Monthly Archives: January 2014

Toyota hybrid sales top six million units

Landmark achievement for sales of Toyota hybrid models

By Jamie White – Head of Communications

The progress of Toyota’s hybrid power technology has reached another landmark with cumulative global sales of Toyota hybrid vehicles reaching more than six million units.

Notably the latest million-milestone has been reached in the fastest time yet – just nine months since the figure moved past five million.

Toyota Motor Corporation sells 24 hybrid passenger car models and one plug-in hybrid in approximately 80 countries and regions around the world. In the UK, home to production of the hybrid versions of Auris and Auris Touring Sports, the range extends to 10 Toyota and Lexus hybrids, plus Prius Plug-in.

Within the next two years, Toyota will launch 15 new hybrids and will continue to develop its product range and the number of markets where its hybrid models are available.

Toyota calculates that its hybrid vehicles have reduced the amount of CO2 entering the atmosphere by approximately 41 million tonnes, compared to the impact the same number of equivalent petrol-powered vehicles would have. On the same basis, it also estimates its hybrids have saved around 15,000 million litres of petrol.

Toyota entered hybrid vehicle production in August 1997 with the launch in Japan of the Coast Hybrid EV bus, followed in December by the first generation Prius, the world’s first mass-produced hybrid car. Since then Toyota’s hybrids have enjoyed increasing support from customers around the world.

Mystery Shopping and Performance Improvement company, Douglas Stafford, provides Toyota with a tailored and bespoke nationwide mystery shopping programme to include Telephone Mystery Shopping, Email Mystery Shopping and Video Mystery Shopping.

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Douglas Stafford team member takes part in charity ‘Dryathlon’

Douglas Stafford team member gives up alcohol to raise money for charity

By Jamie White – Head of Communications

A team member at mystery shopping company Douglas Stafford has decided to give up alcohol for the whole of January to help raise money for Cancer Research UK.

Sam Rose-Williams is taking part in ‘Dryathlon‘ – a national event which runs throughout January – and involves people avoiding alcohol completely for one month.

Douglas Stafford Mystery Shopping team member takes part in charity Dryathlon

Sam, a Weekend and Evening Video Editing Supervisor at the company’s Head Office based in Portsmouth, has already managed to raise over £100 for charity.

“One of my friends is currently fighting breast cancer, and some of my family members have also had cancer, so it’s a cause very close to my heart.

“I want to raise as much money as I can and also raise awareness for the charity,” said Sam.

More than 35,000 ‘Dryathletes’ quit drinking in the UK for the charity’s first ‘Dryathlon‘ campaign in January 2013, raising over £3 million.

Sam, who enjoys social drinking with friends, admits it’s been tough to avoid the temptation on a couple of occasions.

She added: “It’s been ok so far, but I was bought two bottles of Whisky for Christmas, so they have had to wait. It was also my uncle’s wedding earlier this month – and everyone knows what weddings are like! It was a bit strange raising a toast and then putting the glass of champagne back on the table without drinking it.”

Anyone who wishes to support Sam in her Dryathlon quest can do so by clicking here.

Follow mystery shopping and performance improvement company, Douglas Stafford:

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Douglas Stafford team members attend exclusive Renault UK event

Douglas Stafford team members attend Renault UK’s after Christmas Party

By Jamie White – Head of Communications

Team members from mystery shopping company Douglas Stafford joined clients Renault UK to celebrate the company’s after-Christmas staff and suppliers party.

Douglas Stafford Mystery Shopping team members attend exclusive Renault UK party

Held at the Battersea Evolution in London, ten team members from Douglas Stafford – a long standing business partner of Renault UK – were invited to the glamorous event as guests of the automotive firm.

On arrival, hundreds of guests were greeted with glasses of champagne before entering the winter wonderland themed party, passing three stylish Renault Twizy cars on the way in.

Renault UK Managing Director, Ken Ramirez, kicked off proceedings and explained how successful 2013 was for Renault and its subsidiary brand Dacia, before big screens showcased the Renault brand and exciting events that occurred in 2013.

Douglas Stafford Mystery Shopping team members attend exclusive Renault UK party

A sumptuous three course meal was then served, while acrobatic dancers and singers performed in-between courses to the delight of the crowd.

The bars were decked out like wooden log cabins, while a rodeo bull, dodgems and a raised disco dancefloor with lively music kept guests fully entertained throughout the night.

