Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!portal!cup.portal.com!jxh
From: jxh@cup.portal.com
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: Why Can't Microsoft Write Protect Their Distribution Disks?
Message-ID: <5873@cup.portal.com>
Date: 24 May 88 17:15:56 GMT
References: <175@optilink.UUCP> <978@hsi.UUCP>
Distribution: na
Organization: The Portal System (TM)
Lines: 59
XPortal-User-Id: 1.1001.4342

In article <978@hsi.UUCP>, tankus@hsi.UUCP (Ed Tankus) writes:
>When I purchase media for duplication I'm concerned with both quality and
>price.  If a vendor quotes a price of $.60 for 5.25" non-write-protected 
>floppies in quantity versus $.85 for write protected floppies of the same
>brand and quality, I think my purchasing decision is a bit obvious.  Now 
>you may argue about customer satisfaction and so on but lets look at some
>numbers.

>Ex. 5,000 5.25" (DSDD) disks @ $.60 (non-write-protected): $3,000.00

>    5,000 5.25" (DSDD) disks @ $.85 (write-protected):     $4,250.00
>    ----------------------------------------------------------------

>    Difference of:					   $1,250.00

>I don't believe I could convince any of my managers or those who have the
>authority to approve my requests that this kind of customer satisfaction
                                                    ^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^
>is worth $1,250.  However, I can easily convince them that if they don't
 ^^ ^^^^^ ^^^^^^^ [emphasis mine -jxh]
>use write-protected media, they pare down the use of labor-specific tasks
>at our duplicators, and provide our customers with sets of disk tabs, that
>not only will everyone save money but we can deliver the product on time.  

You, sir, are on the slippery slope of justifying poor quality on the basis
of aggregate cost savings, ignoring that cost relative to the price of the
product.  When your company makes anything in sufficient volume, even the
smallest cost saving can seemingly be justified on the basis of how much
money the company would save (in aggregate); this temptation often proves
too great, and quality, little by little, is eroded.  But where does this
stop?  How about using $0.59 disks instead of $0.60 disks?  $0.58? $0.57?
Where do you draw the line?  How much value is placed on the customers'
time: to put on the write-protect tab; to growl at your organization for
not doing such a simple (not free, just simple) thing when they clearly
got plenty of money from the customer to cover the cost; to re-order the
product because of a stupid mistake that caused the disks to be overwritten?
How much does it cost your company to respond to those who make this mistake?
Even if you do not offer immediately to ship them new disks, no charge,
someone has to answer the phone to tell them to RTFM and go to h*ll.  How
much does that person get paid?  What could that person be doing to *improve*
your customer relations, rather than annoying disgruntled customers who,
through no fault of yours perhaps, will never buy another one of your
products?

I think if you look more carefully, you can easily justify 15 cents per copy.
Especially when such a small cost can avert such a major upheaval for the
customer installing your product, and at a time when that customer is
forming a first impression of your organization.

The alternative is slowly destroying the good faith of your customers, and
therefore your revenue base, and that will cost you rather more.  As a
businessman, you cannot afford to overlook costs merely because they are
intangible.

FLAME OFF.  Sorry for the tone of this: it hit a nerve.  I hope all who see
it will take my point, in spite of my firebreathing :-).

-Jim Hickstein, VSAT Systems, Inc, San Jose, CA
jxh@cup.portal.com   ...!sun!portal!cup.portal.com!jxh