Quality is
something more and more people are willing to pay
for. Apple has demonstrated that if you can convince a group of people
your product is superior, they will subscribe themselves to your brand. Certain
brands have taken over whatever product they serve, to the point where people associate
a brand with a product unknowingly. Since when
were facial tissues called Kleenex?
This situation
is good for brands, but can actually end
up becoming bad for the seller. The educated consumer will go to a retail
electronics store, such as Best Buy. They will walk up to the product or
section of products they are interested in, and test out the items. They will
compare the in-store price with any online retailer (since most will be
cheaper), and they will leave the store without buying anything.
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| Sujai Shriram |
Following this,
they will go online and find a good deal somewhere online. They will put the
item in their digital shopping cart, and suddenly realize there is a charge for
a refund should they request one. Instead,
they will go to another site or seller, one with a free return shipping refund
policy.
This is not news to
most people, but it has many retailers and online sellers alike pulling their
hair out. Figuratively. This has also
opened the doors for companies that specialize in explaining and fixing what is
happening. To a seller, they see people come and go without buying anything.
Sujai Shriram is a project manager at a company that specializes in
multi-channel commerce, which is the solution to this problem.
