Brand Loyalty

[SirSnookalot]

Brand loyalty may be using something second best with out ever realizing it.  As far as rods and reels go I don't have any qualms about experimenting, have had both plus and minus experiences by doing so.

[aharris]

I've always been pretty loyal to certain brands, but when I was asked to be on the prostaff of a couple of companies, I had to switch it up a bit. Now Im not telling you that I threw away all of my "go to" baits bc that would be plum stupid, but I tend to use the brands that I help out. Now if I'm using the companies baits that I work for and am not catching fish, I'll switch it up and try some of my old stuff. I'm not going back to the ramp on tournament day with no fish just because I work for a company and their stuff wasnt producing that day...Im out there to catch fish.

[Nitrofreak]

Fishing equipment, it's whatever I have the best luck with and works and feels the best for me,   Quantum and Pflueger seems to fit my needs perfectly,  and Skeet Reese rods seem to fill the bill,  I have tried a lot of expencive equipment over the years and some are quite impressive but do not last for me,  same for the lower end of the spectrum,  the high end equipment is expencive and is very nice to have,  but for me,   the middle of the road type stuff seems to perform the best for what I do and I get a lot of enjoyment from them,  but I also have several brands on the boat and not loyal to any one particular brand.

[papajoe222]

I approach brand loyalty similar to the way I approach loyalty to a woman.  I like 'em tall, short, plump, skinny, brunett, red head (notice I didn't say blond), white, tan..... to look at that is. Okay, I may have held a few and even took some out for a spin. But when it comes to loyalty, there's only one woman that gets my stamp of approval......my wife. So if anyone asks about a woman, I recommend avg. height, not to skinny, not too fat, brunett, and white.  When it comes to fishing gear, I rarely recommend any one brand, but I am loyal to a few. My first low profile baitcaster was a Daiwa and twelve of the ones I own and use are Daiwa's.  The only rod I ever used that tripped my trigger was a Browning. I fell in love with Zara Spooks as a kid. 

Don't get me wrong, if you look at my gear I have other brands, but when it comes to those three, they're like the wife......I like to look at, hold and maybe even take something different for a test drive, but if anyone asks....................

[senile1]

Brand loyalty based on empirical evidence of consistent quality, or filling a niche, is logical.  Brand loyalty based on a product's quality at some time in the past is not.  There are numerous examples of products that were top of the line at one time but have been surpassed in quality by other manufacturers.  I may be brand loyal for short periods of time when a product is either top quality or it provides good benefit for the cost incurred, but I continue to research anything I buy so that I am aware of changes, and I act accordingly with future purchases. 

[PABASS]

In today’s age of information Brand loyalty is the best product that you can afford, however if you stick with a brand based on your loyalty, good for you and the company.  To me it’s all about informed customers which is what you should be with any purchase, unless money doesn’t matter.  In my opinion people need to take emotion out of the equation when you make a purchase and replace this with research and knowledge of said purchase.  When it comes to lures, I buy what works and see if I can find it cheaper, rarely do I buy expensive lures I don’t see the value in them.  Rods and reels I have experimented here and there and like Shimano and St Croix, but I also like Abu, also tired Lews and a few other brands but I use Shimano and St Croix as my template, my starting point and work out from there.  In some respects Brand loyalty would make purchases easier and quicker but that takes the fun out of it for me, I like the hunt for the best purchase I can afford.

[Teal]

As an unbiased and unrelated audience, I simply asked my wife what she wants her next car to be. (Her 01 Honda Accord has over 170k and has paid its dues, and we will probably be in the market for one soon)

Her answer: "honestly, I dont know. Ill probably want another Honda Accord.

Me: why?

Wife: the one we have has lasted so well and it is still good on gas. So why not go with another one.

Me: I thought you wanted an SUV, isnt there something else that you want?

Wife: Well.....i do like the new Honda Mini Vans..

Me: hahaha, does it have to be a honda?

Wife: why not? They last forever and are good on gas. Besides the man at the Honda Service shop already knows us.

She did admit that she likes the Tahoes,Malibus, and Toyota 4 runners and would like one but she stated that she would probably go with another Accord because she feels that it is a the safest bet.

