I want to share with you an experience I had with my youngest daughter at the dealership from which she leased her new car.

CUSTOMER LOYALTY AND SATISFACTION

As her sales counselor was going over the details about her new car and it’s workings, he introduced a paper which absolutely intrigued me. It was titled, “Right From The Start,” a car care seminar which is conducted at the dealership. The literature states, this seminar is designed to help new owners get the most of their transportation investments. It explains how to properly care for the vehicle, spot and avoid trouble. It also explains the importance of regular maintenance and shows what to expect and request in this area.

The brochure features samples of what you will learn, like checking and filling fluids, replacing fuses, changing tires, familiarizing yourself with your owner’s manual and getting to know the service team. The sales counselor told my daughter there would be a technician on hand with her model car in the service department with whom she could talk to learn more about her vehicle and see what and where everything is.

The dealership holds the seminar once a month and asked my daughter to sign up, which she did. You didn’t think I’d let her say no, did you? Plus, she gets roadside assistance for the first 36 months/36,000 miles. That’s what I’d call customer service.

Before leaving, my daughter asked, “When my lease is up, how much will it cost me to lease a new car?” More amazement on my part. Here’s a young lady just taking delivery of her first new car, and already she’s asking about getting another one. This kid just got branded with customer loyalty.

So, what’s the point for you flooring people? I offer you this true story as a unique opportunity to try something like this with your products: A monthly flooring care seminar. Conduct it yourself or have the manufacturer reps on hand to help. You can register customers at the time of purchase. You might give demonstrations on care and have a Hoover rep on hand to talk about vacuum cleaners and show how to attend to spots and spills. Here’s a way you can beat your competition and make more profit. What a fascinating concept: Be so different in such a simple, obvious way, you build unyielding customer loyalty.

The motto of this Pontiac dealership is, “Putting People First.” It is on the back of every car. What the owner and management do shows they know how to service their customers. They even have a little, in-house cafe which serves breakfast and lunch. You don’t have to have a deli in your store, but hot coffee, beverages, and maybe some fresh cookies or snacks would be a treat.

Being a business and marketing major, I am always fascinated with unique ideas. Why be like everyone else? What’s the fun and excitement in that? Being different, caring in a special way for your customers and providing assistance with something about which they normally have questions is so simple. Unfortunately, this is so out of the ordinary for most businesses, they do not see it.

The idea I have explained here is so blatantly obvious it smacks of genius. But then, most super successful businesses are so aware of their customers needs, the ideas they have are astonishing. In fact, they’re born of simply paying attention to details and listening to your clients.

This dealer is doing nothing terribly different from its competition. It has obviously looked at its business and determined how it could better serve its customers, increase loyalty and thereby drive sales. From this, it devised a program to educate the customer and helped ensure her loyalty.

Now, start thinking what you could do to make your business this good. No one is too big or small to do this. In fact, you’ll become the bigger dealer when you do something like this. It costs nothing but will sure pay dividends for a long, long time. If you want to be successful, you have to be different and you can’t be afraid to take chances.