The Consumer Pricing Expectations Range (or CPER) is the cost which most consumers think various products should cost. They are trained by you, the manufacturers. Here’s what it looks like:

In the original post I discuss that one company, Apple, has been able to adjust the CPER upwards. That is, Apple has eliminated the “Too High” side of the model:

Although Apple’s computers, music players and accessories cost more than competing products, Apple consumers don’t view them as being priced too high. They are priced just right, because it’s Apple.

Flat panel TV maker Vizio has done something different: Vizio has adjusted the consumer pricing expectations for LCD TVs downward. Through excellent marketing, terrific retail availability and positioning (at my Costco, Vizio TVs have been the first products you see when you walk into the door for years), high consumer satisfaction and strong word-of-mouth, Vizio has nearly single-handedly lowered the expected price point for LCDs:

For many consumers, there is no acceptable option priced below Vizio.

And nearly every other maker’s TVs cost more.

Which is we’ve seen the cost of nearly all other TVs come down. Consumer think if Vizio can make good TVs at such a fair price, why can’t Sony? Why can’t LG?

Vizio has shown consumers and the industry that perfectly suitable HDTVs can be sold at about 50 percent less than high-priced competitors. By itself, Vizio has  lowered the price of the LCD television across an entire industry.