Kanos Model of Customer

Satisfaction

How to Delight Your Customers

A. Nitipan Ratanasawadwat
Assumption University of Thailand

Origins of the Kano Model

Noriaki Kano

Professor at Tokyo Rika University

International Consultant
Received individual Demming Prize in
1997

Introduction

Product/service quality is main

antecedent of customer satisfacti
on (Cronin & Taylor 1992; Anderson & Sullivan 1993; Brad
y et al. 2002)

Important to find out how each

attribute performance impacts on
satisfaction
Prof. Kano pointed out that not all
product/service attributes have
same role in satisfying customer

Origins of the Kano

Model

Developed foundation for an

approach on Attractive Quality Cr
eation commonly referred to as th
e Kano Model
Challenged traditional Customer
Satisfaction Models that More is be
tter, i.e. the more you perform on
each service attribute the more sa
tisfied the customers will be

Origins of the Kano

Model

Proposed new Customer

Satisfaction model (Kano Model)
Performance on product and
service attributes is not equal in
the eyes of the customers
Performance on certain
categories attributes produces h
igher levels of satisfaction than
others

Introduction

Separate among satisfaction,

dissatisfaction and delight since facto
rs that dissatisfy and that delight are
often different (Rust, Zahorik & Keiningham 1994)
Ex. If a customer approaches an ATM
then finds it to be out of cash, the cus
tomer will likely be dissatisfied, but it
is unlikely that finding an ATM stocke
d with cash would
satisfy or delight the customer

Kanos Model of
Satisfaction

Technique use to determine

which influence the attributes o
f products and/or services have
on customer satisfaction (Kano
et al. 1984)

Kanos Model of
Satisfaction

Which products and services can be

used to obtain a high level of custo
mer satisfaction?
Which product features have a more
than proportional influence on
satisfaction
Which attributes are an absolute
must in the eyes of the customer?

Kanos Model of
Satisfaction
Product/service attributes can be
classified into three groups
1. Basic attributes/dissatisfiers/Musthave
2. Performance/one-dimensional
attributes
3. Exciting attributes/satisfiers/
Attractive

Basic Attributes/
Dissatisfiers

Minimum required features that

customer naturally expect from a p
roduct/service
Not able to elicit satisfaction but
can produce dissatisfaction when n
ot fulfilled
ex. Punctually and safety of airline

Performance/One-dimensional
Attributes
Produce both satisfaction
dissatisfaction depending on perfor
mance levels
satisfaction is proportional to the
level of fulfillment of these
attributes
ex. Gasoline consumption of a car;
lower consumption leads to higher c
ustomer satisfaction

Exciting Attributes/
Satisfiers

Produce satisfaction when delivered

but cause no dissatisfaction if not
delivered
High performance on these has a
greater impact on overall satisfactio
n rather than low performance
ex. (unexpected) promotional offers

Three-Factor Theory

Typical Research
Framework

Kanos Model
Process

Identify the Voice of the Customer

Translate Voice of the Customer
into Critical to Quality Characteris
tics (CTQs)
Rank the CTQs into three
categories:
Dissatisfier - Must bes Cost of
Entry
Satisfier More is better
Competitive

Kano Model

Kano Model Procedure

Research
Research
Research
available
data sources
Determine
data
collection
strategy
Design data
collection
instruments
Collect and
summarize
data

Analyze
Analyze &
&
Brainstorm
Brainstorm

Plot
Plot &
&
Diagram
Diagram

Analyze
Develop
results from
Customer
data
Requiremen
collection
t Matrix
Brainstorm
Record
list of
Questionnai
features and
re results in
functionality
Matrix and
Develop
Summarize
Functional
and
Plot results
Dysfunctional on Kano
Questionnair
Model
e
Distribute

Strategize
Strategize

Determine
Project
selection
Product
Development
Service
Development
Identify
Marketing
Strategy

1. Research
Must Bes - Focus Groups, Lawsuits
and Regulations, Buzz on Internet
Satisfiers - Competitive Analysis,
Interviews, Surveys, Search Logs, Usabli
ty Testing, Customer Forums
Delighters - Field Research, Marketing/
Branding Vision, Industrial Design, Pack
aging, Call Center Data, Site Logs

2. Analyze &
Brainstorm

Analyze data from available sources

Brainstorm list of features and
functionality
Determine type of requirements:
Output Requirements
Service Requirements

Kano Model Requirements Survey

User Survey
Functional form vs. Dysfunctional Form
How would you feel if the product had feature
X?
How would you feel if the product didnt have
feature X?
Kano Questionnaire Answers:
I like it.
I expect it.
Im neutral.

Example: Requirements
Survey

Example: Requirements
Questionnaire

Functional vs. Dysfunctional

Comparison

Functional vs. Dysfunctional

Comparison

Basic
Attribut
e

Functional vs. Dysfunctional

Comparison

Performan
ce
Attribute

Functional vs. Dysfunctional

Comparison

Exciting
Attribut
e

Evaluation Customer
Requirements
C.R.

