Image credit: © lusobrandane
It has often been said that you get what you pay for, but I’ve learned that this isn’t always the case. In fact, after reading this, you may agree with me in that it is very rarely the case.
The Case Of The Dissolving Shoes
For health and safety reasons my wife, Michelle, needs specialised shoes (they’re more of a boot really) for her work. So when she first got the job we went out shoe shopping (I defy you to find a woman who doesn’t love that). It turns out that there are quite a large variety of makes and brands of this type of footware to choose from, but our deciding factor at that time was price. We went for what we thought would give us the best value and still be affordable. That first pair cost us $45.00.
We felt that we had done well. I mean, we could have bought the $100.00 pair (not that we could afford that). Little did we know on that day that we’d be back in the same store looking to buy work boots for Michelle because her old ones had completely fallen apart… 2 months later! When I say that they had fallen apart, I mean that they looked like they’d been dipped in acid (they hadn’t). So that’s what we did 2 months later, almost to the day, bought another pair of boots. And you know what? We bought the exact same $45 boots again. I don’t really know why, perhaps we believed that we were still saving money. Or perhaps we thought we were just unlucky to get a pair from a bad batch last time.
Do you know what we were doing 2 months after this second shopping expedition?
Buying the $100 boots!
The $100 boots wore out too, but not until after 12 months of solid use. The more expensive boots are 2 and a bit times the price of the cheap ones. But! They last nearly SIX times as long. If we had stuck to the cheap boots we would of had to buy 6 pairs during the course of 1 year… 6 x 45 = $270.00. Or buy 1 pair of $100 boots… 1 x 100 = $100.00. In a single year we’re in front by almost 2 pairs of the expensive boots. Michelle has been working at this job for nearly 8 years now. Savings: 8 x ((6 x 45) – 100) = $1,360.00. She reminds me often that it was MY idea to “save” $60 on that first pair of boots. 
I was going to say that is illustrates how you can get more than what you pay for, and it does. But it also shows the opposite.
The Case Of The Fast Food Flim-Flam
Do you get what you pay for with fast food? Some of you may say “yeah”. I say “NO!”
Lets say you want to feed a family of four, 2 adults, and 2 kids. You’re going to spend probably a minimum of $30 to even $50 on dinner. It is going to stress you out and be a hell of an inconvenience. It is going to be full of fats, sugars, and cholesterol. It’s going to harden your arteries and that one dinner is going to knock years off of your lifespan. Oh, and did I mention… it’ll probably taste like cardboard. Mmmm, yum!
The alternative? Home cooked fresh food. I kid you not. For at least 50% of the cost of your fast food, and probably a similar saving in time, you can feed a family of four a delicious feast. A dinner that will not only taste great, but will be great for your body as well.
Here we have an example where spending less gives more value. And not just a monetary value. So, for fast food, you get less than what you pay for.
The Case Of The Crazy Car Costs
Do you get what you pay for with motor cars? Maybe cars are like Michelle’s work boots… spend more to get quality and better value? Well, the average family saloon is about $30k here. I call that the benchmark. A Ferrari will set you back 10 times that. Is there 10 times the value? Sure the Ferrari goes faster, but 10 times faster? The average car can do 160Kph (100Mph). That slick Ferrari sure as hell can’t do 1600kph. With fuel economy, the average car is probably just as good as the Ferrari, probably better. Insurance? I know which I’d rather be paying the premiums on. 
What about comfort? Have you ever driven a Ferrari? Why do you think they go so fast? It’s so you don’t have to sit in them for too long.
OK, that is a bit of a silly example. There are very few people who could afford a Ferrari anyway, so it’s not a fair comparison. But look at what you are up against when you open up your wallet to buy a car, regardless of what car. Insurance, registration, repairs, mechanics bills, servicing, fuel. And for what? Something that depreciates in value faster than a bunch of roaches escaping the light.
Do you get what you pay for with a motor car? In my opinion, only if you have a very strange idea about value.
