"Talk is cheap." A cliché, perhaps, but the idea that what we do is more important than what we say is a fundamental truth. It applies in our personal lives and can extend into our professional work, too. Learning to let your actions do the talking can be revolutionary to a company that struggles to create enduring customer relationships.

People who own operate, manage, or otherwise lead a company are always looking for ways to improve productivity, beat the competition, and ensure long-term success. Learning how to put words and ideas into action can be a key to success in the business world.

Hooked on Customers is not about finding the right words, whether labeled as a "strategy" or not. It is an insightful, highly informative book that propels businesses into action. It explores successful customer-centric businesses, examines the ways they execute their strategies, and provides practical recommendations for business leaders to more effectively outperform their competition.

A must-have for any business leader who wants to have a healthy relationship with customers, this book avoids the pitfalls that often plague others that offer business advice. Frequently, company leaders turn to consultants and other resources to recommend strategies that sound great but ultimately don't have any real meaning because they are a series of words without a tie to actions.

Combining his own professional experiences working as a CEO with his extensive research and expertise as an international authority on customer-centricity, author Robert Thompson has identified the five routine organizational habits successful customer-centric businesses use when executing strategy. Legendary leading customer-centric businesses:

• LISTEN to their customers' values and feedback.
• THINK about the implications of fact-based decisions on customers
• EMPOWER employees with the freedom they need to please customers
• CREATE new value for customers, without being asked
• DELIGHT customers by exceeding their expectations

Crucial to Thompson's discussion of these habits is the premise that there are no quick fixes. Customer-centricity takes time, determination, and company-wide commitment. It must be maintained and constantly pursued to ensure that it becomes part of the fabric of a business.

In the end, the results are well worth it. Hooked on Customers helps leaders understand, adopt, and implement the five crucial habits that enable companies to not only survive in highly competitive, overcrowded markets but to dominate them, creating a legacy of success and inspiration along the way.