Buying a foot massager? Learn if higher cost actually means a better product
You have probably been programmed to believe that cost and quality go hand in hand. Society has always held the belief that the more expensive something is, the more likely it is to be high quality.
That view hasn’t changed over many years. You see a BMW and think it is a more expensive car than your Kia. Therefore, the BMW must be much more expensive than your car is and you want to be especially careful around it.
Despite what you have been inclined to believe your whole life, does that still hold true today? When you make your next purchase, are you looking for the item you want based on brand, regardless of cost? Are you thinking about purchasing the most expensive despite your preferred brand because it is sure to have higher quality?
Let’s have a look at whether or not cost correlates with quality.
What is Quality?
When looking for commercial products, such as a foot massager, you are going to compare the item against other items, thus assigning it a grade. That grade is the quality you assign to it. You want to find the best, and that means the highest quality.
Cost and Quality
If you are on the market for a good foot massager, you fall into one of two groups of consumers.
You either equate low cost with good value or low cost with poor quality.
Sometimes the lower the price for an item does mean it is of a lower caliber than you would want it to be. However, that isn’t always the case.
More often than not, it is the marketing behind the product that is designed to make you think one way or the other. Many times, when you look at a product that is marketed, you will see words like “value” or “bargain.” Rarely, are you going to see the word quality.
Do cost and quality correlate when it comes to a foot massager?
The short answer to this is no.
You may think that just because you see a similar foot massager that is higher in prices is a better one than the same concept at a lower price because it is more expensive when you think like that you could be missing out on some great deals.
Often times, the lower-priced items do have and are higher in quality than those of higher-priced items. What you don’t realize is the name of the product or the brand, helps determine the price.
You may buy Heinz Tomato Sauce over a No Name Brand Tomato Sauce despite the fact that it is Heinz and more expensive. When the truth is, the No Name Brand Tomato Sauce is just as good as Heinz, but it is lower priced because it isn’t a “name” brand but rather a store brand.
When purchasing a foot massager, you can find many that are lower in price and still match the quality of the more expensive ones. It really depends on the features you want. However, when it comes to the same features, but different brands, you may be missing out on a good deal if you decide to purchase the more expensive one just because you are programmed to believe that if it’s more expensive, it is better quality. Even the most basic foot massager could still offer you health benefits, such as increasing blood flow to your feet, even if it's lacking in the bells and whistles (and possibly that recognizable name brand) of other, pricier models.
The Takeaway
Overall, when it comes to cost and quality, there are many different standards that you can measure that by. However, the best method is by those who have already tested the product. Reading reviews and seeing what those who have tried the product out have to say means more than the price of the item.
Just because you see a cheaper item, doesn’t mean you are getting cheaper quality. It really depends on the product. Make sure you don’t fall victim to wasting tons of money by purchasing a more expensive item just because you think it will be of better caliber.
Finally, when it comes to cost and quality correlating, that just isn’t the case anymore.
Resources — BusinessNewsDaily, Association for Consumer Research, Time
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