BMW tops customer satisfaction list

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

German automaker BMW tops the list of automakers this year in providing "authorized dealer aftersales service" to customers in Indonesia, outranking U.S. automaker General Motors and Japanese automaker Toyota, according to a recent study.

BMW scored 760 out of a maximum 1,000 points in the 2003 Indonesia Customer Satisfaction Index (CSI) Study conducted by Singapore-based marketing firm JD Power Asia Pacific.

The company regained the leading position it had occupied in 2001.

The study, which was made available to The Jakarta Post on Wednesday, said BMW's achievement was driven by consistent improvement last year in the seven factors that determine service satisfaction.

The seven factors are: in-service experience, service quality, problems experienced, user-friendly service, service advisor, service initiation and service delivery.

The study is based on feedback from 2,308 vehicle owners, who purchased their vehicles between September 2001 and May 2002, and their evaluations of service after 12 to 18 months of ownership.

General Motors ranks second on the list with 754 points and Toyota is on the third place with 750 points.

General Motors posted the largest year-to-year improvement among all makers in the study.

An overwhelming 84 percent of vehicle owners said that authorized dealers were providing better services than they had in the past.

The study also showed that more vehicle owners prefer dealership service facilities rather than aftermarket facilities, for the convenience of locations and qualified mechanics.

"In order to compete with aftermarket facilities, dealers must differentiate themselves in terms of quality and services," Gerrit Kuyntjes, general manager of JD Power Asia Pacific said.

"The dealer's ability to fix problems on the first visit is a key aspect in promoting customer loyalty," he added.

The percentage of customers indicating they would return to dealers for service increased from 17 percent in 2002 to 44 percent this year, the study noted.

The Indonesian CSI study confirms that dealership service facilities that are able to provide a service experience exceeding customer expectations will produce the highest rate of customer loyalty and facility advocacy.