by Hurley » Mon Jun 02, 2014 1:07 pm
Substantially, not much but as we all know on some level, the exchange of currency for goods and services is more about the style than the substance. Savvy merchants have blurred the distinction in the interests of encouraging business by conferring prestige on potential purchasers.
First, word origins: Customers root word, custom, ultimately derives from the Latin verb consuescere, to accustom, and the sense of a person who buys something from another perhaps stems from the idea of purchasing as being a habit. Client(the plural can be clients or clientele) also comes from Latin, in the form of clientem, follower, which may be related to the root word of incline. This sense persists in the phrase client state, referring to a nation dependent on another for security or other support.
The two terms have traditionally differed widely in usage: A customer is simply a recipient of products or services in exchange for money. Even though the relationship to the provider might be long last