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Unit 5: Consumer Perception

Unlike tangible products, it is really very difficult to judge the quality of services. This difficulty Notes
arises because of certain unique characteristics of services. Services are intangible, variable,
perishable and are produced and consumed simultaneously.
A tangible product can be seen, touched, or even tried before purchase, but a service cannot be
seen, touched, handled, or experienced in advance by the consumer. To overcome the difficulty
of comparing and judging the quality of services, consumers use extrinsic cues. For example, to
evaluate the quality of a doctor’s services, consumers look at the quality of consulting chamber,
furnishings, framed degrees and diplomas on the walls, the attire and mannerisms of the
receptionist or nurse etc. All these factors are considered in the overall evaluation of the service
quality.
Services can also vary from day to day. There can be a difference between a service delivered by
one service employee and the other service employee (such as haircuts, domestic help etc.)
Services are generally first sold and then produced and consumed simultaneously. In sharp
contrast, products are tangible and are first produced, then sold and lastly consumed. Product
defects are likely to be detected during quality control in the factory before it reaches the
customer. A defective haircut, for example, is very difficult to correct, or service employee
carelessness can cause consumer dissatisfaction, leading to decline in service image and is hard
to correct.
Research divides the service quality along two dimensions. One, the outcome aspect of service
focuses on the reliability of delivery of core service. Two, the process aspect focuses on how the
core service is delivered.

Example: ICICI bank provided customers the same core facility (the outcome) of
withdrawing money but it used a superior process (ATM) that exceeded customer expectations
in those early days and acquired the image of a really efficient and customer-focused bank.
Consumers also develop company and retail store images. They organise a variety of information
based on advertising, product lines carried by the store, opinions of friends and relatives,
exhibits, sponsorships and their own experiences with company’s products to form corporate
images. Store image often influences brand image. A positive company image helps reinforce
favourable perceptions of its products or services and their new product introductions generally
gain acceptance more readily than companies who have a less favourable image. Philips advertises
itself as an innovative and forward-looking company (let us make things better), General Electric
says “we bring good things to life,” the tag line of BPL is ”believe in the Best” and Videocon
slogan is “bring home the leader.” These companies hope that consumers will carry over the
association to brands because the brand name is closely associated with the company. Such
advertising is not as important for Hindustan Lever Ltd or Procter & Gamble because the brands
are not closely linked to the company name.
Depending on store image, different consumer segments shop there because they like to spend
time in stores where they are comfortable. What product the consumer wishes to buy largely
influences her/his choice of retail store; on the other hand, the consumer’s evaluation of a
product is often influenced by the knowledge the retail outlet it was purchased. A consumer
wishing to buy elegant suiting and influenced by “the complete man” image is most likely to
visit Raymond’s showroom and regardless of what the consumer pays for the suit length, it is
perceived as of high quality.
Brand image is the set of human characteristics linked to the brand that consumers hold in
memory (K L Keller). Consumer loyalty is associated with positive brand image and they are
willing to search for their preferred brand.

The key factor that influences consumers’ brand image is the positioning. The role of advertising
is very important in communicating the position and helping create a brand image.

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