2018 MB DPB Manual

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2018 Mercedes-Benz Dealer Performance Bonus Manual

Table of Contents
Introduction

2018 Components and Payouts

Customer Experience

Training

New Vehicles Sales

Pre-Owned Sales

Brand Standards

Leadership Bonus

Reporting and Payout

FAQs

Introduction
The Mercedes-Benz Dealer Performance Bonus “DPB” Program initially launched January 3rd, 2008,
has been updated for 2018. The Program provides all qualified authorized dealers an opportunity to
earn a performance bonus up to 5.50% of Manufacturers Suggested Retail Price on eligible transactions
(this does not include dealer trade margin, floor plan bonus, or any additional bonus opportunities).

Vehicle Eligibility
All new leased or purchased Mercedes-Benz passenger vehicles (including passenger cars and light
trucks, but excluding smart and commercial vans) are included in the Program with the exception of:
National Accounts
Pre-owned Vehicles
Auction
VIP
Diplomat
European Delivery
Vehicles found to be exported in violation of the MBUSA Passenger Car and Light Truck Export Policies
may be subject to a chargeback of Program monies in accordance with the then-current Program rules.
Vehicles not delivered in accordance with the Customer Delivery Policy* may be subject to a chargeback
of Program monies in accordance with current Program rules.
*(Please note that Customer Delivery Policy is one component of the Mercedes-Benz Certified Delivery Process).
All eligible vehicle sales must be accurately and properly reported in VISTA in compliance with the
MBUSA Dealer Disposition Reporting (DDR) policy as currently published on NetStar. False or
inaccurate DDR reporting may result in a chargeback of Program monies.

Compliance
In accordance with the Mercedes-Benz Passenger Car and Light Truck Dealer Agreements, Section
VIII.F., MBUSA reserves the right to audit dealer records for compliance with rules of this Program. The
audits may include, but are not limited to, review of sales jackets for proper and timely sales reporting,
physical inventories of dealer stock, finance contracts and survey details. MBUSA reserves the right to
cancel, amend or revoke this Program, its terms and at any time in its sole discretion due to business
considerations or to circumstances beyond its control. This document will reside on NetStar and will be
periodically updated to reflect any changes to the Mercedes-Benz Dealer Performance Bonus Program.

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2018 Components and Payouts
2018 components and payouts are the same as 2017. No changes have been made to the metrics.
Mercedes-Benz Dealer Performance Bonus
Customer Experience Bonus 1, 2

1.50%

NV Sales Experience Qualifier

Objective

NV Sales Survey - Net Email Penetration

≥ 80%

Sales Experience Scores
Sales Experience Bonus
Sales Experience Score

0.00%

0.75%

< Obj

≥ Obj

Customer Experience Service Qualifier
Service Survey - Net Email Penetration

≥ 80%

Service Experience Scores
Service Experience Bonus
Service Experience Score

Training Bonus *

0.00%

0.75%

< Obj

≥ Obj

1, 2,

0.50%

Training Requirements
Training Certification
Leadership Academy

≥ 85%
≥ 85%

Brand Immersion

≥ 85%

New Product Launch

≥ 85%

Business Critical

≥ 85%

New Vehicle Sales Bonus 1, 2
New Vehicle Sales Qualifiers

0.75%
†

AOI (Area of Influence)

≥ 70%

DMA (Designated Market Area)

≥ 90%

Sales Effectiveness

††

Sales Effectiveness Score

Pre-Owned Sales Bonus

0.00%

0.75%

< 80%

≥ 80%

1, 2

0.75%

Off-Lease Qualifiers *
C3 CPO Retails

≥ 60%

Special Vehicle Group

≥ 12%

Off-Lease Purchases
Off-Lease Purchases as % of NV Sales

Brand Standards Bonus * 1, 2

0.00%
< 23%

0.75%
≥ 23%

2.00%

Facility/Autohaus 2

YES

Annual Facility Inspection

YES

Potential payout percentage is multiplied by the MSRP (less Gas Guzzler tax and Destination & delivery charge) of eligible vehicles.
See the applicable Manual section for complete list of official rules.
* All qualifiers must be met in order to qualify for the bonus.
†
One of the two qualifiers must be met in order to qualify for the bonus.
2.

††

Guaranteed payout at 80% sales effectiveness score. If less than 80% of dealers achieve SE, then top qualified dealers (based on combined
Sales and Service CEI scores) earn full margin payout, up to 80% of the network

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Customer Experience
The Customer Experience Bonus requirements will be reviewed with the Mercedes-Benz Dealer Board
each year. Re-addressing the relevancy of the requirements allows the flexibility to adjust annually, if
needed, to reflect changes in the current business environment. Dealers must be in full compliance
with requirements by the end of each quarter in order to earn the quarterly payout.
The goal of the Mercedes-Benz Customer Experience Program (CEP) is to capture timely customer
feedback to enable proactive identification and resolution of customer issues, and assure continuous
improvement of the dealership sales and service experience.
The requirements below must be met in order to achieve the 1.5% of the MSRP of eligible vehicle
sales. There are 2 portions that make up the Customer Experience Bonus, as follows:
New Vehicle Sales Survey = 0.75% Margin
• NV Sales Email Penetration ≥80%
• NV Sales Survey Score ≥ TBD Target (target is updated quarterly)
Service Survey = 0.75% Margin
• Service Email Penetration ≥80%
• Service Survey Score ≥ TBD Target (target is updated quarterly)

1. Sales & Service Net E-mail Survey Penetration
Criteria:
• Remain enrolled in the Customer Experience Program (CEP).
• Continue to share selected DMS (Dealer Management System) data with MBUSA through the
chosen Program vendor.
• Achieve quarterly Net E-mail Survey Penetration greater than or equal to 80% for New
Vehicle Sales & Service, independently.
Net E-Mail Survey Penetration is calculated as follows:
(Total E-mails Sent based on survey eligibility date) – (E-mails returned as undeliverable)
(Total Sales or ROs) – (Internals, Repeat Customers & Other Filters*)

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* For information on survey filters, please see the “Filtering Criteria” section later in this manual. Each
dealership is responsible for implementing the necessary filters utilizing the filtering interface on the
CEP website.
Notes:
• “Net E-Mail” is defined as total emails sent minus any emails returned as undeliverable.
• E-mail addresses will be monitored for fraudulent activity and to ensure that the “ultimate consumer”
is the survey recipient. Please review the Integrity Guidelines within this manual for more details.
• We measure every dealer on Net E-Mail Survey penetration based on Eligibility dates from the 1st
of the quarter to the last day of the quarter (Ex. 1/1/18 – 3/31/18 = Quarter 1 2018) .
• All records are included in the calculation unless filtered out, or listed as an infraction. This includes
and is not limited to: All model years, mulligans, Takata recall vehicles, etc.

