Product Quality Assessment by Consumers — the Role of Product Information

Abstract

Quality is a somewhat diffuse concept. Everybody knows more or less what is meant by it, but a precise definition of quality is more difficult to establish. “Quality” comes from the Latin word qualitas, which means properties or attributes. In the marketing terminology, quality is defined as: the degree to which a product fulfils its function, given the needs of the consumer [1]. Looking at the number of functions a product is expected to fulfil, it is possible to discern a varying amount of sub‐qualities which can be divided into functional and psychological qualities. The functional qualities consist of properties of the material, workmanship and of the technical and economic nature. These we call the “objective” characteristics of the pro‐duct. The psychological qualities, such as beauty, sportsmanship, prestige, are formed by the symbolic meaning the consumer associates with the product. These are “subjective” characteristics [2].