Saturday, April 14, 2007

brand loyalty


2 very important words, if you are in sales or marketing. the reason why customers come back again & again to buy your products. doesn't matter if it costs more than the competitors or if it does not come with discounts or free gifts.

my brother-in-law should be paid loyalty bonus by toyota. he has only driven toyota cars from the carburettored KE30 to the various models of corolla, to the present fuel-injected altis. he swears by it because none of those cars has ever brought him grief. & why not? they are the biggest non-national car dealers (by volume) & they produce stylish reliable cars.

my uncle only buys sony tvs. when i moved into town 10 years ago & needed to get some electrical appliances, he took me to his friend who owns a shop. i bought a goldstar fridge, a JVC vcr, a hitachi air-con & a philips radio-cd player. but the tv HAD to be a sony, my uncle insisted. & he is vindicated because that 21" tv still works, & so does the subsequent 29" flatscreen. the fridge motor finally gave way last year, the vcr has been replaced by a dvd player, the air-con has seen better days but the 2 sony tvs, aged 10 & 7 years, are still projecting crisp clear images.

me, i have this thing for mitch albom's books (we have to discuss jeffrey archer another day). from his 1st bestseller my colleague recommended i read, "tuesdays with morrie", i knew he was going to be a prolific writer & he doesn't disappoint. "5 people you meet in heaven" was published in 2003 & "for one more day" last year. mind you, mitch, whose current daytime job is a columnist with detroit free press, should be no stranger to m'sian bloggers. one of his articles was allegedly plagiarised by brendan pereira in the new straits times at the height of the publication's shake-up last year (read here).

Tuesdays deals with a real-life professor who is dying from an incurable neurological disease. 5 People tells of a seaside-ride maintenance man who dies saving a child from an accident. in For 1 More Day, a washed-up ex-baseball player tries to kill himself TWICE after his world comes apart in a quick succession of let-downs. so, do i read mitch because he writes about death? or, do i have a dark & twisted mind with a morbid penchant?

here's the deal - with each death, mitch has expertly weaved in refreshing life-giving tales into the fabric that is our family & friends, & how we often take them for granted until it's too late. in fact, the stories could all be construed as cautionary tales for us to take time to appreciate those far & near, those from our past & present, & indeed, those who mold us into who we are today.

the lead character in For 1 More Day spoke to me when he proclaimed these :

"And I realised when you look at your mother, you are looking at the purest love you will ever know."

"Sticking with your family is what makes it a family."

i just got my long awaited paperback copy this week & i'm going to take that 2-hour drive to see my parents tomorrow. i hope it's still not too late.

20 comments:

nyonyapenang said...

thanks, doc, for the recommendations. shall be looking out for the books too.
have a great week ahead. :)

LX said...

Sony.. haha. My family is a pro-Sony. We have 3 Sony tellies, Sony DVD, Sony VCR, Sony radios, Sony(-Ericsson) phones... hahahaha.. Sony!

doc said...

nyonya,

let you into a little secret - buy that book (for 1 more day) for your son's next birthday. i guarantee, after reading it, he will appreciate you much, much more.

have a good week!

doc said...

lynnx,

that's the power of advertising & why millions are spent to convince people to buy & remain loyal to certain brands.

that's why my 1st dSLR will be a canon, lcd tv & digital video camera will be sonys & mp3 player an iPod nano.

the commercials are there to lure fence-sitters like me. ha ha.

Anonymous said...

I have all three of the books!

Bought the hardcover of "For One More Day" at LCCT airport at hefty 60 ringgit plus. Just could not let go so hurting the wallet.

Passed the book to my daughter and said this (in fact more like a command), "Don't lend it to your friend." She let it out!

For one more day, I won't be so angry that Rachel gave the book to her friend to read.

Last week when I was in KL, I even bought the paperback - wanting to give away one day to the right friend. No one in mind yet.

Las montaƱas said...

toyoto, can't help it. its too much a quantum leap to the next genre (lexus) :P

Dont read too much of these books.. depending on what/how it is written, some can invoke depressive thoughts.

doc said...

yan,

don't fret. if your daughter's friend is inspired by the book to appreciate her parents more, then your hardcover would have achieved more than just lying on the book shelf.

the book will definitely make a great present for someone.

here's a suggestion for you. subscribe to popular card for just rm10 a year & you would have paid just rm55 for the hardcover & rm 26 for the paperback - the savings would have covered the subscription already!!

doc said...

LM,

you have to hand it to the japs. atom bombed in 1945 & see where they are now - an industrial powerhouse & a global player.

i think someone with depressive inclination would not like reading these books & i'll be interested to know if anyone develops a suicidal tendency after reading such books.

me said...

hv been debating whether to get mitch's book for the longest time. usually don't like to read books that have been too hyped..but i'm thinking there must be something to all these hype...so yes, i'll go get it the next time i step into a bookshop.

the last book i read, i really liked. "PS I Love You". i thought it was sad, yet funny, sweet yet heartbreaking...

n jeffrey archer...my favourite too. read all...even the prison series.

HappySurfer said...

Doc, what a coincidence that I just covered something on the ingenuity of advertising.

It is so true about brand loyalty. My family has been having Sony TVs since I don't know when and I have a colleague who's been driving Toyota vehicles all these years.

Thanks for highlighting the books, Doc.

doc said...

me,

thks for your comment.

devil wears prada ---> hyped
da vinci code ---> super-hyped
for 1 more day ---> very down to earth (& i can lend you my popular card)

when i saw "ps. i love you" at the bookstore, i was attracted to the title(reminds me of that old, old beatle hit) but i've weaned myself off romance novels already.

(that's another form of brand loyalty, too, isn't it, since i think beatle's songs are simple yet beautifully written??)

doc said...

happysurfer,

what an uncanny coincidence! our planets must have aligned themselves this week.

the global competition must be very stiff & despite sony & toyota being 2 brands known for manufacturing excellent & reliable products, they still set aside vast sum of funds for advertising.

& get the book, you won't regret it.

Unknown said...

I'm reading "Tuesdays with Morrie" now.. good book.

me said...

hv my own popular card *grins*

ps i love you is not really about romance. it's about how to let go...the husband has recently died of cancer. the wife, who has been in love with him since their teens, has to start life anew....she realised that he left her a series of letters, to be opened one by one every month. it's romantic, yes, but it deals with the sadness of when your loved ones go before you...at the same time, it's cute and funny enough to make you smile and laugh aloud...and cry along.

read it and tell me if you don't like it.

doc said...

bernard,

isnt' that book just inspirational? makes you want to go back to med school & catch up with the old professors, doesn't it??

doc said...

me,

thks for the tip. i'll be sure to look out for it on the next trip to the bookshop.

i already like the title.

just me said...

By the way, how are your parents? You did take the drive to see them, right?

I read that book last year. I hope it did spur many children into visiting their aged parents

doc said...

just me,

yes, i made the trip back with the family. my parents are ok & they keep each other company. i should make it once a month, instead of 2 or 3 monthly.

The thumb in every pie said...

This is my fave quote out of all the Mitch Albom books I'd read. It's from Tuesdays with Morrie and it goes like this: Death ends a life, not a relationship.

doc said...

Andrea,

did you know Tuesdays was made into a TV movie, with Jack Lemmon playing Morrie?

so were Five People & For One More Day. now, if only i can get my hands on the dvd!