Paying a High Price for Near Perfection

Being in the "brand" business, we work hard to protect the brands we've been entrusted to manage and build. But what happens when a high-profile brand implodes?

As the Toyota brand continues to be tarnished by some poor business decisions, and their PR teams flounder to repair the Toyota image, I think we've gotten a chance to see the high price a brand can pay when it has dabbled with near perfection for more than 70 years.

As a used car-purchasing junkie, I can tell you firsthand that when I am looking to buy a used car, I concentrate my efforts on a few brands – Toyota being at the top. And as I’m sure most other used car enthusiasts would agree, the brand has earned it. So much so that it's one of the toughest vehicles to find a good deal on because their near-perfect image keeps the resale value so high.

However, in recent discussions around the office and with friends about the Toyota recall fiasco, many people are now shying away from owning a Toyota. They have very quickly thrown away 70 years of good equity. To which I say, “Huh?”

I have owned multiple brands of cars (used car junkie here), and I have experienced a recall of some magnitude on probably half of those vehicles. My most recent (Kia Optima) has had two. My point is this: recalls are not an unheard of thing for car manufacturers and car owners. They happen all the time. But people just don't expect bad things from Toyota. So it's been amazing to witness a brand known for relatively few mistakes get "NAILED" for having a recall. Which begs the question: "Do brands that have higher standards pay higher prices for error?"

My answer after witnessing the recent events is an unwavering and unfortunate, "YES." But while the price for failure is high, wouldn’t you rather be known for “near perfection” in the long run?

I predict that once all of Toyota's hiccups (or in this case, loud burps) pass, and business decisions are made and enforced to prevent this from happening again, Toyota will be put back into the limelight as a high-quality brand again. It will take a lot of time, PR, advertising and fundamental brand management to get it done – but selfishly I’m okay with that. Maybe now I can finally get a good deal on an old Corolla.