(October 13, 2011) TOKYO — When it comes to providing after-sales service, customer perceptions of the care and quality with which key services are performed have a strong impact on overall satisfaction with the dealer, according to the J.D. Power Asia Pacific 2011 Japan Customer Satisfaction Index (CSI) Study.

Among the 16 brands included in the ranking, Lexus ranks highest for a fifth consecutive year, achieving a score of 761 and performing particularly well in all five factors.  Audi ranks second with a score of 683, increasing notably by 33 points from 2010.  Audi is followed in the rankings by Mercedes-Benz (669) and BMW (668).

The study, now in its 10th year, measures overall customer satisfaction with service performed at automotive dealer facilities, based on five factors.  In order of importance, they are: service representative (23%); service charge (22%); service content (21%); service system/process (19%); and facility (15%).  Overall customer satisfaction is reported as an index score, based on a 1,000-point scale. 

Overall customer satisfaction with dealer service averages 623 in 2011, an increase of three points from 2010. 

In addition to examining the number of key service activities that are performed by dealers during a service visit, the study has been expanded in 2011 to also measure customer perceptions of the care and quality with which dealers perform these activities. For example, customers are asked whether dealer staff was gentle when opening and closing the doors of the vehicle.

The study finds wide variations among brands in both the quantity of key services performed and the quality of service delivery. For example, brands that deliver service with the highest levels of quality perform more than approximately 40 percent of the activities that are viewed as key quality indicators, compared with the industry average of 25 percent.

As a whole, luxury brands tend to deliver both a higher number of key service activities with higher levels of quality than do mass market brands. Washing the vehicle or cleaning its interior is a practice that represents is the greatest performance gap between luxury and mass market brands.

The study also finds that as the quality with which service is delivered increases, overall customer satisfaction also increases. Among customers who indicate that 10 of the 11 key quality practices are performed, satisfaction averages 753—130 points higher than industry average.

“As the automotive market in Japan has matured, each brand has developed its own standards and protocols for dealing with customers at service visits, and it is particularly important for brands to integrate a focus on quality of service delivery to differentiate themselves from competitors,” said Taku Kimoto, director at J.D. Power Asia Pacific, Tokyo.