CE shoppers would rather skip than switch - consumer electronics consumers at discount stores are loyal to particular brands - Top Brands, part 2: Consumer Survey

Discount Store News, Oct 30, 1989

CE Shoppers Would Rather Skip Than Switch

Consumers in the market for consumer electronics goods are likely to look elsewhere if the discounter does not have the specific brand they want, according to DSN's 1989 Consumer Brands Survey.

More than six out of 10 consumers (60.9 percent) said they would skip the purchase rather than buy some other CE label, the highest skip rate of all 17 merchandise categories surveyed in this year's report.

This is not surprising since many audio- and videophiles converse easily about amps, decibels, base level, etc., and are very particular about the CE brands they take home.

Discounters appear to be making headway with this consumer, even though dedicated CE customers are not traditional discount shoppers.

The survey shows that traditional discount store shoppers, particularly Ames/Zayre customers, are very brand-oriented in CE. More than nine out of 10 Ames/Zayre customers professed a preference for branded CE products. Conversely, shoppers of the most upscale of the stores surveyed, Target, expressed the least interest in branded CE.

This year, store managers and CE consumers agreed on seven of the top 10 brands, up one brand from last year's survey.

More than eight out of 10 consumers polled (84 percent) said they have a brand preference when shopping for CE products, up five percentage points from 1988.

Likewise, relatively few CE shoppers (11.7 percent) express a preference for private label CE products. However, that figure represents an increase in preference for private label CE over last year when just 3.4 percent of CE shoppers said they prefer private label CE products to branded goods.

Despite the advances, persnickety CE shoppers still are not very certain of finding their favorite brands at discount stores.

In fact, nearly three out of 10 consumers (28.9 percent) said they are "not sure" they'll find the CE label they want, the highest uncertainty rating of all 17 categories.

In addition, the consumer confidence rating for CE fell about half a point from last year, the largest decline of the categories surveyed.

On a scale of 1 to 9 - with one meaning no confidence and nine meaning total confidence - consumers gave CE a 6.63 confidence rating, the lowest of all 17 merchandise categories.

Overall, Sony is the No. 1 CE label on the consumer list. Sony surpassed General Electric, last year's No. 1 label among consumers, for the top position. Sony's rise from No. 2 on the 1988 survey is due in large part to substantial mention increases by Wal-Mart and Target customers.

GE, which makes clock radios, personal portable radio/tape cassettes and other relatively small electronics but not TVs, is in the No. 2 position. GE continues to command a major presence among the top 10 CE brands of both consumers and store managers because of its long history and name recognition.

Of the top 10 CE labels, eight returned from last year. The two new labels are Pioneer and Scotch, replacing Apple and TDK.

Emerson, No. 1 among store managers, continues to make the consumer top brands list, but in a less dominant position. This is probably because shoppers don't think of Emerson - which produces reliable, mid-range equipment - when they go to buy, but end up attracted to the brand's sharp pricing and eventually make the purchase.

Nintendo (No. 5) and Sharp (No. 6) continue their rise, supported by the increasing acceptance of Nintendo games and new products - despite product shortages which have tarnished the shine for many consumers and store managers - and Sharp's effective network advertising.

Table : Consumer Brand Preferences

Table : In Consumer Electronics

               Discount                                        Ames/
Top Brands     Shoppers     K mart     Wal-Mart     Target     Zayre
Sony             16.2%       14.7%      13.9%       22.5%      13.5%

General

 Electric        12.2        12.9       18.1        11.3        7.7
Panasonic        10.2         8.6        9.7         9.9        1.9
RCA               9.1        11.0       15.3         9.9       11.5
Nintendo          9.1         8.6        2.8         9.9        7.7
Sharp             6.1         6.7        4.2         7.0        3.8
Emerson           4.6         5.5        6.9         2.8       11.5
Zenith            4.6         5.5        5.6         4.2        7.7
Pioneer           3.6         4.3        2.8         4.2        1.9
Scotch            3.6         3.1        4.2         4.2        1.9

Table : Top Consumer Electronics Brands:

Table : Store Managers vs. Shoppers

Managers                     Consumers
Emerson                      Sony
General Electric             General Electric
Panasonic                    Panasonic
Sony                         RCA
Sharp                        Nintendo
RCA                          Sharp
Magnavox                     Emerson
GoldStar                     Zenith
Nintendo                     Pioneer
Soundesign                   Scotch/3M

Top 10 rankings in each category are based on discount store managers' response to the question: `What are your best performing name brands in (department)? and discount store consumers' response to the question. `If you were shopping for (product) in a discount department store, which brand of that product would you want?