On my way home from work on November 2nd, I heard the bells. Silver Bells. Apparently it’s Christmas time in the city. The Christmas season seems to start a little earlier every year, but November 2nd seemed a little overboard. Pre-Thanksgiving? Really?
However, the music didn’t really bother me all that much. When it gets dark out at 4:30, and when it’s generally too cold to do anything outside, this time of year, which is beautiful during the day, can become gloomy and strange at night. Hearing Christmas songs as I drove home in the dark didn’t upset me. It cheered me.
I’ve always thought that Christmas was an ill-timed holiday. While the winter solstice means that days will start getting longer again, we spend a month of celebrating only to head in to the coldest dreariest time of the year. I’ve always wanted to move the Holiday back so that we have something to celebrate in the awfully cold months, rather than the nice fall months.
But I can take moving it earlier, too.
People talk about a danger of too much Christmas. That if we start it too early, it will take the magic away. I suppose that’s true. We can only be charitable and cheery for so long. Christmas stresses people out and can be challenging to our finances.
However, there is something I like about hearing Christmas music on the radio. An all-Christmas radio station simply cannot avoid throwing a few religious songs into a normally secular mix. No matter if it’s music, movies, or people shouting, “Merry Christmas!” the season has stood strong in an otherwise secular atheist world. (By the way, the commercialization of Christmas is not a bad thing when combined with the knowledge of the purpose for why we celebrate. Commercialization is a way to make it fun. Gift giving is an extension of other acts of charity performed throughout the season. Showing love to people and giving gifts can never inherently be bad – it is only bad when it loses it’s meaning. Whether you are an atheist or Christian, the gift-giving of Christmas is a great tradition).
No wonder people want to tear Christmas apart. Even a non-religious Christmas song still talks about Christmas (Christ) and “good cheer.” And if you listen to the religious or semi-religious carols, you will be amazed at how much more than just the nativity they tell. Some provide a biography of Jesus, others talk about how he came down to save us all, and others talk about the love of God to do all this for us. Quite different from just “Silent Night, Holy Night.”
For this reason alone, I think that playing Christmas music early is just fine! Maybe the music can remind us all about our heritage and our faith. It may bring others closer to Christ. For others, it may just make them feel warm and fuzzy in the dark nights. (By the way, I still find it inappropriate to play in the day time – when the sun is out, it is still just fall…It could be early October for all I know, so I try to avoid those Christmas stations until after sundown).
Finally, I'd like to address the argument that we can ruin the Christmas spirit by extending the Holiday. This is too true, based on history. There was a time when the Christmas spirit abounded. It was Christmas every day. Back in the days of the early church, people got excited about Jesus all year long. Early Christians shared all they had – which we don’t even do at Christmas. They were experts in turning the other cheek, and they followed their beliefs to the death. We tear down our nativity scenes when someone complains. Does our apathy to our great Christian heritage come from too much exposure? While I don’t think that’s the main reason at all, it could be a factor.
Yes, we should celebrate Christmas all year round. Maybe not in the secular sense, or even in the sense of being giving in the material sense. But we should be making a big deal, a big fuss, and a big party out of the fact that our Lord would come down to earth to save us all. Now that is something worth celebrating early.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Lunchtime
I want to try to be more positive. That’s why I gave a shout out to Quik Trip in my last post, and that’s why I plan to honor another establishment for their business model today: Quizno’s.
Quizno’s. Yuck. My traditional response to the deli has been, “Their bread cuts your mouth!” Somewhere between gourmet and stale, their food has just never appealed to me. But I’m not here to talk about the past. I’m here to talk about the present. And the future.
In using a time honored marketing scheme, Quiznos has won me over, and I do not forsee myself turning up my nose to them in the near future. The change came in the form of a coupon sitting in the break room at work. Two coupons actually. Buy a soft drink get a free sub (drink and meal for $2!) and buy a soft drink and get half off the Pick Two selections (which turned out to be about $5 for the meal). My accountant’s brain buzzed with these offers…you can get a hamburger at most fast food restaurants for $1. If you pack lunch, the ingredients probably run you somewhere from $0.50 to $2.
So…technically the offer was still more expensive than packing my own lunch. But still, the brightly colored coupons stared up at me from my desk, begging me to dig deeper. So I did. I read what they offered. It had been a long time since I had been to Quizno’s.
They have a cheesesteak sandwich – something I never used to order but order habitually now at other establishments. They also have an au jus sandwich! Both have basically the same components, beef and cheese. How could anyone go wrong with that?
They also have new types of sandwiches. Something called a torpedo which sounds intriguing. And they have sandwiches called “sammies” which are on pita. YUM! Not to mention chili, tomato soup, and broccoli cheddar soup, all of which I love!
By the time I had finished looking over the coupons and the online menu, I had decided to eat lunch at Quizno’s for the rest of the week! There was certainly enough variety to draw me back over and over – I couldn’t choose! (Besides, it offered me a chance to go outside and warm up and take a nice walk and ask my dad what he thought about the latest news of the day).
So today I toddled on down to Quizno’s (the “beautiful walk” took me by a building being demolished that cracked ominously with each step I took). When I reached the restaurant, I was not disappointed. In fact, I felt frustrated at having to limit my selection and had already formulated my next order in my head before I left.
Honestly, the food wasn’t extraordinary. The deal wasn’t saving me any money. The service was on the slow side. And the Dr. Pepper tasted funny. But yet, somehow I left more than satisfied. I think it was the satisfaction of knowing that a restaurant that had been dead to me before was now open for business. That not only could I eat something off the Quizno’s menu, I would have fun picking it! And knowing that I could look forward to trying a new and interesting creation the next day.
