t already, you’ll likely advise your friends and family not to do business with them either.

Now, think about the last time you received exceptional customer service from a company. Reflect on how pleasant it was, how satisfied you were, and how good you felt. That experience likely endeared you to that company. I would guess that you’re very likely to spend your hard-earned money with them again, and you might even tell others about it too.

As a business owner, which of these experiences do you want to give your customers? If you want to take your company to new heights—to be exceptional—you must focus on the level of care you and your team provide and the relationships you build.

The key to consistently delivering exceptional customer service is to show that you care about your customers first. Revenue is important, but if you don’t truly care, it will evaporate or fall short of its potential. The difference between an exceptional and an awful customer experience lies in the level of care provided by everyone who contributes to that experience.

To earn the loyalty of your customers, you must first care deeply about them and their experience with your business. Caring in business is expressed in both word and deed and is directly influenced by the attitudes and behaviors of the people who run the company. Whether you care about your customers or not, they can feel it.

As a business owner who genuinely cares, you’ll hire team members who also care deeply and treat them with respect. In turn, they will share this good feeling with customers, resulting in a consistently exceptional experience.

The more you and your team care about customers—and consistently show it—the higher their satisfaction will be with your products and services. As a result, you’ll become their go-to solution for fulfilling their needs, and you’ll earn their referrals.

Are you and your team approaching customers with gratitude and a desire to make their lives better? If so, and if you continue to do so, you’ll likely build lasting relationships that benefit everyone, especially as the economy tightens.

Hopefully, after everything we’ve been through since the pandemic, there will be more gratitude, appreciation, and mutual respect between business owners, team members, and customers. Now, more than ever, we’ve been reminded that we truly need each other.

Here are two main points to remember: 

When business owners care about people, they position their companies to create happiness and satisfaction, as well as profits. And when team members feel cared for by their managers, they pass that feeling on to customers, who, in turn, care about the company and provide repeat business.

The ultimate key to lasting success lies in a simple and timeless rule: treat people the way you want to be treated. If you truly care, that will determine the amount of business and success that comes full circle back to you.