In the 2000s, the Peppers & Rogers group introduced an innovative concept that places the customer at the heart of business concerns. This approach considers the customer as the company’s primary resource. To assess the importance of this resource, it is essential to calculate the Return on Customer (ROC), which represents the profitability generated by the customer relative to past and future investments made to serve, satisfy, and retain them.

The ROC approach advocates a thorough analysis of all of a company’s customers to identify those whose ROC best justifies the investments made. The formula used to calculate ROC over a given period is as follows: (profit from a customer + change in customer value) / initial customer value.

This approach encourages the adoption of a customer relationship-focused marketing strategy, favoring a personalized and differentiated approach. It emphasizes the education, empowerment and motivation of employees, while considering the lifetime value of the customer rather than the short-term return on investment (ROI), particularly the variation of this lifetime value of the customer.