Archive for July 30th, 2009

By the numbers: The healthcare tail that’s wagging the dog …

July 30, 2009

According to recent polls …

91% of all Americans have insurance …,

84% of Americans who have health insurance are happy with their coverage….

That means that 76% of all Americans will be concerned about anything that threatens their current coverage.

By a 2-1 margin, Americans want coverage from a private provider rather than the government.

* * * * *

Of those who do not have insurance—and who therefore might be better off under OnamaCare …

Approximately one-fifth are illegal aliens …

Nearly three-fifths make $50,000 or more a year and can afford insurance (and most have access to plans)

And just under a third are eligible for Medicaid or other government programs already (but haven’t signed up).

The slice of the uninsured that is left is perhaps about 2% of all American citizens

* * * * *

So, spend $1 trillion and put the world’s greatest health-care system at risk ?  Hmmmm.

Excerpted from: WSJ,  Obama’s Great Health Scare, July 29, 2009
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204619004574318334081271414.html

* * * * *

Posted in Health Care / Medical Insurance | 3 Comments »

Outback’s $9.99 menu lures budget-strapped boomers …

July 30, 2009

Disclaimer: I’m not unbiased.  Outback is the Homa family restaurant of choice for fancy family meals.

Ken’s Take:  It’s always risky to move away from your traditional value proposition.  Outback is known for a quantity not quality.  Reducing the quantity – even with a commensurate cut in prices – could alienate core customers (like me).

Note that customers get lured in by the lower prices, but end up spending about the same amount as before.  Another marketing triumph, right ?

* * * * *

Business Week, The Leaner Baby Boomer Economy, July 23, 2009

[Hit by the recession], Outback Steakhouse  … reduced menu prices and offered smaller cuts of beef at Outback to maintain margins … and has gone on an ad blitz pushing the more modest portions for $9.99. This is obviously a tricky balancing act at Outback, where a big slab of meat was the chain’s main attraction.

The good news, says Chief Branding Officer Jody Bilney, is that people who order the less expensive entrées typically end up buying dessert or more alcohol, so the average ticket is still about $19 per person.

Full article – includes vignettes on BMW, Starwood Hotels and others:
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/09_31/b4141026524433.htm

* * * * *

Posted in Mktg - Pricing, Mktg - Promotion | 1 Comment »