It's Still a Buick
As a result of my vicious burglary last weekend (yes, I'm still talking about it) I went out and got myself a new laptop. These keys are so beautiful to punch - it's like riding in one of those Volkswagen SUVs that isn't really an SUV. Actually, I've never been in one of those but they look pretty cool. And I bet the ride is luxurious.
Anyway, it's amazing where technology has gone in the past few years - it moves faster than relationships of single people in their mid-thirties (gulp). But I'm not going to talk about technology (or relationships), although I did briefly consider both. I'm going to discuss why I chose the laptop I did. I can hear your collective sigh of relief (and excitement) with my choice of topic, so why don't we get started? Or better yet - why did I buy this laptop?
And the answer is.......because it was cheap. That's right folks, alert the presses, price was the reason in an American's choice to buy a product. I got my ass out of bed at 9 am on a Sunday! I stormed down to Best Buy and pounded on those automatic sliding doors until they called the police. No seriously, I was one of the first people there to get my hands on a product that was marked down 10%. It's amazing what motivates people.
I can see why money plays a part in decisions. To most people money is extremely valuable. However, I've noticed that folks often use other, less obvious reasons for buying things. This often used decision making criteria is the reason for Tiger Woods making $87 million in 2005. A staggering $78 million of Mr. Woods' 2005 earnings was from endorsements, not playing golf. Through contracts with Nike, American Express, Accenture, Buick, EA Sports, Golf Digest, NetJets, TAG Heuer, TLC Laser Eye Centers, Upper Deck, Yahoo Sports and TV Asahi (some Japanese TV station) Tiger is the world's highest paid athlete and will eventually become the first billion dollar athlete. And this is all because we use the mentality of, "Well, if Tiger does it.....".
As far as records can tell, the first use of celebrity endorsements dates back to 1893 when British actress Lillie Langtry showed up on packages of Pears Soap. I would even consider throwing Aunt Jemima into the mix of pioneer celebrity endorsers, but she didn't really exist. Whether it's Lillie Langtry, Aunt Jemima, or Bob Dole (he looks happy at least), celebrity endorsement has always been and always will be a pretty damn good way to pimp your product. But why?
Why do people use this perverse and asinine method of decision making? Are we just getting dumber? I guess I can see someone talking themselves into the fact that they'll play golf as good as Tiger if they play the same clubs or hit the same ball, but certainly not because they wear the same shirt or use the same credit card. And I can assure you that Tiger would not be caught dead driving a frickin' Buick. I admire the fact that Buick is trying to shake their "80 something" image, but c'mon, it's a Buick!
There are all kinds of sociology and economics studies on why consumers react so favorably to celebrity endorsement, but any conclusions researchers come to don't seem overly acceptable in my mind. But as usual, I have no credible answers. I think it could be because people think success in one part of life gives you instant credibility in another - like what car to buy.
Though the reasoning for this phenomenon is up for heated debate, there is little dispute about the benefits of celebrity endorsement. However, a cheap laptop will get me out of bed every time.
Sign a multi-million dollar endorsement deal with John Poole at poolejohn@gmail.com
Anyway, it's amazing where technology has gone in the past few years - it moves faster than relationships of single people in their mid-thirties (gulp). But I'm not going to talk about technology (or relationships), although I did briefly consider both. I'm going to discuss why I chose the laptop I did. I can hear your collective sigh of relief (and excitement) with my choice of topic, so why don't we get started? Or better yet - why did I buy this laptop?
And the answer is.......because it was cheap. That's right folks, alert the presses, price was the reason in an American's choice to buy a product. I got my ass out of bed at 9 am on a Sunday! I stormed down to Best Buy and pounded on those automatic sliding doors until they called the police. No seriously, I was one of the first people there to get my hands on a product that was marked down 10%. It's amazing what motivates people.
I can see why money plays a part in decisions. To most people money is extremely valuable. However, I've noticed that folks often use other, less obvious reasons for buying things. This often used decision making criteria is the reason for Tiger Woods making $87 million in 2005. A staggering $78 million of Mr. Woods' 2005 earnings was from endorsements, not playing golf. Through contracts with Nike, American Express, Accenture, Buick, EA Sports, Golf Digest, NetJets, TAG Heuer, TLC Laser Eye Centers, Upper Deck, Yahoo Sports and TV Asahi (some Japanese TV station) Tiger is the world's highest paid athlete and will eventually become the first billion dollar athlete. And this is all because we use the mentality of, "Well, if Tiger does it.....".
As far as records can tell, the first use of celebrity endorsements dates back to 1893 when British actress Lillie Langtry showed up on packages of Pears Soap. I would even consider throwing Aunt Jemima into the mix of pioneer celebrity endorsers, but she didn't really exist. Whether it's Lillie Langtry, Aunt Jemima, or Bob Dole (he looks happy at least), celebrity endorsement has always been and always will be a pretty damn good way to pimp your product. But why?
Why do people use this perverse and asinine method of decision making? Are we just getting dumber? I guess I can see someone talking themselves into the fact that they'll play golf as good as Tiger if they play the same clubs or hit the same ball, but certainly not because they wear the same shirt or use the same credit card. And I can assure you that Tiger would not be caught dead driving a frickin' Buick. I admire the fact that Buick is trying to shake their "80 something" image, but c'mon, it's a Buick!
There are all kinds of sociology and economics studies on why consumers react so favorably to celebrity endorsement, but any conclusions researchers come to don't seem overly acceptable in my mind. But as usual, I have no credible answers. I think it could be because people think success in one part of life gives you instant credibility in another - like what car to buy.
Though the reasoning for this phenomenon is up for heated debate, there is little dispute about the benefits of celebrity endorsement. However, a cheap laptop will get me out of bed every time.
Sign a multi-million dollar endorsement deal with John Poole at poolejohn@gmail.com
posted by John Poole at 8:45 PM
1 Comments:
Dude -- you got the links kickin! You're like Bill MFin' Gates with the 'puter, man. I'll endorse you for real cheap.
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