This was brought up in the Magico thread and I thought it should have its own discussion.
To me, Brand Loyalty goes deeper than just buying the product. Wilson and Magico owners like to bash each other and I'm sure if they had food in front of them, it would end up like the Animal House food fight! But lets dig deeper.
Let me pick something totally un-audio and see if I can make the connection. Harley Davidson and Apple have both been in business quite a few years. The line dividing Harley owners and Japanese bike owners is a solid wall. To me, I would never buy a Harley. They have reliability issues, are too loud and are really not that comfortable to ride on. I know Harley riders may disagree but I have at least on 3 occasions had the opportunity to ride one. I do respect the company though. You are not buying a motorcycle, you are buying into a culture. The Harley Owners Group is strong and have a solid camraderie. The arguements between Harley owners and non-Harley owners have at the extreme, resulted in death. The same can be said about Apple. People bought into the Apple Lifestyle. The divide between Apple and Windows followers has subsided as of late, but a few years ago, there were strong advocates for each. As a business owner, I had to put all my feeling aside and buy Mac computers because I'd be shutting out half my clientele. Now, I really like working on a Mac computer. They both have their downsides as well.
Now let's get back to the Wilson/Magico thing. You're not buying a Wilson speaker, you're buying into the lifestyle. You're buying into the R&D, the first-class shipping and delivery, the stuctured set-up process and the after sale service. Wilson treats their owners to special incentives, an upgrade path and group parties at some of the audio shows. Debby is coming on to the forums and answering questions and giving away free stuff.
Dave Wilson is our Steve Jobs. Being treated like you're a member of the family and a value to them, that's how you get brand loyalty
To me, Brand Loyalty goes deeper than just buying the product. Wilson and Magico owners like to bash each other and I'm sure if they had food in front of them, it would end up like the Animal House food fight! But lets dig deeper.
Let me pick something totally un-audio and see if I can make the connection. Harley Davidson and Apple have both been in business quite a few years. The line dividing Harley owners and Japanese bike owners is a solid wall. To me, I would never buy a Harley. They have reliability issues, are too loud and are really not that comfortable to ride on. I know Harley riders may disagree but I have at least on 3 occasions had the opportunity to ride one. I do respect the company though. You are not buying a motorcycle, you are buying into a culture. The Harley Owners Group is strong and have a solid camraderie. The arguements between Harley owners and non-Harley owners have at the extreme, resulted in death. The same can be said about Apple. People bought into the Apple Lifestyle. The divide between Apple and Windows followers has subsided as of late, but a few years ago, there were strong advocates for each. As a business owner, I had to put all my feeling aside and buy Mac computers because I'd be shutting out half my clientele. Now, I really like working on a Mac computer. They both have their downsides as well.
Now let's get back to the Wilson/Magico thing. You're not buying a Wilson speaker, you're buying into the lifestyle. You're buying into the R&D, the first-class shipping and delivery, the stuctured set-up process and the after sale service. Wilson treats their owners to special incentives, an upgrade path and group parties at some of the audio shows. Debby is coming on to the forums and answering questions and giving away free stuff.
Dave Wilson is our Steve Jobs. Being treated like you're a member of the family and a value to them, that's how you get brand loyalty