The SHIROGI Effect

Remember Shirogi? Neither have I.

Just Kidding.

A couple of years ago, a famous bakery overran Cagayan de Oro City. This 24-hour- bakeshop which originated from Cebu, famous for their “Pan de Kofi”, quickly became a sensation to Cagayanons. Round the clock, people literally lined up in every branch to buy bags of these tasty bread. It really is delicious – or was it?

It took me a couple of months after the famous bread shop opened in the city until I finally get my hands on it. Half-drunk at 3 in the morning, I avoided the long queues and got myself a bagful. I couldn’t wait till I get home so tasted it while straddling on my bike (Yup! Drunk driving at its best!) I took my first bite and finally experience the big fuzz. Nothing special. It tastes good, yes. But it’s not extraordinary.

So why do these people line up for these buns and why are they insisting it is by far the best tasting bread ever?

It has something to do with Psychology. Yup, it’s all in their gullible minds. After all, you don’t taste with your tongues, see with your eyes, hear with your ears. Your mind does these things for you. Have you ever experienced hearing your cellphone ring and when you checked it, nobody called? No, you’re not crazy. Your mind processes information and tells us that we hear things. Hell, we even hear ourselves speak! Have you ever talked to yourself? Exactly!

Anyway, the whole shirogi hype is the perfect example of what we call “The Bandwagon Effect.” If executed properly, it is the perfect marketing tool. The fad wouldn’t last long though because society will make way for yet another trend. That’s exactly what happened to the Duterte Campaign. I’m not against him or anything. In fact I find the guy cocky and cool. An old version of my alter-ego. Good news is he won because of it. Bad news is most of the people who just jumped in the bandwagon didn’t even know why they voted for him in the first place. It’s like everyone’s being Charles Mansoned and he’s the Helter Skelter.

Game of Thrones mutherfuckers can relate to this. Most people just watch it now because of the stupid hypes and memes and references they couldn’t relate to. After reviewing all episodes, idiots can finally enjoy GOT references and share to other idiots. Again, nothing personal about Game of Thrones and its viewers. There were people who really watched it since day one and were hooked ever since. But not me. No amount of female nudity or nasty dragons could ever make me watch a single episode.

Now, fast-forward to a year or so after the first Shirogi branch opened. Behold, a copycat immerged. Blolong quickly became its main competitor ripping off its taste and even the dumb tarp design. The consumers however panned (“pan” intended) its release but there were quite a handful who patronized it at first. The moronic facebook debate on which is the better bread made it even worse which was again, a good marketing tool, in which in my opinion, happened by chance.

So what the hell is the point of this article?