“consumer satisfaction in consumer durables-a case study on lg ,videocon & philips”

Consumer satisfaction in consumer durables -A case study on LG, VIDEOCON & PHILIPS.

“CONSUMER SATISFACTION IN CONSUMER DURABLES-A CASE

STUDY ON LG ,VIDEOCON & PHILIPS”

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

It is with a feeling of great satisfaction that I present this Project on

“CONSUMER SATISFACTION IN CONSUMER DURABLES-A CASE

STUDY ON LG, VEDIOCON & PHILIPS” for all of you. I have given the

details about the customer satisfaction Strategies in general and Analysis of 3

Big consumer durables companies, LG, VIDEOCON AND PHILIPS.

My aim in this Project is to offer a deep enough understanding of why

customer satisfaction is important in today’s globalized scenario.

Today, many companies find themselves in a rapid state of transition

customers are giving these companies powerful wakeup calls-usually with

their money as the alarm clock-that offering the else product, services or prices

alone may not be enough to ensure loyalty. As a result, companies have tried

to enough to ensure loyalty. As a result, companies have tried to programs

accordingly. Often, we assume that customers are satisfied and sales will

increase, but the concept and drive for satisfied customers generally have

proven far less than satisfactory for companies seeking higher sales and

profits, greater quality levels and more cultural cohesion among staff.

My objective of this project was to study the following:

1. customer satisfaction

2. Purposes and Importance.

3. Philosophy of customer satisfaction

4. Analysis of consumer satisfaction in consumer durables with respect to color

TV.

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5. Strategies for improving customer satisfaction.

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Chapter no. Topic Page no.

1 About the project.

1.01 Need 01

1.02 Objectives. 02

1.03 Scope. 02

1.04 Research methodology. 03

2 Literature review.

2.01 Introduction 04-19

2.02 Importants of customer satisfaction 20-30

2.03 Theories of customer satisfaction 31-40

2.04 Satisfaction measurement: overall measures of satisfaction 41-53

2.05 26 inventive principles in customer satisfaction enhancement 54-65

2.06 Magical words create customer satisfaction 66-70

3 Case study 71-79

4Conclusion

4.01Observations & findings.

80-83

4.02 Suggestions & conclusion. 84-87

Bibliography & Webliography. 88

Annexure 89-92

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CHAPTER 1

ABOUT THE PROJECT

(1.01) NEED

The need to determine customer satisfaction will vary somewhat by the competitive

circumstances of a given industry.

In intense consumer-focused activities, measuring customer satisfaction is critical.

But every company in every industry can benefit by examining the needs of their

customers. Some of the areas where improvement may be expected include:

Better determination of customer uses and needs.

Identification of problems with customer services.

A sharper focus on areas having the greatest need for improvement.

Gaining insight for new products and/or service offerings.

To meet these objectives many companies strives to be a fair employer encouraging a contented and happy workforce by ensuring all staff are well trained and motivated.

(1.02) OBJECTIVES.

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1. Customers will be treated professionally, efficiently and with courtesy at all

times.

2. All enquiries will be responded to the same day they are received.

3. Supply quality products at competitive prices.

4. Endeavour to dispatch all stock items within 24 hours, within the limits of

Their viability.

5. Guarantee to give full attention to personal service and customer satisfaction.

Hence by this the company can gain high level of customer satisfaction and can

achieve the high profitability with increase in sales and also customer loyalty.

(1.03) SCOPE OF THE STUDY

Customer satisfaction is very important a company can gain a high success by

achieving customer satisfaction. A very satisfied customer is a loyal with that of

company’s product

And can generate positive word of mouth and also can influence others to purchase.

In this way the company’s sales will also increase and there by there profitability.

Customers are the main object of the business and hence there satisfaction is a need of

hour in today’s competitive environment. Today’s customers are well educated and

more conscious about the product which they buying. And hence to satisfy these

customers is a very challenging task. Hence every company have to developed there

own prompt customer service centre trough which they can provide highly effective

service and also have to find out innovative strategies.

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(1.04) RESEARCH METHODOLOGY USED FOR THE

PROJECT

1. Primary data has been collected by visiting banks and meeting the concerned

managers through a questionnaire. The format of questionnaire is provided in

the project.

2. Secondary data has been collected from various books, magazines, journals

& newspaper articles. Thus for this libraries like e-banking challenges and

opportunities.

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CHAPTER:-2

LITERATURE REVIEW .

(2.01) INTRODUCTION

CUSTOMER

‘A customer is the most important visitor on your premises; He is not

dependent on us. We are dependent on him; He is not an interruption on our

work; He is the purpose of it; He is not an outsider on our business; He is a

part of it; we are not doing him a favors by serving him; He is doing us a

favors by giving us an opportunity to do so.’

- Mahatma Gandhi

A customer is someone who makes use of or receives the products or services

of an individual or organization. The word historically derives from "custom,"

meaning "habit"; a customer was someone who frequented a particular shop,

who made it a habit to purchase goods there, and with whom the shopkeeper

had to maintain a relationship to keep his or her "custom," meaning expected

purchases in the future.

Customer needs may be defined as the goods or services a customer requires

to achieve specific goals. Different needs are of varying importance to the

customer. Customer expectations are influenced by cultural values,

advertising, marketing,

and other communications, both with the supplier and with other sources. Both

customer needs and expectations may be determined through interviews,

surveys,

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http://www.answers.com/topic/organization


Conversations, data mining or other methods of collecting information.

Customers at times do not have a clear understanding of their needs. Assisting

in determining needs can be a valuable service to the customer. In the process,

expectations may be set or adjusted to correspond to known product

capabilities or service.

Thus,

“Groups or individuals who have a business relationship with the organization

—those who receive and use or are directly affected by the products and

services of the organization. Customers include direct recipients of products

and services, internal customers who produce services and products for final

recipients, and other organizations and entities that interact with an

organization to produce products and services.”

Today, many companies find themselves in a rapid state of transition

customers are giving these companies powerful wakeup calls-usually with

their money as the alarm clock-that offering the else product, services or prices

alone may not be enough to ensure loyalty. As a result, companies have tried

to enough to ensure loyalty. As a result, companies have tried to programs

accordingly. Often, we assume that customers are satisfied and sales will

increase, but the concept and drive for satisfied customers generally have

proven far less than satisfactory for Companies seeking higher sales and

profits, greater quality levels and more cultural cohesion among staff.

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http://www.answers.com/topic/data-mining

http://www.answers.com/topic/conversations-1


SATISFACTION

Kotler (2000) defined satisfaction as: “a person’s feelings of pleasure or

disappointment resulting from comparing a product are perceived performance

(or outcome) in relation to his or her expectations”.

Hence,

The fulfillment or gratification of a desire, need, or appetite.

Pleasure or contentment derived from such gratification.

A source or means of gratification.

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION,

A business term is a measure of how products and services supplied by a

company meet or surpass customer expectation. It is seen as a key

performance indicator within business and is part of the four perspectives of a

Balanced Scorecard.

In a competitive marketplace where businesses compete for customers,

customer satisfaction is seen as a key differentiator and increasingly has

become a key element of business strategy.

There is a substantial body of empirical literature that establishes the benefits

of customer satisfaction for firms. The overall attitude a person has about a

product after it has been purchased Customer satisfaction is the key to success.

Getting your customer to tell you what’s good about your products or services,

and where you need improvement, helps you to ensure that your business

measures up to their expectations.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balanced_Scorecard

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technical_term

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business


Customer centered companies are adept at building customers, not just

products; they are skilled in market engineering not just product engineering.

Too many companies think that it is the marketing or sales department’s job to

acquire and manage customers, but Infact; marketing is only one factor in

attracting and keeping customers.

The best marketing department in the world cannot sell products that are

poorly made or fail to meet a need. The marketing department can be effective

only in companies whose employees have implemented a competitively

superior customer value-delivery system.

Whether the buyer is satisfied after purchase depends on the offer’s

performance in relation to the buyer’s expectations. In general satisfaction is a

person’s feelings of pleasure or disappointment resulting from comparing a

product’s perceived performance in relation to his or her expectations.

If the performance falls short of expectations, the customer is dissatisfied. If

the performance matches the expectations, the customer is satisfied. If the

performance exceeds expectations, the customer is highly satisfied or

delighted.

The link between customer satisfaction and customer loyalty is not

proportional. Suppose customer satisfaction is rated on a scale from one to

five. At a very low level of customer satisfaction, customers are likely to

abandon the company and even bad mouth it. At levels two or four customers

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are fairly satisfied but still find it easy to switch when a better offer comes

along. At level five, the customer is

Very likely to repurchase and even spread good word of mouth about the

company.

High satisfaction or delight creates an emotional bond with the brand or

company, not jut a rational preference. Many companies found that completely

satisfied customers are six times more likely to repurchase products over the

following 18 months than its “very satisfied” customer. Customer satisfaction

is the extent to which the desires and the requirements of the clients are met.

A service is considered satisfactory if it fulfils the needs and expectations of

the customers. Measuring this satisfaction is an important element of

providing better, more effective and efficient services. When clients are not

satisfied with a service as provided, the service is neither effective nor

efficient. This is especially important in relation to the provision of public

services.

The level of customer satisfaction with services is an important factor in

developing a system of service provision that is responsive to clients needs

while minimizing costs and time requirements and maximizing the impact of

the services on target populations.

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CUSTOMER PERCEIVED VALUE

Customer perceived value (CPV) is the difference between the prospective

customer's evaluation of all the benefits and all the costs of an offering relative

to perceived alternatives.

From the time marketing came into existence, companies have faced the

toughest challenge to attract customers. Today, the same companies face the

challenge to convince the customers to take their wallet share. This can only

happen if the customer perceives that the value of the product being sold to

him is worth more than what he thinks of the product.

