JD Power Sales Satisfaction Index 2010

Delivery timing has a particularly strong impact on customer satisfaction with the new-vehicle sales experience, with satisfaction declining considerably when delivery takes longer than 14 days, according to the J.D. Power Asia Pacific. This is apparent from its latest Sales Satisfaction Index (SSI) Study for Malaysia which the company released today.

The study found that customer satisfaction with delivery timing decreases as delivery time lengthens. Customers who made a new vehicle purchase indicated that they are dissatisfied when delivery time exceeds 14 days, on average. In particular, among customers for whom delivery of a new vehicle takes more than one month, satisfaction with delivery timing averages 95 points lower than the industry average. 

In the 2010 study, delivery times were shown to have increased by 2 days compared to 2009, to an average of 19.8 days. However, approximately 20% of customers indicated that they received their vehicle within 4 days. Among these customers, satisfaction with delivery timing averaged 52 points higher than the industry average.

Now in its eighth year for the Malaysian market, the study measures customer satisfaction with the sales and delivery experience related to a new vehicle purchase and examines 7 factors that contribute to overall satisfaction. In order of importance, these factors are: delivery process; delivery timing; paperwork; dealer facility; salesperson, deal and sales initiation. SSI performance is reported as an index score based on a 1,000-point scale, where a higher overall SSI score indicates greater satisfaction with the new-vehicle sales and delivery process. Overall sales satisfaction remained stable from 2009, averaging 781 in 2010.

“In order to ensure high customer satisfaction, it is crucial for dealerships to improve on the delivery timing and ensure that the vehicles are delivered as requested and at the promised time,” said Taku Kimoto, General Manager for Malaysia at J.D. Power Asia Pacific’s office based in Singapore.

Among the 9 brands ranked in the study, Isuzu ranked highest with an overall SSI score of 844. Next were Suzuki (790), Toyota (789) and Honda (788). Naza improved notably with a score of 781 in 2010, compared with 736 in 2009.

The study also found that customers who indicated having experienced a sales problem or sales pressure would be considerably less satisfied with the sales and delivery process, compared with customers who had not experienced these issues. In particular, satisfaction declined most notably among customers who indicated that they were pressured to take delivery of their vehicle at an inconvenient time, and among customers who indicated the salesperson was behaving in an insincere way or had difficulty answering questions.

How important is it for a customer to be satisfied? According to the study, customers who were highly satisfied with the overall purchase experience would tend to have higher levels of advocacy and loyalty toward the dealership and their vehicle brand. Among customers who were highly satisfied with their purchase experience at the dealership (sales satisfaction scores averaging above 844), 56% stated they “definitely will” recommend their purchase dealer to a friend or relative. These highly satisfied customers indicated that they would be far more likely to repurchase or recommend the same brand in the future. In contrast, only 21% of highly dissatisfied customers (service satisfaction scores averaging below 728) said they “definitely will” recommend their purchase dealer. 

“As competition intensifies and customer expectations rise, ensuring that customers are delighted with their new-vehicle sales experience at the dealership is vital, as this may have a particularly strong positive effect on future loyalty and advocacy intentions,” said Mr. Kimoto.

The 2010 Malaysia SSI Study was based on responses from 2,445 new-vehicle owners who purchased their vehicles between September 2009 and April 2010. The study was conducted between March and June 2010. All participants in the surveys were selected after a thorough screening process to ensure suitability. The list of participants was obtained by J.D. Power Asia Pacific independently and not supplied by any of the car companies.

Other JD Powr Asia Pacific studies for Malaysia:
2010 Customer Satisfaction Index (service centres)
2009 Sales Satisfaction Index


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