Doug DavidoffI have been a fan of XM Radio for several years. I have to admit that, originally, when I heard about satellite radio I thought, “who in the world would pay for radio?” Then I bought a new Acura TL that came with a free 90-day subscription to XM. I fell in love with it right away. It joined the ranks of my cell phone, fax machine and TiVO – technology that I immediately could not live without.
Until today. Driving with my family I heard a commercial on what was supposed to be a commercial-free channel. Whoa, what’s going on? I thought. XM is cheating on me. Literally, that’s what I felt – that XM had lied to me. It promised me commercial-free music and selection. It was a compelling promise. I now have two cars with XM and I was getting ready to buy a portable XM player because I couldn’t stand the thought of being in a rental car this week without it.
I realize that XM needs to make money. I also realize that it was only one commercial – about 15 seconds. It doesn’t matter. XM made me a promise. I trusted them. I told my friends about them. I stood up for them. Now I feel let down.
Here’s the thing: I would have been willing to pay more if XM had kept its promise. Needless to say, I’m no longer going to be buying the portable player. I have not canceled my subscription – but I’m certainly looking at my options.
For those readers that have had the guts to make a compelling promise, don’t make this mistake. Stick to your promise. “Promises made, promises kept” is a recipe for success in the wisdom age.