As someone from the South, it has been very interesting to see how Loyal (with a capital L) New Englanders and specifically Bostonians are to two major franchises, the Boston Red Sox and Dunkin Donuts.
The reason I find this so interesting is because both of these franchises were able to do so while overcoming what would appear to be major obstacles to maintaining that Loyalty. For the Red Sox, this obstacle took the form of "the Curse," or the 86 years of failing to win a World Series. For Dunkin Donuts, their major obstacle has been the introduction of Starbucks, which appeared to have a more developed product.
The question that arises is, have the Red Sox/Dunkin Donuts done anything specific to achieve this unique level of Loyalty or is Boston/New England with its long history, culturally more prone to brand loyalty?
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Fascinating stuff!
ReplyDeleteI grew up in the Boston area and personally recall when I was first struck by the Sox - Yankee rivalry - at age 10. A neighbor's nephew was visiting from NYC that summer - and that's when the bragging and 'ranking' started. I guess that's when the seeds for big 'L' were somehow sewn.
Up until then, the only championship team Boston had celebrated - in my lifetime - was the Celtics. Keep in mind that, at that point, Larry Bird and Kevin McHale were then just entering the 1st and 2nd grade, respectively.
The, Boston Patriots would begin their 2nd season as a pro team; I'd only have to wait another 41 years for them to 'arrive'. The Sox, as it turns out, had only recently passed the 1/2 way point of their 86 years of wandering, the end of which would not come for another 42 years!
In the time that's past since then I recall more instances of disappointments and dashed hopes than of celebrations on the field... and I can't call out any single thing they (the sox or the pats) did over those years to 'earn' the big 'L' from me... but, they seem to have managed. A mystery. At least Dunkin' Donuts made a decent (enough) cup of coffee!
Here's another story of the big 'L' . Check out this link for another 'L'oyalty story. http://news.smh.com.au/technology/even-critics-give-apple-a-pass-on-iphone-3g-woes-20080829-4544.html