2. Customer Experience Scores
• The Customer Experience Score Bonus consists of two independent components: Sales Experience
Score: New Vehicle Sales Experience Survey Index (6 scored questions)
• Service Experience Score: Service Experience Survey Index ( 6 scored questions)
Note: there are additional diagnostic questions included in each sales and service survey to assist
dealers with process improvements. All customers will have the option to answer additional diagnostic
questions by opting in to the ‘flex’ component of the survey. Diagnostic questions may be added or
removed periodically to complement different immediate business initiatives.
Survey Administration: Please note that all surveys will be sent directly from MBUSA headquarters and
not from individual dealerships.
Survey Method and Timing:
All “eligible” surveys sent by MBUSA and answered via email will be included in the Dealer Performance
Bonus score.
Note: Mercedes-Benz USA LLC, reserves the right to add other methods of surveying customers (i.e.
traditional mail, phone, texts, etc.).
Here is a recap of the different milestone events during the life of a survey record (the month of May is
used as an example below)

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Note that MBUSA reserves the right to change the timing of the survey milestones above.
Both Sales and Service Experience Surveys will be sent via email by MBUSA 7 days from the date the
record is posted in the CEP survey tool (Record Load Date). Day 7 is the “Survey Eligibility Date.”
If no email or an undeliverable email address is captured directly from the DMS, then MBUSA will
attempt to append a deliverable email address from MBUSA customer databases.
To be eligible for the NV Sales Customer Experience Score bonus in any given quarter, a dealer must
meet the 80% NV Sales Email Penetration Qualifier target in the same quarter. Similarly, to be eligible
for the Service Customer Experience Score bonus in any given quarter, a dealer must meet the 80%
Service Email Penetration Qualifier in the same quarter.
Dealers that achieve the New Vehicle Sales and/or Service CEP survey Bonus targets of the Dealer
Performance Bonus can earn up to a total of 1.5% of MSRP on eligible vehicle sales (0.75% for NV
Sales Experience Survey component and 0.75% for Service Experience Survey component). Qualifying
results will be measured quarterly based on the date the survey is received and reported via the NetStar
scorecard.
Filtering Criteria:
One of the goals of the Customer Experience Program is to assist with the “end customer” receiving a
sales or service experience survey. In order to achieve this, there are certain instances where a filter is
advised to be placed, eliminating that record from your survey process.
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Please review your dealer filters and your overall filtering process to ensure that the following are
properly in place as part of the Customer Experience Program (filters can be managed within the NetStar
“CEP – Administration and Reporting” application).
Mechanics of Filtering:
• Filters are entirely based upon the information entered as part of a sales deal or service RO in the
Dealer Management System (DMS).
• Each sales or service transaction in the DMS contains the following informational fields (among
others)…
o Customer DMS ID Number… person or third party who purchased or serviced the vehicle
as a customer to the dealership.
o Employee DMS ID Number… dealer personnel (F&I Manager, Salesperson, Advisor, or
Technician) who sold or serviced the vehicle and are responsible for that particular customer
experience.
• Corresponding filter values then need to be created in the CEP tool in NetStar to filter certain DMS
transactions based upon either Customer Number or Employee Number.
• Example: If you are trying to filter an Independent Service Provider (ISP) that has a Customer
Number of 1234 in your DMS, then you would need to create a “Customer DMS ID #” filter in the
CEP – Administration and Reporting Tool with the same DMS value of 1234.

3. Filter Summary:
• Sales Filters
o Routine face-to-face retail Customers should receive a survey. Therefore, dealers should
not be filtering out these retail customers.
o For corporate customers dealers should filter any ISP, Fleet, dealer and MB Employees,
etc., using a Customer DMS ID # filter that matches the DMS Customer ID on the booked
deal. Dealer Trades should be filtered using an Employee DMS ID # filter associated with a
house account that is used only for Dealer Trades (Sales Rep or F&I Manager).
• Service Filters
o Routine face-to-face retail Customers should receive a survey. The Service Type question
allows customers to filter themselves out for Collision and Roadside events.
o For corporate customers dealers should filter out any ISP, Fleet, dealer and MB Employees,
etc., using a Customer DMS ID # filter that matches the DMS Customer ID on the booked
ROs.
Filter Details (MBUSA reserves the right to adjust this list)
A) MBUSA will filter the following records:
• Unsubscribed records from MBUSA’s customer database
o Customers can unsubscribe themselves through an “unsubscribe” link on the bottom of the
survey invitation email or by contacting MBUSA (CAC or MBUSA.COM).

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• Repeat customers within 45 days ( VIN to dealer relationship)
o New vehicle sale to new vehicle sale
o New vehicle sale to service
o Service to service
• No name and/or no address, with emails
o Needed to verify the authenticity of a customer
• Records (Service ROs or New Vehicle Sales Deals) that are extracted from the DMS 45 days after
the RO close or contract date
• Internal ROs
o If there is $0 on the RO total AND all line items are internal pay types, then the record would be
filtered as an internal RO
 Example… Internal= $0, Internal= $0, Internal= $0
• Negative dollar value ROs
o The intent is to cover accounting adjustments… for example, a service was performed and the
dealer did not apply a previously paid for Pre-Paid Maintenance package.
• Filtering of Sign and Drive Records
o All Sign and Drive events, including Flats, Fuel, Jumps and Gone on Arrivals. The applicable
Damage Codes are:
Damage Codes
21400
21401
21402
21403
21404
21420
21421
21422

Descriptions
Gone On Arrival (GOA)
"SIGN AND DRIVE, "FLATTIRE"
"SIGN AND DRIVE, "JUMPSTART"
"SIGN AND DRIVE, "OUT-OF-FUEL"
CPMIDNIGHT
"SIGN AND DRIVE, "JUMP START" AFTER MIDNIGHT
"SIGN AND DRIVE, "FLAT TIRE" AFTER MIDNIGHT
"SIGN AND DRIVE, "OUT OF FUEL" AFTER MIDNIGHT

• Does not cover any towing related events, as vehicles that are ultimately brought into the
dealership generate a surveyable experience
• Only ROs submitted as a warranty claim for reimbursement through the Warranty system will
be accommodated through this process

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• The RO number that is submitted for warranty reimbursement must match the RO number that is
documented on the DMS RO. Any clerical mismatches, or numbers being generated from different
DMS modules (accounting module vs service module) will not be filtered
• Submission for warranty reimbursement and closing of the Sign and Drive ROs in the DMS must be
completed within 72 hours
B) Dealers shall be responsible for filtering the following records:
Filters for New Vehicle sales and Pre‐Owned sales
• Dealer Trades
• Sales on Loaner vehicles (CVP)
• Dealership and MBUSA employee purchases as well as their immediate family members (filter on
the DMS Customer ID# for the employee)
• Dealer Affiliates
• Fleet corporate deals
• Pre-Owned sales to auction houses and third parties (Wholesale)
• Other Dealers, Dealer Groups, and their employees
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Filters for Service
ISP garages / body shops
Service on dealership employee and MBUSA employee vehicles, as well as their immediate family
members (filter on the DMS Customer ID# for the employee)
Service on Loaner vehicles (CVP)
Service on Fleet corporate vehicles
Auction vehicles (auction houses as the service customer)
Dealer Affiliates
Other Dealers, Dealer Groups, and their employees

C) Customer Survey Question Filters (customers answering survey questions):
• Customer Verification Question (for both sales and service surveys)
o Customers can filter themselves out based upon the following situations
 If they are the customer, but they or an immediate family member work for one of the
following… the dealership, a company associated with the dealership, or a Daimler
company.
 If they are the customer, but did not purchase or service the vehicle at the dealership.
 If they are not the customer at all.
• Service Event Type Question (for service surveys only)
o Customers can filter themselves out of the following service events
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 Roadside ROs (when a roadside technician was dispatched for a flat tire, fuel,
battery, jumpstart).
 Body shop ROs (any paint or touchup, bumper, or body work, including body and
mechanical work paid by an insurance company).
o Quote for service only, parts counter purchases only, car wash only.
o If a customer filters him/herself out of a survey via one of the three answer choices above,
then the customer will be given one last question
o For others that are considering , how likely are you to recommend?
• For more information, please go to the “Documents” section in the Medallia CEP Survey tool.

