A while back, my cousin was purchasing a Subaru. I joked with him about how you have to put a minimum of 5 bumper stickers on your car before they would let it leave the lot. As he pointed out to me, they’ve actually done something even better. Now when you buy a Subaru, you can pick a variety of neatly placed decals that proudly display a little bit about you. Are you skier, cyclist, camper or runner? Do you do yoga, cook, or play music? Are things like diversity, family, or the environment important to you? Have you driven your Subaru over 100k miles? How many Subarus you’ve purchased in the past? These badges (which are actually pretty similar to the Merit Badges Boy Scout’s get – except you don’t actually have to do anything) are a great way to “gamify” the Subaru buying experience. It instills a sense of pride in being a Subaru owner (including whatever connotations go along with it) and celebrates that unique interests of the individuals. Well done, Subaru.
Read more about Subaru’s Badge of Ownership here.