Every customer deserves great service, this is true. But frankly, your team doesn’t have infinite energy. In terms of energy and therefore effectiveness, customer service is a zero sum game. Time and energy devoted to one customer is time and energy lost on another. So why not pull back a bit from your fly-by-night customers and devote more time to your elite customers. Open Forum offers four ways to do this. Start simple, with real small talk. Instead of having your customer service reps ask “how are you” and power through the script, have them ask it and then actually listen. Next, begin to step-up your game by offering immediate response to customer inquiries. Use Twitter, texting, and email to do this. Every little problem is a big one, at least as far as your elite customers go. Make sure you treat the tiniest thing as a serious issue. It’ll keep customers loyal.