Ryan Robinson, director of the Canadian automotive practice at J.D. Power and Associates
Canada’s auto dealers have taken it on the chin vs. some aftermarket providers in a new study that measures customer satisfaction with the service experience for their vehicles. The findings were released in the J.D. Power and Associates 2012 Canadian Customer Commitment Index Study.
The study measures the service behaviours, satisfaction and loyalty of owners of vehicles that are four to 12 years old. Overall customer satisfaction is determined by examining five key factors of the service experience: service initiation; service advisor; service facility; service quality; and vehicle pick-up. The study examines customer satisfaction with both new-vehicle dealerships and aftermarket facilities.
The study finds that 42 per cent of customers who rate their dealer service experience 10 (on a 10-point scale) indicate they “definitely will” purchase the same make the next time they shop for a new vehicle. In contrast, only seven per cent of customers who rate their service experience between one and five say they “definitely will” purchase the same make.
“The dealership service staff essentially acts as a second salesperson to the customer after they have purchased the vehicle,” said Ryan Robinson, director of the Canadian automotive practice at J.D. Power and Associates. “The interactions they have with customers after the sale is critical to ensuring that customers not only purchase the same make of vehicle in the future, but also do so at the same dealership. The link between service satisfaction and future vehicle purchase intent is a critical one.”
The study finds that customers prefer to be communicated with via the same communication channel they use to schedule service appointments, indicating a comfort level with that channel. Among customers who schedule a service appointment via telephone, 54 per cent prefer to be contacted in the future by telephone, compared with email (32 per cent) and traditional mail (10 per cent). Similarly, among customers scheduling service appointments via the Internet, 66 per cent prefer to be contacted by email, compared with phone (22 per cent), traditional mail (3 per cent) or text message (8 per cent).
“Knowing how a customer contacts a dealership is just as important as the communication itself,” said Robinson. “The study shows that customers prefer to be contacted in the way that they schedule appointments. The additional effort that service staff put into the method of communication provides an opportunity to set the tone for the upcoming service interaction.”
While dealership service departments are proficient in more areas than are specialty shops, such as facilities dedicated to oil changes, customer satisfaction with an oil change at a dealer service centre is 28 points lower (823 on a 1,000-point scale) than at a quick lube facility (851).
“Specialty shops can focus on a particular service and optimize the processes to make it as painless and quick as possible for customers,” said Robinson. “In contrast, dealerships need to be prepared to handle any type of vehicle repair, making it more difficult to streamline any one service and provide a quick in-and-out appointment for most customers. However, dealerships should improve satisfaction within the most common activities first and expand to others.”
The study found that NAPA AUTOPRO ranked highest in satisfying automotive service customers in Canada with an overall index score of 879. Rounding out the five highest-ranked brands are Jiffy Lube (857); Mr. Lube (849); Great Canadian Oil Change (848); and Subaru Dealerships (847).
The 2012 Canadian Customer Commitment Index Study is based on responses from more than 18,000 owners in Canada whose vehicles are between four and 12 years old. The study was fielded in January and February 2012 and in June and July 2012.
