Back to Cost of Quality
Cost of Quality - Introduction
The true cost of defective quality is far greater than the apparent cost.
The costs include tangible costs from wasted materials and wasted time, as well as less tangible costs from dissatisfied customers, loss of repeat business, and loss of sales due to a bad reputation.
Do you go back to a restaurant where you’ve experienced bad service or bad food? Your friends won’t go there either after you share your experience. These are real losses to that business, but they can be difficult to measure.
ISO 9001 certification is like a recommendation from a trusted source – the equivalent of a great review from a respected food writer for our restaurant. Aren’t you more likely to go to a new restaurant with a good review than to a new restaurant with no recommendation?
Customers will pay more for perceived good quality and reliability. They expect to pay less for the same product from a company without the good reputation. If you lose your reputation, you’ve lost revenue – but again, this is hard to measure.
These costs are associated with poor quality, but there are also costs associated with maintaining good quality.
Follow the links below to explore some of the costs associated with quality: