Yesterday, I talked about the need for a feedback loop to insure you stay on track with your goals. Today, I experienced one that a vendor used that will keep his organization focused on its customer loyalty goal. It was fast, simple, and very effective.
I took my car to a dealer to get new brakes and an oil change. The dealer had a comfortable lounge with free Wi-Fi, a cappuccino machine, and computer workspaces. I was able to work for several hours and even had a client meeting there. They kept me informed on their progress, and even checked in hourly to see if everything from the temperature to the coffee freshness was satisfactory. They vacuumed and washed my car, and everyone called me by name. Their specials on brakes and oil changes saved me over $200 from my tire store quote. I left happy and satisfied.
Less than 24 hours later, I received a call from a dealer staff person asking me if I would be willing to take a short survey on my experience. I said yes, and this is what she asked me:
Was I greeted with a smile? YES
Was the work and time table explained to me properly? YES
Was my waiting area satisfactory? YES
Did they let me know a customer rep would be calling today? DON’T REMEMBER BUT DON’T DING ‘EM
Did they keep me informed on their progress? YES
Did they wash the car and vacuum the front driver and passenger side? YES
Was I satisfied with the work done? YES
On a scale of 1-10, how would I rate the experience? 9 (I never give 10’s)
The interview took less than a minute and left me appreciating their dealership even more. I suspect the service manager gets a daily report of the survey results and uses it to adjust his focus on that day’s customers. The key was the quickness of the follow up and local nature of the surveyor.
I don’t know if the survey created the great service or just confirmed it. I do know that what gets inspected gets respected. Finally, if you go ahead and give great service first, the number of surveys completed compared to “no thank you’s” will go up as well. Eastern Shore Hyundai can call me anytime!