Remember When Air Was Free?

Remember When Air Was Free?
May 3, 2005

Remember when air was free? I went to fill my tires in my car the other day, and they charged 50 cents. Not too long ago, every gas station had a hose coming out of the building; if you wanted to fill up your tires, you just pull up and hook it up. It was always on.

But, it's not just compressed air for your tires. I got a new cell phone, and I kid you not, if I wanted, I could pay (yes pay) for a different tone when my phone rings. I can also buy pictures, purchase songs to listen to on my phone (I shudder to imagine the fidelity), and so on. 10 cents per text message, by the way. MSN Messenger also has some cool icons and animations during chatting with your friends, but to get more you need to spend 1 dollar per icon. Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office also has these cutsie little things you can buy to "enhance your use experience."

Is it just me, or has everyone gone mad - money mad? This drive to invent things to charge people for certainly has its advantages: it is in line with our entrepreneurial spirit, it boosts (and creates) the economy, and it is in line with the American dream. However, there are some serious costs I don't know if people consider when they make up a charge.

What about the cost of customer satisfaction? I appreciate it when a vendor throws in extras at "no additional charge" - it strengthens my commitment to the company and product.

What about the cost of community? A long time ago, and even today in some subcultures, motoring was a community. Those wealthy few who could afford to own a motor vehicle would do whatever it took to help each other out. I believe free air at a gas station was part of this spirit of helping the motorist. Plus, free air is a valuable bonus to paying customers for the real money-making products: the convenience foods. Oh, yeah, and the auto fuel, too. Nowadays, with enclosed vehicles, higher road speeds, and more congestion and construction, we see an increased incidence of road rage. Folks, road rage only comes from one thing: lack of communication. It is lack of understanding of each others' circumstances, lack of compassion for the other people on the road, and lack of simply talking to each other to work out our differences. This all stems from the get-your-information-quick-and-get-out, charge-as-much-as-you-can-get culture we seem to be cultivating.

Next time someone needs to get into traffic in front of me, I'm going to let them in, in stead of flipping them off. And next time I get stopped waiting for a train, I'm going to enjoy seeing what kind of cars it is pulling, in stead of cursing the fact that I chose a road that doesn't go under the tracks.

And next time I come across another service that wants to nickel-and-dime me to death, I will consciously refuse to buy any of those oh-so-cute add-ons. And please, if you own a gas station, remove the coin input on the air pump. Or, at least give paying customers a code for "free" air.

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