Automotive News
Internet Leads: Many Dealers Still Drop the Ball
March 2012
LOS ANGELES – Internet leads are crucial to every dealership's sales success, but a new study shows that most dealerships still drop the ball when contacted on-line by shoppers. The survey was conducted by mystery shopping consultant Pied Piper of Monterey, Calif. The consultancy submitted internet inquiries to 4,331 dealerships nationwide representing all major brands. The inquiries included specific questions to verify whether the answer was ...
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Automotive News First Shift
Online Secret Shoppers: Dealers Fail On-Line Test
March 2012
Lexus, Infiniti and Acura ranked highest in Pied Piper's annual study to measure dealership responsiveness to buyers' questions over the internet.
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Ward's Auto
Japanese Luxury Brand Stores Best Handle Internet Leads
March 2012
Japanese luxury-brand U.S. dealerships rank best in fielding customer Internet inquiries, according to the latest results of an annual study by consulting firm Pied Piper Management. Toyota's Lexus and Nissan's Infiniti tie for first place with 62% online-lead effectiveness, followed by Honda's Acura with 59%. In contrast, two other Japanese nameplates score the worst, Toyota's Scion with 39% effectiveness and Suzuki, dead last with 23%. Ford and ...
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Press Release: 2012 Pied Piper PSI(R) Internet Lead Effectiveness™(ILE™) Benchmarking Study (U.S.A)
Lexus, Infiniti and Acura Dealerships Top Ranked for Response to Customer Internet Inquiries
March 2012
• Industry-wide improvement from previous year led by Ford and Chrysler • However, 22% of customer internet inquiries remain unanswered after 24 hours Monterey, California – March 12, 2012 – Lexus, Infiniti and Acura dealerships ranked highest in the 2012 Pied Piper Prospect Satisfaction Index® (PSI®) Internet Lead Effectiveness(™) (ILE™) Benchmarking Study, which measured auto dealership responsiveness to customer inquiries received over the ...
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Dealerelite.net
How Important is the Facility to the Sale?
January 2012
There are studies that show facilities actually have little to do with whether a customer buys a vehicle from a dealership. One such study is Pied Piper Management LLC's annual Prospect Satisfaction Index, which sends anywhere from 3,500 to 4,000 mystery shoppers into dealerships each year to determine what's most important to customers. And yes, the facility ranks low on importance. In fact, it's the dealership's people that are the most ...
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Wards Dealer Business
Whodunnit the Best? Mystery shoppers test dealership sales skills by brand
August 2011
Mystery shoppers gauge things that are important to making a sale, but not necessarily of interest to customers at the particular time. “A customer in a dealership is thinking about price and trade value, not whether the salesperson addressed specific features, asked for the sale or followed the sales steps,” said Fran O'Hagan, President & CEO of Pied Piper Management Company LLC. “Those are not what the customer focuses on, but they are what ...
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Automotive News First Shift
Secret Shoppers Pick Mercedes
July 2011
Mercedes-Benz dealerships ranked highest in a study by Pied Piper Management Company to measure how effectively dealerships sell cars. Jaguar and Lexus tied for second.
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Motor Trend
Mercedes Dealers Ranked Highest, Secret Shopper Survey Finds
July 2011
When it comes to the car buying process, the car pretty much does all the work, pulling in buyers with its impressive MPGs, like the Chevrolet Cruze or Ford Fiesta, or making them drool with offerings of the turbo inline 6 in the BMW 1M. Even completely new and fresh designs like the Kia Soul and completely redesigned models like the Hyundai Elantra are enough to entice buyers— all that's left is to seal the deal. But which dealerships leave ...
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Automobile Magazine
Mercedes-Benz Dealerships Rank High in Customer Satisfaction
July 2011
The auto industry is seeing better days since it suffered a crisis back in 2008, when American car sales plummeted to one of its lowest points. Since then, the industry has rebounded and customers are now flocking to dealerships across the country to get their hands on a new set of wheels. But which dealers are performing up to par?
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New York Times
Mercedes-Benz tops study of U.S. auto dealers
July 2011
DETROIT (Reuters) - Mercedes-Benz dealerships were tops for the third straight year in an independent study issued on Monday of U.S. auto dealers that uses secret shoppers to determine how customers are treated. Mercedes-Benz, a Daimler AG brand, was followed by Jaguar, a Tata Motors brand, and Lexus, the luxury brand of Toyota Motor Corp , which tied for second. Toyota's U.S. dealerships and Chrysler's Ram pickup truck dealers were best among ...
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