Does SONOS really have a unique place in today's market?........So what is the basis of the devotion to SONOS?
A big part of the Sonos brand story (up until last week) was longevity. Sonos dealers emphasized that sure, Sonos products are more expensive, but part of the reason is that they continually automatically update themselves...so that (until last week) the very first Sonos product sold still worked perfectly with new products you add.
So a lot of the outrage was not just because of technological obsolescence, but because it breaks a promise inherent in their brand story.
I see Sonos today mostly in upscale homes, a good percentage of which was installed by integrators. Its not just the cost of replacing equipment....but add to that the cost and hassles of a truck roll That plus the integrators having to explain to their client why the promise of longevity was not what it seemed.
I fault Sonos mostly for not really understanding how their client base would react and the impact on the differentiated benefits of the brand.