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The New Age of Consumerism

Honda Insight Concept at the 2008 Paris Motor Show

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Technology has come a long way since its beginning. We have gone from horse drawn carriages to cars with telephones built into music templates. Society has turned writing, which used to be done by hand tediously, into something that takes minutes, or maybe hours, rather than months. Information has gone from uninformed or word of mouth to on hand dictionary, news, and media outlets.

It is not surprising in the least that there are options, which are making strides to be among the most innovative area of consumerism. More than 800 million people in the world own cars today. Among car owners, having a consumer friendly car is key. So what makes a quality consumer friendly car? Well, first you must think of cost over gain. How much you are willing to spend vs. how much you want out of the car. Obviously used cars will have more mileage and most likely fewer electronic capabilities.

The new world of electric meets hybrid cars has brought out amazing new technologies and versatility that was once overlooked by the auto industry. Newer cars have energy efficient and environmentally safe technology that has take a strong hold in the consumer’s eye. Even used cars are more often of gone green variety. Those who shop for gone green cars can expect to pay slightly more for the quality and they can also expect lower gas prices and money saved over time. Realistically quality costs more, but in the long run quality can also save you more.

Filed Under: Business, General Tagged With: , ,

Consumerism Means More Than Just Consumer Rights

Not that long ago, businesses were able to make completely false claims about their products in an effort to entice more buyers. Also, consumers were driven to buy more and more items in an effort to keep up the status quo among their social groups. As things stand now, it is more important than ever for consumers to make a concentrated effort to reject those attempts and focus more on purchasing goods they need for a fair and reasonable price. This is the driving force behind the concept of real consumerism.

Consumers know that many companies are able to outsource functions of their businesses such as manufacturing and customer support, which can lead to much higher profit margins. As such, consumers have come to expect businesses to pass those savings on to their customers in the form of sale prices, rebates and other incentives. A company that is unwilling to stand by its product, service or customer support can expect to suffer much lower sales numbers than ever before. Consumers today simply do not have to put up with this type of behavior as there is nearly always another option or two from which to choose.

Businesses are being forced to come to terms with the idea of consumerism and its new meaning. While we can expect some grumbling about loss of profit affecting everyone, there is little reason why consumers should have to pay top dollar for shoddy workmanship or unsupported products. Truly, the new age of consumerism is good for everyone.

 

Filed Under: Business, Consumer Tagged With: , ,

Composing a better product

Every individual is interested in buying the product best suited to his/ her requirements. A product is defined as an entity, which is a collection of features and characteristics to meet the needs of the user. The choices of consumers have been evolving with time and producers have been struggling by all means to construct a full fledged product prior to deliverance. To understand the needs of customers better, the companies carrying out various businesses are focusing more on researching (termed as ethnological research) the expectations from products by the majority of potential consumers. Measures are opted to introduce new products as per the needs and to improve the products already in existence.  The products and services can be improved to meet the requirements by analyzing it from the point of view of the consumers. A research (Science daily, issue June 3, 2008) has even proved that the consumers with higher emotional sensibilities have a better choice of product selection. This offers an opportunity to further study the product needs based on emotional sentiments by the analysts too.

At a shot, it is not possible to target a huge mass of consumers as every individual has their specific needs and requirements. Thus, the target needs to be set which can be fruitfully catered. For a user, the better product is the one having the potential to fulfill all/ most of the concerns of its user above the standards of what a compeer brand would offer at quite possibly the same price. All the factors including focused research, dedicated understanding and quality effectiveness contribute in coming up with the better product every time. In fact, every new version of the product when in existence should the old product also be in place to understand the preference of the customers and to be sure whether the aim has been accomplished or not!

Filed Under: Products Tagged With: ,

Warranty is a token of confidence for the product

An assurance for something you invest in always gives a “feel good” essence. The confidence of investment is elevated whenever the investor is made sure of the investment at right place. This is done by giving warranty on the products & services being to be had to its consumers by a corporation. A warranty is a written “promise” or a deed by the service provider to its acceptor for the services being offered is true and if found false, the investor will be rightful of the entire reimbursement either of their investment or for the replacement for the entity under warranty. A warranty ensures the consumers to give in their hard-earned money to procure the service/ product to a great extent as it stimulates a sense of satiation of not letting their investment go in vain. If the products do not prove to be up to the mark or does not comply with the promises made during investing then within no time they can surrender it with no deficit. The warranties & disclaimers are legal techs and are not a matter to be bluffed.

The product guarantee can be of various natures. It can cover the entire entity or just a part/ parts of it. The warranty can be for a lifetime (until the life of the product) or for a limited time period. The thing to take care of before claiming a product service contract is to see whether the product/ services have been consumed in the standard way before the defect arose or their have been special conditions leading to such a situation. There are some warranties that cover the conditions from normal to some special cases but not always.

Providing a warranty to your product ensures the confidence of manufacturing, working and technology you have imparted for it to stand in the market that without a flaw attracts consumers with full faith!

Filed Under: Products Tagged With: ,

Are Extended Warranties Worth the Money?

Extended warranties are pushed heavily on every appliance sale, large or small,
these days. They are a huge source of revenue for sellers, with profits of 50%
to 70% versus only 10% profits on the appliances themselves. This may make
financial good sense for retailers, but does it make sense for the consumer?

The consensus appears to be resoundingly, “No!” Yet, in a recent Consumer
Reports poll, about 20% of consumers did purchase an extended warranty when
offered one at the time of purchase. With costs as high as 20% for a three-year
extended warranty and almost a third of the original purchase price for a five-year
extended warranty, consumer advocates warn the public against them. Instead,
they say buyers are likely better off saving the money they would have used to buy
the extended warranty and using it only if and when repairs become necessary.

Just how often do those repairs come into play? According to a 2000 study
conducted by Consumer Reports, of the 38,000 consumers polled, only 8%
of the group who’d bought refrigerators, stoves, camcorders, and dishwashers
required repairs during the 3-year period following purchase. Similar findings
are found with other big-ticket items. These statistics aren’t by chance. Extended
warranties are set up similarly to other insurance policies, based on likelihood of
pay out, in the classic risk and reward style of investing. When the sellers of extended warranties are betting the consumer won’t be using them, it stands to reason that consumers might need to think twice.

The exception to the rule may be with computers and laptops, where most consumers
who are asked state they are happy they purchased an extended warranty. Computer
repairs are common, and they can be expensive, which likely accounts for the positive
view with these items.

In all cases, careful research is in order. Weighing the costs of repair with the price of the warranty before making the buying decision is the wise course.

Filed Under: Business Tagged With: , ,