Customer service is any kind of courtesy way a company handles its client to build goodwill. Next time, treating the customer well will not only make them come back for more products but also suggest the company to their friends and relatives. In this situation, in order for a company to prevail on the market, they must ensure that their customer services meet the required requirements satisfy their customers.
This paper would address Mercedes Benz Company with respect to their client services. It will discuss the customer services that are currently offered by the company and recommend the areas that need to be improved as far as customer service is concerned to help them gain more customers in the increasingly competitive marketplace.
Types of Customers for the Organisation
Mercedes Benz is a brand name for cars, trucks, lorries, and buses. It is sometimes referred only to as Mercedes, or even Benz. The organization is today known for making the world’s most prestigious vehicles. It represents customers through its sales agents from all over the world. The company was initially launched by Daimler-Benz AG but is now owned by DaimlerChrysler AG. The history of the company dates back from 1926 when two companies Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft and Benz & Cie merged and came up with Daimler-Benz Company. The company vehicles are available through their select dealers in over 130 countries worldwide.
The company deals with both individual and corporate clients from any part of the world who might be interested in purchasing a prestigious vehicle from their company. All their vehicles bear a brand name Mercedes Benz and it is currently the world’s leading automotive manufacturers.
Individual Customers
The company offer for sales their products to individual clients who are interested with their vehicles either through the company itself or through their agents. Some clients have got specification for the kind of vehicles they want, and for this case, their deliver their quotation to the firm’s manufacturing unit. Others just purchase their vehicles from the sales agents that are scattered at every part of the world. They also offer for sale their vehicles spare parts and for this case, the customers do not have to worry in case the car breaks down.
The individual clients of the Mercedes Benz Company have different need and expectations for their vehicles depending on their tastes and preferences. For their clients, the company has a range of Mercedes Benz models to choose from based on their different tastes and preferences. If they still haven’t found a vehicle that fits their needs to the specification, they should contact the company for special order. They have an option to order their vehicles directly from the company’s factory for this event. Although this form of order . take some time before the vehicle is delivered to the customer, at least the customer finally gets the kind of vehicle he is delivering wanted according to his taste and preferences.
Corporate Clients
On the other hand, the company deals with corporate clients who may need various vehicles for their organization. For this case, they make a special arrangement with the company on the number of vehicles they need, their specifications and the delivery time for the vehicles. In such as case, these kinds of clients are given special discounts for ordering such a large number of fleet of vehicles.
Some of the corporate clients that the company deals with are: governments from a number of countries; non-government organisation and private companies. In such a case, there is a special arrangement for corporate clients.
When it comes to the corporate clients, they have some specification they may need for their vehicles and for this case, they may order directly from the factory plant in case they fail to get one from the models produced by the company. In such a case, these clients have to wait for the vehicle to be manufactured and the time of delivery depends on the number of clients who might have order before them. But finally these corporate clients will get their vehicles according to their specification.
In case it’s a government client, they may need different vehicles for their executives. For example the president may not ride in the same model with the ministers and even the other government officials. For this case, their models might be different with more features that are not similar with the others. In such circumstances, these vehicles are sold at high prices than the ordinary models.
How the Company’s Clients Receives Information
There are many way used by Mercedes Benz Company to ensure that they receive reliable information about the services they offer. They have made their information as convenient as possible to ensure that they have served their clients in the best way possible. This ensure that the customers will be aware not only on the kind of product the organisation have for sale, but also ensure that after a sale, the company will be there for any other services the vehicle may need in case of break down. Some of the ways the company uses to ensure their clients receive accurate and reliable information about their products include:
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Newspapers
Mercedes Benz Company ensures they advertise once in while about the vehicles and the kind of the services they may have for their clients. This ensures that they have reminded their clients that they are there for them and also make their products be known to new and potential clients.
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Magazines
The organisation uses magazines to ensure that their clients receive accurate and reliable information about the services offered by the organisation. They advertise in popular magazines and even have a documentary on the company’s services.
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Bill Boards
The company uses bill boards to advertise their services offered by the organisation for the sake of making them to be known to their current clients and even woo other potential clients who might be interested with their products.
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Television
The company at times advertises their services through the television. They ensure that their services are known to their clients and for this case; they even air their advertisement during prime news time. This is an expensive way of making their services to be known to their clients but they have to do this for the sake of creating goodwill to their customers.
