Exam 15: Beyond Consumer Relationships

Briefly discuss three categories of switching costs.

When competitive intensity is low and switching costs are high, a company is vulnerable to consumers who will switch providers even when satisfied.

Sheri, a socialite, received bad publicity for her recent choice of evening wear. As a result, she decided to change designers. However, when she visits her new designer for the first time, she missed the camaraderie she shared with her previous designer. In the given scenario, Sheri is experiencing the _____.

Usually, all consumers want to put in effort into shaping the consumption experience.

Retaliatory revenge is when a consumer yells insults and makes a public scene in an effort to harm the business.

When the La' ChamoTea outlet near Ben's place closed, he started going to the next nearest outlet, which is 20 blocks from his house, just to get his daily morning dose of chamomile tea. Ben's behavior toward La' ChamoTea is an example of _____.

Briefly explain the importance of customer commitment.

In the context of switching behavior, briefly discuss competitive intensity.

If a furious consumer becomes violent or tries to vandalize the business, it is known as rancorous revenge.

When relationship quality is high, the prospects for a continued series of mutually valuable exchanges exist.

Sakura, a recently launched sedan, has been rated by Consumer Reports, a nonprofit organization, as the most fuel-efficient sedan of 2015. Such a rating by an independent organization is called a(n):

Ruth had recently bought an expensive smartphone from a leading brand. However, within a few months of purchase, the phone started malfunctioning. Ruth was so upset that she posted a scathing review on a popular complaint website. Soon, other consumers also started sharing their poor experiences with the same brand. The news went viral on social media. The given scenario is an example of _____.

In the context of consumer complaints, denials should be made only when the evidence unambiguously supports the actual truth.

For experiential types of services, such as fashion shopping, utilitarian value is more strongly related to customer share.

Customers who believe a firm has adequately responded to some negative critical incident are likely to become more loyal.

Starz Inc. manufactures popular game CDs for a particular gaming console. Starz Inc. is most likely to be vulnerable to consumers' switching behavior if the competitor's product is:

Retailers who build up procedural switching costs usually gain true customer loyalty.

Sometimes consumers end up maintaining a relationship with a service provider even if they experience dissatisfaction.

A healthy relationship between a consumer and a marketer:

Alice has always used Hablar cell phones. She is very comfortable with the user interface of Hablar phones. Even though she would like to buy a smartphone of a different brand, she is reluctant to get one because of the effort and time it would take for her to get acquainted with a different user interface. In the context of switching behavior, Alice is primarily worried about _____.