Monthly Archive for June, 2005

Staying at a hotel, I am given the benefit of seeing a newspaper that I would never otherwise be caught dead reading — _USA Today_. In this morning’s edition, two front-page articles are about such incredibly obvious phenomenoms that I can only hope it is simply shoddy _USA Today_ reporting to blame, but I expect that these two items are making news all over the place today. What a sad world we live in.

“Health spending soars for obesity,” we learn from a new study. This comes on the heels of two phenomena observed over the past few months and years. First, health costs are rising *a lot*. No one quite knows what to do about the health care “crisis” in America. Second, more and more people are becoming obese. A recent study, widely misinterpreted among the press, revealed that there is very little difference in life expectancy among those who are overweight, for a few reasons. First, our expectations of weight in this society might be a bit low, meaning that people who are just ten or fifteen pounds overweight might be just fine, thank you very much, especially older people, for whom a bit of extra fat serves as a protective cushion, so to speak. Secondly, we have developed medical ways of managing health conditions that are often the result of high weights, including diabetes and heart disease. While the nightly news saw this as a sign that people should stop worrying about weight, because being overweight is healthy (ha!), the real conclusion was that treating these associated ailments is *profitable*, and so the health care industry is having a field day.

So let us put these two things together, shall we? People are getting increasingly heavier, by eating bad foods, not getting enough physical activity, and not caring about their health. Because of this, society and health insurance must bear the increasingly high costs of keeping these people alive. At the same time, health care costs and premiums are spiraling out of control. Wait, you’re saying THERE’S A CONNECTION? That’s what _USA Today_ was kind enough to report on this morning. Not that there aren’t other factors. Notably, the way we manage old age and our reluctance to allow terminally ill patients to die is another MASSIVE factor leading to incredible health care costs and public health burdens, but obesity is certainly one major factor to consider. And now a “study” has officially “found” this to be the case. Hooray for us. Does someone want to do something about it yet?

Item two is even more straightforward, so I’ll spend less time obsessing over it. In short, companies have started to realize that in this complicated connected world with increased competition, lower prices, and more consumer choice, being *bad* to your customer hurts your bottom line! Airlines, hotels, and other businesses are FINALLY realizing that keeping the customer happy helps to inspire brand loyalty and keep customers, which is much cheaper than more and more advertising to try and catch the elusive new customer. Keeping people happy means they come back, they tell their friends, and your bottom line improves! Shocking!

Scrappy startups like JetBlue apparently were some of the first in this new era to empower their front-line employees to resolve customer complaints by actually changing things, apologizing, and offering incentives in the form of free meals, gift certificates, and free merchandise. This “new” “approach” is called “service recovery,” and it means training and empowering the employees on the ground to actually take the time and make the effort to *fix* the customer’s problems and make the customer happy. Amazing! Innovative! Powerful! Thank goodness someone finally figured this out.

I’m the first to admit that the customer is not “always right,” but generally when you’re paying good money for a service, you have a right to expect that service to be delivered. If a company messes up, it is easy for you to walk away. If they make that extra effort to fix the problem, the customer feels like they are being cared for and becomes more loyal to the brand. Sometimes its not about getting something free or a perk, sometimes it is about a sincere apology and someone actualy working to resolve the issue quickly. After all, if you’re on a family vacation, which would you rather have? Four hours of inconvenience and a $100 gift certificate, or an attentive staff that fixes the problem in five minutes and has you on your way? Your time and your happiness are often more valuable than perks. Companies would be wise to realize that delivering what they promise and keeping the customer satisfied is the best way to keep a customer, and its cheaper than quick fix approaches. I hope this trend will continue, and we will start to reach a better equillibrium.

And thank GOD that _USA Today_ was there to report on this amazing and innovative new marketing trend! A trend that so many of us might just call “common sense.”