Suzuki South Africa rakes in another Gold Award
Suzuki South Africa’s winning streak continues with a Gold Award and a special mention as one of the most improved automotive brands in the 2017 National NADA Survey.
The Gold Award, which was handed to Suzuki at a gala evening hosted by the National Automotive Dealers’ Association (NADA) in Johannesburg last night, follows a comprehensive poll of NADA members over the past few months. The poll measures an automotive brand’s relationship and support of its dealer network and its performance against other vehicle brands.
In 2017, no less than 30 different passenger and light commercial vehicle brands were evaluated. Dealers were asked to rate their experience with the brand that they represent in categories such as the dealer’s trust in the brand, the availability of parts and components, general dealer support, the vehicle range, communication between the head office and dealer and the quality and integrity of the vehicle warranty.
NADA, which is part of the larger Retail Motor Industry (RMI) network, also considers customer satisfaction surveys in evaluating and ranking the vehicle brands and awarding the top performers.
“To Suzuki South Africa, the NADA Gold Award is a confirmation that our hard work over the last few years is paying dividends,” says André Venter, divisional head of sales and marketing at Suzuki South Africa. “It also means that our customers are happy, because well cared-for dealers can, in turn, offer the best service to their customers.”
One example of Suzuki’s commitment to its dealer network and customers is the recent announcement that it will extend its mechanical warranty and roadside assistance programme on its passenger vehicle range to five years or 200 000 km. The move was widely supported by dealers and industry bodies for being very comprehensive in its coverage and easy to understand.
It is not the first time that Suzuki has made headlines for its exemplary customer service. In January this year, Suzuki was named the Brand of the Year in the WesBank / Cars.co.za Consumer Awards after the judges collated feedback from thousands of customers of different vehicle brands. The Award was followed a month later by the “Company to Watch” Award in the CAR Magazine Top 12 Awards, where judges also lauded Suzuki’s efforts to improve its customer service, vehicle range and dealer footprint.
“We use the feedback from the NADA Awards as our improvement-checklist for the year ahead, starting today. Our NADA ranking now becomes the benchmark on which we must improve in 2018,” says Venter.
Via Suzuki Auto South Africa