Some of you who know me in real life know I just bought a car and those of you who don’t, well if you read the blog you heard about it too.
But if you don’t fall into either of those categories let me bring you up to speed:
- I bought a car last week. First new one for the family in ten years and first for me in 19.
- Modern technology is a wonderful thing to have in a vehicle you spend significant time in.
If you are wondering why it took so long it was a combination of not needing something new, not having a car payment and biding my time because there wasn’t a rush.
And yeah, I am among the most patient impatient people you’ll find. If I really want/need something I’ll generally find a way to make it happen but that is not where we are focusing today.
No, today we’re talking about the irritation of buying things like cars that come in bundles.
It’s All About The Bundles
Some salespeople might take issue with the term bundles and suggest I use a word like packages to describe how they provide consumers with the opportunity to purchase features on cars.
For example you might want the cool stereo system, tires, panoramic sunroof but they don’t provide the opportunity to buy them A la carte.
No if you want the cool tires you need to buy the Bond package which comes with the ejector seat, and flame thrower.
Of course if you want the fuel for the flames and the parachute for the ejector that requires you purchase the Bond in conjunction with the technology package.
But it is not just limited to cars, if you buy a house in a new development, rent an apartment or buy time at a resort there is a good chance you’ll be asked to make a choice about what bundle you want.
As a consumer I float between heavy on research and my time is worth something.
I usually know what I want/need and if I don’t I’ll figure it out in advance so I am not pushed into buying the bundle for impatient people.
Buy the Bond package which comes with the ejector seat, and flame thrower.Click To TweetSince the car purchase is out of the way I had thought I had gained some respite from having to worry about bundles and figured that the next chunk of time should be relatively easy.
Sure the holiday season is upon us, but I have a handle on most of the purchases that need to be made for Chanukah gifts and naively thought that handle is enough to make shopping simple.
Did I Say Naive?
Yeah, I said it and apparently it is an accurate description because I naively believed that a Chanukah gift that I have been saving up for would be simple.
I figured it would be easy to determine whether to pick up an XBox One or a Playstation 4. All I needed to do was some basic research to figure out which suited the family and then I could point-and-click my way to avoid shopping at the mall.
But it turns out that it is not that simple because the fercockteh game systems come in bundles and trying to figure out which provides the best value requires more time than flipping a coin.
Don’t mistake this for being anything other than a traditional first world problem. Don’t think I am whining about this being particularly serious because it really isn’t.
But I consider it a big purchase and something that requires some thought. It is something I started planning for around the end of 2013 which I suppose is proof I didn’t rush into it.
On a side note, if the Bond package had been offered I definitely would have made certain to have purchased it.
It would be very cool, at least until I had to use the flame thrower option on some hothead who was tailgating. 🙂
I suppose it begs the question of whether a man who advocates patience in life and blogging really needs a flamethrower.
Let me answer that for you: HELL YEAH!
If we are talking about whether I want a car that was built and modified by Q you bet your ass I am going to say yes.
I have my own secret for a life worth living and that car fits the model.
Anyhoo, I am working hard to live the life I have imagined now I am imagining how to do it without bundles. 🙂
If I didn’t have those bundles of joy known as kids I might not have to imagine being able to retire at 985 instead of 50, but it would be a much darker and duller existence.
Besides, having to figure out the damn bundles always provides some sort of additional education about life/stuff and that is worth something.
“An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.”
― Benjamin Franklin, The Way to Wealth: Ben Franklin on Money and Success
Shane
I think there is something to admire in those patient impatient people, I would by biased though as I consider myself to fall in that category!
I think the car example here is a good analogy if nothing else. I’m guessing that you are in the US (or perhaps not). When I visited there, I really felt like this culture/approach applied to a whole range of products and industries that I didn’t ever expect it to. I really believe that Americans have mastered the art of upselling or helping people see the value in premium products.
Shane
Joshua Wilner
Hi Shane,
Welcome to the blog. You guessed correctly, I am an American who lives in Los Angeles. There is definitely a focus here on trying to create an idea that certain products are part of a premium life style and that if you purchase those you can live that life.