There’s a bar and grill in downtown Madison that gives a birthday mug to all those that go there for their birthday. They also fill that mug up with a free drink of your choice if you couldn’t have guessed.
One year they decided to redesign the mug, making it larger and more aesthetically appealing.
It bummed out all those that had gotten the smaller, less good-looking one.
When you upgrade what is free, it is a sign of your business making progress, but you run the risk of hurting your previous customers. It’s never an easy decision to make when you consider that those who have gone to your bar and grill are more likely to return than those who have never been inside.
The first way to fix this is to give the redesigned, larger mug to everyone to begin with. Don’t wait for the profits to do it. We know that people buy into how things make them feel, what also matters, though, is that what the buy continues to make them feel that way. When free things are upgraded, it devalues the feeling of what has already been given away.
I don’t recommend doing it this way.
The second and ultimately beneficial way of fixing the problem is to reach out to those who already received the smaller, less good-looking mug. Suggest that they can come in and swap their mug with a new one. Or state that for the next month, if they come in with their old mug they get a special dessert put inside it, or a discount on their meal, or another free drink.
When you upgrade what is free, you can’t neglect those who already received the smaller, less good-looking thing.
Stay Positive & New Customers Is Progress, Old Customers Is Profits
Garth E. Beyer
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