The arrival of the new 308 has sparked a change in the way Peugeot will be delivering product training to its dealers.

The company has revealed the process which started with 208 – which saw specific in-showroom presentations – has been abandoned in favour of something more focused on rival models, writes Richard Yarrow.

Peugeot UK managing director Tim Zimmerman explained: “We’re asking a different approach with new 308. We need to give dealers the chance to assess the car against the competition, so at an event in Manchester next month they will have the chance to test it against Golf and Focus.”

The three-day conference will see around 300 Peugeot sales managers driving a new 308. The rival vehicles will be for static rather than on-the-road examination.

Zimmerman has implemented the change because he believes the car represents a significant shift in terms of perceived quality and dynamics. He’s also instigated a review of the profile of people working in Peugeot showrooms.

“New 308 will have 2-3 hour handover time. That’s cumulative; an hour or more during the sales process, presenting the car and going with the customer on a test drive, and then an hour or more when they hand it over. That’s a lot of time to be spending with someone, so the skillset and age of the people presenting might need to change.”

He also said he wanted the final handover – “the most important time for the customer” –  to improve, admitting “we have not always made the experience as positive as it should be”.

Other changes will include a new iOS and Android app which will enable people to find out details of the 308 and then give them direct contact with their local dealer to book a test drive. It’s due for launch at the end of this month.

Zimmerman also revealed dealers will get a new tool next year which will simplify the showroom sales process. It will cut the time the customer needs to spend working out details such as options, finance package and part-ex value. The tablet-based software will bring together all existing systems, paper and otherwise, into one more usable programme.

He believes it will be an industry first, adding: “It sounds basic but none of the manufacturers have got to that point yet, a system that combines everything.”