From the title,“Baby Einstein’s Refund: Not so Smart?”, Steven Levitt's story could lead one to surmise that he feels Disney is making a mistake with their recent extended refund offer on Baby Einstein DVDs. It does make a good headline and is very ReTweet-able, but in truth, he doesn't feel this way. He merely points to the fact that used-DVD eBay sellers have the most to gain from the new policy. In my opinion, that is a myopic view of the situation.
What were seeing here is a ginormous brand do something unusual; compromise. [disclosure, Disney is a client, but not The Baby Einstein company]. They are saying no one wants or needs to fight. As the FTC determined, no laws were violated in the marketing of Baby Einstein products. And from the blog posts and tweets from mothers who purchased these products, none expected their child to be applying for Mensa membership as a result. But there likely is a minority of people who were led to believe these products as giving their babies a head start in cerebral development. In reality they are entertainment and provide parents a moment of rest.
All too often companies are perceived in the extremes of friend or foe. Witness the ongoing Nestle dialog. And, too often, companies just try to sweep things under the rug when things go wrong and hope they go away. It’s encouraging to see a company step up to satisfy all customers, if it is only a minority who need it.
This is a company that understands that Baby Einstein purchasers are their long term Disney customers. They are making an effort at maintaining a positive customer relationships for future gain.
