12:40 pm, September 28, 2022
Snows is celebrating being ranked the UK’s number one dealership chain for customer experience for the second year running.
The Car Dealer Top 100 firm came top in the 2022 automotive industry report from Reputation, which scored it 775 out of a possible 1,000.
The new and used dealership group, which has 47 showrooms across the south and south-west of England, netted an 86 per cent customer sentiment score, making it the second year in a row that it has triumphed among UK dealership chains.
That was 16 percentage points above second-placed Pendragon, which garnered a Reputation score of 727.
The reputation experience management firm analysed five million customer reviews worldwide to produce its latest report, which also covers the USA, Canada, France and Germany.
It also surveyed buyers about how they use digital to shop for cars before ranking dealer groups, dealerships and brands.
Review volume was down by three per cent, reflecting the fact that fewer people have been buying cars this year, but within that overall figure the review volume for EVs was up by 57 per cent, showing their growing popularity.
Reputation said its data science team employed their own data analysis methodology, which uses natural language processing, to detect patterns in comments.
Snows chief operating officer Neil McCue told Car Dealer: ‘We’re over the moon at the win. Two years in a row is really hard to do.
‘We focus on it daily – reputation is everything for our business, it defines us as a dealer group, so it’s a huge focus for us at the very highest level.
‘We’re very proud and delighted with the staff and everything that they’re doing, because ultimately it’s about the staff and what our customers think about our staff, so when you see yourself as the industry leader two years in a row it’s just outstanding.
‘We couldn’t be more thrilled.’
He added that at the Snows annual conference chairman Stephen Snow had set them all the target of winning it again this year, and McCue said: ‘We’re pleased to have delivered for our chairman. It’s great.’
Coming top again adds to the air of celebration at the dealership group, which is marking 60 years in business this year.
Meanwhile, Porsche Centre Teesside came top of the UK dealerships, while Kia was the number one brand in the UK.
Reputation found that dealerships were winning on the sales floor, with its consumer survey showing that half the number of respondents said staff professionalism was an important factor when choosing a dealership.
However, it also discovered that dealers need to focus more on their service departments.
It said 47 per cent of people were motivated to write a review based on their experience with the service department, and since the service and parts departments accounted for about half a dealership’s profitability, it was critical to get it right.
Learning from sentiment also had an important part to play in improving a dealership’s reputation. Reputation said its research showed that dealers with stronger reputations increased sales by up to 10 per cent.
Meanwhile, 80 per cent of respondents said they had delayed a purchase because of inventory shortages, while 65 per cent said a dealership had to have a four-star rating as a minimum for them to consider buying from them, and 70 per cent of consumers said they’d be willing to travel 20 miles to a top-rated dealership.
The top 10 dealer groups and their Reputation scores
- Snows Motor Group – 775
- Pendragon – 727
- Renault Retail Group – 714
- Lookers – 706
- Steven Eagell Group – 704
- RRG Group – 690
- JCT600 – 683
- Listers – 673
- TG Holdcroft – 671
- Inchcape – 656
The top 10 dealerships and their scores
- Porsche Centre Teesside – 919
- Gravells Kia (Hereford) – 909
- Roadside Garages Kia (Coleraine) – 905
- Roadworthy Bristol – 904
- Stratstone Jaguar, Mayfair – 902
- McMillan Motors Greenock MG – 900
- Porsche Centre Newcastle – 897
- Stoneacre Wallasey – 895
- Brayley Honda St Albans – 894
- Glyn Hopkin Renault Colchester – 892
The top 10 brands and their scores
- Kia – 710
- Renault – 703
- Hyundai – 695
- Lexus – 692
- Mazda – 665
- MG – 664
- Toyota – 663
- Volvo – 660
- Honda – 649
- Nissan – 643
Reputation said it also identified five key trends that were shaping the automotive industry:
- EVs creating tension between OEMs and dealerships
- The service lane is ripe with opportunities to improve customer experience
- Subscription add-ons create a customer experience problem
- Continued price increases and supply chain challenges
- Customer feedback directly shaping the future of the industry
Anthony Gaskell, Reputation’s managing director for the EMEA area, said: ‘As the automotive industry continues to navigate a wide variety of changes – especially those related to supply chain and inflation – customer experience is more important than ever.
‘Automotive industry leaders must rely on feedback from customers in order to close the loop, grow their businesses and create loyal customers.’
