The Cadillac of Something

The perception of quality or poor quality sticks to brand names over time and spreads in society with the method we call word-of-mouth marketing. Quality is never accidental and the perception of “being the best in a field” is not acquired overnight. The perception of quality held in a time of many years carries brands to very strong points in the eyes of consumers, and consumers who express the same emotion begin to use certain stereotypical expressions over time.

The American luxury automobile brand Cadillac, which is part of the General Motors group, is just one of the famous brands with the perception of “quality”. So that; Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary uses the word Cadillac in an idiom and explains its meaning. The dictionary’s definition is as follows: “Something that is thought of as an example of the highest quality of a type of thing“. Beyond being good, “being the best” is not a level that can be given to every brand.

It is not a simple issue for a word to enter dictionaries to be used in an idiom. It is obvious that this idiom entered the dictionary as a result of long-term use among people. In other words, consumers take for granted that the product is the best in its field at first, and then the word finds its place in dictionaries as a widely-esteemed idiom.

Being the best in a field, attributed to Cadillac in the phrase “to be the Cadillac of something”, should be determined as a goal to be achieved for all brands, and of course, it should be ensured that necessary steps are taken to maintain quality after this goal is achieved.