Despite the addition of the flex meal plan options, as well as a record-sized freshman class, the number of plans purchased this year was basically stagnant.
Carolina Dining believes the issue lies in the marketing of the new plans, but we can't help but feel like the reason is that the plans themselves just don't add up to what students want.
Flex meal plans offer options as to when and where you eat, but at an astronomical premium — $460 worth of food for $700.
Advertising isn't the problem; value is. $700 does not equal $460, no matter how you slice it. Instead of baking a sweet marketing treat, Carolina Dining needs to get back to the basics and explain why Flex plans are worth it — and if they're not, give us something that is.
If there are other features of the Flex plan other than flexibility, we don't taste or smell them.
Carolina Dining is supposed to be convenient, but long lines throughout Russell House any time near lunch or dinner make getting a quick bite to eat no faster than walking to Beezer's or Moe's. And while the Flex plan allows you to eat around the busy times at Russell House, this shouldn't be considered a luxury and priced as such.
We'll be the first ones to admit there are parts of the Flex meal plans that most students don't fully understand. Rather than working on a new marketing scheme that sugarcoats the plans, give us a more straightforward, better deal by either reducing prices or increasing quality.
Dining says it will sell plans side by side and let students choose what they prefer. Great — please do that. But give us legitimate options that don't leave our wallets with a starving appetite.
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