Raving Fans: A Revolutionary Approach to Customer Service

The Area Manager spends a few days thinking about Charlie’s lessons and then calls Charlie up for a game of golf. Charlie meets the Area Manager, but instead of going golfing, Charlie drives him to a manufacturing plant. They enter the lobby, where the walls are covered with framed awards. They are all from customers and praise the service of the plant. The plant manager, Bill, arrives and greets the Area Manager and Charlie.

In the past, Charlie acted as Bill’s fairy godmother. The Area Manager announces that he is ready to learn the second secret to creating Raving Fans, so Bill tells the Area Manager to turn over the shield on the golden bracelet Leo Varley gave him. There, the second secret is engraved: “LEARN WHAT THE CUSTOMER WANTS” (54). The Area Manager is disappointed, as it seems obvious, but Bill explains that it’s more complex than he assumes.

The Area Manager, confused, asks what the point of the first rule was, as it taught him that he needed a vision. Bill says this means that you must discover the customer’s vision of what they really want and then alter your vision to incorporate it.