19 Mar My Apple Lemon

I so much wanted to love my new iMac. Really. I even wrote all about it. Remember?

But I continued to struggle with it. And not from my own incompetence. The thing was haunted. The open windows would just sort of shimmy a bit, move back and forth and then, for a few seconds or a few minutes…everything would freeze.

I had Apple Care, so I called. And I called back. And I got a senior support guy. And he called me almost every day to check in. He took out files and put in files. He had me collect data and send it to them and then took out more files.  He changed settings and by the end, I think I spent more time on the phone with them in two weeks then I did with Dell in four years. And finally, Apple Care came to the same conclusions that Dell did with my PC. Let us reinstall your operating system. Or, he quietly suggested, since you are still on your warranty, bring it back.

I had purchased an Apple Lemon. You know the flavor. Looks good but just makes your mouth go ewwww when you taste it.

So here I am, with a faulty iMac and a perfectly functioning (if old) Dell PC. What did I do? I could have returned the damn thing and got my money back and continued with my old one until it really died for good. I could have (maybe should have) bought a new PC. If it was any other product category or any other brand, for sure I would have left the brand and found another.

But it was Apple and I was a true brand believer. So I exchanged it for a new one. I know it really was an emotional decision.  Because my rational left brain is still not sure it was the best decision.

A brand is bigger than an individual product or service and so it helps the relationship stay intact keep even when there are hiccups. Like when my Starbucks is so hot it burns my tongue…I still go back for another.

This is the power of a brand. Is your company a brand?