A five-step strategy for turning a commodity into a necessity
When products and services become interchangeable, price becomes the ultimate determinant for consumers. Indispensable shows businesses how to break out of that cycle by using The Five Drivers-a strategy that takes companies to the next level of performance. Renowned business consultant Joe Calloway looks at how real companies have made their product or service "mission critical," and satisfied customers in the process.
Indispensable goes straight to the heart of the issue and reveals how successful companies-of any size, in virtually any manufacturing, selling, or service endeavor-achieve market leadership through The Five Drivers of fierce customer loyalty. Indispensable shows readers how to:
* Create and sustain momentum: overcome organizational inertia and keep moving forward
* Develop habitual dependability: make consistency of performance a defining characteristic
* Connect continuously
* See the Big Picture Outcome: create compelling customer experiences
* Engage, Enchant, Enthrall: make magic in the marketplace
With interviews, detailed case studies, and dozens of real-world, effective customer service ideas and initiatives, Indispensable is just what today's forward-thinking businesses need.

JOE CALLOWAY is a consultant on branding and competitive positioning whose client list reads like a Who's Who in business?from newspapers in Sweden, hotels in Great Britain, and computer companies in South Africa to world brands like BMW and American Express. He speaks frequently on business trends, and has been inducted into the International Speaker's Hall of Fame. He owns an award-winning restaurant in Nashville, Tennessee, where he lives with his wife, Annette, and daughter, Jess. He is also the author of Becoming a Category of One, from Wiley.

Preface ix

1 The Default Choice 1

2 The Five Drivers 11

3 Case Study: Deluxe 27

4 Back to the Six New Basics 51

5 Case Study: W Hotels 67

6 Create Community 77

7 Case Study: Gitomer 87

8 Obvious but Often Overlooked 97

9 Right Place-Right Time 113

10 Case Study: The Pancake Pantry 125

11 Big Picture Outcome 133

12 Twenty-Eight Indispensable Lessons 145

13 Case Study: Pinnacle Financial Partners 169

14 Repeatable Process 179

15 Stop Apologizing-Start Doing Your Job 189

16 Case Study: LawTalk 197

17 The Customer Decides 203

Index 221