Yes, Quizno’s, your coupon marketing campaign has succeeded. You have made a friend!
Quizno’s. Yuck. My traditional response to the deli has been, “Their bread cuts your mouth!” Somewhere between gourmet and stale, their food has just never appealed to me. But I’m not here to talk about the past. I’m here to talk about the present. And the future.
In using a time honored marketing scheme, Quiznos has won me over, and I do not forsee myself turning up my nose to them in the near future. The change came in the form of a coupon sitting in the break room at work. Two coupons actually. Buy a soft drink get a free sub (drink and meal for $2!) and buy a soft drink and get half off the Pick Two selections (which turned out to be about $5 for the meal). My accountant’s brain buzzed with these offers…you can get a hamburger at most fast food restaurants for $1. If you pack lunch, the ingredients probably run you somewhere from $0.50 to $2.
So…technically the offer was still more expensive than packing my own lunch. But still, the brightly colored coupons stared up at me from my desk, begging me to dig deeper. So I did. I read what they offered. It had been a long time since I had been to Quizno’s.
They have a cheesesteak sandwich – something I never used to order but order habitually now at other establishments. They also have an au jus sandwich! Both have basically the same components, beef and cheese. How could anyone go wrong with that?
They also have new types of sandwiches. Something called a torpedo which sounds intriguing. And they have sandwiches called “sammies” which are on pita. YUM! Not to mention chili, tomato soup, and broccoli cheddar soup, all of which I love!
By the time I had finished looking over the coupons and the online menu, I had decided to eat lunch at Quizno’s for the rest of the week! There was certainly enough variety to draw me back over and over – I couldn’t choose! (Besides, it offered me a chance to go outside and warm up and take a nice walk and ask my dad what he thought about the latest news of the day).
So today I toddled on down to Quizno’s (the “beautiful walk” took me by a building being demolished that cracked ominously with each step I took). When I reached the restaurant, I was not disappointed. In fact, I felt frustrated at having to limit my selection and had already formulated my next order in my head before I left.
Honestly, the food wasn’t extraordinary. The deal wasn’t saving me any money. The service was on the slow side. And the Dr. Pepper tasted funny. But yet, somehow I left more than satisfied. I think it was the satisfaction of knowing that a restaurant that had been dead to me before was now open for business. That not only could I eat something off the Quizno’s menu, I would have fun picking it! And knowing that I could look forward to trying a new and interesting creation the next day.
Yes, Quizno’s, your coupon marketing campaign has succeeded. You have made a friend!
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Female Problems
It's that time of the month. The time of the month when women go crazy and start shouting, "Discrimination!" And the topic this month is the hot topic everywhere - healthcare.
Today's headlines were all about how insurance companies are "unfairly" charging higher premiums on women. As both a woman and an accountant (which is pretty close to an actuary in some ways), I didn't even need to read the articles. Of course they charge more!
For a quick summary of why this is so obvious, just think about the healthcare needs particular to women. Even if we take pregnancy out of the picture (because not every woman is even in a position to become pregnant, and some become pregnant multiple times), women's healthcare costs are much higher than men's. We have annual mamograms and pap smears. The articles stated that women's risks for female related cancers such as ovarian cancer and breast cancer are much higher and at much younger ages than other types of cancer. Women take more drugs than men (in addition to most regular drugs, women take birth control pills, anti-depression, and anti-anxiety medications). Finally, there is the personality difference between men and women in that women are more likely to visit a doctor when they become sick, as opposed to men who try to "tough it up."
Insurance companies, when calculating the cost of premiums for their customers (your employer) look at the mix of employees. The larger the group of employees, the better the rates, because risks are spread out. (For insance, I, as a healthy twenty-something, help to mitigate the cost of insurance for a coworker who might be overweight and in her late 50's). Small companies can be hit especially hard by high risk individuals on their payrolls. These individuals include smokers, overweight individuals, and women. Therefore, the outcry is that companies that employ a disproportionate amount of women are being penalized in their insurance premiums. And sometimes they pass that cost on to the employees, who are women.
First of all, let me point out that smoking and obseity are both lifestyle choices. Companies and insurance providers both try to battle the costly effects of insuring smokers and overweight individuals without being prejudiced or unjust. However, being a woman is not a lifestyle choice, and therefore I can see how, on the surface, some people might see the extra costs as unfair.
But the fact is, they're not. They are the result of years and years of research and statistics. People at the insurance companies are paid (fairly well I believe) to aggregate data on how much healthcare costs, who it goes to, and how much they need to charge companies to make the business worthwhile. If the insurance companies were to stop considering the effect of gender on costs, then premiums would rise for men. Some companies would see no difference, but other companies, would feel the brunt of the change. Suddenly men would be penalized - but this time for no reason, as opposed to women who are actually using the services. Further, a more likely scenario is that, if women's and men's premiums are the same for fairness sake, insurance companies would simply increase rates all around the board. This would be great for their profits, but would hurt everyone equally.
Here's another fact to consider - I have always wondered which is more expensive, being a man or a woman. For instance, men have to shave. They have to have haircuts much more often than women. Historically they have been expected to pay for dates.
