Abstract

There are generally two phases in the consumer's purchasing process, at least insofar as plumbing fixtures are concerned—the research and decision phase, and the purchase phase. Although consumers may be content to expend considerable energy and time researching and investigating the various pros and cons associated with each product model considered, once they have actually made their purchase, they expect that product to perform as advertised. They do not anticipate expending any more energy wondering about the performance of the product.

Most consumers are savvy enough to know that manufacturers sometimes exaggerate their claims of how well a product performs (gasp!), but they do expect a reasonable amount of honesty when it comes to certain characteristics. For example, a consumer would be shocked if he purchased a six-cylinder automobile and then found that it only had four cylinders, or if she purchased a five-cycle clothes washer and then found when it arrived home that it only operated with three cycles.