Warranties have a long - and some might say - interesting past. But the future is even brighter. New technologies and data sources are transforming our understanding of field quality, enabling deeper insights into product performance and customer preferences. These breakthroughs are accelerating the quest to reduce defects and satisfy customers.
The concept of a product warranty has been around for centuries. The earliest record of warranty can be found in the Babylonian and Assyrian tablets of the twenty-first century B.C.[i] However, for most of that time, it was buyer beware. Following WWII, consumer pressure and legislative action like UCC in 1952 forced manufacturers to start consistently offering warranties on their products.
In the decades since, warranty has been largely viewed as a necessary evil, a cost of doing business. Sure, extended warranties and service contracts provided a little extra revenue, but still rarely are viewed as a strategic part of the business.
For years, the warranty claim has been one of the few windows into understanding the customer experience and product performance in the field. Adopters of warranty analytics, like Sub-Zero Wolf, have dramatically shortened the detection to correction cycle, reduced costs, and increased customer satisfaction.
Now the hype is all about the Internet of Things, Social Media, Big Data Analytics, and The Cloud. But these technologies are more than just buzzwords. Read More
The electoral battlespace for the upcoming general election in the United Kingdom is starting to take shape. Campaigners are busily debating the political landscape. They want to own the high ground that dominates areas that matter most to voters – the NHS and the economy. With an ageing population and a declining share of global GDP – cutting services to balance the budget is a harsh reality.
