The Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) has issued Covid-19 ''Dealer Support Satisfaction Study'' in association with a specialized automotive advisory firm, PremonAsia. According to the study, Kia Motors & Toyota Kirloskar (for 4W mass market), Audi (4W luxury), Hero Motocorp (2W), and Mahindra (CV small & light) have topped the chart in meeting expectations of their dealers in post-COVID-19 support.
Reason of Study
Auto dealers had been experiencing a slowdown for a long time and then the transition from BS4 to BS6 and lockdown badly hit them with heavy unsold inventory. The COVID-19 pandemic almost broke the backbone of the dealers. During this hard time, many OEMs came forward to support their retail channels while some dealers got almost nothing in such times. Hence, FADA needed to measure how the administrators treated their dealer partners.
What were the criteria for the study?
This online study, conducted by FADA, covered all segments- 4W Cars & UV (Mass market)/ 4W Cars & UV (Luxury)/ 2W (Scooters/ Bikes)/ 3W/ CV (Medium & Heavy)/ CV (Small & Light). The study examined dealer owners & CEOs across 6 factors:-
- Support on financial matters
- Support on customer communication matters
- Support on dealer manpower matters
- Support on lockdown related matters
- Support on re-start of business
- Support on future business evolution
Segment-wise OEMs ranking
The satisfaction levels were commonly weak with all segments averaging below 600 out of 1000 points. However, OEMs like Kia & Toyota had met their dealer's expectations better than others. Toyota dealers reported a greater level of satisfaction on financial support areas whereas the Kia dealers reported a strong level of satisfaction on communication and dealer manpower-related matters.
Post completion of the survey, PremonAsia Founder and CEO, Mr. Rajeev Lochan said, “The expectations of the dealers can be divided into two parts. Support during the crisis revolves around how OEMs have responded in managing aspects related to customer communication, dealer manpower engagement & training, and financial support (particularly in terms of negotiating better deals on working capital & term loans through banks). Regarding the future, there is a common concern that the customer engagement process will get far more digitized which, in turn, will impact the dealer’s manpower efficiency, processes, and cost structure. Hence, OEMs who can proactively realign norms around these aspects are going to find greater traction among their dealer partners.”
“All segments of the market have recorded a weak satisfaction score below 600 which is understandable given that no one can be prepared in advance for handling such a calamity. However, OEMs like Kia Motors & Toyota Kirloskar (for 4W mass market), Audi (4W luxury), Hero Motocorp (2W), and Mahindra (CV small & light) have met expectations of their dealers relatively better than others. A common thread lies in how these OEMs have managed hygiene issues of support on areas of customer communication and dealer manpower training, while pleasantly delighting their dealers through better term loans to tide over working capital needs.”
