Aftermarket March 2022

MARCH 2022 AFTERMARKET 53 www.aftermarketonline.net of an advertorial with him that he showed to Roy and Liz for their approval. “It’s a piece on the history of the business.” Tony then went on to discuss setting up a 23- point check offer. “Would you offer this for free, or do you want to charge for it or do it in conjunction with a service?” Tony asked Roy. “Actually, we find that if you offer something for free, people say ‘free? We don’t want that!’,” he replied. “For us it would be better if we set it at £19.99. When we have done things like this in the past, the free tests have not been taken up, but we can’t believe the demand for the paid-for ones. I think because people are paying for it, they value it more.” Tony continued: “I can produce this for you, and we can put it on social media platforms. As for the 23-point check, all the paperwork templates are on Design HQ, Eurorepar’s dedicated marketing portal for members, you just need to download it.” Making sure the business is getting the most from their membership, Tony then moved onto their Perks Prize points: “For every Pound you spend you get a point, and later you can convert those into Amazon vouchers, or a whole host of other things online. It’s quite useful.” Tony then brought out some graphics that showed where the business was in the process of taking advantage of the support for development that ECRS offers. “This shows where they are in the process. You can see social media optimisation and fleet work optimisation, but we still need to continue focus on fleet work with them. Then there is Design HQ optimisation, whether they have had that, Google My Business, whether we have had that, and Service Box usage and whether Liz or Roy are using that. Then we look at the spend. We give them a target, then they get a 10% rebate on supplier brand parts like Bosch, Delphi, LuK etc, and also Eurorepar as well, but not OE. We try to give them visibility of their targets and objectives.” Liz observed: “It helps us track our spending. Another thing is when you order from Eurorepar, they get the parts right first time. It makes a huge difference to turnover in the business and to customers, who are happy getting their car back the same day. Another thing I like is that if they can’t get you the part, they will tell you when it will turn up. If they say 48 hours, it will be 48 hours. I can then let the customer know.” Increase Tony then looked at the Google stats, to make sure the business was tracking in the right direction. “The good thing is, from a brand perspective, they are on the increase. We can attribute some of that to Eurorepar. We can’t take all the glory though as they are a known Peugeot/Citroen specialist.” The various offers were explained as well, and Tony discussed with Roy and Liz whether or not some of these would work for them. Once this had all been wrapped up, we made our farewells and prepared for our next stop. Understanding Tony’s role as a ERCS BDM was clearly very collaborative: “The important thing is understanding the type of business you are working with and the people within that business. We get involved in so many different elements of their business. If, for example they are on OneLink, and they want to offer a health check, I can go through that with them, to make sure the window that customers see is positive, and it really tells everyone about their business. This includes very simple things like collection and delivery area, opening and closing times and lead times.” He will generally visit two or three sites in a day, then return to base to follow through on the action points raised during the visit: “I’ll do that the same night. That is my commitment to the guys.” Connection Our next stop was a little way up the coast in East Preston. Hares of Sussex is a long-standing feature in the area, having started life as a bike shop in nearby Arundel in 1908. Fast-forward to today, and the business is a car dealer and garage, based on a site in a prime location in what is generally a relatively affluent area. Hares became a ERCS centre in 2018, shortly after the network was launched in a blaze of tangerine the previous year. On what attracted them to the network, MD Nick Gray said: “Firstly there was the connection to PSA, as I felt there was some strength behind it. We’d get people coming in asking if we want to join one scheme or another, but I would often feel there was nothing really behind it. What Eurorepar had was both the parts side and the technical side, and something with the pull of what is now Stellantis.” Where the owners at our previous stop were really using the support from ERCS to make the most of their membership, Hares were doing things a little differently: “We do mostly our own marketing.” We asked if the ERCS signage provided a boost: “It certainly attracts people,” replied Nick. “When we put them up here, people notice it and say that it stands out.” On being a local business in a national network, Nick said: “It doesn’t hurt, people around here probably know the name from our signage, and associate the brand with us.” Access to parts is the big motivator for Hares. “Distance from Worthing here is probably 12 minutes” observed Tony. “They are excellent” replied Nick. “They are here at 7.30am or 8am with the delivery.” Once Tony had dealt with the rebate discussion, that was it. A much shorter visit, with less follow-up required. According to Tony, this bespoke approach works well: “Some are more demanding, while some that we have been working with for some time ultimately don’t need as much support. It’s about offering and providing a level of backing that works for both parties.” The important thing is understanding the type of business you are working with and the people within that business ” Right: Roy and Liz Hutchings