I got a letter in the mail from AT&T recently. Generally, this isn't a blog-worthy event - one of the benefits of being an AT&T user is the mass amount of junk mail they send you. But this piece of mail caught my attention. Most junk mail comes with some kind of flashy and/or glossy pamphlet or brochure or something. This was just a simple letter on AT&T letterhead. Honestly at first I thought they were canceling me or somehow I was in trouble.
The letter is in 5 paragraphs, which I'll overview here. It starts off thanking me for selecting AT&T as my wireless carrier, and indicates they are going to give me an "update on their promise to provide me with best-in-class wireless service". Okay, whatever. In bold text, the next paragraph starts "Our goal is to keep you connected to the things that matter most in your world...". Ah, thanks for letting me know AT&T, I wondered if that's what you were aiming for.
So two paragraphs in, nothing of note so far. The third paragraph touts AT&T's network, the "nation's fastest mobile broadband network." Followed by a sentence declaring AT&T is trying to build a network that is "as strong and fast as possible", then randomly throwing in there that AT&T's ability to "make a phone call while surfing the web at the same time". Umm, okay, so you like your network AT&T. Got it. A little random to send me a letter to tell me that, but whatever.
The meat comes in the fourth paragraph. Another (literally) bold sentence - "Enhancing our network is one way we are working to improve local communities...". The rest of the paragraph talks about how AT&T is "giving back" to Michigan, throwing around a bunch of numbers about how many people they employ, as well as some claims of volunteer activities and corporate giving programs.
Right, so that's great AT&T that you're employing people in Michigan. I'm thankful for that, no doubt. But...why, exactly, did you elect to send me a letter to tell me this? I've never gotten a letter from Meijer saying, "hey, FYI, we employ people in your state, in case you didn't know."
The last paragraph concludes thanking me for my business, and directing me to my local store with any questions.
I realize this is a marketing letter and I'm thinking far too much about it, but the whole deal is really weird. All of these things that you've told me about - your vague and generally un-interesting goal, a random bit about your network, and the fact that you employ people in my state - really...that doesn't do anything for me.
I think I'd feel better if at the end they pitched me for an upgrade to my internet service, it might be less creepy.
2 comments:
It's some feel good sort of letter to make you feel like AT & T is a local company, your friend, and not some huge corporation. I'm surprised they didn't mention their "carbon footprint" and how they're trying to reduce it for you and future generations....blah, blah, blah.
Big company, but they still care. Ahhhh, makes you feel all warm and fuzzy don't it? Um, yeah.
Post a Comment