So often, we take to the blogosphere to whine and complain about horrible 
customer service. Lord knows I’ve done it more times than I can count.
I’d like to use this post as a beacon of positivity, if that’s OK with you.
This past weekend, I had to spend a significant chunk of change getting service done on my car, a 2004 Honda Civic Hybrid. (When I got the car seven years ago, I named it “Captain Planet.” I’m that guy.)
After 123,000 miles of hard-earned wear and tear, the Captain needed some upgrades, especially since that is the car my daughter will be riding in everyday.
I took it to the Honda dealership in College Park, MD, where I had received great service before.
This experience was exceptional…and here are some reasons why:
Free WiFi in the Waiting Room
Taking your car to the shop is a pain. You either need to arrange for a ride or a rental…or sit watching reruns of “Tyler Perry’s House of Payne” while a half-dozen kids run around the waiting room.
By having free WiFi in the waiting room, I was able to be productive on many levels, making the time fly by.
If you have a business where people will spend significant time waiting, installing free WiFi is a fantastic way to minimize inconvenience.
Clear Outlining of Issues
When my service adviser, Frank, came to talk to me about the necessary repairs, he had the following things ready to discuss:
- Description of the work
- Time required to complete the repairs
- Estimated cost
- Consequences of not getting the repairs done
- Information about them providing a rental car for the day
WOW!
There were no questions I could have asked that he wasn’t prepared to answer.
When you can do a little research and be able to anticipate questions your customers may have, you are providing excellent service.
Be An Advocate For Your Customer And Your Business
Frank and I had an open discussion about the repairs and if they were critical, including what would happen if we didn’t take care of them immediately.
I had the final decision on what work was going to get done, obviously, but I never felt pressured to get things done I wasn’t comfortable with, especially since there was a hefty price tag attached to it.
But Frank talked me through the issues as if it were his own car – I wasn’t just a dollar sign, which made me feel confident I had come to the right shop.
When he outlined how the shop was prepared to help financially, they had a very happy customer.
As a business, you offer a service, and your goal is to get consumers to purchase as much of that service as possible. However, when you make investments in your customers, they will come back to time and time again.
It just took a minor expense, a little preparation and a lot of consideration, but I can’t imagine taking my car anywhere but College Park Honda for the foreseeable future.
[...] 5th, 2012 | PR Several months back, I wrote about the amazing experience I had taking my 2004 Honda Civic Hybrid (named Captain Planet, naturally) to College Park Honda in College [...]