So you say it’s your birthday

Well go and get marketed to!

I’ve just had a birthday. Along with various notes and greetings from friends and family, I’ve gotten heartwarming messages from companies I do business with. 

There’s nothing inherently wrong with this, as long as it’s not overdone - you are not my friends, marketers! In my email I found one good one, and one bad one. 

The bad one first: from a bank I do business with. They were giving a special gift: a coupon at their store. They have a store? Who knew? The coupon was for 15% off of a purchase of various items that I didn’t know they sell, don’t care about, and had no intention of buying. In other words, my “present” is an opportunity to spend money I hadn’t planned on spending. Bzzzt. Fail. 

The good one: this came from Borders. They know I buy books, and the gift was a coupon for 25% off of an item, good either online or at a retail location. This is useful. I buy books regularly, and they know that. So they are giving me a discount on a planned purchase. In other words, it meets the definition of “gift” - an exchange in which I get someone from someone else. 

The bank’s exchange with me would be a net gain for them. This is not a “gift.” 

Be careful with these kinds of promotions. People appreciate them, but don’t pretend you’re the consumers friend - you’re a faceless institution. People like faceless institutions giving them a perk on a special occasion; they’re not as fond of faceless institutions pretending to be real people, or giving them a special opportunity to hand over more money. 

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