So I work in the insurance industry, right? Right! The products we sell tend to come with a lot of fine print with Ts & Cs and weird and wonderful complexities such as excesses and out-bonuses.
Insurance is one of those ancient industries that has been around for over a hundred years, and it appears consumer have been miserable since it began. However recently, there has been a worldwide focus on consumer protection.
In fact financial products are so complex, the financial regulators have had to release legislation called "Treating Customers Fairly".
Treating Customers Fairly or TCF has six core consumer outcomes that it aims to achieve. I decided to apply the TCF outcomes to something else that has been around forever, the Man-Woman transaction.
In order to do this we have to set the scene: in this case Men are “the insurers” selling Women, “the customers”, complicated products. In this transaction the hard currency is sex, whilst the nature of each transactions varies, depending the nature of the agreement, the particular consumers and insurers involved, there appears to be a general dissatisfaction amongst consumers.
Everywhere you go there’s bound to be a woman man bashing... I get it in the office, I get in the club, I get in on twitter, BBM, Facebook... etc. So let’s suppose we apply TCF outcomes to the Male-Female transaction. These are the desired out comes:
· Outcome 1 - Consumers can be confident that they are dealing with firms where the fair treatment of customers is central to the corporate culture
o This then speaks to the individual man's morals and ethos. She'd like to know you are a stand-up guy, have good values and behave as such. You do what you say, respect and consider her feelings.
· Outcome 2 - Products and services marketed and sold in the retail market are designed to meet the needs of identified consumer groups and are targeted accordingly
o Key in that statement “meet the needs of consumer”, most of companies driven by greed and profit want to meet their own needs. This is true of men, who tends to behave like their sole desire in life is to accumulate as much sex as possible. In fact I hypothesise that every single achievement a man works towards from puberty can be related to this desire, but that is for another blog.
o In context Men should be marketing their services to meet the needs of the women, not only their own.
· Outcome 3 - Consumers are provided with clear information and kept appropriately informed before, during and after the point of sale
o This seems so appropriate for relationships, so she's chosen you and you product. Are you keeping here well informed? Women stay complaining about lack of communication
o Are you keeping her informed when the arrangement changes? That the nightly premium provided in no longer enough to ensure fidelity?
· Outcome 4 - Where consumers receive advice, the advice is suitable and takes account of their circumstances
o Well this one speaks more to brokers of services, so if you are doing a hook-up don't set the gal up for failure.
o This also speaks to the women who choose to advice their friend on their relationships. She is not you; neither is he that bastard that broke your heart.
· Outcome 5 - Consumers are provided with products that perform as firms have led them to expect, and the associated service is of an acceptable standard and as they have been led to expect
o This one speaks to over marketing: Do not sell yourself as Mandingo if she can’t even find you in your pubes. Don't claim to have the stamina of an Ethiopian marathon runner if you are the Hussain Bolt of the bedroom. Do not sell yourself as faithful and true if you the only time they have meaning to you is when happen to see them in passing at church.
· Outcome 6 - Consumers do not face unreasonable post-sale barriers imposed by firms to change product, switch provider, submit a claim or make a complaint
o Well, this one pretty self explanatory. If you know you can’t give her what she wants, why do you keep leading her on? Either, let her go or commit to give her what she wants.
Now if the insurers, or Men, engaged with these outcomes in mind we may have a less complaints from women... but then again, are consumers ever satisfied?
