1.30.13 Blog 2 (B)

In Response to Roland Rumrill blog post/question "Are the differences between a GMC and a Chevy truck enough to keep both brands?"

Roland wrote about companies offering too many choices to consumers and tied it in with General Motors and their many different lines of cars. 

When I think about car companies the first thing that comes into my mind are all of the Ads i see featuring new and different models of cars. But when all is said and done, as someone who is far from an expert of cars, I can't tell the difference between half of them, I recognize a difference in logo's and maybe some body work. But what is inside of the car means nothing to me, all I want is something to get me from point A to point B. I don't need 4 different type of honda Civic's or Toyota Corollas and Camrys that look almost identical. When I really think about it, I agree with what Roland said. The difference between the GM car lines with different logo's are not enough to keep both around. However I think that in our society, brand loyalty means a lot to a lot of people, especially when referring to car brands. There are people that like GMC over Chevy and would never even considering purchasing a Chevy truck, they ride GMC till they die, and they mean it. 

Getting rid of one line of truck/car may help to reduce the amount of options in buying a new vehicle, but will it be worth it to lose a loyal customer who will always be willing to buy that specific model with that GMC logo on the front grill?

1.30.13 Blog One (A)

The following is in response to "Are customer satisfaction and customer value interdependent or mutually exclusive?  Can satisfaction occur simultaneously with low customer value?"

I think that customer satisfaction and customer value are interdependent with one another. When a consumer or customer is making a purchase they tend to do some research on the product they are buying, they look at the places where they can make the purchase for the best available price, they also look for the best service available, for both the original purchase (best price) as well as after the purchase (return policy, extended coverage, repairs). The customer does the research so that they feel they are making the best purchase possible, in terms of saving money and being satisfied with their purchase. In a capitalist consumer economy, the customer wants to be satisfied with their purchase, and in most cases a customer will be satisfied with a purchase if they feel that they were treated well, and given a good price for the product that they wanted to buy. Walmart, Target, TJ-Max, these are stores that help to prove that customer satisfaction and customer value are interdependent. Typically products in these stores are of lower quality, but also come with lower prices. These are all stores that are doing very well financially and have many locations globally. What this proves is that though people don't really like to shop exclusively at places such as these, when they go there, they feel like they are saving money, and buying a product that, though it is not top of the line, will be of use to them, making them feel like they got a good value and are satisfied with their purchase.

When you stop and think about it, are you really shopping at Walmart or Target because you feel satisfied with the quality of your purchase or because you saved some money?