J.D. Power and DealerRater Report: Dealers, Do You Want to Boost Sales? Tune Up Your Service Center

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., March 24, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Dealers wanting to increase their vehicle sales should focus on the back of their store, as sales are directly affected by customer experiences in the service department, according to the March 2015 PowerRater Consumer Pulse, a monthly analysis developed jointly by J.D. Power and DealerRater.

An alliance between J.D. Power and DealerRater integrates each company's capabilities to gather comprehensive vehicle shopper feedback based on J.D. Power's customer satisfaction research and DealerRater's consumer ratings and reviews of car dealerships.

Key Findings

• A dealer's ability to satisfy its service customers boosts its reputation for good service, which may ultimately lead to increased vehicle sales.   
• Highly satisfied service customers (overall satisfaction scores of 901-1,000 on a 1,000-point scale) are more likely to write a review about their experience, compared with those who are merely satisfied or indifferent (scores of 750-900), according to J.D. Power.¹ Among the 37 percent of highly satisfied customers, 4.3 percent indicate that they posted an online review of their experience. In contrast, less than 3 percent of service customers who are either merely satisfied or indifferent posted an online review.
• Among highly satisfied customers who posted an online review of their last service experience, 91 percent of the reviews were positive; among merely satisfied or indifferent customers who posted a review, only 71 percent of the comments were positive.
• According to data collected by DealerRater,² 40 percent of car buyers indicate that the service department's reputation was significantly important in choosing the dealer they purchased from.

"Clearly, there is a strong incentive for dealers to maximize customer satisfaction as it leads to a greater likelihood that customers will post a positive review, helping to support the reputation of the dealer's service department," said Chris Sutton, vice president, U.S. automotive retail practice at J.D. Power.

As shown in data collected by DealerRater, improving its service reputation via positive reviews not only increases a dealership's likelihood of new service business, but it also positively impacts its ability to sell vehicles.

"Considering how competitive the market is, and the tight profit margins that dealers are fighting, strengthening online reputation to maximize sales opportunities is becoming a critical business objective for new-vehicle dealers," said Gary Tucker, chief executive officer of DealerRater.

Where Improvements Can Be Made

J.D. Power identifies the five processes with the highest potential impact on customer satisfaction with dealer service:

• Service advisor who focuses on customer's needs (+73 points)
• Providing the customer with helpful advice (+55 points)
• Getting the vehicle fixed right the first time (+53 points)
• Access to the service advisor within two minutes of arrival (+45 points)
• Ensuring the vehicle is ready when originally promised (+41 points)

On average, dealers fix vehicles right the first time 93 percent of the time, and service advisors focus on customers' needs 92 percent of the time. What's left? Sutton noted that dealers can focus on improving timely access to advisors and setting realistic expectations for when vehicles will be ready, which are met only 73 percent and 77 percent of the time, respectively.

About J.D. Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules www.jdpower.com/about-us/press-release-info
About McGraw Hill Financial www.mhfi.com 
About DealerRater http://www.dealerrater.com/company/

Media Relations Contacts
John Tews; J.D. Power; Troy, Mich.; 248-680-6218; [email protected]
Wendi McAden; DealerRater; 424-903-3644; [email protected]

No advertising or other promotional use can be made of the information in this release without the express prior written consent of J.D. Power or DealerRater. www.jdpower.com/corporate  www.DealerRater.com

¹ Source: J.D. Power 2015 U.S. Customer Service Index (CSI) Study^SM, which measures customer satisfaction with service at a franchised dealer facility for maintenance or repair work among owners and lessees of 1- to 5-year-old vehicles. The 2015 U.S. CSI Study is based on responses from more than 70,000 owners and lessees of 2010 to 2014 model-year vehicles and was fielded between November and December 2014. Data of online reviews are based on owners and lessees of 1- to 3-year-old vehicles.

² Based on a survey, conducted between February 27 and March 16, 2015, of 15,211 consumers who wrote a review on DealerRater.com after recently purchasing a vehicle or visiting a dealership for service.

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SOURCE J.D. Power

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