Motor Codes

Motor Codes Garage of the Year - Get ready for round two

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 06:40:00 +0000

Round one is now closed and we've had a great time running the competition again this year with our new friend Ken Gibson at The Sun, joining the Motor Codes GotY gang with What Car? and CAT Magazine.

We took 7,835 votes, a record for the first round and beating the total number of votes for the entire competition last year, in fact up 156%.

The team have been crunching the numbers from those votes (well some web wizardry has, but you get the point) and we are kicking off round two of the contest having whittled the number down to the top 100. This is made up of ten garages (five with under ten staff and five with over ten staff) for each of the ten regions we have used to cover the UK.

Now it's time for those 100 garages to make the most of their unique local marketing opportunity and get their customers to vote for them to win round two and progress through to the final judging round and a chance of becoming Motor Codes Garage of the Year 2012.

For the rest of our subscriber base, here's the upside. During the first round of the competition we increase the unique users of motorcodes.co.uk by 46% year on year to an impressive 84,802.

Even better, profile page use is up a massive 91% to 133,738 individual views. A number that has to make you appreciate the value of being a Motor Codes subscriber, as that's active motorists looking for a reliable garage to use in their postcode area.

Motor Codes Garage of the Year competition is great news for all, but now's the time to focus on those top 100 in round two - let's have a good clean fight...

View the round two list here http://www.motorcodes.co.uk/motorists/garage-of-the-year/vote/

All the best
Chris

Motor Codes Garage of the Year 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 22:57:00 +0000

I am delighted to see the annual Motor Codes Garage of the Year competition back in such good shape for 2012. Over the last two years the competition has grown from an idea within the Motor Codes media team, to a national competition with real relevance.

The winners of last years competition, Clive Woolford in Tewkesbury, have been bowled over by the impact winning has had on thier business. They've added to their staff and taken on additional workshop space to cope with the increase in trade.

That's evidence of the value we consumers place on being able to identify a 'safe haven' garage, a place you can go that will treat you, your property and your cash with respect. What's even better for the likes of Clive Woolford, is we customers are a fairly loyal bunch and once we've made our choice, we stick with it as long as we're being treated well.

That's what Sue and Ian Boskett, the owners of Clive Woolford understand. It's not just about getting new customers, they make sure they keep them by giving them a whole mix of services that appeal to their different customer types. It's not rocket science, but it's great to see working so well.

So, we start the journey of finding this years Garage of the Year. Time will tell who it will be, and where we will travel to find them. One thing we do know, with the help of our long standing media partners What Car? and CAT magazine and the massive boost we have this year by adding The Sun and their motoring editor Ken Gibson to our support, it's going to be a great contest.

The Sun are helping Motor Codes launch the competition today with a four page supplement in the paper, so make sure you get your copy and find out more.

If you run a garage get your free marketing pack, which you can download from

http://t.co/0aTnwmk0

and get your team thinking along the lines of using the competition as a great marketing tool for the next few weeks - you never know, you could be the 2012 winner!

If you are a motorist and want to vote for your local garage, find them at

http://www.motorcodes.co.uk/motorists/garage-of-the-year/vote/

or get on to them and tell them they're missing out if they are yet to register and get involved.

Motor Codes Garage of the Year, with The Sun - get voting!

All the best
Chris

Department for Transport MOT review

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:09:00 +0000

The Vehicle and Operator Services Agency, is an executive agency of the DfT, responsible for the licensing and operation of 21,000 MOT testing stations.

DfT and VOSA have been looking at the operation of testing stations and considering a number of options for inclusion in a review, including quality and frequency of the annual test.

Last week the Transport Secretary, Justine Greening MP, issued a written ministerial statement announcing that while there would be no further consideration given to the frequency of the annual test on vehicles over three years old, the review would work with industry, motoring organisations and consumer groups to focus on the reliability and standards of garages.

Within the first half of 2012, DfT has committed to the following:

. so that consumers can be confident that the garage they choose has signed up to deliver to the highest standards, we will work with the industry and stakeholders to encourage much wider adoption of existing Codes (such as that provided through the SMMT and Motor Codes Ltd) and to develop those Codes to include MOT testing services. Our ambition is that it should be the norm for garages to comply with such Codes.

