Importance of Consumer protection from Business Point of view
Consumer Protection has a broad program. It not only includes educating customers about their rights and responsibilities but also helps in getting their grievances redressed. Businessmen cannot survive for a long time by ignoring the interest of the consumer. It not only requires the judicial apparatus for protecting the interests of customers but also requires the customers to get together and form themselves into customer relations for protection and promotion of their interests. They have to give due importance to consumers if they want to prosper in a competitive market. At the same time, consumer protection has special importance for businesses too.
From the point of view of Business
A business must also lay emphasis on protecting the consumers and adequately satisfying them. This is important because of the following reasons:
(i) Long-term Interest of Business: Enlightened businesses realize that it is in their long-term interest to satisfy their customers. A satisfied customer with their word of mouth would make more customers and increase the consumer base. Satisfied customers not only lead to repeating sales but also provide good feedback to prospective customers and thus, help in increasing the customer base of business.
(ii) Business uses Society’s Resources: Business organizations use resources which belong to the society. They, thus, have accountability to supply such products and render such services which are in the public interest and would not impair public assurance in them. In turn, the business keeps in mind public interest and provides products accordingly.
(iii) Social Responsibility: A business has social responsibilities towards various interest groups. Business have responsibilities towards the consumer, government bodies, and society and they should work in a way which should be beneficial to them and the business as in return it will flourish their business. Business organizations make money by selling goods and providing services to consumers.
(iv) Moral Justification: It is the moral duty of any business to take care of consumer’s interests and avoid any form of their exploitation. They should prevent any sort of exploitation like adulteration, unfair practices, defective product, fair price, and weight. Thus, a business must avoid unscrupulous, exploitative, and unfair trade practices like defective and unsafe products, adulteration, false and misleading advertising, hoarding, black marketing, etc.
(v) Government Intervention: A business engaging in any form of exploitative trade practices would invite government intervention or action. This can impair and tarnish the image of the company. For that business should design their trade practice in such a way that would be in the interest of the consumer.
(vi) The consumer is the Purpose of Business: The basic purpose of business is to create more and more customers and retain them and businessmen can create more customers only by satisfying the customers and protecting the interest of consumers. The customer is the foundation of the business.
Thus, it is advisable that business organizations voluntarily resort to such practices where the customers’ needs and interests will well be taken care of.
