Tell Me Your Favorite Brands

Hmmm…. interested to see where this is going!

Here goes: Apple, Jeep, Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Columbia (clothing, etc.), Toyota (the FJ Cruiser is badass), The Teaching Company, Coke, Barq’s (has bite), Quiznos, Panera Bread (ate there in college all the time).

You’re so right!

Brands I actively look for:

Starbucks
Barnes and Noble
B Dalton
Panera
Pepsi
Dream Catcher Games
Cyan Worlds, Inc
Science Diet
Dick Blicks
Scheels
Hersheys
Big Train
La Pavoni
Dover Saddlery
Pro Choice
Subway

Brands I avoid, when possible:

Coke
Maxwell House
Burger King
Clover Valley
Fingerhut

That’s all I can think of at the moment…

I agree with you. Brands appeal to people, not because of the product (usually) , but because of the tribal associations that have developed around them.

That being said, as one who is passionate about individuality, I don’t have many tribes… er… brands that I associate myself with. So, here are the ones that come to mind as ones I’m passionately for:

Gretsch Guitars
Kroger’s generic products
Chick-Fil-A
Pepperidge Farms
Samuel Adams (mmmm…. Boston Ale….)

Brands I dislike:
Maxwell House (I’m with you on that, Diana)
Best Buy

I agree with you. Brands appeal to people, not because of the product (usually) , but because of the tribal associations that have developed around them.

That being said, as one who is passionate about individuality, I don’t have many tribes… er… brands that I associate myself with. So, here are the ones that come to mind as ones I’m passionately for:

Gretsch Guitars
Kroger’s generic products
Chick-Fil-A
Pepperidge Farms
Samuel Adams (mmmm…. Boston Ale….)

Brands I dislike:
Maxwell House (I’m with you on that, Diana)
Best Buy

Amazon
Apple
Banana Republic
Toyota
Vertigo Comics
HBO
Jones Soda
Nintendo
Lego

Love/Hate with Microsoft — have you seen Project Natal yet?

I buy very few national/international brands,shopping for the most part with small independents. But I do have a few:

Apple
Toyota
Equal Exchange cocoa and chocolate
the Fair Trade logo
business books from Berrett-Koehler, Chelsea Green, Wiley (yeah, I’m weird enough to actually notice the publisher)

Here are some brands I LOVE:

Barnes & Noble
Amazon
Victory Brewery (although I toured the brewery, so I’m a bit biased)
Costco
Target
Google

Some I HATE:

MICROSOFT!!!!!! (they’re the devil)
Walmart
Any company with those ridiculously stupid commercials that are so unbelievably bad for marketing purposes that I automatically hate the entire company (Am I the only copywriter who actually gets MAD at commercials that make no sense and don’t have a clear call to action?)

Hmm, I have to think. Not good for Friday night!

FAVE BRANDS:
–Caribou Coffee (way better than Starbucks)
–Barnes & Noble
–J.Jill
–Sur La Table
–Z Gallerie
–Godiva
–Metropolitan Museum of Art (museum store for jewelry and gifts)
–San Pellegrino
–Perrier

BRANDS I HATE:
–Starbucks
–McDonalds/BurgerKing/TacoBell, etc

@Jeremy: Are you talking about those ads where at the end, you ask yourself — what was it ABOUT? Yes, I hate those. Like pictures of an eagle soaring over a stream for 40 seconds and some pithy yet obscure sound bite is going to explain to me that I urgently need to go out and buy some widget that has nothing to do with eagles, or streams, or probably even the outdoors. Etc.

Favorite Brands:

Peet’s Coffee (unfortunately have to make do with Starbucks most of the time)
90 Shilling Ale
Courvoisier cognac
Ford (trucks only)
Toyota
Apple
Asics Tiger shoes
Levi jeans
Dickie pants
Snap-on tools
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Samsung TVs
Big O Tires
Weber barbecues
Fluke voltmeters
REI
LL Bean
Alaska Airlines
Quantas Airlines

Hi Ryan …

When I was a Fortune 500 consultant, we were involved with an advertising agency which wanted to promote the belief that people could define themselves by the three brands they absolutely couldn’t live without. They’d ask people what a typical day would be without those three brands.

Then, of course, their job was to develop advertising which squarely positioned their client as one of those three brands.

It was a very powerful thought experiment, and a good criteria against which to evaluate the ads. Consumers in market research studies loved answering the questions, and the brand managers found it really gave them something concrete to strive for.

My three would be Google, Starbucks Coffee, and Polar Heart Monitors.

Is your brand one of the 3 your customers couldn’t live without?

Something worth thinking about,

G :-)

Based on what I own/enjoy/use most:

Guinness
Barnes and Noble
H.E.B/Central Market (local grocery chain in my area)
Bass Pro Shops
Adams Golf
Dan Kennedy/GKIC
Google

Borders (I can’t believe you hate them!)
Lonely Planet
Microsoft (When it’s related to gaming)
Starbucks
Google
Red Stripe
Zephyrhills

Favorite Brands:

Trader Joes
Ross stores
Sees Candy
Hersheys
Victoria’s Secret
Office Max
Costco
Sephora stores
Makeupforever
Urban Decay
Vincent Longo
Loreal HIP
Xoxo for handbags

Hate: Best Buy

My perspective is somewhat different because I live in Switzerland.

Brands I like are:

McDonalds ( the ONLY drive-thru’s in all of Switzerland. Great for picking up coffee. )
Cartier
Google
Amazon

ciao ciao

Carolyn
Chanel

Brands I love and hate equally (depending on the movie I’m watching):

Marvel Comics & DC Comics

(Canadian perspective)
Tim Horton’s
Apple
Starbucks
Google
Embrace Pet Insurance
Ace Bakery

Me:

Nokia..
Acer
Sharp

Regards,

Juri Saragih

Ryan Healy
Clayton Makepeace
AWAI
Google News
Google Everything
Blackberry
AUDI
Online Bill Paying
Fast…fast…fast DSL
Obama
Airtran Airlines
$100 dollar bills
California

Patagonia
Toyota
Stew Leonard’s
EMS- Eastern Mountain Sports
Oreck
Keen
Harley Davidson
Sprint
Smith/Action Optics
Maverick Lacrosse

OK, so 1 or 2 obscure or regional ones in there. But, all are brands who stand by their products and customer service is tip top. Product quality is excellent.

The hate list:
McDonalds
Coke
Cablevision
WM-waste management
CBS/NBC/ABC/CNN/FOXNEWS etc.

This list is based on what I can only call a pervasively disingenuous attitude toward the consumer.

Peace.

I had a list that immediately came to mind when Michael told me about your post. Then after reading Glen’s reply I had to stop and think about it.

Here are my top 3:

Starbucks
Google
Nike

Much harder to think about what brands I use daily and would disrupt my day a lot without.

Ryan,

Sorry, not brand related but as a regular reader I’d surely be interested in an update in how your freelance life is going. Still enjoying copywriting – life in general.

Sorry to get off track but I always enjoyed your updated and real-life experiences.
Best,
Curt

Geez – brands…over the last few years we’ve given ourselves over completely to buying based on coupons/sales, so I guess the only ones I regularly depend on are:

Folgers
King Soopers
WalMart
DSW Shoe Warehouse
Bud Light

How’s that for a telling list :)

Hi Ryan -
I wandered over here to your web site after the Maestro Conference Call. Here’s my list.
Brands I like:
Corona (Light)
Coach
Acura
Sony
Canon
Dell
Trek
Godiva
Southwest Airlines
WordPress
Panera Bread
Bose
Ipod

Dislike:
Starbucks
McDonalds, Burger King
Fox News

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