EMaC is expanding its Aftersales Academy to give 150 car retailers the chance to strengthen their sales and customer service expertise in 2020.

The service plan specialist launched the Academy scheme in 2019 and top performing employees of Listers Group, RRG Group, Snows Motor Group and TrustFord were presented with awards at a special event hosted in the Veuve champagne bar at The Cube, Birmingham, upon completion of the course.

Each of the winners had excelled in their completion of the free-to-access course, which included workshops, webinars, and events with guest speakers.

In 2020 the Academy will be open to a larger number of candidates and will aim to fulfil three major objectives central to the challenges faced by modern retailers:

  • Helping retailers augment aftersales opportunities
  • Assisting employees in delivering enviable customer service
  • Supporting dealers in developing and retaining high quality staff

Emma Sidley-Wiltshaw, EMaC’s learning and development manager, said that the 2020 Academy will build on 2019’s successes.

She said: “We are well known in the motor industry for our market-leading aftersales solutions, underpinned by highly effective IT platforms and exemplary support services. But we are fully aware that our success has been achieved by working in partnership with dealers nationwide, learning about and adapting to their needs.

“That’s why, after feedback from last year’s 50 delegates, we’re massively excited that our 2020 Aftersales Academy will equip so many more delegates with the knowledge and tools they need to maximise business opportunities whilst boosting their own career paths.”

Building on last year’s programme, EMaC is continuing to include learning modules on the nuance of soft touch communication techniques used in delivering aftersales products to consumers as part of the training programme which has been designed to work alongside retailers’ own training and development programme. 

Modules will focus on consumer engagement, skill building and coaching techniques for future leaders. 

The 2020 content will be delivered via interactive group activities, discussions and self-lead tuition, accommodating a range of different learning styles.  Incentives and awards for star performers will further motivate delegates.

Sidley-Wiltshaw said: “Understandably, dealerships have their own training programmes focussing on their specialist areas of business but may not have the time and resources to specifically focus on innovative ways of creating great aftersales consumer experiences.

“That’s why we’re so excited to be delivering the EMaC Aftersales Academy for a second year.  Successful graduates will gain cutting-edge training on understanding consumer behaviour and optimising retention.”

EMaC manages 1.7 million live consumers on behalf of vehicle manufacturers and dealerships.

In recent months the supplier has worked hard to broaden its scope of services away from the foundations of its service plan offering.

In August nit teamed up with BMW UK to give BMW and Mini dealers the chance to offer pay monthly service plans to customers.

The most recent new product brings a traditional service plan together with an extended warranty and roadside assistance to create its new Lifetime Warranty “vehicle ownership solution”.

Accessible via EMaC’s ‘Evolve’ online portal the new bundled product is said to enable dealers to strengthen their vehicle sales proposition by providing their consumers with an easy-to-budget vehicle ownership solution.

John O’Donnell, managing director of EMaC, said that the Lifetime Warranty would give dealerships a “competitive advantage and the ability to differentiate in a highly-challenging market”.