Ten Ren reminds me what it's like to be in love

Dear Ten Ren,

I love you. I mean, I love your product. I mean I love your chrysanthemum tea.

Truth is, I'm like Fergie, and you got me clumsy in love with you. And I don't even like Fergie. So why am I feeling this way? Simple. You gave me a free gift.

Let me pause for a moment and say that a free gift may seem so Marketing 101. However, these "tough economic times" have made us a little less thoughtful, a little less generous. During a downturn, when companies may be reluctant to give away anything for free, the gesture seems to mean even more, especially to consumers who are cutting back on purchases. Certainly an online purchase of tea bags seems like a possible candidate for belt-tightening austerity measures at home. At least it did to my husband, who gave me a hard time for buying 10 boxes of tea from you.

But I did it, and in return you, Ten Ren, reached out to me with a free box of green tea and a handwritten "thank you" on the invoice. The gesture reminded me that now, more than ever, is the time to market, advertise, and work those customer relationships–to bring a human touch when interactions, even face-to-face ones, seem to be going the way of legwarmers.

Oh, legwarmers are back in style? There you go!

Okay, I'm being silly again, but I'm clumsy in love! Sure, I like your product. That special blend of chrysanthemum flowers and black tea seems to make it sweet unlike every other chrysanthemum tea I've tried. And I tell everyone that, even though I don't seem to be single-handedly starting a chrysanthemum tea revolution in the U.S. the way it has taken hold in Taiwan.

But love exceeds products. Products are always replaceable, even the ones that seem unique and/or dominate their catgory. That's what made me say goodbye to eBay and never look back. So why is that? Because if there aren't competitors, there are always substitutes.

When you consider the shifting terrain that can make a successful product suddenly seem fly-by-night–a warning to you, Google. Look what happened to Yahoo!–you have to control what you can, which are product quality and those touchy-feely customer relationships. After all, in these tough economic times, what better way to utilize your limited resources than a gesture that can get you not only repeat business but word of mouth as well?

-joanie