Archive for January, 2012
Does that ever happen to you? It happens to me all the time. Yesterday I read about the idea of having a ‘Guest’ application on a mobile phone such that you could offer your phone to someone else to use (temporarily) and they would log in as a guest and make a call or do whatever they needed to on their own account and not be able to get into your account. I realize that it won’t be long before everyone has a smartphone but sometimes batteries die, phones get lost or don’t work so having this as an option in the form of an application is a great idea. It seems so obvious to me and caused me to wonder why I didn’t think of that?
Several years ago I wrote a post on how I thought there should be an iPhone EZ pass application – http://wp.me/pJX7l-9L – and BTW I didn’t and still don’t have an iPhone. I would now add that it should be a smartphone application for all platforms (Android, Blackberry if they last). Good idea but I’ve lately been trying to find a way to make it happen and have been stymied every step of the way when it comes to contacting people at EZ Pass – which has been nearly impossible. If it was easy it already would have been done right?
So my conclusion is that the answer to ‘why didn’t I think of that’ can sometimes be answered in realizing that the idea is only part of the process and successfully implementing an idea is most often more difficult than thinking it up in the first place.
If I have learned anything from creating http://www.yourcover.com is that good ideas don’t always translate into good businesses – at least not right away – and even if they do it will take time as it has with YourCover which I am happy to say is now a very successful business. And even if they do translate into good businesses the road to success is will be long and filled with potholes that we do our best to avoid. However I find myself on the side of the road from time to time fixing the damage done when the pothole cannot be avoided.
But I strongly encourage people to not answer the question ‘why hasn’t it been done already? Before they’ve tried actually doing it. Even if other people thought of it, putting an idea into action and making it happen requires more than ingenuity. The idea is only the beginning and the hard work then follows. What happens to me is that I think – someone has undoubtedly already thought of this and there’s a reason it has not been done. I realize that is a pretty poor excuse for not at least exploring an idea to a greater degree.
Some time ago I had an idea for a smartphone mirror application – something that would look like a compact-type mirror. Sure enough when I looked I found one on the Android system (but not for Blackberry as far as I have been able to determine) http://bit.ly/wrPbwp. The question I should ask myself (and you should think about asking yourself) is – ‘Why didn’t I think of making it happen?’
Mobile communications companies share the collective animosity of their customers. It does not matter if you are an AT & T subscriber, T-Mobile, Verizon or any other provider. The customers that stay with you are choosing you for one of two reasons – 1) it’s the only option they have, 2) they have not found a better option.
For those people who are unaware, Verizon decided to cancel its policy http://bit.ly/uTG2Fw of charging a $2 “convenience fee” for bill payments made over the phone and online. The policy had been intended to go into effect as of January 15, 2012. Within 24 hours of announcing the new rule, Verizon did an about-face and completely squelched the idea.
It’s score one for the little guys right? Let’s face it – it’s altogether too rare for a company to actually listen to its customers (well the customers were yelling pretty loudly) and then act by rescinding a new rule based on the collective outcry of their customers. Of course critics note that Verizon’s 4G LTE network went down last week for the third time in a month which also served to infuriate its customers.
I am wondering about the meeting that occurred at Verizon where the concept of a $2 customer “convenience fee” was not only unveiled, but voted on positively by the powers that be. Perhaps there wasn’t a meeting or a vote after all? I mean, who could sit there and listen to this plan and not think that Verizon’s customers would do a total freak-out?
What if Verizon intended on floating this idea out there with the distinct knowledge that they would pull back once the customer outcry reached fever pitch (this took less than 24 hours BTW)? I know that’s cynical but it is possible right? And if that were to have been the case Verizon would have been able to close out 2011 on a somewhat positive note as a company that listened to its customers concerns (outrage?) and acted upon it.
The alternative is that the brass at Verizon is so clueless that they put out a rule change that stands out as being one of the dumbest business moves of 2011.
I don’t think Verizon reached a market cap of more than $113 billion because they do dumb things do you?
I’ve never been someone to make New Year’s Resolutions. I recall trying it when I was younger, failing miserably, and then avowing (resolving?) to not repeat the process. I have been somewhat successful in that regard.
So in a world full of top ten lists and the like I could not even come up with ten things I did not resolve. I managed to squeeze out a few:
1) I did not resolve to watch fewer sporting events on television. Hey, I’m a guy. My wife was not all that surprised.
2) I did not resolve to take fewer showers in order to save water. I like to think of it as improving the overall air quality.
3) I did not resolve to spend more time with my family. While this remains unannounced, I doubt they would notice one way or the other so I take it that I am doing ok anyway.
4) I did not resolve to drink less wine. Duh.
5) I did not resolve to work longer hours. However I will continue to learn to work smarter.
Happy New Year to all and to all my very best wishes for health, happiness, and prosperity. In that order too.