Morning Coffee- Free Delivery
I have been looking at many of the signs on restaurants and deli’s throughout NYC, with the “free delivery”
on their awnings. It strikes me so funny that something that was once considered a kind offering to
their customers is now considered as (look how lucky you are to be having a delivery from us.
You bought our food and hopefully you tip our delivery person, so aren’t we nice that we are offering free delivery).
In the past I always stayed on the phone with a prospective client for at least l/2 hour to explain about our business. It was a common
courtesy. Never an initial charge.. I then began to see on websites of different businesses, an offering of a free initial l/2 consultation. When I first saw it I again began to smile, because I realized that it used to be a common courtesy to people, but now it’s about telling the prospective customer I am being generous with you with my time.
Perhaps the reason all of the above used to be offered as a common courtesy is that people did appreciate it then, but now they have forgotten how to appreciate common courtesy. They take it for granted, so if you label something free delivery or initial free l/2 hour
consultation there is the element of reminding people that businesses time is valuable and a reminder of common courtesy.
I don’t have the answer but I am just reflecting on this with you, and I am curious on how you feel about the above.
This entry was posted on Friday, October 23rd, 2009 at 9:20 am and is filed under Industry News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
October 23rd, 2009 at 1:57 pm
I believe that in terms of marketing people respond to the idea of anything free. So it works to find ways to put free into your biz stuff whenever you can. I don’t know if it wasn’t that way in the past, though I do remember my parents going any where that had free anything. Free glasses in a gas station. Free plates in a movie.
Now I am waiting for a free tooth inplant for the first one or a free tummy tuck with a face lift or every third ticket to a b’way show is free. One free year of tuition with every registration if done so before May. You get the gist.