Ever felt let down by an expensive ice-cream?

I’m writing this from San Giuliano Mare, Rimini. It’s a small part of a large-ish resort on the Adriatic sea, on Italy’s east coast. Opposite Croatia.

My wife and two daughters and I went for a walk along the seafront after dinner last night (see picture).

You know how this works: as soon as we passed the first ice-cream shop, suddenly the only topic of conversation is how the children really, really need a “gelato”.

A few hundred yards later, we came to a shop selling both ice-cream AND beer. My resistance crumbled.

You don’t really expect good value from a place selling both ice-cream AND beer, do you? But what the hell, I had €15 in my pocket, and it was Saturday night, let’s blow it all.

The beer was OK, though nothing special given that it cost four times what I’d usually pay.

But when Hannah unwrapped the cornetto-type cardboard tube of her ice-cream, the contents seemed much less impressive than the picture on the wrapper. Smaller, and less colorful somehow. Disappointing.

What would have been the point of saying, “Kid, that was a €3 gelato!”. I’d have felt let down too, in her place. The marketing way exceeded the product being sold (she should learn to drink beer, it’s safer).

The point?

Some things you buy turn out to be worth less than you paid, and you feel let down. As Hannah did.

Other things are predictable. You get what you pay for. But you’re not excited about it. That’s my beer.

And sometimes, just sometimes, you pay your money and you get something much better than you’d been expecting. But that doesn’t happen very often, does it?

And hey, who knows what people expect, anyway?

Which is why we’re offering new clients a money-back guarantee on their first Skype Italian lesson.

Don’t like it? Just tell us why and we’ll refund your €18.

Shame ice-cream shops don’t take the same approach, isn’t it?

 

P.S. We’ve sold 15 of the 16 places we currently have available and so can take on just ONE MORE CLIENT for now. 

Seems likely that the special offer on Skype Italian lessons. which was supposed to end Tuesday, will be finishing early, maybe this evening (Sunday), maybe Monday morning.

Not too late yet, though.

So, if YOU would like to try an online Italian lesson, personalised to your needs and preferences (“looks good, tastes good, or your money back”), click here.

Now.