# Am I the only one who is insulted when companies talk about my loyalty?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-the-only-one-who-is-insulted-when-companies-talk-about-my-loyalty/642847>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [December 3, 2012, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-the-only-one-who-is-insulted-when-companies-talk-about-my-loyalty/642847 "2012-12-03T13:51:59Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\
**Post date:** [December 4, 2012, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-the-only-one-who-is-insulted-when-companies-talk-about-my-loyalty/642847/21 "2012-12-04T16:13:56Z")

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> [@solosam](#):
>
> I bought my family’s third Honda in a row, and they said I qualified for a “loyalty” discount.
> 
> If it makes my car cheaper, I don’t care what you call it.

I bought one Mazda 4 years ago and they now want to give me $500 off a new one for being loyal. That isn’t much but if I wanted/needed a new car it’s the sort of thing I would throw in at the end of the negotiations.

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**Author:** ![SweetiePotato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@SweetiePotato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SweetiePotato)\
**Post date:** [December 5, 2012, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-the-only-one-who-is-insulted-when-companies-talk-about-my-loyalty/642847/22 "2012-12-05T06:53:00Z")

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I think marketers calling it “loyalty” is just a psychological trick: most people consider the quality of loyalty as an admirable thing. So if marketers can get you to feel admirable simply by continuing to buy their shitty product, they’re earning their paycheck, just as much as the ones who can make you feel “cool” or “young” or “hip” or whatever other traits they want to associate with the use of their products.

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**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\
**Post date:** [December 5, 2012, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-the-only-one-who-is-insulted-when-companies-talk-about-my-loyalty/642847/23 "2012-12-05T07:36:53Z")

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> [@SweetiePotato](#):
>
> I think marketers calling it “loyalty” is just a psychological trick: most people consider the quality of loyalty as an admirable thing. So if marketers can get you to feel admirable simply by continuing to buy their shitty product, they’re earning their paycheck, just as much as the ones who can make you feel “cool” or “young” or “hip” or whatever other traits they want to associate with the use of their products.

Yeah. And in all other contexts, being disloyal would (at least) hurt someone’s feelings. The word choice makes it seem as though you and the company are best buddies. Yes, it’s just marketing-speak, but marketing-speak in general involves minor psychological trickery.

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**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\
**Post date:** [December 5, 2012, 8:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-the-only-one-who-is-insulted-when-companies-talk-about-my-loyalty/642847/24 "2012-12-05T08:12:17Z")

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> [@matt\_mcl](#):
>
> Here I thought you were talking about corporate loyalty in the sense of employees’ required loyalty to their employer, of course without the slightest expectation of loyalty in return.

This is what I thought as well. I’ve worked for places like that; they were unpleasant experiences.

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