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Business sales remain critical to Volvo

If you’re an SME business owner, Volvo wants your business. Factual advice and keen lease rates support a new range of high spec Business Editions.
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Selwyn Cooper

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11 January 2013

Selwyn Cooper
Selwyn Cooper, Volvo’s corporate sales manager

Special report: RALPH MORTON

OVER the years, Volvo has been gradually refining its position in the business and corporate market. An alignment of specifications and grades here; an investment in dealer training for the small business market there. And so it continues.

Small business people need facts to help them make decisions. They don’t need selling to.

Selwyn Cooper is Volvo’s national corporate sales manager, and the man charged with delivering Volvo to small businesses and small SME fleets.

That means you. So what has Volvo got to offer the SME business user?

“We’ve tried to make everything easy for the customer. Small business owners and SME directors just don’t have time to be involved in sustained conversations over a long period. They are busy people. And need to make decisions quickly,” explains Selwyn. “This is supported by some market research we did with MAGMA Automotive. People said they wanted simplicity.

Volvo V70 Business Edition
The V70 is one of the Volvo range to get a Business Edition model. It’s got a higher spec, and lower company car tax

“Customers wanted us to be easy and uncomplicated to do business with, simple to communicate with and easy to meet their requirements whether it was over car price, company car tax, or running costs.

“It’s one of the reasons we built our new online car comparison tool to deliver that simplicity where you can compare our cars with competitor cars.

“It’s what you would expect from us as an open and honest brand. It’s trying to position us with all those under 25-car SME small fleet guys.”

Key to this has been ongoing investment with Volvo dealership sales executives. Selwyn says that 375 sales executives went through a minimum of one day’s training in 2012 on the dynamics of business selling.

“It’s an ongoing programme,” confirms Selwyn. “You might not realise you’re a business customer when you go in to one of our dealerships – perhaps you’re thinking about a private purchase which you will use on business – but you should always be dealt with professionally. Many small business people are marketers and in sales, so they need facts to help them make decisions. They don’t need selling to. So education is key.”

 

Volvo V40 R-Design
The new V40 is a key player for Volvo in sales to small businesses. The R-Design adds chutzpah to a sound business car choice

The Volvo small business support programme

If you’re looking for a small business support programme similar to, say BMW’s Business Partnership or Vauxhall’s award-winning small fleet offering, Volvo’s answer lies not only in the business background knowledge of the sales executives, but in the standard business car lease programme offered through Volvo Car Leasing.

“That’s where our support goes,” says Selwyn. “In keen business car lease rates. And whether you want a personal contract hire or business contract hire, we’ve made it easy at the point of delivery.

“All the small business people I know work from 8 to 8, so they haven’t got time to fuss around. So all our support goes into the contract hire rate.

 

A new choice of Volvo cars

While the new Volvo V40 is the key attraction for many small business users, enhanced by the addition of R-Design models (see Volvo launches sporty V40 R-Design model with £239 lease rate), and a new V40 Cross Country model, Volvo has recently introduced Business Edition models on the S60, V60 and V70 line-ups (see panel).

“We introduced this in Q3 2012 and now we can see the orders are coming through we’ve clearly hit the sweet spot.

What’s in a Volvo Business Edition?

The new Business Edition range effectively replaces the old ES models whlle offering a business focused specification:

  • Integrated satellite navigation system
  • High performance multimedia audio system
  • Bluetooth
  • Rear park assist

With prices reduced by as much as £3,000 compared to the ES, there is a reduced driver’s annual benefit-in-kind tax liability on company car tax.

“Not only have we been able to introduced a better specified car with a lower benefit in kind company car tax liability, but since we’ve included key business equipment as standard, the residual values have receive an uplift. So running costs are better and leasing rates lower. The whole package represents excellent value.”

Whether Volvo will extend Business Edition models further – the XC60 would seem an ideal candidate – remains to be seen, but Selwyn says Volvo is evaluating the response before taking further decisions.

Nevertheless, Business Edition does provide business users with a more luxury specification compared to R-Design models, so there’s better choice.

 

Volvo V40 Cross Country
The Cross Country is another variation on the V40 theme intended to attract business buyers

Drive Freedom

Selwyn reckons that Volvo business sales to SMEs will increase by 20% this year, and in addition to the range enhancements, Selwyn says that Volvo has also introduced a new series of test drive events for small businesses called ‘freedom test drives’.

“Drive Freedom allows any business user to test drive unaccompanied two pre-booked cars on a Volvo event – there’s about 13 around the country – and it’s simple to book in. You choose the location, event and the car. We can tailor the test drive route to reflect a driver’s main type of driving, too – so city or motorway.”

Drive Freedom events occur at the weekends so SME owners can attend without compromising time at the business.

“It’s uncomplicated and built around the customer,” adds Selwyn. “Just like everything we do.”

“In 2012 we grew Volvo dealer business sales 10% from 10,000 cars to 11,000 cars. With the confidence of that going forward, we want to see that grow 20% this year.”

With the new Volvo V40, and a sound SME business programme, you wouldn’t bet against it.

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Matt Morton

Matt Morton

Matt Morton is an automotive content writer for Business Car Manager

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