Value - Is It Possible To Give Too Much?
July 1, 2008
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Many customers buy things that give more value, as opposed to things that are the lowest price. For example, they’d prefer to buy a widget that costs £200 and lasts five years than one that costs £100 and lasts for one year.
And those are the type of customers we all want to attract, because we know we don’t have to compete on price to attract them. And when the customer does want to replace that product, we hope they’ll automatically think of us. Trouble is, that doesn’t always happen - even if your name is stamped clearly on that product.
The other day, the sole of one of my walking boots fell off completely. Luckily, I was only about a mile away from home. The following day, I was due to do a thirteen mile hike in the mountains and I would have been more than a bit pissed off if it had happened then.
Now, I don’t use walking boots every day but when I do use them, they get a fair bit of hammer. So I was pleased when I worked out that those Berghaus boots had lasted me for almost 13 years. I got them in the sale and probably paid something like £50 ($100) for them. So that was pretty good value - less than £4 ($8) per year.
I needed to replace the boots and the obvious choice would be to go for another pair of Berghaus ones - but I didn’t. And because I’m interested in what makes customers buy, I’ve been thinking about why I didn’t buy another pair of the same brand and what would have encouraged me to do so.
And I came up with the following reasons why I opted for a different brand:
1) It was an unexpected purchase - I didn’t know the other boots were going to break, so I hadn’t budgeted for a new pair. I got the new boots in the sale for £45 ($90) and a new pair of Berghaus boots were £85 ($170)
2) It put me in a potentially unsafe situation. I make sure I buy decent boots because my safety is important when I’m up a 3000 ft mountain. The boots had shown no sign that the sole was about to fall off completely and I’d rather they’d only lasted five years and showed some sign of wear before falling apart completely.
So what could a company like Berghaus do to encourage customers to buy from them the next time? They obviously have a long lasting hard wearing product.
I was thinking maybe they could have:
1) A guarantee that doesn’t last as long as the product - 5 years would be pretty impressive and a policy where you’d get a small discount on your boots if you returned the old ones when the guarantee was up.
2) Some kind of warning system built into the boot that kicks in after they’ve had so much wear, so the walker knows when to replace them.
Incidentally, the boots I chose to replace the old ones just aren’t as comfortable as the Berghaus ones, so I’ll probably go back to using Berghaus really soon. I’ll just replace them a lot earlier than I did the last ones.
Have you ever been in a similar situation - eg. You’ve not bought the same product even though it served you well? Why did you make that choice?
Do you have any ideas on what Berghaus could do to make customers come back to them? If you already have a business, or you’re considering starting one, can you think of ways you could persuade the customer to come back to you after the initial purchase?
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7 Responses to “Value - Is It Possible To Give Too Much?”
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This never happened to me! I am very loyal and I tend to go back to companies that I trust. I actually think that in your case too, you sound like the original company still has your loyalty and you WILL get back to them, so I would say that the most important thing is a high quality product/ impeccable service.
vered’s last blog post..Best Shot Monday: Random Thoughts On Paper Mache, Connectivity and Television
I’m not sure if I didn’t choose a product that served me well a second time. Mh, maybe Jeans that I loved years ago and are overpriced by now? Running shoes? Maybe. I don’t know. I usually am going for the sales and the reduced products and I go shopping rarely, so I’m probably not the right person to ask
Hi Catherine,
I do believe, SOMETIMES we get what we pay for.
If I’m looking to replace a certain item, if I’ve been happy with the brand I had been using, I am more apt to buy that brand again. However, I also check online reviews. What was once a great brand may now be of lower quality, for numerous reasons.
Getting customers to come back after an initial purchase could be a tough one. Even if you give it your best shot, consumer loyalty won’t necessarily guarantee a future sale. However, giving a customer a little more than what they paid for will sometimes leave a lasting impression on the buyer.
Barbara Swafford’s last blog post..NBOTW Author Says “Life Is A Jungle”
Hi Vered - that is very true - maybe Berghaus don’t need to do anything else. I’m already considering using the inferior brand for flat walks only and getting the Berghaus ones for hills. I had real trouble walking down steep hills in the inferior ones - it really hurt my toes when my feet pushed forward and I don’t recall feeling that pain with Berghaus boots.
Hi Nicole - Like you - I don’t shop much either and prefer to find what I need when there is a sale. Hopefully we’ll get a response from some shopaholics.
Hi Barbara - that is a good point. A particular brand may not be producing a product with as high a quality a few years later. I hadn’t thought of that.
So it sounds like you would be more likely to go back and buy if you were given more value during the initial sale and that would stick in your mind. That is interesting and I’m guessing that a few readers could use that idea and apply it to their own business.
@Cath: Wow, those sound like really good boots. I have a Dell computer that I’ve had forever (going on 6 years) and it’s served me well. I want a new computer and Dell is definitely a brand that is at the top of the list. That doesn’t mean that I’m not going to check what else is out there before making my final decision. Creating customer loyalty is not enough; you also have to make sure that you’re constantly improving your product in comparison to what else is out there. C’est la vie.
Marelisa’s last blog post..How Gratitude Can Change Your Life
I am often an early adopter of new technologies, so I may pay more for the first product in its class to make it to the market.
By the time it needs replacing, however, there are usually other options available at much less price. If the original brand hasn’t come out with something new and spiffy that catches my attention, I will probably go with the cheaper version that gets the job done.
I guess the lesson from this is that sometimes a company has to choose between being the innovator and being price conscious.
Louise’s last blog post..Red Lobster Recipes: Shrimp Scampi
Hi Marelisa - 6 years is pretty good going for a PC. So it sounds like innovation is just as important as reliability.
Hi Louise - So innovation is important to you too. But if there’s nothing new out there - you would go for the best price. That is interesting.