I bought my first Acura for two reasons: it was a good price and I trusted the seller.

What made me fall in love with my Acura -and become a die hard loyalist to the brand -has absolutely nothing to do with the price, the sales guy, or any other practical reason one considers when buying a car, such as luxuriousness, gas mileage, safety rating, or features.

The reason I am committed to Acura is their outstanding service.

I could gush for a few sentences, or even paragraphs, about how much I adore my local Acura service department. But all you really need to know is this:

the service I receive after the sale is the reason I keep buying this brand.

Is it just me?

No! Consumers love (or hate) brands. And what's more, great service is a factor of love and loyalty. And love and loyalty are part of what lead said consumers to make larger purchases, more often.

What the Acura service team has in common with your sales and service teams

What's the primary reason I call or visit Acura? Take a guess.

If you guessed "because something isn't working", you're right!

My dealership uses my breakdowns as opportunities to build trust, gain insights on my preferences, and sell me more cars. They're thinking about how to add more value and how to nurture our relationship (and my commitment) over the lifecycle of my purchase.

You're thinking the same way, right?

How to earn more revenue from fewer customers

Here's something we all know but don't all act on: it's more costly to land new customers than it is to retain existing customers. Fifteen percent more costly.

In fact, up to 90 percent of revenue can be earned after the sale.

How?

• Steve Cox shares five tips for increasing wallet share with existing clients in this blog.
• Ed Daly tells us how to develop a customer adoption strategy in this blog.

But wait, there's more! We haven't gotten to the loyalty phase yet.

How to turn all of your customers into life-long customers

We do business with people we know, like, and trust. It's how you service your customer that makes them loyal to your brand. Or seek your competitors.

Everyone in your company is providing customer service, not just your support team. The more people within your company that delight your customers, the more likely your customers will want to do more business with you.

So how do you activate your entire company to better serve your customers?

• Ed Daly highlights five strategies for creating a culture of customer success in this blog.
• Scott Brown shares how to respond more quickly and deeply to customer needs in this blog.
• Kelly Crothers reveals strategies to develop and maintain healthy relationships  in this blog.

There are a lot of practical strategies in these blogs. Pick one and get started today.

If you remember nothing else from this blog...

Remember the strategy that made me a die-hard-Acura-loyalist is the same strategy that will make all of your customers fall in love -and stay in love -with your brand.