Comment

It's time to let the consumer decide

By Jamal Nasser (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-07-02 10:01

Anybody visiting a market or shopping center here in Beijing will come across many shop owners and salespeople who seem convinced that they know exactly what you need.

It strikes me as strange, that somebody I've just met purports to know what purchase choices I might want, better than I do.

The phenomenon is not limited to markets and shopping centers. Almost every company that puts an advertisement on television, on the Internet or in magazines, seems to be telling you what you need, rather than asking you to make some decisions about what you might need.

This is ridiculous. I am the only person who knows what I really need. As a consumer, I already have an established pattern of purchasing choices: I personally like buying hard-to-find goods, enjoy bargaining like a madman, tend to buy when a product is near saturation point, want excellent value for my money and often resort to going with my gut feeling.

Recently I wanted to buy a camera at Wukesong Camera and Accessories Center. While there, I did not even look in the first few shops at the center; instead, I ventured deeper inside - where shops are more likely to have smaller overheads and correspondingly lower prices. I located a smiling salesperson available to answer my questions and I bargained hard for at least 30 minutes. I kept offering random low prices in order to gauge her reaction for clues as to her mark-up. I chose a Canon 500D f18-55 over a point-and-shoot camera because for just a little bit more money than I would've spent on a point-and-shoot camera, I now have a DSLR camera with which I can shoot remarkable photos.

I could have chosen a Canon D5 mark II, but its price was a tad too high for my budget; besides, the 500D is as new (2009) and almost on the verge of saturation point - that is, the price has fallen enough to keep the sales up despite competition from newer, better cameras. Also, comparing the 500D with the newer 550D, I noticed that the two were more or less the same, even though there was a significant price gap between them.

I talked to several salespeople but only a few smiled or bothered to answer my questions. I believe that when a person is nice - genuinely rather than in a forced, insincere way - they are less likely to mercilessly fleece me. I made my final choice of the day and forked over 5020 yuan for the camera.

Are my purchasing decisions universal?

No - sometimes consumers are drawn to a shop simply because of a genuine discount. At some stores prices are fixed and you can't bargain. In my situation, I had some leverage in my bargaining since I didn't absolutely need a new camera right away - I happen to have a point and shoot camera that has served me loyally for many years. Some goods never reach saturation point and you cannot always rely on your gut feeling.

The invariable uncertainty consumers face does not mean that companies, shop-owners or salespeople understand buyers' choices better than the buyers themselves. Making choices for the benefit of consumers because, allegedly, consumers do not always know what is good for them, is a bad business practice.

The best thing companies can do is let consumers make their own choices.

Don't try to get me, the consumer, buy what is thrown in my face. Let me buy a product, be happy with it for a long time and become a loyal customer and a word-of-mouth promoter. A company that is willing to go the extra mile by offering more value for money and helping consumers make purchasing decisions, rather than trying to make those decisions for customers, will always enjoy steady business. I want to be able to enjoy my purchase without the killjoy feeling that somehow I may have overpaid or bought something I did not really need.

I am the consumer, so let me choose.