The repair shop can make a big difference in the way a customer views a dealership - and a brand.
Lexus and Mini are the brands most likely to satisfy customers – at least those owners who take their vehicles in for service, reports J.D. Power and Associates.
While its conventional wisdom that consumers will be heavily pressed to make unnecessary repairs by greedy dealers, the 2011 Customer Service Index reveals that very few owners actually face “upsell” pressure from dealers who want to perform unnecessary repairs.
Only 7% of customers faced such pressures, according to Power’s survey of nearly 100,000 owners and lessees of 2006 through 2010 model-year vehicles. But the report reveals that the older the vehicle the more likely an owner is to face upselling. And, in some cases, that’s not necessarily a bad thing, reports Power.
Suggesting additional service work can actually benefit both customers and dealerships,” according to Jon Osborn, Power’s research director, because “customers may prolong the life of their vehicle while service facilities may gain additional revenue.”
Nonetheless, he stressed that dealers need to properly train their staff to suggest additional work only when it is truly necessary – and not to make customers feel unduly pressured.
Other studies show that customers who feel they have been overcharged or otherwise mishandled may abandon a dealer and even defect to another brand. On a 1,000-point scale, Power found the average service customer satisfaction score was 780. But that fell to just 642 among those who experienced pressure from the service department.
The new Customer Service Index found that the amount of pressure owners felt seemed directly linked to the age of their vehicle. Only 4% of those with models of less than a year old reported upselling, but the figure jumped to 9% among owners of four-year-old vehicles.
The CSI looks at a variety of other factors, including service quality, service initiation, service advisor, service facility and vehicle pickup.
Among individual brands, Lexus ranked highest overall, while also leading the luxury segment, with a score of 846. Close behind were Jaguar, Cadillac and Acura. Meanwhile, Volvo and Porsche scored the biggest improvements over their 2010 scores.
On the mainstream side, Mini ranked highest, with a score of 805 points – up 19 points from the 2010 Customer Service Index. The top five mainstream list was rounded out by GMC, Buick, Chevrolet and Kia. Mazda and Suzuki, meanwhile, posted the greatest improvements.
As customer satisfaction with dealer service has improved that’s been matched by dealers winning an increased share of repair work. Between 2007 and 2011, Power found, the share of service visits at dealer facilities rose from 67% to 74% among customers whose vehicles were still covered under warranty.
“By becoming more competitive in terms of cost and convenience, dealer service facilities are making progress in capturing share from non-dealer service facilities,” said Osborn. Going forward, that could prove “vital,” he added, in an era when new car sales have been running at decades-low levels.