Customer Service Evaluations Delivered Deep Insights for Leading Automotive Preventative Maintenance Franchise

THE CHALLENGE

Using customer service evaluations, a leading provider of automotive preventative maintenance with more than 2,000 franchise-owned service centers nationwide wanted to ensure that oil change delivery was consistent across all locations and that customers had a positive perception of the overall experience.

One of our Client’s goals was to confirm or disprove the assumption that their competitors’ operational model enables a more consistent customer experience that leads to a higher likelihood of return and higher car counts (over our Client). If their assumption was proven correct, they could make key decisions that would improve operational processes to set them above their competition.

​Implementing mystery shopping programs in the automotive industry—whether sales or maintenance—offers significant benefits, including enhanced customer satisfaction, increased sales, and improved compliance with quality standards.

CLIENT OBJECTIVES

With customer service evaluations and competitor comparisons, the client sought to: 

• Ensure consistency of oil change delivery across franchise locations.
• Measure and improve the customer experience.
• Obtain deep insights into all levels of oil change services to develop a new concept within the Client brand.

OUR APPROACH

IntelliShop recommended:

Customer Service Evaluations Alongside Competitor Evaluations – Evaluators compared and contrasted experience at Client locations against competitor locations. This would identify areas where competitors have an advantage that might influence consumers to choose them over the Client.

We used the following categories:

• Overall preference
• Communication
• Speed of service
• Personality
• Safety check and review of recommendations

THE SOLUTION

Our team of experts recommended and conducted customer service evaluations to provide a deep-dive analysis of the various customer experiences, including services provided, presentation, upsell offers, service consistency (across Client and competitor locations), and consistency of communication preferences. We measured customer perception of waiting in their car vs. in a waiting area, as well as compared service amenities offered by competitors that weren’t offered by our Client. 

We then provided deep insights from the data gathered to identify and correct inconsistencies, while gaining knowledge into which services, communications, and experiences should be the guide for developing the Client brand that franchisees will be encouraged to adopt.

Reporting and Analysis – IntelliShop provided deep-dive analytics to show the meaning behind the data to prompt corrective action in the areas needed and to serve as a guide for future operational processes.

THE RESULTS FROM CUSTOMER SERVICE EVALUATIONS

WHAT DID THE DATA SHOW?

• Our Client’s competitors rated higher in communication, personality, and service explanation.
• There is a strong correlation between higher ratings of service areas to personality and higher perception of staff, so when our Client scored better, it was met with a higher personality score.
• Our Client lagged behind competitors in overall service delivery score.
• Our Client has always focused on providing fast service and while the study rated our Client higher in this area, it wasn’t necessarily the highest-rated service overall. The data showed that long visits hurt the experience but short visits didn’t necessarily improve it.
• The more service elements an evaluator experienced with our Client increased the Client’s rating.
• The customer service evaluations showed that consistent interaction and higher ratings correlated with evaluators who remained in their vehicles (vs. going to a designated waiting area).
• Competitor brands scored higher in the use of handheld device technology.
• While our Client ends the visit with a strong closing, it lacks departure elements (service review, next service reminder, thank you, an invitation to return) than its competitors.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Faster is not always better. Historically, our Client focused on providing fast service but the study showed it wasn’t necessarily the highest-rated service.

More explanation equals comprehension and appreciation. Because our Client’s service has a hidden, intangible benefit, customers evaluate the environment and people as indirect indicators. By providing better and carefully explained communication, it optimizes consumer understanding and appreciation of our Client’s offerings.

The waiting location (room vs. car) impacts interactions. The study showed consistent interaction and higher ratings when evaluators remained in their vehicles.

Through our team’s customer service evaluations, competitor comparison study, and in-depth analysis, we demonstrated that the Client’s competitors had a more effective operational strategy. Additionally, we identified that the Client’s emphasis on speed of service wasn’t necessarily the most critical area for improvement. The data provided a solid foundation for actionable recommendations to enhance the Client’s operations and surpass their competitors.