Product-Harm Crisis - Research Paper Example

Product-harm crisis emerges when consumers and the general population publicize the negative effects of a given product in the market (Zhao, Zhao, & Helsen, 2011). Placing a product at the center of product-harm crisis follows the observation that it is either harmful to the consumer, or it fails to meet the required quality and standards of production. In other words, a defective product could spur a highly publicized debate over the underlying negative effects of using the product in question.

Once the public becomes engaged in the issue, the affected business enterprise must work towards addressing the problem as well as restoring customer trust. In other instances, a product may not necessarily be defective but a crisis could still occur. Yannopoulu, Koronis, and Elliot (2011) note that product-harm crisis will emerge if the public debates potential product contamination or even reports harm emerging from the consumption or use of a questionable product. In other words, negative publicity is a recipe for product-harm crisis when a given product becomes questionable in terms of quality, standards of production, and the credibility of its benefits to consumers.

Following product-harm crisis, voluntary of forced product recalls are highly likely to occur (Vassilikopoulou, Lepetsos, Siomkos, & Chatzipanagiotou, 2009). The affected company could make a proactive move and recall products in question, or the government could force the recall through relevant agencies. Factors and events leading to product-harm crisis are many and different. Both natural and human-driven factors could contribute to product-harm crisis. From a natural point of view, factors beyond the control of the company lead to the occurrence of product-harm crisis.

Factors such as floods, earthquakes, mudslides, or volcanic activities are natural events that contribute to product-harm crisis. In essence, the crisis results from the view that the product or products in question fail to