Corporations are not human beings, no matter what Citizens United and the Supreme Court says. As non-human entities, they have no compassion, no empathy, no sense of right and wrong. Corporations are set up for one purpose: to create value, usually in the form of money.
Now obviously, I don’t recommend living off the grid, growing your own food, and boycotting all consumer products. It’s just not practical. We have to be consumers to survive and thrive. However, we can choose to avoid business with some companies as a protest. Boycotts have been proven to influence corporate policies.
These are some of the worst offenders to me and I refuse to engage with them. I am voting with my wallet to use their competitors. This is my way of protesting.
Samsung
I blogged previously about how they had terrible customer service and false advertising. They are an enormous company and if they had decent customer service, I would have spent tends of thousands of dollars in the last few years on their products. Instead, they get nothing from me.
Facebook/Meta and Twitter/X
Both of these systems were cool in the beginning. They brought people together in new and interesting ways. Unfortunately, now they are completely dominated by bots and horrible troll people. I don’t want to have anything to do with them. I don’t look at Facebook or Twitter at all anymore. This also extends to Instagram. I don’t want to give Meta or Twitter any of my attention.
Tesla
This one is a tough pill to swallow. The Tesla is the first car I have ever loved. I love driving past a gas station and seeing the high price of gas. I love how quiet and delightful the drive is. The FSD is garbage, but that is not why I am boycotting them. It’s purely Elon Musk. He is a maniac and a mean person. He does not have any empathy or compassion for anyone other than himself. No wonder he and Trump get along.
I will never buy another Tesla despite it being a good car. I will never buy anything that helps Elon Musk.
Comcast
It’s a joke how bad Comcast customer support is. It’s a shame because they could have created tremendous value in how people access the internet and streaming services. Instead, they are a nameless/faceless brand that means nothing to me. Because of the poor service, I just avoid them.
Lessons for Corporations
Brand is important and can create or destroy tremendous value. You get positive brand loyalty by making good products and having solid customer success. Apple has done this and can therefore increase price (and profit) significantly.
- Invest in good user experience
- Invest in good customer support
- Don’t let your CEO be an asshole
It’s not that hard. Yet most companies do not follow these basic rules. Who is on your shit list? Who do you vote for or against on a personal level?
Whatya think?