Photo: PassportBMW
BMW decided at the beginning of the year to employ a new approach towards selling cars. We told you that they decided to hire so-called Geniuses that know everything there is to know about a car so that when a customer comes in, he gets the information he needs without any hassle.
The system seems to be working and, according to Fortune, BMW wants to have around 500 of these ‘Geniuses’ working in its 339 dealerships around the US by the end of the year. The pattern was, in turn, inspired by Apple’s way of doing business.
If you are or not an Apple customers, all you had to do to notice these experts was to walk into a showroom and you’d be greeted by one. You know them, as any service you need for one of their products would require their attention.
Now, it seems like Lexus wants to do the same thing with a pilot program that is currently taking place, to evaluate how customers react. Their experts are called ‘Lexperts’ and, for now, they are only available for contact at Longo Lexus in El Monte, California and Lexus of Stevens Creek in San Jose, California. The thing is, they’ve actually being doing this before BMW, for around three years now.
“Even though it’s derived from the Apple Genius concept, we have been able to recruit college students who can learn about the business, see the career paths they can take—it’s a very similar income as an Apple Genius starting out—and drive cool cars,” Greg Penske of Penske Motor Group said.
“You are seeing all manufacturers looking at doing this because as technology is getting more intuitive, we want to make sure customers get the best guest experience,” he added.
That’s only the natural way to go, if you ask us. The days when potential customers were greeted by salesmen and women that barely knew a thing about the car are definitely over. Today, the internet is providing all the information you need beforehand and even the pricing isn’t all that secret anymore.
“The automaker is changing the entire retail experience, and the geniuses are the front line to make it more informative and friendly for our customers,” said Ian Robertson, BMW’s chief for sales and marketing.
“They’re excited, they like the new role, and they especially like seeing how much customers enjoy an atmosphere of information and no sales pressure,” he added at a meeting held for the geniuses in Munich, this month.
Another way to go would be to follow Tesla’s suit that is now going around dealerships and selling the car directly. However, since that would cause a lot of people to lose their jobs, the status quo has to be maintained, for at least another couple of years.
If you are or not an Apple customers, all you had to do to notice these experts was to walk into a showroom and you’d be greeted by one. You know them, as any service you need for one of their products would require their attention.
Now, it seems like Lexus wants to do the same thing with a pilot program that is currently taking place, to evaluate how customers react. Their experts are called ‘Lexperts’ and, for now, they are only available for contact at Longo Lexus in El Monte, California and Lexus of Stevens Creek in San Jose, California. The thing is, they’ve actually being doing this before BMW, for around three years now.
“Even though it’s derived from the Apple Genius concept, we have been able to recruit college students who can learn about the business, see the career paths they can take—it’s a very similar income as an Apple Genius starting out—and drive cool cars,” Greg Penske of Penske Motor Group said.
“You are seeing all manufacturers looking at doing this because as technology is getting more intuitive, we want to make sure customers get the best guest experience,” he added.
That’s only the natural way to go, if you ask us. The days when potential customers were greeted by salesmen and women that barely knew a thing about the car are definitely over. Today, the internet is providing all the information you need beforehand and even the pricing isn’t all that secret anymore.
Customers changed, forcing companies to adapt
The more informed customer of today wants excellent service and a person that knows more than him to talk about the car and not the other way around. BMW knows this and, at the moment, has over 1,500 Geniuses working in 43 countries around the world.“The automaker is changing the entire retail experience, and the geniuses are the front line to make it more informative and friendly for our customers,” said Ian Robertson, BMW’s chief for sales and marketing.
“They’re excited, they like the new role, and they especially like seeing how much customers enjoy an atmosphere of information and no sales pressure,” he added at a meeting held for the geniuses in Munich, this month.
Another way to go would be to follow Tesla’s suit that is now going around dealerships and selling the car directly. However, since that would cause a lot of people to lose their jobs, the status quo has to be maintained, for at least another couple of years.
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