ST. LOUIS, MO--(Marketwire - November 16, 2010) - When J.D. Power and Associates announced its 2010 Rental Car Satisfaction Study results today, three of the top four rankings went to the Enterprise Holdings portfolio of brands -- Enterprise Rent-A-Car, National Car Rental and Alamo Rent A Car -- for the third year in a row.
The company's flagship Enterprise Rent-A-Car brand ranked highest, with National Car Rental second. The Alamo Rent A Car brand -- the largest car rental provider to international travelers visiting North America -- ranked fourth.
"Like many other companies, we continue to operate through difficult economic times," stated Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Andrew C. Taylor, whose family owns and operates Enterprise Holdings. "We are very pleased that the challenging economy has not distracted us from our longtime focus on outstanding customer service, and we take great pride in this recognition that comes straight from our customers."
In the 2010 study, J.D. Power and Associates surveyed almost 11,500 leisure and business travelers who rented vehicles at North American airports. This is the seventh year in a row that the Enterprise Rent-A-Car brand has led the industry in the annual study, receiving the highest score in all six categories (listed in order of importance): costs and fees, pick-up process, rental car, return process, reservation process and shuttle bus/van.
"We believe this year's study also reaffirms National's premier status and the growing popularity of National's Emerald Club among business travelers," Taylor said.
"We are always upgrading facilities, refreshing our fleet, auditing policies and procedures, and looking for opportunities to improve the overall experience for busy, time-sensitive travelers," he said. "Our research indicates that National customers notice and appreciate the difference, especially since they can easily bypass the counter and choose their own vehicle."
Industry Leadership
The Taylors, who acquired National Car Rental and Alamo Rent A Car in 2007, founded Enterprise Rent-A-Car in 1957 and have made the Enterprise brand synonymous with customer service excellence. In fact, Enterprise's culture of customer service has been the subject of numerous books and articles, including the Harvard Business Review, and is one of the six key attributes that define all of Enterprise Holdings car rental brands:
Heritage -- Enterprise Holdings has a rich and distinctive heritage. It has grown through hard work and entrepreneurship, from the tiny operation that founder Jack Taylor started in the lower level of a car dealership to a $12-billion, multi-national industry leader.
Leadership -- Enterprise Holdings is the market leader at the airport and in neighborhoods because of steady leadership at the top, combined with a consistent ability to understand customers' needs and exceed their expectations.
Financial Stability -- The company's financial strength and stability are unmatched in the industry, thanks to a conservative and disciplined long-term management approach.
Customer Service -- Making sure customers are completely satisfied is at the heart of Enterprise Holdings' success and will continue to guide the company moving forward.
Great Employer -- Enterprise Holdings is committed to maintaining its reputation as a good place to work -- offering an attractive combination of hands-on training, opportunity for advancement and strong values, which allows the company to consistently attract and retain the best talent.
Corporate Citizenship -- Enterprise Holdings is an engaged corporate citizen, committed to sustainable management of its operations and to making a real difference in its communities and all the parts of the world it touches with its business.
Only three years after the acquisition of the Alamo and National brands, Enterprise Holdings not only leads with approximately a third of all airport business in the U.S. and Canada, it is also the most comprehensive service provider and only investment-grade company in the car rental industry. Furthermore, with annual revenues of $12.6 billion and more than 68,000 employees, Enterprise Holdings owns and operates, through its regional subsidiaries, more than 1 million cars and trucks, making it the largest car rental company in the world measured by revenue, employees and fleet.
Total Transportation Solution
As a result of the 2007 acquisition, the National and Alamo brands are now part of the Taylor family legacy and Enterprise Holdings' "total transportation solution" strategy. The company's long-term strategy addresses varied customer transportation needs by leveraging the collective expertise of the Enterprise Rent-A-Car, National Car Rental and Alamo Rent A Car brands -- and delivering an unparalleled network of 6,000 airport and neighborhood branch offices located within 15 miles of 90 percent of the U.S. population.
Such convenient sites are ideally located to meet the needs of customers and accounts, regardless of whether they want to rent vehicles by the hour, the day, the week or the month. "Our extensive and diverse network enables us to respond to demand fluctuations and move vehicles quickly and efficiently from city to city, as well as back and forth between airports and nearby local offices," noted Taylor.
"Such accessibility and agility are unique in the car rental and travel industries, and certainly helped us land three of the top four slots in the J.D. Power and Associates study in 2008, 2009 and 2010," he added. "However, nothing has been more critical than our employees' work ethic and their ability to work together to get the integration process right from a customer service perspective."
For example, Enterprise Holdings immediately began researching and exchanging best practices across the three distinct brands. Enterprise Rent-A-Car now conducts Brand Integrity Audits that require assessors to visit locations and evaluate customer service; bus service and condition; counter, return and exit booth service; brand image; facilities and wait times; and perhaps most importantly, vehicle cleanliness and condition. Alamo and National employees introduced this program to the Enterprise team shortly after the acquisition was completed.
The National and Alamo brands also now report a Service Quality index (SQi), based on Enterprise's well-known ESQi program, to ensure that employees make a positive impression on each customer. Enterprise Rent-A-Car has documented that this simple but effective approach helps drive complete satisfaction and builds long-term loyalty. Today, customer service scores are tabulated and tracked every month for the Enterprise car rental brand (ESQi) as well as National (NSQi) and Alamo (ASQi).
Enterprise Holdings interacts with approximately one million consumers every week. "As the car rental industry leader, we work day-in and day-out to address problems and concerns," Taylor said. "But we are not perfect. So it is important to remember that even a small percentage of less-than-satisfied customers represents a significant number of people we should have served better. That is why we always ask our customers if they are completely satisfied -- there is simply no better way to keep them coming back over and over again."
About Enterprise Holdings
Founded in 1957, Enterprise Holdings, through its regional subsidiaries, operates Alamo Rent A Car and National Car Rental as well as its flagship Enterprise Rent-A-Car brand. Ranked No. 17 on the Forbes Top 500 Private Companies in America list, St. Louis-based Enterprise Holdings is the most comprehensive service provider and only investment-grade company in the car rental industry. Enterprise Holdings offers business and retail customers a total transportation solution, which includes hourly rental, car leasing, WeCar car sharing and Enterprise Rideshare vanpooling programs, as well as the Enterprise Car Sales and Enterprise Commercial Trucks business lines. In addition, Enterprise Holdings is part of a global strategic alliance with Europcar, creating the world's largest car rental network. For more information about Enterprise Holdings, visit www.enterpriseholdings.com. For more information about Enterprise Holdings' environmental stewardship and long-term commitment to the sustainability of its business, visit www.enterpriseholdings.com/sustainability. This news release and other announcements are available at the Enterprise Holdings press room.
About J.D. Power and Associates
Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services company operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, performance improvement, Web intelligence and customer satisfaction. The company's quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. For more information on