. in order to make more information available to help motorists know how the scheme is supervised, which garages perform well and which less well, we will review the MOT data gathered by VOSA and - informed by the surveys above - further improve transparency.

. we will also work with industry, motoring organisations and others to make it easier for consumers to give feedback on their experiences of garages in a transparent way that others can view, and to boost awareness of existing consumer feedback tools.

. we will help motorists to spot clocked vehicles by arranging for MOT test certificates to show mileage information for the last three years, and encouraging car buyers to check the full MOT history of vehicles by accessing on line the authoritative MOT database.

. to help motorists know how long wear and tear items such as brakes and tyres are likely to last after an MOT test, we will work with the MOT trade initially to consider whether to adjust the MOT technical test standard.

Sounds like a sensible approach to me, and the Motor Codes team is looking forward to helping with the successful delivery of the project.

See the full DfT statement here http://www.dft.gov.uk/news/statements/greening-20120201/

All the best
Chris

Part-worn tyres good or bad?

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 15:20:00 +0000

On the face of it, it sounds ok doesn’t it? Buy a tyre that has been used but is still legal at a price cheaper than a new one. The argument for part-worns seems, on the face of it, fairly intuitive: low cost, plenty of tread left, will do for a while.

In these austere times this is perfectly understandable, surely? But, consider the argument against, which is equally strong: history unknown, buyer beware.The economic argument is questioned in this piece by tyre industry expert Stuart Carr – food for thought http://www.hiqonline.co.uk/tyres/partWorn/economyAndSafety/

Ultimately, it is a case of consumer choice, as long as the tyres are being sold legally. That means within The Motor Vehicle Tyres (Safety) Regulations 1994 http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1994/3117/regulation/7/made

However it appears that there is a growing evidence showing that a significant number of part-worn tyres are being traded illegally, with no real attention being paid by the retailer to ensuring that the tyres have been appropriately checked before being offered for sale. Here’s one of a number of examples of Trading Standards findings http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article/Part-Worn-Tyres.htm

The 1994 regulations state that the tyres should also be clearly marked as part-worn when presented for sale – I’m not sure this is happening consistently, within a market that was suggested to be anything up to 6 million units in 2011.

So, the debate gathers apace – should we continue to accommodate the legitimate retailing of part-worns within the industry?

Motor Codes is currently carrying out a closed study of subscribers through the three questions next to this piece. If you’re not a subscriber (why not!) you can enter the debate by answering question 4 ‘Part worn tyres good or bad’

All the best

Chris

Car Dealer magazine Profit Clinic

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 10:58:00 +0000

In December I spoke at the Car Dealer magazine Profit Clinic. I took the opportunity to talk to the 100 or so delegates about how Motor Codes is a cost effective, localised marketing tool and how we can be used to develop an effective on line strategy that will encourage custom.

In these hard economic times, any opportunity to drive more business should be explored. Any opportunity which can demonstrate it is driving business should be utilised to the max.

With Motor Codes subscription, garages can use our direct marketing to advertise to motorists within their postcode area that are actively looking for a garage to use. Furthermore, they are looking for a local garage to use that they can trust. In the second half of 2011, there were 270,000 garage profile page views via www.motorcodes.co.uk

With our OFT backed code, garage profile pages, customer driven feedback and free to access consumer and business advisory service - consumers can chose to do business with a Motor Codes subscribing garage safe in the knowledge that the business is committed to looking after them, their property and their cash.

Don't take their word for it, see what their previous customers thought and make your own mind up.

The deal for garages, as I said at the Profit Clinic, within 24 hours you can have a government-backed business, with full OFT approval, and a Motor Codes rating - it really is that straightforward.

See full coverage of the event and my presentation at http://www.cardealermagazine.co.uk/publish/profit-clinic-motor-codes/59762

All the best
Chris

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 09:48:00 +0000

Motor Codes Garage of the Year competition is open for 2012! Public voting begins on February 24th, that gives garages plenty of time to prepare.

