The Compliance Score.
A Compliance score reflects the average alignment in qualities between a company’s offerings and what can be described as free market ‘needs’, more simply defined as compliance with consumer demand and market standards.
Compliance scores are collected to aid in quantifying whether a company seeks to succeed by filling consumer needs or instead move towards attempting to dictate market standards through non-merit based practices.
A company with an above average Compliance score will likely be exceeding consumer expectations by producing products with innovations not yet requested by the public that push the space forward. Their products will likely be held in high-regard due to consistent performance and improvement reflecting consumer feedback or evolving industry standards. They will likely not neglect major elements of the product’s lifecycle or impact, creating well-rounded offerings that rarely disappoint.
A company with a below average Compliance score will likely fail to meet expectations or consumer demand, whether through failure to meet industry benchmarks or through production of rushed products that neglect major elements of their lifecycle in favor of qualities that keep them relevant to larger economies or economic discourse. Their maintained market share will likely be heavily reliant on corporate maneuvers rather than product merit.
Some metrics we consider include consumer satisfaction, fulfillment of benchmarks, well-roundedness of offerings, meaningful innovations and more. Many of our most simple commendations or demerits will result from clear successes or failures to hit the mark provided by consumer interest.
Tastemaker scores Compliance using a proprietary method where true neutral can only be achieved if a company debuts a product or service that is perfectly aligned with industry standards and cost. Any subsequent releases by either the company or peers will result in change to the score that will create a disparity from true neutral.
All score adjustments are subject to internal audit at any time if additional information or attenuating circumstances can be found.
Commendable Actions
Successful fulfillment of consumer desires generated by a prior release will be seen as commendable.
Successful fulfillment of consumer desires generated by a competitor release will be seen as commendable.
Successful adaptation of industry standard technology for compatibility will be seen as commendable.
Successful usage of consumer feedback to create complementary products or adaptive updates will be seen as commendable.
Creation of a product or service that fulfills an intended purpose at a desirable level without neglecting any elements of production, lifecycle or further use will be seen as commendable.
Creation of a product or service that renders a previously necessary secondary product purchase obsolete before purchase will be seen as commendable.
Creation of a product with cosmetic changes reflecting consumer demand without neglecting prior releases will be seen as commendable.
Demerit Worthy Actions
Unsatisfactory fulfillment of consumer desires generated by a prior release will be seen as demerit worthy.
Unsatisfactory fulfillment of consumer desires generated by a competitor release will be seen as demerit worthy.
Unsatisfactory fulfillment of consumer expectations based on superlative marketing will be seen as demerit worthy.
Creation of proprietary technology requiring unique accessories incompatible with previous releases or the industry standard will be seen as extremely demerit worthy.
Creation of a product or service that distinctly neglects elements of market ‘needs’ will be seen as demerit worthy. Creation of a product or service that distinctly neglects elements of market ‘needs’ to fulfill a timeline or marketing push will be seen as extremely demerit worthy.
Creation of a product or service that attempts to usurp higher-performing products via offering poor performance at a lower price, particularly if marketed as a budget option, will be seen as demerit worthy.
Creation of a product or service entirely ancillary to market ‘needs’ with marketing designed to suggest feature changes as meaningful innovation to market standards will be seen as demerit worthy.
Creation of a product or service with cosmetic changes designed to separate it from prior releases without meaningful enhancements in other areas will be seen as demerit worthy.
Appeals to scoring can be conducted by reaching out to an established Point-of-Contact with Tastemaker, or by request including any attenuating information from a company domain to compliance@tastemaker.online. Appeals may be subject to costs associated with verification if attenuating information is not deemed satisfactory. The appeal process will be conducted on a timeline and cost basis determined to be appropriate by Tastemaker and agreed upon by the entity appealing.