I asked her this, with Toms question in mind about brand loyalty but didnt tell her until afterwards. Her response to brand loyalty, if you find something that is great then go with.

[PABASS]

As an unbiased and unrelated audience, I simply asked my wife what she wants her next car to be. (Her 01 Honda Accord has over 170k and has paid its dues, and we will probably be in the market for one soon)

Her answer: "honestly, I dont know. Ill probably want another Honda Accord.

Me: why?

Wife: the one we have has lasted so well and it is still good on gas. So why not go with another one.

Me: I thought you wanted an SUV, isnt there something else that you want?

Wife: Well.....i do like the new Honda Mini Vans..

Me: hahaha, does it have to be a honda?

Wife: why not? They last forever and are good on gas. Besides the man at the Honda Service shop already knows us.

She did admit that she likes the Tahoes,Malibus, and Toyota 4 runners and would like one but she stated that she would probably go with another Accord because she feels that it is a the safest bet.

I asked her this, with Toms question in mind about brand loyalty but didnt tell her until afterwards. Her response to brand loyalty, if you find something that is great then go with.

 

Funny you mention this as my

wife and I were in the same boat. 

We had a Honda and it didn’t meet our family needs, so we went looking

for a MiniVan, Honda has one of the better MiniVans, however we went with

Toyota and so far we are very pleased, but in many ways this boiled down to

what I could fit in and I couldn’t fit in the Honda..  Back to the point, my wife and were very

informed and brand only went so far, it boiled down to our needs and we made

the right choice.

[J Francho]

I'm not brand loyal, I'm model loyal.

[K_Mac]

Model loyal is a concept that makes sense. I am loyal to gear that has met the test of time. The problem is even models within brands have a way of evolving over time, and sometimes the changes that are made are in the interest of saving money rather than maintaining or improving quality. I have very limited dollars to spend on tackle, so I am always looking for the best bang for my buck. "Good enough' is often my creed. When I find something that meets that standard at a reasonable price, I am good to go. I guess at the end of the day, my loyalty is primarily to value. The problem is my standards often change over time; the rod or reel that once was once 'good enough' may not make me as happy today as it once did. I think for many of us there is as much joy in the process of getting the right tool for the job at the best price, as there is in using that tool.

[Ratherbfishing]

I can be both brand loyal and brand shy.  I now own two BPS brand reels because the first one was/is so good.  I stay away from (all) Pinnacle reels because one (a spinning reel) I bought years ago committed the most atrocious line twist.  I gave it away just to get it out of my sight.

[*Hootie]

Can you be model loyal without being brand loyal? I mean, Chevy makes a Suburban, Ford don't. So if you're loyal to the Suburban, aren't you also being loyal to Chevy?

Hootie

[LgMouthGambler]

Can you be model loyal without being brand loyal? I mean, Chevy makes a Suburban, Ford don't. So if you're loyal to the Suburban, aren't you also being loyal to Chevy?

Hootie

 

You mean like the way Shimano makes the Chronarch, Curado, and Citica, and Abu, Lews, and BPS dont? lol. I had to.

[*Hootie]

You mean like the way Shimano makes the Chronarch, Curado, and Citica, and Abu, Lews, and BPS dont? lol. I had to.

LMG, go to your room!......lol

Hootie

[LgMouthGambler]

LMG, go to your room!......lol

Hootie

 

 

[K_Mac]

Hootie I think the answer is yes. I am a big fan BPS PQ reels. There are a couple of others in their line-up I might try, but probably not. The PQ fits my needs at a price I like. Does that make me a BPS loyalist? Or just PQ loyal? If they change the reel and make it less desirable I will find another to replace them when the time comes. That decision will be made based on hands on use of other reels and information received from trusted sources. When I decide to go with a Shimano I will seek LMG's guidance...    

[craww]

I love variety. I have reels from everyone, and enjoy them all. I have a great job that has blessed us to be able to let the wife stay home. Still, with 3 kids I don't have much wiggle room on the "wants" purchases. I need to get it right when making a purchase. If I'm going to get a vehicle, phone, reel, gun, whatever it is I always research the heck out of it first. Sometimes too much!

