When Common Sense Fails

I went to the Curve today to settle some affairs.

MALAYSIA AIRLINES

The 1st thing that caught my eye was this huge building advertising from Malaysia Airlines. The ad was on the e@Curve building where the Cathay cinema is at. The 1st thought that came to mind was “Wow, this is a first. I’ve never seen a MAS ad at this site before.”


Then, I saw the message which reads something like “300+ hours of entertainment”

Let’s dissect this. And all this was done within seconds of seeing this ad.

Is it creative? Sure. Nice colors, the headline trying to be cute. Meaning taking a dig at would-be movie-goers. That on board a MAS flight, you’d get a choice of 300+ hours worth of entertainment. That is how I read it and possibly what a lot of people will too.

But seriously, folks, if I were on a flight from here to Singapore which is like 50 minutes, I wouldn't be able to any fun thing. On the other hand, if was a 13-hour flight to the UK, I'd spend most of my time sleeping! Probably watch one movie and read a book.

So, would I want to buy a MAS flight ticket just because of the 300+ hours of entertainment available to me? I don’t think so. Sorry MAS, I’d be surprised if you actually made money from this ad. This is like a few hundred thousand Ringgit down the drain.

Some would quarrel that this is a branding ad. Puhleese!....Branding advertising is an excuse for an outright swindle, i.e. spending money that doesn’t help the bottom line.

POPEYES – A fast food restaurant

The moment I saw this restaurant (which was recently opened), I thought to myself, “This place ain’t gonna last long.”

Why? Location, location, location. It’s at the lower ground of the eCurve, a place I call the no-man’s land coz’ there’s no one milling around there.

I really do wonder who they hire at the Popeyes QSR headquarters. It’s painfully obvious that whoever picked this place doesn’t have a clue about logistics and distribution. The setup of the place would definitely cost in tens of thousands, maybe a hundred thousand or so. But they couldn’t even get brand new tent cards for their tables. They used recycled ones from their Sunway Pyramid outlet. Pathetic.

But I like Popeyes. So, I had a meal there. While I was enjoying my fish sandwich, I didn’t particularly enjoy them playing hard rock music in the restaurant. Some music are just not suitable for dining places. And they've got no WiFi...WTF?

7 ELEVEN

Another example of really bad logistics & distribution choices comes from 7 Eleven.

They have 2 OUTLETS AT e@Curve! Why would you need two of the same outlets within like 200 feet from each other? While one was sensibly on the lower ground floor facing the street outside, the other was on the 2nd floor. What the heck is it doing on the 2nd floor?

Again, wasting money!


FITNESS FIRST 

This last observation was actually the real reason I went to The Curve area. I went there to cancel my membership.

I had also lost my membership card, which is hardly surprising since I haven’t been to the gym for more than year.

Anyway, when I mentioned to the lady at the counter about my intentions and explained to her the loss of my card, she actually said to me that she would still need my membership card in order to process my request.

That is about one of the dumbest things I’ve heard said. So, I said to her, “That’s ridiculous. I don’t want to be blackmailed into keeping this membership simply because I no longer have my card. You should be able to find my account numbers using my I.C. details.”

I then asked to see her supervisor. To which of course, as is always the case when someone asks to see the supervisor, there was a mad scurrying to comply to my wishes.

Why does this always have to be the case? Why was it necessary for me to ask for the supervisor over something that is so logical?

For a company whose very existence is to help people get healthy, I find them unsurprisingly, uncaring and very numbers-driven.

I mean they probably think, “Who cares if you’ve been paying fees for over a year and you haven’t even been to the gym that entire time?”. And I didn’t even get a thank you...

I would’ve liked to get an email or an SMS, reminding me to keep going to the gym. Maybe an MMS picture of an utterly obese person would’ve reminded me that I paid good money and that I ought to pay a visit.

But these guys would rather take your money, not caring in the process, so that they can build more gyms around town and get more people to spend money.

Even so, at least employ some common sense in the process.