I thought I'd share a letter I wrote to complain about a formula coupon I got out of the check out coupon machine when I bought breastmilk bags. It's too late for critique because I already sent it, but in case anyone else is looking for letter ideas.
Dear Mr. Dillon:
I shop at the Fred Meyer on Dimond Boulevard in Anchorage, and in general I'm quite happy with the store. I find the prices competitive and the selection excellent. However, I was greatly offended by something that happened while I was shopping today.
I purchased a box of breast milk storage bags today. I'm proud to say that my two month old son is exclusively breastfed, and that I've put my career as a university instructor on hold to allow me to give him the best possible start in life. I'm only pumping and storing milk because I'm building an emergency supply in case I get sick or injured and have to stop nursing for a short period of time.
When I checked out with my breast milk storage bags, I received the enclosed coupon for $4.00 off Enfamil Lipil infant formula. This may seem like a benign offering, but in fact, I find the logic that delivered me this coupon extremely sinister:
-- a customer is buying breast milk storage bags
-- said customer must be pumping milk while she goes back to work
-- most women find pumping while they work to be difficult, overwhelming, and a lot of trouble
-- offering her a formula coupon may tempt her to supplement with formula instead of pumping exclusively
-- hopefully this will cause her milk supply to dwindle and she'll have to switch to formula completely
The coupon itself used wording that strikes me as an attempt to persuade women that this particular formula is just as good as breast milk: “Enfamil Lipil, with breast milk levels of the important nutrients DHA and ARA, promotes brain and eye development.” While this isn't a direct claim that the formula is equal to breast milk, it is a clear rhetorical attempt to catch the eye of a mother who is struggling to do what's best for her baby.
Infant formula is an alternative for mothers who physically can't breastfeed or have a low milk supply, but the aggressive marketing by formula companies to healthy mothers shows disrespect for their breastfeeding challenges and threatens the health of their babies. While new mothers are told “breast is best” by every health care provider, book, and informational website we encounter, we are also hit with contradictory messages at every turn. Doctors offices give pregnant mothers formula samples. Hospitals give new mothers gift bags provided by formula companies. Maternity stores and parenting magazines share their customers' addresses with formula companies, who send samples and coupons. Studies have shown that this marketing strategy influences many mothers to give up on breastfeeding long before the minimum time period of one year that is recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
I read your report online about public responsibility, and I believe this practice of pushing formula coupons on breastfeeding mothers compromises the values of respect and integrity you are striving to uphold as a company. Please end your part in this subtle but powerfully destructive coupon strategy and make Fred Meyer and your other grocery stores truly family friendly.
Dear Mr. Dillon:
I shop at the Fred Meyer on Dimond Boulevard in Anchorage, and in general I'm quite happy with the store. I find the prices competitive and the selection excellent. However, I was greatly offended by something that happened while I was shopping today.
I purchased a box of breast milk storage bags today. I'm proud to say that my two month old son is exclusively breastfed, and that I've put my career as a university instructor on hold to allow me to give him the best possible start in life. I'm only pumping and storing milk because I'm building an emergency supply in case I get sick or injured and have to stop nursing for a short period of time.
When I checked out with my breast milk storage bags, I received the enclosed coupon for $4.00 off Enfamil Lipil infant formula. This may seem like a benign offering, but in fact, I find the logic that delivered me this coupon extremely sinister:
-- a customer is buying breast milk storage bags
-- said customer must be pumping milk while she goes back to work
-- most women find pumping while they work to be difficult, overwhelming, and a lot of trouble
-- offering her a formula coupon may tempt her to supplement with formula instead of pumping exclusively
-- hopefully this will cause her milk supply to dwindle and she'll have to switch to formula completely
The coupon itself used wording that strikes me as an attempt to persuade women that this particular formula is just as good as breast milk: “Enfamil Lipil, with breast milk levels of the important nutrients DHA and ARA, promotes brain and eye development.” While this isn't a direct claim that the formula is equal to breast milk, it is a clear rhetorical attempt to catch the eye of a mother who is struggling to do what's best for her baby.
Infant formula is an alternative for mothers who physically can't breastfeed or have a low milk supply, but the aggressive marketing by formula companies to healthy mothers shows disrespect for their breastfeeding challenges and threatens the health of their babies. While new mothers are told “breast is best” by every health care provider, book, and informational website we encounter, we are also hit with contradictory messages at every turn. Doctors offices give pregnant mothers formula samples. Hospitals give new mothers gift bags provided by formula companies. Maternity stores and parenting magazines share their customers' addresses with formula companies, who send samples and coupons. Studies have shown that this marketing strategy influences many mothers to give up on breastfeeding long before the minimum time period of one year that is recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
I read your report online about public responsibility, and I believe this practice of pushing formula coupons on breastfeeding mothers compromises the values of respect and integrity you are striving to uphold as a company. Please end your part in this subtle but powerfully destructive coupon strategy and make Fred Meyer and your other grocery stores truly family friendly.
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