Managing profitably customers n recent years there has been a growing focus on understanding the profitability of customers.Alarmingly, as companies learn more about the value of their relationship with their customers, they quite often also become aware that some customers are unprofitable.In hard times, companies need to think about the customers they acquire, and the way in which they manage and retain them, to make sure that they are getting the best possible return from each relationship.To manage customers profitably, managers need to follow these three rules: