I started using Nutrisystem products in May of this year (2013). It’s a good product. Most of the food is pretty tasty. The weight loss is done at a healthy rate, and the foods are specifically formulated to be low-glycemic and while they say ‘high’ protein, I think most is more like ‘adequate’ protein. The ‘junk food’ they have IS much higher protein (and fiber) than its grocery store counterparts. It’s also low fat, and aims to have much better fiber than regular foods (though much of the fiber in lunch and dinner comes from fresh produce that is added to the Nutrisystem entrees- and is an added expense). However, since I’ve been on Nutrisystem, they keep discontinuing foods with no replacements, saying there are new things coming. OK, they brought out White Cheddar Popcorn with a great amount of fanfare ( it’s basically a nutritionally equal product to regular cheese corn, maybe a bit lower fat and portion controlled- nothing special, or nutritionally superior to convenience store popcorn). Since April 2013, there have been 20 shelf-stable foods discontinued. That’s an average of almost three per month over 7 months. Here’s the list :
Nutrisystem Entrees discontinued since mid-April 2013:
Frozen Chocolate Cheesecake (only frozen food discontinued)
Maple Sausage Patty
Biscuits & Gravy Mix Apple Streudel Scone
Chocolate Chip Scone Whole Grain O’s
Vegetable Scramble Cranberry Orange Pastry
Wedding Soup Cheesy Homestyle Potatoes
Vegetable Beef Soup Split Pea Soup
PB&J Bar Chicken Salad
Pasta & Beef Cajun-Style Chicken & Sausage
Beef & Wedged Potatoes Beef with Rice & Beans
Homestyle Beef with Mashed Potatoes & Gravy
Butterscotch Pudding Mix Double Chocolate Almond Cookie
Of those shelf-stable items (I’m not on the frozen food plan), I ‘lost’ the following options (several of them were among my ‘favorite’ meal choices, marked with an asterisk):
*Beef & Wedged Potatoes Beef with Rice & Beans
*Cajun-Style Chicken & Sausage *Pasta & Beef
*Homestyle Beef with Mashed Potatoes & Gravy
Wedding Soup Vegetable Beef Soup
*Apple Strudel Scone *Chocolate Chip Scone
There are NINE items that I can no longer get and four items I’d had in my orders, but had to remove as they kept discontinuing items, and I either didn’t like the substitution, or didn’t want to take a chance when they didn’t specify what it was going to be (I didn’t get e-mails ahead of time until this week). It is always possible to get replacements for items within 30 days of receiving an order, but that’s a hassle. The products generally take more than a week to arrive, which can mean eating the same couple of items repeatedly until the replacements arrive. Not a catastrophe, but NOT WHAT I’M PAYING FOR.
Some of the Nutrisystem community are willing to eat almost anything, and have no issue not enjoying what they eat. (I guess part of that depends on what brought people to Nutrisystem- some folks have a few pounds to lose, and some people have well in excess of a hundred pounds to lose- and they do it). Others are in ‘maintenance’ and are more comfortable ‘flexing’ (substituting ‘real’ food). I’m extremely comfortable with the meal plans and what to combine at each meal… but I’m not paying Nutrisystem just to have to supply my own entrees. My feeling is that the food has to be good ‘enough’ to justify paying for it. Most of it is good ‘enough’, or even pretty good. But I can’t also afford to buy ‘regular’ food AND what I already paid for with the auto-delivery plan. It’s not possible to only get lunch and dinner items in a ‘plan’ (which includes free shipping and a %20 discount of all items and any a la carte items added to the regular auto-delivery order). And now, I’m just wondering what will be next to get the boot.
The standard issue reply to complaints online is that the information will be sent to customer service (or the appropriate department). Talking to CS personnel on the phone is always pleasant. They really do have some great folks working the phones and handling complaints and problems with orders. BUT, the third quarter earnings call (that I could only see the first page of since I don’t have an account to ‘sign in’ to in order to view the rest) was very telling. One of the stockholders, who is a Nutrisystem user (who has been one of their spokespeople) posted the link on the communication boards. It was enlightening, even though I saw just a small portion.
Dawn Zier (President and CEO of Nutrisystem) stated the following: “We continue to execute on our four point turnaround plan, which was stated on prior calls encompasses, one, products and program innovations; two, margin improvement; three, operational excellence focusing on eCommerce and direct marketing fundamentals; and four, a clear prioritization of our growth initiatives including sales channel and market segment diversification.”
