LEEDS CAR DEALER INSISTS – “WE WON’T SELL YOU A CAR!!”
The judges were particularly impressed with the clear message in Luscombe’s slogan, “We won’t sell you a car but WE WILL help you buy one” and believed that the dealership’s people-before–profit mentality has had a massive impact on boosting customer retention and referral business. Recently the entire staff was treated to a presentation by International Customer Service Speaker, Geoff Ramm, the creator of Celebrity Service, who includes Spec savers and Etihad airlines in his customer portfolio.
Says MD Robin Luscombe, “Winning this award really thrills me because it confirms that our unique “customer-first” culture which has been embraced by our entire team, has now been acknowledged as being the best in the business!! To be recognised as the best dealership in the UK is not only brilliant for the staff, but also gives customers trust and confidence, which is vital when making a big ticket purchase.”
Luscombe’s have a very customer-focused customer service strategy – with the objective of exceeding customers’ expectations – and a commitment to doing what they say they do. Their strapline of ‘We won’t sell you a car but we will help you buy one’ reflects the no pressure environment at Luscombe Motors with ‘Straight Talking Sales Executives and Managers who come out of the office’. In order to make that strategy successful, they work as a team empowered to treat customers as they would like to be treated themselves, whilst appreciating that contented included staff breed contented customers and encourage customer retention.
Luscombe’s believe that it is the little things which encourage customer loyalty – the way the teams are so friendly, recognise customers when they walk into the dealership, build friendships which builds trust and loyalty – the fact they have such a low turnover of staff means that customers see the same faces when they visit in six, twelve, 24 months’ and 36 months’ time and the inclusion of MD Robin’s mobile telephone number and email address in all marketing makes a clear statement to staff and customers that he is hands-on and happy to help.
Luscombe’s were recently hailed as the first dealership in the UK to be awarded a ‘working to become dementia friendly’ status. Says Robin, “We wanted to be more aware of how to identify dementia sufferers and there are many little things we can do to ease the stress involved for both the sufferer and the partner. “ Being aware also fits in well with the Luscombe business culture, as they want to be seen as a caring business, where cars can be bought without high pressure sales, and where customer service is paramount.
Luscombe’s success is reflected in their volume of online customer reviews on Facebook, Google and Auto Trader, all of which have a constant thread running through them of ‘no pressure’, ‘not like other dealerships’ and ‘made to feel so welcome’. Reviews have had a massive impact on the Luscombe business and customers are now commenting and buying cars on the strength of their reviews.
