Carb Crazy
I watch what I eat- which is to say I keep an eye on my food as it moves from my plate to my pie hole. Otherwise, I give little thought to a “balanced diet” or the “food pyramid” (which somehow changed without notice from the “four food groups” I learned about as a kid). And I surely remain blissfully unaware of the many fad diets responsible for spiking the sale of books, scales and Bally memberships from time to time. Despite this, the current low-carb craze somehow crept into my cranium, a realization that struck me last Sunday morning when my hand poised indecisively between an eight-pack of fully loaded Classic Coke (my cola of choice) and C2, Coke’s attempt to capitalize on carb-conscious consumers. “Should I go with half the sugar, half the carbs, or my usual?” I mentally debated in the supermarket aisle, oblivious to the fact that the Fashion Police could soon bust me for spotting my rattiest T-shirt and a severe case of bed head in public. I selected my usual, but why did this incident lead to publication of the world’s first, highly collectible, sell-it-on-e-Bay, low carb magazine?* Merely to underscore the importance of responding to consumer preferences, which more than ever drive the success of any business, including yours. If the low-carb stuff on the cover caught your eye, intriguing you enough to read this column and more of this magazine, then you just experienced the power of responsiveness firsthand. Sure, the carb craze is likely a fad, destined for replacement by some later, greater weight-loss “breakthrough.” The alleged obesity and health problems of the late Robert Atkins did little to bolster the faith of those following his diet regimen, and the Wall Street Journal recently reported that sales of low-carb fare “only” grew 42 percent in the second quarter this year (versus 95 percent in the first). Still, the number of American counting carbs ranges anywhere from six to 20 percent right now, according to two different surveys, and food companies met that demand by introducing 1,863 low-carb products in the first half of 2004- more than three times the number launched the previous year. Only time will reveal if this is a fad, a trend or a long-term shift in consumer preference, but regardless of longevity and short-term profits, from a brand-awareness standpoint, companies that responded to carb-crazy consumers are better positioned long-term than those peddling the “usual fare.” That is the low-carb lesson of value to your funeral home. No, I do not believe your firm could or should resort to gimmickry and chase after every whim, but today’s consumers demand choices, from the food they eat to the funerals they arrange. Has your funeral home responded to families seeking cremation or greater personalization-two well-established trends-and positioned itself long-term as a responsive, progressive business? Consumers, not funeral directors, determine what funerals “should look like,” i.e. what constitutes an “appropriate” form of disposition for the deceased, and what comprises a moving, meaningful ceremony for the living. Some of the funeral product and service offerings around today will probably go the way of buggy whips, eight-track tapes and low-carb diets eventually, but if you want your firm to be around tomorrow, you must prove responsive today. As Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton said: “There is only one boss, the customer, and he can fire everybody in the company, from the chairman on down, simply by spending his money somewhere else.”