Customer Speak – A Marketing Blog from Bridgz Marketing Group

How to Leave Customers Raving by Bridgz

Today’s post comes from Bridgz’s director of production services Denise Maher-Gall.

Car dealerships and car salesmen get a bad rap for being crooked, uncaring and even slimy. However, this last spring my husband and I had a wonderful customer experience with the purchase of our 2011 Jeep Liberty.

We were previous Jeep owners and we were partial to purchasing another Jeep. However, with all of the changes in the SUV market and the cost of gasoline, we were hesitant. After spending weeks looking through advertisements and test-driving other vehicles, we headed to a Five Star Chrysler Jeep dealership near our home. A friendly salesman greeted us and as we discussed our concerns he answered our questions and recommended we start our decision process by test-driving a Jeep Patriot, which he told us to take for the day.

Upon returning the vehicle, we explained our aversions and he scheduled us to test-drive a Dodge Journey the following Saturday, again for the day. After returning the vehicle and reviewing the pros and cons, we went back the following week and took a day to test-drive the Jeep Liberty, which we ultimately decided to purchase.

The salesman made it a point to create an easy and stress-free customer experience. He was engaged with our concerns and worked with us to ensure we made the right decision rather than just selling a car. The real difference was test-driving a car for a day without a sales rep in the passenger seat. In my opinion, this tactic creates trust between the customer and the dealership.

Our exceptional experience didn’t end there. A few days later we received a call from the dealership asking for feedback on our sales rep, our purchasing experience, and what they could do to improve things in the future. That same week we received a hand-written note from the General Manager thanking us for our business. A few months later, we received a call from our salesman asking if we were still happy with our choice and reminding us that our first oil change was complimentary. Then last month, when my husband brought the Jeep in for service, the salesman greeted my husband in the customer lounge, asked if he needed a ride home rather than waiting, and offered to help my husband with his Christmas shopping – he had a brand new convertible in the show room that was just my color, and he was sure I’d love it. As expected, a few days afterwards, we received a friendly call from the dealership asking how our service was and if we had any concerns or suggestions.

This dealership obviously puts an enormous amount of emphasis on the customer experience and the customer relationship, even after the sale of the car. Because of this, we feel good about our purchase decision, as well as taking our vehicle there for service, and we have referred this dealership to others. I wish the retailer that sold us our big screen TV had the same customer experience and engagement policy!

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