Customer Service Index Study Golden CO

Getting your new car serviced atthe dealership, whether it be forwarranty repairs or regularly scheduled maintenance, is anoften-overlooked part of the new-car ownership experience. A positivedealer service experience can greatly affect overall customersatisfaction and, from the dealer's perspective, increase thelikelihood that you'll buy another vehicle from them. And asnew-vehicle sales continue to sputter and new customers are becomingincreasingly harder for dealers to find, retaining existing customersbecomes even more critical.

Recently, J.D. Power and Associates surveyed verified owners of three-to five-year-old vehicles to measure their satisfaction with dealerservice. As part of the 2009 Customer Service Index (CSI) Study,consumers were asked to rate their dealer's service department in fiveareas:

• Service quality
• Service initiation
• Service advisor
• Service facility
• Vehicle pickup

The findings showed that although satisfaction with dealerservicetends to decline as vehicles age"particularly during the fourth andfifth years of ownership"those brands whose dealers provide the highestlevels of customer satisfaction with service during the warranty periodretain a greater share of actual service visits at the dealership, evenafter the warranty period expires.

Other highlights of the study include:

• Overall customer satisfaction with dealer service is up onlyslightly compared to last year, with premium brands making the largestsatisfaction and ranking improvements.
• The ability to accommodate walk-ins, provide loaner cars and havea dedicated service greeter all contributed to the premium brands'higher index scores.
• Vehicle retention is one of the focal points this year, as ownersare keeping their vehicles longer. This longer retention period makesthe dealer focus on service and keeping existing customers even moreimportant.
• Brands with dealers that achieve particularly high CSIscores"averaging above 800 (on a 1,000-point scale)"during the firstthree years of vehicle ownership retained 79 percent of dollars spent on maintenance and repairs during the first five years of ownership. In contrast, brandswhose dealerships attained CSI scores averaging 800 or lower retainedonly 69 percent of customer maintenance and repair dollars.
• With an index score of 835, Lexusranks highest among allnew-vehicle brands, improving upon its

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