We can find marks, statements and labels at almost every place that we visit, services that we use and products that are available at the supermarket. Such marks, statements and labels have an important role of in improving the performance and safety of products and services. They provide consumers with vital information pertaining a product or service offered by graphical and literal means. Such labels and statements are not only found at products and brochures; they are also found at strategic places to guide people to certain destinations. These labels and statements have become a norm in our daily life that sometimes we do not notice them or opt to ignore hem instead even though they are found at some of the common places that we usually visitor public amenities that we usually use. As a prudent consumer, we would also find ourselves reading the labels imprinted at the products or brochures regarding the services we want to use before paying for them. We also received important statements in our mailbox from our bank, water supply company and so forth occasionally.
When it comes to products and services, there is a standard implemented by the law which states labels regarding certain information about the products and the company which manufactured it must be imprinted on the products. This is compulsory in order to protect our rights as consumers, and ensure our safety and health. The common information that we can procure at the label of food products are ingredients, nutritional value, production venue, hotline number for customer service and halal status. By stating important information such as the ingredients and nutritional value on the container of the food product, consumers can judge whether the food products are good for health and safe to consume or vice versa. Health conscious consumers can avoid food products such as fruit juices which contained excessive colouring, flavouring and preservative to make the food more appetizing and delicious, and have a longer shelf life. Besides that, the expiry date of food products must also be labelled to ensure the safety and health of the consumers. Eating foods that are expired can cause an ordeal of health problems such as diarrhoea, vomiting and nausea because of food poisoning. In Islamic countries such as Malaysia, it is important to label the halal status of the food products sold to protect the Muslims from eating food that are prepared from pork and other non-halal ingredients.
The hotline number and address that is usually imprinted at the labels of products or brochures can be very convenient for consumers. When a consumer wished to lodge a complaint or have any enquiries regarding a product, he or she can call the company’s customer service via the hotline number or send a letter to the company via the address imprinted at the product or brochure received. One can also place an order of a product by sending a letter to the manufacturing company that has delivery services. Company that offers services such as restaurants, clinics and beauty treatment centres can simply revamp their services by labelling their telephone numbers for consumers to make reservations or appointments at their brochures or shops. This is convenient for consumers who have a hectic schedule to abide by and do not like to wait long to be served. With a telephone call, one can choose the time of his or her reservation or an appointment at his convenient.
One of the criteria which shop owners are obliged to adhere is labelling the price of their products when selling them. This is needed so that customers can know how much money they need to fork out for the product. With the price labelled, customers would then be able to compare the price with the products sold at other shops and ponder properly before buying them. Shop owners cannot expect the customers to assume that the products are being sold at a reasonable price and would buy it. Beside that, labelling a standardised price on the products before selling them to retail out would also prevent any greedy shop owners from increasing the price at their will.
As for service provider companies such as the water supply company, an early statement is usually sent to the affected consumers before they cut their supplies to the consumers due to unpaid bills or regular maintenance to upgrade the plumbing systems to ensure the best quality of water is supplied to the consumers. This will enable the affected consumers to take necessary actions such as storing sufficient water to prepare them to face the imminent disruption in the water supply. Even the a few hours of disruption in the water supply can cause many predicaments towards consumers who are unprepared or not notified. Consumers especially those own restaurants will have problems when preparing meals and drinks, cleaning and bathing. Not doing so and cutting their water supply abruptly would create a furore among the affected consumers. This is also the same for companies like banks and electric supply companies. Warning statements will also be sent to consumers who haven’t paid their bills even though the deadline is near to remind them of doing so before cutting their power supply or taking legal actions towards errant consumers.
The performance of staffs can also be improved my labelling items and documents used in work place according to their size, functions, colour, usage and so forth. Apart from that, labelling products and items which are being sold is important too. By doing so, consumers and staffs can get what they want easily without having to forage for them in piles of different items and products which are arranged together. This would save time. Products such as shoes, sport accessories and garments are classified into different shapes, sizes and colours to suit the need of every different prospective buyer. They are then labelled and group together according to their labels to prevent confusion when any prospective buyers wished to buy them. Take a shoe shop for example. Customers just need to order the size they want the type of things they want without having to ransack the shop and trying each pairs of shoes which fit their feet, and their needs. If the shoes are not labelled systematically, they will have a hard time when buying the pair of shoes they want as shoes are classified into many types, sizes and colours.
Every business owner must also ensure the safety and satisfaction of the consumers who use his or her products just as how they put great effort to grow their profits. Ensuring the safety and satisfaction of their workers and customers is an indirect way of growing their profits too because when the consumers are know what benefits and side effects the products will provide and how to use them properly, they will certainly buy them again in future. One of the ways to do so is by labelling the proper way of usage as well as stating the benefits and side effects it will have towards the consumers. This is vital especially medical products that involves chemicals and drugs that might bring harm to the body or will not show any significant effects if is not applied or consumed properly. Delicate products such as garments made from silk or any expensive fabric must be labelled with the proper way of washing them to prevent them from being damaged. In Malaysia, hazardous products such as electrical appliances must also be labelled with the ‘Sirim’ approval logo to ensure that they have passed the safety test and are safe to be used. Electrical appliances such as computers, televisions and air- conditioners must also be labelled with the safety procedure regarding the correct way to handle and assemble them to avoid any unwanted mishaps which might result in the consumer being electrocuted or damaging the product.
Not all of the products sold in the market are safe to consume or used without any safety equipment. Some of the food products are not suitable for children. Some of the products contain toxic substances. Therefore, it is compulsory for manufacturers to label their products to indicate whether the product is suitable and safe for all ages or vice versa. Food products such as sweetened creamer are actually not suitable for babies as it contains a amount of sugar. Some parents are not aware of this because they are mislead by the fact that sweetened creamer is also made from dairy products. Toys such as plasticine and some medicine in the form of creams are toxic and are meant for external uses only. These products may be hazardous if they are consumed. Besides that, they are toys which are manufactured in small sizes so they looked cute. However, inquisitive babies and toddlers may put them in their mouth and accidentally choke them if they do so. Therefore, certain products such as these are only suitable for people of certain age and must be labelled so that parents and other consumers can know which product is suitable to buy and how they should be used.
The importance of marks, statements and labels were galore in our life. Sometimes we did not notice that even some statements that we consider as trivial can play a great role in improving the performance of services. For example: placing a statement indicating that one of the payment counter in a supermarket is closed or placing a labelling the ethics of a worker in a work place to motivate them to perform better, and remind them of their responsibilities and duties. Shop owners would also usually place a statement in front of their shops a few days earlier to let the public know that they would be closed for holiday for a period. This is important so that there won’t be any customers visiting their shops when it is closed.
As a conclusion, labelling plays a vital role in ensuring the safety and performance of products and services. Labelling should be enforced by the law to protect the safety and rights of consumers. As consumers, we always depend on the labels and statements that are given to procure important information before purchasing a product or using a service. We also need statements to help us act and prepare for any imminent incidents in the future such as a disruption in the water electric supply. Consequently, we as consumers cannot deny the importance of labelling and we should always try to revamp the labelling system to ensure our quality of life.
This is the essay I send for the essay competition in conjuction with World Standard Day. The words which are highlighted red in clolour are the mistakes that I only noticed after I send in my essay.
No comments:
Post a Comment