Companies know the value of good PR, which is why the biggest companies hire the best PR firms. It makes sense. The public’s perception of a brand generally makes or breaks how well they do at any given time. Why else do companies try so hard to make it seem like they care? They want you on their side. They want to build a relationship with you. It’s all about building a relationship these days and to be fair to them, it’s the right approach.
So what exactly is the problem then? Well you know how everyone has that one relationship where they dated a piece of s***(Probably named Kyle)? Yeah, that’s pretty much your relationship with the big companies, trust me.
It’s not that i’m anti-corporate or anything. Big companies tend to take advantage of the trust they’ve strived to cultivate with you. I mean just google the words “company” and “lies” and you’ll see, and it shouldn’t come as a surprise. The Huawei’s of the world will always be around. As consumers, we need to do better. We need to be able to call their bluffs.
I’ll be honest, part of the reason i’m writing this is because even the local big boys are up to no good. For example, there’s this local telco that deals with bad publicity on Facebook by getting their employees to create new FB accounts and leave comments on negative posts about how good their experience with the telco has been for them personally.
As if it’s not bad enough, they don’t even have the guile to not list where they’re working on their account.. which has 14 friends. So not only are they trying to manipulate you, but they’re also not very bright. And this isn’t an isolated incident. It’s become the norm.
Big companies know that if they make their products or services seem well liked by the masses, they then control the narrative, which is extremely vital to them because people tend to make quick shopping decisions that have long-term consequences.
Add to this the fact that the more convenient they make their product or service, the less you will shop around and the more market power they will have. It’s plain to see they’ve gotten good at tailoring products to certain consumers to get them to give up comparison shopping altogether.
Companies don’t want you to comparison shop, which could force them to compete for your business. They want you to develop regular shopping habits. The more people do that, the higher the prices everyone will pay.
You can already see the patterns with certain apps that seem to offer, well.. everything. It’s 2020 and consumers have never had so much power. The best way to use this power is by being smart consumers.
Don’t buy the first thing that pops up when you search for something. In fact, I would recommend turning on private mode in your browser and doing the search, just to see what else there is out there. When you need a ride, don’t just open the Grab app, check out the MyCar app too.
Yes, it may be a bit of a hassle, but breaking up with that piece of s*** ex took a bit of effort too. Don’t stay in a relationship for the convenience of it all— keep companies guessing and make them work for our business, and maybe.. just maybe they’ll stop treating us like we’re stupid.