[shootermcbob]

I find what I like, and go with it. I have found over the last 6 years or so that I REALLY like the shimano citica 200E and the Curado 200E5 , E7, & 50E. I came to this conclusion AFTER trying reels from Daiwa, Quantum, BPS, Pflueger, Cabelas, and Abu Garcia. After I found what I liked, I sold/traded all the other reels and bought all shimano reels. Fortunately, they were on closeout then, and I scored some major deals.

Same thing with rods, I have tried Daiwa, Quantum, BPS, Cabelas, Shimano, and Abu Garcia, and Powell. I settled on Shimano with some Powell rods and again, scored some major savings with the cumara line being revamped.

 

I guess I am brand loyal, but more specifically as JFrancho stated, model loyal.

However, I still have eyes on the flea markets and will not be afraid to give other brands a shot if they strike my fancy.

[slonezp]

I think, the higher the pricepoint, the more difficult it is to switch brands unless you've gone thru  a fairly negative experience. I believe most people don't like disappointment (although I know some people who feed on the negative). As far as gear is concerned, my elder family members got me started on Abu in the 70's. I can't say I have ever had an Abu reel fail. and have been using various models for 40 years. I still have some old round reels which I use periodicaly. I have grown to like Fenwick rods over the past 5 years or so. Prior to that, I bought what I could afford. As far as trucks, I know what brand of truck(s) I would never consider buying because of too many negative experiences in the past. I(we) like trying new restaurants. If I have a bad meal, I won't give the restaurant a second chance. On the same token I(we) also tend to order the same meals from restaurants we have had good experiences at, for fear of disappointment when trying something new. Now, If I'm not paying for the food or the gear or whatever, I am more likely to try something different, because  now, I have nothing to lose.

The evil you know may be better than the evil you don't know.

[LgMouthGambler]

I find what I like, and go with it. I have found over the last 6 years or so that I REALLY like the shimano citica 2000E7 and the Curado 200E5 , E7, & 50E. I came to this conclusion AFTER trying reels from Daiwa, Quantum, BPS, Pflueger, Cabelas, and Abu Garcia. After I found what I liked, I sold/traded all the other reels and bought all shimano reels. Fortunately, they were on closeout then, and I scored some major deals.

Same thing with rods, I have tried Daiwa, Quantum, BPS, Cabelas, Shimano, and Abu Garcia, and Powell. I settled on Shimano with some Powell rods and again, scored some major savings with the cumara line being revamped.

 

I guess I am brand loyal, but more specifically as JFrancho stated, model loyal.

However, I still have eyes on the flea markets and will not be afraid to give other brands a shot if they strike my fancy.

 

Shimano Citica200E7?, I want one of those. That reel must be worth some money, lol.

[shootermcbob]

Shimano Citica200E7?, I want one of those. That reel must be worth some money, lol.

 I corrected the error so as not to confuse anyone.

[J Francho]

Can you be model loyal without being brand loyal? I mean, Chevy makes a Suburban, Ford don't. So if you're loyal to the Suburban, aren't you also being loyal to Chevy?

Hootie

 

Sure, I'm not loyal to the model name, I'm loyal to a specific model.  Just because I like an E series Curado doesn't mean I blindly accept the G series.  To me, it's a different reel altogether.

[pbizzle]

I approach brand loyalty similar to the way I approach loyalty to a woman.  I like 'em tall, short, plump, skinny, brunett, red head (notice I didn't say blond), white, tan..... to look at that is. Okay, I may have held a few and even took some out for a spin. But when it comes to loyalty, there's only one woman that gets my stamp of approval......my wife. 

Yep, gotta kick the tires on a couple models before you drive off with one. 

[tugsandpulls]

im on a limited budget so whatever quality equip i get a good deal on ill buy

[Nice_Bass]

I think model preference is the best thought process after reading through this. 

I own all different reels and rods.

When it comes to soft plastics though I don't throw anything other than Berkley however. That being said, only the powerbait series as I have full trust in the scent and taste.  I have no need for the havoc series as there are hundreds of similar baits already and they don't have power bait formula and the gulp series has its uses, but I don't use much.

This removes me from needing to use megastrike or anything else really on these and helps to simplify thinking and just fish.