Increasing Quality Sequence: When Is It an Optimal Product Introduction Strategy?
研究了卖家针对不同支付意愿的细分市场推出产品的时机，发现当高价值客户有外部选择时，先推低质量产品再推高质量产品可能更优，且承诺未来质量会强化这一策略。
In this paper, we analyze the optimal introduction timing of a seller’s products targeted at segments that differ in their willingness to pay for quality. Past studies suggest that an introduction sequence of a high-quality product followed by a lower-quality version of the product may mitigate the cannibalization effects of the low-quality product on profits from the high-quality product. We show that if customers who value quality more possess an outside option such as a substitute product, as may be the case with replacement buyers, a seller may find it optimal to follow a low-quality product with a higher-quality one, the latter being targeted at replacement buyers. Furthermore, the ability of the seller to commit to future qualities accentuates the sequential increase in quality in the presence of such buyers. Thus, we show that conditions other than uncertainty or technological improvements occurring over time may justify a seller adopting a strategy of sequentially increasing quality. This paper was accepted by J. Miguel Villas-Boas, marketing.