Relationship Marketing Strategy and implementation

Creating and implementing relationship marketing strategies 411

for creating additional value for those customers through customiz-
ing the offer.

Customer profitability

It is perhaps surprising that most companies focus more upon iden-
tifying the profitability of products rather than customers. The
paradox is that it is customers that generate profits, not products.
Products create costs but customers create profits. This is more than
mere semantics. What we find is that the difference between profit
and loss is typically determined afterthe product is manufactured.
The costs of storing, moving and supporting products are signifi-

Product

Price

People

Processes

Place

Promotion

Proactive

personalized

service

Figure 6.2 The expanded marketing mix.