Example:-Assume the cost of producing product X (cost to manufacture) is C1

and the price the manufactures sells at is P1. Assume the customer perceives

that the value of this product is P2 (P2>P1). Remember only if P2 is greater

than P1 will the customer buy the product and the difference (P2-P1) will be

termed as the customer perceived value. It is also called "customer surplus".

The difference (P1-C1) is the "manufacturer's surplus"

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TOTAL CUSTOMER COST

It is the bundle of cost that customers expect to incur in evaluating, obtaining,

using and disposing of the given market offering.

For example:

You, as a buyer for a large consumer durable company want to buy a color TV

from X or Y. The competing salespeople carefully describe their respective

offers. You would like the TV to deliver certain levels of reliability, durability,

performance, and resale value.

You also perceive differences in the accompanying services- delivery, training

and maintenance and decide that X provides better service and more

knowledgeable and responsive personnel. Finally, you place higher value on

X’s corporate image. You add up all the Values from these four sources -

product, service, personnel and image-and perceive X as delivering greater

customer value.

Will you buy the X’s CTV?? Not necessarily.

You might also examine your total cost of transacting with X versus Y, which

consists of more than the money. Total customer cost includes the buyer’s

time, energy, and psychic cost. The buyer evaluates these elements together

with the monetary cost to form a total customer cost

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Total customer cost is too high in relation to total customer value X deliver. If

it is, then you might choose Y’s CTV.

You will buy form whichever source you think delivers the highest perceived

customer value.

X can improve its offer in three ways:

1. It can increase total customer value by improving product, services,

personnel and/or image benefits.

2. It can reduce the buyer’s monetary costs by reducing the time, energy, and

psychic costs.

3. It can reduce its product’s monetary cost to the buyer. Buyers operate under

various constraints and occasionally make choices that give more weight to

their personnel benefit than to the company’s benefit. However, customer

perceived value is a useful framework that applies to many situations and

yields rich insights.

Implications of Perceived Value:

1. First, the seller must assess the total customer value and total customer cost

associated with each company’s offer in order to know how his or her offer

rates in the buyer’s mind.

2. Second, the seller who is at a customer perceived value disadvantage has

two alternatives:

To increase total customer or

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To decrease total customer.

The former calls for strengthening or augmenting the offer’s product, services,

personnel and image benefits. The latter calls for reducing the buyer’s costs by

reducing the price, simplifying the ordering and delivery process, or absorbing

some buyer risk by offering a warranty

CUSTOMER EXPECTATIONS

How do buyers form their expectations? From past buying experience, friends’

and associates’ advice and marketers and competitors information and

promises. If marketers raise expectations too high, the buyer is likely to be

disappointed.

However, if the company sets expectations too low, it won’t attract enough

buyers. Today, some of the companies are raising expectations and delivering

performance to match. These companies are aiming for TCS- total customer

satisfaction.

Here are six customer expectations that are the cornerstone of outstanding

service and increased sales:

1. Customers Expect Solid Information.

Providing your customers with tangible information lets them know that you

value them and respect their ability to make sound decisions. When they feel

that, they’re respected; they're more open and willing to do more business with

your company. One way to ensure they receive beneficial information is to ask

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probing questions during your conversations to uncover needs they may not

have voiced. For instance, ask about the objectives they've set for their

company, and the problems associated with attaining them.

2. Customers Expect Options.

Customers don't want to be told that there's only one way or one solution.

They'll respond positively when they're given options. Options are essential

because they create dialogue and discussion. Open dialogue can lead to more

sales.

3. Customers Expect Single Source Service.

Customers don't want to be transferred to every unit of your business to have

their problems solved. They want to be able to do business with you with the

slightest amount of discomfort. You must be easy to do business with. This

means taking ownership of our customer’s requests, problem, etc., and

ensuring that their needs are met to their satisfaction.

4. Customers Expect Superior Communication.

They may not be the best communicators, but they expect communication

excellence from you. So, if you tell them that you will call them back at a

certain time, make sure that you do. Your responsiveness will create a bond of

trust, and a communication comfort level.

5. Customers Expect Consulting.

As the expert on your business' products and services, you are your customer

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only contact to determining how to use your product and/or service to get the

best RETURN ON INVESTMENT (ROI). You must take the time to ask

pertinent questions aimed at finding how your customer is using your product

and/or service. This will demonstrate your ability and knowledge as well as

your intent to spend the necessary time with them to meet their specific needs.

6. Customers Expect A Seamless Relationship.

The best businesses are those that believe in going the extra mile for their

customers. They know that they have to reinforce why it's in the customers

best interest to continue doing business with them. Building a relationship with

your customers built on mutual trust and respect takes time and effort, but

remembers retention is the best method of building profit. Stay in touch with

your customers by keeping them informed of new events, product updates,

passing on information that may be of interest, calling to say hello, etc.

Meeting these six customer expectations will help you gain customer loyalty,

and customer loyalty will keep you in business!

In short,

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When I'm a Customer, I want . . .

1. To be taken seriously 10. Knowledgeable help

2. Competent, efficient service 11. Friendliness

3. Anticipation of my needs 12. To be kept informed

4. Explanations in my terms 13. Follow-through

5. Basic courtesies 14. Honesty

6. To be informed of the options 15. Feedback

7. Not to be passed around 16. Professional service

8. To be listened to (and heard) 17. Empathy

9. Dedicated attention 18. Respect

Hence we can conclude from this that Delivering quality service consistently

gives a competitive edge to organizations. It requires an understanding of

customer expectations and the types of expectations. Further, knowledge of

factors influencing the desired service level, adequate service level, and zone

of tolerance will help organizations consistently meet and exceed service

expectations of customers.

While evaluating service offered by an organization, customers compare

perceived quality of service with the expected quality of service.

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Therefore, organizations should have knowledge about customer perceptions

and the influence of factors such as service encounter, service evidence, image

of the service organization, and price of the service on customer perceptions.

Organizations should also attempt to understand the various types of service

encounters like remote, face-to-face, and phone encounters to be able to

understand customer perceptions. They should examine the factors that

influence customer satisfaction/dissatisfaction, like recovery, adaptability,

spontaneity, and coping and innovate strategies to influence customer

perceptions.

DELIVERING HIGH CUSTOMER VALUE

As delivering greater customer value. The key to generating high customer

loyalty is to deliver high customer value.

According to Michael Lanning, a company must deign a competitively

superior value proposition aimed at a specific market segment, backed by the

superior value-delivery system.

The value proposition consists of the whole cluster of benefits the company

promises to deliver; it is more then the core positioning of the offering.

CUSTOMER LIFETIME VALUE

In marketing, customer lifetime value (CLV), lifetime customer value

(LCV), or lifetime value (LTV) and a new concept of "customer life cycle

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management" is the present value of the future cash flows attributed to the

customer relationship.

Use of customer lifetime value as a marketing metric tends to place greater

emphasis on customer service and long-term customer satisfaction, rather than

on maximizing short-term sales

CALCULATING CUSTOMER LIFETIME VALUE

Customer lifetime value has intuitive appeal as a marketing concept, because

in theory it represents exactly how much each customer is worth in monetary

terms, and therefore exactly how much a marketing department should be

willing to spend to acquire each customer. In reality, it is difficult to make

accurate calculations of customer lifetime value due to the complexity of and

uncertainty surrounding customer relationships.

The specific calculation depends on the nature of the customer relationship.

Customer relationships are often divided into two categories. In contractual or

retention situations, customers who do not renew are considered "lost for

good". Magazine subscriptions and car insurance are examples of customer

retention situations. The other category is referred to as customer migrations

situations. In customer migration situations, a customer who does not buy (in a

given period or from a given catalog) is still considered a customer of the firm

because she may very well buy at some point in the future. In customer

retention situations, the firm knows when the relationship is over. One of the

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challenges for firms in customer migration situations is that the firm may not

know when the relationship is over (as far as the customer is concerned).

Most models to calculate CLV apply to the contractual or customer retention

situation. These models make several simplifying assumptions and often

involve the following inputs:

Churn rate the percentage of customers who end their relationship with a

company in a given period. One minus the churn rate is the retention rate.

Most models can be written using either churn rate or retention rate. If the

model uses only one churn rate, the assumption is that the churn rate is

constant across the life of the customer relationship.

Discount rate the cost of capital used to discount future revenue from a

customer. Discounting is an advanced topic that is frequently ignored in

customer lifetime value calculations. The current interest rate is sometimes

used as a simple (but incorrect) proxy for discount rate.

Retention cost the amount of money a company has to spend in a given period

to retain an existing customer. Retention costs include customer support,

billing, promotional incentives, etc.

Period the unit of time into which a customer relationship is divided for

analysis. A year is the most commonly used period. Customer lifetime value is

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cost_of_capital


a multi-period calculation, usually stretching 3-7 years into the future. In

practice, analysis beyond this point is viewed as too speculative to be reliable.

The number of periods used in the calculation is sometimes referred to as the

model horizon.

Periodic Revenue: The amount of revenue collected from a customer in the

period.

Profit Margin Profit as a percentage of revenue. Depending on circumstances

this may be reflected as a percentage of gross or net profit. For incremental

marketing that does not incur any incremental overhead that would be

allocated against profit, gross profit margins are acceptable.

USES OF LIFETIME VALUE

Lifetime Value is typically used to judge the appropriateness of the costs of

acquisition of a customer.

For example, if a new customer costs Rs.50 to acquire (CPNC, or Cost per

New Customer), and their lifetime value is Rs.60, then the customer is judged

to be profitable, and acquisition of additional similar customers is acceptable.

