Who do 'reputations' really benefit? It must be great for a company to have a well-known, good reputation, bringing them new custom on the back of heresay of others who've had experience of them in the past. Conversely, for any company who gets a bad reputation for whatever reason, does this spell the end for them? Surely a reputation, either good or bad, is only useful for a limited period of time?
This discussion came to me last weekend when I was visiting Whitby where i'm sure many of you will know, lies the 'Magpie' fish and chip shop. This place has had a good reputation for many many years and if you visit Whitby, on most days you'll see people queuing outside both the take-away and the restaurant there. This reputation allows them to charge more than other fish and chip shops in Whitby and not suffer. But is it any better than the others? About 100yds down the road is another fish and chip shop which has won the award for the best fish and chips in the UK for 2011 - surely this is more relevant than a years old reputation? Despite the reputation, high prices and the queues outside - it seems the Magpie isn't even the best fish and chip shop in Whitby, let alone the country...
Personally, i've tried the Magpie, and i've tried others over the years, and I don't think they're worthy of the hype, and certainly not the higher prices - but they have that reputation from years ago and it must be a fantastic business tool for them - but does it benefit the business more than it does their customers?
This discussion came to me last weekend when I was visiting Whitby where i'm sure many of you will know, lies the 'Magpie' fish and chip shop. This place has had a good reputation for many many years and if you visit Whitby, on most days you'll see people queuing outside both the take-away and the restaurant there. This reputation allows them to charge more than other fish and chip shops in Whitby and not suffer. But is it any better than the others? About 100yds down the road is another fish and chip shop which has won the award for the best fish and chips in the UK for 2011 - surely this is more relevant than a years old reputation? Despite the reputation, high prices and the queues outside - it seems the Magpie isn't even the best fish and chip shop in Whitby, let alone the country...
Personally, i've tried the Magpie, and i've tried others over the years, and I don't think they're worthy of the hype, and certainly not the higher prices - but they have that reputation from years ago and it must be a fantastic business tool for them - but does it benefit the business more than it does their customers?
