A car is only as good as the service it gets

Transcription

1 A car is only as good as the service it gets This is a favourite motto of Sven-Olof Carlsson, CEO of the family company Autoverkstaden Karlshamn & Tingsryd. / 1

2 A car is only as good as the service it gets. This is a favourite motto of Sven-Olof Carlsson, CEO of the family company Autoverkstaden Karlshamn & Tingsryd. The company celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2011 and has been a Saab dealer and service workshop since Otherwise nothing would ever get done, jokes Sven-Olof. Sven-Olof is a son of company founder Henry Carlsson. Autoverkstaden has 38 employees and annual sales of SEK 100 million. The company sells roughly 700 cars per year and its remaining sales come from service, repairs and accessories. Autoverkstaden started out as a workshop in 1936 and added car sales to its business a couple of years later. For a certain period, the company also ran an Esso service station beside the workshop. When Henry retired in 1983, his three sons took over. Two of them remain in the business: Sven-Olof and his brother Jonas, who manages the workshop in Tingsryd. The two brothers make up the Board, so the company has very short decision chains. Otherwise nothing would ever get done, jokes Sven-Olof. / 2

3 Customer focus - the main success factor Dad started out as a car mechanic and always said that a car is only as good as the service it gets On the company s philosophy, Sven-Olof says: Dad started out as a car mechanic and always said that a car is only as good as the service it gets. If you provide good, efficient service, customers will trust you and keep coming back. Long-term relations are the only way of creating profits. Even if you have a big business, cost-consciousness is crucial because margins are small in our sector. Satisfied, returning customers are the key to achieving a reasonable level of profitability. There are no shortcuts. Sven-Olof says that customers today have very little knowledge of how their car works and few are able to do their own repairs safely and correctly. This provides an opening to offer them exactly the services they need - because of course people want to be able to drive their car without problems. Choosing the right employees Another important key to success is committed, service-minded employees. This is one of the reasons why the company doesn t have a piece wage system. All the mechanics are responsible for organising their time. In addition, customer service reps, service advisors and mechanics must constantly communicate with each other and all staff members must take full responsibility. Marketing When asked what kind of marketing has proved most effective, Sven-Olof says: The best marketing method by far is having satisfied customers. This applies equally to car sales and to service and repairs. The best marketing method by far is having satisfied customers. Of course the company also conducts marketing activities, from direct personal offers to broader campaigns. But they ve never considered telemarketing. He points out that their customers choose Autoverkstaden first, then look at the car make. Locally, Autoverkstaden is a stronger brand than any car make on the market. He says that this principle applies throughout Sweden, and examples of several well-known car dealers around the country. You can t always do a satisfactory job at a rock-bottom price. But the cheapest price is not necessarily a customer s top priority. Price is what you pay, value is what you get. / 3

4 Getting it right from the beginning It s vital to do a good job from the beginning. The company has a low staff turnover both in Tingsryd and in Karlshamn. Sven-Olof often recruits school leavers and teaches them the trade. He gets tipped off about promising students and invites them to join Autoverkstaden as apprentices. Training important but not always easy With today s rapid technical development, regular follow-up training is important but not always easy to arrange. In order to keep abreast with advances, mechanics largely need to rely on online training courses (preferably teacher-led) offered by general agents and suppliers. Customer reception The company keeps a detailed, up-to-date register of the cars serviced at the workshop The company keeps a detailed, up-to-date register of the cars serviced at the workshop. This helps them do the best possible job. When a new customer arrives, Autoverkstaden fetches information from all the available systems. Background information is crucial for optimal service. The workshop offers replacement cars and hire cars, and the customer waiting room is strategically positioned next to the car showroom so customers can browse at leisure among new and used cars while they wait. The sales reps can then make contact with them and gauge their interest in a new car. Waiting times Autoverkstaden has three to seven days waiting time for service and repairs. In Sven-Olof s experience, customers will not accept a longer waiting time. He compares it to having toothache and having to wait more than a week to see a dentist. He says that waiting times have generally become shorter because customers simply won t accept being without their car for long. He goes so far as to claim that if a workshop makes customers wait more than a week, there aren t enough mechanics working there. Other services they offer include pre-mot inspection and taking the customer s car for the MOT test. This service is popular and in high demand. It saves the customer having to book and attend the test, and it is reassuring sending an expert who understands what s going on during the test. / 4

5 They usually arrive the next day, or even the same day if we re lucky Parts management We have a big stock of spare parts, perhaps too big. But we still don t always have everything we need, says Sven-Olof. But any parts we lack can usually be supplied quickly by general agents and suppliers. They usually arrive the next day, or even the same day if we re lucky. This is important since most customers want their car back either the same day or the next day. Building loyal customers As a car dealer, Autoverkstaden provides customers with a 1-year peace of mind agreement entitling them to a discount on service and repairs at Autoverkstaden. This agreement is highly appreciated and utilised by the customers. In addition, Autoverkstaden has tyre hotels in Karlshamn and Tingsryd, a popular service that creates customer loyalty. During the quiet months of January and February, the workshop inspects the summer tyres placed in winter storage. The tyre hotels are currently full. Sven-Olof is noticing a reversal of the recent trend towards longer service intervals. Annual service intervals are good for both customers and the workshop. It allows enough time for faults to be detected and rectified at an early stage, giving customers peace of mind. However, like with the dentist, the customer sometimes needs to be sent a checkup reminder. There are various more or less sophisticated methods of sending a reminder. Sometimes Autoverkstaden outsources this task to an external partner. Follow-up After more complex repairs have been performed, the workshop supervisor calls the customer to check that the car is working properly. When dealing with customer contacts and follow-up activities, it is important to avoid being too intrusive. As CEO, it s an advantage for me to have worked on the shop floor Summary Always focus on customer benefit. If you do this, you can build a strong brand for your workshop - even stronger than an individual car brand. Sven-Olof concludes: - As CEO, it s an advantage for me to have worked on the shop floor. When problems arise, I don t just stand there looking black. / 5