These additional expenses would shift his average total cost curve upward and continue until his profits disappear and the new demand curve is tangent to the new cost curve average total. A monopolistically competitive firm cannot make any economic profit in the long run (HTrends, 2008). Marriott attempted to differentiate itself by using its most expensive resource, its people. Marriott implemented this focus with the support of highly selective recruiting - an approach used by Southwest Airlines and a new customer feedback mechanism to evaluate staff and unit performance.