Mercedes-Benz Canada's Dealer Visit Program allows corporate employees to learn lessons from the dealership floor
TORONTO, April 3, 2017 /CNW/ - This spring, Mercedes-Benz Canada is encouraging corporate employees to experience another side of the company's business by working in a dealership for a day alongside their retail colleagues. Fifteen Mercedes-Benz dealerships across the Greater Toronto Area will welcome personnel from Head Office, who will spend a day assisting with key functions on the retail side of the business. The initiative will give corporate staff an opportunity to interact directly with customers and understand firsthand the experiences of and demands on front-line retail staff.
"I think every Mercedes-Benz corporate employee needs to appreciate the complexities and the fast pace of our retail environment," said Brian D. Fulton, President and CEO of Mercedes-Benz Canada. "We believe that giving our corporate employees this front-line exposure will help us to provide better customer service in many related aspects of our corporate business."
During the Dealer Visit Program, corporate employees will job shadow their retail colleagues and assist in important retail roles, such as:
- Assistant Greeter – As the first point of contact for guests, this person's main duty is to create a welcoming atmosphere, and ensure a smooth transition to the Sales and After-Sales departments. The Assistant Greeter is responsible for checking-in vehicles for service, directing guests to Service Advisors or Sales Representatives, and maintaining customer data in the dealer management system.
- Valet/Lot Attendant – This person maintains the flow of traffic and eases parking congestion around the workshop. Once a vehicle is ready for customer pick-up, this person prepares it for a first class hand-off to its owner.
- Parts Runner - The Parts Runner supports Technicians in the shop by picking up the parts they need from the Parts department and delivering them in a timely fashion to the Technician's work bay.
- Follow-Up Caller – This person is responsible for following-up with Sales and Service customers to obtain valuable feedback about their most recent dealer visits. The goal is that every visit to the dealership results in a "best customer experience" and customer feedback is a key tool to identify opportunities for improvement.
Mercedes-Benz Canada already works closely with its dealer network, however many corporate employees have never experienced the day-to-day challenges and intricacies of the retail world.
"We're already listening. The next step is to empathize," said Brian Fulton, referring to the L.E.A.D. (Listen, Empathize, Add Value, Delight) approach adopted by Mercedes-Benz to guide all types of customer interactions. "The Dealer Visit Program will help us add greater value and further delight our retail and corporate customers. I'm excited about the valuable insights and process improvements we'll gain through this unique new initiative."
About Mercedes-Benz Canada
Mercedes-Benz Canada is responsible for the sales, marketing and service of the Mercedes-Benz and Mercedes-AMG passenger vehicles, Mercedes-Benz Vans and smart. Headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Mercedes-Benz Canada Inc. employs approximately 1,500 people in 21 locations across Canada. Through a nationwide network of 11 Mercedes-Benz owned retail operations and 47 authorized dealerships, Mercedes-Benz Canada sold 48,320 vehicles in 2016. This represents the best year ever for the company and has positioned Mercedes-Benz as the top luxury manufacturer in Canada for the third consecutive year.
Further information from Mercedes-Benz is available on the internet at: www.media.mercedes-benz.ca
JoAnne Caza, 416-847-7550, joanne.caza@mercedes-benz.ca; Sinead Brown, 416-847-7588, sinead.brown@mercedes-benz.ca
SOURCE Mercedes-Benz Canada Inc.
RELATED LINKShttp://www.mercedes-benz.ca