Women choose to buy lots of clothes and makeup, but that's not a necessary expense. But what about necessary expenses? We will always have male and female only expenses in our lives to deal with. Do women rise up in protest because they have to pay for their monthly feminine products? Using the same logic as the unhappy women in the news today, it would be unfair for them to have to pay for these products every month, just because they use them. It doesn't matter that they are necessary. They should be free. In fact, we should make men pay for them.
Or what about shampoo? Due to the (typically) longer hair worn by women, we consume more hair products than men. We should get bottles that are 33% bigger than the bottles men buy. That way they will last the same length of time and cost the same.
What about other female only products, whether necessary or unecessary? It's the same concept of healthcare. The more you use, the more you pay for it. Take gender out of it. If I want 100 apples, I have to pay for 100 apples. If I want one apple, I pay for one apple. If I buy 100 apples, I can't complain because the guy in the line behind me bought one apple and paid less.
Women, it's time to grow up. We are women. We are proud of it. And we all know, even if it's buried way deep down inside of us, that we would much rather deal with the additional cost of being female than be a man any day.
Now, excuse me, please, I have a doctor's appointment to go to...
Today's headlines were all about how insurance companies are "unfairly" charging higher premiums on women. As both a woman and an accountant (which is pretty close to an actuary in some ways), I didn't even need to read the articles. Of course they charge more!
For a quick summary of why this is so obvious, just think about the healthcare needs particular to women. Even if we take pregnancy out of the picture (because not every woman is even in a position to become pregnant, and some become pregnant multiple times), women's healthcare costs are much higher than men's. We have annual mamograms and pap smears. The articles stated that women's risks for female related cancers such as ovarian cancer and breast cancer are much higher and at much younger ages than other types of cancer. Women take more drugs than men (in addition to most regular drugs, women take birth control pills, anti-depression, and anti-anxiety medications). Finally, there is the personality difference between men and women in that women are more likely to visit a doctor when they become sick, as opposed to men who try to "tough it up."
Insurance companies, when calculating the cost of premiums for their customers (your employer) look at the mix of employees. The larger the group of employees, the better the rates, because risks are spread out. (For insance, I, as a healthy twenty-something, help to mitigate the cost of insurance for a coworker who might be overweight and in her late 50's). Small companies can be hit especially hard by high risk individuals on their payrolls. These individuals include smokers, overweight individuals, and women. Therefore, the outcry is that companies that employ a disproportionate amount of women are being penalized in their insurance premiums. And sometimes they pass that cost on to the employees, who are women.
First of all, let me point out that smoking and obseity are both lifestyle choices. Companies and insurance providers both try to battle the costly effects of insuring smokers and overweight individuals without being prejudiced or unjust. However, being a woman is not a lifestyle choice, and therefore I can see how, on the surface, some people might see the extra costs as unfair.
But the fact is, they're not. They are the result of years and years of research and statistics. People at the insurance companies are paid (fairly well I believe) to aggregate data on how much healthcare costs, who it goes to, and how much they need to charge companies to make the business worthwhile. If the insurance companies were to stop considering the effect of gender on costs, then premiums would rise for men. Some companies would see no difference, but other companies, would feel the brunt of the change. Suddenly men would be penalized - but this time for no reason, as opposed to women who are actually using the services. Further, a more likely scenario is that, if women's and men's premiums are the same for fairness sake, insurance companies would simply increase rates all around the board. This would be great for their profits, but would hurt everyone equally.
Here's another fact to consider - I have always wondered which is more expensive, being a man or a woman. For instance, men have to shave. They have to have haircuts much more often than women. Historically they have been expected to pay for dates.
Women choose to buy lots of clothes and makeup, but that's not a necessary expense. But what about necessary expenses? We will always have male and female only expenses in our lives to deal with. Do women rise up in protest because they have to pay for their monthly feminine products? Using the same logic as the unhappy women in the news today, it would be unfair for them to have to pay for these products every month, just because they use them. It doesn't matter that they are necessary. They should be free. In fact, we should make men pay for them.
Or what about shampoo? Due to the (typically) longer hair worn by women, we consume more hair products than men. We should get bottles that are 33% bigger than the bottles men buy. That way they will last the same length of time and cost the same.
What about other female only products, whether necessary or unecessary? It's the same concept of healthcare. The more you use, the more you pay for it. Take gender out of it. If I want 100 apples, I have to pay for 100 apples. If I want one apple, I pay for one apple. If I buy 100 apples, I can't complain because the guy in the line behind me bought one apple and paid less.
Women, it's time to grow up. We are women. We are proud of it. And we all know, even if it's buried way deep down inside of us, that we would much rather deal with the additional cost of being female than be a man any day.
Now, excuse me, please, I have a doctor's appointment to go to...
Saturday, October 17, 2009
A Shout Out to My Favorite Gas Station
If I won the lottery - or any sum of money that would allow me to pursue my whims - one thing I would like to do would be to buy a gas station - and to clean it. Yes, I would clean this gas station - from sweeping and mopping the floors regularly, to keeping the bathrooms clean.
I have grown tired of running into gas stations along the highway only to wonder if I am going to get a disease from the restrooms in it and to trip over doubtful looking garbage all the way to the front door. (By the way - when I discussed this problem with my dad, who travels about 90% of teh time, he suggested that I only use gas stations for bathroom breaks as a last resort. His first choice is a hotel, which makes sense. The bathroom in the lobby is open to everyone and will be clean to attract visitors. The next choice would be a restaurant of any kind - the fancier the restaurant, the better kept the restroom). Back to my dream...
Some gas stations are small and crowded. Others have candy covered in dust.
