The last century witnessed many innovations, new concepts and techniques in the field of marketing. As the world has entered into the third millennium, the national and the international environment is surcharged with an all-round hyperactivity, posing new challenges for the marketers. With the emergence of the concept of Total Quality Management (TQM), quality of the product has become a major tool of competition. Inspired by the astounding success of many Japanese companies, several national and multinational companies are spending huge amounts of money in improving quality and in implementing the Total Quality Management concept.

However, superior quality of a product is not always a passport to its success in the market. Equally important is the buyers’ perception of quality of that product. Generally, buyers do not get time and opportunity to gather detailed information about each and every available brand of a product category before making a purchase decision. Hence, they judge the product quality on the basis of certain visible signals, such as price, brand name, reputation of the store, and advertisement. An understanding of this aspect of consumer behaviour helps the marketer to develop an appropriate marketing strategy.

This book examines the influence of price, brand reputation, and store reputation on the buyers’ perception of product quality, with special reference to durable, semi-durable, and non-durable products. The book, it is hoped, will provide further insights into consumer behaviour and brand building and would prove useful for students of commerce, management and economics.

Dr. (Mrs.) Soma Sen Gupta secured her M. Com. degree from South Campus, University of Delhi in 1993. Thereafter, she did her M.Phil. and Ph.D. from the Department of Commerce, Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi. She has published a number of articles on consumer behaviour and quality management in reputed journals including Vikalpa (IIM, Ahmedabad) and Indian Journal of Commerce. Presently, she is a senior lecturer in the Department of Commerce, Kamla Nehru College, University of Delhi.