In addition to these savings in warranty costs, there are other convincing benefits that accompany production testing and increased product quality. Take brand image, for example.

Most corporations spend millions of dollars each year on advertising campaigns that will increase product awareness and brand image. Strong branding is key to developing buyer preference in a competitive market and to driving sales. But there is more to your brand image than a slick looking magazine ad.

Nothing diminishes brand image more than insufficient production testing and slack quality control. Every time a defect leaves your plant and reaches the consumer, it erodes your most valuable asset–your reputation. We’re all familiar with the damaging influence of negative word-of-mouth “advertising” when a customer has a bad experience with a product. According to a recent study conducted by Huba and McConnell, published in the book “Creating Customer Evangelists: How Loyal Customers Become a Volunteer Sales Force”, a disgruntled customer is likely to tell 10-16 other potential buyers about the headaches associated with owning your brand, steering friends and acquaintances straight to your competition.

FACT: Defects in the field negatively affect your ability to generate repeat sales as disgruntled consumers are more likely to switch brands. Thorough production testing catches defects in the plant, before they ever reach the consumer.

FACT: It is always more cost effective to sell to existing customers than to reach new ones.

FACT: Poor quality adversely affects new sales as well as repeat sales, due to the impact of negative word-of-mouth advertising.

FACT: ECI’s production testing customers routinely report dramatic reductions of DOA’s (Dead On Arrivals), field failures and warranty claims. Our automated testing systems will catch literally thousands of unit defects this year in plants around the world.

FACT: ECI has noted a strong relationship between levels of investment in production testing / quality and market performance.

“We’ve picked up millions of dollars of new business, mostly due to our consistently high level of quality.”
Senior Manufacturing Engineer, Nordyne