Douglas Stafford Mystery Shopping team members attend exclusive Renault UK party

Mystery shopping and performance improvement company, Douglas Stafford has been working with Renault UK for more than 11 years, providing the company with a tailored and bespoke nationwide mystery shopping programme to include Telephone Mystery Shopping, Email Mystery Shopping and Video Mystery Shopping.

Ford supplies new vehicles to Police Scotland

Ford supplies vehicles to the newly unified Scottish police force

By Jamie White – Head of Communications

Ford has won the first contract to supply vehicles to Police Scotland, the newly unified Scottish police force.

Police Scotland placed their first vehicle order comprising of 124 Ford Focus and 58 Ford Transit Custom models.

Police Scotland was established in April 2013 and is the second largest force in the UK after the Metropolitan Police, responsible for policing an area of 28,000 square miles. This order for new Ford vehicles boosts their total fleet size to 3,500.

Tony Chalk, Police Scotland Transport Manager, said: “We chose from vehicles approved by the National Association of Police Fleet Managers and after evaluation of the whole-life costs of the various models available, Ford won the contract. The creation of Police Scotland has meant the centralisation of all purchasing for the police across the country, which improves standardisation and helps to reduce costs.”

Terry Adams, Ford’s Direct Sales Manager, said: “From the production line the Ford vehicles are sent to our ‘one-stop shop’ facility, Ford SVP, in Essex, where they are stripped and equipped to the force’s requirements – everything from livery, sirens and blue lights through to specialised equipment – and then they are delivered to the customer ready for action.

“Ford has supplied vehicles to the various regional police forces across Scotland for many years, and we welcome the opportunity and benefits offered by the centralised purchasing decisions.”

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Douglas Stafford shortlisted for top awards

Douglas Stafford Mystery Shopping nominated for several accolades

By Jamie White – Head of Communications

Mystery shopping and customer experience company Douglas Stafford has been shortlisted for several top awards at this year’s The News Business Excellence Awards.

Douglas Stafford Mystery Shopping shortlisted for several top awards

The company, which is celebrating its 25^th anniversary in 2014, has been named amongst the best businesses in the south, with nominations in the Team of the Year, Business Personality and Achievement of the Year, Innovation of the Year and Large Business of the Year categories.

The recognition marks a hugely successful 2013 for Douglas Stafford, which saw the company build on its success and win more exciting new contracts with some of the UK’s leading companies across a range of industry sectors.

During the year, the company completed tens of thousands of mystery shopping projects to include telephone mystery shopping, email mystery shopping, report-based mystery shopping and video mystery shopping.

Douglas Stafford Mystery Shopping shortlisted for several top awards

Operations Director, Ben Sargeant, said: “To be nominated for four prestigious awards is a real testament to the hard work and effort by our team in 2013, and it’s a great way to start the new year. Each award is very different and really highlights the extensive range of services Douglas Stafford provides as a company, to our clients.”

Last year, Douglas Stafford scooped the Team of the Year Award at the black tie ceremony, hosted by TV personality Fred Dinenage at Portsmouth Guildhall.

Douglas Stafford, which is the UK’s leading video mystery shopping company, will also be sponsoring the Customer Service Award at this year’s event.

Ben added: “Measuring the customer experience through mystery shopping and helping companies improve their levels of customer service is our real expertise, so it seemed only right that we sponsored the Customer Service Award.”

The News Business Excellence Awards take place at Portsmouth Guildhall on Friday, January 31^st.

Follow mystery shopping and performance improvement company, Douglas Stafford:

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New Kia TV advertising campaign highlights good customer service

Kia draws on customer reviews to kick-start 2014 TV campaign

By Jamie White – Head of Communications

Following on from Kia UK’s hugely successful ‘Customer Advocacy and Reviews Strategy’ (CARS) advertising in 2013, the company is starting 2014 with a new marketing campaign highlighting real customers comments and thoughts about their cars.

New Kia TV advertising campaign highlights good customer service - Douglas Stafford Mystery Shopping

Now in its second year, Kia has published more than 10,000 unfiltered, independently-verified reviews by Reevoo on www.kia.co.uk with an average score of 9 out of 10 across its range of cars.

The new campaign aims to demonstrate just how much Kia owners actually love their cars by taking inspiration directly from customer written reviews.