The Case Of The Sorry Software
Software, as some of you may know, is something that is near and dear to me. I spend a lot of time using it, and at times, writing it. However, I’m not sure if I can answer the question: Do you get what you pay for with software? I’m not sure I can answer that because it was in the 1980′s when I last bought any. No, I’m not a pirate. All of my software is legit and legal, I just use open source for 100% of my software needs.
OK, so I pay zero dollars for my software. By the “you get what you pay for” rule, I should get zero value or benefit, yeah? Of course I get value and benefit. I get huge value from the software I use. In fact, I get more value and benefit from my zero-cost software than you all do with your $megabucks software.
Do you get what you pay for with software? No. I get more.
The Case Of The Beautiful Book
I want to end on a high note. Books. Although there is an awful lot of trash out there in book land, books can also bring a truck load of value. Who can put a value on such titles as “Think & Grow Rich“, or “The Richest Man In Babylon“? Do you get what you pay for with books? Hardly ever. Either you’ll waste your money on trash, or you’ll invest in treasure. Either way, you’re not getting what you pay for.
Parting Word
I now believe that the “you get what you pay for” thing is a myth. Sometimes you get a lot more than what you pay for, and sometimes a lot less. But you know what? It all boils down to the value that you personally put on a purchase, and value doesn’t always equate to dollars spent.
Till next time…
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Fast food restaurants? The food is cheap, but you literally are paying for what you pay for. How does fake, unhealthy, greasy food sound?
Hi Edwin!
I have to disagree with you on one thing here…
Erm, no, it’s hideously expensive. The money you’d spend on feeding a family of 4 at a fast food restaurant (and I use the term “restaurant” very loosely) would be enough to buy fresh food at the grocery store to feed them for 2 or 3 days. And that includes the extra little costs like the electricity you use to cook it. Oh, and we still haven’t factored in the health aspects.
Thanks for stopping by, mate. Appreciate your input!
Kind regards,
Steve
Twitter: SteveYoungs
You make some good points. I agree that value often costs you money in the long run.
It is sometimes hard to tell though, there are brand names out there that are more expensive simply because they are brand names. I would have been with you in thinking 45$ boot may be just as good as $100 boots. But would have shyed away from $10
Cars are a good example of this the High end stuff like your Ferrari cost so much in large part because of its Status symbol status. Many of the “best” cars are high end “average” priced ones.
All anyone can know is that there is no such thing as a “good” price. It could be low because it is crap or high because it is a “name” if you really want to buy good stuff you need to know what you are buying and if something is more expensive exactly WHY it is more expensive
Steve@Lifestyle Design wrote: Get More Blog Traffic Blueprint Week 4
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Hi Steve!
Paying a premium for a brand name doesn’t make any logical or rational sense. A lot of the time the brand name item is of similar quality and has similar features to its competitors, so why do we go for the brand name? We do it because the decision to purchase something (anything) is always an emotional one. We very quickly back up the decision with logic and reason, but the initial decision is emotional. What it boils down to is that the big brand name companies are better at appealing to our emotions in their advertising than the “no-name” companies. As the name grows and their market share increases, so too does the emotional pull, which, in turn, jacks up the price.
Thanks very much for commenting, Steve. Always a pleasure!
Kind regards,
Steve
Twitter: SteveYoungs
Hi Steve
My Father always used to say: “Buy cheap, buy twice”. But I do agree some of the prices can be inflated when they are ‘must have” designer brands!
Eating healthy is cheaper in the long run. Especially if you grow your own vegies. Or visit farmers’ markets where there is no middle man to put the prices up.
It is worth doing research cos often can get better prices by looking around. Especially with such easy access to the internet. Comparing prices becomes easy.
Patricia Perth Australia
Patricia@lavenderuses wrote: Are You a Tweetheart-Commenter…or both!
Twitter: lavenderuses
Hi Patricia!
Have you seen the price of fast food these days? I say you can eat healthy and save money now, even without doing anything fancy like going to farmer’s markets or growing your own.
Twitter: SteveYoungs
Hi again Steve
I don’t eat junk food so have no idea how much it costs lol I just know my body would react if I ate it as used to healthy food only
It is interesting to see what people put in their shopping trolleys when I’m doing my weekly shop. Some people seem to live on whatever is unhealthy for them!
Patricia Perth Australia
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Good for you, Patricia, for keeping away from the junk food. I’m not going to say I never eat it, because I do, it’s just that it’s pretty rare. My kids (an 8, and 10 year old) keep telling me we need to have take-away more often, but I look at how they clean their plates every night of home-cooked fresh meals and I wonder about the sincerity of their request.
Hmm, I hope they don’t read this, they might think that if they stop eating my cooking that’ll I’ll buy more take-away. Ha! It won’t work, kids, so forget it! 
It’s been a while since I’ve been inside a grocery store, not because of that guy/shopping thing, but because I do my grocery shopping online these days. I remember though, the people you’re talking about. You gotta wonder if at the bottom of their shopping docket, does it say…
Twitter: SteveYoungs
I hate shopping for shoes.
Then again, I just plain hate shopping.
Unless it’s at a garage sale, mind you.
I don’t eat junk food much either – why grow fat for no reason?
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Hi Barbara!
First up, welcome to one of my bits of this Internet thingy dingy. It’s great to have you here!
Now hold up, just a minute… you’re a woman, and you hate shoe shopping? My wife says it can’t be… that it must be a typo. She asks: “is the poor dear feeling OK? maybe she just needs a little rest?” She also suggests that if a rest doesn’t fix it then you should blame the nearest man.
I’m only teasing and kidding around, Barbara. Please don’t take any of that seriously.
Thank you so very much for taking time out of your busy schedule to comment here. I really appreciate that and hope to see you back here again soon.
Kind regards,
Steve
Twitter: SteveYoungs
Hey Steve,
You are right on the money with your last scentence ” It all boils down to the value that you personally put on a purchase, and value doesn’t always equate to dollars spent.” for example, in the case of the ferrari 10X the price vs 10 the speed – we know this doesnt equate, but what about the feeling of driving that baby out of the showroom, or taking a buddy out for a spin in your new hot wheels and the satisfaction that your hard work over the years has payed off to allow the ultimate of luxuries – this money cant buy.
bLAZE yOUR tRAIL
Ryan Renfrew @LifestyleDesign wrote: Characteristics Of A Successful URL
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Hey, Ryan!
Absolutely, mate. Some things are very hard, or impossible, to put a dollar value on. And one man’s value is another man’s crippling debt.
Twitter: SteveYoungs
Well you sure are right.
Your shoes and food situations are something we do every day.
I am always shocked that a quick meal in a fast food restaurant for 2 adults is around $15-20. I really try to avoid them because of all the grease but sometimes I can get home in time.
Anyway, it is so much better and cheaper to make some homemade food.
We tend to think wrong about saving money. Many times we think we are saving (like you and the shoes) while we are actually spending much more than we need to.
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Twitter: LiveUrLove
Hi Brankica!
Welcome to my little bit of the blogosphere, Brankica. It’s great to have you here!
Not only is the home made food cheaper and much better for you, very often it is quicker to prepare and cook than the time it can take to get your dinner from some of these fast food places.
With the saving money, I think we tend to think about the short term too much, instead of long term costs.
Thank you very much for taking the time to stop by and leave a comment, Brankica. I really appreciate that, and I hope I’ll see you back here again soon.
Kind regards,
Steve
Twitter: SteveYoungs
I don’t look at the cost of shoes, but i do look at the quality. And quality can be seen of shoes if you know what you’re looking for. For example, i don’t buy shoes that have the base only glued.
That can’t be said about food, because in 99% of cases we really don’t know what we eat. We just know what that food looks like, not what it actually is.
I do buy software occasionally, when the price is not exaggerated (like $1.2k for Adobe Photoshop Extended) and i’m really satisfied with the software. I like to help the developer improve the software, and he can’t do that if he’s in the streets for not paying his rent.
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