November 2020

BY Andy Savva W e all know customers are one of the key elements of any thriving garage business and if you do not keep them satisfied, they will simply go elsewhere for the services you provide. It is a simple fact, but one that is so often overlooked by businesses up and down the country and the people who work within them. Everyone within your garage has a critical role to play in delivering excellent customer service. There are many distractions that get in the way of us providing a positive experience to customers, as I like to call it; ‘An Experience’. I regularly witness employees not understanding customer perceptions, and people who are placed into reception roles who do not possess the necessary skills and ability to qualify and deal with a customer from start to finish. Worse than that the processes within the business are inadequate which does nothing to assist these poor folks. We should all realise the importance of building long-term relationships with customers, understanding what many business commentators call the lifetime value of a customer, after all without them the business does not exist. Motivation If we are going to provide an exceptional service to our customers, we first need to understand what their motivation is in dealing with us in the first place. Some buy because they find your price to be the lowest, some because they find your services 14 AFTERMARKET NOVEMBER 2020 BUSINESS www.aftermarketonline.net COMMUNICATING ESSENTIALS Communication is the key to keeping customers happy says Andy, but how does a business make sure that the lines are open at all times?

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