4. Common Filtering Situations and Best Practices
Dealer Sales Filters:
• Dealer Trades: Normally, an Employee Number would be set up in the DMS as a “House or Dealer
Trade Account” through which all dealer trades would be booked to this Employee Number. The
filter should be set up with the same value as an “Employee # Sales Rep or F&I Mgr” CEP filter
in NetStar.
• Dealership Employees: before a dealer employee enters into a sales or service transaction, the
dealer should be creating a filter based on the employee’s Customer Number that matches the
DMS employee Customer Number being booked in the DMS.
• These filters need to be entered before an employee transaction takes place.
o A best practice is to include the creation and deletion of employee Customer Filters in the
new hire and termination process.
o As a “safety net,” there is a customer verification question on the survey that in part contains
the answer choice… “YES, I am Joe Customer… and I (or an immediate family member)
work for one of the following: the dealership, a company associated with the dealership, or
a Daimler company.” If the employee should choose this answer, then the survey will be
filtered at this point.
o Dealership employees should never answer MBUSA sales or service surveys, even for their
own vehicles
• Fleet corporate deals, Dealer Affiliates, Pre-Owned Auction vehicles (Wholesale), other
dealers: Any corporate customer (any non-“routine” retail customer) should be booked in DMS with
a customer number, and then a CEP NetStar filter should be created as a Customer Number filter
with the same DMS customer number value. This can be done in the CEP Admin and Reporting
link found in NetStar.

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• Loaners: If your dealer treats these units as “sold” and registered units to the dealership, and books
them in the DMS with the dealership as the customer, then a like filter needs to be created in the
CEP NetStar filter tool as a Customer Number filter with the same customer number DMS value.
o A best practice is to make sure that someone sets up and books loaners to a “dealership”
customer number account.
Dealer Service Filters
• Roadside ROs, Roadside assistance ROs are automatically removed from the survey process
providing the following conditions are met. Customers continue to have the ability to filter
themselves out for Roadside via the service type question choice for a Roadside event:
Criteria for Filtering of Sign and Drive ROs
• All Sign and Drive events, including Flats, Fuel, Jumps and Gone on Arrivals, are included. The
applicable Damage Codes are:
Damage Codes
21400
21401
21402
21403
21404
21420
21421
21422

• This does NOT cover any towing related events, as the vehicles that are ultimately brought into the
dealership generate a surveyable experience.
• Only ROs submitted as a warranty claim for reimbursement through the Warranty system will be
accommodated through this process.
• The RO number that is submitted for warranty reimbursement must match the RO number that is
documented on the service DMS RO. Any clerical mismatches, or numbers being generated from
different DMS modules (accounting module vs service module) will not be filters.
• Submission for warranty reimbursement and closing of the Sign and Drive ROs in the DMS must be
completed within 72 hours.
• Body shop ROs: There are no dealer filters created for these events. Customers have the ability
to filter themselves out for Body shop via the service type question choice for bodyshop.
• Dealer Affiliates, Fleet (Fedex, UPS), ISP garages, Auction vehicles, Rental Car Agencies,
Limo Companies, ect.: The service RO of any corporate customer (any non-“routine” retail
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customer) should be booked in DMS with a customer number, and then a CEP NetStar filter should
be created as a Customer Number filter with the same DMS customer number value.
• Dealership Employees: Same as sales above. Employees should be filtered based upon the
DMS Customer Number. The new survey customer verification survey question can also be used
as a “safety net.”
• Loaners: Any loaner vehicles that need to be serviced should be booked to an RO in the DMS with
the “dealership” as the customer with a corresponding Customer Number. Then a like filter needs
to be created in the CEP NetStar filter tool as a Customer Number filter with the same customer
number DMS value.
• Reconditioning or PDIs: These transactions should be booked as Internal pay types and will be
filtered through the MBUSA filters. As an additional filter, any vehicles in the inventory that are run
through the shop as recon or pre-delivery PDI can be booked in the DMS with the dealership as the
customer number. If there is warranty work done during the PDI, the recommendation is to have
the vehicle in the dealership’s name and create a filter for the dealership customer number (similar
to Loaners) that matches the DMS value to remove these from being surveyed.
Filter Tool and Filtering Integrity
• All dealer filters need to be input into NetStar via the link “CEP – Administration and Reporting.”
• Filters can and should be managed by dealership personnel on an ongoing basis to make sure the
dealer is in compliance with the above rules.
o Each dealership is responsible for implementing the necessary dealer filters utilizing the
filtering interface in NetStar.
o No past records will be re-loaded or removed based upon dealers mismanaging their
dealer filters.
o

No surveys will be resent for any reason (outside of the automated reminder email
that is sent after 7 days).

• GMs or higher must APPROVE all changes to dealer filters to ensure a high overall filtering integrity.
o Please note that it may take a filter up to 24 hours to be active once it has been approved
by the GM.
“Small Volume Program Adjustments”
Summary
• Being a small volume dealer means that certain bonus calculations (CEP Sales and Service
surveys) will be calculated based upon a 6 month period at the end of each full quarter for bonus
qualification.
o The calculation within any given quarter is the previous full quarter plus the current quarterto-date scores.
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o For scoring in the 1st quarter of 2018, surveys returned in the 4th quarter of 2017 will have
an alternative score calculated based on 2018 question weights.
• To determine if you are a small volume dealer…
o An asterisk would be placed over your QTD survey score…
Customer Experience Program (CEP) Survey Small Volume Dealer Rules
• 2018 Designations - A rolling 12 month calculation was completed in October 2017 to measure
each dealer based upon Small dealer thresholds to determine new Small dealer designations
for 2018.
• Service- a dealer is considered small Service volume if they have less than 1,000 surveyable repair
orders per quarter in a rolling 12 month period.
• Sales- a dealer is considered small Sales volume if they have less than 250 surveyable new vehicle
sales in a rolling 12 month period.
• Opting Out of Small Dealer Status for 2018- If a dealer fell within the parameters above, it was
designated as small (independently for Service and Sales) for 2018
o Dealers needed to opt-out if desired via the NetStar link “CEP – Administration and
Reporting” in November 2017.
o Small dealers needed to opt-out separately for Sales or Service once they met the criteria
for being classified as a small dealer.
• Any status changes to a dealer’s classification (from small to regular, or regular to small) made in
November 2017 will be effective on January 1st in 2018.

5. “Thank You” Follow-Up E-mail
Summary
• The New Vehicle sales/service “Thank You” emails are meant as a communication thanking
customers for their business while at the same time providing an opportunity to determine if they
have any immediate issues or concerns.
• The “Thank You” email provides a simple, consistent, brand commensurate solution to a potential
follow-up gap in a proactive and personalized (phone call, text, etc.) manner.
• This feature can be used to complement (not replace) dealers’ follow-up activities to best manage
their resources.
How it Works
• Opting-in to the “Thank You” email activates an automated follow-up email process that is integrated
into the new Customer Experience Program survey application.

