By Jamie White – Head of Communications
Mystery shopping and performance improvement company, Douglas Stafford, is delighted to announce that a new Account Manager has joined the team.
Claire Cochran joins Douglas Stafford after three successful years as the Used Car Development Manager for Volkswagen UK in the South East – a regional role supporting Volkswagen Retailers to improve sales volume, and profitability.
Claire has a wealth of knowledge and experience, and knows the importance of mystery shopping and the positive effect it can have on a company.
Claire said: “Used car customers are a vital life line for a business, and for an aspirational brand it is often their first opportunity of ownership.
“For example, car buyers are not just buying the product, but a package provided by the manufacturers’ approved programme, and mystery shopping is a brilliant tool to measure the whole customer experience.
“Getting this right creates customers who are willing aftersales investors, which encourages loyalty and potentially a new car purchase in the future. Sharing mystery shopping results with my retailers was always pivotal in getting that right.”
Claire qualified from Oxford Brookes University and worked for Cunard Hotels in London, before moving to Edinburgh as Personnel and Training Manager in a city centre hotel. She went on to marry a farmer and left the hotel life behind.
However, after a few years, Claire decided to give up farming and joined Lloyds Bowmaker Dealer Finance Division and started her career in the motor industry as a Regional Stock Auditor.
Claire remained in financial services and joined the Volkswagen Group as an Area Finance Sales Manager, before working with Ford Credit as a trainer on their showroom finance system.
Claire returned to Volkswagen and went on to support used cars with regional responsibility for the warranty programme in Scotland and Northern Ireland, before moving back to England when the Used Car Development team were launched in 2011.
Claire added: “Achieving excellent customer service has been a core value throughout my career. In today’s markets, consumers are overwhelmed with choice and everyone has a good product line. Retailers in all industries are relying on discount to achieve market share. Those that want to achieve loyalty and longevity are increasingly recognising the importance of the customer journey and feel good factor.
“I am excited to join Douglas Stafford as it is a company that I know has the expertise to deliver and help strong brands improve consumer experience, profitability, and reputation.”
Claire will be based at the company’s head office at the thriving business hub at Lakeside North Harbour, Portsmouth.
