I admit the title of this post is a little link-baitish. I’m not trying to say that you should only think of your customers as just dollars, what I’m trying to say is that you should never forget that it’s your customers that put money in your pocket. Every time you pick up the phone, answer and email or go out of your way to help someone, you’re putting money in your pocket if you do a good job. As much as customers can grate us, they pay our bills. There are times when customers are a negative drain on resources. When the amount of time taken to help is actually losing your money in the long term. The Four-Hour Workweek talks about cutting out the 20% of customers that take up 80% of customer service time. In those cases, the time can be better spent concentrating on other areas of the business. There is a balance. Just never forget where the money comes from.