And from a business perspective you may ask what could I possibly get out of owning a gas station? Gasoline has probably the lowest margin of any product that we can buy. As much as we complain about gas prices, the gas stations aren't the ones that are making much money off it. In recent years they have been able to earn a little more money by letting gas prices lag behind oil prices, thereby creating a higher return before they are forced to drop prices down. Pay at the pump gas stations have, for the most part, gone under because, even though they have a lower day to day cost (no employees for one), the margin is too low to sustain the business by itself.
That's why gas stations have convenient stores attached. In fact, what we call a "gas station" is your gas pumps plus convenience store. The store charges much higher margin on little items because they are "convenient," and they use the gas pumps to draw people to the store. This is also why some grocery stores and Sam's Clubs attach gas stations to their stores, hoping to draw more customers inside, as the gas business is not that luctrative.
Back to my gas station - even though it is probably not the easiest business to start off in, I made my decision to "buy" a gas station in my fantasy because I wanted to clean it up. But I wasn't considering the fact that there is already a clean gas station (two actually).
Quik Trip is a local gas station chain. I know for sure that it operates in Kansas but not Illinois. I don't know how far it reaches or in what directions. However, it seems that the marketing strategy of Quik Trip has been quality. Although price competition is tough (and I don't know that Quik Trip's prices are any higher than other gas stations), the chain operates on providing quality gas, clean stores, and good customer service (I have met with a kind of creepy employee, but no HR department is perfect in their screening).
This is the kind of gas station you go in just to go in. They have high quality baked goods, lots of food choices other than candy and snacks, and amazing drink specials in the summer. Before BP, I remember Quik Trip always advertising on their guaranteed gasoline. If your car broke down and it was traced to Quik Trip gas, they would cover the cost.
The success of Quik Trip has spawned another luxury gas station (if you could call it that), Kwik Shop. This shop is owned by Kroger / Dillons. They offer discounts on gas for those who have the Kroger shoppers card. However, I still prefer to patronize Quik Trip over Kwik Shop because of Quik Trip's cake donuts! (Kwik Shop uses Krispy Kreme donuts for the most part).
As I mentioned before, both gas stations run clean operations without seeming to increase prices (even discounted gas for Kwik Shop regular customers). How much better could it be?
So I want to give a shout out to two businesses who are doing things right. Way to go Quik Trip in leading the trend in clean gas stations!
I have grown tired of running into gas stations along the highway only to wonder if I am going to get a disease from the restrooms in it and to trip over doubtful looking garbage all the way to the front door. (By the way - when I discussed this problem with my dad, who travels about 90% of teh time, he suggested that I only use gas stations for bathroom breaks as a last resort. His first choice is a hotel, which makes sense. The bathroom in the lobby is open to everyone and will be clean to attract visitors. The next choice would be a restaurant of any kind - the fancier the restaurant, the better kept the restroom). Back to my dream...
Some gas stations are small and crowded. Others have candy covered in dust.
And from a business perspective you may ask what could I possibly get out of owning a gas station? Gasoline has probably the lowest margin of any product that we can buy. As much as we complain about gas prices, the gas stations aren't the ones that are making much money off it. In recent years they have been able to earn a little more money by letting gas prices lag behind oil prices, thereby creating a higher return before they are forced to drop prices down. Pay at the pump gas stations have, for the most part, gone under because, even though they have a lower day to day cost (no employees for one), the margin is too low to sustain the business by itself.
That's why gas stations have convenient stores attached. In fact, what we call a "gas station" is your gas pumps plus convenience store. The store charges much higher margin on little items because they are "convenient," and they use the gas pumps to draw people to the store. This is also why some grocery stores and Sam's Clubs attach gas stations to their stores, hoping to draw more customers inside, as the gas business is not that luctrative.
Back to my gas station - even though it is probably not the easiest business to start off in, I made my decision to "buy" a gas station in my fantasy because I wanted to clean it up. But I wasn't considering the fact that there is already a clean gas station (two actually).
Quik Trip is a local gas station chain. I know for sure that it operates in Kansas but not Illinois. I don't know how far it reaches or in what directions. However, it seems that the marketing strategy of Quik Trip has been quality. Although price competition is tough (and I don't know that Quik Trip's prices are any higher than other gas stations), the chain operates on providing quality gas, clean stores, and good customer service (I have met with a kind of creepy employee, but no HR department is perfect in their screening).
This is the kind of gas station you go in just to go in. They have high quality baked goods, lots of food choices other than candy and snacks, and amazing drink specials in the summer. Before BP, I remember Quik Trip always advertising on their guaranteed gasoline. If your car broke down and it was traced to Quik Trip gas, they would cover the cost.
The success of Quik Trip has spawned another luxury gas station (if you could call it that), Kwik Shop. This shop is owned by Kroger / Dillons. They offer discounts on gas for those who have the Kroger shoppers card. However, I still prefer to patronize Quik Trip over Kwik Shop because of Quik Trip's cake donuts! (Kwik Shop uses Krispy Kreme donuts for the most part).
As I mentioned before, both gas stations run clean operations without seeming to increase prices (even discounted gas for Kwik Shop regular customers). How much better could it be?
So I want to give a shout out to two businesses who are doing things right. Way to go Quik Trip in leading the trend in clean gas stations!
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Goin' Parkin'
I have noticed a new phenomenon pop up in the form of signs in parking lots. They are getting common these days, and I see them everywhere! In addition to the legally mandated handicap parking, many parking lots now have signs designating parking for senior citizens and / or mothers or expecting mothers. While I appreciate what stores are trying to do with these signs, I also think there are a lot of problems with them.
