Customer Customer Big five (disambiguation) This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality

A customer is someone who purchases or rents something from an individual or organization.

The word historically derives from "custom," meaning "habit"; a customer was someone who frequented a particular shop, who made it a habit to purchase goods of the sort the shop sold there rather than elsewhere, and with whom the shopkeeper had to maintain a relationship to keep his or her "custom," meaning expected purchases in the future. The shopkeeper remembered the sizes and preferences of his or her customers, for example. The word did not refer to those who purchased things at a fair or bazaar, or from a street vendor.

Types of Customer

Customers can be classified into two main groups; internal and external customers. An internal customer is someone who works for the organisation, possibly in another department or another branch. External customers are essentially the general public.

These two groups can be further broken down:

Internal Customers

External Customers

In the category of business people- suppliers, bankers, competitors could be included. Though suppliers are also considered internal customers by the leading professional companies. In the category of groups- NGOs, Government Bodies, Voluntary Organisations and clubs could be there.

Needs and Expectations

Customers have needs and expectations that need to be observed by the organisation. A need is something that the customer needs, like car Insurance being low. An expectation is something that the customer won't necessarily get but they expect to get, like a car getting from a person's place of departure to their destination.

Customers Voice The understanding of the customers needs is not easy. To get the real importance of his needs and expectations requires a technique of questions which ask if you get this or that how do you feel. And also the question, if you don't get it, how do you feel.