Is Cheaper Always Better?
Just a few days ago, MSN Online News announced that—for the first time in history—the national average for a gallon of gas had risen above $4.00. I still can’t believe it. It blows my mind.
A year ago, financial advisors were recommending that people who wanted to save money eliminate the “luxuries” of life. You know…things like premium cable, a night out at the movies and your once-a-week Starbucks Cappuccino. At the time, they didn’t say anything about driving your kids to soccer practice.
The economy is in the toilet. We all know that. And most people are finding themselves cutting corners. I’ve even found that I—who have always used the old adage “you get what you pay for” to justify my slightly-expensive tastes—have started doing it too. One of the first things to go for me was Premium gasoline.
You see, every car I’ve bought in the last 10 years has said right there in the book: MUST USE PREMIUM UNLEADED GASOLINE. I guess it would seem that if you’re willing to spend double most people’s annual income on a vehicle, paying for Premium fuel shouldn’t be that big of a deal. And I have dutifully done as I was told.
But no more. I rebelled. In the face of real economic uncertainty and “gas price rage” (yes, it might be an actual disorder right now), I downgraded my gasoline. It started with a move to “Mid-Grade”. Then, that was so…liberating…that I went all the way to “Regular Unleaded”. I was free and I was fighting back!!! Fighting back against THE MAN. It felt good. No…it felt great! For all of about two days.
You see, I noticed something. Insignificant at first. Then, it became glaringly obvious.
(As a quick side-note, let me say that I know it’s irresponsible these days to own an SUV. But I bought it three years ago when things weren’t quite this bad and the sticker said it would get 19 miles to the gallon in town (yeah…right). So, until I get my Hybrid SUV, it is what it is).
With the Premium gas I had been close to the “average/city” mpg for my vehicle…about 17 most of the time. With the Regular Unleaded gas I was only getting 13.7! I was so dismayed by this, I asked my software-developer husband to build me a simple calculator so that I could figure out if the lower-grade gas was really a “bargain”.
Of course, wonderful (*dutiful*) husband that he is…he did it. And I was floored. The “cheaper” fuel was actually costing me money! So much for “fighting back against THE MAN”. The joke was on me. (If you don’t believe it, try it for yourself. After we found out the truth, he decided to put the calculator on his website for others to use. The URL is http://www.DrummersOutpost.com/Gas/GasSavings.aspx.)
Now, you may be wondering what my little “gas problem” (yes, I realize how that sounds) has to do with anything else. But the answer is simple. Many times in life we go for the cheapest—or most expedient—solution to a problem or need. Not realizing you might be cutting off our nose to spite our face. That the “cheaper” solution may end up more expensive in the long run.
Unfortunately, this often carries over into our businesses. When attempting to save money, we sometimes think, “…We don’t have to have the best. This option is probably just as good.” Quite often, however, that’s just not the case.
If you have—or are trying to launch—an Internet business, you likely already know that there are hundreds (maybe even thousands) of websites and individuals out there who claim to have the “lowest-cost” training and answers you need to get results. The question you have to ask though is…what are you really getting?
Now, of course, I’m not saying you need to spend a fortune to build your business or generate big profits. Just make sure you get what you pay for… With Nitro Marketing, you never have to guess. For more information on effective, low-cost marketing that really produces, check out www.viralmarketingcrashcourse.com/getviral.
- Kim
No Tags
Comments