The luxury car market is fierce. Sewell Auto, among the largest car dealerships in Texas, sells luxury marquees such as Audi and Lexus and mass brands such as GMC. Sewell has 13 stores selling 14 franchises that are located in 6 cities. Sewell sells to over 36,000 customers annually, supported by 2,400 associates in their sales, finance, service, and support departments. When customers are looking for a new car, they frequently seek out professional leasing agents such as Naziruddin who helps them acquire a product of choice for a fixed period at an agreed price.

Popular with both individual customers and corporations, car leasing is an efficient mechanism that minimizes outright cash requirements while keeping the option to return the vehicle to Sewell Auto either during or at the end of the primary term. Consumers are often attracted by the option to select a new model both during and after the end of lease without fretting over the future value of their car or post warranty repair costs.

While dealing with high-end brand conscious customers of products such as Audi, sales agents at Sewell Auto understand that the stakes are high. Naziruddin and his colleagues closely follow the trends in the luxury car market. They know customers are eager to work with partnership salespeople who understand new product offerings and advanced technologies. Frontline staff such as Khalid Naziruddin are tapping into this shift in the marketplace, resulting in better margins and newer loyalties.

Sewell Auto’s sales agents ensure that they keep the following checklist in order:

d Customers focus on the minutiae, “the 10-second rule” for one.

d Relationship building must be geared to accommodate different personality types—while some customers have already experienced luxury products and lifestyles others may be new to the market. Communication styles must be cognizant of different customer types.

Questions

1 As noted earlier in this chapter, Sewell and their sales representatives, such as Khalid, have been “Obsessed with Service Since 1911.” Identify and prioritize those customer service activities listed in this chapter where Khalid can “add value with good follow-through.”

2 Describe three servicing the sale situations Khalid may find himself in and how he may be responsible for the situation: 1) A Moment of Misery, 2) A Moment of Truth, and 3) A Moment of Magic.

3 Provide three examples of how Expansion Selling can provide the customer with a Moment of Magic: 1) full-line selling, 2) cross-selling, and 3) upselling.

4 Describe the procedure Khalid should use in partnering with an unhappy customer.

5 Describe Bill Gates’s predictions regarding customer service.