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• A “Thank You” email will be delivered to a customer within 24-48 hours of a record being loaded
within the Medallia CEP survey application (the email address must be on the RO/Deal prior to
closing out the record in your DMS).
• Customers that request follow-up via the “Thank You” email will then trigger an email alert which will
be sent to the respective service management or sales management groups for contact.
• All requests for follow-up through the “Thank You” email are captured within the Customer
Experience Program survey tool.
• The "Thank You" email is a standard email worded by MBUSA to ensure a consistent message and
is not customizable by dealers (outside of customer name, dealer name etc.).
How can a Dealer Manage its Elections?
• A dealer can manage its choice to either opt-in or opt-out each quarter via the NetStar link “CEP –
Administration and Reporting.”
o Follow the folder path… Administration / CEP Optional Components / Thank You Email
Election.
• A dealer can only change its status once a quarter to opt-in or opt-out.
• Dealers can start changing their elections approximately 15 days before the end of a quarter for the
next quarter.
o A note will be displayed within the above NetStar path telling you the exact election period.

6. New Vehicle Sales Experience Survey Bonus
The Sales Customer Experience Index (CEI) score is measured based on a quarter-to-date score with
the qualifying period being all three months of the quarter. For example, 2018 Quarter 1 component
performance will be based on the eligible surveys received in January 2018, February 2018 and March
2018.
For calendar year 2018, only new vehicle sales survey responses from Model Year 2017 to Model Year
2019 will be included in the final Customer Experience Index Sales bonus calculation. Customers of
Model Year 2016 and older will receive a new vehicle sales survey only if booked as a new vehicle in
the DMS, but will not be included in the Customer Experience Index Sales bonus calculation.
For the ‘small volume’ dealers that work off of a 6-month calculation period, the Sales Customer
Experience Index (CEI) score is measured based on 6-month score with the qualifying period being the
previous quarter and the current quarter. For example, 2018 Quarter 1 component performance will be
based on the eligible surveys received in October 2017, November 2017, December 2017, January
2018, February 2018 and March 2018.
Objectives: Established by MBUSA and subject to change each quarter.
New Vehicle Sales Experience Survey Score Calculation:
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The New Vehicle Sales Customer Experience Index score will be comprised of the results of six (6)
rated questions. The index will be based on a 1,000 - point scale and weighted as follows:

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7. Service Experience Survey Bonus
The Service Customer Experience Index (CEI) Index score is measured based on a quarter-to-date
score with the qualifying period being all three months of the quarter. For example, 2018 Quarter 1
bonus will be based on the eligible surveys received in January 2018, February 2018 and March
2018.
For the ‘small volume’ dealers that work off of a 6-month period, the Service Customer Experience
Index (CEI) score is measured based on a 6-month score with the qualifying period being the previous
quarter and the current quarter. For example, 2018 Quarter 1 component performance will be based
on the eligible surveys received in October 2017, November 2017, December 2017, January 2018,
February 2018 and March 2018.
Less Than 8 Model Year Rule - For calendar year 2018, only survey responses from Model Year
2011 to current (including MY19 as they launch in 2018) will be included in the final Customer
Experience Index Service bonus calculation. Customers of Model Year 2010 and older will continue
to be surveyed, but results will not be included in the bonus calculation.
Service Experience Survey Score Calculation: The Service Customer Experience Index score will
be comprised of the following questions. The index will be based on a 1,000 - point scale and
weighted as follows:

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2018 MB Service Survey Questionnaire
Question Group
Heading
Customer
Verification
Service
Qualifier

Total Pts
(1000 pt
scale)

Question
Weights

Just to confirm are you < customer name >? One out of five choices

none

Which best describes the type of work performed during this service visit?

none

200

20%

160

16%

160

16%

160

16%

160

16%

none

160

16%

Question

Summing up
For others that are considering , how likely are you to recommend?
the Experience
Service
Initiation

Please rate the dealership on their drop-off process (time waiting to be greeted, time conferring with
representative, time to hand over keys and complete any initial paperwork) or overall pick-up process if you
did not visit the dealership

Service
Representativ Please rate your service representative on their overall knowledge regarding the servicing of your vehicle
e
Service
Please rate your service representative on their thoroughness in explaining the charges of your
Representativ
maintenance/repair work
e
Was all of the authorized work completed right the first time?
If NO, what was the reason given? (select all that apply)
6b1: Elected not to perform the repairs
6b2: Dealership did not have time to complete the work
6b3: Broke again after being fixed
Fixed First Visit
6b4: A new problem occurred
6b5: More work was required than expected
6b6: Problem was not corrected
6b7: Dealership could not find the problem
6b8: Parts needed to be ordered
Follow-up

Summing up
the service
experience

Were you contacted by the dealership after the service was complete to see if work performed was to your
satisfaction?
Do you have any unresolved questions or concerns that you would like to be contacted about?
Based on poor scoring ask: We've noticed your experience was less than exceptional. Do you have any
unresolved questions or concerns that you would like to be contacted about?
In order to address your questions or concerns, who would you like to be contacted by?
Please provide any comments regarding your unresolved questions or concerns and the best time and
phone number to reach you (If "Yes" was selected)
Please provide any additional comments or suggestions to help us improve your next vehicle service
experience at (If 'No' was selected)
Which factor most influenced your scores on this survey? Please select one:

Redemption Possibility
to Change LTR Score if
Contact Requested by
Dealer

Comment

none

Optional Flex Questions
Additional
Questions

Would you be willing to to answer additional questions about your experience? Answering these questions
will take less than 1 minute of your time.

Service
Initiation

Please rate the dealership's ability to accommodate your schedule

All Surveys

Please estimate the time it took to be provided with alternate transportation

Service
Please rate your service representative on their attentiveness to and fulfillment of your requests
Representativ
Please rate your service representative on their thoroughness in explaining your maintenance/repair work
e
Vehicle Pick-up

Please rate the dealership on the promptness of their pick-up process (waiting to be attended to, finishing
the paperwork, picking up the vehicle) or overall delivery process if you did not visit the dealership
Please rate the simplicity of scheduling your appointment with this dealership
Please indicate how you scheduled this service appointment:

Flex A
(not scored)

Please select your preferred method for scheduling a service appointment:
Service
Technology
Standards

What method of communication was used to keep you informed of your vehicle status?
What is your preferred method of communication to keep you informed of your vehicle status?
Please rate if the use of a tablet device (such as an iPad) enhanced your service experience?
1 - Did not enhance at All, 10 Greatly Enhanced, N/A - Dealer did not use a tablet
Please indicate how you paid for your service during this visit:
Please indicate your preferred method of payment at your dealership's service center:

After you arrived at the facility, how long did it take before you spoke to a representative about your service
Service
Representativ needs?
e
Please rate the courtesy and respect of your service representative
Please rate the dealership on reasonableness (value) of charges
Vehicle Pick-up Please rate the helpfulness of staff at pick-up (service representative, valet, cashier, etc., or individual
delivering your vehicle if you did not visit the dealership)
Please rate the dealership on their ability to complete service on your vehicle within the time estimate
provided
Quality

Please rate the condition of your vehicle at pick-up (clean, undamaged, controls and positions not modified)

Flex B
(not scored)

Please rate the dealership on the thoroughness of maintenance/repair work performed
Upon return of your vehicle was it… Cleaner / The same condition / Not as clean
If you did not physically visit the dealership during this service, please respond based on your prior
experiences with this dealership.
Facility

Please rate the ease of driving in/out of the dealership
Please rate the overall cleanliness and appearance of the facility
Please rate the dealership's waiting area (e.g. size, location, comfort)
Please rate the amenities offered by the dealership (WIFI, workspace, TV, beverages, snacks, etc.)

