Automotive News Canada - February 2020 - v2 - F18

FIXED OPS JOURNAL

SILKO

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He adds: "The program was having a negative impact of customers
peeling off. We were trying to capture the aftermarket world, but we
struggled to retain them."
The program was rechristened SilkoCare Plus in November 2017 and
Silverleib says his dealership has taken its "why buy here" proposition
from a short-term perk of free maintenance into a long-haul benefit that
customers have embraced.
The SilkoCare Plus program covers every new-vehicle purchase and
includes a lifetime powertrain warranty and unlimited free car washes.
But the rebranded program dropped the two years or 25,000 miles of
service and replaced it with lifetime "Buy 1, Get 1 Free" oil changes.
Buyers of used vehicles that are 8 years old or more or that have
85,000-plus miles also are covered by SilkoCare Plus minus the program's lifetime powertrain warranty.
In the two years since the new program took effect, Silverleib says service department net income grew by nearly 30 percent and overall repair orders increased by nearly 14 percent.
Silverleib says his customers can get their vehicles serviced wherever
they like and still be covered by SilkoCare Plus. They just have to keep
service records proving their vehicles receive oil changes every 5,000
miles and tire rotations every 10,000 miles.
"Our approach doesn't make people feel like they're getting shackled
to the dealership," says Silverleib on his SilkoCare Plus approach. "We

Tire Bags
Clean matters more than you think.

made it a really easy price-point. Right now, the price is $59.95, which
technically covers two synthetic oil changes."
Substituting the two years or 25,000 miles worth of service with the
"Buy 1, Get 1 Free" oil changes was heavily influenced by the dealership's 58-year-old identity.
"The original SilkoCare package offered customers of new-vehicle
purchases a better reward of free maintenance for the first two years or
25,000 miles of ownership than the customer that bought the used vehicle," Silverleib says. "We felt that the original SilkoCare bundle was excluding some of our customers on the service component. The 'Buy 1,
Get 1 Free' oil changes makes sure all of our customers feel included, or
like they're our family." 

SilkoCare Plus includes a lifetime powertrain warranty for new vehicles,
unlimited free car washes and lifetime "Buy 1, Get 1 Free" oil changes.

A tale of 2 programs

Silko Honda began its SilkoCare program in 2010.
CUSTOMER BENEFITS

 Lifetime powertrain warranty
 Free maintenance for first 2 years or 25,000 miles
 Discounted oil changes after 2 years
 Unlimited free car washes
DISADVANTAGE

Once customers had to pay for service maintenance, they
didn't return.
In 2017, a makeover was rebranded as SilkoCare Plus.
CUSTOMER BENEFITS

 Lifetime powertrain warranty for new cars and used cars

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PAGE 18

FEBRUARY 2020

with fewer than 85,000 miles
 Buy 1, get 1 free oil changes
 Unlimited free car washes
RESULTS

 Service department net income rose 30%
 Repair orders grew 14%

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Automotive News Canada - February 2020 - v2

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