I recently took a Hawaiian cruise
(with Royal Caribbean’s Legend Of The Seas).
The image the average person
has of traveling to Hawaii
is being greeted
by a smiling, hula skirted, dark haired woman
and being given a lei.
Did this happen on this cruise?
No.
I didn’t receive a single lei.
Passengers had to buy leis
when the ship docked on an island.
A silk lei,
bought in bulk,
costs, at the most, fifty cents.
The cruise ship decided to save
this fifty cents
but these savings had a cost.
What was that cost?
Magic.
The cruise wasn’t as magical,
wasn’t as special,
wasn’t as memorable.
I would have happily paid extra
to receive a lei,
to have this magic.
Ensure that you don’t
take all of the magic out of your product
when you’re reducing costs.
The magic is what makes your product
special.