EASTON, Pa. -

The Kelly Auto Group — which has been doing business in the Pennsylvania Lehigh Valley since 1967 and has delivered more than 100,000 vehicles — prides itself on putting its customers first, says John Lim, general manager at Kelly Nissan of Route 33.  

Lim says, “at Kelly Nissan, our customers come first, and we pride ourselves on that.”

In fact, the dealership — which sells an average of 75 pre-owned units per month and has been open since 2008 — has an outlined customer service philosophy,  which starts with accessibility.

“Our customers can reach us whether it is in person, by telephone or by email. Customers can contact our staff when they need assistance,” Lim said.

Next up, accountability;  Lim says dealership employees make sure to communicate with customers who are in need of help.

Responsiveness is also a key aspect of the store’s customer relationship management philosophy. 

“We provide a positive experience when purchasing a vehicle, but our philosophy incorporates our willingness to respond to a negative situation,” Lim said.

Responsiveness is also key to their social media and online marketing strategy. The company has a presence on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, YouTube and DealerRater, and it also receives reviews and ratings on Women-Drivers.com.

“We monitor our customer service through various surveys such as DealerRater and Women-Drivers,” Lim added.

Lim said general helpfulness is also practiced by staff, and consistent training makes sure employees are privy to the latest customer service trends and tools.

Lim explained that all these elements — accessibility, accountability, responsiveness, general helpfulness and training and monitoring  — are the keys to successful CRM.

Kelly Nissan also puts a special focus on serving its female customers.

Kelly Auto Group works to make  “our female customers feel extra special,” said Lim.

Anne Fleming, president and car-buying advocate at Women-Drivers.com, lauded  Kelly Auto Group’s efforts, noting, “In addition to their innovative Kelly Guarantee which makes women feel safe and secure about buying, they also have a high number of staff that are women.”

Kelly Nissan is also recognized as an “extraordinary high scoring” Certified Women-Friendly store as rated by their women customers on Women-Drivers.com, Fleming explained.

Kelly Nissan has a few focus points when trying to ensure that women buyers leave the dealership content with their purchase experience.

The first key: respect.

“We understand that purchasing a car for a woman can be stressful, so at Kelly we focus on the following to make sure our women drivers are treated special. We treat her with respect and make sure we show her the options that she is looking for such as model selection, color and service,” said Lim.

Interestingly, Lim also noted that the finance department plays a crucial role, as well.

“Our finance department plays a key role when discussing  all her options regarding the finance process,” he added.

Capitalizing on the Service Department

In a tight used supply environment, Kelly Nissan said it finds most of its used inventory through auctions and trade-ins.

The dealership capitalizes on its service department — which is open Monday through Saturday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.,  with a nightly key drop off  for customer convenience — to acquire some of these pre-owned trade-ins.

“At Kelly Nissan we have invested time and training to a service turn department which consists of three employees, who adhere to the needs of the service customer,” Lim said.

Also a neat practice in this particular service department: the dealership uses the waste oil from customer car maintenance to heat both the new- and used-car buildings.

Besides the service department, other avenues Kelly Auto Group employs to connect with customers in an effort to create repeat customers are direct mail pieces, manufacturer events and “follow-up by our sales consultant keeping an open relationship with their customer base,” Lim explained.

“Kelly Nissan has a professional staff who are passionate about their dealership and will make every effort to make the customer buying experience the best in the Lehigh Valley,” he concluded.
 

Sarah Rubenoff can be reached at srubenoff@autoremarketing.com. Continue the conversation with Auto Remarketing on both LinkedIn and Twitter.