After the Sale Is Where the Brand Promise Begins
By Ronald Mitei
The electronics business is an interesting one. Quite often, a customer will see an appliance or piece of equipment that catches their eye and sparks a desire to own it. They will then spend considerable time researching it, comparing its features, weighing its advantages against its limitations and, ultimately, determining whether it offers value for money.
Once they make their decision, they buy it with an expectation that the product will deliver on the promise that convinced them to part with their money in the first place.
Manufacturers understand this. That is why the leading brands invest heavily in developing products that are reliable, innovative and capable of delivering on the promises they make to customers.
But, as with everything manufactured, things can sometimes go wrong. And when they do, it is often what happens after the sale that distinguishes one brand from another.
Many sellers are quick to promise warranties. Interestingly, warranties used to be taken very seriously. They were detailed documents with terms and conditions that customers were expected to read, sign and understand, sometimes accompanied by identification and other documentation. Today, the process can feel considerably less rigorous, with customers sometimes receiving little more than a warranty card that is hurriedly signed or stamped.
The real test, however, comes when something goes wrong. Take for instance a customer who has carefully researched an appliance, saved for it, bought it and taken it home, only for it to fail within the warranty period. Naturally, they expect the seller to respond quickly, either by repairing the product or, where necessary, replacing it. Yet we continue to hear stories of customers who struggle to have legitimate warranty claims honoured, leaving them frustrated and, in some cases, forced to abandon products they expected to serve them for years.
Avoiding this, we, at LG, continue to make customer service an integral part of our brand promise. From the beginning, we have understood that our relationship with a customer begins when they leave the store with our product. And in keeping this brand promise, we continually invest in service centres located within residential areas and, where necessary, mobile service clinics that bring technical support closer to customers.
Our core objective is to ensure that our products continue delivering dependable service for many years, when correctly handled and maintained. That, to us, is what a warranty should really mean; a statement that we are prepared to stand behind the product we sold, even when it fails.
(The writer is the Head of Customer Service at LG Electronics East Africa)