The first TV commercial to air is for the revised 2014 Sportage – Kia’s C-segment crossover – launching on Thursday, January 23rd with coverage starting on ITV at 7.15pm in Emmerdale, E4 at 8.40pm during The Big Bang Theory and Channel 4 at 9.15pm in the hit documentary The Undateables.

New Kia TV advertising campaign highlights good customer service - Douglas Stafford Mystery Shopping

This will be followed closely by three 30 second adverts each featuring a Kia model – the Kia cee’d, Rio and Picanto. Heavyweight press and digital campaigns will support the TV advertising which runs until the end of March.

Mark Hopkins, Marketing Director, Kia Motors UK, said: “The importance of being honest and transparent is crucial to our continued business success. In 2013, we built the foundations for using customer reviews to help demonstrate how good our range of cars is and have found through these reviews how extremely passionate our customers are about their cars”.

The creative for the commercials was developed by John Crozier and Dom Sweeney at Innocean Worldwide UK, with the directing by Noah Harris through Blink Ink, and extensive CG work by Nineteen Twenty.

The TV commercials are brought to life by filming hand-written reviews going onto Post-it notes, to illustrate clearly what customers are saying about the Kia they own, before the images expand to reveal a huge time-lapse animation of Post-it notes surrounding the car.

Mystery shopping and performance improvement company, Douglas Stafford, works with Kia Motors UK, providing a bespoke mystery shopping and customer experience programme, to include video mystery shopping.

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Lexus prepares to unveil the new RC F model

New Lexus RC F to debut in Detroit

By Jamie White – Head of Communications

Lexus is set to reveal the new RC F at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit on January 14.

The RC F is a sports thoroughbred model based on the RC coupe which made its debut in Tokyo in November, and comes equipped with a new 5.0-litre V8 engine with a maximum output above 450bhp.

Its status as the most powerful V8 road-going car Lexus has yet built is reflected in styling optimised for stability at high speeds, including wider wheels and tyres, an active rear wing, air scoops, cooling ducts and carbon fibre components.

Lexus RC F Chief Engineer, Yukihiko Yaguchi, said: “The form of each component is carefully designed to contribute to performance. Unique air outlets in the bonnet and rear section of the front wings contribute to optimum engine cooling and handling stability. They create a powerful look that immediately conveys the expectation of a dynamic driving experience.”

The signature Lexus spindle grille dominates the front of the RC F, with a single F mesh section that extends all the way from the bonnet line to the lower lip. The car’s powerful character is also expressed in stacked, trapezoidal quad-outlet tailpipes.

An active rear wing automatically deploys at 80km/h (50mph) and retracts when speed falls below 40km/h (25mph), preserving the coupe’s svelte lines at standstill.

Three variations of a 10-spoke, 19-inch forged aluminium wheel design will be available, according to grade, including a set hand-polished by craftsmen.

The power of the exterior is matched by the cockpit design of the RC F’s interior. Features unique to the model include the meters, steering wheel, seats, trim detailing and pedals.

Mystery Shopping and Performance Improvement company, Douglas Stafford, provides Lexus with a tailored and bespoke nationwide mystery shopping programme to include Telephone Mystery Shopping, Email Mystery Shopping and Video Mystery Shopping.

Follow mystery shopping and performance improvement company, Douglas Stafford:

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New Mitsubishi Shogun 4×4 vehicles join the Highways Agency

New Mitsubishi Shoguns rolled out to the Highways Agency

By Jamie White – Head of Communications

The first of 30 specialist Mitsubishi vehicles destined for the Highways Agency has rolled off the production line and is ready for action.

The agency has ordered 30 4×4 Shoguns all of which will be built at the carmaker’s Specialist Vehicle Operations Centre, which refits, adapts and upgrades standard Mitsubishi models to meet individual client requirements.

With each vehicle taking up to 24 hours to complete, staff at the Cirencester-based operation have been working hard to deliver the order.

Dan Pigot, Corporate Sales Manager at Mitsubishi Motors in the UK said: “The Shogun is a tough, practical vehicle but it is also extremely comfortable to drive. For eight hours of the day the vehicle is their office so it needs to be comfortable and the feedback from the traffic officers is that they really like the Shoguns.

“The Highways Agency is an existing customer and it knows it will stand up to their high demands.”

The bespoke Shoguns include light bars, grill lights and Highways Agency livery.

Earlier this year Mitsubishi supplied 138 specialist vehicles to the Environment Agency, including 70 new Outlanders.

