The ISO 9001 standard talks about the relationship between the company and the customer in a couple of places. First is management’s responsibility to make sure that customers’ needs are a top consideration, and that their requirements are met. Then that customer satisfaction is improving, and customer satisfaction data are analyzed.

Many books deal with improving customer satisfaction, and a few focus on loyalty. Loyalty is a topic unto itself because it’s significantly different from satisfaction and is inherently measurable through behaviors that customers exhibit. In many organizations these three topics are treated as separate entities that don’t connect with each other. Many companies have siloed customer requirements from customer satisfaction measurement, and many don’t even look at customer loyalty. However, these three things are innately related to each other. One cultural development has enabled a strong connection among the three: social media.

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