Abstract

Quality assurance managers respond to customer complaints with the assumption that the problem is product or service failure. Often, however, the cause isn't the fault of the product itself but is due to incorrect use or unreasonable expectation by the customer or misleading marketing claims for the product. Customers use products improperly when they fail to read the directions on proper use or assembly of the product. They also have problems when expectations set by advertising material are not met. These problems can result in damage to customer loyalty because customers feel misled. One method of maintaining high marketing quality is to create an index that quantifies the percentage of profits lost due to incorrectly set expectations. Once the marketing department understands the long-term implications of misleading advertising, the success of its initiatives will improve. To respond to customer-based problems, a quality assurance analyst must determine the source of the problem, then respond with one of several inexpensive solutions: Effective labeling or directions, proactive education, or easily accessible assistance. By combining random customer surveys with analysis of consumer complaints, the problems can be identified by cause. Then, the quality team can take action on the entire range of causes of dissatisfaction.