Think Different, Subway - Craig Huntington
Think Different, Subway
Posted on Jan 28, Posted by Craig Huntington Category Blog
By now, you’ve probably read media reports of the lawsuits being filed against Subway because
a couple of guys have discovered that the franchise’s “foot long” sub sandwich sometimes
measures short of an actual 12 inches in length. One plaintiff in Sacramento filed a lawsuit on
Thursday that seeks class-action status for Subway’s “deceptive and unfair conduct.” In that
case, the plaintiff claims to have “suffered an injury in fact and lost money.”
Sure. An injury is possible.
It’s possible he believed there was an inch more to his sandwich, and while eating his sub like a
tree limb being shoved into a wood chipper, accidentally bit off a finger.
Listen, I don’t know all of the particulars of the lawsuits. And frankly, I don’t want to know
because this kind of ridiculousness reminds me that too many people in our society are more
than willing to make a quick buck at someone else's expense. They find a flaw or a mistake in
someone or something, and they set out to exploit it by holding a successful individual or a large
company hostage with the ransom being a nice settlement. And there are plenty of attorneys
eager to fight for justice.
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Think Different, Subway - Craig Huntington
(Insert your own lawyer joke here. One of my personal favorites is: “You’re walking down the
street, and you come across Adolf Hitler, Attila the Hun and a lawyer… and you only have two
bullets in your gun. What do you do? Answer: You shoot the lawyer twice.”)
Well, as expected, Subway did the politically correct (and probably, legally astute) thing by
publicly apologizing. The world’s largest fast-food chain stated that it was going to communicate
with all franchise owners to “ensure consistency and correct length” in all of its sandwiches.
And I believe that’s a good idea from a public relations/corporate communications perspective.
But I’m wondering if this doesn’t represent an opportunity for Subway to “think different.”
In my book Risk: A Road Worth Traveling, I state that thinking different isn’t a matter of politics
or religion, social standing or buying power. It’s a state of mind that looks for challenges and
opportunities – and isn’t afraid of a little risk. And it can become a tremendous asset in the
pursuit of your own goals and dreams.
Personally, I would love to see Subway leverage this situation into a scenario that benefits their
company, franchise owners and employees. I’ve found Subway franchises to serve food that is
relatively fresh, consistent and healthy in comparison to other fast food options. I believe
Subway provides a positive meal choice, and I don’t think the country benefits by seeing the
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Think Different, Subway - Craig Huntington
company financially hammered by a couple of opportunists.
So, here’s a thought. What if Subway expanded its stance of “we pledge to do better” and used
the one-inch-short issue to introduce a new sandwich at the height of this public visibility?
Subway could give away free one-inch samples of its new sandwich as a goodwill gesture to its
customers and an image-building promotional tactic.
The strategy would likely demonstrate the company’s sincere desire to deliver value and meet
expectations – as well as drive customers into Subway franchises. Of course Subway would
need to move quickly to get the franchise operators on board with the idea, and the sampling
would be for a limited time. But I believe the potential is there for Subway to turn a negative into
a positive… to think different.
Do I believe that Subway was a little careless about its “foot-long” commitment to consumers?
Yes, I do. And I believe it would be naïve to think that in a marketplace that is constantly
shrinking package sizes to trim production costs that Subway could honestly plead ignorance to
the fact that its sandwich size isn’t at least 12 inches long.
However, I also believe that a growing number of people in our society want something for
nothing. They feel entitled to sue an organization (and potentially threaten the livelihoods of its
employees) for relatively frivolous reasons so they can reap a financial windfall – without
producing goods, providing services or delivering anything of value. To me, that’s more
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Think Different, Subway - Craig Huntington
offensive than a foot-long sandwich that is eleven and a half inches long.
Come on America. Think different.
Tags: foot-long , Subway , Think Different
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