The journey of owning a car starts right when you spark an interest in a particular model. The many weeks of research, familiarization, checking with friends… but then it is just a beginning compared with the real journey of living with your car. So, my quest was to find out how a car brand, in partnership with its dealer, ensures that the journey is smooth, easy and enjoyable all the way. It took me to the Contact Centre of Arabian Automobiles, established for the very purpose. What followed was a discovery of how people and technology worked together to achieve this vital part of customer satisfaction. I call it ‘the Ownership Experience challenge’ and it was very interesting to see how this invisible process worked behind the scenes to build a bridge between a brand and the car owner.
Arabian Automobiles is the dealer in Dubai and Northern Emirates for Nissan, Infiniti and Renault. Just for a day, I was granted access to their Customer Contact Centre, where an impeccable customer experience was being shaped in the corridors of dedicated communication.
The Contact Centre was bustling all day with the non-stop activity of a whole team of ‘Customer Success Executives’ as Arabian Automobiles calls them. Mohammed Abdul Moez, the captain of the team kept it simple for me: “The customer journey has a pre- and a post- phase. The former of course addresses the interest of a prospective customer in one of our brands or a model. So, these executives receive your call and guide your interest to suggest a model to match your needs, or help you with scheduling a test drive if you have already shortlisted one. By gauging your experience, they help to understand your needs better and ensure that a perfect match is made.”
Maintaining the connection, once you are a proud owner of a Nissan (for example), is the more arduous and meticulously managed part of the Ownership Experience. “So, the inbound and outbound calls happen both in sales and after-sales to ensure a comprehensive and excellent ownership experience,” he concludes.
Walking along the corridor watching the Customer Success Executives at work, I thought to myself: These are a bunch of ‘buzz-bees’ dedicated to your car and its wellbeing – going by the personalized commitment and close understanding they seemed to show. For instance, they keep track of a customer’s service dates (For Nissan it is 10,000 km or 6 months, whichever is earlier) and remind you to schedule an appointment (it is important to service the vehicle at stipulated intervals to maintain good vehicle health as well as to keep the warranty intact). Now, if you are wondering how do they know when to remind you of a service, that is where some advance machine learning comes handy. Evaluating your previous usage pattern, it can do an accurate guesswork of when your next service is due. Along with your inputs, a convenient date is chosen. They even follow up to reschedule an appointment if you missed it because you had to be at your parent-teacher meeting! They are well-trained to help you enjoy a smooth journey with the least effort on your part. If you ever wished for a personal secretary for your vehicle matters, this is as close as it gets!
An extraordinary commitment to Quality assurance
I’ve heard this message a hundred times: “this call is recorded for quality assurance purposes,” but did I really take that claim seriously? Hmm… I doubt it. Come on, who would have the time to go through each and every call! At Arabian Automobiles, I found at least one person who did. In fact, Elamin Abdelrhman was paid to do exactly that. He checked the call quality, warmth of greeting, accuracy of information provided and finally, how good an impression would a call leave on the customer.
A detailed chat with Omnia Ahmed, General Manager – Customer Experience Management, threw more light on how people and technology worked hand in hand to ensure a pleasant and efficient Ownership Experience. As she put it, “Everyone in the front lines or even in the backlines are working towards one target – creating a differentiated experience for the customer.” The focus is on three things – people, the No.1 asset; training that focuses on developing them continuously and the right technology that truly empowers them. Omnia had a sparkle in her eyes when she proudly said, “Our customers are super-fast these days. So, we are bringing more channels for them to deal with us. They pick what appeals to them, and we are always available to attend to their requests.”
The beehive has a cozy corner!
Keeping customers happy is a full-time job that doesn’t really afford a break. No wonder there is a relaxation room right in the middle of their sprawling work space, with a treadmill to make sure they can burn their calories away from their desk, and a massage chair to soothe their nerves (believe me, I thoroughly enjoyed that little break!). It was heart-warming to know that thoughtfulness not only fills these customer calls but is also built into their work ethics at Arabian Automobiles!
As I called out “pack up” after a day at the AAC Contact Centre, I was thinking of the rather different and innovative tag given to this team – Customer Success Executives. Earlier, I wondered if they weren’t pushing it somewhat – but then, on second thoughts, aren’t they really contributing to their customers’ success by saving them time? Or again, they are successfully retaining customers by keeping them happy. They are also making sure the customers’ quest is attained or their problem is effectively resolved in the shortest possible time. Well, you can choose whatever appeals to you, but it did kinda start making some sense to me.