Exceeding
Did your experience at meet your expectations?
Expectations
Employees at the dealership:
Provided a welcoming environment
Assisted me in a timely manner
Ease, Empathy,
Made me feel like a valued customer
and Emotion
Understood my needs
Kept me updated on the progress of service being done on my vehicle
Flex C
Serviced my vehicle quickly and efficiently
(not scored)
Made getting my vehicle serviced easy
Of the following alternative transportation options…
Alternative
Which were offered to you?
Transportation Which did you actually use?
Which would you have preferred?
Service
Regarding this service visit, describe when you were able to schedule your appointment.
Initiation
WOW
(Optional) Did anyone go above and beyond to provide you with truly exceptional service? If so, please tell us
Experiences about your experience.

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8. Mulligans and No Appeals
MBUSA will remove the bottom 2.0% of eligible survey responses during the payout period for each of
New Vehicle Sales scores and Service independently. A minimum of one mulligan will be removed for
every dealer each payout period (three months for a regular dealer, and 6 months for a “small” dealer
as previously defined in this manual).
In terms of absolute numbers, 2.0% mulligans translates into the following:
Number of Eligible Survey
Returns
1 – 74
75 – 124
125 – 174
Every 50 additional survey returns

Total Number of Mulligans
1
2
3
+1 additional mulligan

Please note there will be NO appeals process for the CEP 2018 Program. Individual dealer pay
plan incentives requiring additional survey removals must be managed at the dealership level and
cannot be administered through this program.
Data Exchange Issues: In the event of an issue exclusively caused by the survey program data extraction
vendors, our CEP team in Atlanta, GA will investigate and discuss any necessary accommodations with the
dealer, if applicable. This covers any current data extractors (CDK, which was formally Digital Motorworks
Inc. (DMI) for sales data extraction or Integralink for service data extraction) as well as any future data
extractors used by the CEP survey program. Issues resulting in any of the above vendor’s inability to access
the dealer’s DMS, i.e., issue with the DMS company shutting the vendor out or turning off the computer at
the dealership where the vendor accesses the DMS data, will NOT be considered. All decisions of MBUSA
are final.
Note on New Vehicle Sales Deals and DMS Cancellations: The New Vehicle Sales survey is designed
to collect feedback based on all sales experiences. Even if the vehicle was subsequently cancelled, the
customer still had a sales experience that will be surveyable.
Please note that New Vehicle sales deals that are “finalized” within the DMS, passed to our CEP program
to generate a survey, and then subsequently cancelled in the DMS are NOT covered under any current
survey removal rules. Such a survey delivered and completed after a DMS cancellation would be covered
under the 2.0% mulligan survey removal process if the score was low, and not part of any other survey
removal rule. The CEP survey program considers a “finalized” deal within the DMS as a dealer indication
that a record is ready for extraction for our survey program. If a dealer is experiencing a high frequency of
DMS cancellations after deals are finalized, then they should investigate a possible process enhancement
with records timing among sales, accounting, F&I, back office, or DMV procedures to reduce these
occurrences.
Some of the examples of what the 2.0% mulligan removal process covers (not an exhaustive list):
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CPO or PO booked as a new vehicle transaction
Roadside ROs not submitted in a timely manner (72-hour window)
Buybacks/Trade Assists
New vehicle booked as a CPO or PO transaction
PDIs booked to a customer name
Zero-dollar ROs including Goodwill
Parts delays/Availability
Vehicle delivery Issues
Customers answering the survey “incorrectly”
Surveys sent to the wrong person
Repossession of a New Vehicle Sale
Achieving the number one position in Customer Experience requires the full participation of our dealers
and the only way to get there is through operational excellence!

9. Courtesy Vehicle Program (CVP) and New Vehicle Programs
CVP units coming out of loaner service can be eligible for New Vehicle programs (please see the official
CVP rules for complete details).
A New Vehicle sales survey will only be generated if a transaction is finalized within the DMS as a
New Vehicle sales type. It is up to the dealer to book any transaction as a New Vehicle sale within
the DMS if a New Vehicle sales survey is expected to be sent to the customer.
If a deal is finalized as a Pre-Owned Vehicle sale, then a Pre-Owned sales survey will be generated.
How dealers book out-of-service CVP units in the DMS could depend on several factors... If they use new
or Pre-Owned programs, state titling laws, if the gross is run through New Vehicle or Pre-Owned sales
people, if the CVP was originally titled, etc. It is all dependent upon how the dealer chooses to book its outof-service loaner vehicles based upon the dealer’s individual accounting situations.

10. Customer Survey Integrity Guidelines:
One simple truth about building customer satisfaction is that you cannot achieve it without knowing the
customer’s perception of you —good, bad, or indifferent. We survey our customers and go to great
lengths to ensure that the Mercedes-Benz New Vehicle Sales and Service Experience Surveys provide
the clearest possible “snapshot” of our customers’ attitudes and perceptions, so that we can focus on
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what matters most… our customers! The following policy will help to ensure that our customers can
comfortably express open, honest, rich, and valuable feedback about their experiences.
To protect the integrity of the survey system, MBUSA will monitor dealer compliance via the Customer
Survey Integrity Guidelines. The Integrity violations listed below are used to evaluate compliance of the
guidelines, and to measure the resulting impact.
Types of Integrity Violations:
• Type I: Manipulation of survey/customer data, process or results
• Type II: Coaching customers to give high scores
Type I: Manipulation of survey/customer data, process or results
• Includes:
o Fraudulent email addresses or suppression of email addresses
o Fraudulent completion of customer surveys
o Responses coming from the same source or coming from sources related to the dealership
o Any surveys completed at the dealership (this includes customers, employees or any
representative completing a survey on behalf of a customer)
• An analysis of Type I violations will be conducted using technology provided to us by our third party
vendor. Techniques include but are not limited to the following:
o Geo location
o IP address verification
o Email address verification
o Browser history
o Device identification
Survey Infraction Definition:
• A fraudulent survey is defined as any customer survey response that can be associated with a
dealership employee. This does not include surveys completed for a dealership employee’s own
personal vehicle. In those instances, the survey will be removed, but these additional penalties will
not be assessed on the individual or the dealership.
Impact of Type I integrity violations:
Non-Management Level Dealer Employee
Individual Penalty:
• 1st infraction = employee removed from MBUSA training system* eligibility for 2 years
• 2nd infraction = employee permanently removed from MBUSA training system* eligibility
*Such employees would not be permitted to participate in any MBUSA training courses.
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Management Level Dealer Employee
Individual Penalty:
• Same as Non-Management Level Dealer Employee
Dealership Penalty:
• Dealership removed from full 1.5% CE margin for current (ONE) qtr. of qualification
• Dealership removed from Leadership Bonus for current (ONE) qtr. of qualification
Executive Level Dealer Employee (GM or higher)
Individual Penalty:
• Same as Non-Management Level Dealer Employee
Dealership Penalty:
o Dealership removed from full 1.5% CE margin for TWO quarters of qualification (current
and following calendar quarter qualifications)
o Dealership removed from Leadership Bonus for ALL qualifying quarters within the
program year (this includes any previous, current, and/or future qualifying quarters)
Type II: Coaching customers to give high scores
Includes:
• Customers contact the CAC that they were reprimanded for how they completed the survey
• Any documentation provided to customers that instructs them HOW they should answer the survey
or mentioning that the survey score is their “report card.” The following are a few examples (not an
all-inclusive list):
o Emails
o Texts
o Letters
o A notice attached to an RO
• Compensation for perfect survey scores (i.e., free window tint)
It is appropriate to say:
“You’ll be receiving a survey from Mercedes-Benz USA. We would appreciate your time to complete
the survey; your feedback is valuable to us.”
“You’ll be receiving a survey from Mercedes-Benz USA about your dealership experience. Please
also feel free to contact us at any time with questions or feedback.”

