Business View - June 2015 155
got an unbeatable combination. ”
Ketchem relates that the most successful franchisees
are those who follow the program and procedures set
down by Big O’s corporate training agenda. Those day-
to-day owners who are in front of the store and have
a sales focus and customer service orientation have a
leg up to succeed. And it is the company’s main goal
to teach store owners how to operate and grow their
franchises. Big O maintains a very strong franchise
leadership group, and by frequently communicating
with its franchisees, the company is able to “stay on
the cutting edge and on top of key developments in the
industry,” according to Kormondy.
What does the near future hold for the one of the coun-
try’s longest-established auto service franchises? Of
course, Big O intends to continue its leadership role
in customer satisfaction. In 2012, the company hired
Barkley Inc., a Kansas City based advertising agency.
Based on Barkley’s consumer research of Big O cus-
tomers, it was determined that the auto service com-
pany had a Net Promoter Score (NPS), a measure that
gauges overall satisfaction, of 70 – which is equal to
or better than the NPS score Barkely Inc. gave to such
well-known brands as Nordstrom, Apple, Google and
Trader Joes!
In addition, Kormondy and Ketchem stress a continu-
ation of company growth on two fronts: growth of the
top line sales of its existing retail outlets, and growth
in the total number of units that it will open in the mar-
ketplace. And, if Big O Tires can continue its outstand-
ing record of serving loyal generations of satisfied car
owners and tire buyers, the future looks bright, indeed.
FRANCHISE