(2.02) CUSTOMER SATISFACTION-IMPORTANTS

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Many researchers have looked into the importance of customer satisfaction.

Kotler defined satisfaction as: “a person’s feelings of pleasure or

disappointment resulting from comparing a product are perceived performance

(or outcome) in relation to his or her expectations”.

Hoyer and MacInnis said that satisfaction can be associated with feelings of

acceptance, happiness; relief, excitement, and delight. There are many factors

that affect customer satisfaction. According to Hokanson, these factors include

friendly employees, courteous employees, knowledgeable employees, helpful

employees, accuracy of billing, billing timeliness, competitive pricing, service

quality, good value, billing clarity and quick service.

Fig.2.02-I

In order to achieve customer satisfaction, organizations must be able to satisfy

their customers needs and wants (La Barbera andMazursky, 1983). Customers’

needs state the felt deprivation of a customer (Kotler, 2000).Whereas

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customers’ wants, according to Kotler (2000) refer to “the form taken by

human needs as they are shaped by culture and individual personality”.

Effect of Customer Satisfaction on Profitability

Customer satisfaction does have a positive effect on an organization’s

profitability. According to Hoyer and MacInnis (2001), satisfied customers

form the foundation of any successful business as customer satisfaction leads

to repeat purchase, brand loyalty, and positive word of mouth.

Coldwell: “Growth Strategies International (GSI) performed a statistical

analysis of Customer Satisfaction data encompassing the findings of over

20,000customer surveys conducted in 40 countries by Info Quest. The

conclusion of the study was:

• A Totally Satisfied Customer contributes2.6 times as much revenue to a

company as a Somewhat Satisfied Customer.

• A Totally Satisfied Customer contributes17 times as much revenue as a

Somewhat Dissatisfied Customer.

• A Totally Dissatisfied Customer decreases revenue at a rate equal to 1.8

times what a Totally Satisfied Customer contributes to a business”.

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Zairi “There are numerous studies that have looked at the impact of customer

satisfaction on repeat purchase, loyalty and retention. They all convey a

similar message in that:

• Satisfied customers are most likely to share their experiences with other

people to the order of perhaps five or six people. Equally well, dissatisfied

customers are more likely to tell another ten people of their unfortunate

experience.

• Furthermore, it is important to realize that many customers will not complain

and this will differ from one industry sector to another.

• Lastly, if people believe that dealing with customer satisfaction/complaint is

costly, they need to realize that it costs as much as 25 percent more to recruit

new customers”.

Aaker said that the strategic dimension for an organization includes becoming

more competitive through customer satisfaction/brand loyalty, product/service

quality, brand/firm associations, relative cost, new product activity, and

manager/employee capability and performance (Figure 2.2-II).

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Figure 2.02-IIPerformance Measures Reflecting Long-Term Profitability

CONSEQUENCES OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AND

DISSATISFACTION

The consequences of not satisfying customers can be severe. According to

Hoyer and MacInnis, dissatisfied consumers can decide to: -

• discontinue purchasing the good or service,

• complain to the company or to a third-party and perhaps return the item, or

• engage in negative word-of-mouth communication.

Customer satisfaction is important because, according to La Barbera and

Mazursky, “satisfaction influences repurchase intentions whereas

dissatisfaction has been seen as a primary reason for customer defection or

discontinuation of purchase”.

EFFECT OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION ON CUSTOMER

LOYALTY AND RETENTION

However, Bowen and Chen said that having satisfied customers is not enough,

there has to be extremely satisfied customers. This is because customer

satisfaction must lead to customer loyalty.

Bansal and Gupta: “Building customer loyalty is not a choice any longer with

businesses: it’s the only way of building sustainable competitive advantage.

Building loyalty with key customers has become a core marketing objective

shared by key players in all industries catering to business customers. The

strategic imperatives for building a loyal customer base are as:

• Focus on key customers

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• Proactively generate high level of customer satisfaction with every

interaction

• Anticipate customer needs and respond to them before the competition does

• Build closer ties with customers

• Create a value perception”.

Sivadas and Baker-Prewitt said “there’s an increasing recognition that the

ultimate objective of customer satisfaction measurement should be customer

loyalty”.

Fornell said “high customer satisfaction will result in increased loyalty for the

firm and that customers will be less prone to overtures from competition”.

This view was also shared by Anton who said that “satisfaction is positively

associated with repurchase intentions, likelihood of recommending a product

or service, loyalty and profitability”. Loyal customers would purchase from

the firm over an extended time (Evans and Berman,).

Guiltinan, Paul and Madden said that satisfied customers are more likely to be

repeat (and even become loyal) customers.

Sivadas and Baker-Prewitt: “Satisfaction also influences the likelihood of

recommending a departmental store as well as repurchase but has no direct

impact on loyalty. Thus satisfaction in itself will not translate into loyalty.

However, satisfaction wills foster loyalty to the extent that it is a prerequisite

for maintaining a favorable relative attitude and for recommending and

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repurchasing from the store. Once customers recommend a department store it

fosters both re patronage and loyalty towards that store.

Thus the key to generating loyalty is to get customers to recommend a store to

others. Also, customers are likely to recommend a department store when they

are satisfied with that store and when they have a favorable relative attitude

towards that store”.

Evans and Berman “Companies with satisfied customers have a good

opportunity to convert them into loyal customers – who purchases from those

firms over an extended period”.

Clarke said, “a business that focuses exclusively on customer satisfaction runs

the risk of becoming an undifferentiated brand whose customers believe only

that it meets the minimum performance criteria for the category. Long-term

customer retention uncompetitive markets require the supplier to go beyond

mere basic satisfaction and to look for ways of establishing ties of loyalty that

will help ward off competitor attack”.

According to Reichheld, 65 to 85percent of customers who defect to

competitors’ brands say they were either satisfied or very satisfied with the

product or service they left. Therefore, in order to ensure that customers do not

defect, Bowen and Chenare correct to say that customers must to be extremely

satisfied. As far as organizations are concerned, they want their customers to

be loyal to them and customer satisfaction doesn’t guarantee this.

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According to Storbackaand Lentinen, customer satisfaction is not necessarily a

guarantee of loyalty. They said that in certain industries up to 75% of

customers who switch providers say that they were ‘satisfied’ or even ‘very

satisfied’ with the previous provider. Customers may change providers

because of price, or because the competitor is offering new opportunities, or

simply because they want some variation (Storbacka and Lentinen,).

Clarke said that customer satisfaction is really no more than the price of entry

to a category. For satisfaction to be effective, it must be able to create loyalty

amongst customers.

McIlroy and Barnett: “An important concept to consider when developing a

customer loyalty programmed is customer satisfaction. Satisfaction is a

measure of how well a customer’s expectations are met while customer loyalty

is a measure of how likely a customer is to repurchase and engage in

relationship activities.

Loyalty is vulnerable because even if customers are satisfied with the service

they will continue to defect if they believe they can get better value,

convenience or quality elsewhere. Therefore, customer satisfaction is not an

accurate indicator of loyalty. Satisfaction is a necessary but not a sufficient

condition of loyalty. In other words, we can have satisfaction without loyalty,

but it is hard to have loyalty without satisfaction”.

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McIlroy and Barnett, “in a business context loyalty has come to describe a

customer’s commitment to do business with a particular organization,

purchasing their goods and services repeatedly, and recommending the

services and products to friends and associates”.

Anderson and Jacobsen said customer loyalty is actually the result of an

organization creating a benefit for a customer so that they will maintain or

increase their purchases from the organization. They said that true customer

loyalty is created when the customer becomes an advocate for the

organization, without incentive.

Clarke: “The notion of customer loyalty may appear at first sight to be

outmoded in the era of the Internet, when customers are able to explore and

evaluate competing alternatives as well as checking reports from others – at

the touch of a button. Yet the evidence shows that the old rules of successful

and profitable management still hold good: customer retention is still a key to

long-term profits, while on the other side of the coin there is a high cost-

penalty to low loyalty. Indeed, the very fact that customers can so readily

assess the competing services and products on offer and then so easily make

the new purchase does in itself give added weight to the importance of

building strong ties of loyalty with customers”.

Bowen and Chen: It is commonly known that there is a positive relationship

between customer loyalty and profitability. Today, marketers are seeking

information on how to build customer loyalty. The increased profit comes

31


from reduced marketing costs, increased sales and reduced operational costs.

Finally, loyal customers cost less to serve, in part because they know the

product and require less information. They even serve as part-time employees.

Therefore loyal customers not only require less information themselves, they

also serve as an information source for other customers”.

Bansal and Gupta: “Building customer loyalty is not a choice any longer with

businesses: it’s the only way of building sustainable competitive advantage.

Building loyalty with key customers has become a core marketing objective

shared by key players in all industries catering to business customers. The

strategic imperatives for building a loyal customer base are as:

• Focus on key customers

• Proactively generate high level of customer satisfaction with every

interaction

• Anticipate customer needs and respond to them before the competition does

• Build closer ties with customers

• Create a value perception”.

McIlroy and Barnett said that loyalty cannot be taken for granted. They said

that it will continue only as long as the customers feel they are receiving better

value than they would obtain from another supplier.

Anton: “When you can increase customer loyalty, a beneficial ‘flywheel’ kicks

in, powered by: -

• Increased purchases of the existing product,

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• Cross-purchase of your other products,

• Price premium due to appreciation of your added-value services,

• Reduced operating cost because of familiarity with your service system,

• Positive word-of-mouth in terms of referring other customers to your

company”.

In order to ensure that there is customer loyalty, organizations must be able to

anticipate the needs of their customers (Kandampully and Duffy,).

According to Kandampully and Duffy, customer’s interest in maintaining a

loyal relationship is depended on the firm’s ability to anticipate customer’s

future needs and offering them before anyone else.