First of all, let me point out that these signs are not legal designations. To park in a handicap parking spot you have to have a sticker. These signs are put up by well meaning store owners.
The second problem is similar to the legal issue. These signs attempt to allow prime spots to people who might have difficulty getting into and out of the store. Much like the handicap signs, they are closer to the store and give preference to certain populations. But the problem is that these populations aren't actually handicapped.
Being a senior citizen by name doesn't necessarily make someone disabled or even slow. In fact, many people driving around with handicap parking stickers happen to also be senior citizens. Being one doesn't make you the other.
Similarly, I am not so sure that being an expecting mother or even a new mother makes one in need of a better parking spot. To be sure, sometimes pregnancies require women to take it easy. However, simple exertion such as walking is usually allowable. Shopping carts level the playing field.
In fact, the additional walk from the parking lot to the store can be healthy for anyone involved.
However, the real reason that these signs are well intentioned but missing the point is that they are trying to force kindness.
This forcing of kindness never works. It just makes people bitter. One of the best examples of forcing of kindness is taxes. Who likes to see their taxes go up? Who sees their taxes go up and gets inspired to go out and do something charitable? In the same way, forcing those of us who are "less well" than others to park farther away takes from us a very important choice.
I have a great friend who tries to park far away from the store on purpose. My own personal law is to never drive around in circles to find a close spot (but to find the closest I can on my first pass). I have (before these signs popped up) tried to remember to park farther away, but I make a personal exception for when I am making a quick trip in, and when it is cold. (I think that if there is Senior Citizen or Expectant Mother parking, then 10 or 15 minute parking should be allowable...why not give the best spots to the fastest turnaround? Why should my trip into the store take as long as the entire time I am in the store?)
Now that these signs are up, the choice is gone. If I park far from the store it cannot be out of goodwill for those who may be less healthy than me. By default, I park far from the store because I have to.
And where does it end? Once we healthy people move back to accomodate the handicap, senior citizens, and new and expectant mothers, what new category is going to pop up? 10-15 Minute parking? Cold and flu parking? Should parking lots be sectioned off according to age and remedy?
The point is, there is a reason that for as long as there have been parking lots there have been handicap sections. And only handicap sections. As much as we would like to see everyone park according to need (healthy people in the back), that doesn't happen, and we can't force good behavior on people. It has to come from the heart, or it doesn't mean anything.
First of all, let me point out that these signs are not legal designations. To park in a handicap parking spot you have to have a sticker. These signs are put up by well meaning store owners.
The second problem is similar to the legal issue. These signs attempt to allow prime spots to people who might have difficulty getting into and out of the store. Much like the handicap signs, they are closer to the store and give preference to certain populations. But the problem is that these populations aren't actually handicapped.
Being a senior citizen by name doesn't necessarily make someone disabled or even slow. In fact, many people driving around with handicap parking stickers happen to also be senior citizens. Being one doesn't make you the other.
Similarly, I am not so sure that being an expecting mother or even a new mother makes one in need of a better parking spot. To be sure, sometimes pregnancies require women to take it easy. However, simple exertion such as walking is usually allowable. Shopping carts level the playing field.
In fact, the additional walk from the parking lot to the store can be healthy for anyone involved.
However, the real reason that these signs are well intentioned but missing the point is that they are trying to force kindness.
This forcing of kindness never works. It just makes people bitter. One of the best examples of forcing of kindness is taxes. Who likes to see their taxes go up? Who sees their taxes go up and gets inspired to go out and do something charitable? In the same way, forcing those of us who are "less well" than others to park farther away takes from us a very important choice.
I have a great friend who tries to park far away from the store on purpose. My own personal law is to never drive around in circles to find a close spot (but to find the closest I can on my first pass). I have (before these signs popped up) tried to remember to park farther away, but I make a personal exception for when I am making a quick trip in, and when it is cold. (I think that if there is Senior Citizen or Expectant Mother parking, then 10 or 15 minute parking should be allowable...why not give the best spots to the fastest turnaround? Why should my trip into the store take as long as the entire time I am in the store?)
Now that these signs are up, the choice is gone. If I park far from the store it cannot be out of goodwill for those who may be less healthy than me. By default, I park far from the store because I have to.
And where does it end? Once we healthy people move back to accomodate the handicap, senior citizens, and new and expectant mothers, what new category is going to pop up? 10-15 Minute parking? Cold and flu parking? Should parking lots be sectioned off according to age and remedy?
The point is, there is a reason that for as long as there have been parking lots there have been handicap sections. And only handicap sections. As much as we would like to see everyone park according to need (healthy people in the back), that doesn't happen, and we can't force good behavior on people. It has to come from the heart, or it doesn't mean anything.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Opportunity Cost
There is a cost to everything we do in life. Everything. Try to think of the least expensive way to spend your time - sitting on a bench in the park - and there is a cost. It's called opportunity cost, and it's an economic term.
To explain, say you work at a job where you make $10 / hour. You have a 4-hour shift on Saturday. After work, you are going to a movie with your friends - it costs $10. Your boss asks if you would like to stay an extra two hours to fill in. You decide to go to the movie instead.
The actual cost of going to the movie is $10. That is the accounting cost. The opportunity cost is $20 - $10 / hour for the two hours you could have been working. You never actually paid $20 to go see the movie, but you lost out on the opportunity to earn it.
