Of Course, Quality is Important. But is it Enough to Sway Product Decisions?
Clearly, quality matters to designers and other specifiers. Who would risk recommending or installing a shoddy product?
According to research that Accountability Information Management (www.a-i-m.com) conducted with exhibitors at the Kitchen & Bath Industry Show, 44% cited quality as the most important factor in brand selection.
But quality alone is not enough. In fact, Accountability contends that quality is not the real reason why one brand is selected over another because professionals will never select a brand without quality.
Exhibitors almost unanimously associated quality with another product attribute, such as price or customer service. Some of the verbatim exhibitor answers on important brand features demonstrate this association:
“Both quality and price because people want to feel like they have saved money at the same time got a good product.”
“Quality of how it is made and engineered. Also warranty. Also customer service is accessible and easy to reach.”
“Quality. Quality breeds consumer loyalty, especially from the designer community. Each design is a piece of artwork and they don’t want to have to worry about something being flawed in that art, especially when their reputation is on the line because of it.”
© Accountability Information Management (www.a-i-m.com)
So how much emphasis should manufacturers place on quality in their advertising and marketing if quality is not the deciding factor for brand selection?
Feel free to contact Jim Nowakowski, President of Accountability, at 847-358-8558 for a no-obligation conversation.
About Accountability Information Management
Accountability Information Management (www.a-i-m.com) is a marketing research company that specializes in business-to-business sales channels. Clients include manufacturers, publishers, professional associations and service providers such as architectural and engineering firms.