Budd's Mazda in Oakville, Ontario named Steve Raynham as its new service manager last October.
Raynham has had a long career in auto service, working from the time he was 16 until he was 29 at an aftermarket tire store. He also spent 17 years working at import dealerships.
You've worked in the aftermarket and at dealerships. What do you think is the biggest difference between the two?
In the aftermarket world, I noticed that the client is not as finicky compared to the dealership customer. In the aftermarket world, they were really looking at price points and trying to reduce the cost of repair and of enhancing the look of their car. The clients going to a dealership are looking for trained factory people who can find the problem and repair the vehicle the first time.
What's the biggest challenge facing dealer service departments right now?
Modernization. The way information is so rapidly being put out in the marketplace. Customers are finding out about different service issues on the car just before us or at the same time we do. It never used to be that way. Not that there were big trade secrets, but we would get the information in house at the dealership and put a plan of action in place so we were prepared. Now we're working on a wing and prayer. Customers call us about things, and we have to go look it up.
What sort of programs have you put in place to help retain your customers and draw in new ones?
We are forgoing a big healthy bottom line so we have more direct staff to accommodate clients and fulfill their needs, as opposed to just grabbing as much as we can for every labor dollar. We realize that there is a cost of doing business, and we're more than willing to pay that cost to earn their trust and their business. A slow nickel is better than the fast dime.
Have you launched any new marketing or outreach programs?
We use factory incentives and we leverage our company websites. We also use about four different online appointment setters and contact people, as well as our own in-house resources.
We also have a customer retention system in house that I've put in place in the last three months. We have people sitting in an office on the phone all day long, pre-calling customers, setting up appointments, calling with reminders 48 hours before, and follow-up calls within 72 hours after they have been here. It's no less than what all the big luxury brands have done.
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