Across almost every industry, new customers cost more than old ones – so customer satisfaction, as a means to retention, is “job one” for most businesses. In recent years, the stakes have grown even higher as economic conditions and the growth of social media have given customer opinions more significance. Today, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn make it easy for a customer to share a positive or negative brand story with hundreds or thousands of people as quickly as one can hit the submit button. If customer retention is a goal, then customer advocacy – turning buyers into believers – is essential.