What does the customer want? That's the big question for every business and entrepreneur. If a company can provide customers with the best service and product/service required than it would seem clear that that company would be assured of returned business. As a woman entrepreneur I want to know "So what's up with the behavior of the two bullies in town offering TV, phone and internet? Yes, I mean Verizon FIOS and Comcast Xfinity.

Can you image if you ran your business this way?

Right now both behemoths are offering first time customers a triple play package for $79.99 plus tax, incidentals, unknown other charges etc. Of course, first time customers mean those that are currently doing business with the competitor. Now, before a customer gets too excited about making the change (s)he needs to read the fine print that generally says in one year we plan to double the price of your package and make your life miserable. Of course, the reason you are even considering a change is because your current provider is already making your life miserable - not just with its outrages price, but with customer service when a problem arises.

As a woman in business and woman entrepreneur, and more important a women's business coach, I believe that customer service is gold if you want to be a successful business.

Sure, you can offer a competitor's customer a deal too good to be true, but you can't survive by cutting your price in half and providing lousy customer service. The customer will eventually leave and tell friends just how difficult working with your company is.

I am writing this blog because I believe I am not the only one spending too much of my time calling my current triple play provider with problems about my bill, my service, my broken set top boxes, not getting what the customer service representative promised I would get just a week ago etc. etc. Yet, with all the complaints these companies are receiving their only answer is to lower the price to lure over the next fish into their muddy waters. Yes, there is a reason why movies like Jim Carey's The Cable Guy and many other references on TV to the unscrupulous tactics of these people ring true with all of us.

Yesterday, my doorbell rang and two young men, probably about 18 years old, standing in the rain, wanted to know how I liked my cable provider. (Yes, they were sent out by my current cable provider one of the two mentioned above - can you guess which one?) I couldn't believe my eyes or ears! I said, "Do you know that I have made at least four calls in the past two weeks because of mistakes on my bill, a broken set top box, not getting what the customer service representative told me I would receive in the mail, blah, blah, blah?" No, they didn't know a thing just wanted to stop by in a downpour to see how I was doing. "Well," I said "I'm not doing well as I spend too much time talking on the phone to your customer service representatives who then do whatever they want or just ignore my call". "Sorry to hear that," they said dripping all over my foyer floor, "thanks for your time." "That's it!" I said. "Are you here to help or just zap away more of my precious time - I'm not getting any younger you know." They laughed and off they went to the next home.

My question is what if this company spent their money on actually lowering the price for their customers rather than on advertising fake lower prices for their next bait and sending out people door-to-door only exasperating the situation with their current customers? As I tell my women business clients show appreciation to your customers and they will refer more business to you. The biggest expense in any business is customer acquisition - so once you obtain a customer PLEASE do whatever it takes to retain them!

The moral of this blog is customer service matters and if you want to be successful in business you will take care of your customers like they are family. Love them up and they will never leave you. Love them up and they will champion you with referrals. Love them up and they will understand when your cost rise and their bills must increase. Never ever forget you are only in business because of your customers.

Finally, the day after the visit from the soggy door-to-door cable boys, I received a box in the mail with all the details of how to return all my cable boxes, remotes, modems, etc. I hadn't canceled my service so I called the customer service representative to see if my carrier had canceled me. Her answer, "Sorry, probably a mistake. I don't see a note here that we plan to disconnect you." "Really," I said, "that's nice of you. I would really appreciate notice since I need my internet to write blogs...