In the same way, sitting on a bench in the park has a cost because you could be doing something else. The opportunity cost of sitting on a park bench is missing out on reading a book or watching a TV program or talking to your friend.
I have recently encountered the consequences of opportunity cost in a bad way - on my radio. First of all, let me explain how I have my car radio set up. I have six stations saved. On my way to work, I like to hear talking - I think music puts me to sleep. On the way home, I like music to sing along to. If none of my six stations have something I am interested in hearing, I scan the other stations - usually looking for one particular Sugarland song in particular (the opportunity cost of not listening to country stations is that if the one song you like is country, you won't hear it)!
My stations are as follows:
1. Mixed rock. The morning show is fun with lots of prizes, people calling in, laughs, jokes, and more. It makes you feel like you're with a popular crowd just to listen to it.
2. The Lawrence Station. This station plays some good songs every now and then, but then you have to put up with the sickening feeling you get in your stomach from the constant Jayhawk propoganda. Yuck. In the morning there is a show called the Bob and Sheri chatroom - people call in and talk about a subject. I have heard some crazy stories on it!
3. This is my favorite station both for music and talk. The morning show is two guys that crack me up and have fun games and informational tidbits. I usually can hear a good song on this station.
4. Christian station. Now that the dysfunctional married couple is no longer hosting the morning show, it's actually interesting sometimes, but the music is not varied at all. Even songs I like are overplayed.
5 & 6. These are both light rock stations. They have morning shows, but they play a larger percentage of music in the morning. The only difference I know between the two is that at night 5 plays Delilah and 6 plays John Tesh. Also 6 plays Christian music on Sunday mornings.
Now that you know what my choices are, I will tell you my problem. Chances are you've had the same problem. When I get in my car (usually to go home after work) I hear an advertisement. So I switch to the next station: advertisement. Then the next three are songs I don't like, and then one more advertisement. :(
I try again, hoping that either one of the advertisements or songs will have just ended, and a great new song will start. Still nothing. Out of desperation, I settle on one station (say #5) and listen to a song I only halfway like. When that's over, I start my channel surf again, only to discover that station 1 was playing my song! You know - that song that's fairly new and you just can't get enough of it? And by the time I get back to station 1, it's over.
That is opportunity cost at its finest. If I had kept channel surfing for just a few seconds I would have heard a five-star song, instead of a three-star song. Now I've had to waste 3 minutes of my drive home on a song I barely like, and I didn't get to hear the good song.
The crux of the matter is that once you catch the tail end of your song on a station, you know it's going to be a while before they play it again. Your only hope to hear the song now is to go to another station. (This is the problem with my Sugarland song - whenever I hit a country station, they are playing a Sugarland song, but it's the wrong one).
As of right now, I have no idea how to fix this problem. If I stay on one station, I am essentially multiplying this effect five-fold by never listening to the other stations. I suppose I could just buy the song on iTunes and listen to my iPod in the car. But you miss out on some of the fun by not listening to the radio in the car.
And once again, we're back to opportunity cost.
To explain, say you work at a job where you make $10 / hour. You have a 4-hour shift on Saturday. After work, you are going to a movie with your friends - it costs $10. Your boss asks if you would like to stay an extra two hours to fill in. You decide to go to the movie instead.
The actual cost of going to the movie is $10. That is the accounting cost. The opportunity cost is $20 - $10 / hour for the two hours you could have been working. You never actually paid $20 to go see the movie, but you lost out on the opportunity to earn it.
In the same way, sitting on a bench in the park has a cost because you could be doing something else. The opportunity cost of sitting on a park bench is missing out on reading a book or watching a TV program or talking to your friend.
I have recently encountered the consequences of opportunity cost in a bad way - on my radio. First of all, let me explain how I have my car radio set up. I have six stations saved. On my way to work, I like to hear talking - I think music puts me to sleep. On the way home, I like music to sing along to. If none of my six stations have something I am interested in hearing, I scan the other stations - usually looking for one particular Sugarland song in particular (the opportunity cost of not listening to country stations is that if the one song you like is country, you won't hear it)!
My stations are as follows:
1. Mixed rock. The morning show is fun with lots of prizes, people calling in, laughs, jokes, and more. It makes you feel like you're with a popular crowd just to listen to it.
2. The Lawrence Station. This station plays some good songs every now and then, but then you have to put up with the sickening feeling you get in your stomach from the constant Jayhawk propoganda. Yuck. In the morning there is a show called the Bob and Sheri chatroom - people call in and talk about a subject. I have heard some crazy stories on it!
3. This is my favorite station both for music and talk. The morning show is two guys that crack me up and have fun games and informational tidbits. I usually can hear a good song on this station.
4. Christian station. Now that the dysfunctional married couple is no longer hosting the morning show, it's actually interesting sometimes, but the music is not varied at all. Even songs I like are overplayed.
5 & 6. These are both light rock stations. They have morning shows, but they play a larger percentage of music in the morning. The only difference I know between the two is that at night 5 plays Delilah and 6 plays John Tesh. Also 6 plays Christian music on Sunday mornings.
Now that you know what my choices are, I will tell you my problem. Chances are you've had the same problem. When I get in my car (usually to go home after work) I hear an advertisement. So I switch to the next station: advertisement. Then the next three are songs I don't like, and then one more advertisement. :(
I try again, hoping that either one of the advertisements or songs will have just ended, and a great new song will start. Still nothing. Out of desperation, I settle on one station (say #5) and listen to a song I only halfway like. When that's over, I start my channel surf again, only to discover that station 1 was playing my song! You know - that song that's fairly new and you just can't get enough of it? And by the time I get back to station 1, it's over.