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“You may receive a survey from Mercedes-Benz USA in the next few weeks. Your feedback is
greatly appreciated. If for any reason you are not totally satisfied, please contact……so your
concerns may be addressed.”
It is NOT appropriate to say:
“My compensation is based on your survey scores, so if you think I did a truly exceptional job, please
fill out the survey.”
“You’ll be receiving a survey from Mercedes-Benz USA. If you feel that you cannot give us all 10’s,
please give us a call so we can address any issues.”
“Remember to take care of me”
“If you fill out the survey, we’ll give you a free detailing.”
“I’m calling to understanding why you scored me so low and why you felt the need to be so negative
on your survey.”
“We can assist you in filling out the survey.”
“You may receive a survey from Mercedes-Benz USA in the next few weeks. If there is any reason
why you cannot grade us ‘Truly Exceptional’ please contact……”
The following non-scored question will be considered in assessing whether pressure was applied in
order to influence the customer’s feedback and related scoring:
New Vehicle Sales and Service Surveys
Which factor do you think most influenced your scores above?
•
•
•
•
•
•

Overall experience with the brand
Facility and amenities
Overall experience with the brand
Relationship with dealership personnel
Pressure from dealership employee to provide high scores
Other (Please tell us in the comment box below)

Should you have any questions on what wording is, or is not, acceptable, please contact the Strategic
Retail Department at: 201-573-5333 or email: mbcep@mbusa.com
Impact of Type II integrity violations (within a program year):
First/Second Offense: Warning letter/email
Third Offense: Management-level Infraction applied
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• Individual Penalty:
o 1st infraction = employee removed from MBUSA training system* eligibility for 2 years
o 2nd infraction = employee permanently removed from MBUSA training system* eligibility
*Such employees would not be permitted to participate in MBUSA training courses.
• Dealership Penalty:
o Dealership removed from full 1.5% CE margin for current (ONE) qtr. of qualification
o Dealership removed from Leadership Bonus for current (ONE) qtr. of qualification
Following are Job Codes relative to the Management-level infractions:
Job Codes
100
108
110
111
112
113
114
120
150
160
185
195
203
204
206
229
236
252
280
402
403
404
405
406
510
552
561
570
602
706
707
810
811
852
882
900
908
909

Job Code Titles
Dealer Executive Manager
Onsite Operator
General Manager - MB
General Manager - MB & CV
General Manager - CV
General Manager - MB & smart
General Manager - MB, CV & smart
Bus/Off Mgr or Controller-MB
Bus/Off Mgr or Controller-MB & CV
Bus/Off Mgr or Controller-CV
Bus/Off Mgr or Controller-MB & smart
Bus/Off Mgr or Controller-MB, CV & smart
Sales Manager - MB & smart
Sales Manager - MB, CV & smart
Sales Manager - MB New & Pre-Owned
F&I Director
Sales Manager - MB & CV
Sales Manager - CV
Customer Relations Manager - MB & CV
Parts Manager - MB
Parts Manager - MB & CV
Parts Manager - CV
Parts Manager - MB & smart
Parts Manager - MB, CV & smart
Shop Foreman - MB
Service Manager - MB
BDC Manager
Customer Relations Manager - MB
Body Shop Manager
Service Manager - MB & smart
Service Manager - MB, CV & smart
Shop Foreman - MB &CV
Shop Foreman - CV
Service Manager - MB & CV
Service Manager - CV
smart Brand Manager
General Manager - smart
Bus/Off Mgr or Controller-smart

Management Level
Executive
Executive
Executive
Executive
Executive
Executive
Executive
Executive
Executive
Executive
Executive
Executive
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Executive
Executive

Note: Mercedes-Benz USA LLC, reserves the right to add or delete Job Codes for Management level infractions.

11. Summary
Our customers need to have complete confidence in knowing that their opinions count—that when they
complete a survey, it will reflect their honest, uninfluenced point-of-view. You have a critical role to play
in giving them that confidence and in making our survey data as accurate and useful as possible.
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The purpose of the Survey Integrity Guidelines is to ensure that the customer is allowed to provide
honest, constructive feedback that will allow the dealership to identify processes that may not be
meeting customer expectations.
Above all, remember that the Customer Experience Survey scores are not report cards. They are tools
designed to help us build the Best Customer Experience by listening to the voice of the Customer
and taking positive steps to improve our performance. True satisfaction is earned, not requested.

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Training
2018 Dealer Learning Suite
To ensure dealers have sufficiently trained staff at all times, we crafted a combination of specific
minimum training requirements essential to keeping focus on positive customer sales and service
related experiences. These items are detailed below:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Brand Immersion Experience
Leadership Academy
New Product Training
Business Critical Training
85% Standards of Excellence

1. Brand Immersion Experience
The goal of the Brand Immersion Experience training program is to engage the hearts and minds of
employees that interact with the Mercedes-Benz brand.
It will inspire employees to deliver
extraordinary customer experiences by equipping them with knowledge of the brand’s history,
innovations and design philosophies and thereby enhancing their passion for Mercedes-Benz. The
program will provide employees the opportunity to experience the thrill of operating a Mercedes-Benz
in two exhilarating drive modules.
Criteria:
Dealers are provided with 2018 monthly objectives and 85% of the objective must be met utilizing the
following criteria:
• Objectives will be set monthly and sufficient capacity will be available per month, to accommodate
participation within the objective
• Unused capacity is not rolled into the following month
• Participation of 85% of the objective within each quarter, is required in order to qualify for
achievement
• Objectives must be used in the month they are assigned
• Achievement is defined as: participants must attend the required training for the full duration and
‘successfully complete’ the required training course within the designated month:
o Course Code: X0001F-US.SD4 (Brand Immersion Experience Course)
o All pre-requisites must be completed prior to attending the course
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Notes:
• If dealership achieves above the monthly objective, it will be recorded and displayed on the DPB
Scorecard, but will not count toward the next month’s objective.
• If a dealership enrolls more than their stated objective for any one month, Mercedes-Benz USA
(MBUSA) reserves the right to either cancel or request the dealer to move the registrations to a
future month/quarter to ensure sufficient availability of seats to all dealers.
• Participants do not have to be part of the Standards of Excellence Program to participate.
• All ‘active’ dealership employees are eligible to participate in this program outlined in Program
Information.
• No-shows, unfilled allocations and/or failure of the course may be subject to fees that are outlined
in the Program Information.
• Force Majeure: Cases of extreme weather, travel issues, or illness will be reviewed and exceptions
made on a case by case basis with appropriate documentation.
• Participants who complete the required training course must be ‘Active’ in the Dealer Personnel
Maintenance System at the end of said quarter to count toward the quarterly objective.
Dealerships with a total annual objective between 2 and 7 for Brand Immersion qualify for a one-time,
single credit towards their Quarter to Date completion. This credit will be displayed on the dealer
scorecard.
Example (shows 2 quarters only):

