ENHANCING THE CONSUMER-PRODUCT RELATIONSHIP - LESSONS FROM THE QVC HOME SHOPPING CHANNEL

In these days of mature markets and ever-increasing competition, marke ters must work harder than ever to make successes of their products. A clear, consistent brand image and a long-term relationship with the c onsumer ave critical to a marketer's success in today's marketplace. I ntegrated marketing communications (IMC) is a coherent, consumer-orien ted alternative to more traditional, product-focused approaches to mar keting. A cornerstone of IMC is the establishment and long-term mainte nance of a mutually beneficial consumer-marketer relationship. One org anization that has proven especially effective at such relationships i s the QVC television home shopping channel. This paper presents a case study of QVC, in which taped interactions between QVC program hosts a nd viewers are examined. The interactions show that hosts systematical ly form parasocial relationships with viewers and use these relationsh ips to encourage viewers to purchase products from QVC. The article cl oses with a discussion of implications for other marketers who wish to establish such relationships with consumers. (C) 1996 Elsevier Scienc e Inc.