All Motor Codes subscribing garages are automatically entered. So first off, download your free marketing pack at www.motorcodes.co.uk you can register here as well if you are not currently a Motor Codes subscriber (why not!).

The posters, leaflets and web banners look great:

Then get your team fired up and make sure all your customers vote and get you through the first round - see the sequence of events here http://tinyurl.com/86srfu2

Some of the smarter entrants last year stirred up some great local media attention through the competition - that's why we've given you a month to get your plan together.

Ken Gibson from the Sun is right behind us, saying this in today's Motors supplement '...the Motor Codes organisation and the Garage of the Year is a great way of driving motorists to garages that give them the best deal'

What more can I say, apart from it's great to have Ken on board the judging panel this year - along with some other notable people, and er...me.

http://www.motorcodes.co.uk/motorist/garage-of-the-year/judges.html

Time to get busy!

All the best
Chris

Adding value - not cost

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 14:55:00 +0000

January 2012 and the development of Motor Codes continues. When we created the business we did so with an objective of making all our services as easily accessible for the industry and their customers as possible.

This includes pricing. We agreed with Government that we would hold subscription costs for three years. The great news we announced to the network yesterday is that for the fourth year we have managed to hold the price of annual subscription to the Service and Repair Code to £75.

So, now as a subscriber to the Code, for 75 quid you get a Government backed Code and you are an Office of Fair Trading approved business. Worth the fee in itself...

You can reference this in all your marketing and advertising materials to give you the edge over less customer focused local businesses, that's the idea!

Think about it - on your adverts, on your website, business stationery, works vehicles and business premises you can display this logo:

You also get a free mini website to advertise your business via unique profiles on motorcodes.co.uk.

Just over 270,000 profile page views occurred in the second half of 2011. That's motorists viewing garage information having entering their postcode in the Garage Finder search facility on our homepage. Local motorists, who are active in their search for a garage to use. 270,000 times in six months. That's got to be driving business to our subscribers.

Here's a great looking profile, featuring adverts that can be individually uploaded by the garage, or centrally uploaded by a group or parent company, Garage Rating and verbatim customer comments from survey returns (all qualified to customer, vehicle and invoice number).

Why not get engaged in the survey that comes with your subscription, order a pack of 500 invoice stickers like the one below from the Code Shop and let your customers provide feedback on line, which you can view in real time via your back office log on to motorcodes.co.uk and they get entered into our monthly prize draw to win back the cost of their invoice (up to £500), very nice!

More value through our expert team working the Motor Codes Advice Service. They'll helped around 10,000 callers in 2011, less then 90% of these went any further than firsts call advice.

This is great news for our network, low levels of customer complaints - but fairly high numbers of motorists needed help, expert help. So we've scrapped the per case conciliation fee from now! Great news, this means we not only provide the best advice to garage operators and their customers at no cost but we also now provide the best dispute resolution free of charge, which has to be good news for all.

Contact the team on 0800 692 0825 - they waiting to help!

More to follow, 2012 is looking like a busy year for the Motor Codes team....

All the best
Chris

Our new logo has arrived

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 21:32:00 +0000

You can only use it if you're signed up though!

Do it now at www.motorcodes.co.uk

All the best
Chris

We are OFT Approved

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 21:39:00 +0000

The Office of Fair Trading has approved the Motor Industry Code of Practice for Service and Repair.

I've been waiting over five years to say that, today is a significant day.

In 2005 the UK service and repair sector was told by the Government to sort themselves out or they'd get involved. At this point SMMT were seen as the pioneers of a new approach to sector specific self regulation through the New Car Code that had been launched and approved by OFT in 2004.

So, the Government came calling and through it's industry liaison group agreed that SMMT should establish a new company that would house a service and repair code to define minimum standards of customer service and in the longer term become a brand of reassurance sought by consumers.

Motor Codes was formed and now we have a Government backed Service and Repair Code to add to our long standing OFT Approved New Car Code.

