BMW Has Created the 'Ultimate' Experience Both In and Out of the Car

(This post originally appeared on Forbes.)

When customers arrive at the Fields BMW dealership in Northfield, Ill. for a service appointment, it’s not like going to just any car dealership or repair shop.

The customer enters the garage by driving over what looks like a speed bump. This unassuming bump serves two purposes.

First, it reads the tires and instantly produces a report that shows the tire pressure and tread wear -- even showing images of what tire wear looks like. A technician shows the customer the report as soon as he or she exits the vehicle.

Second, the reduced speed while going over the bump allows for a quick scan of the front license plate, which is used to instantly display a personalized welcome message on a screen right above where the customer parks the car in the garage. My sign said “Welcome Back Guest: GINGISS”.

This is a great example of a simple customer experience improvement that is both personalized and shareable. Not surprisingly, this writer snapped a photo of the sign for Twitter.

The dealership had to make an investment in this technology -- the scanner and the TV screen -- but it was a one-time investment that positively affects every experience of every person driving in after that. If you don’t have the budget for such an investment, you could still welcome clients or visitors to your office with a simple PowerPoint slide on a screen.

The experience works because it’s personal. The simple act of personalizing an experience by using a customer’s name is an easy tactic that most businesses just skip over -- even though they already have their customers’ names available in a database. It feels nice to see your name up in lights on a screen. It’s unique and memorable, and it's not something you see when you walk into most retail locations.

It’s also visual, so customers will be inclined to take a picture and share it to their social media networks, which amounts to free advertising for the dealership. While word-of-mouth marketing is something most businesses covet, few do anything to warrant customers talking about them.

The takeaway is that using somebody's name is a little thing, and it's not that hard to do. Every business can do it. Little things matter and they can affect the experience in a big way.

But Fields BMW doesn’t stop there. After the repair consultant explains the process, the estimated cost, and how long it will take, he invites the customer to grab some food and get comfortable in the waiting area. 

The waiting area has plenty of comfortable seating, free Wi-Fi and a full-time chef preparing made-to-order omelets and egg sandwiches for breakfast or sandwiches for lunch, and unlimited coffee, juice, bottled water and sodas.

The result? Even a long wait while work on your car is completed doesn’t feel long when you’re eating a delicious breakfast and catching up on work emails on your laptop. In contrast, it’s a nice change of scenery from the office. And when your car is ready, the service associate lets you know that your car has been washed at no charge.

BMW already invests a ton of money into product development for its vehicles. What is this additional investment in customer experience worth to them? It’s worth continued customer loyalty. Customers may already know that their car is the “Ultimate Driving Machine,” but when they have such a positive experience servicing their vehicle, the choice when it comes time to get a new car becomes an obvious one.