Recently on my LinkedIn wall, a brand manager expressed his fascination that people could exercise wearing 3-4 different brands across their body. Where’s the brand loyalty in that? he wondered.

I’ve recently run my second marathon, and at these distances, there is no brand loyalty unless you get sponsored. You wear what works best. My Kiprun shorts are the best ones I’ve tried. My podiatrist recommended a specific ASICS range that has been better than any other shoe I’ve tried. My Falke socks even at marathon distance have never given me blisters. My Versus hat is machine washable. My Adidas technical shirt is so much more enjoyable than my Joma one.

But to none of these brands I feel loyalty. I will ditch each one for another brand based on product quality. Even my trusted ASICS I’ll leave if a better shoe comes around. I don’t use these products to support these products. I use them to run, and I want to run comfortably and efficiently.

Therein lies a lesson for any business. While some products may have die-hard believers, most of us just use what works best for the best price. I switched from Windows to Apple during Windows Vista because the software sucked so badly, and Apple’s didn’t. There’s a turning point where I’d switch away from Apple too.

The same goes for the products at Automattic. We can create amazing support experiences that are fast and personable, and we can create a great vibe and community around the WooCommerce brand. But people will choose us and stick with us because of what they value in our product. We are only as good as the product we create so merchants can sell online.

That’s why support and marketing can’t live in their own bubble. We need to constantly work with our product and engineering teams to ensure there’s a close feedback loop. Without that loop, our product and what customers want will start drifting apart.

Because at the end of the day, our product is why people choose us and stick with us.