59

A travers l’illustration du marché des jeux vidéo et du lancement de la console Nintendo Wii, cette rubrique met en lumière le phénomène du paradoxe de la satisfaction client. Celui-ci présente deux effets pervers : l’escalade d’amélioration du produit et la guerre des prix. Pour juguler ce paradoxe, une réponse stratégique consiste à cibler les non-consommateurs avec un produit plus simple technologiquement et en évitant la concurrence.

This paper deals with the strategies of new product development. Its aim is twofold. First, it brings into question the concept of customer satisfaction and sheds light on one of its ill-understood paradox. This paradox stems from two unintended consequences by which the race to customer satisfaction may lead to a product upgrade escalation and a price war. Second, this paper outlines a set of actions that can help managers to escape the paradox of customer satisfaction. Those actions consist of targeting new segments of non-customers with a new offer that is simple and avoiding high competition. This paper is built on the insights derived from the case of the launch of the Nintendo Wii in the videogame industry.