2. Leadership Academy
Leadership shapes dealership culture, culture shapes employee engagement and directly affects the
customer experience. The focus of this program is on Leadership Excellence to drive business results
and exceptional customer experiences.
Criteria:
Dealers are provided with 2018 monthly objectives. This is a 2 year program commencing in 2018 and
ending in 2019. As a result, some dealers may not receive allocations in 2018 and others may not
receive allocations in 2019. Dealer objectives were calculated based on 85% of eligible managers listed
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in DPMS. Therefore, 100% of the objective (minimum requirement) must be met utilizing the following
criteria:
• Objectives will be set monthly and sufficient capacity will be available per month, to accommodate
participation within the objective
• Unused capacity in a month is not rolled into the following month
• Participation of 100% of the objective within each quarter, is required in order to qualify for
achievement.
• Objectives must be used in the month they are assigned
• Achievement is defined as: participants must attend the required training for the full duration and
‘successfully complete’ the required training course within the designated month:
o Leadership Academy III Course Code: X0001F-US.SM2
•

•
•
•
•

Notes:
If a dealership enrolls more than their stated objective for any one month, Mercedes-Benz USA
(MBUSA) reserves the right to either cancel or request the dealer to move the registrations to a
future month/quarter to ensure sufficient availability of seats to all dealers.
Participants do not have to be part of the Standards of Excellence Program to participate
Participants who complete the required training course must be ‘Active’ in the Dealer Personnel
Maintenance System at the end of said month to count toward the monthly objective.
No-shows, unfilled allocations and/or failure of the course may be subject to fees that are outlined
in the Program Information.
Force Majeure: Cases of extreme weather, travel issues, or illness will be reviewed and exceptions
made on a case by case basis with appropriate documentation.

Example (shows 2 quarters only):
Leadership Academy
Jan
Objective
Actuals (successful completions)
Actual Percentage

Feb
0

Mar
7

Q1 Total
7

0
100%

6
80%

6
86%

Apr
0

May
4

Jun
0

Q2 Total
4

0
100%

4
100%

0
100%

4
100%

Q1: Dealer achieved 7 out of 6, which is 86%. Therefore, the dealer has not achieved for Q1.
Q2: Dealer achieved 4 out of 4, which is 100%. Therefore, the dealer has achieved for Q2.

3. New Product Launch Training
This requirement will ensure that an appropriate level of dealership personnel is trained on new
Mercedes-Benz products and services. This is necessary to ensure staff can adequately support sales
and service of these new products.
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Criteria:
2018 Monthly or Quarterly objective must be met utilizing the following criteria:
• Monthly/Quarterly objectives must be achieved by the last day of each month/quarter for
qualification
• Achievement is defined as completion of any required pre and post tests and participants must
attend the event for the full duration and successfully complete the required training course within
the designated month/quarter:
o Course Codes: TBD
o All pre-requisites must be completed prior to attending the course
• Participant job code requirements, participation and applicable courses will be identified and
communicated as the training requirements are identified
Notes:
• If dealership achieves above the monthly/quarterly objective, it will be recorded and displayed on
the DPB Scorecard, but will not count toward the next month’s/quarter’s objective.
• Participants may or may not have to be a part of the Standards of Excellence Program to participate
• Participants who complete the required training course must be ‘Active’ in the Dealer Personnel
Maintenance System at the end of said quarter to count toward the monthly/quarterly objective.

4. Business Critical Training
This requirement will ensure that an appropriate level of dealership personnel attend training deemed
‘business critical’ relating to Mercedes-Benz products and services. This is necessary to ensure staff
can adequately support sales and service of Mercedes-Benz products.
Criteria:
2018 Monthly/Quarterly objective must be met utilizing the following criteria:
• Monthly/quarterly objectives must be achieved by the last day of each month/quarter for qualification
• Achievement is defined as: participants must take the applicable pre-test, attend the required
training for the full duration and pass the applicable post-test (80% or greater is passing) within the
designated month/quarter:
o Course Codes: TBD
o All pre-requisites must be completed with a passing score prior to attending the course
• Participant job code requirements, participation and applicable courses will be identified and
communicated as the training requirements are identified
Notes:
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• If dealership achieves above the monthly/quarterly objective, it will be recorded and displayed on
the DPB Scorecard, but will not count toward the next month’s/quarter’s objective
• Participants may or may not have to be a part of the Standards of Excellence Program to participate
• Participants who complete the required training course must be ‘Active’ in the Dealer Personnel
Maintenance System at the end of said quarter to count toward the monthly/quarterly objective.

5. 85% Standards of Excellence (SOE) Certification Program
• Dealers must achieve at least an 85% Standards of Excellence (SOE) Certification Program
certification level across all employees eligible for participation in the SOE Program at their
dealership. Participating employees include all dealership employees except for specific executive
management positions and dealer-sponsored Body Shop employees (please refer to The Learning
Link under Explore  Standards of Excellence  Overview for additional details).
• The first step in certification is successful completion of Base requirements, which is required of
most dealership personnel and vary by job code. This training could be either eLearning or Instructor
Led depending on the role’s requirements.
• Once a dealership employee has achieved Certification at any level, participating in a minimum
amount of ongoing relevant training is required quarterly to maintain their respective Standards of
Excellence (SOE) Certification Program status at either, Base, Star or Master level. Specifically,
most employees are required to complete a minimum amount of quarterly training (continuing
professional education) in order to re-certify and maintain their respective Certification status in that
particular quarter.
• For courses required to achieve an 85% SOE certification level, achievement is defined as
participants taking the applicable pre-test, attending the required training for the full
duration/completing the full course online, and passing the applicable post-test (80% or greater is
passing) with the designated month/quarter.
Notes:
As Mercedes-Benz continues to focus on providing world-class customer experience, the SOE
Certification Program will be updated to include elements which will ensure our brand continues to
deliver on the promise of The Best or Nothing. As these Programs become available, they will be
announced and described in full detail, including participation requirements, via NetStar Newschannel
Announcement.
Additionally, while the Dealer Performance Bonus Scorecard on NetStar is refreshed daily reflecting
the current status of a dealership’s compliance with the Training Standards described above,
measurement for the purposes of the bonus calculation is done only once each quarter, specifically on
the last day of the quarter. For further scenarios on scorecard depiction of qualification, see FAQs
Chapter 6, Training Section.

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New Vehicles Sales
To qualify for the New Vehicle Sales Bonus, dealers must maintain a portion of their Sales within their
respective AOI or DMA quarterly. Once the number of Sales within AOI or DMA is met, dealers will
have an opportunity to earn full payout based on its Sales Effectiveness measure at 80%. If 80% of the
eligible network does not achieve the 80%, the Sales Effectiveness scores will be ranked and the top
80% will earn full New Vehicle Sales margin.

