Today’s lesson: Don’t ignore them. Or do, but know that they will just get to be more of a pain in the butt.

Jack meows when he wants something. This is not so different from your consumers wanting something from you. They ask for it. They complain about it. But it’s often too easy to just ignore them, while you focus on something else that you thought would be more important at the time. You may think that it’s not a big deal to fix a minor issue on a current model when you’re getting ready to launch a new model anyway.

However, Jack wouldn’t stop meowing just because I ignored him. He would just get louder, which really would just distract me more from my task at hand at the time. He would start jumping onto my keyboard to make sure that he got my full attention. In all honesty, it would probably have been easier, faster, and less disruptive if I would just address his wants when he first meowed about it.

Same thing happens with consumers. They get louder. They gather more force. They get more disruptive. Before your new model is ready for the market, everyone everywhere are screaming how bad your current model is. Do you think that people would then be lining up for your new model? Often, it’s easier, cheaper, and faster to address their concern when they first voice them, before it turns itself into a real issue.

This lesson actually is applicable to many kind of relationships. It’s applicable to the relationship between you and your consumers. It’s applicable to the relationship between you and your co-workers. While I can’t claim first hand knowledge, I think it’s even applicable to the relationship between man and wife.

And that’s a lesson I’ve learned from Jack the Cat.

I met my human four years ago. I wasn’t so sure about her then. She tried to introduce me to all sort of stuffs, like brushing my teeth! What was she thinking?!? I barely knew her then, and she wanted to stick something in my mouth?!?

But I guess over the years, she has sorta proven herself. She gives me food consistently. She gives me water consistently. She cleans my litter box consistently. Over the past four years, she has taken care of me consistently. So, I think I trust her now. Today, when she introduces me to new things, I would at least give it a try before I run off.

Also, I know what to expect from her now… Treats! She usually gives me a treat after trying something new! So, after careful considerations, I let her brush my teeth every now and then. ‘Cuz I know there is a treat coming! Which makes it not so bad. It’s all about consistence, trust, and meeting my expectations!