Bangkok--29 Jul--J.D. Power Asia Pacific
Properly Setting Customer Expectations for Service Timing and Costs is Critical to Improving Satisfaction with Dealer After-Sales Service
Providing accurate estimates of service completion times and costs and consistently meeting these estimates are key to creating high levels of customer satisfaction with dealer after-sales service in Thailand, according to the J.D. Power Asia Pacific 2010 Thailand Customer Service Index (CSI) StudySM released today.
The study measures new-vehicle owner satisfaction with the after-sales service process by examining dealership performance in five factors. In order of importance, they are: service quality; vehicle pickup; service advisor; service facility; and service initiation. Customer service performance is reported as an index score based on a 1,000-point scale. Overall customer satisfaction averages 823 in 2010, improving by 6 points from 2009.
Among the nine brands included in the study, Toyota ranks highest for a third consecutive year, achieving a score of 829. Toyota performs particularly well in the service initiation, service facility, vehicle pickup and service quality factors. Following Toyota in the rankings is Honda, which achieves a score of 824 and performs particularly well in the service advisor factor.
Among customers who indicate their vehicle was ready when originally promised, satisfaction averages 827—substantially higher than among customers who say that the dealer provided no time estimate at all (801, on average), or failed to meet the estimated time (730, on average). Similarly, among vehicle owners who claim the actual service costs were the same or less than the original estimate, satisfaction averages 827—higher than among owners who say they received no estimate (815, on average) or that the actual costs were higher than the estimate (766, on average).
“Service customers in Thailand are becoming increasingly sensitive to how well dealerships are meeting their initial service timing and cost estimates,” said Loic Pean, country manager at J.D. Power Asia Pacific, Thailand. “Indeed, not only has the gap in overall satisfaction widened between customers who receive accurate estimates and those that do not, we also observe that customers who are not provided with estimates tend to be more satisfied than customers who receive estimates that are incorrect. In a sense, customers are telling us that no promise is better than an empty promise.”
Among customers who say their vehicle was ready when originally promised, 96 percent indicate they believed the servicing time was “reasonable.” However, among customers whose vehicles were not ready when promised, only 59 percent said the same. Similarly, among customers who say their actual service costs were the same or lower than the original estimate, 95 percent indicate that the price paid was “reasonable.” Among customers whose actual costs were higher than the original estimate, only 75 percent say the same.
“Customer perceptions of what constitutes reasonable service time and cost of service—both of which are essential to satisfying customers—are closely related to the dealer’s ability to provide correct estimates prior to service,” said Pean.
The study also finds that more than one-half of customers who say they are “delighted” with dealer service (providing a rating of 10 on a 10-point scale) have made at least one positive recommendation about their service dealer. This figure averages just 17 percent among customers who say they are “disappointed” (providing a rating of five or below on a 10-point scale.)
“While the vast majority of service customers in Thailand tend not to make negative recommendations when they are disappointed, it is interesting and encouraging for dealers to note that delighted customers can become real dealer advocates and spread the news about their quality of service, demonstrating a clear benefit of seeking superior customer satisfaction,” said Pean.
The 2010 Thailand Customer Service Index (CSI) study, now in its eleventh year, measures the overall satisfaction of vehicle owners who visit an authorized dealer/service center for maintenance or repair work during the first 12 to 24 months of ownership.
This study is based on responses from 2,840 new vehicle owners who purchased their vehicles between January 2008 and April 2009 and took their vehicle for service to an authorized dealer or service center between July 2009 and April 2010. The study was fielded between January and April 2010.
About J.D. Power Asia Pacific
J.D. Power Asia Pacific has offices in Tokyo, Singapore, Beijing, Shanghai and Bangkok that conduct customer satisfaction research and provide performance analytics services in the automotive, information technology and finance industries. Together, the five offices bring the language of customer satisfaction to consumers and businesses in China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. Information regarding J.D. Power Asia Pacific and its products can be accessed through the Internet at www.jdpower.com. Media e-mail contact:
[email protected].
About J.D. Power and Associates
Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services company operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, performance improvement, Web intelligence and customer satisfaction. The company’s quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.
About The McGraw-Hill Companies
Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP) is a leading global information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial services, education and business information markets through leading brands such as Standard & Poor's, McGraw-Hill Education, BusinessWeek and J.D. Power and Associates. The Corporation has more than 280 offices in 40 countries. Sales in 2008 were $6.4 billion. Additional information is available at www.mcgraw-hill.com.
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