Today I had a great 1:1 with Peter Shankman, the uber social networking guru, who has been spouting radically new ways of thinking about social media, PR, marketing, advertising, and customer service for years.

What led to our conversation is his newest focus on getting companies to understand the bottom-line benefits of listening to their customers and delivering what customers want. I’m thrilled to see someone with such a voice and worldwide audience talking about something that has been my own passion and driving force since entering this world (when you think of Peter, think of the old commercial “When E.F. Hutton talks…”!).

What I learned in our whirlwind 10 minutes together:

  • Companies who give customers what they want can increase revenues by 30-40%.
  • We live in a “sharing economy” and if you are NOT giving customers what they want, they will tell the world.
  • If you make your employees and customers love you, they will do your PR and handle your customer service for you.

I want to encourage everyone to read Peter’s latest book, “Nice Companies Finish First: Why Cutthroat Management Is Over–and Collaboration Is In” and I’m going to put my money where my mouth is. I’ll send the first 25 people who send me a message a free copy of this book. Why?

Because I want more people talking about this concept and I want us all to support Peter’s efforts.

I’m tired of good customer service being something companies talk about but forget about delivering when times get tough.

And to hear more about Peter’s newest message, see this recent TEDx Talk on the “No Mercy Fallacy”.

What do YOU think is getting in the way of companies doing what makes common sense and giving customers what they want? I want to hear your thoughts and I’ll share them with Peter, too!