According to the study done by Bowen and Chen, it supported the contention

that there is a positive correlation between loyal customers and profitability.

Bowen and Chen: “The result of our study supported the contention that there

is a positive correlation between loyal customers and profitability. Loyal

customers indeed provide more repeat business and were less likely to shop

around for the best deals than non-loyal customers”.

Day said that the identification and satisfaction of customer needs leads to

improved customer retention. Clark: “Customer retention is potentially one of

the most powerful weapons that companies can employ in their fight to gain a

strategic advantage and survive in today’s ever increasing competitive

environment. It is vitally important to understand the factors that impact on

customer retention and the role that it can play in formulating strategies and

plans”.

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Conclusion

Based on the views and research done by numerous researchers and

academicians, it can be concluded that customer satisfaction is very important.

Thus, though customer satisfaction does not guarantee repurchase on the part

of the customers but still it plays a very important part in ensuring customer

loyalty and retention.

(2.03) THEORIES OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

(2.03-A) CUSTOMER SATISFACTION MODEL (KANO)

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Customer satisfaction model:-

The customer satisfaction model from N. Kano is a quality management and

marketing technique that can be used for measuring client happiness.ustomer

satisfaction model.

The Kano Model of Customer (Consumer) Satisfaction classifies product

attributes based on how they are perceived by customers and their effect on

customer satisfaction. These classifications are useful for guiding design

decisions in that they indicate when good is good enough, and when more is

ter.

Fig.2.03 -I

KANO Model

Project activities in which the Kano Model is useful:

1. Identifying customer needs

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2. Determining functional requirements

3. Concept development

4. Analyzing competitive products

Other tools that is useful in conjunction with the Kano Model:

1. Eliciting Customer Input

2. Prioritization Matrices

3. Quality Function Deployment

4. Value Analysis

The Kano Model of Customer satisfaction divides product attributes into three

categories: threshold, performance, and excitement.

A competitive product meets basic attributes, maximizes performances

attributes, and includes as many “excitement” attributes as possible at a cost

the market can bear.

Threshold Attributes

Threshold (or basic) attributes are the attributes provides diminishing returns

in terms of customer satisfaction, however the absence or poor performance of

these attributes results in extreme customer dissatisfaction. Threshold

attributes are not typically captured in QFDs (Quality Function Deployment)or

other evaluation tools as products are not rated on the degree to which a

threshold attribute is met, the attribute is either satisfied or not.

Performance Attributes

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Performance attributes are those for which more is generally better, and will

improve customer satisfaction. Conversely, an absent or weak performance

attribute reduces customer satisfaction. Of the needs customers verbalize, most

will fall into the category of performance attributes. These attributes will form

the weighted needs against which product concepts will be evaluated.

The price for which customer is willing to pay for a product is closely tied to

Performance attributes. For example, customers would be willing to pay more

for a car that provides them with better fuel economy.

Excitement Attributes

Excitement attributes are unspoken and unexpected by customers but can

result in high levels of customer satisfaction, however their absence does not

lead to dissatisfaction. Excitement attributes often satisfy latent needs – real

needs of which customers are currently unaware. In a competitive marketplace

where manufacturers’ products provide similar performance, providing

excitement attributes that address “unknown needs” can provide a competitive

advantage. Although they have followed the typical evolution to a

performance then a threshold attribute, cup holders were initially excitement

attributes.

Other Attributes

Products often have attributes that cannot be classified according to the Kano

Model. These attributes are often of little or no consequence to the customer,

and do not factor into consumer decisions. An example of this type of attribute

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is a plate listing part numbers can be found under the hood on many vehicles

for use by repairpersons.

Application of the Kano Model Analysis:-

• A relatively simple approach to applying the Kano Model Analysis is to ask

Customer’s two simple questions for each attribute:

1. Rate your satisfaction if the product has this attribute? And

2. Rate your satisfaction if the product did not have this attribute?

Kano Model Analysis

Customers should be asked to answer with one of the following responses:

A) Satisfied;

B) Neutral (It’s normally that way);

C) Dissatisfied;

D) Don’t care.

• Basic attributes generally receive the “Neutral” response to Question 1 and

the” Dissatisfied” response to Question 2. Exclusion of these attributes in the

product has the potential to severely impact the success of the product in the

marketplace.

• Eliminate or include performance or excitement attributes that their presence

or absence respectively lead to customer dissatisfaction. This often requires a

trade-off analysis against cost. As Customers frequently rate most attributes or

functionality as important, asking the question “How much extra would you be

willing to pay for this attribute or more of this attribute?” will aid in trade-off

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decisions, especially for performance attributes. Prioritization matrices can be

useful in determining which excitement attributes would provide the greatest

returns on Customer satisfaction.

• Consideration should be given to attributes receiving a “Don’t care” response

as they will not increase customer satisfaction nor motivate the customer to

pay an increased price for the product. However, do not immediately dismiss

these attributes if they play a critical role to the product functionality or are

necessary for other reasons than to satisfy the customer.

The information obtained from the Kano Model Analysis, specifically

regarding

Performance and excitement attributes, provides valuable input for the Quality

Function Deployment process.

STEPS IN THE CUSTOMER SATISFACTION MODEL

Kano developed a questionnaire to identify the basic, performance and

excitement factors as well as the other three additional factors.

1. For each product feature a pair of questions is formulated to which the

customer can answer in one of five different ways.

2. The first question concerns the reaction of the customer if the product

shows that feature (functional question);

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3. The second question concerns the reaction of the customer if the

product does NOT show this feature (dysfunctional question).

4. By combining the answers all attributes can be classified into the six

factors.

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(2.03-B) SIX SIGMA AIMS TO MAXIMIZE

Customer satisfaction and minimize defects.

1. What is six sigma?

2. How do six sigmas work?

3. Process improvement in what is six sigma?

In statistical terms, the purpose of Six Sigma is to reduce process variation so

that virtually all the products or services provided meet or exceed customer

expectations. This is defined as being only 3.4 defects per million occurrences.

Six Sigma was developed by Motorola in the 1980s but has its roots in

Statistical Process Control (SPC), which first appeared in 1920s.

Six Sigma was developed by Motorola in the 1980s but has its roots in

Statistical Process Control (SPC), which first appeared in 1920s.

HOW DOES SIX SIGMA WORK?

There are three basic elements to Six Sigma:

œ Process improvement

œ Process design/re-design

œ Process management

Each of the above three elements is examined in more detail below.

Process improvement

The purpose of process improvement is to eliminate the root causes of

performance deficiencies in processes that already exist in the organization.

These performance deficiencies may be causing real problems for the

organization, or may be preventing it from working as efficiently and

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effectively as it could. To eliminate these deficiencies a five-step approach is

used.

DEFINE – a serious problem is identified and a project team is formed and

given the responsibility and resources for solving the problem.

MEASURE – data that describes accurately how the process is working

currently is gathered and analyzed in order to produce some preliminary ideas

about what might be causing the problem.

ANALYSE – based upon these preliminary ideas, theories are generated as to

what might be causing the problem and, by testing these theories, root causes

are identified.

IMPROVE – root causes are removed by means of designing and

implementing changes to the offending process.

CONTROL – new controls are designed and implemented to prevent the

original problem from returning and to hold the gains made by the

improvement.

Process design/re-design

Sometimes simply improving existing processes is not enough, and, therefore,

new processes will need to be designed, or existing processes will need to be

re-designed. There are several reasons why this could be necessary:

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1. An organization may choose to replace, rather than repair, one or more

of its core processes.

2. An organization discovers, during an improvement project, that simply

improving an existing process will never deliver the level of quality its

customers are demanding.

3. An organization identifies an opportunity to offer an entirely new

product or service.

4. As with process improvement, a five-step approach is used to

design/re-design a process:

DEFINE – identify the goals for the new process, taking into account the

customer requirements.

MATCH – develop a set of performance requirements for the new process that

match these goals.

ANALYSE – carry out an analysis of these performance requirements for the

new process, and based upon this produce an outline design for the new

process.

DESIGN & IMPLEMENT – work this outline design up into a detailed design

for the new process, and then implement it.

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VERIFY – make sure the new process performs as required and introduce

controls to ensure it keeps performing that way.

Process management

Because it requires a fundamental change in the way an organization is

structured and managed, process management is often the most challenging

and time-consuming part of Six Sigma. In general, process management

consists of:

Defining processes,

key customer requirements, and

Process owners.

Measuring performance against customer requirements and key performance

indicators.

Analyzing data to enhance measures and refine the process management

mechanisms.

Controlling process performance by monitoring process inputs, process

operation, and process outputs, and responding quickly to problems and

process variations.

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(2.04) SATISFACTION MEASUREMENT: OVERALL

MEASURES OF SATISFACTION

Satisfaction measures involve three psychological elements for evaluation of

the product or service experience: cognitive (thinking/evaluation), affective

(emotional-feeling/like-dislike) and behavioral (current/future actions).

Customer satisfaction usually leads to customer loyalty and product

repurchase. But measuring satisfaction is not the same as measuring loyalty.

Satisfaction measurement questions typically include items like:

An overall satisfaction measure (emotional):

Overall, how satisfied are you with "X PRODUCT"?

Satisfaction is a result of a product related experience and this question reflects

the overall opinion of a consumer's experience with the product's performance.

Note that it is meaningful to measure attitudes towards a product that a

consumer has never used, but not satisfaction for a product or brand that has

never been used.

A loyalty measure (affective, behavioral):

Would you recommend "X" to your family and friends?

A series of attribute satisfaction measures (affective and cognitive):

How satisfied are you with the "taste" of X?

How important is "taste" to you in selecting X?

