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A complaint
is a gift. It gives dealerships the opportunity to right a
wrong (perceived or actual), re-establish credibility and
trust, and win additional business.
AED gave
your customers a chance to complain in its just-published
Product Support Opportunities Handbook, the second in a series
of exclusive studies on parts and service management.
More than
450 equipment customers from across North America weighed
in on issues ranging from the accuracy of quotes (they're
wrong more often than not) to response time (independent technicians
rate higher than dealerships on this issue).
The feedback
customers share in this study is an essential ingredient in
cooking up a plan to better serve their product support needs.
Such as:
- "Buying
dealership parts instead of aftermarket parts keeps the
resale value up, otherwise we'd use all aftermarket parts."
- "We're
looking for good field diagnostic capabilities to minimize
downtime, flexible schedules in the service department to
accommodate our machines in a timely manner."
- "Dealer
prices are extremely high, service is slow and their attitude
is terrible."
Ouch!
The handbook
also establishes, for the first time, dealership share of
the total parts and service market. (It's not good news, which
means there's lots of opportunity.) The details it provides
can help individual dealerships pinpoint the size of their
parts and service market, which in turn will enable them to
determine which areas of their territory are ripe for more
business.
This presents
a dilemma, though. If you know the size of your market, it's
up to all employees to accomplish as much as they can with
this opportunity.
The new
handbook thus also demonstrates the need to improve the professionalism
of product support operations. It starts with employees who
understand what doing a good job means. The Product Support
Opportunities Handbook covers all aspects of the parts and
service world: parts purchases by part family, service purchases
by repair categories and maintenance. It reveals why customers
choose the suppliers they choose.
Sharing
this with employees enhances their ability to deliver excellent
service. Although not directly quantifiable, this value is
felt, seen and heard by customers. It adds to their satisfaction,
which translates into increased business--and profitability.
A complaint
is a gift only if a business owner is prepared to make improvements.
Your customers are helping you. In the Product Support Opportunities
Handbook, they explain exactly what dealerships need to do
to earn their loyalty.
If dealerships
don't address the issues raised in this new study, they'll
face more pressure than ever in the years to come. Don't waste
this golden opportunity to grow.
If a
dealership could maintain your equipment for less than it
now costs, would you outsource that work to the dealer?
Yes: 66%
No:
23%
Who performs
most of the routine maintenance on your equipment?
My mechanics:
70%
Independent mechanics: 11%
Dealers: 8%
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