The journey has been long and interesting, frustrating, demanding and sometimes, well... pretty dull. That's the nature of putting a code through the OFT approval process, its hard work.

All worth it today, well worth it.

I've been working in the motor industry since 1985, this was required then. I know senior industry figures who tell me the same about when they started in the industry, 40 and 50 years ago.

So now we have it. An agreed set of standards that any garage worth its salt should adhere to.

That's consumer protection, customer service and customer retention all in the same document. And guess what, it's not complicated, that's the funny thing. The complicated part has been getting the negotiations with OFT over the past few years right so that what we have is something we can all understand and commit to.

Congratulations to all involved in this extraordinary process, I guess for my part I merely steered the course with much advice, support and encouragement from any number of people.

Collectively we did it. Well done all.

Sign up or search for a subscribing garage here www.motorcodes.co.uk

OFT press release http://www.oft.gov.uk/news-and-updates/press/2011/126-11

Motor Codes press release here http://www.motorcodes.co.uk/motorist/press-releases/

All the best

Chris

Times, they are a changing

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 21:13:00 +0000

This month we bought a new car for the family. I say new, it's three years old. Our son says it's our big new car - that's good enough for me.

Why am I telling you this? Well, we live in north Essex and the car came from Gateshead, we didn't see it in the flesh, test drive it, touch it, kick its tyres or study the paintwork before we bought it.

We found a dealer group that we trust and entered into a process whereby they 'assisted' us to find the car we wanted, in the colour we wanted, mileage, previous history and ownership, all as we wanted. The vehicle was the exact specification we wanted as we'd spent time researching it beforehand.

The car was delivered to our door, at the time and day we specified, with bridging insurance in place for a week to allow us to drive it immediately. Which we did.

The car had an MOT and service prior to delivery, has 12 months warranty and roadside assistance cover, as well as a 'no quibble' exchange or refund should the vehicle not be what we had agreed to buy.

For team Mason, you can't beat this. We have bought our last two family cars through this process now, without having to find time to trail the kids around forecourts and everything that entails.

Horses for courses I know, some would think us mad to complete the transaction without actually seeing and driving the vehicle.

I reckon that's the way the used car market is evolving and by the time our son gets to buying his first car, it might just seem a little odd to him that we used to go and look at them.

I may be wrong, time will tell..

All the best
Chris

Not all calls for help are complaints

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 15:17:00 +0000

The Motor Codes Advisory and Dispute Resolution Service provides free advice to motorists, the team has handled 6,000 calls regarding service and repair matters this year to date. 500 of these were escalated to our dispute resolution service, at which point they become a complaint, not before.

This means that in 5,500 instances, the Motor Codes team provided expert advice to motorists who needed to better understand their position, or some technical aspect of the process. This service is all part of the deal when a garage subscribes to the Motor Industry Code of Practice for Service and Repair.

It's a support mechanism a garage provides for their customers, because customers aren't experts in our industry, but we are. Earlier this year we opened up this free advice service to the garages themselves, now more and more garages use it to check with us and confirm their position and proposed route through any concerns that may arise with customers.

No cost, no fuss, no bother, just a call to the service established by the industry at the request of Government. What we get out of all of this is an ability to demonstrate who the good guys are within the garage world - search for one at www.motorcodes.co.uk

But don't just take my word for it, research customer feedback on our site and make your own mind up. Over 25,000 customers have now completed an online survey and guess what, 93% of these actual customers were satisfied and would recommend the garage to their friends and family.

One thing you can be sure of. By finding your garage through Motor Codes, you enter into a selection process within a protected environment.

Call the team for free on 0800 692 0825

http://tinyurl.com/5wabg5g

All the best
Chris

Digital Radio - coming to a car near you

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 16:36:00 +0000

If it can't already, your car will soon be able to receive digital radio. Which means, you'll be able to listen to digital radio in your car - hurray!

This statement might not be as daft as it sounds - as it comes with an interesting conundrum for the providers of digital radio, the automotive industry and anywhere up to 25 million motorists.

The majority of cars on the road when the government switches off the analogue signal will not be set up to receive a digital signal, so we need a plan - or they won't be listening to anything..

