On 5/11/07, Levi Wallach <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Scott, why do you even have to be "loyal" to a company? > ... > That's what capitalism is supposed to be about, right? If > everyone were loyal to some company based on something > other than what matters - that they make products they > want to buy - then we would hardly have very good > products at all! <snip>
Levi, I have to disagree. Companies have many responsibilities outside of just simply making product customers want to buy. They have social responsibilities and ecological responsibilities and often their actions in these areas have little to do with the products they sell. So, in that sense "what matters" is much broader than just the physical goods a firm produces. If a customer wishes to reward a company for being a good citizen (or any other action/attribute beyond its products) by being loyal to it, shouldn't he/she have that right? Not only does that help reinforce the idea that market forces do work (capitalism), it helps us consumers shape corporations' behaviors as well as their products. At least that's what I teach my business students.
