Friday, February 19, 2021

Rhetorical question: brand loyalty and planned obsolescence?


Fifteen years ago I spent a lot of time on airplanes. Mainly in Coach Class. I did everything I could to block out surrounding adverse conditions. I used inflatable neck pillows, melaotonin capsules, industrial grade earplugs, sleep masks, Emergen-C effervescent vitamin supplements, and finally purchased a SONY noise-cancelling headset so I could at least hear the inflight movies in comfort. At the time (ca. 2005) the $60 price seemed a real extravagance. Yet of all those accessories, it's lasted the longest - finally in the past month my silencing friend required the tape repair solution pictured here. Should brand loyalty prevail? Current price for replacement SONY Bluetooth earbuds, from $90-$200. One of my kids says go for the Apple brand, which range from $150-$300. Every Apple product I ever got has crashed and burned in 2-3 years. So help me, Obi-Wan Ken-earbud, you're my only hope. Does my love affair with SONY go forward after fifteen years?ANSWER: Brand loyalty wins out.





Wednesday, February 10, 2021

Brand hijacking during the reign of the 45th President

 The greatest gift of the last administration came in the form of brand rexamination.

Here's a gallery of examples harvested from the internet.