Customer service is another element of product strategy.
A company's offer to the marketplace usually
includes some services,
which can be a
minor
or a
major
part of the
total offer
. Here, we discuss
product-support services
—services that
augment actual products
. More and more companies are
using product support services as a major tool in gaining competitive advantage.
A company
should design
its
product and support services to profitably meet the needs of target
customers
through the following steps:
-
The first step is
assessing the
value
of current services and to obtain ideas for new ones.
For example
, Cadillac holds regular focus group interviews with owners and carefully watches
complaints that come into its dealerships. From this careful monitoring, Cadillac has learned that
buyers are very upset by repairs that are not done correctly the first time.
-
Next
assess the
costs
of providing these services
. It can then develop a
package of services
that
will both delight customers and yield profits to the company.
For example,
based on its consumer interviews, Cadillac has set up a system directly linking each
dealership with a group of 10 engineers who can help walk mechanics through difficult repairs.
Such actions helped Cadillac jump, in one year, from fourteenth to seventh in independent
rankings of service.
Many companies are now using the
phones, emails, faxes
and
Internet
to
provide
support services
that were not possible before.
For example
, Kaiser-Permanente, the nation’s largest health
maintenance organization (HMO), has rolled out a Web site that lets members register online for office
visits and send e-mail questions to nurses and pharmacists (and get responses within 24 hours).
Product line
is
a
group
of
products
that are
closely related
because
they
function
in
a
similar
manner
,
are
sold
to
the
same
customer groups
, are
marketed
through
the
same
types of
outlets
, or
fall
within
given price ranges
.
For example,
Nike
produces several lines of
athletic shoes
,
Motorola
produces several lines of
telecommunications products
, and
AT & T
offers several lines of
long-distance telephone services
.
In developing product line strategies, marketers face a number of tough decisions.
9
هثدحم هخسن
1/31/2012
Product-support services:
Products line decisions:
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BE200
Summary
Prepared by:
Honey Bonny
((
دمحموبأ
The major product line decision
involves
product line length
—the
number
of
items
in
the
product
line
. The line is too short
if
the manager can
increase
profits
by
adding items
; the line is too long
if
the manager can
increase
profits
by
dropping items
. Product line length is influenced by company
objectives and resources.
The company must manage its product lines carefully
. It can systematically increase the length of its
product line in
two ways
:
by
stretching
its line
and by
filling
its line
.
- Fall '10
- NULL
