Nov 16th, 2009
Brand Loyalty Doesn’t Always Mean More Expensive
We’ve looked at brand loyalty in the past; there are some times that brand loyalty costs money. There are items where I am very loyal to the brand–MP3 players and computers, Apple; motor vehicles, Toyota; shorts, Surf Line. In other areas it doesn’t matter as much (shoes, pants–although I am partial to Tactical–shirts, and other items).
But I discovered this week that brand loyalty doesn’t always cost you money. Sometimes it may actually have you pay less.
My example: earbuds.
One of the dogs at home loves to eat earbuds and has ruined a couple in the $70 range. I have since refused to buy pricey earbuds and am currently partial to the Protocol brand, which are sometimes (but not always) in stock at the local Ross Dress for Less. They’re not even easily findable on the Internet, but for $3.99, they have pretty decent sound quality and they stay put when I’m running.
I just bought four pairs, so my total with tax was under $17. I couldn’t buy even a discounted set of Shure earbuds for that.
Are they the same quality as the Shures? No, but in this case, it’s a huge help to not have to worry about expensive items being ruined by the dog. While I’m not thrilled to lose any set of earbuds, it’s a lot easier on my psyche–and wallet–to have a $3.99 set of earbuds be rendered useless than a $70 set.
Brand loyalty doesn’t always cost you more. In this way, it’s actually cost me less.
I love the protocol line, they give relatively no ear cramping whatsoever! My favorite pair just had the connector bent out of it (don’t ask lol) and I can’t seem to find a new pair yet. I’ve tried Bed, Bath, and Beyond, Burlington (where I got my first pair), and Marshalls.