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Abrams Quality Compass Product Specifications

Product Overview:

Abrams Quality Compass is a unique, in-depth tool for tracking customer service in the car rental industry. Offered by Abrams Travel Data Services (ATD), the leading specialized car rental market research firm, Abrams Quality Compasswas designed for car rental systems and operators by car rental professionals, and can be used by car rental companies operating in the airport, local, replacement, and specialty vehicle markets.

Abrams Quality Compass utilizes telephone and web surveys to interview customers of subscriber car rental companies on all aspects of their car rental transaction, from reservation to rental return. Client subscribers can track customer service on a quarterly, semi-annual, or annual basis and use the data for a range of management functions including assessing the performance of specific locations or regions, gauging the depth of customer loyalty, and identifying goals for service improvement.

Abrams Quality Compass is available in two formats: the Comprehensive format has been designed for in-depth analysis of all aspects of the car rental process; the Condensed format offers a concise questionnaire for companies needing a more general overview. Pricing is based on format, sample size, and frequency. Clients will receive a report card on their customer service ratings presented in an A-F grading system.

Clients can purchase additional analytical services including extra questions, a benchmarking database allowing for comparison of company results to industry standards, an assessment of customer loyalty factors predictive of future purchasing behavior, and consulting services which assist clients in taking action on areas of improvement identified during the Abrams Quality Compass survey process. Consulting services are provided by Abrams Consulting Group, Inc., the parent company of ATD, and the leading specialized auto rental consultancy worldwide since 1982.

Abrams Quality Compass Survey Methodology

Questionnaire

• The Abrams Quality Compass questionnaire was designed with guidance from car rental systems and operators. ATD tapped into this expertise, and its parent company’s more than 2 decades of experience in the industry, to create a survey instrument that is thorough, significant, and targeted to the operational, marketing, and strategic planning needs of car rental systems and operators.
• The questionnaire is available in two versions:
  1. The Comprehensive format has been designed to provide in-depth analysis of all aspects of the car rental process. Renters using express or club programs are presented with a different set of questions than those using a rental counter. Questionnaire sections include:
     • Purpose of rental
     • Why rental company chosen
     • How reservation made
     • Rating of reservation process including internet
     • Quality of shuttle or people mover experience
     • Satisfaction with rental counter transaction
     • Condition and usefulness of rental vehicle
     • Efficiency of rental return process
     • Resolution of any customer problems during the rental
     • Grading of overall experience
     • Future rental intentions and recommendations
  2. The Condensed format offers clients a more general overview of their customers’ service ratings. Questionnaire sections include:
     • Purpose of rental
     • How reservation made and accuracy of reservation
     • Satisfaction with rental counter transaction
     • Condition and usefulness of rental vehicle
     • Efficiency of rental return process
     • Grading of overall experience
     • Future rental intentions and recommendations

Customer List

• Customer lists are supplied by the car rental client.
• The customer list needs to be compiled in a manner consistent with survey sampling techniques; i.e., if it is a national study, the list must be large enough and geographically diverse enough to ensure a national sampling.

Data Collection

• Data is collected by experienced and highly-trained ATD telephone interviewers and web survey programmers.
• The interviewer states that the survey is being conducted by ATD on behalf of the client company. Naming the client company usually means that the respondent will be more likely to take the survey.
• Frequencies: Clients can choose their preferred frequency of customer data collection. There are several benefits to repeated measurement, including the ability to see trends and whether improvements made in specific areas are noticed and perceived as positive by customers. Data will be collected at a specific point of time at each frequency interval. For example, if a quarterly program is adopted, the surveys might be done during the second week of each quarter.

• ATD will make recommendations on sample size after better understanding the client’s research objectives.
• ATD recommends that a minimum of 100 surveys be conducted per unit of interest (i.e., a location, a city, an airport). This will help determine the overall sample size. For example, if a client wanted to compare the performance of its 15 largest airport locations, a sample size of 1,500 will provide a minimum of 100 interviews for each of the 15 locations. If, on the other hand, you would like to compare four regions, a minimum of 100 interviews per region would be recommended. A larger minimum sample size, for example 200, would allow measurement of more subtle distinctions between the locations and reduce the margin of error.

Data Analysis & Reporting

• Clients will benefit from ATD’s expertise in both the car rental industry as well as in market research methods and analysis. ATD will assist clients in understanding the survey results and using them to make strategic decisions.
• Report Structure: Each report will start with an Executive Summary, presenting the most important findings from the research process, and their implications for your company. The Executive Summary will be followed by individual sections that focus on each aspect of the car renting process with data presented on the results of each question. The data will be illustrated with presentation quality graphics, which will highlight important trends from the survey results.
• Scoring System: Since your customers are rating your customer service levels with an A-F grading system, you will be given a report card presenting the research conclusions. Grades will be presented on the elements that make up each part of the rental transaction – reservation, shuttle/people mover, rental counter, rental car, and rental return – plus, a grading of the overall rental experience. Report cards can be presented for each unit studied, such as a location or geographic region, allowing you to analyze distinctions in customer service delivery between these units.