14

11

4
5

23

11

23

23

23

13 10
11

Customer Requirement is:

A: Attractive
R: Reverse
Result
E: Expected
O: One Dimensional

Tota Grade
l
23
O

Q: Questionable
I: Indifferent

3. Plot & Diagram

Kano Model & QFD

4. Strategize
Project Selection
Lean Six Sigma
Design for Six Sigma
Organizational Strategy
Dissatisfier Must bes Cost of
Entry
Satisfier More is better
Competitive
Delighter Latent Need
Differentiator

Application
Break into Teams
Select Team Leader
Select Scribe
Select Presenter
Scenario You work for a Hotel chain and
your company is trying to identify Voice of t
he Customer information to improve Hotel p
erformance.
Instructions:
Brainstorm important characteristics you
expect when staying at a Hotel
Identify whether they are a Must be,
Expected or a Delighter from a Business
Client perspective and from a vacationer
perspective
Add in what the current performance is
for the Hotel

Example Results

Debrief
Analysis
Strategy Recommendations

Summary of Kano
Model
Analyze and rank the voice of
the customer data
Develop into Categories

Dissatisfier Must bes Cost of

Entry
Satisfier More is better
Competitive
Delighter Latent Need
Differentiator

Identify and implement strategy

Questions?

References
Walder, D., (1993). Kanos model for understanding
customer-defined quality. Center For Quality of Manage
ment Journal, 39, 65 69.
Jacobs, R., (1997). Evaluating customer satisfaction with
media products and services. European Media
Management Journal, 32, 11 18.
Ungvari, S., (1999). Adding the third dimension to
auqlity. Triz Journal, 40, 31 35.
Sauerwein, E., Bailom, F., Matzler, K., & Hinterhuber, H.
(1996). The kano model: How to delight your
customers. International Working Seminar on Production
Economics, 19, 313 - 327
Zultner, R.E. & Mazur, G. H. ( 2006). The Kano Model:
Recent Developments. The eighteenth symposium on
Quality Function Deployment.

Dimensions of
Quality
Performance
Reliability
Convenience
and Accessibility
Features
Empathy
Conformance to
Standards

Serviceability
Durability
Aesthetics
Consistency
Assurance
Responsiven
ess
Perceived
Quality

36

Dimensions of Quality
( 1 of 6)

PERFORMANCE: How well the

output does what it is supposed to

do.

RELIABILITY: probability of

operating for specific time and cond

itions of use
37

Dimensions of Quality
(2 of 6)

CONVENIENCE and

ACCESSIBILITY: How easy it is for a

customer to use the product or servic

e.

FEATURES: The characteristics of the

output that exceed the outputs basic
functions.

38

Dimensions of Quality
(3 of 6)

EMPATHY: The demonstration of

caring and individual attention to cust

omers.

CONFORMANCE: The degree to

which an output meets specifications

or requirements.
39

Dimensions of Quality
(4 of 6)

SERVICEABILITY: How easy it is for

you or the customer to fix the
output with minimum downtime or c
ost.
DURABILITY: How long the output
lasts.
AESTHETICS: How a product looks,
feels, tastes, etc.
40

Dimensions of Quality
(5 of 6)

CONSISTENCY: The degree to which

the performance changes over time.

ASSURANCE: The knowledge and

courtesy of the employees and their a
bility to elicit trust and confidence; The
ability of the output (and its provider) t
o function as promised
41

Dimensions of Quality
(6 of 6)

RESPONSIVENESS: Willingness

and ability of employees to help cust

omers and provide proper services.

PERCEIVED QUALITY: The relative

quality level of the output in the eye

s of the customers.
42

When is there too much

Quality
The cost of quality erodes the
profit
The quality is too far
exceeding customer
expectations
Rational turns to Irrational
43

Importance of
Customer
Satisfaction and Loy
Satisfaction is alty
an attitude; loyalty is

a behavior
Loyal customers spend more, are
willing to pay higher prices, refer
new clients, and are less costly to
do business with.
It costs five times more to find a
new customer than to keep an existin
g one happy
44

Measuring Customer
Satisfaction
Discover customer perceptions
of business effectiveness
Compare companys
performance relative to
competitors
Identify areas for improvement
Track trends to determine if
changes result in improvements
45

Difficulties with
Customer Satisfaction
Measurement

Poor measurement schemes

Failure to identify appropriate quality
dimensions
Failure to weight dimensions
appropriately
Lack of comparison with leading
competitors
Failure to measure potential and
former customers
Confusing loyalty with satisfaction
46

Creative Problem
Solving

Mess Finding identify symptoms

Fact Finding gather data;
operational definitions
Problem Finding find the root
cause
Idea Finding brainstorming
Solution Finding evaluate ideas
and proposals
Implementation make the
solution work

47