An Alternative Model of Brand Loyalty
研究发现品牌忠诚有两种类型：转换成本导致的忠诚和偏好转变导致的忠诚，前者保护在位者、削弱竞争、抬高价格，后者可能加剧竞争、降低价格并提升福利，对管理者和监管者有重要启示。
There are two different types of brand loyalty, and they work in different ways. Our study shows that loyalty created by switching costs, such as proprietary standards, data frictions, or restrictive interfaces, has very different market consequences from loyalty created by preference shifts, where repeated use makes customers genuinely prefer a product’s design or features. Although both increase retention, switching costs protect incumbents, soften competition, raise prices, and reduce consumer and social welfare. Preference shifts can have the opposite effect; they can lead to a reduction in differentiation between rival products, intensify competition, lower prices, and under some conditions, improve welfare by better aligning products with what customers want. The managerial message is clear; investments in user experience, reliability, and product design are not strategically equivalent to investments in lock-in. The policy message is equally important; regulators should not treat all customer stickiness as harmful. Remedies, such as interoperability, data portability, or limits on proprietary standards, are best targeted at switching barriers, not loyalty created by genuine product improvement.