Ever wonder what happened to my 8,932 miles on Podunk Airlines? Or those 5,331 rewards points on that ridiculous hotel chain that I thought I was going to be loyal to? I will tell you exactly what did happen.
It got converted into smelly papers. Smelly what?
Here is the scoop - Americans love to carry cards in their wallet. These cards belong to variety of clubs and super markets and airlines and hotels. Every aspect of daily life has a fan following or so it would seem and then as more and more businesses try to grapple with the same set of people they keep offering all of these people some ridiculous reward after another.
I am of course referring to the ubiquitous rewards for everything culture that has come to pervade modern society (esp in the US).
As people consume copious amounts of that new non fat yogurt or extra creamy gelato or fill their feet into that newest sneaker sensation they earn those extra bonus points. These collect in various impossible to remember buckets like lost bank accounts. If you think about it they do have intrinsic value in that they are currency for specific purpose. You cannot buy dinner with those sneaker points but you can get laces next time you stop in that store. Now its another matter entirely that no one in their right mind buys laces anymore - they just get new shoes...much like the ball point pen refills that are meant for the museums as no one actually refills their pens anymore.
So there is this exchange or points broker business that takes all these little wayward points that people seem to collect every time they sneeze or walk past a mall or a fast food place trying to woo your wallet to come and see the peep show.
They process them for a fee paid by the provider of the points and in turn them into even more devalued and meaningless pieces of rewards that are good for only one thing - retarded magazines and periodicals that are trying to peddle more of those same fast foods, airlines, perfumes and sneakers. Ah ha - you burn so you can burn some more - money that is.
So it is that I turned in my collection of these gillion little points and subscribed to a whole host of face and body altering; car tire changing solution providing or eyebrow toning magazines. Filled with awards and articles around beauty (for you and your car) these magazines did provide one little nugget that was quite useful.
Each came with copious amounts of sample perfumes attached to a little strip of foldout papers with some unusually made up face from the silverscreen touting the ageless fragrant nature of the product. I ripped them all out and put them in all of my clothing - pockets, drawers even stuck it on hangers. Now the entire wardrobe smells - how do I say it - divine!
Cool cat the Japanese are Tokyo at dusk My second visit to this land of the rising sun after almost a decade. Back then clearly I was wet behind the ears product manager and likely didn’t pay attention to all (efficient) things Japanese. But today I did and of course continue to be impressed. It is as much the obvious stuff like on time travel that is both clean and comfortable and all that which makes it possible. The impressive landmark and landscapes that these humans have put together despite their cramped (or because of it) surroundings and precarious geological conditions could amaze a novice architect among us. But it’s also the little things that someone had to think about which have a phenomenal impact on day to day lives that make the Japanese stand apart. Below are few random examples- 1. Providing a very fine machined wooden toothpick in every packet of wooden chopsticks. The said chapsticks are simply set on the To Go counter of any food vendor/ convenience store wher...
You can't complain now that all marketing is useless- the perfume story proves it. Now if only someone can reward you and your home for smelling good....
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