The old adage "it's not personal, it's business" comes to mind when thinking about how to effectively run your business in this economy and in any other. What we should be thinking, and how we should be approaching our clients, is: “It's personal, it's professional.” People want to feel that extra touch of personalized service and indeed expect to be “wooed” in order to remain a customer. Regular customers want to be remembered when they enter your store, they want to feel like they belong. Therefore, calling them by name and making them feel welcome will set their shopping experience apart from all the other stores they frequent. Essentially, what we are trying to achieve is to return to the way things were done before the obsession with big box stores, outselling customers, and measuring our success solely by the bottom line. In the early 1900s, customers were served by people dressed formally. staff members and showed individual products. They were guided through their purchasing experience and the staff was trained to understand the little nuances of focusing on the customer's needs. After World War I this changed, people began to wait themselves and take their items to a cashier to check out. Staffing costs were preventing retailers from employing enough staff to cover their store's needs, and reducing staffing costs meant more money in the store owner's pocket. This step towards customer empowerment and reduction of employed staff has removed personal service from the retail environment and it's time to get it back! We know why we're in business, it's to make a living, but making a living is It's important to remember the people who keep us in business, and those people are our customers. How can this return to customer-centered service be possible... middle of paper ... add something new to our store, send appreciation letters to frequent visitors, or offer additional discounts for birthdays. These are just a few suggestions to begin the process of thinking about the details that make the shopping experience special. CONCLUSION This adjustment is about returning to a time when people treated their customers like the precious gifts that they are. Customers are your lifeline; they not only give you financial gain, but are the very purpose of your business, which is to provide a specialized service, so specialize it using these customer-focused skills. Works cited Agahou, Amalia. The Next Web. December 14, 2010. the web. May 28, 2014. Gogoi, Pallavi. Bloomberg Business. November 22, 2006. the web. May 28, 2014. Hyken, Shep. hyken.com. and Web. May 28, 2014.Now possible. and Web. May 28, 2014. Wordpress.org. and Web. May 29 2014.