Raving Fans: A Revolutionary Approach to Customer Service

The Area Manager is the protagonist of Raving Fans. At the beginning of the book, he is in a state of panic. He has recently been promoted to his new position and is worried about proving himself. He promised his company’s president that he would strive for quality in his department; however, the president isn’t impressed with his initial efforts, telling him his ideas have too narrow of a focus. The president also reminds him that the company was built on customer service, a legacy that the previous Area Managers didn’t live up to, costing them their jobs. This conflict drives the narrative that follows and lays the groundwork for the exploration of both The Importance of Excellent Customer Service and The Relationship Between Businesses and Customers.

The Area Manager is chiefly a stand-in for the authors’ intended audience. This can be inferred because he is drawn in the broadest possible terms, with very few defining personal traits or needs other than to succeed professionally; he lacks even a name—something that most of the secondary characters have. This allows readers who may want to emulate him or learn the same lessons he does to project their own personalities or concerns onto him.