Meanwhile On Amazon ...

A pickleball obsessed Customer Development professional needs the right tools to do the job. The most important tool, of course, is the paddle.

So I order the Hellbender on Amazon.

Six weeks later, I get an email from the seller.

• "Unexpected Problem Completing Your Order".

Oh oh.

Did something happen with my credit card?

Is the product defective? No. (only my ability to play the game is defective).

Turns out the seller wanted me to write a review of the product.

That's not an "unexpected problem completing my order". That's a request on behalf of the vendor.

That's also not a Customer Development strategy.

Every three to twelve months I'm going to need a new paddle. They have a customer for a long, long time if they choose to Develop me. Instead, they tried to Use me to help them acquire new customers.

Develop a Customer?

Or Use a Customer?

Choose wisely

P.S.:  If your customer buys infrequently, the strategy outlined above works from a business standpoint. Not from a Customer Development standpoint, but a well written review of the merchandise can lure new customers into the fold. There is a place for it. It's just not a Customer Development strategy.