Company Reputation, Guard it with Your Life..

Earlier this morning, actually just a few minutes ago, I was browsing the net shopping for a used laptop when I had an interesting epiphany, which I feel is worth sharing. Here is my case.

I have been a lifelong Windows user, as far as computers are concerned but today for that very reason I chose to take the path of the stranger.My search began by simply typing in “laptops for sale near me”. After a going through a few Lenovo Thinkpad and hp listings, it occured to me that I could not really trust the products to not be faulty in one way or another, drawing from my, and some of my collegues experiences. Then, without really even thinking about it I found myself typing in “Apple Macbook for sale near me”. Then it occured to me that I apparently trust the product much as I have never used it before, more than the windows products that I have used all my life. That is precisely when the thought of penning this article crossed my mind, because that simple incidence gave me a glimpse into an approach to product and/or service design I believe every enterpreneur should keep in mind. Consistency in quality builds reputation, and reputation drives sales. Consistently making quality products builds trust in a brand in a way no amount of marketing can. For instance, apple earned my dollar in this case, not because of some advert I came across, not even a word of mouth recommendation, no. It is because they have a great reputation for consistently building quality products that last so long that by the time the user disposes it off years later, it usualy because they got bored and hence wanted or needed an upgrade. That is a good problem to have compared to other products(Lenovo G40 crosses my mind) that you will have to dispose off in two to three years because they simply started failing or got too slow for any practical use.

In conclusion I will leave you with a line from Robert Greenes 48 Laws of Power,(as a company) “So much depends on reputation, guard it with your life”.