One of my favorite jokes has to do with the power of loyalty:
Q. How do you know that a dog is man’s best friend?
A. Lock your wife and your dog in the trunk of your car. Let them out an hour later and see which of them is still happy to see you.
Loyalty is one of the most powerful forces in the universe. It’s also the brass ring in branding: There’s nothing more valuable, but it’s extremely hard to grab. Why? Because a brand-loyal customer is revenue in the bank – and a disciple on the street.
Loyalty is derived from a mix of many different ingredients, each of which must be fully present for the magical formula to become – and remain – potent:
- The brand needs to exist in a category the user cares about. For example, I’ll never be loyal to any brand of paper towel because, well, I just don’t particularly care about the category.
- The brand needs to promise something that the market desires or requires.
- The brand has to consistently fulfill its promise.
- The brand’s personality needs to somehow reflect the personality of its market.
- The brand needs to be true to its personality and not waver.
Notice that “price” and “accessibility” are not on the list. Consumers who are brand-loyal are largely indifferent to higher prices or accessibility issues.
Apple is perhaps one of the best examples of a company that commands tremendous brand loyalty. Even in the ’90s, before their ultra-hip ad campaigns and retail stores, Macs had reached an almost cult-like status. Back then, Macs were two, three, four, or more times more expensive than their PC competitors (they still are); more difficult to find; way more difficult to fix (good luck finding an Apple repair shop in the mid ’90s); and extremely limited when it came to compatible software (in your average 1995 computer store, past the gleaming white shelves jam-packed with PC programs, games, and applications, stood a single dusty, cobweb-covered shelf housing a few Mac programs-each a version or two behind). But Mac users knew a secret that their PC counterparts didn’t know: Their Macs were better. They were cooler, easier, more intuitive, and they were the anti-Microsoft-and nothing was going to get them to change their minds. Not price, not accessibility-nothing. That’s brand loyalty at its finest.
