SERVICE IS FRONT AND CENTRE AT MODERN DEALERSHIPS
A funny thing happened when I went to retrieve my car the other day from my dealership after getting winter tires installed.
It had transformed. No longer was it a cramped facility with inadequate parking but a super-modern, expansive and stylish operation. When my colleague drove me to the facility, I wasn’t paying close attention, and he instinctively drove to the back of the dealership looking for the service bay doors where I would locate my car. “Where is the service area?” he asked.
It was a valid question, because for many of you reading this, the service bay is tucked away from your showroom where your prime real estate is reserved for showcasing and selling new vehicles.
But the service area wasn’t at the back of the store at all. The service drive-thru was a massive, well-lit area with a door that automatically opened when you pulled up near it, and it was the first place you turn into after entering the dealership’s parking lot.
It was as prominent and beautifully designed as the sales showroom that sat opposite it on the south side of the building.
When I drove in and the doors shut behind me, the service advisor had been expecting me, and reviewed the reasons I was there. ”Oh, and I’d like an oil change too, not just winter tires,” I said. “No problem sir, do you need a ride today?”
When I entered the store to talk to the service advisor, it was more like an Apple store than a service department. There were retail offerings, and I bought a nice Christmas gift basket for my daughter (who drives the same brand as I do.)
There’s a lot at stake in changing the perceptions of what the service experience is like at dealerships — and a lot of money.
In August last year, the J.D. Power 2013 Canadian Customer Commitment Index Study asked more than 21,000 Canadian owners about their service experience at a dealership vs. the aftermarket.
The study found that the distinction between what services can be obtained at a dealership or at an aftermarket provider are blurring in the public’s mind. “There is a convergence going on as service departments fight for market share,” said J.D. Ney, supervisor of the Canadian automotive practice at J.D. Power.
“Service providers don’t want to give customers any reason to go anywhere else, so they’re offering a full or wider spectrum of products and services to attract them and keep them coming back.”
More importantly, and the worrisome trend for dealers, is that customers were generally more satisfied with the overall service experience performed by aftermarket providers.
The authors of the study found that 79 per cent of customers who are highly satisfied with their service experience are more likely to buy the same brand the next time they purchase a vehicle. That number plunged to only 46 per cent with unhappy service customers.
Those are good numbers and good reasons to elevate your customer experience — making vehicle servicing front and centre, not the back of your operation.
