Brand loyalty

We’re big Delta fans in our house. We fly Delta, we use a Delta AmEx and we spend our Delta miles sending people hither and yon. It’s been a great relationship—Kent’s been either Platinum or Diamond for seven years and I’ve been Platinum for six years.

We’d booked tickets for Jen and the kids to come see us this month. Since her folks still live in Lawrence, it’s especially convenient because the kids can see two sets of grandparents with just one stop. But as can happen, plans changed and so we needed to cancel the four sets of tickets. To be honest, I figured the miles might get refunded but the cash for fees and an upgrade to Economy Comfort was probably gone.

To my utter surprise and delight, Delta refunded 100% of everything.

My mom pointed out that if she—someone without status—had tried to get a similar refund, it probably wouldn’t have happened. And that may well be the case. But the thing is, loyalty is a two way street. Yes, Delta treated us well. But we’ve been very loyal for the last seven years.We only fly Delta, we use a Delta AmEx and we work at it. Twice I’ve had to fly a different airline for just one segment of a flight because either Delta didn’t go there, or their flight was booked. It’s not all that convenient to change airlines; often that means clearing security again which is not my idea of a good time. But my point is this: we’ve been very loyal and this week, that loyalty paid off in a big way.

And for Delta, it will pay off too because we’re even bigger fans now.

A marketing department's dream

I was flipping through the new Ikea catalog the other day, and sort of idly wondering why it is that particular brand appeals to me so much. That got me wondering about the handful of brands that I identify with and tend to stick with, and thinking about why it’s those brands and not others that I prefer.

For example:

• Membership clubs: Costco always, the rest never. I have tried Sam’s and considered BJ’s because there was a BJ’s near my office in the Boston area but no. I really prefer Costco.
• Super cheap store: Target over WalMart unless we are in a one income situation.
• Cars: For years—I mean years—I was loyal to the Honda brand. I bought a Volvo in 2012 and I’ll never go back. 

And then there’s Ikea. I’ve always liked the furniture with the clean lines and generally fun colors or fabrics. And the soft goods like towels or curtains are just wonderful. Plus you can get the meatballs for lunch or dinner with some mashed potatoes and lingon berries as a side—YUM. And this year, you can watch their hilarious ad:



The Kansas City store opened today and in typical Ikea fashion, they opened 20 minutes early because there were so many people waiting outside in the rain. I can’t wait to go, although not just yet. While I love Ikea, I don’t love crowds.

Of experiments and shortages in Boston

I use a pretty normal deodorant—Arid Extra Dry solid unscented. I don’t have massive loyalty to Arid per se but the solid and unscented parts are non-negotiable in my deodorant. Whatever is used in the clear formulas that don’t leave streaks on your clothing irritates the bejesus out of my skin. There’s nothing quite as attractive as a woman scratching her pits while out in public!

All that to say I have had almost no luck in finding my deodorant in Boston. I can find most scents and of course I can find unscented clear formulas but not the tried-and-true solid unscented kind. Well, I did find it at one drug store here in the South End but it costs $3.60 a stick. Yeouch.

So when Kent and Ben went to Wal-Mart last Saturday, Kent knew he should look for my deodorant. And he hit the motherlode! He brought home six sticks—in fact he said he bought all that they had in stock. I do wonder what the checker thought as he came through the line. Probably something like “wow he must have a real BO issue . . . “

I experimented making steel-cut oats in our rice steamer today. I do like the steel-cut oats but there’s no way on earth I’m spending 30 minutes actively making breakfast. So I thought I would give the steamer a try. The results were mixed: cooking time took an hour (I started with 35 minutes which wasn’t nearly enough). Even then the oats had to sit a bit to finish thickening up. I made two servings and refrigerated the second bowl. I’ll try microwaving it in the morning and see how that works.