The University of Michigan Business School's National Quality Research Center today (Monday) releases its quarterly update of satisfaction among customers of over 190 companies and seventy government agencies.

Michigan's American Customer Satisfaction Index dipped marginally from 72.1 in Q2 to 72 – its fourth consecutive decline after a relatively steady upward trend since early 1997. However, the virus of decline infected the majority of the companies surveyed – thirty-five of a total of forty-four seeing their customer satisfaction ratings static or in decline.

These are the updated data for selected industries for the third quarter of 2001 (the first figure indicates the latest score, the second figure the percentage increase/decrease on the same quarter in 2000):

Group/ Manufacturer

Manufacturing (non-durable) 78.7 -0.9%

Apparel 79 0.0%

VF Corporation 84 +2.4%

Levi Strauss & Co. 80 +1.3%

Jones Apparel 79 N/A

Liz Claiborne 79 0.0%

Sara Lee 76 -2.6%

All Others 79 0.0%

Athletic Shoes 76 -3.8%

Nike 74 -5.1%

Reebok International 73 -6.4%

All Others 78 -1.3%

Beverages (Beer) 80 -2.4%

Anheuser-Busch 80 -1.2%

Adolph Coors 78 -4.9%

Miller Brewing 78 -3.7%

All Others 81 -2.4%

Beverages(Soft drinks) 82 -4.7%

Cadbury Schweppes 85 -1.2%

PepsiCo 84 -1.2%

Coca Cola 81 -5.8%

Food Processing 82 +1.2%

H J Heinz 89 -1.1%

Hershey 86 +1.2%

Mars 86 +4.9%

Quaker Oats 86 0.0%

General Mills 83 +1.2%

Kellogg 83 0.0%

Nestlé 83 -1.2%

Kraft 82 0.0%

Campbell 81 0.0%

ConAgra 81 -1.2%

Dole 81 -1.2%

Sara Lee 81 -1.2%

Tyson 80 -1.2%

All Others 81 +1.3%

Personal-Care Products (all) 83 -1.2%

Colgate-Palmolive 85 +6.3%

Clorox 85 0.0%

Dial 84 -1.2%

Unilever 83 -2.4%

Procter & Gamble 82 -2.4%

All Others 82 0.0%

Pet Foods 82 -1.2% Colgate-Palmolive 84 +2.4%

Mars 83 +2.5%

Ralston Purina 83 -2.4% H J Heinz 81 -3.6%

Nestlé 81 0.0%

Procter & Gamble 80 N/A

All Others 80 -2.4%

Tobacco(Cigarettes) 76 0.0%

R J Reynolds 77 0.0%

Philip Morris 75 0.0%

All Others 76 0.0%

News source: Wall Street Journal