LL Bean Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

LL Bean - Case Study Example Also, future research can focus on specific target values based on greater information regarding the actual values prevalent in the measurement procedures of L.L. Bean. Keywords: L.L. Bean; customer requirements; target values; measurement L.L Bean demonstrates a case of a highly customer-centric organization that promises to deliver superior customer service by offering constant customer support and specialty shoes for activities such as hunting. At the crux of L.L Bean’s customer service is its 100% money back guarantee since the company believes in â€Å"treating its customers like human beings†. Given the high level of customer service, it is important to analyze the salient customer requirements along with measurement techniques for the same. Finally, target values are being assessed to ensure that the requirements are fulfilled. L. L. Bean’s dedication to superior customer service is reflected in its promise of 100% money back guarantee on all its products at any time. This is combined with the excellent after sales service provided for product returns. Therefore, one of the major customer requirements that L.L Bean is catering to is high quality of the product including the durability and reliability of the product. Furthermore, the company caters to the need of wearing shoes particular for certain situations which has been satisfied by the provision of ‘specialty shoes’, particularly, the Maine hunting shoe that is lightweight and remains dry. Most importantly, however, L.L Bean caters to the customer’s need for ordering without having to visit the store. This is particularly true for customers who may be pressed for time and find it convenient to order via mail through the mail order catalogue. L.L Bean, therefore, offers full catalogues as well as seasonal catalogues for customers interested in knowing the specifications, looks and prices of specialty products as well as their regular line. This is supplemented by the company’s website which offers customers the facility of shopping online without having to visit the retail outlet. The added convenience of having multiple modes of payment further encourages customers to shop online easily. The company also caters to customers’ need to obtain prompt response by providing customer service throughout the year and throughout the day. This also serves the purpose of assisting those customers who may have further queries or desire additional information after reading the mail catalogue. Therefore, assurance is provided to customers. Finally, L.L Bean caters to customers’ requirements of fast delivery and efficient logistics by partnering with third-party logistics which is Federal Express. This is because the company keeps speed as an important order winner as part of its operations management strategy as it knows that slow delivery can lead to customer dissatisfaction. In order to ensure that the final product reaches cust omers on time, the company’s suppliers must also make timely shipments to the company. Therefore, speed is a crucial customer requirement that the company must cater to. The customer requirement for high quality and durable products can be measured using total quality management and six sigma philosophy. At the simplest level, product quality would be measured using the number of ‘quality’ complaints by customers. As a general rule, the target value must not exceed 3 complaints per month. It must be

Does art appreciation ultimately exist because of reproductions Essay

Does art appreciation ultimately exist because of reproductions - Essay Example Commerce and commercial art are around us all the time. They change how we perceive the world. Art and the quantity of images we see influence what we accept as ‘trendy’. The more we see it, the more we want it. Berger writes that â€Å"It is true that in publicity one brand of manufacture, one firm competes with another; but it is also true that every publicity image confirms and enhances every other.† The importance of this on the individual’s psyche is exactly what is discussed in debates about the media’s impact on society, for example, that violent videogames turn schoolchildren into school-shooters, or that teenagers in pop videos will cause an influx of thirteen year olds to try to head out the front door and onto the school bus wearing tube tops. Images change behavior. We do and act like the things we’ve seen, we do what we hope to become and to look like. To break down the analogy, let me explain Berger’s phrase Every public image confirms every other. Every violent image or screen on a video game not only competes with the shock-value of other violent video games. But more significantly, it confirms the idea that these images are acceptable stimuli and that they belong in our daily environment. The child who plays violent videogames becomes anesthetized to seeing violence, becoming enraptured in violent events, body-dropping the store owner, shooting down everyone in their way to a goal, etc. Parents of young children live in the same world of public images. They pass by stands these videogames of at Radio Shack and Best Buy. The continuation of these games on the shelves of warehouse stores confirms their integrity as entertainment, whether or not violent video games merit that integrity. Even before parents have children to raise and protect from hostile influences, the parents accept the presence of violent images in society as something unavoidable. They have been equally unable to avoid those images.