Strengthening dealer network support through process and communication improvements

Industry: Construction, landscape, and agriculture industries

Client: Global manufacturer of equipment for construction, landscape and agriculture industries

Client’s Challenge:

Although the client felt as if they were effectively providing information to their dealer network to support the manufacturer’s products and services, they had never measured the impact, importance or satisfaction from the dealer network viewpoint. The client wanted an evaluation on the current support provided to the dealer network and a means to identify areas of greatest priority for future improvement.

Solution:

Prime46 built a two-stage study focused specifically on direct feedback from dealer network personnel who most frequently interact with the manufacturer client. The first stage of the study was designed to identify needs and expectations of the dealer network as it related to support from the manufacturer. This stage sought engagement from dealership management, sales, service, and parts to ensure an all-encompassing view of the dealer network support environment. The second stage of the study provided detailed measurement on current satisfaction with dealer network support and employed a scientific method of evaluating areas of greatest priority for improvement.

Results:

The study provided a benchmark on dealer satisfaction scores for the manufacturer overall, as well as satisfaction scores specific to parts, service and sales and marketing departments. Additionally, the study provided a clear rank prioritization of items of greatest importance for the client to address overall as well as by department. This provided a solid framework for the client to use in tactical planning to strengthen dealer network support. Through this study process the client was able to:

• Assess needs of greatest priority based on importance and satisfaction
• Identify projects that can increase satisfaction among needs of greatest priority
• Evaluate projects based on time and cost investment for potential return
• Implement chosen projects designed to increase satisfaction

Successes:

Prime46 was able to help the client by establishing a process and framework for collecting and prioritizing information directly from their dealer network. This process is repeatable and can now be used on a scheduled timeline to measure impact of specific dealer network support tactics on the dealer-manufacturer relationship. With the ability to measure performance against established benchmark satisfaction scores, the client has greater visibility into the effectiveness of their dealer network support than ever before.