It sounds like a cliché, "Give the customer a bit more than they actually pay for." Why would any business want to do it, though? Giving away even small amounts of sellable product is a cost that builds up against the bottom line. Surely it would be a waste of time, effort and product to do so. Perhaps—but let’s not forget that there is more to the bottom line than profits.

What about customer satisfaction? Aren’t happy customers what all businesses want? Sure it is. No business wants a bad reputation. In this day of high tech marketing, reaching out to prospective buyers is easier than ever before. Yet, among all the ways of getting the word out, every business must contend with what people say about them after the sale. That’s why a bit of oiling is necessary. It helps eliminate squeaks, and even dispels most rattles.

Word-of-mouth advertising is a force easily overlooked because most companies never hear what people say about them. Let’s use a generic "restaurant" for an example. It is easy to see when a restaurant is successful, because the parking lot is full during business hours. People who are satisfied with a particular restaurant’s food and service tell their friends about the experience. Their friends visit the restaurant, and they in turn tell more friends about the great food and wonderful encounter. Soon, the whole town knows how good this particular restaurant is and—viola—the restaurant is successful! The restaurant didn’t have to spend a dime on the media to get this positive advertising. It only had to produce good food and good service.

Likewise, the same restaurant may change something about its food or service, the experience is cheapened in some way, and word-of-mouth advertising causes the death of a once-successful eatery. Every restaurant proprietor fears the "empty parking lot." Some even cause the employees to park prominently out front to give the impression that all is as it once was. Yet, nothing can repair the damage that word-of-mouth advertising did. Somewhere along the way, this restaurant stopped oiling its customers, and I don’t mean cutting out the fried foods!

John White, once owner-operator of Spartanburg’s famous Beacon Restaurant, was a master over word-of-mouth advertising. He knew how to grease the squeaky wheel. Not only did every plate of food contain more than the customer paid for, but if anyone took the time to give him a compliment, he would give them something extra. Sometimes it would be whole apple pies, other times a scoop of ice cream, once in a while homemade cookies. I know, because I complimented him a lot! Once, my grandmother dropped by to pick up a pound of barbeque hash, and when she got home, the container was not nearly as full as she thought it should have been. She called and complained. Mr. White took her name, address and telephone number, and apologized. Within fifteen minutes, a Beacon employee showed up on her doorstep with three pounds of hash, her money back for the first pound of hash, and a handwritten note from Mr. White asking her to return! To this day, the Beacon Restaurant has carried on the tradition of excellent customer service, as evidenced by their full parking lot.

In short, the best way to keep customers coming back is to make sure they stay happy. If a customer is disgruntled, rectify the situation immediately. Word-of-mouth advertising, both positive and negative, can mean the affluence or destruction of a company. A bit of oiling, something even as simple as a smile of gratitude, may be all it takes to get the customer’s tongue a-wagging about how great that company is. Spend a small amount of the advertising budget on oil instead of glitzy media. No amount of advertising money can beat the influence of friends telling friends telling friends telling friends….