That is opportunity cost at its finest. If I had kept channel surfing for just a few seconds I would have heard a five-star song, instead of a three-star song. Now I've had to waste 3 minutes of my drive home on a song I barely like, and I didn't get to hear the good song.
The crux of the matter is that once you catch the tail end of your song on a station, you know it's going to be a while before they play it again. Your only hope to hear the song now is to go to another station. (This is the problem with my Sugarland song - whenever I hit a country station, they are playing a Sugarland song, but it's the wrong one).
As of right now, I have no idea how to fix this problem. If I stay on one station, I am essentially multiplying this effect five-fold by never listening to the other stations. I suppose I could just buy the song on iTunes and listen to my iPod in the car. But you miss out on some of the fun by not listening to the radio in the car.
And once again, we're back to opportunity cost.
Friday, September 18, 2009
The Pitfalls of Brand Loyalty
I stand in line at a ticket counter. The attendant is talking to a friend on the phone and glaring at me as though my presence is somehow interfering with her job. I get on the airplane – they hold us on the runway for two hours for a one hour flight because the air conditioner doesn’t work. There is no apology. There is no getting off the plane. You are expected to deal with it. I ask for help at a store. The lady at customer service says she can’t help me, shrugs her shoulders and moves on to the next customer.
Whatever happened to customer service?
I’m not that old, but in the world I was raised, the customer is always right. If the person behind the desk promises me points for my hotel stay, I should get them. I don’t want the company telling me that it’s against policy to award them. It’s not my fault that one of their employees got the message wrong. I’m the customer. I’m right.
And what about deals? What happened to the world where companies try to match their competitor’s deals? I know not all companies can afford to do this. However, there are situations where a little customer service would go a long way. Recently we were at a craft store where the item we wanted (which was on sale) was sold out. We asked if we could get a similar item at a discount. The store said no. Absolutely not. They didn’t even offer us a rain check on the sale. Instead, we found a similar item on sale for twice the discount at a competitor. The craft store lost its sale because it wasn’t willing to deal.
And when a company can’t bargain, at least they can provide good customer service. I have been going to the grocery store by my house for a year. No one has ever smiled at me. If they wish me good day it is heartless. This lack of service really gets to me because I used to be the one working at the checkout counter. And I loved my job! Even when I didn’t feel like it, I grinned at customers and was polite, and that forced smiling rubbed off and made me happy! And when a customer asked me for help, I got them help! I accompanied them around the store, and if I didn’t know the answer, I stayed with them until I could drop them off with another associate who really could help them. I didn’t just shrug their question off.
I write this little rant because I feel like the service in the world around me is collapsing at an alarming rate. I would think that people would try extra hard at their jobs in these times because of fear of losing them. How many laid off workers would love to have a job in customer service? I would imagine that a company that noticed poor service among their employees would trade those employees out for new ones that could actually retain customers.
And therein lies the problem. Customer retention.
There is a certain loyalty in all of us that brings us back to the same brands over and over again – usually some perceived benefit. That benefit should be perceived quality – which includes service. However, sometimes we find ourselves returning again and again to brands where service is poor. Like a person in an abusive relationship, we take the poor service over and over again expecting it to end someday. Why?
The number one reason is money. For instance, I will take a flight on the cheapest airline I can find, even if I know that they will be late, that they will be rude, and that the entire experience will stress me out. Fortunately, the only airline that even pretends to show customer service, Southwest, usually also has the most competitive prices – and no extra fees. I would have thought other airlines would have tried to benchmark Southwest’s models. But why should they? If they can undercut their competitor’s price – even by a fraction – people will fly with them. I do.
Another reason is convenience. I go to the grocery store near my house because I can walk to it. If I have a lot of shopping to do, I prefer go to Wal-Mart – service is better, selection is just as good, prices are lower, and the store is clean. But I enjoy a walk now and then, so I keep going back.
What about other offers? The reason that I stay at the hotel chain I do is because of points and rewards. Because I’m the highest level of customer they have, I usually have a great stay. My loyalty has been purchased by great treatment in the past. But what happens when that treatment fails, as it has recently? For some unknown reason service dropped off, and without a check on the faulty hotel by the chain itself, it will continue to fail. But what do I do? I still go to that chain because I want to maintain my high status – and because I can get points (to use at future stays where inevitably I will be treated rudely).
And finally, sometimes we use a vendor because we have no choice. I have to shop at the store with bad service because I am buying a specialty item for a friend I can’t get anywhere else. I go to the dirty gas station because I am out of gas and it is there. I go to the restaurant that has proven to have bad service time and time again because that is where my friends are going (and they won’t listen to me)!
What I’m trying to say is – there is a sense of helplessness in dealing with companies today. I can write letters and talk to the manager all I want. But in the end – it’s sometimes impossible to follow through on threats to quit using them. (And sometimes it is a manager or a corporate help line who is the offender). Every time I fly a certain airline I promise myself it is the last time. But my credit card gets points through them – I’ll have to use those sometime – which means, at a minimum, one more flight. And then I book yet another flight with this carrier because it saves money.
We are often told that we should do the right thing even if it’s hard to do. This is usually in reference to being kind to others. But perhaps doing the right thing means doing the right thing for ourselves. I can save my health by cutting back on stress, and that means avoiding stores that provide horrible service.
