Trust Your Customers... And They Do Amazing Things...
from the treat-them-like-criminals,-however... dept
The entertainment industry has a long and sorry history of treating customers like criminals, despite plenty of evidence that suggests that treating customers like criminals makes them more likely to act like criminals, rather than less. SteveD writes in with an example out of the UK, where the proprietor of a small shop decided that his store should be open the day after Christmas, but he didn't want his employees to have to work -- and he didn't want to work either. So, he opened up the shop, put up a note and a box for people to put money in and left the shop entirely unstaffed. It actually worked out well. He made a fair bit of money and didn't find any damage or products stolen.This reminds me, quite a bit, of the Freakonomics story about the "Bagel Man" who delivered bagels to a variety of office buildings around Washington DC and left out boxes for people to pay. On average, he ended up with around 90% of the money requested, and some interesting lessons in which types of people and companies were more likely to be honest. There's also a scene in the Kevin Smith movie Clerks where the lead character Dante does the same thing -- though his explanation for why it works is: "Theoretically, people see money on the counter, and no one around, they think they're being watched." And, as his girlfriend notes, this is "honesty through paranoia." I'm not sure which it is, but it seems that there's ample evidence that honest people don't need to be "kept honest" and treating your customers like criminals isn't necessarily a very good idea.
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It's a nice story
Nevertheless, the point is made. It all depends on who your customers are.
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it takes a lot to get this to work
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heh
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Works in small places. I would be surprised if somebody replicates this NY
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Works in small places. I would be surprised if somebody replicates this NY
oooooh it doesn't work everywhere, lets roll in the tanks and nerve gas and turn this place into tiananmen square.
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One of the arguments the RIAA and MPAA use to justify DRM is that without DRM or copy protection, people have an opportunity to not only make a copy, but then distribute copies.
For that argument to work, you have to assume that most of your customers cannot be trusted. However, the opposite seems to be true. Most customers are honest.
When I buy a DVD, I rip a copy to my HD, burn a new copy and put the original away. I also convert the copy into Xvid. But I don't distribute copies. But according to the MPAA I am a criminal even though I paid for the DVD.
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the "honer" boxes were always a success, people liked them, and never any complaints about losing money or broken machines.
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trust your customers
This sounds irrational from the outside, however the system establishes a relaxed low pressure environment where folks seek out staff or approach a desk to pay for paper and share comments and/or insights.
It is common for staff to find money next to an unattended printer. Library users also make small donations to the library in gratitude for computer printing service on occasion.
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I'd like to see him try it for a week straight
In the example the customers visiting were probably honest people just trying to do alittle shopping, but I bet the customers the second day were not nearly as honest once the story got out that the guy left his store open all day unattended.
I bet if he did it for a week even if he collected the cash daily I bet he would come in to an empty store and little to no money.
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Be Afraid! Be VERRRY afraid!
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Honesty
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I did this
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Now flip the coin.
The entertainment industry isn't going to change, Mike. It's a distributor, raping millions from honest people with any means they can.
You said it once before: The sole reason a business exists is to make money.
So, until THIS business model is changed, you're spinning your wheels hoping the entertainment industry (and other industries) will quit treating its consumers as criminals.
It's easier to take from those locked up than it is from those who are free.
I used to pay for music, software, and movies (well, movies I still do, but very, very limited purchasing).
USED to.
As the blog states, I was one of the honest who turned "criminal" thanks to the very industry I was honestly supporting.
Now, I tell people to download for free and teach them how to do it, as well as burn music and movies.
Karma strikes again.
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I still believe in trusting customers (and most others) until they give you a reason not too; but you will be surprised by just who will give you a reason not too.
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