Enter Digital Radio UK, a mix of automotive types and some electrical wizardry and we are looking at black box technology that can be fitted discreetly within the car to receive the signal and then transmit it through the cars original, analogue equipment - bingo.

I was at a DRUK conference today at the BBC and joined a discussion panel around getting this whole conversion process happening. It's quite a challenge.

One thing is clear, the potential of 25 million consumer transactions is a massive opportunity for the industry to engage with consumers. And, we also know that opportunities like this need to come with some consideration given to consumer information and protection.

The competitive arena created around digital radio will be lively, quite right too. What the industry and broader stakeholder group will need to ensure is that consumers know who is selling appropriate products and able to fit them competently. The industry and stakeholder group will also need to provide consumers with consistent information and support, along with advice and dispute resolution services should they encounter any concerns along the way.

I'm looking forward to getting involved!

Check out the current digital radio coverage in your area, it's probably better than you think http://www.ukdigitalradio.com/

All the best
Chris

QR Codes - the future has arrived!

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 14:54:00 +0000

QR Codes have arrived, and the future is unfolding in front of our very eyes. The first time I saw a QR Code I got it, and it confirms the way our world is moving for me.

Less content, advertising and marketing required to get people to view (do) what you want them to, immediately. Influence is driven up and for free.

Smart phones enable the process, consumers will benefit and drive the world of cost down marketing - in the same way that online communities are driving down the value of paid for advertising through the increasing value of recent customer opinion of a product or service.

At Motor Codes we have a regular flow of organisations contact us telling us that they need to run our survey and ratings operation for us, because they have more traffic, have done it for longer, spend more on it, and on and on and on and ......

We know that their operation might bring more virtual footfall to our site, but at what cost quality of visitor? over 22,500 actual customers of Motor Codes garages have completed the online survey and left comments for others to view and inform their choice when selecting a garage - we'll keep building organically through use of QR Code type technology (cost £0) safe in the knowledge that every survey completed, and piece of feedback appearing on a profile page at www.motorcodes.co.uk is qualified by an invoice number, registration number and customer contact details.

Quality.

All the best
Chris

Listening and learning

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 07:59:00 +0000

Three years in and we've come a long way. Motor Codes has grown rapidly, and as it does so do the requirements of our subscribers across all three codes.

For me, a great sign of how we have become established within the automotive landscape is that we don't find our subscribers talking about super complaints or enforced regulation much anymore. You may recall Motor Codes was originally established to defend the industry against such a move by Government. Now we get asked about increasing the benefits, raising profile and driving more business.

Expectations are high, but I guess that's a compliment and a sign of confidence in what we have and continue to create.

The important thing here is, it's not just me and the Motor Codes team that drive this development - it's our subscribers and stakeholders. We make the effort to listen and act upon feedback, encouraging you to get involved in the debate and drive the process of development.

If you want to get more involved, give me a call or drop me a line, anytime:

020 7344 9215
cmason@motorcodes.co.uk

You can also get in touch and follow our progress via twitter @chrismasonmcl

Be good to hear from you and where possible get together and have a cuppa and a chat.

All the best
Chris

Winter tyres - a thought

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 14:26:00 +0000

August and I've just been asked about winter tyres. I guess that's about right, and while we retain hopes of an Indian summer the reality is we should make a plan.

I know it's a step we should probably now consider as part of the annual cycle of car ownership, winters are biting hard and it feels like I should be thinking about making sure we get around and remain in good shape through the cold months.

I just can't square off the thought that come autumn I'll have to get the family car into town, get some cold weather tyres fitted, load the regular tyres into the boot, get home, get dirty making space in the garage (prime space in the Mason household), only to have to manoeuvre around them each time I need to access the garage....then, do it all again in reverse once spring time comes. Phew...

The thing is, if a local friendly Motor Codes retailer decided to take all the bother out of the process and collect the car, give it a winter check over, change the tyres - store the regulars until spring for me, then do the same to get the norms back next spring and store the coldies for me, I might be convinced.

I'd probably align the MOT and servicing to save myself even more fuss.

