Vanarama is a car and van leasing company that prides itself on its wide offering and quick and easy service. SME caught up with them to find out more…
How do you use social media? Does it help you engage with your client base?
Our social media is essential in setting the tone of voice for the brand and for customer interaction. Playful banter and engaging is how I would describe us online which is exactly what our customers would expect us to be. Social media should never be seen as purely driving commercial goals but a voice for the brand, if we get that right then our commercial goals will follow naturally as people engage with the brand and get to know us. Our football sponsorship opens us up to new audiences and we enjoy the football banter across our social channels. We know that we can’t talk vans all the time, so we interact with our followers and start conversations that may develop into a customer further down the line.
What new technology/apps are you considering using?
We are investing heavily in making our customer journey online a great experience. This is nothing new or revolutionary for online retailers but in our sector it’s a new area and we’re blazing the trail with technologies such as E-Sig. These have reduced document processing from a couple of weeks to just two hours as customers can now sign their documents on their smartphones. We are also investigating the use of Skype technology as a way of offering customers a better experience and enabling them to have face to face conversations with our Account Managers.
What technology/apps have you been most impressed with over the past 12 months?
E-sig has had a huge impact on the business in reducing document processing times and overall delivery times from anything up to twenty-eight days to around eleven days on average – and sometimes even faster. Personally, I have found wearable tech such Fitbit to be beneficial to my overall health and as an adopter of mindfulness techniques I regularly use the app Headspace to aid meditation.
What is your vision for the future? Are you looking to expand?
The work that we’ve done to grow the brand over recent years is paying off with opportunities to expand presenting themselves frequently. One such product due for imminent launch is our integrated insurance service, which offers our customers a truly fixed priced motoring over the term of their lease. We’re not looking to grow for growths sake, but it is proving organic with the range of opportunities that we find ourselves presented with as the business evolves.
