“Amazon made it easy to sign up for Prime in just two clicks.” That’s how a CNN report on the FTC’s upcoming case against Amazon described it. Which doesn’t help the FTC’s case.
To see why, contemplate how easy any business makes it for customers to sign up for its various services in return for an annual fee. Rare is the business that won’t go to great lengths to achieve stable, and highly predictable earning streams.
What’s interesting about Amazon Prime is that it’s a waste of words describing the various benefits that come with it, and none will be here. Why include a mention of the myriad benefits of Prime when in a very real sense, everyone knows about Prime? Which is the point, or should be.
While most companies struggle to merely attain a customer’s e-mail or phone number, a third-party analysis cited by CNN indicates that Amazon has roughly 195 million U.S. Prime subscribers, all who pay $139 annually for membership. U.S. is italicized in consideration of 340 million Americans total, of which 72 million are under the age of 18, thus free to use their parents’ membership. It’s not remotely a reach to say that Prime is really and truly one of the few memberships that requires no introduction. Almost everyone has it. Which is telling. And it raises a basic question.
Why is the FTC harassing the creator of a service that is so immensely popular? While it’s surely “easy” to sign up for Prime, it’s not as though force is involved. As the nearly 200 million Prime members indicates, they’re not being lured as much as they’re going out of their way to attain membership. Some editor somewhere might tell this writer to explain why the universality of Prime membership, but that would once again be a waste of words. The universality confirms a universal consensus about the myriad benefits of Prime.
Which brings us to the FTC’s case; one that is plainly belied by 200 million, 195 million, or whatever the real number of Prime members is. The regulatory agency is taking Amazon to court with its Prime “cancellation practices under a microscope.” Supposedly Prime is easy to join, but not so easy to quit. Which is not very impressive evidence, for the FTC.
Again, as the evident clamor to join Prime makes very plain, those eager to quit are nano relative those joining. Which raises another question: where’s the incentive for Amazon to make exiting Prime a challenge where joining isn’t? Where indeed? As 195 or 200 million yet again indicates, Amazon doesn’t have a problem of cancellation, and for obvious reasons.
Just the same, Amazon (as is the case with all good businesses) is not in the habit of blithely turning its nose up to departing customers. Good and great businesses go out of their way to understand not just why they have repeat customers, but just as crucially why some depart.
Which means it would be bad business practice for Amazon to make Prime cancelation as simple as joining. Precisely because Amazon goes to great lengths to add customers (195 million Prime members indicate that it’s one of the best in the world at adding them), it must be the opposite of indifferent to their departure.
Which is a long way of saying that Amazon is many things, Roach Motel (look it up) not one of them. But having become the world’s most prominent retailer, Amazon’s not so haughty or foolish as to turn its back on those exiting what is arguably the largest membership in all the U.S.
