Brand loyalty for Apple products remains at an all-time high and is probably one of the best case histories around today that demonstrates the resilience of a cult brand.
But, I just wonder how long Apple will be able to ride this massive wave before it runs out of brand loyalty reserves? I've often thought of brand loyalty as some sort of tank with the idea being to keep it as full as possible.
Factors that can start emptying these brand loyalty tanks are things such as product quality problems, dodgy after-sales service and generally making the ownership experience unpleasant.
Apple's brand loyalty tank must be getting pretty low right now. And one wonders if Apple will bother taking remedial measures.
The iPhone 4 has been an enormous hit, in spite of a technical problem with call dropping that Apple bosses almost arrogantly dismissed.
The company also makes it indescribably difficult for their consumers. iPads have no USB ports which means hassling with duplicate sims; Apple won't allow Adobe flash readers anywhere near its products, which means that all sorts of video downloads from a lot of great news sites simply don't work. And a personal disappointment for me: iPads can't play any videos shot on FlipHd - one of the best mini-camcorders around.
And heaven forbid if you try to buy apps or many other Apple accessories from the well-stocked online Apple store in the US when you live somewhere else.
Right now, Apple products are great. And the numbers tell us that consumers all over the world think they are streets better than anything else. Which is why Apple can produce such massive profits.
And make those profits without really worrying about what their customers think of their restrictions and arrogance.
It's a dangerous game to play. As long as Apple produces goods that are perceived to be so much better than anything else, it can afford to let the level of its brand loyalty tank run down to almost reserve level by giving its customers a hard time and shrugging off minor irritations such as call dropping and battery life with dismissive arrogance.
It is going to be fascinating to watch how things pan out. Because already I am hearing people saying they really won't want to commit to the iPad, for example, because there are a lot more competitive brands coming through the pipeline. And I know of some companies that have dumped Apple Macs because of what they perceive as built-in software and hardware obsolescence and replaced them with PCs at a fraction of the price.
Run on lean
The marketing costs for iconic brands are relatively low and it is extremely tempting to run on lean for as long as possible. Trouble is, it only takes one serious cock-up and then it becomes a very difficult situation, no matter how much money you throw at it.
Brand loyalty is very fickle. Not something to take for granted, which I suspect Apple is doing right now.
