Isuzu overtakes Toyota, Honda in sales satisfaction

According to the survey, Isuzu performed particularly well in sales initiation, dealer facilities, deals, salesperson and delivery process factors. Honda and Toyota rank second in a tie – each with 814 – while Suzuki comes next with 813.
The SSI Study is based on responses from 2,560 new-vehicle owners who purchased their vehicles from August 2015 through April 2016. The study was fielded from February through June 2016.
With declining new-vehicle sales in Thailand, automotive dealers are paying closer attention to their customers, which is resulting in higher customer satisfaction.
As the automotive industry in Thailand suffers its fourth consecutive year of declining sales, automotive dealers are working even harder as they compete for business from a smaller pool of buyers, according to JD Power. And customers are appreciating the extra attention they are getting from the dealership, as overall satisfaction with the sales process has improved to 811 (on a 1,000-point scale) in 2016 from 801 in 2015. Furthermore, the proportion of delighted customers – those who rate their overall purchase experience 10 (on a 10-point scale) – has increased to 22 per cent from 8 per cent a year ago. “Dealers overall are doing a great job of enhancing the sales process to delight customers, and they must remain committed to this cause,” Siros Satrabhaya, country manager at JD Power Thailand, said. “Focusing on price cuts and giveaways to attract customers is not sustainable in the long run. Instead, dealers must work on developing personal connections with their customers so that when the market picks up, they will be better positioned to gain from customers’ repurchase and recommendation activities.”
Customers are increasingly driving a harder bargain, with their pre-shopping research focusing on learning where to get the best deal. The study has found that 58 per cent of customers are using the Internet to carry out research before buying a new vehicle, and two of the three most often searched topics are related to getting the best deal: vehicle pricing (78 per cent); product brochures (60 per cent); and promotions (52 per cent). Additionally, 51 per cent of all customers indicate receiving discounts and getting additional freebies from their dealer,