With the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) final review out in the public domain, now is the time for car dealers and finance brokers to ensure that they are engaging with customers in a positive way, writes Spencer Halil, director at Alphera Financial Services.
The principle of Treating Customers Fairly is now firmly positioned at the forefront of what car retailers and lenders must do. Also what we have always known is that this needs to be reflected in the way finance and insurance (F&I) salespeople are incentivised. Dealers and car finance brokers need to ensure that they are engaging with customers in a positive way, while lenders need to consider the most appropriate methods of incentivising their partners.
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Much needs to be considered and reviewed but that does not stop us taking a proactive approach now. With this in mind, Alphera is finding new ways of encouraging best practise with an innovative new incentive scheme for our dealer and broker partners in 2019. In contrast to other incentive schemes, this initiative will reward partners who generate the highest levels of customer insights and satisfaction from their finance customers and, unlike most schemes, we do not demand higher levels of sales to identify the top performers. The scheme promotes response rates above all else, as knowing what our customers think is the priority – even if it is negative – because it enables us to take steps to improve the experience for the customer in the future.
All new customers, throughout the incentive period, will be asked by their finance sales specialists to complete a survey which focuses solely on customers’ experiences during the whole sales process, including their opinion on how easy it was to do business with the dealership, the ability of the sales staff to accurately assess the customer’s demands and needs, and the clarity of information provided. From this, Alphera can gauge how satisfied the customer was in the finance sales process – and, crucially, whether there is any scope for dealers to improve.
Dealers and brokers are subsequently ranked according to the levels of response rate and customer satisfaction achieved.
Consistency is key if sales specialists are to provide outstanding customer service, and this is measured in monthly performance updates and league tables sent to all participating partners. This is an ongoing effort however, and following the scheme, we will compile a full breakdown of results to be shared with each participant, detailing their performance throughout the survey period. It is our hope and expectation that dealers can use this feedback to follow up, refine and develop their sales processes where needed.
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By GlobalDataPositive Outcomes
By prioritising positive customer outcomes, this approach can encourage equally positive sales behaviours. In this instance Alphera will reward partners with the highest customer satisfaction scores with an educational (and of course entertaining) trip to the 2020 National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Show in Las Vegas.
We believe that the development of specialist skills and knowledge relating to the sale of car finance is essential to the ability of dealers and brokers in delivering the best customer experiences.
The incentive scheme will therefore promote education and training, with bonus points available to businesses whose staff complete specialist finance qualifications from industry bodies such as the Institute of the Motor Industry’s (IMI) new finance and insurance accreditation scheme, as well as the Specialist Automotive Finance qualifications (SAF Advanced) from the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA).
Both organisations are committed to helping their members offer the highest possible standards in the sales of car finance products and we believe it is appropriate that finance sellers are incentivised to achieve these standards.
It is imperative that we constantly challenge ourselves to improve as well as help our dealers and brokers to provide the best possible service to customers.
Ultimately, a customer happy with the service they receive is more likely to return to the business in the future.
By investing time in customer satisfaction and seeking to improve sales standards through incentivisation and education, dealers can reap the long-term rewards of repeat business and, potentially, increase profitability.
