Essay on Harvey Norman Retail Company

Harvey Norman is one of the largest multi-national retail company based in Australia, which deals in selling products through different brands such as consumer electronic products, computers, bedding, and furniture. When website of the company is visited online and it is analyzed to see that what kind of processes, services as well as communications it provides to its consumers. On its homepage, there are various services and elements of communication are mentioned. For instance, one of the services available on homepage of its website is “Store Finder”. The consumer can click on this Store Finder button, and they can type postcode in the search bar to find the company’s store located in their area or city (Harvey Norman, 2019a). It is always good for consumers to find such information to make their decision as quickly as possible. If they will find a store nearby by just typing in the search bar, it would make life easier for them. It is a fact that in decision making process, there are different steps involved, and one of these steps is information search (Professional Academy, 2019). So, this Store Finder service provided by Harvey Norman provided information to consumers regarding nearby locations.

The other important services or processes provided on the website are Catalogues, Contact Us and Harvey’s blog link. The consumers can open this catalogue, and they can find products of their own choice. For instance, if someone is looking for a washing machine, they can search washing machine brands through company’s catalogue. The “Contact Us” button allows consumers to contact with the company through multiple channels. For instance, the consumers can contact through Facebook Messenger, and WhatsApp. They have also provided an open form to fill and give their feedback. The company also provides LiveChat facility for us. The LiveChat hours are limited in terms of shifts as on Sunday and Monday, the shift hours will be from 6am to 12 am. On the other hand, from Tuesday to Saturday, the LiveChat timings are 6.30am to 10pm. So, if consumers need any kind of information or help, they can use this online live chat services for better communication with consumers. Such processes are always great for consumers, because they can always take considerable benefits.

 The company has also provided a range of products listing. For instance, under hot deals, there are so many deals for customers. The customers can choose any of the product to click and see further details, whether they want any deal or not. In decision making process, a customer always looks for alternatives that what options he/she has. The evaluation of these alternatives is one of the most crucial parts of their decision making. So, customers can look at different deals offered on different brands so that they can make a final decision to purchase a product. It is important to understand that decision making process is not based on any single step; rather there are various steps, which help a customer to make their purchasing decision. The company has provided those steps to make sure that their consumers can look for relevant information of their favorite brands, and then make a final decision (Mehrguth, 2018)

The consumers can get service or process to follow for different steps. For instance, if they want to get information about delivery of products, they can visit the Customer Service section given at the bottom of homepage. The customers can get various services under this section like they can also click on LiveChat, see policy for quick reverse as well as policy for raincheck, and look at FAQs. The other important section is information regarding Refund and Return of products. If consumers get viable policy to return products or ask for refund, then it is more likely that they will make their decision to purchase a product. Such services or processes are crucial for their satisfaction to feel that company has concern for them, so it increases their trust on the company. The terms and conditions part is also given on the website so that consumers could know that what to do in different given circumstances and what rights they will hold in those situations. The overall services and process as well as communications provided on this website of Harvey Norman are good enough to help consumers in making their purchase decisions for different brands. They have provided good enough services and information on their website, which is enough for any consumer to continue with a purchase decision or leave the website, if he/she doesn’t feel satisfied.

References of Harvey Norman Retail Company

Harvey Norman. (2019a). Store Finder. Retrieved April 10, 2019, from https://stores.harveynorman.com.au/

Mehrguth, G. (2018). 5 Stages of the Consumer Decision-Making Process and How it’s Changed [VIDEO]. Retrieved April 10, 2019, from https://directiveconsulting.com/blog/5-stages-of-the-consumer-decision-making-process-and-how-its-different/

Professional Academy. (2019). MARKETING THEORIES – EXPLAINING THE CONSUMER DECISION MAKING PROCESS. Retrieved April 10, 2019, from https://www.professionalacademy.com/blogs-and-advice/marketing-theories---explaining-the-consumer-decision-making-process