Satisfaction and attitude are closely related concepts. The psychological

concepts of attitude and satisfaction may both be defined as the evaluation of

an object and the individual's relationship to it. The distinction is that

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satisfaction is a "post experience" evaluation of the satisfaction produced by

the product's quality or value.

Intentions to repurchase (behavioral measures):

Do you intend to repurchase X?

Satisfaction can influence post-purchase/post-experience actions other than

usage (such as word of mouth communications and repeat purchase behavior).

Additional post-experience actions

might include product or

information search activity,

changes in shopping behavior and

trial of associated products.

As shown in Figure 2.04-I

customer satisfaction is influenced

by perceived quality of product and

service attributes, features and

benefits, and is moderated by

customer expectations regarding

the product or service. Each of

these constructs that influence

customer satisfaction need to be

defined by the researcher. Fig.2.04-I: - Satisfaction measurement

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Satisfaction Measurement: Affective Measures of Customer Satisfaction

A consumer's attitude (liking/disliking) towards a product can result from any

product information or experience whether perceived or real. Again, it is

meaningful to measure attitudes towards a product or service that a consumer

has never used, but not satisfaction.

Satisfaction Measurement: Cognitive Measures of Customer Satisfaction

A cognitive element is defined as an appraisal or conclusion that the product

was useful (or not useful), fit the situation (or did not fit), exceeded the

requirements of the problem/situation (or did not exceed). Cognitive responses

are specific to the situation for which the product was purchased and specific

to the consumer's intended use of the product, regardless if that use is correct

or incorrect.

Satisfaction Measurement: Behavioral Measures of Customer Satisfaction

It is sometimes believed that dissatisfaction is synonymous with regret or

disappointment while satisfaction is linked to ideas such as, "it was a good

choice" or "I am glad that I bought it." When phrased in behavioral response

terms, consumers indicate that "purchasing this product would be a good

choice" or "I would be glad to Purchase this product." Often, behavioral

measures reflect the consumer's experience individuals associated with the

product (i.e. customer service representatives) and the intention to repeat that

experience.

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Fig.2.04-II

Satisfaction Measurement: Expectations Measures

Many different approaches to measuring satisfaction exist in the consumer

behavior literature. Leonard Berry in 2002 expanded previous research to

refine ten dimensions of satisfaction, including: Quality, Value, Timeliness,

Efficiency, Ease of Access, Environment, Inter-departmental Teamwork, Front

line Service Behaviors, Commitment to the Customer and Innovation. Berry's

dimensions are often used to develop an evaluative set of satisfaction

measurement questions that focus on each of the dimensions of customer

satisfaction in a service environment.

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A diagnostic approach to satisfaction measurement is to examine the gap

between the customer's expectation of performance and their perceived

experience of performance. This "satisfaction gap" involves measuring both

perception of performance and expectation of performance along specific

product or service attributes dimensions.

Customer satisfaction is largely a reflection of the expectations and

experiences that the customer has with a product or service. However

expectations also reflect that influences the evaluation of the product or

service. When we make major purchases, we research the product or service

and gain information from the advertising, salespersons, and word-of-mouth

from friends and associates. This information influences our expectations and

ability to evaluate quality, value, and the ability of the product or service to

meet our needs.

Types of Customer Expectations that Influence Satisfaction

Customer performance expectations for attributes, features and benefits of

products and services may be identified as both explicit and implicit

expectation questions.

Explicit expectations are mental targets for product performance, such as well

identified performance standards. For example, if expectations for a color

printer were for 11 pages per minute and high quality color printing, but the

product actually delivered 3 pages per minute and good quality color printing,

then the cognitive evaluation comparing product performance and expectations

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would be 11 PPM — 3 PPM + High — Good, with each item weighted by

their associated importance.

Implicit expectations represent the norms of performance that reflect

accepted standards established by business in general, other companies,

industries, and even cultures.

Static performance expectations address how performance and quality for a

specific application are defined. Each system's performance measures are

unique, though general expectations relate to quality of outcome and may

include those researched by Berry, or others such as: accessibility,

customization, dependability, timeliness, and accuracy, tangible cues which

augment the application, options, cutting edge technology, flexibility, and user

friendly interfaces. Static performance expectations are the visible part of the

iceberg; they are the performance we see and — often erroneously — assume

are all that exist.

Dynamic performance expectations are about how the product or service

evolves over time and includes the changes in support and product or service

enhancement needed to meet future business or use environments. Dynamic

performance expectations may help to "static" performance expectations as

new uses, integrations, or system requirements develop.

Technological expectations focus on the evolving state of the product

category. For example, mobile phones are continually evolving. Mobile

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service providers, in an effort to deal with the desire to switch to new

technology phones, market rate plans with high cancellation penalties. The

availability of low profile phones with email, camera, MP3, email, and blue

tooth technology changes technology expectations as well as the static and

dynamic performance expectations of the product. These highly involving

products enhance perceptions of status, ego, self-image, and can even invoke

fear when the product is not available.

Interpersonal expectations involve the relationship between the customer

and the product or service provider. Person to person relationships are

increasingly important, especially where products require support for proper

use and functioning. Expectations for interpersonal support include technical

knowledge and ability to solve the problem, ability to communicate, time to

problem resolution, courtesy, patience, enthusiasm, helpfulness, understood

my situation and problem, communication skills, and customer perceptions

regarding professionalism of conduct, often including image, appearance.

For each of these types of expectations that when fulfilled result in customer

satisfaction (or when not delivered, result in dissatisfaction and complaining

behavior), the perceived quality and value are critical and directly influence

intention to repurchase and loyalty.

Satisfaction Measurement: Perceived Quality Measures

Perceived quality is often measured through three measures: overall quality,

perceived reliability, and the extent to which a product or service meets the

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customer's needs. Customer perceptions of quality are the single greatest

predictor of customer satisfaction.

Satisfaction Measurement: Perceived Value Measures

Perceived value may conceptually refer to the overall price divided by quality

or the overall quality divided by price. Perceived value is measured in many

ways including overall evaluation of value, expectations of price that would be

paid; the consumer behavior literature shows that price is a primary indicator

of quality when other attributes and benefits are relatively unknown. However

when repeat purchases are made in some product categories, price may be

reduced in importance.

Satisfaction Measurement: Customer Loyalty Measures

Customer loyalty reflects the likelihood of repurchasing products or services.

Customer satisfaction is a major predictor of repurchase, but is strongly

influenced by explicit performance evaluations of product performance,

quality, and value.

Improving Customer Satisfaction Once a Customer Satisfaction

Measurement Program Is in Place

Customer satisfaction research is not an end unto itself. The purpose, of

course, in measuring customer satisfaction is to see where a company stands in

this regard in the eyes of its customers, thereby enabling service and product

improvements which will lead to higher satisfaction levels. The research is just

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one component in the quest to improve customer satisfaction. There are many

others, including:

Top management commitment,

Linking of Customer Satisfaction scores with employee and

management monetary incentives,

Recognition of employees who contribute to customers' satisfaction,

Identification, measurement, and tracking of operational variables

which drive satisfaction scores,

Customer-based improvement goals,

Plans for improving operational variables,

Incorporation of customer satisfaction skills into employee training

programs,

Measurement of and plans for improvement of employee satisfaction,

Changes in corporate hiring practices.

We will touch on each of these issues briefly.

Top Management Commitment

Top management, through its actions, must show that customer satisfaction is

important to it. This can be done in several ways.

Acknowledging areas where the company needs to improve,

Allocating appropriate resources to the improvement of customer

satisfaction,

Involvement of management and employees in the development of

plans for customer satisfaction improvement,

Linking management bonuses to satisfaction scores,

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Clear and frequent communication of what is being done to improve

customer satisfaction.

Linking of Customer Satisfaction Scores with Employee and Management

Monetary Incentives

This really is just a case of having management put its money where its mouth

is. Monetary incentives for improving customer satisfaction scores should

reach all levels of the organization, from top management to front-line

employees and suppliers.

Incentive programs can be structured so that all employees in an

organizational unit receive compensation if the unit's customer satisfaction

goals are met. Additionally, exemplary service on the part of individual

employees can be rewarded on an ad hoc basis. Management incentives do not

have to result in incremental expenditures; a reallocation of current incentives

will suffice. For example, if 100% of a manager's bonus is dependent upon

meeting operational and sales goals, the mix could be changed to include

customer satisfaction goals.

Recognition of Employees Who Contribute to Customers' Satisfaction

This is an inexpensive way to foster customer satisfaction. The keys to success

are:

Making sure that all employees are aware of why a particular employee

is being recognized,

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Making sure that each employee being recognized is worthy of

recognition.

Identification, Measurement, and Tracking of Operational Variables

Which Drive Satisfaction Scores:-The results of a customer satisfaction

survey need to be evaluated to determine what needs to be improved. For

example, a survey may find that customer waiting times need to be reduced.

The next step should be to quantify actual customer waiting times, and to set

goals and strategies for reducing them. Goals should be as specific as possible.

It is better to say "we want to reduce wait times during peak periods from an

average of twenty minutes to fifteen minutes by the end of June," than to say

"we need to reduce customer waiting times."

Customer-Based Improvement Goals

These ties directly to the previous point. Once you have identified what needs

to be improved, you need to develop a plan for improving each identified area.

Such plans need to be based on what customers really need, rather than what

management believes to be a good goal.

Using the previous example, if customers really desire wait times of ten

minutes or less, having management dictate that wait times must be reduced to

fifteen minutes will have limited appeal with customers. You may need to do a

separate survey with customers to actually set appropriate goals. If this is not

economically feasible, at least talk to a number of customers and gain their

input before setting a goal.

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Plans for Improving Operational Variables

Once you have established what needs to be improved, and how much it needs

to be improved, plans need to be developed to make improvement happen. The

keys to successful planning are to:

Involve front-line employees and management in the planning process,

Make sure plans are specific,

Evaluate the success of plans once they have been put into place. This

is done by measuring actual improvement in operations and customer

satisfaction.

Incorporation of Customer Satisfaction Skills into Employee Training

Programs

Employee training programs should be modified to include:

A description of the importance of customer satisfaction to the

company,

Descriptions of what keeps customers satisfied,

A description of customer satisfaction measurement programs,

recognition programs, and incentive programs,

Specific employee-performance expectations with regard to keeping

customers satisfied.

Measurement of and Plans for Improvement of Employee Satisfaction

Unhappy employees will have difficulty in keeping customers happy. You

should consider measuring the satisfaction levels of employees, and then

developing action plans to improve employee satisfaction.

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Changes in Corporate Hiring Practices

Certain types of people will do a better job of satisfying customers than will

other types of people, regardless of the quality of training, reward, and

recognition programs. Once you have determined the types of employee

behaviors are important to customers, you should incorporate this knowledge

into your hiring practices.

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(2.05) 26 Inventive Principles In Customer Satisfaction

Enhancement

Continuing to search for non-technical applications of 40 Inventive

Principles in various spheres, preferably those related to Quality

Management, the tried to presents collection of examples in the field of

Customer Satisfaction.

Principle 1. Segmentation

A. Divide an object or system into independent parts.

1. Utilize customized marketing approach for complete market segmentation:

cluster prospective buyers into groups that have common needs.

2. Divide the market by regions and establish autonomous region sales

centers.

3. Split major sales between several business customers.

4. Five steps of Six Sigma improvement approach: Define, Measure,

Analyze, Improve, and Control (DMAIC).

5. Five steps of '5S' continuous improvement technique: Sort, Set in order,

Shine, Standardize, Sustain.

B. Make an object or system easy to disassemble.

6. Institute fast response team for handling urgent customer issue.

C. Increase the degree of fragmentation or segmentation.

7. Mass customization: each customer is a market.

D. Transition to micro-level.

8. Use mini-kits for product advertisement.

9. Describe product differentiation in advertisement on molecular level.

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Principle 2. Taking Out

Separate discounted goods.

Principle 3. Local Quality

A. Select market segments on which organization will focus.

1. Develop different strategy for each market segment.

2. Hire different marketing professionals for each market segment.

3. Use different (individual) marketing approach, advertising and promotions

for each customer sector.

4. Customize marking, packaging, labeling, etc.

5. Provide benefits, bonuses and extra service for the most valuable

customers.

6. Weigh importance of customer needs in Quality Functional Deployment

(QFD).

7. Use Pareto diagram for customer feedback analysis.

8. Emphasize product or service advantages in advertisement.

9. Address advertising by the use of customer perceived needs (image,

prestige, etc.) for each customer stereotype.

B. Make each part of an object or system function in conditions most

suitable for its operation.

C. Make each part of an object or system fulfill a different and useful

function.

10. Locate distribution centers near customers.

11. Hire local people to acquire cultural knowledge of local customers.

12. Use stratified sampling for heterogeneous customer population survey.

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13. Target sales for purchase occasion (routine Use focus groups for customer

preferences study.

14. Use, present, season, weather, vacation, hobby, etc.

Principle 4.Try to Follow,

Rule No.1: 'Customer is always right.'

Rule No.2: 'If customer is ever wrong, re read rule No.1'

A happy customer will tell only five people about his good experience. An

unhappy customer will tell ten or more people about his bad experience.

Principle 5. Merging

1. Make operations contiguous or parallel; bring them together in time.

2. Combine product quality with service quality to enhance customer

satisfaction.

3. Strive for business synergism with customers: partnership, merger,

alliance.

4. Bring customers into design loop.

5. Create network of sales intermediaries.

6. Offer discount Choose shop or service location at heavily popular mall

center.

7. Exchange discount coupons with neighborhood shops and services.

8. Promise bounty for serial labels collection (e.g., film heroes, sport teams).

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Principle 6. Benchmark

1. Benchmark the best in class leaders.

2. Advertise by media, movies, video, stories, concerts, sport games.

3. Use endorsement by high-profile celebrities in advertising: 'Champion

customer always buys our product

Principle 7. Preliminary Action

A. Perform, before it is needed, the required change of an object or

system (either fully or partially).

1. Preliminary market research, before the product or service is designed.

2. Start advertising at the stage of product or service development.

3. Preliminary send questionnaire before survey interview.

4. Use introductory questions for customer priming at survey interview.

B. Pre-arrange an object or system such that they can come into action

from the most convenient place and without losing time for their delivery.

1. Arrange organization system for Just-In-Time (JIT) delivery.

2. Prepare presentation before customer visit.

Principle 8 (inverted). Afterwards Action

1. Offer post-paying.

2. Provide after-sales service.

3. Present bounty or keepsake (token for memory) after purchase or service.

4. Provide rebate coupon for next purchase or service.

5. Arrange lottery with partial price reimbursement.

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Principle 9 (inverted). Potentiality Gap

1. Build entrance barriers for competitors by enhancement of product or

service advantages.

Principle 10. Dynamics

A. Allow (or design) the characteristics of an object, process, system or

external environment to change to be optimal or to find an optimal

operating condition.

1. Adapt to highly competitive business environment with dynamic customer

needs and steadily increasing expectations.

2. Steady increase versatility of products or services.

3. Match business to individual customer demands.

4. Utilize flexible policy for price vs. purchased quantity.

5. Set adjustable season prices.

B. Divide an object or system into parts capable of movement relative to

each other.

C. If an object, process or system is rigid or inflexible, make it movable or

adaptive.

Principle 11(inverted). Static State

1. 'Reduce variation' (W.E. Deming) to keep it within customer specified

limits.

62


Principle 12. Partial or Excessive Action

1. Under-promise and over-deliver to avoid customer dissatisfaction.

2. Nurture customer needs using 'Saturation' advertising by all media

techniques.

3. Slightly embellish product or service features in advertisement.

4. Compromise at conflict resolution.

5. Quote more to allow price reduction during negotiations.

6. Use 9, 99, 999, etc. price figures.

7. Use discounts.

8. Provide extra product quantity or extra service as a bounty.

Principle 13 (inverted)

1. 'All or Nothing' (W.E. Deming)

2. Establish 'Six Sigma,' 'Zero Defects' (P.B.Crosby) quality goals.

3. Set zero prices for overdue delivery (Pizza Hut). .

Principle 14. Periodic Action

A. Instead of continuous action, use periodic or pulsating actions.

1. Periodically repeat advertisement for stable business image support.

B. If an action is already periodic, change the periodic magnitude or

frequency.

2. Institute monthly and weekly customer communication in addition to

annual survey.

3. Launch lot by manufacturing small customized series.

C. Use pauses between impulses to perform a different action.

63


4. Apply synchro-marketing for periodical or season demand.

5. Fill pauses during negotiations.

6. Use pauses and breaks in TV and radio programs for advertisement.

Principle 15. Continuity of Useful Action

A. Carry on work continuously; make all parts of an object or system

work at full load, all the time.

1. Strive for continual survival at the marketplace.

2. Create organization trademark and preserve brand image.

3. Establish long-term business alliances with customers.

4. Strive for customer retention.

5. Nurture customer loyalty.

6. Be aware that satisfaction of customer wants, needs and expectations is a

never ending challenge.

7. Use customer stereotype.

8. Create customer standards based on tradition.

9. Provide 24 hours per day service.

B. Eliminate all idle or intermittent actions or work.

10. Operate re-marketing and supporting marketing for steady customer

demand.

11. Employ multi-skilled personnel at bottleneck functions to avoid breaks or

delays in service.

64


Principle 16. "Blessing in Disguise"

1. Use customer dissatisfaction source as a valuable feedback and

opportunity for improvement

2. Customers whose complaints are handled properly are more loyal than

customers who never had a complaint.

3. The most loyal customer is a dissatisfied customer who later has all of his

needs met.

4. Eliminate fear of change by introducing fear of competition.

Principle 17. Feedback

A. introduce feedback (referring back, cross-checking) to improve

a process or action.

1. Listen to 'Voice of the Customer' in multiple ways (survey, visit, report,

focus group, interview, mail, satisfaction feedback form, etc.).

2. Institute customer complaints resolution and response system.

3. Establish product returns and field failures analysis system.

4. Enlist customers into design process.

5. Utilize organization guarantees to get feedback data on how products or

services fail to meet customer needs.

B. If feedback is already used, change its magnitude or influence.

6. Establish toll-free telephone numbers for consumer communication.

7. Introduce feedback buttons and site visitor counting on advertisement

website.

65

http://www.isixsigma.com/dictionary/Voice_Of_the_Customer_VOC-391.htm


8. Utilize barcodes system to gather information for future marketing

decision making.

Principle 18 (inverted). Feed-forward

1. 'Predict and compare' (W.E.Deming).

2. Hire experts for marketing research and forecasting.

3. Anticipate customer future needs – the ideal basis for customer loyalty.

4. Utilize Anticipatory Failure Determination (AFD) for product reliability

prediction.

Principle 19. Intermediary

A. Use an intermediary carrier article or intermediary process.

1. Regional sales offices.

2. Intermediate customers: wholesaler, distributor, retailer.

3. Export/import, transportation and delivery agencies.

4. Distribution systems (e.g., FedEx, UPS, DHL).

5. External certification bodies (e.g., BSI, UL).

B. Merge one object or system temporarily with another (which can be

easily removed).

