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camera also surpassed the iPhone 5
in terms of functionality and pixels.
In addition, according to research
by the UK consumer magazine
Which?, the Samsung processor
was nearly twice as fast as that in
the iPhone.
Samsung’s prices were slightly
lower than Apple’s, but there were
other producers of Android mobile
phones that substantially undercut
Samsung’s prices without taking
any of its market share. The key to
Samsung’s Galaxy 4 success was
its superior quality.
Brand loyalty
Quality can be an important selling
point even for low-cost products,
since it helps build brand loyalty
and thus ensures repeat customers.
In markets for fast-moving consumer
goods (FMCGs), manufacturers use
superior product quality to preserve
and extend their customer base.
FMCGs are nondurable products,
such as beer, toothpaste, chocolate,
and breakfast cereal, that are
bought frequently by households
and consumed immediately. Since
FMCGs are purchased regularly
throughout the year, the sales
volumes achieved by a successful
product can be immense.
A good example of an FMCG
market is the one for toilet paper.
According to research by US
toilet paper manufacturer Charmin,
126 billion rolls of toilet paper
are bought every year in the US.
In a market this large, even a
small share will translate into
multimillion-dollar revenues. If
consumers habitually purchase
the same brand of a particular
product over and over, rather
than switching between rival
brands, their brand loyalty will
be invaluable.
High-quality brands are more
likely to win brand loyalty than
brands of an inferior quality. For
example, households are more likely
to buy Charmin toilet paper againQUALITY SELLS
and again if the product is softer
and stronger than the brands sold
by its rivals, generating higher
volumes of sales and greater
revenues. This means the business
has increased its revenues without
having to pay any of the marketing
costs usually associated with
acquiring customers.Service and quality
Another indicator of good quality
is providing a service in a manner
that exceeds customer expectations.
This might manifest as efficiency,
or rapid response to customer
concerns. The Zurich Insurance
Group operates in over 170
countries and each month handles
over 600,000 customer interactions
via phone, mail, and the Internet.
Its ambition is to be the best global
insurer as measured by customers,
employees, and shareholders, and it
actively pursues quality assurance.
Its iQuality program sets out how
employees can pay more attention
to customers, and find out more
about their changing needs and
expectations. It performs regular
checks on the quality of employees’
work and uses extensive market
research to gain feedback on
customer experience.Household items such as toothpaste, toilet
paper, and laundry detergent represent low-cost,
high-volume items that are bought regularly and
generate huge revenues for manufacturers.Quality means fitness
for use. Fitness is defined
by the customer.
Joseph Juran
US expert on quality management
(1904 –2008)Consumers tend to
stick with their
favorite brands of
fast-moving consumer
goods (FMCGs), which
are bought regularly.Even a small
market share of these
repeat-buy, low-cost
items will represent
vast profits.