Feature Ford
https://www.ford.co.uk/commercial-vehicles/ fleet
Hyundai
https://www.hyundai.co.uk/fleet/fleet- managers
Kia
https://www.kia.com/uk/business/
Mercedes-Benz
https://www.mercedes-benz.co.uk/ passengercars/cars-guide/
fleet-business.html
Ease of use
Two clicks to model page with prices. Other info is there, but some, such as CO2, is below the fold, so not as obvious. Conflicting mix of mpg/litres per 100km economy listings, too.
Design
Ford said the fleet section had been redesigned but, beyond bold font and a new headline, it does not look that different.
Configurator
Does the job, but the page-by-page format is not cutting edge. It is also clunky and can be slow to load.
Brochure download Brochure download
Hunting required –they’re at the bottom of individual model pages on the non-fleet site – but there are four: a full-fat one, a brilliant interactive version, a simple specs brochure and a price list.
Social media messaging
We couldn’t message Ford until it followed us. After it did (we Tweeted it first) we got a response with a link in less than an hour.
Live chat
Advertised as 8.30am-9pm on the site but ‘only appears when a customer advocate is available.’ No dice on our first attempt; tried again two hours later and got an answer in three minutes.
Dealer finder
The ‘find a dealer’ link at the top of the page is glaringly obvious and you can filter via 22 factors, including Motability, LCVs, small business/fleet, and rental.
Social media
More fleet-themed than most, albeit on vans. Loads of useful E-Transit YouTube videos and there is a dedicated Ford Pro Twitter feed.
Mobile site
Cleaner than the desktop version; upper links are compacted into a dropdown box and there is a scrolling tile format for the lower picture- based ones.
Extras
Quite a lot on the face of it, but apart from the WLC calculator, the links are fairly circuitous and lead mostly to sales promo. Little of real use to fleets.
Verdict 51% Verdict 60% Verdict 50% Verdict 61% 26 | August 2023 |
www.businesscar.co.uk
Sixth responder in just over two hours. However, the answer was not quite right. Live chat
Looks like AI, but superb. In two minutes, we had a clear answer with a link to the relevant model’s spec page and an offer to put us through to a dealer.
Dealer finder
Clear link atop the fleet homepage and easy to use. Five filters including business centres and Motability.
Social media
Big improvement for the LinkedIn page, which is now much more geared towards fleets. Chiefly promo elsewhere, though.
Mobile site
Actually a really tidy format, but the same problem as last year – it loses the desktop version’s handy and fleet-themed blue bar; the replacement grey links are retail-themed.
Extras
BIK and WLC calculators, plus a very good contacts page for the fleet team, with direct email addresses and phone numbers.
Really easy to find via the link at the top right of the fleet page – and easy to download for any model. Content is style over substance, though.
Social media messaging
Easily found via the link in the left-hand drop- down box, but brochures are under lock and key.
Social media messaging No response. Live chat
Exactly the same as Hyundai – almost certainly AI and the responses were identical – but was a few seconds quicker at less than two minutes.
Dealer finder
Seven filters – four of which are fleet-themed – is good, but it took three attempts and a long time to load. We almost gave up.
Social media
Kia says it has increased fleet content on LinkedIn, focusing on one model a month, and runs campaigns for business dealers. Also a dedicated international fleet LinkedIn page.
Mobile site
What would otherwise be a good mobile format is let down by blurry header image on the main business page and part of the first letters being cut off on three of the tiled links.
Extras Extras
Kia has upped its game here, with fleet-specific pages for four key models, a fleet services page, business services promise section, and fleet- themed news articles.
Tax and cost comparison calculators; fleet- themed info on the EQ range; public sector, specialist, and chauffeur sections
Link is tucked away at the bottom of the page. Eight filters, but none are geared to fleets. Social media
Dedicated UK fleet and business LinkedIn page, plus MB Vans feeds across all major channels. Mobile site
Clean and neat conversion. Many sites claim to be mobile first, desktop second, but this one really looks like it.
Fantastic one-stop shop containing everything you could need to know about the car with lots of interactive links.
Social media messaging
We were unable to message Mercedes because our Twitter account is not verified. When we Tweeted it, it said, “perhaps Twitter has recently made this change to non-verified accounts”.
Live chat
Artificial unintelligence. “I looked up your question but I didn’t find an answer. Please check your specific manual,” and “unfortunately there are no human agents available on this chat”. At least it was quick.
Dealer finder
Ease of use
One click to full range with base prices. One more gets you a pricing table with really clear key figures, including P11D and BIK. You have to scroll to the bottom of that page, though.
Design
Fresher than most. Pictures dash across the page as you scroll down and baby blue tabs make it easy to navigate to key fleet tools.
Configurator Configurator
The simplest of the lot, but we like that. Page-by-page and just one picture – no fancy graphics – but everything you need is served up in an incredibly straightforward format.
Nothing wrong per se, but neither the slickest nor the most informative configurator around. Brochure download
Among the best. Looks great, easy to toggle the views and key info is simple to access via the left-hand sidebar.
Brochure download
Ease of use
Four clicks to BIK, CO2, ppm and P11D. It’s actually better with fleet-themed figures than others, it just takes a little longer to get to them.
Design
Kia says the site has “updated lifestyle imagery” (read new pictures). Nothing wrong with it, but still quite plain compared with the more interesting alternatives.
Ease of use Two clicks to
price,
four to
configurator with trim-specific info. Design
Usually wins this category and still smarter than average, but the recent redesign ditched the black background – which made it so distinct – for white with blurry pastel photo backdrops.
Configurator
reach the
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