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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The Car Connection
Study: Understaffed Dealerships Souring The Sales Experience?
July 2011
As U.S. auto sales gradually rebound, it would seem that dealerships and showroom salespeople would be eager than ever to let the good times roll once again. But could some brands be slowing their sales recovery due to understaffed dealerships that aren't making every effort to inform shoppers about the vehicle, get them in it, be straightforward, and complete the sale? It's a question that automakers might find worth looking into. According to a ...
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Media Post Marketing Daily
Mercedes Dealers Ranked No. 1 In Retail Experience
July 2011
It looks like Mercedes-Benz' focus on retail, including giving sales staff at dealerships iPads and installing interactive video displays on showroom floors, has paid off. The brand's dealers have gotten the highest satisfaction index ranking for the third year in a row in the Pied Piper Prospect Satisfaction Index, which uses mystery shoppers to rank the retail experience. The automaker has just opened a flagship dealership "laboratory" in ...
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Detroit Bureau
Mercedes-Benz Tops at Handling Shoppers, Finds New Study, But even the best makers have slipped coming out of recession
July 2011
Mercedes-Benz is doing the best job treating potential buyers when they walk into the showroom, reports a new study, which is one reason the maker has continued building demand as the luxury market recovers. But while it's the third year in a row that the German marque led the annual Pied Piper Prospect Satisfaction Index, its score actually slipped from last year, and the industry, on the whole, has seen a declining in the handling of “ups,” or ...
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Wards Auto
Mercedes Dealers Top Sales-Effectiveness List
July 2011
Most-improved player Mercedes-Benz again leads an annual ranking that measures the sales effectiveness of different auto brands' dealers. This is the third year in a row Mercedes has topped Pied Piper Management's independent Prospect Satisfaction Index. The consultancy sent 3,524 mystery shoppers into dealerships. The covert operatives recorded how sales personnel did on matters ranging from product knowledge to whether they gave compelling ...
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2011 Pied Piper PSI U.S. Auto Industry Benchmarking Study
Mercedes-Benz Dealers Achieve Highest Pied Piper Prospect Satisfaction Index(R) Ranking for Third Consecutive Year
July 2011
Annual auto industry benchmarking study shows industrywide decline in dealership treatment of car shoppers MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA – July 11, 2011 – Mercedes-Benz dealerships ranked highest in the newly released 2011 Pied Piper Prospect Satisfaction Index® (PSI®) U.S. Auto Industry Benchmarking Study, which marked three years in a row of top rankings for the U.S. Mercedes-Benz dealer network. The independent Pied Piper PSI study sent 3,524 hired ...
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Powersports Business
Don't talk your customers out of buying
July 2011
If your salespeople are having trouble turning shoppers into buyers, find out if the salespeople are talking customers out of buying. No salesperson would turn away customers on purpose, but by skipping the “fact-finding” step of the sales process, a salesperson may end up making customers less likely to buy. What attracted the customer to your dealership, and why are they interested in that particular motorcycle? Armed with an answer to those ...
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