Mitsubishi Specialist Vehicle Operations (MSVO) is also working on an array of high-profile fleet operators including National Grid and Ministry of Defence.

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Audi shines on shortest day of the year

Audi shines bright in stunning set of photographs

By Jamie White – Head of Communications

To celebrate the UK’s shortest day, Audi fittingly plunged some of the luminaries from its range into near-darkness to create a unique set of photographs.

The four excerpts from the 49 model-strong Audi line-up are shown in a new light with the help of a photographic technique known as ‘light painting’, in which exposures are made by moving a hand-held light source or camera to selectively illuminate parts of the car or to create stunning light trails around it.

Audi models are particularly well equipped for the darkest weeks of the year as they are either fitted as standard, or available with the option of high intensity xenon gas discharge headlamps or new, even more penetrating LED headlights, depending on model. Both light types are also flanked by signature LED daytime running lamps which further enhance safety.

To help drivers contend with the potentially hazardous road conditions which can accompany shorter days, Audi also offers over 140 model options equipped with quattro all-wheel-drive for added protection against the elements.

The shortest day, with just under eight hours of daylight, brings sunrise at 8.04am and sunset at 3.53pm making December and January the most challenging months for UK drivers.

The much-loved Audi RS range is represented in the fast fading light photo opportunity by the supremely powerful RS 5 Cabriolet, which can provide year-round top-down thrills courtesy of its potent 4.2-litre, 450PS V8 harnessed by quattro all-wheel drive.

Capable of 0-62mph in 4.9 seconds, and an electronically limited 155 mph top speed which can be raised on request to 174mph, the most extreme Audi soft-top this side of the R8 Spyder is priced from £68,985 OTR.

Mystery Shopping and Performance Improvement company, Douglas Stafford, provides Audi UK with a tailored and bespoke nationwide mystery shopping programme to include Telephone Mystery Shopping, Email Mystery Shopping and Video Mystery Shopping.

You can follow mystery shopping and performance improvement company, Douglas Stafford on Twitter @DouglasStafford and Facebook facebook.com/douglasstafforduk

Renault launches Scalextric themed video filmed in London

New Scalextric themed film used to promote Renault ZOE

By Jamie White – Head of Communications

Following two eye-catching videos in 2013 featuring customers getting more than they bargained for during a Clio test-drive, Renault has turned its attention to the recently launched ZOE electric supermini with the release of a brand new film.

Renault launches Scalextric themed video filmed in London - Douglas Stafford Mystery Shopping

Electric vehicles are no strangers to motorsport, either in full-size racing, as Renault will show with its partners in 2014 with the FIA Formula E championship, or in miniature in the form of the ever-popular Scalextric models.

Drawing inspiration from these two ends of the spectrum, Renault’s team hatched an idea to take things one step further and race two full-size ZOEs on a Scalextric track – in Central London.

Viewers see Renault revamping the underpinnings of its electric supermini to meet the challenge.

Among the alterations shown in the film are a reworked undercarriage, including the fitting of specially-designed braids, keeping ZOE on the track, as well as an aerial to enable the car to be remotely operated from the sky.

Renault launches Scalextric themed video filmed in London - Douglas Stafford Mystery Shopping

In the three-minute long film, viewers get to see the track being prepared at night, set for race action early the next morning. At dawn, two lucky online competition winners take flight in a specially chartered helicopter for the occasion to pilot their real-life ZOEs, obviously, complete with their own throttles.

The race sees the white and black ZOEs do battle along a 1.9-mile specially created track. Taking in several landmarks along the way, it starts at the London Eye on Southbank, it takes in Westminster Bridge and the Houses of Parliament, onto Embankment and The Strand, back over the River Thames, this time across Waterloo Bridge, then the BFI London IMAX cinema in the lead-up to the finishing straight alongside the River Thames.

The creative for Renault’s latest production was undertaken by Scorch London and planned by MG OMD, with supporting assets from Publicis. The video can be seen here – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DITjqRmZ7JA

Mystery Shopping and Performance Improvement company, Douglas Stafford, provides Renault UK, with a tailored and bespoke nationwide mystery shopping programme to include Telephone Mystery Shopping, Email Mystery Shopping and Video Mystery Shopping.

Follow mystery shopping and performance improvement company, Douglas Stafford:

on Twitter @DouglasStafford

on Facebook facebook.com/douglasstafforduk