about how your customer solved their business problem with your product or service.   2. Can you create a brand so "cool" or popular that to not use it would be embarrassing?   3. Can you present an award to your biggest customer(s) (or target prospect) and announce it to the industry?   Financial   1. Can you offer a program that requires a large upfront investment that delivers products or services over time?   2. Can you offer your significant customers an opportunity to financially invest in your business?   3. Can you lock your customer into a long-term contract with penalties attached for breaking the relationship?   Emotional   1. Can you hire influential people in your industry (i.e. recognized industry experts, high- level executives in big companies, popular service professions) that already have very close relationships with target customers? 2. Can you provide your customer with so much support (i.e. advice, attention, help) that they cant do without you?   3. Can you align your product or service with that of an existing, highly-popular product or service?   Examples of How to Create an Integrated Relationship   The following are several examples that will help to clarify how to create an Integrated Relationship with your customer. By the way, you dont have to be a big business to make this strategy work. And remember, any one of these strategies alone may not create a high switching-cost, but combined together they may create a formidable cost to your customer.   Example # 1 - Virtual Assistant (a person providing online secretarial services)   House your clients records and files in your home. Client Switching-Cost - They run the risk of getting their files messed up.   Build and host a website for your client. Client Switching-Cost - They have to move their site to a new hosting provider.