Cebu Island Stay: Jollibee (Something I recommend to others, but wouldn't choose for myself)

On Cebu Island, there is a famous hamburger chain called Jollibee. There are so many locations throughout the city that you could practically hit one by throwing a stone.

Just as there is a McDonald's at every train station in Japan, Jollibee exists in that same capacity.

While there are McDonald's on Cebu Island, the prices are no different from those in Japan. In other words, it is very expensive for the Philippines.

Jollibee is very down-to-earth and is always overflowing with people.

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I had lunch at Jollibee with friends I am studying with at an English conversation school.

When asked what they should eat,

I recommended, "Since you've come to the Philippines, you should try Jollibee spaghetti." I told them, "It's a classic because it's a kind of sweet spaghetti you've never had in Japan! You absolutely have to experience it."

A friend asked me, "Mako-san, why are you having a hamburger?"

I hesitated and answered honestly, "I think once is enough for me." Jollibee's spaghetti is not an option for me lol

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Now, what is the point of this story?

No matter what flowery language is used, the fact that I don't choose it myself says it all.

The act of verbalizing and carefully explaining the merits of a product to recommend it to others is, I think, a form of marketing that applies not only to food but to all products.

At such times, a question that really hits the essence is,

With this question, you can judge whether someone is just advertising or if it is something they truly like.

Metrics using NPS scores are often used to measure customer loyalty. It stands for Net Promoter Score and indicates the degree of customer attachment to a company, product, or service.

The NPS question is, "How likely are you to recommend this product or service to an acquaintance or colleague?"

So, in my case, since I would "strongly recommend" Jollibee spaghetti, which has high customer loyalty, it has a high NPS score.

However, if asked whether I would choose to eat it myself, the answer is no.

Can we say this indicates high customer loyalty? Will it increase repeat customers? I think this is one example of determining the pros and cons of NPS.

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Another case is when doctors prescribe medication.
I used to work for a pharmaceutical company, so I sold drugs prescribed in hospitals.

This was quite a long time ago.
At a medical conference, a prominent professor was explaining a promising new drug that was already a standard globally and was expected to expand its market in Japan.

It was a wonderful accumulation of evidence, and they explained from various perspectives that in the global market, this is the first-choice drug for that disease.

After the lecture ended, a question came from one of the doctors in the audience.

"What is the first drug you use yourself?"

Naturally, expecting them to name the promising new drug,
to everyone's surprise, the speaker laughed and said,

"Well, I'm an old-fashioned guy,
so I'm still using the old medicine as usual."

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A wonderful lecture, a lecture based on evidence, was ruined by this one remark.

No matter how much character, personality, or academic papers the lecturing professor has, this one remark will likely prevent the new drug from being used.

If the NPS question from the audience had been, "How much would you recommend this drug to other doctors?" rather than "Which drug do you use?", they probably would have answered that they highly recommend it. But because the professor answered that they wouldn't choose it themselves, I think it's a question that reveals one's true intentions.

Things I recommend to others, but wouldn't choose for myself I believe identifying these is an essential skill for reading information in the internet society.

I frequently hear clever advertising slogans, but I wonder if the people actually doing the advertising are using those products themselves?

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Mako-san is conducting a fundraising campaign

I am currently staying in Cebu as of December 2022
Donations received through "Support if you like"
will immediately be used for children's education funds
Thank you for your cooperation
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