Just a thought...

All the best
Chris

Motor Codes - cutting edge

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 13:03:00 +0000

A couple of great examples of how the Motor Codes survey is featuring more as an additional means of providing reassurance and building consumer confidence. Click on the images to view the sites.

We always say that it's ok to trust a trustworthy garage - but how do you find one in the first instance. At Motor Codes we know that the majority of garage operators provide excellent customer service and we're committed to standing with them in the promotion of their business.

So we've developed this range of 'widgets' that they can place on their websites. The good thing about the satisfaction levels and verbatim customer comments they display is that they aren't generated from own brand surveys, they're driven by the Motor Codes survey.

What better way to demonstrate transparency to existing customers and those looking for a new garage to use than by using the customer comments and feedback generated through impartial means and not linked into any performance related incentive - just customers leaving feedback for the benefit of other motorists.

Motor Codes - peace of mind for the motorist.

All the best
Chris

Automotive Blog - good stuff

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 06:48:00 +0000

Good to see some positive thinking around what can be a difficult area for customers within the industry. Over the years there have been some really awful suggestions on what should be done to make females feel less nervous when visiting a garage - treat them as every customer should be treated is my advice.

Enquire and determine what the customers requirements are and then help them understand the offer, process and costs thereafter, keep it simple.

I like the feeling around this piece, it's interesting to see an approach that could see a concern addressed with a shift in working practices, nice one - I'm sure it's already working in practice and in the aftersales side of business as well.

http://bit.ly/r8DYye

All the best
Chris

Moving to a more modern delivery of our codes

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 14:05:00 +0000

Here's a picture of me when we launched at the Office of Fair Trading in summer 2008 - you'll notice I have some paper in my hands, the Service and Repair Code.

If we were launching it today, I can't imagine printing thousands of copies of it, really I can't. I'd more than likely feel that more people would access it more readily if it were a download document available from www.motorcodes.co.uk and any other site that wanted to provide it, such as our subscribing garages, stakeholders and consumer advisors like Trading Standards and Citizens Advice Bureau.

It is an infinitely better way of delivering the information we need to be in the public domain, while reducing administrative burden and ensuring a swift and manageable route to updating the documents in a timely fashion.

Soon two of our codes will need an update due to shifts in business practices and changes to the regulatory environment. Currently we will have to try and coordinate the disposal of all current hard copies and replenish our subscribers stock with next versions. The headache from all this is obvious, continuity of standards being at the heart of the problem.

So, the time has come to acknowledge that the world has changed and I'll be discussing the shift from old to new with the Office of Fair Trading over the next few weeks.

We'll look to have a refreshed Brief Guide consumer leaflet as the hard copy point of reference, which can then direct anyone requiring a copy of whichever code to our website, where the most current version will be available to download for free - it already is.

Can't think that we need to continue printing thousands of copies when we can be more efficient and guarantee up to date versions by relying on the internet, can you?

Let's see what the regulator says, once again..

All the best
Chris

Corporate responsibility

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 07:27:00 +0000

In my time working in the motor industry I have seen a number of initiatives aimed at 'regulating' the garage sector come and go. In the 2005 paper by the National Consumer Council 'At a Crossroads' it was claimed there had been 13 failed attempts to self regulate this sector over a 30 year period.

I started my career in the automotive industry in 1985, so I should have seen most of these come and go, but I can't say I can name more than a handful.

This can be a problem with self regulation of this nature, the schemes often go unnoticed because they only require a passive involvement.

When creating and establishing Motor Codes we decided that passive involvement was a redundant position, industry business operators should be proud to sign up to the scheme and visibly commit to their customers.

Those that are doing this are finding that Motor Codes confirms not only their intention to 'do the right thing' but also enables our industry to demonstrate a corporate responsibility to acceptable standards and behaviours.

I suspect as Government pushes harder on the media for not applying any form of adequate self regulation, other areas will come under scrutiny to demonstrate whether they have voluntarily established the rules by which they will police themselves and whether that policing is adequate. Those schemes will also face challenges if they are seen to be less than robust in protecting consumers.

