It’s no secret that Proton has enjoyed unprecedented success with Geely, in fact it is plain to see.
The Chinese automotive giant has not only brought sellable models like the X70 to the table, but also a management overhaul and marketing know-how from its global exploits.
Sales are off the charts but that is not enough for Proton. Other than its pursuit to sell more than it ever has, Proton has also been trying to move its image upmarket to be regarded as a premium carmaker.
To do this Proton has not only introduced cars that look good with impressive craftsmanship, but it has also worked to improve the customer experience at showrooms and service centres.
Since 2018, Proton has been working with dealers to upgrade from 1S centres to full-fledged 3S and 4S centres.
Those that did not want to trade up had to be let go.
This step was taken in the name of customer experience. And there’s no doubt that ever since it took this drastic step, Proton showrooms and service centres have been at their finest in Proton’s history.
Now though Proton is set to take it a step further with the soon to be introduced Proton X90.
In a recent media preview of the X90, Proton CEO Dr Li Chunrong (above) confirmed that Proton dealers will have to adhere to three conditions in order to qualify to sell the Proton X90.
“The first condition is that the dealers after sales service needs to be better. If not they will be disqualified and will not be able to sell the X90. We will find out whether they will be able to sell or not based on their performance. This is our first condition,” said Dr Li during a question and answer session with members of the Malaysian media.
Proton actively monitors the performance levels of all dealerships and monitors customer feedback in order to improve aftersales service. That is how the company knows whether a dealership is performing at the set standards or not.
“The second condition is we have space requirements. For example, the dealers showroom will have to accommodate eight models. Because by the end of this year we will have eight models and we cannot accept dealers who do not display all eight models in their showroom. We do not want them to only display the latest models,” added Dr Li.
And finally Dr Li explained the third condition is dealer performance. Though he did not elaborate what that performance was. Presumably he meant sales and spare parts performance.
We later caught up with Proton’s Director of After Sales, Wan Hazran for a quick chat after the question and answer session was wrapped up to have a better understanding of Proton’s direction.
Wan Hazran also confirmed Dr Li’s approach – dealers that did not comply with the conditions set out will not be allowed to sell the Proton X90.
“We have identified the dealers that will be allowed to sell the X90. We have strict criteria for sales and aftersales requirements. Because we want to select only the best outlets to sell this Premium SUV. We are still finalising the numbers, but as what Dr Li mentioned, only the best dealers will be allowed to sell the X90,” explained Wan Hazran.
This is Proton’s strongest push upmarket yet as the X90 will quite certainly be the most expensive Proton to be ever offered. In order to convince buyers to spend more on a Proton, the experience at the ground level will have to be drastically improved.
However, this does not only end at the sales level, it also expands into the aftersales experience as well. One of the biggest improvements Proton is aiming to achieve is a reduction in waiting time for cars being serviced.
“People usually wait about two hours for their cars at the service centre level. That is the maximum time people can wait for a normal oil service as calculated by JD Power. We are trying to reduce this to lesser than two hours,” said Wan Hazran.
The Proton X90 is the most Premium car to ever be sold by the national car maker, and is good to see that it is preparing to upgrade its service level at all fronts in preparation for this.
And if you are keen on getting the Proton X90, you can rest easy knowing that only the best dealers will be selected to sell you a X90, so you can expect great service.
Click here to read everything we know about the Proton X90.