Additional Analytical Services

ATD offers a full range of analytical services, in addition to the standard Abrams Quality Compass customer service survey product. These additional services include:

Extra Questions:
The Abrams Quality Compass product, while being comprehensive and detailed, may not capture data on everything a subscriber company might need. For example, a client may have introduced a brand new TV advertising campaign, and might want to add three or four questions to the Abrams Quality Compass survey interviews to find out how memorable the ads might be. Adding additional questions is a cost-effective method to gain additional insight on aspects of a car rental company’s marketing, operations, website, brand image, and other important facets of the business. Instead of commissioning a new research study, clients may choose to add extra questions to their next wave of Abrams Quality Compass interviews.

PowerPoint Presentations:
Subscribers may elect to have ATD create a PowerPoint presentation with data gathered during the Abrams Quality Compass research process; this may include historical data from previous survey waves, including all four quarters of the current year, or year-to-year changes and comparisons. ATD can create PowerPoint slides for delivery to the client company without a presentation, or for an in-person visit to the client’s headquarters for an in-depth presentation and discussion of the data.

Benchmarking Database:
As car rental companies generate customer service data through Abrams Quality Compass, ATD will be building a first-of-its kind database of industry benchmarks that can be used for gauging a company’s performance in all parts of the rental process against the car rental industry as a whole. ATD has taken careful measures to ensure that the proprietary data of individual, participating companies remains confidential. Using the Benchmarking Database, subscribers can compare company locations, cities, regions, or other units against the industry at large. Finding out whether a company’s operations are doing better or worse than the industry standard can be an invaluable source of information for making constructive changes.

Loyalty Predictors:
ATD’s Loyalty Predictor service is a valuable tool that uses the Abrams Quality Compass survey data to forecast future spending behavior. To create Loyalty Predictor analysis for a client company, ATD will determine which transaction factors are correlated to the ultimate grading of service by their customers. If the subscriber provides ATD with sales/revenue figures and other operating data, ATD can then advise the client on approximately how much its sales/revenue can be expected to increase if it improves those factors most tied to its customers’ ratings of the service delivery.

Consulting Services:
Consulting services, provided through ATD’s parent company, Abrams Consulting Group, Inc., (ACG) help clients use the valuable Abrams Quality Compass data to improve operations, marketing, technology systems, and other critical management systems. Since 1982, ACG has worked with hundreds of car rental systems and operators and helped them meet and exceed their strategic goals.

Abrams Quality Compass Description of Deliverables & Conditions:

1. Questionnaire: Surveys will be conducted using the standardized survey questionnaire developed by ATD. There is an additional charge for extra questions or customization of the questionnaire. Clients may choose the Condensed or Comprehensive versions of the questionnaire.
2. Customer List: Client companies will provide a current (3 months old or less) customer list with name, address, email address, home phone, and work phone (if available). The list would need to be sent to ATD in an Excel file.
3. Data Tabs: ATD will provide one data tabulation banner with up to 21 comparative groups; significance can be shown between columns, if requested. Extra banners will be available at an additional charge.
4. Report Content: Clients will receive up to five copies of a bound, paper report highlighting the key findings from the research and its implications. An Executive Summary will present the most important findings from the research process and how they might be used for strategic decisions. The Executive Summary will be followed by individual sections that focus on each aspect of the car renting process with data presented on the results of each question. Report sections will include: Rating of Reservation Process; Shuttle/People Mover Experience; Rental Counter Transaction; Rental Vehicle; Rental Return Process; and, Quality of Overall Experience. The data will be illustrated with presentation quality graphics, which will highlight important trends from the survey results.
5. Project Timing: Timing for completion of each wave of Abrams Quality Compass interviews and production and delivery of the research report will depend on sample size and questionnaire version selected. For example, 1,000 completed surveys using the Comprehensive version of the questionnaire will take eight weeks from the start of interviewing until report delivery.
6. Agreement: All terms and conditions will be detailed in an agreement signed by ATD and the client, including a confidentiality agreement designed to protect the client’s proprietary information.
7. Pricing: ATD has a pricing grid available upon request for the standard Abrams Quality Compass product. Pricing for additional services will be based on the specific requirements of each research project, and will be presented to the client once ATD has a complete understanding of the project’s requirements.