That is verbatim from the beginning of the transcript (after introductions). There is NO mention of customer service, or customer retention. Not one of the four points in the turnaround plan mentions the customer experience with Nutrisystem. I’m not sure how they plan to make money if they don’t care about the customer. How do they think they’ll sell products? A government contract? I doubt that. The customer isn’t part of the plan… interesting ! We don’t matter.
We (those of us on the Nutrisystem communication boards- HA, ironic name!!) keep hearing that there are new things coming in 2014 (for a while it was that new things are coming, so for months, we waited). For 7 months of waiting, we got popcorn this summer…(and November and December are yet to come with any additional product discontinuations that aren’t known yet) . We lost ‘main dishes’ from breakfast, lunch, and dinner. These are the shelf-stable products. The folks who order frozen foods got several new items. Many of us don’t have the additional money for that plan, OR the freezer space. Some just don’t want it in spite of the financial and space availability. So, we’ve had fewer and fewer options, had to spend more money on alternative ‘real’ foods when we already pay for the Nutrisystem food, and have gotten nothing specific on when to expect what.
My ‘beef’ with this isn’t so much the food itself, though I do expect to have the same number of options as when I signed up. My issue is that the customer seems to be irrelevant to the business at this time. There are folks who REALLY miss the Biscuits and Gravy (I never got to try it). It (and most of the items they axed) was a huge seller and favorite among a good number of people. The items that got the ‘axe’ were often 3.5-5 star rated items (out of 5 stars). With no replacements. Even a comment about something that is coming , sent out to all customers on the communication boards or via e-mail (however each customer signs up for notifications) that gives a concrete ‘thing’ to look forward to would help. Instead, crickets. The stockholders (some of whom are also Nutrisystem users) got some information, which I understand- they have invested in the company; they ‘count’. But with the ongoing complaints about each item that is discontinued, there should be some communication with ALL customers. Every time another item is discontinued, the communication boards light up for several days, except the Biscuit and Gravy, which has an ongoing grief support group 
Change is inevitable with all businesses. That’s a given. Every detail of financial turnaround plans aren’t expressed to the customers. That’s normal. But with the constant uproar with each new discontinuation of products, is it too much to ask for someone to throw a bone of hope to the peons? Weight loss is difficult, and Nutrisystem works. But only as long as someone is willing to put up with being treated like a dead fly behind a bookcase. Ignored, not considered, and not seen or heard. People with weight issues often have self esteem issues, so they put up with being treated like they don’t count. I expect what I pay for. I’m not getting it. It’s pretty simple. I have enough respect for myself to not allow someone to blow me off and expect me to pay for it.
I had to move my next order up so I could get the Cajun-Style Chicken and Sausage while it’s still in stock (I’d delayed that order due to the weird health issues this past few months, though I’ve been eating ‘NS’ food when I’m not trying to get rid of nausea and headaches). That was an inconvenience and made a huge dent in my flexible spending for the next 4 weeks. I’m about %95+ sure I’m not going to order again (never say never), and will cancel my auto-delivery as soon as this delivery (that has been shipped) hits my door and I make sure it’s OK. I can eat the stuff I’ve got here and decide if I really want to bother with a company that has left its customers hanging for most of the year. Had I known that the product selection was going to be so unstable, I would not have chosen Nutrisystem. If there are such wonderful things to come, I could re-join. I don’t get any insurance discounts like many do, and the discounts I do get are available any time- not special offers given at sign-up like some people are wanting to hang on to- many of them feel ‘stuck’ and don’t want to risk losing the discounts, which are substantial.
The Nutrisystem products are good. The ongoing disregard for customer questions about when/what all of these supposedly wonderful changes are- and when they’re really going to start- and complaints about favorites that are discontinued is anything but good customer service. It shows an absolute disregard for the current customer base. (I don’t remember verbatim what was said from the earnings call as comment on by a communication board member/NS spokesperson, but more than %30 of revenue is from returning customers, so I guess the overall attitude is that we come back??? Again, I don’t remember that verbatim- that sounds high ).
I wouldn’t go back to a brick and mortar store if they stopped selling the items I went specifically there to purchase. It’s a decision I hadn’t expected to make so soon- and definitely not for these reasons. I’d planned on using Nutrisystem foods beyond making my goal weight. Some of the stuff is THAT good ! But, I’m worth more than a slap on the face when wanting to know why I should stick around. I’m only one person- I probably don’t matter much. I feel better knowing that at least I’ll be heard on my blog 
Edit: I have been told that there were customer service issues discussed on the earnings call. I can’t get into the entire transcript, so am going by what was heard by someone who listened to the call. Want to be fair, and update as needed.
