In the long run, it costs more to provide poor rather than good service.

Twenty years ago if you provided someone with horrible service, it may take weeks or even months for the word-of-mouth message to get out to 15-20 potential customers. Today, with social media, thousands of potential customers can learn about horrible service within hours, minutes or even seconds after it happens.

In the long run, it costs more to provide poor rather than good service.

If your values are not used as the constitution of your organization, or if they are compromised, they become just words on paper.

When you focus on results, you will very seldom see a change in your culture. But, if you focus on a customer-centric culture, you will realize long-term results.

One of the reasons for The Walt Disney Company's long- term success is really the first of Dr. Deming's famous points, "create constancy of purpose." In his professional career, Walt's major passion was to provide the finest in family entertainment. For the most part, for nearly a century, the Company has stayed true to that legacy, and has set the standard for the entire entertainment industry.

Companies whose marketing and sales departments are not using the Internet and social media for communication may have the same fate that the dime stores had when Wal-Mart came onto the scene.