Gaari Means Car. Car Reviews & Car News

Peugeot has set its network of dealers the challenge of being amongst the best of the people in the business to handle its own customers. This was definitely boosted by the fact that Peugeot has continued its strong 2010 sales performance in even in the other dampened car selling month of August.An excellent performance by its three award winning models, the 3008, 5008 and RCZ, helped Peugeot match its 2009 sales performance in a market that declined by 17.6% by this year August. However, the extra appeal of its new models has strengthened Peugeot’s resilience in a tough post-scrappage market and has helped the brand increase its year to date sales by 16.8%, in a market up by 13.2%.Peugeot in this connection has taken up certain initiatives. It has introduced a Predictive Marketing CRM tool for its Dealer Network as part of its ongoing drive in aftersales to improve customer retention rates and satisfaction levels. Additionally, Peugeot has launched a customer satisfaction programme called Podium 2012.The CRM system developed by Polk extract invoice data daily from Dealer’s DMS to create accurate profile of the vehicle’s likely servicing needs wherefrom the system automatically identifies the right time to contact the customer about the next servicing event due on their vehicle. As a consequence, Dealers are better placed to communicate with customers in a timely and relevant way, and so build a better relationship with customers.The Podium 2012 programme on the other hand will be based on information from JD Power Vehicle Ownership Satisfaction Survey and the New Car Buyers Survey. Based on that all 3,500 customer-facing manufacturer and dealership employees will participate in one of nine events being held around the country in a six-week period with an aim to challenge the perception of what customer service is and with a good understanding of that, be in the top three in any measurement of satisfaction by 2012. These targets to combine the best practice standards and behaviours in 11 areas, including the dealership welcome vehicle handover and explaining service and repairs. The Podium 2012 programme will be followed by a host of operational standards to determine how one should handle the fundamentals of customer service.Commenting on the introduction of Polk, David Higgins, Director, Parts & Service at Peugeot UK, said: “In a world of modern communications, it is essential for Dealers to have the best tools available so that they can continue to offer the right services to customers at the right time and in the most convenient way. Along with electronic vehicle health-check tools, Polk will help Peugeot Dealers increase and optimise workflow through their service facilities and assist actions to deliver first class customer satisfaction. It is a product that is already proven and this move marks a determined effort from Peugeot to engage with its customers to provide a comprehensive aftercare service to suit their needs, and ensure that the Peugeot experience is a positive one for the life of the vehicle. “Regarding Podium 2012, Peugeot UK managing director Jon Goodman said “Dealers have got to stop basing sales on the deal and win customers over on the brand strengths and the appeal of the car. When the customer wants to buy, then the dealer should talk about the price.” Goodman said.The moves are part of a two-year overhaul of Peugeot’s dealer network which comes to fruition in 2010 under the banner ‘back to growth’ with best of customer satisfactions.