Love, Serve, and Care
Grow a business by improving how customers experience value
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time to result
- ~months to results
- Steps
- 4
- Confidence
- 98%
Shift attention from directly chasing growth to strengthening three roots of customer value: love, service, and care. Love means genuine commitment to the work, customers, and team, which sustains the grit required to improve. Service means helping customers grow by making the process clear and simple, coaching them through it, and giving them confidence that they are making the right decision. Care means demonstrating attention through actions, especially when there is no immediate sale to win. Together these behaviours improve trust, retention, word of mouth, and referrals, producing growth as an outcome rather than the sole operating target. The method still requires optimism and resilience through setbacks, but its scorecard is whether customers understand the path, feel supported, and believe the business acts in their interest.
Origin
Gordon distils the message of The Carpenter into three words: love, serve, and care. He connects it with customer research showing that buyers want clarity, coaching, and confidence.
Core principles
- 01Love for the work sustains long-term effort
- 02Service helps other people grow
- 03Visible care builds trust and referrals
- 04Root investment precedes business fruit
How to run it
- 1
Lead with love
Choose work and customers you can genuinely value, then use that commitment to sustain improvement through setbacks.
Pro tip Translate enthusiasm into better product and service decisions.
Watch out Warm language without useful value is performative.
- 2
Make it clear and simple
Remove unnecessary complexity from the customer’s path and explain the next step plainly.
Pro tip Test whether a new customer can explain the process back to you.
Watch out Simple does not mean hiding material terms or trade-offs.
- 3
Coach the process
Guide customers as they use the product or make a decision rather than leaving them alone after the pitch.
Pro tip Anticipate the point where confidence usually falls.
Watch out Coaching must support the customer, not pressure them.
- 4
Demonstrate care
Follow through, listen, and solve relevant problems in ways that show the relationship matters beyond the transaction.
Pro tip Use retention and unsolicited referrals as evidence.
Watch out Do not claim to care when incentives or behaviour say otherwise.
In the wild
A software company replaces a dense setup guide with three visible steps, a short first-week check-in, and an honest explanation of which plan suits each customer. Support follows up on stalled accounts without using pressure tactics.
→ Customers gain clarity and confidence, improving activation and referrals.
Common mistakes
Focusing only on growth
Chasing the numerical result without improving the customer root weakens trust and makes growth fragile.
Mistaking care for persuasion
Care is demonstrated by helping the customer make the right decision, including when that decision is not to buy.
Is it for you?
Best for
Customer-led businesses that grow through trust, repeat use, referrals, and helpful guidance.
Not ideal for
Businesses using surface-level warmth to disguise weak products, manipulation, or poor customer outcomes.
From the transcript
“don't focus on building your business focus on loving serving caring and your business will exponentially grow”
“three people want three things from you and your business three things make it clear and simple for me right coach me through the process…”
“when you know someone cares about you you want to do business with them you refer them and tell everyone”
From the episode
Jon Gordon: Look On The Bright Side
Jon Gordon