Editor’s Blog on Renault’s initiative to win back business confidence

WEBSITES such as Amazon have had customer reviews on them for years – buyers can comment on their purchase both good and bad.

More recently TripAdvisor, which adds unbiased traveller reviews to holidays, has changed its catchphrase from ‘reviews you can trust’ to ‘reviews from our community’ following criticism of the alleged veracity of some of the claims by online reputation company KwikChex.com.

Despite this, customer recommendations remain very powerful in either endorsing a product; or helping it tank. It’s something that Renault has taken on board and is using to revive its creaking reputation both with retail and business customers.

It has just introduced a Dealer Star Rating appears on its www.renault.co.uk website as part of its ‘Dealer Locator’ button, which allows customers to share their experiences at each of Renault’s network of dealerships.

Judging by the comments for those Renault dealerships around 30 miles from Business Car Manager towers, the best dealer for me to visit if I had a Renault is Renault Slough with a five star rating and universally good reviews.

This is how it works. After buying a new Renault or visiting an aftersales department, motorists are contacted by Renault’s Customer Satisfaction team and asked about their experience.

Each month, about 4,500 customers are interviewed and their responses are allocated a star rating. If a customer would definitely recommend the dealership, a five star rating is allocated; if the customer would recommend, but is not completely satisfied, a four-star rating is given; and so on.

The star ratings also incorporate verbatim comments, taken from the interviews, to explain what customers liked about their dealership experience.

Renault promises a balanced view – and from what I’ve read that’s what you get in the comments. It truly isn’t all rosy.

It seems a great way to start rebuilding trust in the brand. It needs it. We’ve had appalling quality issues (I’m sure the previous generation Laguna weighs heavily in the minds of many company car driver), grand designs, boring designs, a rush off into EV land (inhabited by no one except the car makers presently), along with a motorsport angle that includes an F1 title with Red Bull Racing.

“This hard work in improving quality is on-going. The Dealer Star Rating is one step in our ‘Drive the Change’ strategy that changes our relationship with our customers and joins other initiatives such as our UK-wide improvement programme, internal surveys and investment in improving the whole-life customer experience,” comments the quality and services director Mark Crockett at Renault.

Renault needs it, badly, before SMEs and business drivers can start considering the brand again. But full marks to Renault for this starting point. Other car makers could learn from it.