Haymarket Network’s winning proposal centres on delivering both the editorial and the underpinning technical infrastructure as an integrated solution that connects the VWG brands in Milton Keynes with their retailers nationwide and with the VWG’s Customer Services Centre (CSC) in Leeds. The decision further underlines the belief VWG has in Haymarket to deliver results, says the publisher.
The ‘Desktop’ project was started four years ago to provide business-critical information via individual brand sites for all VWG retailers across the five main brands (Volkswagen, Audi, SEAT, ŠKODA and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles), with Haymarket as the editorial partner in the project.
The new contract means Network will also become the technical partner and will provide the entire platform, to increase user experience and seamlessly integrate with VWG’s customer service teams. The aim is also to connect the platform with the pioneering Knowledge Base system – conceived by Haymarket Network and VWG in 2011 – that hosts questions and approved answers to customer queries at VWG’s CSC in Leeds.
The new connection between Knowledge Base and Desktop will link VWG’s key areas of interaction with customers, thus helping the brands identify issues quickly and enable answers to be shared instantly across the Group to improve overall customer satisfaction.
Nikki Hodge, Brand Support and Reporting Manager for VWG Services says: “Our brands rely on Desktop as their main means of sending business-critical information to their retailers, so it’s vital that information is consistent and relevant and that the retailers read, act upon and respond to it across all areas of our business. The Haymarket editorial team has done a brilliant job making this happen and we’ve seen a dramatic improvement in retailer engagement across all brands. We’re very excited about the next stage of Desktop, which we hope will change the way we do business with our retailers.”
Desktop and Knowledge Base content is created and managed by Haymarket editorial teams embedded in VWG’s headquarters in Milton Keynes and at the CSC in Leeds. Content ranges from new model launch information to guidelines on customer service standards; from car delivery schedules to features on brand events.
Carl Rodgerson, Network’s Editorial Director for Desktop, says: “It was a bold move four years ago for the Volkswagen Group to bring a dedicated editorial team into their business to handle this vital communication channel with their retailers. It has developed into a hugely successful partnership. We certainly believe the next stage of Desktop will drive the Group’s ambitions on customer service to even higher levels.”
Andrew Taplin, Network MD added: “this is a great vote of confidence in our integrated offering and underlines the increased stakeholder engagement clients achieve from an editorial approach to business communication. VWG brands in the UK are consistently top performers and we are delighted to be playing a small part in their success.”
