3:50 pm, May 5, 2021
Three Kia dealerships have become the first showrooms to be granted the highest accreditation possible by the Institute of Customer Service.
Ken Jervis in Stoke-on-Trent, Gravells of Kidwelly and Drayton Motors in Boston scored much higher than the 85 per cent needed to be awarded the ServiceMark with Distinction honour by the institute (ICS).
It’s the highest level of accreditation from the ICS and has never been awarded to a dealership before. What’s more, only 14 organisations in the UK currently hold it.
The ICS is the independent, professional membership body for customer service in the UK, and ServiceMark is a national standard that recognises achievements in customer service as well as a business’s commitment to delivering service excellence.
Gaining accreditation involves a tough three-stage process including assessing staff engagement with the customer service strategy, customer satisfaction feedback plus an independent on-site assessment.
Paul Philpott, president and chief executive of Kia UK, said: ‘This is a truly remarkable achievement. Congratulations to all the staff at the three dealerships.
‘This is further proof that the Kia dealer network works hard to consistently put customers first.
‘We believe this is integral to Kia’s success, while giving customers confidence that Kia dealerships put service at the heart of their business.’
Jo Causon, chief executive of the ICS, added: ‘ServiceMark with Distinction is the highest level of accreditation we award.
‘It requires organisations to demonstrate they excel in the service they provide their customers and have an embedded service-focused culture.
‘For three of those dealerships to have achieved ServiceMark at distinction level demonstrates the consistency of approach and dedication to serving their customers and empowering their representatives, while continuously improving their service offering.’
It follows Kia earning the Feefo Gold Trusted Service award for its dealer network in January this year.
Our composite image shows, from left, Darren Bradford, David Norwood and Jonathan Gravell – the MDs of, respectively, Drayton Motors, Ken Jervis and Gravells
