Things I learned from my visit to Sewell Cadillac in Dallas this week.

Carl Sewell Sr. began the Sewell Cadillac story in 1911, and Carl Jr. runs it today. Carl Jr.'s son (also Carl Jr.), who is in his mid twenties, works there and will someday take over the leadership of one of the most well-known and respected auto dealerships in the world.
I have heard of Sewell Cadillac for several years and wanted to see for myself how it happened that a business became so famous for its customer service.
Ryan Nemic started there at age sixteen as a car washer and worked his way up through the ranks to become Service Manager. Ryan was most kind, giving me a 45-minute tour of the Service and Parts department Saturday morning and answering my long list of questions. From the service department, I went to the sales department and managed to get to visit and ask many questions of sales manager there. I’ll write about that visit in another post.

From the interviews and two tours, here are a few things I observed:

· Every customer drives into the service department on a sparkling clean tile floor. They are greeted and escorted to a beautiful waiting area, given a loaner car, or are driven to wherever they need to go. Should they choose to stay and wait for their car to be repaired, they have the option of working in an office away from their office. Sewell has two office spaces with a phone, phone books, and both wired and wireless Internet access. Ryan said sometimes people come there and stay for two or three hours after their car is fixed, making calls or working online in a nice, quiet, private office.

· Every vehicle is washed, vacuumed, and immaculately cleaned, inside and out. I watched them working on a car and that kind of service at a car wash would cost $30-$40. Ryan told me that people usually comment on how nice their car looks when they pick it up.

· The service teams work in small groups of three to eight technicians and a group leader. There are fourteen groups with 72 technicians in all. I asked why each group leader had just a small group. He explained they could develop a close-knit relationship with their technicians. They all worked together, solved problems together, and got to know each other very well. He said it made for a better team when the group was small. All of the service managers & the valet who brings your car out to you are all wearing a suit and tie.
· The parts department stocks over one million parts. When a technician needs a part, it’s entered on a computer. The part is called up and delivered to right to parts counter on a machine like a conveyor belt with small buckets. Then the part is delivered to the technician, saving a lot of the technician’s time. Very efficient.
· The service area workplace is immaculate. Again, the area has a clean tile floor and is heated and cooled, just like your living room.

If you want to excel in customer service, it would be worth the time and money for you to fly to Dallas and visit Sewell Cadillac for yourself. Very few small business owners would go the extra mile in customer service the way that Sewell has, but all businesses can learn something from Sewell Cadillac's service department. Ryan said Sewell’s goal is to make theirs the best customer service in the USA. From what I saw during my visit, I would say he accomplished that goal.

Ryan Nemic said, "Everyone has heard of Sewell's service. There are seven Cadillac dealers within a 30-minute drive. You can buy a Cadillac anywhere, but if you want service, you come here. My boss says, ‘We’re not in the car business, we’re in the service business.’”

What percentage of people in your town has heard of your service?

Carl Sewell’s book: Customers For Life
As you might expect they have a fantastic website: http://www.sewell.com