Ten Commandments of Common sense marketing practices

1. 
   
   Thou shall make the customer feel elated and important: In the modern marketing era the customer is a king and he is a fickle king. He flirts between products and companies and demands utmost attention. It is imperative that we treat him with butter gloves and make him feel that his patronage really means a lot to us. How about saying thanks next time you serve a customer and that too with a smile.
2. 
   
   Thou shall show that you care: The customer may come to you with any problem real or perceived. You shall not belittle him or try to show off your product knowledge on him. Remember that his product is new to him and it is better to educate him about the usage of the same. Wrong usage could lead to dissatisfaction and can result in negative word of mouth publicity.
3. 
   
   Thou shall listen to the customer: Listen do not interrupt. Good marketing people listen more and talk less. An irate customer should be allowed to air his grievance for as long as he desires. The more he talks the more he will vent his frustration and the more you will know about his problems.
4. 
   
   Thou shall try to help him solve his problem and aviod trying to sell an unwanted product: The customer might actually need a pin and ask for a stapler. Just because he asks for a stapler does not mean that you will sell him a stapler. Probe to find out real wants and sell only an appropriate product. A pin seeking customer  who buys a stapler might never return as he feels cheated at a later stage.
5. 
   
   Thou shall not fool a customer and try to pull wool over his eyes: Please do not confuse the customer with lots of Jargon and tech speak. Speak plainly, speak his language and use simple language. For example do not say 21" wing span for a ceiling fan instead say the fan wings are so big that breeze can reach the remote corners of the room.
6. 
   
   Thou shall be truthful and honest: If a certain thing is not possible simply say so. A marketer is a not a magician. He can’t pull rabbits out of a hat. It is better to say no and save the face for a future interaction. Remember you can fool many people many times, some people some times but you can’t fool all the people all the time.
7. 
   
   Thou shall try to fulfill all promises: Make only those promises that you can fulfill. The trick is to under promise but over deliver. This leads to customer delight. In simple words if the delivery of a certain item is 10 hours commit 16 hours. Delivery of the item even in the 15th hour will result in delight as the customer is expecting delivery only in the 16th hour.
8. 
   
   Thou shall keep in touch and network: The marketer who networks will be a very successful person. A good marketing job results in a satisfied customer. So what is stopping us in networking with the customers and soliciting his friends, relatives and acquaintances addresses? Your satisfied customer’s reference will open doors of opportunities and chance to generate more sales.
9. 
   
   Thou shall try to be faithful and show zeal to buyers and non buyers (window shoppers): It has been noticed that marketers fawn over customers showing willingness to buy immediately and show a cold shoulder to casual window shoppers. How does one know that the casual window shopper is not on the threshold of a major buying decision? Treat all customers as if they are about to buy the product.
10. 
    
    Thou shall be courteous and respectful towards competitors: One thing that all marketers should avoid is to bad mouth the competition. The best way to tackle competition is to say “Yes they are good, they have good products but we have better products. Better on price, better on features, better on service and we have more satisfied customers”. It has been noticed that bad mouthing competition has startling negative effect. Continuous bad mouthing will lead to the customer actually talking favorably about competition. The customer feels that he has to defend the competition as the competing company is not present to defend itself. So by badmouthing the competition you may actually be pushing the customer towards the competition!