Word: weaver
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Customer (or market) research is a technique of consulting the buyer on his tastes before making a product. In "Buck" Weaver's words, it is "finding out what people like, doing more of it, finding out what people don't like, doing less of it." A logical operating philosophy, it is nonetheless given scant consideration by U. S. industry. Most businesses rely solely on dealers, advertising agents and only occasional surveys to keep apprised of public preference...
Wave-Lengths. Buck Weaver likes to remark. "For years businessmen have used the expression 'The customer is always right,' but it never occurred to any one to try to find out what it was that the customer was right about...
...Changes. GM began customer research during the teapot tempest over freewheeling. Every executive in the industry had positive ideas on the subject; Buck Weaver, then on Alfred P. Sloan's personal public relations staff, wondered what the public thought. On his own he sent a questionnaire to a few hundred automobile owners. Some 60% voted for freewheeling. Then a few months later a second questionnaire showed that only 50% wanted it on their cars. GM abandoned freewheeling. It still took Weaver some time to persuade the company that a regular customer research department was warranted. Allowed...
Since then Weaver has sent out 15,000,000 questionnaires, made an average of a speech a week, carried on an enormous correspondence and built up a formidable battery of charts and files. From it all he and his staff of 37 have winnowed exactly 185 public reactions which have found their way into the design of GM cars. Researcher Weaver carefully points out that he was not completely responsible for any of these changes; most of them were already contemplated by GM engineers. But the fact that the public wanted them was often the deciding factor in their adoption...
...line with Weaver's findings-though in some cases ''discovered" independently by other manufacturers using more prosaic methods-are such changes on GM's new cars as lower centre of gravity, improved visibility, partial elimination of running boards, gear shift lever on steering post, door locks on both front doors in some models, locks on ventipanes. Most 1939 cars have the headlights submerged in the fenders; GM's still have their lights mounted independently. Other Weaver conclusions about the public...