Through having developed our codes via the Office of Fair Trading Consumer Codes Approval Scheme we are able to demonstrate our own corporate responsibility which is further backed by our own Independent Compliance Assessment Panel, which is currently chaired by Trading Standards CEO, Ron Gainsford. This panel exists to take an independent judgement of our operation of the codes and gives me and my team an independent set of objectives to deliver, as well as deciding on sanctions and matters of non-compliance.

We are proud to have created a process that ensures our codes are robust, delivering consumer protection and establishing the minimum standards that our industry can use to demonstrate their own commitment to getting it right.

What value self regulation? When established for the right reasons and operated properly, an extremely valuable addition to the landscape of any sector.

All the best
Chris

Used Car Sales Code - let's see where we get to

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Sat, 09 Jul 2011 08:29:00 +0000

Motor Codes was created at the request of Government to operate self regulation for the UK motor industry, the overall objective being to operate four codes and deliver consistent levels of customer service throughout the lifespan of a vehicle - New Car, Service and Repair, and Vehicle Warranty Products codes are already working well within each specific sector. The fourth and final piece of the jigsaw to put in place would be in the used car sales sector.

Motor Codes began a used car sales code development consultation process in June. Working with retailers, dealer groups, vehicle manufacturers, trade associations, consumer advisors and the media we are currently progressing through the first stage of the process; drafting what a potential code for the sector could look like.

It's an interesting process, the Motor Codes team are actually coordinating the writing of the code through an email consultation group of industry specialists, the people that work in the used car sales sector.

Why does the sector need self regulation? To protect and reassure consumers and highlight and promote those responsible retailers in the sector at the commercial expense of those that can't or won't commit to an industry wide minimum standard of operation.

Straight forward principle this, it is our intention to help those business operators that are committed to customer service gain more business, because they deserve it. The bottom line really is that consumers looking to spend significant amounts of money on a used car deserve to be treated well, provided with quality cars and support services thereafter.

Our agenda is an aspiration to do the right thing and establish effective self regulation within the used car sector.

Let's see where the project takes us. What I can tell you is that we have a growing email consultation group of industry professionals that are committed to the process on this basis. If you want to join us drop me a line at cmason@motorcodes.co.uk - it'll be great to have you on board.

All the best
Chris

Modern day word of mouth recommendation

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Thu, 26 May 2011 19:05:00 +0000

Thanks to all our subscribers that have sent us such positive feedback on the new look website this last week or so. The team is really pleased with it and we can see an increase in survey returns that is clearly corresponding with subscribers getting their feedback ratings live and moving up the postcode search listings.

Don’t forget, the easiest way of getting your customers to complete a survey is on line at www.motorcodes.co.uk

But here’s the question - what’s the easiest way of getting your customers to our website?

And here’s the answer - stick a competition sticker like the one above on their invoice.

Easy, just stick a sticker, it directs them to the on line survey, they leave their feedback which feeds your garage rating and at the same time they can enter the monthly Motor Codes prize draw that sees one lucky customer win back the cost of their service or repair (up to £500).

You get the benefit of all your customers telling the rest of the world what they think of your service, this drives confidence in potential customers that view the feedback and your customers get the chance to win back some cash!

Log on to the subscriber area of the site and buy a box of 500 stickers for £7, that’s about as cheap as they come!

Motor Codes is now really driving business for you, 55,000 profile page views were carried out last month – that’s actual people looking for a local garage to use – this is the first image they see once they’ve entered their postcode.

Make sure you’re up to speed and your ranking looks like this

and doesn’t look like this.......

All the best

Chris

New Motor Codes website - more credit to our subscribing garages

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Wed, 18 May 2011 14:40:00 +0000

What does it mean to be a Motor Codes subscriber?

Well, the value of involvement to garages has taken a big step this week with the launch of our refreshed website.

At its core is what matters most - our Garage Finder search engine. Click on the image above and enter your postcode and you'll see that the listings now appear in order of best customer feedback.

