O veneno

"In an era of ever increasing commoditization of products and services, companies are increasingly more dependent on their service personnel to create differentiating, commanding, premium experiences. When customers can hardly see the difference between competing products and services, the human services step in to create the desired differentiation. It is the people and the way they deliver the products and services that justify the premium price or the preference.[Moi ici: São as pessoas que criam a interacção na base da co-criação de valor]
...
In their zeal to prove their importance, the cost-cutters forgot to report to Wall Street about the ultimate price and who pays it. The answer is quite simple: the customer.
The companies that focused on cost cutting also diluted the value of their products and services.[Moi ici: Um autêntico veneno] The zeal to reduce costs led to accelerated commoditization of products. In response, customers became efficient as well, searching for the lowest prices and refusing to give their loyalty to a specific company. In the face of a bland product with no exciting features, the customer found no reason to pay a premium or to prefer one product over the other. Enter the price game.
...
Focusing on cost reduction and efficiency without investigating who is paying the real price is common, even at companies that declare their loyalty and commitment to customers."

Trechos retirados de "Passionate and profitable : why customer strategies fail and ten steps to do them right" de Lior Arussy.