This just in … no more free beer at Busch theme parks. Just read this in a news post. It made me think about customer expectations.

As we launch a new year of engaging customers ask yourself what expectations your customers have about their interactions with you.

I have no idea whether or not those coming to a Busch theme park have come to expect free Budweiser as a just reward for standing in-line with the sweaty masses. But if they have, are there consequences?  Will people vote with their feet, or simply shrug it off as another casualty of a faltering economy?

Have your customers developed a set of expectations when interacting with your brand?  Do the expectations carry any value?  Metaphorically, if they expect a “free beer” when transacting with you, does it add value to the brand experience?

It’s a good time to determine what is and what’s not important to your customers.  Engage them in a simple survey, publish the results back to your customers and state your intended actions.

Bottoms up.