Yep, ratings listing comes to the garage world, to help motorists make informed choices about which garages to use, based upon the opinion of their customers. Follow this link to see a couple of great examples:

http://www.motorcodes.co.uk/garagefinder/kingshurst-automotive-3896.html
http://www.motorcodes.co.uk/garagefinder/spratley-s-of-mortimer-2138.html

This is what subscription to Motor Codes is all about:

• Commitment to delivering high quality customer service

But also, crucially,

• opening ourselves up to scrutiny so we know that motorists choosing a Motor Codes garage have been able to make an informed choice.

That’s where the value lies and we hope that the refreshed website helps boost business.

If you're a garage owner or a garage customer, this localised advertising is a really positive development - have a think about it.

Garages - people who enter their postcode into our search engine are actively looking for a garage to do business with in their area.

Motorists - what do most people still say the best method of finding a good local business is? Word of mouth. This is just that - a modern day form of word of mouth.

All the best
Chris

Fair play OFT!

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 10:30:00 +0000

The Office of Fair Trading released a paper this week called 'Consumer Contracts - What you need to know'.

I tend to make sure I read these papers to keep myself up to speed and this one actually held my attention.

I was pretty surprised to read the following words: 'Since your contracts convey a message about your business, it’s just like any other marketing opportunity'.

Blimey, terms of contracts, a marketing opportunity. This is actually pretty forward thinking stuff - well done OFT!

I like to promote a positive view on most things but, I have to say, this has never occurred to me.

As we all know, contract terms have to be there, on the back of the invoice, size 0.5 font, never read by anyone and often no real reason to do so...unless the business starts to use them to improve customer service!

Have a look at the OFT paper and see how a few simple tactics can be applied, to ensure contract terms are working well for your business, supporting consumers and are not just filling up space with negative connotations.

http://tinyurl.com/3ppkmf4

All the best
Chris

Better Choices:Better Deals

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 15:08:00 +0000

Motor Codes is referenced within this new paper detailing the aspirations for empowering consumers, hardly surprising as the paper pretty much details the Motor Codes development strategy: highlight the best run businesses through the use of customer opinion, and use the information as a means of promoting well run garages for motorists to select from.

The long term plan - the best business operations will thrive because they will be promoted by this modern day word of mouth. And that's what people still say is the best way to find a trustworthy local business to use, ask the local community.

This will always take place in the traditional way, but increasingly a local community exists online and we need to acknowledge this as a direct and very effective means of being able to compare local businesses on a like for like basis - which is what their most recent customers thought about their experience.

Modern day word of mouth, a vision shared by Motor Codes, search your postcode at http://www.motorcodes.co.uk/

All the best
Chris

Clive Woolford is Motor Codes Golden Garage 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Mason) — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 08:49:00 +0000

Friday was a good day.

I spent it with Ian and Sue Boskett, directors of Clive Woolford garage in Tewkesbury, winners of this years Golden Garage competition. Congratulations to them and their team, a well deserved award in any estimation.

A long established business, Ian and Sue are at the helm and were a regional finalist in last years Golden Garages competition. Quite frankly their attention to detail, and customer service made them this years winner by a country mile.

They approach their customers use of the business as, well a community service is my best description.

While many people make the claim, nothing really is too much trouble for these two. The great thing is I also experienced this throughout their team; friendly, helpful, engaging and very pleasant people.

The press release announcing their win can be found at http://tinyurl.com/6dsrh5z
This annual competition starts to make real sense when you understand things like the following facts Ian and Sue shared with me on Friday. Clive Woolford were a Golden Garages regional finalist in 2010. Since winning the regional stage last year the local PR they generated saw such a positive reaction in their area they recruited a new technician and have had to extend their premises to accommodate the additional workload.

Great news for them, their staff and the people of Tewkesbury.

Also great news for Motor Codes and food for thought for other subscribers. The Clive Woolford management team saw the potential to generate some excellent local PR off the back of last year's competition. It has paid dividends for them and their business, their customers and is sustaining further employment of staff.

Congratulations to all the Clive Woolford team, worthy winners and I hope the diary continues to bulge with bookings.

All the best

Chris