Brand Loyalty Only Goes as Far as The Dollar Stretches

Money - Pink Floyd

Commercialism and Consumerism - Loaded topic! Hey, I've heard that somewhere before! lol! I am not a business tycoon and know very little about the subject of economics both nationally and internationally. The range of my actual experience extends from working as an employee in a retail environment and as a shopper. I am actually quite experienced in the latter :) But I never purported to be an expert on any subject that I have delved into on this blog. Just absurdity as I see it.

Monopoly - Not Parker Brothers
To that end, there was a time when all you heard and read about was the monopoly that Microsoft had when it came to home computing. And indeed, they had a product in "Windows" that everyone wanted, and to bolster their success in the corporate world, Microsoft packaged Windows with other programs of their own design like Office, Media Player and Internet Explorer. In fact, Microsoft was sued many times over this alleged monopoly that they had. Or was it jealousy because AOL customers preferred IE over their own Netscape. Face it, consumers are fickle and if they perceive that something better has come along, well the proof is in the ultimate choice. For me, Netscape was great until I discovered IE then along came Firefox. Today I move between Google plus and Safari. I would dump Safari but I don't have that option. And herein lies the problem. How is what Microsoft was doing a monopoly but Apple forcing Safari, iTunes, iCloud etc upon us is somehow different. It seems to me with my limited computer knowledge, that I can play many formats of media with Media player but the same is not true for iTunes. My Media Player library transfers efficiently to iTunes, but iTunes is not compatible with any portable player but iPods and some music is not compatible to even Media Player. I don't care for this double standard as I see it. I also feel that Apple is taking advantage of this marketplace niche by keeping prices artificially inflated. Consider that Apple is only sold in select locations chosen by the company, sale prices are dictated by the company, not the market. Don't get me wrong, Apple as a company can do whatever they want to sell and market their products, my point is that this should be practice across the board. Why should Microsoft be criticized when they play the same game. 

RIM and Apple
Let's move from Microsoft and computers to Apple and RIM. Two completely different products despite both being cellphones. It reminds me very much of MacIntosh Computers versus IBM compatible. Hold on...consider that for a moment. Mac's are stand alone, like nothing else, and not friendly with other home computing systems. IBM opens the door and lets everyone share. I sense a form of racism. :p The point is that for consumers, there was a place in the market for both systems. Where one failed, the other excelled - and that was good. Like humanity, we can fight each other or we can work to complement one another. Mac was great for the design and artistic programs. IBM was viewed as more of a work horse dealing with finances and productivity. Blackberry and iPhone are the same. Blackberry has traditionally been the phone of choice for the Bay Street Suits and those who use their phone as an extension of their office. It was a question of familiarity using the keyboard to respond to e-mails and such. Along came the iPhone and suddenly people flocked to the new kid on the block so they too could have a chance to play Angry Birds. With the wide open touch screen, it was a great format on which to play, no doubt about it. There was an explosion of games in the forms of Apps that could be downloaded for the iPhone. Blackberry didn't have that - they had BBM which is an instant instant messaging service. No delay between the providers. There are advantages and disadvantages to both systems, neither one is better than the other, it depends on what you want your phone to do for you. 

Rogers and Rogers
Going back full circle, has anyone picked up on the market saturation by Rogers. Someday I would like to sit through an hour long television show just to see how many Rogers commercials I would see. The cellphones, television systems, internet connections, sponsorship of special events, publishing and television programming. Now ownership of television stations and programming and home security systems. It is no wonder that they chose to bow out of the video rental market. Quite frankly I tune out most of their commercial simply because I feel overwhelmed by the sheer numbers. Two or three commercials by the same company in quick succession is at least two too many. And most seem a little stupid and condescending "thanks you gorgeous creature". The scene is too fake and contrived. One of their ads though simply boggles my mind - so we will call it ineffective. The one number add, where your cell phone number is used to access all your accounts. Well, in the year 2012, not only do a high percentage of us have cell phones, but it may be our primary or only telephone. More people with access to my home and electronics have my cell phone number than my home phone number. If they have that "One Number" does that mean they too can access all my accounts? How stupid is that? If there is more to the program then that, then Rogers has done a very inadequate job of communicating that with their advertising. And no, I don't really care because I am not a customer of Rogers. And one more thing about Rogers, they would have been smarter to add their name to the Skydome rather than change it to Rogers Centre. It will always be Skydome to most people who aren't paid to refer to it. Rogers Skydome has a better ring to it. 

Pepsi and Coke
But in the best possible scenario these companies can all co-exist and let us, the consumers, make choices on what and where we want to spend our money without feeling like we have made the wrong choice. What I dislike is the general negativity I hear. You like Coke I like Pepsi, but the only time I will force my choice down your throat is if you are in my home. But did you hear the bashing of RIM recently when BBM went down briefly? Did you also hear about the lengths that the company went to in order to apologize to their loyal customers? Now, do you remember when iPhone had a bug in it's alarm? A casual search on the internet will identify that it has happened more than once, with some people complaining of losing jobs over the glitch. All electronics are subject to malfunctions at one time or another, that doesn't make your iPhone better than my Blackberry. Thank you very much. :p

New and Improved! 
I recognize that all companies do it and the more hype you can generate, the better the bottom dollar but it drives me crazy when companies come out with yearly with better and more expensive versions of products. It makes me think that what they put out previously was just junk. Back when the kids were younger, I developed a real sour taste in my mouth with Nintendo and other gaming systems that released new systems every Christmas season - rendering the currently held ones worthless and useless when wanting to purchase new game releases. I have a Sega Genesis gaming system tucked away unable to play anything but the old Pink Panther game that is packed away with it :) 

But wait, this is the premise and marketing strategy of nearly every business in the marketplace. For clothes it is seasonal and we are led to believe that our current wardrobe just won't do - despite the function remains the same. New car models are thrust upon us yearly. But something happened there, it used to be the new models would roll out in the early part of the year on the sticker, now it seems throughout the year new models are unveiled. And whatever make and model you currently own is no longer safe enough or good for the environment. I guess it is what keeps the economy rolling along and us working. But it sure can get frustrating...Brand loyalty only goes as far as the dollar stretches.