Mr. Left Hand – Let Me Introduce You to Mr. Right Hand!
I recently had an experience with my car which perfectly illustrates the challenges that companies face in coordinating their actions to maintain loyal customer relationships.
Here's my story ...
My lease was about to expire and I decided that since I had been very happy with my car, I would enquire as to the buyout price on the lease. So I called the brand's financial services company and asked for the buyout amount. When I heard the figure I tried to negotiate a little and asked if maybe they would give me a loyalty discount for sticking with their brand. The answer I got was a robotic "I'm sorry sir that price is non-negotiable".
I tried a different tack, explaining that I really wanted to keep my car but that I would have to look at some of their competitor brands unless they could meet me half-way on the lease buyout price. Once again I got the same answer ... "non-negotiable". I was amazed that they weren't prepared to try harder at a time when car sales are through the floor and brands should be clinging onto loyal customers for dear life.
So I made one last attempt, saying I was definitely going to buy another brand, thinking they might cave in and route me to the "customer retention" department, but I was wrong. They thanked me for my business and then asked (incredibly) "is there anything else I can help you with today?".
Now here's the kicker - about half an hour later I got a call directly from the dealership where I had originally bought the car. They told me that the brand was running a special incentive program giving a $5,000 discount to owners of my particular vehicle if we agreed to buy out the leases. The sales guy told me he had no knowledge of my earlier conversation with the leasing company, which I do believe - few companies would be able to coordinate between HQ and a local dealership in just half an hour.
So I jumped at what was a very good deal but was amazed that the left hand clearly did not know what the right hand was doing in this very well known and well regarded auto brand. Have you had any similar experiences ... ?
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