In addition, I can offer a service to the company as a whole – “So and so was incredibly rude. As such I can promise you that I will not shop in this store ever again.” And make good on the promise! And companies will respond. (You have to let someone know about the poor service you are receiving or it won’t change – a company may not notice your exit, but they will take note that you left. For fear of it happening over and over again, they will do something about the situation. If you just leave, the rude service will continue – it will just be addressed toward someone else).
So what does this take? Am I ready to threaten to switch hotel chains – and make good on it? Am I ready to pay up to $100 extra per ticket to fly on a plane that will treat me right? Am I ready to cancel my credit card so I no longer get points through a faulty service? Or do I continue to aid and abet the system that gets away with treating the customer poorly?
It’s hard – but maybe somebody has to do it.
Whatever happened to customer service?
I’m not that old, but in the world I was raised, the customer is always right. If the person behind the desk promises me points for my hotel stay, I should get them. I don’t want the company telling me that it’s against policy to award them. It’s not my fault that one of their employees got the message wrong. I’m the customer. I’m right.
And what about deals? What happened to the world where companies try to match their competitor’s deals? I know not all companies can afford to do this. However, there are situations where a little customer service would go a long way. Recently we were at a craft store where the item we wanted (which was on sale) was sold out. We asked if we could get a similar item at a discount. The store said no. Absolutely not. They didn’t even offer us a rain check on the sale. Instead, we found a similar item on sale for twice the discount at a competitor. The craft store lost its sale because it wasn’t willing to deal.
And when a company can’t bargain, at least they can provide good customer service. I have been going to the grocery store by my house for a year. No one has ever smiled at me. If they wish me good day it is heartless. This lack of service really gets to me because I used to be the one working at the checkout counter. And I loved my job! Even when I didn’t feel like it, I grinned at customers and was polite, and that forced smiling rubbed off and made me happy! And when a customer asked me for help, I got them help! I accompanied them around the store, and if I didn’t know the answer, I stayed with them until I could drop them off with another associate who really could help them. I didn’t just shrug their question off.
I write this little rant because I feel like the service in the world around me is collapsing at an alarming rate. I would think that people would try extra hard at their jobs in these times because of fear of losing them. How many laid off workers would love to have a job in customer service? I would imagine that a company that noticed poor service among their employees would trade those employees out for new ones that could actually retain customers.
And therein lies the problem. Customer retention.
There is a certain loyalty in all of us that brings us back to the same brands over and over again – usually some perceived benefit. That benefit should be perceived quality – which includes service. However, sometimes we find ourselves returning again and again to brands where service is poor. Like a person in an abusive relationship, we take the poor service over and over again expecting it to end someday. Why?
The number one reason is money. For instance, I will take a flight on the cheapest airline I can find, even if I know that they will be late, that they will be rude, and that the entire experience will stress me out. Fortunately, the only airline that even pretends to show customer service, Southwest, usually also has the most competitive prices – and no extra fees. I would have thought other airlines would have tried to benchmark Southwest’s models. But why should they? If they can undercut their competitor’s price – even by a fraction – people will fly with them. I do.
Another reason is convenience. I go to the grocery store near my house because I can walk to it. If I have a lot of shopping to do, I prefer go to Wal-Mart – service is better, selection is just as good, prices are lower, and the store is clean. But I enjoy a walk now and then, so I keep going back.
What about other offers? The reason that I stay at the hotel chain I do is because of points and rewards. Because I’m the highest level of customer they have, I usually have a great stay. My loyalty has been purchased by great treatment in the past. But what happens when that treatment fails, as it has recently? For some unknown reason service dropped off, and without a check on the faulty hotel by the chain itself, it will continue to fail. But what do I do? I still go to that chain because I want to maintain my high status – and because I can get points (to use at future stays where inevitably I will be treated rudely).
And finally, sometimes we use a vendor because we have no choice. I have to shop at the store with bad service because I am buying a specialty item for a friend I can’t get anywhere else. I go to the dirty gas station because I am out of gas and it is there. I go to the restaurant that has proven to have bad service time and time again because that is where my friends are going (and they won’t listen to me)!
What I’m trying to say is – there is a sense of helplessness in dealing with companies today. I can write letters and talk to the manager all I want. But in the end – it’s sometimes impossible to follow through on threats to quit using them. (And sometimes it is a manager or a corporate help line who is the offender). Every time I fly a certain airline I promise myself it is the last time. But my credit card gets points through them – I’ll have to use those sometime – which means, at a minimum, one more flight. And then I book yet another flight with this carrier because it saves money.
We are often told that we should do the right thing even if it’s hard to do. This is usually in reference to being kind to others. But perhaps doing the right thing means doing the right thing for ourselves. I can save my health by cutting back on stress, and that means avoiding stores that provide horrible service.
In addition, I can offer a service to the company as a whole – “So and so was incredibly rude. As such I can promise you that I will not shop in this store ever again.” And make good on the promise! And companies will respond. (You have to let someone know about the poor service you are receiving or it won’t change – a company may not notice your exit, but they will take note that you left. For fear of it happening over and over again, they will do something about the situation. If you just leave, the rude service will continue – it will just be addressed toward someone else).
So what does this take? Am I ready to threaten to switch hotel chains – and make good on it? Am I ready to pay up to $100 extra per ticket to fly on a plane that will treat me right? Am I ready to cancel my credit card so I no longer get points through a faulty service? Or do I continue to aid and abet the system that gets away with treating the customer poorly?
It’s hard – but maybe somebody has to do it.
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