I've heard founders talking about how their business gradually took a decline as a result of pressure to maximize shareholder value. While I haven't been in such a situation since my entrepreneurial journey, I believe the problem is not necessarily the pressure but how leaders respond to the pressure. 

Too often, I have seen executives resort to slashing employee pay, reducing service quality, or overcharging customers just to hit quarterly numbers.

Yes, those tactics boost short-term profits. But they slowly destroy what actually sustains a business: customer trust, employee engagement, brand reputation, etc. When these weaken, the business becomes fragile and poses a risk to the very investments that the executives are trying to protect.

At Potior Satori, we see a better path, one that leads to sustainable profitability for businesses and protects the long-term return of investor.

Customer love: the backbone of sustainable growth

When I say “love your customers”, I don’t mean sentimentality. I mean executives caring for their team and inspiring them to consistently do what’s right for customers, building a business customers can trust, rely on, and proudly recommend.

When companies operate this way, something remarkable happens:

• customers keep choosing them, and 

• they bring their friends.

That’s the foundation of what we call Earned Growth (Earned growth is coined by Fred Richfield, the creator net promoter score NPS). This is growth that compounds naturally, without wasteful marketing spend or unsustainable tactics.

Zappos is one great example of the economic value of loving customers. They grew into a billion dollar company by just WOWing their customers and showing them they're loved. 

Rosenbluth International (before selling to American Express in 2003) achieved a 7500% revenue growth going from $20 million to $1.5 billion while maintaining profit above industry benchmark.

In Hal Rosenbluth's words, “Our secret is controversial. It centers around our basic belief that companies must put their people (employees) — not their customers— first. You might wonder how our clients feel about this. For our people, the clients are priority number one. Our company has built a solid reputation in the field of customer service (in fact, our client retention rate is 96 percent), but we have actually done it by focusing inside, on our own people.”

Why it matters for investors 

If you care about long-term returns, customer loyalty should matter to you deeply.

Loyalty-led growth protects your investment. It creates stable, predictable cash flow that cushions against market shocks and economic downturns. It also reduces the need for expensive acquisition campaigns that eat into profit margins.

When customers stay longer, buy more, and refer others, you also win as an investor.

It’s that simple.

Growth through customer loyalty is low-risk growth. It doesn’t depend on discounts, price wars, quality or service reduction, or cost-cutting. It depends on relationships built on true love and trust.

The economic value of loving customers

Companies that build around customer love perform better financially. They have higher EGR, NRR, and ENCR.

1. Earned Growth Rate (EGR):
The percentage of revenue gained from returning and referred customers growth that costs almost nothing to acquire.

2. Net Revenue Retention (NRR):
How much recurring revenue existing customers generate over time. High NRR = happy and loyal customers.

3. Earned New Customer Revenue (ENCR):
Revenue from customers acquired through referrals. A reflection of how deeply customers trust and advocate for the brand.

In the case Fred Reichheld shared from First Republic, the bank’s deposits grew by 82% simply by delivering great experiences to existing customers. 

In other words, their customers stayed and brought their friends along. 

Now that's the kind of growth that puts a company on a sustainable trajectory while protecting investor value.

So, imagine the impact on your portfolio’s valuation if customers didn’t just buy once or twice, but stayed for the long haul and kept spreading the word. 

Behind the scenes of loving customers: a people centric culture 

Being customer-centric has long been an established business norm, (though, in truth, many organizations, both large and small, only say it; they don’t live it) but as with almost everything in life, balance is needed.

I’ve consulted for, and even worked within companies that brought about their own downfall by overstepping customer centricity. Some executives push their teams to work extra hours, leaving them with an overwhelming cognitive burden. Others set ambitious targets but fail to provide the resources or executive support needed to meet them.

One hard truth I’ve learned through my entrepreneurial journey is this: anything done for the customer that makes work harder for the employee is not sustainable. 

To delight customers and make them feel loved, employees must feel loved too. When team members are overworked or treated poorly in the name of “serving the customer,” they become resentful towards same customers.

The point I’m making is simple: executives need to take care of the people who take care of the customer. The same way they review frictions and pain points for customers, they must do the same for employees.

In fact, many customer frustrations stem from internal frictions and subtle obstacles that limit employees. When executives become intentional about making work easier for their teams, customers will naturally enjoy better experiences.

The goal is to build a culture (people centric not customer centric) that values customers and employees equally because one cannot exist without the other.

Note: A people-centric culture is not simply a matter of morals or good leadership. It brings good economics by building a cycle where happy employees create loyal customers, and loyal customers create resilient, profitable businesses that reward investors with increased returns.

In closing 

Maximizing shareholder return and genuinely caring for customers are not opposites, they're sides of the same coin. 

So as an investor, encourage your portfolio executives to lead with genuine care. When they build businesses customers trust and love, everyone wins. 

That’s the Loyalty Advantage. And it’s how we help purpose led businesses protect, grow, and sustain the investments trusted to them.