My house was BOILING! Okay, maybe that’s a slight exaggeration since water boils at 212 degrees, but it’s much hotter than it should be when the air conditioner is running 24 hours a day.

We had only used one Air Conditioning contractor since we moved into our house, and it’s the same one that installed the system that was currently causing all our problems. Out of warranty for the system and out of patience with that contractor, we decided to go in a different direction.

Before contacting a new contractor, my wife went to visit a neighbor. The neighbor had a friend over who recommended a different company. I checked out the recommended company on Angie’s List and with the Better Business Bureau. For both organizations, the company got the highest rating possible – All “A’s.”

That’s it – there’s no more story. The real story in this Tip of the Week is that customers drive sales – NEW sales. Whether it’s Angie’s List, the BBB, Yelp, Google, consumer product reviews on retail sites, or good old fashioned word-of-mouth, acquiring new customers is not all about the marketing.

Your existing customers are the recommenders to their friends, family, the BBB, or Angie’s List. When you’re serving a customer, make sure that you are acutely aware that this person is going to drive prospective customers to you or away from you. It’s not just about their own repeat business; it’s also about the business they can bring you.

Serve your customers like they are your best sales people – because their opinions about your company’s attitudes, processes, and products will either make them your best sales people…or your worst nightmare.

To get tomorrow’s customers, make a great experience for today’s.