Why is it critical for owners of apps to build strong personal relationships with customers?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

For products like apps, it is difficult to determine what the competitive advantage for the business will be. It is typically impossible to prevent someone from developing a similar application. Many entrepreneurial businesses find that their greatest source of sustainable advantage is founded in personal relationships with their customers. The development of a compelling personal relationship is something that large organizations find quite difficult. Building the relationship with a customer for the new firm may be as simple as acknowledging the customer when the business owner sees him or her, or as complex as knowing what a customer buys and contacting her when a new shipment arrives. The long-term difficulty for a new-business owner comes from setting expectations now that he or she will be able to maintain in the future. For an app, customer relationships are critical. An entrepreneur may not be able to prevent other entrants, but if he or she has a loyal customer, the other app will have to be dramatically better or cheaper to have someone switch. Building that customer loyalty before others enter the market is critical.