Non Price Competition (continued) - 24

We all say we are not influenced by advertising, but we are!

All of us will buy, at some stage, a large number of ''whitegoods'' or ''consumer durables''. These terms represent items like refrigerators, televisions, washing machines, microwaves; the list is a long one. How can we make a choice between half a dozen different washing machines? As consumers, most of us do not have the engineering skills to be able to say one washing machine is structurally stronger than another, or that this electric motor in Machine A is a better motor than the one in Machine B. Manufacturers of these goods offer warranties and ''after sales service'' on their products. ''If our product breaks down within twelve months of purchase, we will repair it without charge''. I can remember when the warranty on many new cars was 40,000 kilometres. Today, many manufacturers are offering warranties of 100,000 kilometres. The implication is clear ''we are so confident in the quality of our product, we'll take the risk of a breakdown; because there won't be one''.