Boating Industry Intelligence You Can Profit From
The bigger the Top 100 Dealer, the more processes and procedures they typically use. But even a company the size of MarineMax Inc. (Ranked 1 in 2006) understands the benefit of a personal touch.
The dealership chain, based in Clearwater, Fla., closely tracks the customer satisfaction index score of its 88 stores. While it strives for a perfect 10, when a store dips to a 9.5 for sales or a 9.2 for service — the minimum score to qualify for Sea Ray’s Master Dealer program — it activates MarineMax’s Corrective Action Procedure.
While it sounds like a formula, this simply involves sending National Warranty Manager Cricket Holt to the store to dissect the problem. She talks to employees and sometimes even individual customers to uncover the root cause, asking questions such as: are the right people in the right place, are enough people in place, is the customer being put first, and is the dealership executing on the company’s strategies — from captain’s deliveries, getaways and boater classes to service department procedures. Then, she works with the store to take quick, specific action to fix it.
Not all dealers can afford to dedicate an employee to customer satisfaction. But any dealer can set a minimum CSI standard, put a plan in place to reverse any dips below that level and embrace a personal touch that acknowledges every employee plays a role in the dealership’s score. It goes a long way toward creating and maintaining the high levels of satisfaction customers expect.