Subscribe
The Word “Customer”
Author: Bridget Optholt
October 26, 2006
All this talk about customers. It made me think, where does the word customer come from? Who cares you loser you say? Well, I see your point but hear me out: it’s interesting to know where words come from, especially ones that pretty much define what we do everyday. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, the word customer as we use it today happened like this:
A customer is someone who makes use of or receives the products or services of an individual or organization. The word historically derives from "custom," meaning "habit"; a customer was someone who frequented a particular shop, who made it a habit to purchase goods of the sort the shop sold there rather than elsewhere, and with whom the shopkeeper had to maintain a relationship to keep his or her "custom," meaning expected purchases in the future. The shopkeeper remembered the sizes and preferences of his or her customers, for example. The word did not refer to those who purchased things at a fair or bazaar, or from a street vendor.
So there we have it. Even when the word began being used so long ago, customer did not just mean someone who bought something but also referred to the positive relationship needed to get someone coming back for the product. And we know it’s still true. Aren’t you dying to know where all of your words come from now? No? Oh. Well, at least you can dazzle people with this interesting fact.
1 Comment »
RSS feed for comments on this post.
I love this!! I wish all companies had an outlook on their “customers” like this. We as customers are what keep their business ongoing. I beleive that in order to obtain a loyal cuctomer they have to have saticfation and good customer service. I love the website Mindshare. Its whole primary focus is on customer service and how to better it! It’s really worth checking out!
Comment by Stephanie — August 7, 2008 @ 9:19 pm