6. Hire the best professional consultant for marketing or advertising.

7. Use neutral third party (arbitrator) during difficult negotiation.

8. Introduce moderator to a focus group.

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Principle 20 (inverted). Direct Contact

1. Online web marketing and sales.

2. Survey without interviewer (mail, email, website).

3. Customer visit by CEO.

Principle 21. Mechanics Substitution

A. Replace a mechanical means with sensory (optical, acoustic, taste or

smell) means.

B. Use electric, magnetic and electromagnetic fields to interact with the

object or system.

C. Change from static to movable fields, from unstructured fields to those

having structure.

1. Electronic communication.

2. Electronic trade.

3. Electronic tagging.

4. Electronic cards for demographic data collection with market research.

5. Telemarketing.

6. Computerized interview.

7. Website attendees counting.

8. Use of multiple media techniques (photo, audio, video, TV, etc.) for

customer presentation.

Principle 22. Color Changes

A. Change the color of an object, system or external environment.

1. Create a strong brand image through use of 'corporate colors.'

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2. Utilize different colors in mistake-proofing to prevent unintended use.

B. Change the transparency of an object, system or external environment.

3. Get customer to make stock inventory transparent for Just-In-Time

delivery.

4. Make packaging transparent to enable product self-advertising.

Principle 23. Homogeneity

A. Make objects interact with a given object of the same material (or material

with identical properties).

1. Hire local people to acquire cultural knowledge of local customers.

2. Use the same brand name for homogeneous product group.

3. Divide customers to homogeneous sectors (clusters).

4. Include customers (consumers) from the sector being surveyed into focus

groups for survey.

Principle 24. Recovering

1. Warranty – commitment of manufacturer to repair or replace any part that

fails during the life of product.

Principle25. Parameter Changes

A. Change an object's or system's physical state (e.g., to a gas, liquid or

solid).

1. Establish virtual shopping.

2. Institute online catalogs.

B. Change the concentration or consistency.

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C. Change the degree of flexibility.

1. Use special offers for sales or service promotions.

D. Change the temperature.

Initiate new challenges for the customer service team.

E. Change other parameters.

2. Switch marketing of product or service to non-traditional customers.

3. Change traditional names (e.g., the quality department in Samsung is

called 'Customer Satisfaction Team').

4. Sell non-material attributes (e.g., satisfaction of cultural needs, image, self-

esteem, etc.).

Principle 26. Boosted Interactions

1. Introduce obsession with customer-perceived quality and desire to delight

customers into the organization.

2. Hire highly creative individuals who understand 'The voice of the

customer.'

3. Get customers excited about a product or service by giving them

ownership of the change.

4. Achieve 'Wow!' effect by exceeding customers' expectations and providing

them with advantage over their competitors.

5. Overcome reluctance of dissatisfied customers to complain.

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(2.05) MAGICAL WORDS CREATE CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

Man does not live by words alone, despite the fact that sometimes he has to

eat them.

-Adlai Stevenson

1. "That's not my job," stated the clerk flippantly with a touch of body

language to exasperate the situation even further. The customer stood there

with her mouth half open. You could almost see the steam coming out of her

ears. It was certainly not the response she wanted to hear! How many times

have you walked into a store or called a company and received a response that

turned up the hair on the nape of your neck? Words are powerful. They can

hurt or soothe. Some combination of words creates an immediate negative

reaction or image for the receiver of the communication.

We can hurt our customers and potential customers or have them walk away

happy and glad they either called or came into our business simply by using

words with a positive twist. It is how we combine and state our words and the

voice and body inflection we use that can turn a frustrated customer into a

happy one.

Let us look at some of the frustrating statements you have heard and discover

how, through simple rephrasing, a negative can be turned into a positive.

2. Hold please! The phone immediately clicks and the operator is gone,

leaving the client stranded and frustrated. The tone of the operator's voice

indicates she is hurried and really does not have time for one more

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interruption. The customer feels as though they have never had control of the

situation and are angered by receptionist's lack of response to their needs.

What if this had been an emergency? A simple "Would you hold please?"

would have resolved the situation. Put the request in the form of a question. It

allows the customer to feel in control and make a choice.

3. Well, who is this? My gut feeling is to respond by saying "none of your

business!" A better question to ask is "May I tell him who's calling?" This

places the caller in control of the situation and they can choose whether to

disclose their name.

4. What’s this about? This confrontational question can be restated in a non-

threatening manner. "May I tell her what this is regarding?" is a much more

pleasant question and places the caller at ease. The caller is once more in

control of the conversation.

5. Just a minute and I'll be right back. The customer is placed in a situation

where they have no choice. Whenever possible, give the customer options or

ask for permission to take your next action. Try "It might take me a few

minutes (or however long it may really take) to find that information. Would

you like to hold or can I call you back?"

6. Well that department is wrong! This statement places blame on another

section or person within the business. It does not represent your company well

and is a technique for passing the buck or placing the blame elsewhere.

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The customer does not care who is wrong, they just want the situation

corrected regardless of where the mistake was made. "Let me see how I can

fix this for you," shows a willingness to rectify the situation and places the

customer at ease. It is an immediate tension reliever and begins to dissipate a

customer's angry feelings.

7. Its back there someplace, is not the response a customer wants when they

ask where they can find an item. Maybe the customer has just walked the aisle

five times and still can not find the product they want. Or maybe this is the

first...and quite possibly the last...time they have been in your store and they

have no idea where the different departments are located. You have three

choices when asked the location of a product. The first and best response is

"let me show you." If however you are unable to take the customer to the

item, then give them a complete description of where the item can be found,

"it's on aisle 5, about halfway back, right side, lower shelf." If you do not

know the location then be honest and find out. "Good question. Let me get

someone who can show/tell you."

8. We can't do that, will put a wall of defensiveness up as fast as any

statement. Remember to tell the customer what you can do, not what you can't.

"That's a great question. We can..." is more pleasant to hear and gives the

customer alternatives to select from.

09. it’s the company policy. Customers do not care what the organizational

policies or rules are. Remember, 95% of the policies are made for 5% of the

72


customers that will always ask for the exception. "Normally we don't do

that.

10. In your case, I'll gladly make an exception." This really makes the client

feel special. It lets them know it is not the normal company policy and yet

there are always exceptions to the rules and a willingness to satisfy the

customer's needs.

11. it’s not my job. The customer really doesn't care whose job it is. They

just want a situation rectified.

"I'll be glad to help you," or "let me get someone from that department to

help you" indicates willingness on your part to either help or get assistance

for the individual.

12. That can't happen is like telling the customer they are lying. Even

though you believe the situation did not occur, you will never have exactly the

same experience as the customer. We all experience a given situation

differently. No two experiences will ever be the same because of our past and

our perceptions. To place the customer at ease, try "I apologize you had

that experience. Let me see how I can fix it."

13. You have to have... is a demand, not a request. A better way to approach a

request is, "We want to help you. Can you provide us with??" If the

customer's response is no, then begin to explore alternatives or other avenues

for obtaining the information.

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14. it’s the computers fault . The individual who does the data entry is not a

computer. So who really made the mistake, the computer or the person? When

blame is placed on an object, it is just as bad as blaming another person or

department. The customer wants resolution to the problem. Apologize and

move on. "I'm sorry you had this experience. Let me see how I can correct

it."

Hence,

Words can send an upset customer into orbit. When sincerely stated, words

can also soothe and express that you are ready to help and serve.

Review some of the words and phrases you use when speaking with a

customer. Are your words magic to their ears or do they come crashing down

leaving the customer frustrated, defensive and angry? Select your words and

phrases wisely and you too will calm the raging client and win loyal

customers.

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CHAPTER 3

CASE STUDY

I have conducted the survey of 60 consumers who are using color TV of LG,

VIDEOCON & PHILIPS to study the consumer satisfaction in consumer

durables. This survey also helped me to study what are the most important

strategies that each company must take, to increase customer satisfaction,

which further increase company’s profitability along with good corporate

image.

This survey was conducted in questionnaire form, as follows.-

The results of the CUSTOMER SATISFACTION SURVEY are denoted

in the graphical format as follows:

1. Ease of access to the dealer

2. Quality of information available online to the customer

3. The courtesy and patience shown by company/helpline

4. Ease of access to helpline

5. Ability to resolve problems on first call

6. Clarity in providing service related information

7. Skills of helpline personnel

75

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

100%

Quality ofinformationavailable

online

The courtesyand patience

shown bycompany

Ease ofaccess tohelpline

Ability toresolve theproblem on

first call

Clarity inprovidingservicerelated

information

skills ofhelpline

personnel

bad

poor

good

very good

excellent


: LG:-

Questions Excellent Very

good

Good Poor Bad Total

Quality of information available

online

1 10 5 4 0 20

The courtesy and patience shown by

company

2 5 8 3 2 20

Ease of access to helpline 5 4 10 1 0 20

Ability to resolve the problem on first

call

10 5 5 0 0 20

Clarity in providing service related

information

12 6 2 0 0 20

Skills of helpline personnel 6 5 5 3 1 20

VIDEOCON:

76

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

100%

Quality

of

info

rmation

Ease o

f

access t

o

Cla

rity

in

pro

vid

ing

Bad

Poor

Good

Very good

Excellent


Questions Excellent Very

good

Good Poor Bad Total


online

4 10 15 1 0 30

The courtesy and patience shown

by company

2 5 20 3 0 30


Ability to resolve the problem on

first call

1 5 17 7 0 30


information

6 9 15 0 0 30


PHILIPS

Questions Excellent Very Good Poor Bad Total

77

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

100%

Quality

of

info

rmation

Ease o

f

access t

o

Cla

rity

in

pro

vid

ing

Bad

Poor

Good

Very good

Excellent


good


online

0 1 6 3 0 10

The courtesy and patience shown by

company

1 1 6 2 0 10


Ability to resolve the problem on

first call

1 2 6 1 0 10


information

1 2 6 1 0 10


1. How would you rate your level of satisfaction?

78

27%

37%

23%

10% 3%

extermly satisfied satisfied somewhat satisfied

dissatisfied extermly dissatisfied


LG

VIDEOCON

PHILIPS

2. How would you rate the overall quality of product? [Considering all your experience]

79


OVERALL QUALITY OF LG

OVERALL QUALITY OF VIDEOCON

OVERALL QUALITY OF PHILIPS

3. How did you know about the product?

80


AWARENESS OF LG

AWARENESS OF VIDEOCON

AWARENESS OF PHILIPS

81

25%

50%

20%5% 0%

Exellent Very good Good Poor Bad

20%

50%

30%

0%

0%


PHILIPS

10%

30%

50%

10% 0%



4. How would you rate the product to a friend/ relatives?

LG

VIDEOCON

PHILIPS

82

LG

25%

20%40%

15%

Quality Cost Brand name Familarity

27%

17%33%

23%


PHILIPS

30%

20%

40%

10%



5. What you look for in order of importance when selecting products?

LG

VIDEOCON

PHILIPS

83


CHAPTER:-4

CONCLUSION

(4.01) OBSERVATIONS FINDINGS

By conducting a CUSTOMER SATISFACTION SURVEY in 3 best consumer

durables company LG, VIDEOCON & PHILIPS & by evaluating its analysis I

came to know that, though this three companies are following the best

customer service & satisfaction strategies tactics.

there is some amount of dissatisfaction among there consumers because of

neglecting or by not employing genuine efforts in some areas like Quality of

information available online, Ability to resolve the problem on first call, The

courtesy and patience shown by company, Ease of access to helpline, Skills of

helpline personnel In some or more numbers.

In today’s cut-throat competition world the above factors are help the

company to distinguish it from its competitors. And hence every company has

to deal with these key factors with more genuine efforts.

The charts and graphs explain the overall satisfaction among the customers of

LG, VEDIOCON & PHILIPS in various aspects.

The areas about which I’ve asked the peoples are as follows along with some

suggestions:-

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1. OVERALL LEVEL OF SATISFACTION about the company’s

product i.e. COLOR TELIVISION.

To increase there overall satisfaction the company should give Important to

the consumer. They should have to welcome the complaints in pretty manner

and should act quickly so that dissatisfied customer will turn to satisfied

customer and will increase the loyal customers.

2. SATISFACTION LEVEL OF QUALITY.

Quality is very important factor which leads to satisfaction. I found that these

all companies are giving good attention on maintaining the quality of the TV.

Hence every customer has its own definition of quality according to his/her

own experience and perceptions.

Many of the consumers said that they like the

LG TV because of its quality.

VIDEOCONE customers like the TV because of its clarity and

good audio system

Many of the PHILIPS customers are find that there TV is very

attractive and also having a nice sound system.

Hence LG, VIDEOCONE & PHILIPS should have to developed there product

(TV) in such a manner that it will have all the aspects like attractiveness, good

sound system, audio-visual excellence and other similar aspects.

85


3. Company’s efforts to market its brand of TV i.e. PROMOTIONAL

STRATEGIES.

Advertising is all time favorite mode of communication of all this three

companies all three are using this mode in a very aggressive and good manner

and has become successful in creating the wide awareness about there TV’s.

Also conducting trade fares in which they shows the demonstration and try to

solve there doubts about product by clarifying there doubts at the same place.

In this along with trade fears, advertisings word of mouth also pays a very

important role.

Positive word of mouth about company’s quality of television and other

aspects will increase the sales and also satisfaction.

In the promotion of goods salesman also playing a very vital role. because they

establishes the direct contact with the consumer ,maintains friendly relation

with the consumers, and hence leads to high consumer satisfaction hence

consumer durables companies has to give a very wide attention in overall

development and has to increase the skills of there sales person so that they

will act with the consumer in more skillful manner.

Hence promotion is the too which all this 3 companies can use effectively and

can achieve customer satisfaction along with profit.

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4. RATING OF PRODUCT TO THERE FAMILY AND FRIENDS:-

Again word of mouth comes over here. If the consumer rates the products in

good manner then his/her friend or relative will also attract to buy the product.

Many of the consumer said that they will rate there color TV in very good to

good range only few consumer said excellent. and hence it’s a responsibility of

the company to create friendly & prompt customer service, maintains the

quality and other important aspects so that there present customer will turn

companies potential customers into actual ones.

5. IMPORTANTS OF FACTORS (BRAND, FAMILARITY, COST,

AND QUALITY) WHILE SELECTING THE TV:-

Here I have asked that on what basis the customers select the TV of particular

company. Many consumers of LG, VIDEOCON & PHILIPS said that they

attracted towards brand name. Then cost, quality and then familiarity. Many

consumers are very loyal to the company that they using only one brand over

the years. Some changes the product on the basis of costs, and there pat

experience about the quality of the TV,

Hence I found that many customers are very careful and look and try to

examine the entire factors starting from bran to familiarity before final

purchasing.

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(4.02) SUGGESTION

Hence I would like to suggest all 3 companies that they have to develop a well

equipped prompt customer service by employing skill and trained work force. This

will enhance their quality of service and ultimately the customer satisfaction

Also they should developed there websites in such a way that customers will not fond

it difficult to access and have to achieve the ability to resolve the problem on its first

call. To improve there quality of service these companies can benchmark the activities

of best player in market.

Also Under-promise and over-deliver should be avoided to decrease customer

dissatisfaction.

Try to find out some innovative strategies time to time like giving discounts, Warranty

(commitment of manufacturer to repair or replace any part that fails during the life of

product.)

The companies should create a self explanatory and very effective advertisement so

that more consumer i.e. both rural as well as urban customers will attract to buy your

product.

Also companies should have to segment the market properly by adopting different

strategy for different market so that selling the product will be effective and efficient.

88


Also if these companies give the opportunity to customers for participation in

designing and improving of other aspects by giving Importants to their views &

expectations in mind then this will also create a satisfaction among the customers.

And also have to keep a continuous contact with the customers to find out the number

of satisfied and dissatisfied customers. For this customer satisfaction survey will play

an important role. Also the companies have to carry market research to find out

expectations, current market trend and the competitors position in market.

89


CONCLUSION

Customer satisfaction refers to the extent to which customers are happy with

the products and services provided by a business. Customer satisfaction levels

can be measured using survey techniques and questionnaires.

Gaining high levels of customer satisfaction is very important to a business

because satisfied customers are most likely to be loyal and to make repeated

orders and to use a wide range of services offered by a business.

The need to satisfy customer for success in any commercial enterprises is very

obvious. The income of all commercial enterprises is derived from the

payments received for the products and services to its external customers.

Customers are the sole reason for the existence of commercial establishments.

Since sales are the most important goal of any commercial enterprise, it

becomes necessary to satisfy customers. For customer satisfaction it is

necessary to establish and maintain certain important characteristics like:

a. Quality

b. Fair prices

c. Good customer handling skills

d. Efficient delivery.

e. Serious consideration of consumer complaints.

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Satisfaction is the feeling of pleasure or disappointment attained from

comparing a products perceived performance (outcome) in relation to his or

her expectations.

If the performance falls short of expectations, the customer is dissatisfied. If

the performance matches the expectations, the customer is satisfied. If the

performance exceeds expectations, the customer is highly satisfied or

delighted.

91


BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Marketing management

-Rajan Saxena

2. Marketing management

-Philip Kotler

3. Basic marketing -A global managerial approach

-William Perrealt & Jr.E.Jerome McCarthy

WEBSITES

4. www.google.com

5. www.wikipedia.com

6. www.yahoo.co.in

92

http://www.yahoo.co.in/

http://www.wikipedia.com/

http://www.google.com/


ANNEXURE

Consumer satisfaction in consumer durables. -A case study on LG, VIDEOCON & PHILIPS.

CONSUMER SATISFACTION SURVEY

Please take a few minutes to complete this survey. Your views are extremely

important in context of the findings and interpretations.

Pls. Tick mark () on the given appropriate options.

Name:-

Gender:-

Age:-

Occupation:-

What is your annual income?

Which brand of color TV you are using?

LG VIDEOCON PHILIPS

Please rank, what you look for in order of importance when selecting products.

93

Less than 1 lakhs. More than 1 lacks-3 lakhs More than 3 lakhs.

Quality Cost Brand name Familiarity Any other


1. Please list any top 3 reasons if you are satisfied with the company’s product.

A.

B.

C.

2. Please list any top 3 reasons if you are Dissatisfied with the company’s

product.

A.

B.

C.

3. How did you know about the product?

Advertisements Friends/relatives Salesman Trade fairs Any other

4. How long have you been a customer of company?

Less than 1 year 1-3 year More than 3 years

5. How would you rate your level of satisfaction?

Extremely satisfied

Satisfied Somewhat satisfied

Dissatisfied Extremely dissatisfied

6. How would you rate the overall quality of product? [Considering all your experience]

Very high quality

High quality Average Low quality Very low quality

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7. How would you recommend the product to a friend/ relatives?

Excellent Very good Good Poor Bad

8. How do you rate the following aspects?

i. Ease of access to the dealer


ii. Quality of information available online to the customer


iii. The courtesy and patience shown by company/helpline


iv. Ease of access to helpline


v. Ability to resolve problems on first call


vi. Clarity in providing service related information


95


vii. Skills of helpline personnel


9. Would you like to continue your relationship with the same company?

Yes No

Signature:-

96

“consumer satisfaction in consumer durables-a case study on lg ,videocon & philips”

Documents

build closer ties

corporate hiring practices

interaction anticipate customer

customer migration situations

delivering greater customer

performance falls short

improving operational variables

loyal customer base