| The information in this book has been derived from lessons that I've learned over the past quarter century in business and from lessons that others have been willing to share. I owe a special debt of gratitude to the numerous experts, business people and consultants who have willingly exchanged their thoughts, ideas and experiences during the course of my research. |
| There also have been hundreds of people who have been involved in shaping my concepts of customer service, marketing and communications. Although I could never manage to mention them all, there are a few who deserve special recognition: Bill Feldhorn, George Nordhaus, John Nuzzo, Hank Sabbatis andin particularRudy Wood, who was a special mentor for a number of years. |
| Special mention also is due to my wife, Jo Ann, who has stood beside me through success and failure. A business partner and my dearest friend, she had the patience to proof my initial drafts of this bookand the courage to point out opportunities for improvement. |
| I also would like to express my appreciation to a great editor, James Walsh, who helped make this book everything it could be; a super literary agent, Trent Price, who believed in the book and myself from the very beginning; and Merritt Publishing for making it a reality. |
| Those are the thank you's, the acknowledgments. The dedication of this book is to a man who harbored an unfulfilled, lifelong desire to write. His literary legacy was limited to a memorial on the short life of a brother, wartime correspondence with his family and periodic family newsletters in his retirement years. A consummate student of human nature, his greatest gift was to endow me with his curiosity and encourage me to pursue my dreams. |
| Dad, this book is in memory of you. |
 | Jack Burke
Thousand Oaks, California
September 1996 |
| Creating Customer Connections is the eighth title in Merritt Publishing's "Taking Control" series, which seeks to help business owners deal with a host of extraordinary risks facing the modern business enterprise. To keep these booksand the series as a wholewell focused, the editors at Merritt Publishing welcome feedback from readers. |
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