Do you call the people
who buy your products
customers?
Why?
Facebook calls them friends.
Coca-Cola calls them
members of the Coca-Cola family.
I call them
reading buddies.
This is done deliberately.
I have a much different relationship
with my reading buddies
than other writers have with their readers.
One example:
I receive hundreds of messages/emails a day
from my reading buddies.
A writing friend at the same readership level
is lucky to receive one message/email a month
from her readers.
The relationship might or might not be better
for sales
but it IS different.
What you call your customers matter.
Make this a conscious choice.