Manufacturing companies live and die based on customer feedback. Microsoft released Windows Vista in 2007 with great expectations. Immediate negative customer feedback due to compatibility issues sparked a backlash from even the most loyal customers. Microsoft was slow to respond to the criticism and Apple seized the opportunity to launch a successful smear campaign based on the phrase “Hi, I’m a Mac and I’m a PC.” Feedback is often a direct result of manufacturing quality control. When a manufacturer receives a complaint, it is actually a gift that must be acted upon immediately. Successful manufacturers use customer feedback to drive quality control and increase sales.
The use and importance of online customer feedback has increased significantly in the last five years. In 2007, a study of more than 100 retailers found that 57% offer online shopping and 22% of them allow online customer feedback (Liu & Wei, 2010, p.121). A subsequent study conducted in 2009 found that 62% of major retailers had an online presence, and of these 56% allow online customer feedback (Liu & Wei, 2010, p.121). In just two years, the online presence of customer reviews grew dramatically and continues to grow today. Most of these retailers allow written reviews and numerical ratings. According to this study, 62% of consumers use online reviews in their decision-making process. Online customer feedback gives consumers access to information similar to word-of-mouth advertising at the speed of the Internet. This data shows the clear direction in which consumers are moving towards greater use of customer feedback to make purchasing decisions.
Manufacturers should view all complaints as a gift. Market research indicates that companies with mostly negative reviews underperform the competition. Typically, retailers set expectations for quality control. Retailers demand a certain level of quality and allow a certain number of defects. If a defective product reaches the consumer, the consumer returns the item to the dealer. The risk to the dealer’s reputation is low because typically only one consumer is affected by each incident. The risk to manufacturing in this example is even lower because the customer associates the products with the retailers, not the manufacturers. Even if the customer expressed dissatisfaction through word of mouth, it only reached a small population of potential consumers. With the availability of online reviews, each client has the ability to affect a larger audience. “A study from the London School of Economics found that a seven percent increase in electronic word of mouth promotion was correlated with a one percent increase in growth” (Power of Reviews, 2012, p.7). Manufacturers should embrace the free information provided by the consumer. Increasing a company’s Yelp rating by one star was found to increase revenue by nine percent according to a Harvard Business School study (Power of Reviews, 2012, p.7). Manufacturers must adjust their quality control to solve problems that in the past would go unnoticed. The result is a better product for the consumer and higher sales for the manufacturer.
Manufacturers can improve their customer feedback and ultimately the quality of their products by focusing on the main goals of the tree:
1. Proper implementation of an online feedback program. Modern manufacturers must have an online presence that begins with a professionally designed website. This site should provide consumers with a tool to provide feedback on their products. Manufacturers should encourage participation in the review process. It is acceptable to offer an incentive, to the consumer, to provide feedback in exchange for their time (Power of Reviews, 2012, p.7). This tool should also allow consumers to numerically rate products. Numerical ranking allows the manufacturer to produce statistics based on feedback, where comments are subjective and open to biased interpretations.
2. Manufacturers must purchase the services of a trained social media professional. A dedicated employee should monitor online customer reviews from the manufacturers site, as well as other frequent forums in regards to their products. They should set up Google alerts for the relevant search terms in regards to the product (Collins, 2012, p.135). When someone leaves comments about your product, Google will automatically notify the user. The social media professional can provide statistical data to the manufacturing QA team in regards to online customer feedback. Finally, the social media manager must respond to negative comments with offers to resolve customer issues. The negative feedback that the manufacturer resolves will often be viewed as a positive experience by future consumers.
3. Manufacturers should use feedback to improve quality control. The information is powerful and often expensive to acquire, yet in the case of online customer reviews, it is free. Manufacturers must study constructive criticism and then adjust product designs and processes accordingly. Quality control managers must seek common ground in complaints and defects so that engineered solutions can eliminate manufacturing problems.
Implementing these three goals will improve quality and customer feedback, resulting in increased sales. The speed of the Internet and the availability of information make quality control even more important than in the past. Online customer feedback has replaced word of mouth advertising. Consumers are now more informed about the products they are buying. Customers are very attentive to customer feedback. Online customer feedback is the new driver of quality in the manufacturing process.
References
Liu, RR and Wei, Z. (2010). Informational Influence of Online Customer Feedback: An Empirical Study. Database Marketing Magazine and Customer Strategy Management, 17 (2), 120-131. doi: 10.1057 / dbm.2010.11
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Yang, Z. and Peterson, RT (2003). I read it online. Market Research, 15 (4), 26-31.
Schneider, J. (2001, April). Why Most Product Launches Fail. Retrieved July 16, 2013, from Harvard Business Review: //hbr.org/2011/04/why-most-product-launches-fail/ar/1
The power of reviews. (2012). Body Repair Network, 51 (9), 6-7.
Collins, J. (2012). 125 Quick Tips on Technology. Accounting Journal, 213 (6), 130-138.