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Internet
Mercedes Benz Company has an official website where one can get access to the services offered by the organisation. Anybody who visits their website is able to know the kind of services offered by the organisation. Ordering a vehicle online can also be done through their website. It is also very easy to contact their customers because they have a live chat facility where you can talk and get a reply directly from a customer care agent.
Toll Free Telephone Number
The company has a toll-free telephone number where you can dial your number absolutely free to ask and there is always a customer care agent to attend to the clients.
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Newsletters
The organization publishes monthly updates to ensure its consumers are aware of the company’s services available to them. These newsletters are sent directly to any client who might have purchase their vehicles so that he can be aware of other services that might have been introduced by the company for their benefit.
How the Organisation Measure the Effectiveness of their Customer Services
To ensure that the organisation offer customers services that are actually benefiting the organisation and more so their clients, they measure the effectiveness of their services.
They ensure that all their clients fill out a survey form to evaluate their customer services. The survey forms are available at all their products outlets and are filled by all clients who might have visited their premises for a purchase or even for an enquiry.
Things Going Well in the Organisation
Due to enhanced customer care, the organisation products have continued to prevail in the market. Some of the things that are going on well in the organisation include:
- There is increase sale of the company’s products in all regions of the world due to increased customer care services to their clients.
- The profits are quit high in the recent years and this has been attributed by the company’s customer services.
- There is a very high stock turnover in almost all the company’s outlets which have been attributed to the enhanced customer care.
Things not Going Well in the Organisation
In any organisation, there has to been some things going so well and others might not be going as expected and Mercedes Company is not an exception to this and some of the things that are not going very well include:
- Stock turnover is quit low in some regions which may be attributed by the ever growing competition in the motor vehicle industry.
- Some customers claim that their vehicles are very expensive may be when a vehicle break down which might destroy the company’s goodwill it has gained in the region.
How Monitoring and Evaluation of Customer Care Has Improved the Company’s Services
The customer services monitoring and evaluation of the organisation customer care services has enabled the organisation to improve the services it offers to their customers. Monitoring and evaluation of the customers’ services of the organisation is usually done through surveys. The organisation gets feedback from their clients on the areas they need to improve and also note on the areas they are very happy about as far as customer services is concerned so that they can continue to be offered. For this case, the monitoring and evaluation of the customers services offered by the organisation has help the organisation to achieve its goals and objectives. They have continued to prevail in the market and their profits have continued to increase every year.
There is still room for improvement as far as customer care services monitoring and evaluation is concerned. They also need to offer a survey form at the company’s website to monitor and evaluate the company’s customer care services. This would allow customers who might not have gotten an opportunity to visit their outlets to evaluate and monitor the company’s services.
Strategies Used By the Organisation to Display Confidential Approach
The company is typically certain to their customers of their customer care services. We even sometimes allow some of their customers to use their cars before making any down payment for it. This is to ensure that the potential customer easily feels the vehicle’s comfort before making a purchase. This is a proprietary method technique that the company has been applying and has dramatically increased their revenues.
While delivering customer services to the clients, it is very important to apply the best interpersonal and communication skill to the clients in order to woo him. This will instil confidence to the customer and eventual the customer will purchase a vehicle.
The organisation ensures that it meets the requirement their customers, employees, the distributors and even their own. The organisation anticipates and meets the requirements of their clients in order to ensure they fully satisfy them. They ensure that they make use of the monitoring and evaluation of their customer care services to ensure they offer their customer care services according to the demand of their clients. With this, the organisation is able to able to meet the needs of their clients in range of situations.
How Effective Customer Services Benefits the Customer, the Organisation and Its Employees
The customers do benefit from effective customers services since they are able to be served in the best way. For this case, they feel very comfortable while dealing with the company and this creates goodwill.
The organisation on the other hand benefit from effective customer services since the customer will always be coming to purchase from them as they have created goodwill. This in turn increases their sale and in the long run, the organisational goals and objectives will be achieved.
The employees on the other hand also benefit from effective customer services since due to increase goodwill between the customer and the organisation, sales increases and for this case, the organisation raises their wages and salaries.
We can conclude that it is due to enhanced customer services that have seen Mercedes Benz company this far as one of the leading automobile company in the world.
Reference
The Mercedes Benz Brand World (2007): Product and Services World Wide, Available at https://www.mercedes-benz.com/content/mbcom/international/international_website/en/com.html, on February 21, 2006