Sales within AOI/DMA
The AOI and DMA criteria were designed to accommodate a dealer’s natural trading area in both metro
and non-metro markets. The source for sales data will be registrations provided by Experian on a rolling
twelve-month basis. AOI zip code assignments are established by MBUSA based upon information
provided by Experian. DMAs are established based upon Nielson Market Research definitions provided
by Experian. MBUSA maintains each dealer's AOI assignment and it is available to dealers via NetStar.
Criteria:
1. At a minimum, 70% of a dealer’s new vehicle sales must be sold and registered into its
own and/or contiguous AOIs
Dealer’s Total Mercedes-Benz New Vehicle Sales
Registered in AOI and Contiguous AOIs
_________________________________________________

≥

70%

Dealer’s Total Mercedes-Benz New Vehicle Sales
Registrations Anywhere
OR
2. At a minimum, 90% of a dealer’s new vehicle sales must be sold and registered into its
own DMA.
Dealer’s Total Mercedes-Benz New Vehicle Sales
Registered in DMA
_____________________________________________________
Dealer’s Total Mercedes-Benz New Vehicle Sales
Registrations Anywhere

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≥

90%

Definitions
AOI – Area of Influence:
MBUSA has assigned and delivered to each dealer a collection of zip codes detailing a geographic area
entitled an “Area of Influence” (AOI). In accordance with Section II.E. of the Mercedes-Benz Passenger
Car and Light Truck Dealer Agreements (“Dealer Agreements”) the AOI is a tool used by MBUSA to
evaluate a dealer’s performance of its primary obligations under the Dealer Agreements. The dealer’s
specific “AOI” is further defined in the Dealer Agreements.
Contiguous AOIs:
The surrounding Areas of Influence that share an edge or boundary to a dealer’s assigned AOI.
DMA - Designated Market Area:
Generally, a group of counties in which the commercial TV stations in the Metro/Central area achieve
the largest audience share. This is non-overlapping geography for planning, buying and evaluating
television audiences across various markets.

Sales Effectiveness
The Sales Effectiveness measure is to assist our authorized dealers to increase M-B brand
representation and sales penetration within its AOI. Dealers who meet the requirements specified in this
section of the Performance Program can earn a bonus up to 0.75% of MSRP of eligible vehicle sales
once the AOI/DMA qualifier is achieved. The Sales Effectiveness portion of the New Vehicle Dealer
Sales Bonus component has been developed to provide compensation to dealerships that achieve a
majority of their sales objectives relative to the expected number of sales in a particular AOI.*
Sales Effectiveness measures a dealer’s sales performance and considers all dealer sales regardless
of the location of those sales. It answers the question “Is a dealer selling to its expected level?” A
dealer’s national reported sales are simply the DDRs for the given time period.

* In accordance with the terms of the Dealer Agreements, the dealer is to actively and effectively promote and sell new and used Mercedes-Benz
Vehicles. The sales targets set forth in this Program are not necessarily the same as the dealer’s obligations under the Dealer Agreements. The
targets set forth in the Program are based upon the performance of an average dealer and should not be construed as meeting MBUSA’s overall
performance expectations.

Calculation Methodology
Sales Effectiveness calculates a reasonable level of expected registrations for each Mercedes-Benz
segment. These expected registrations are adjusted to reflect local consumer preferences in a process
called segment-adjusting, which is explained below.
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The Sales Effectiveness calculation is a review of historical performance and should not be confused
with various other forward-looking planning or target metrics, such as official Mercedes-Benz business
plans.
MBUSA utilizes an objective measurement to ensure that a dealer is meeting a certain sales expectation
relative to the market opportunity within the dealer’s AOI. In the event a dealer believes that there are
unique circumstances within its AOI that may impact this measurement and upon written request,
MBUSA shall review same with the dealer and reserves the right to make the necessary changes to the
overall Sales Effectiveness expectation for that AOI, if the unique circumstances warrant such an
exception in MBUSA’s sole business discretion.
In addition, MBUSA recognizes that due to certain geographic locations of MBUSA's affiliates
throughout the United States that the sale or lease of vehicles registered in the name of a leasing
company, financial institution or where the ultimate customer is an affiliate company of MBUSA, should
not be included in the calculation of individual dealership's Sales Effectiveness. These vehicles will not
be included in either the Mercedes-Benz dealership's registration or sales data because these types of
sales do not accurately assist in identifying whether a dealer is meeting its sales expectations relative
to the market opportunity within the dealer's AOI. The following is a list of current MBUSA affiliates:
•
•
•
•
•
•

Detroit Diesel Corporation
Thomas Built Buses, Inc.
Daimler Trucks North America LLC
Daimler Vans USA LLC
Setra of North America, Inc.
Daimler Financial Services

As noted, the sale of vehicles to these affiliates or registered in the name of such affiliate shall not be
included in the calculation of Sales Effectiveness for each individual dealership.
MBUSA reserves the right to add/remove affiliates from this list based on a change in an affiliates'
relationship to MBUSA in its sole business discretion.
The Program methodology and calculations are administered by Experian.
Review Procedure:
1. Dealer electing to request that MBUSA review the Sales Effectiveness calculation shall make the
request through their MBUSA Sales Operations Manager or Area Manager.
2. Sales Operations or Area Manager will notify the Sales Operation Dept in Atlanta, GA that a dealer
is requesting a review of the registrations and sales.
3. Dealer Network will request a file from Experian of those VINs comprising the sales and registrations
of either the dealer’s AOI/Contiguous AOI or DMA.
4. Dealer in requesting such a review will be responsible for the costs incurred by MBUSA in obtaining
the file from Experian and may be charged an administrative fee per review requested by the dealer.
Such costs will be charged to a dealer’s consolidated statement within sixty (60) days of an appeal
being completed regardless of whether the appeal is successful or not.
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AOI Expected M-B Registrations
Segment-Adjusting:
Competitive segments are defined by MBUSA. There is no expectation for non-competitive segments
(e.g. pick-up trucks).
Segment-adjusting is the process in which the expected level of registrations is adjusted for local
consumer segment preferences outside a dealer’s control.
Example:
Consumers in a given AOI have a strong preference for full-size SUVs, whereas consumers in the nation
as a whole prefer mid-size sedans. This situation will reflect itself in the registration data for a given
AOI as follows… local consumers will have purchased relatively fewer mid-size sedans and relatively
more full-size SUVs than the average national consumer.
Segment-adjusting takes into account these local variations of consumer preference for specific vehicle
types and lowers or raises the expected registration volume precisely in accordance with these local
preferences.
Determining Expectation:
The expectation represents the number of M-B vehicles that would be registered in the AOI if penetration
was at the segment adjusted national average (for each competitive segment). Because national
penetration rates are applied to competitive registrations in the AOI at the segment level, the expectation
accounts for differences in consumer preferences unique to the AOI. Mercedes-Benz may have higher
expectations for brand representation in the AOI based on other comparison areas.
Therefore, Sales Effectiveness should be used in conjunction with further analysis when measuring the
sales performance of the dealer network as a whole.
This expectation is calculated by multiplying the actual competitive segment registrations in a dealer’s
AOI with the expected penetration.
For each competitive segment:
(Actual competitive registrations) x (National level of penetration) = Expected
Example:
If the national penetration of the competitive segment for the E-Class Sedan is 25% and in your AOI
there were 100 competitive vehicles registered in the segment the E-Class Sedan competes in, then:
• 25% national penetration of competitive segment
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• 100 actual competitive registrations in your AOI
Calculation:
(Actual competitive registrations) x (National level of penetration) = Expected
100 x 25% = 25
Result: 25 expected registrations in this AOI for this segment.
This calculation is completed for all Mercedes-Benz segments and combined to achieve an overall
expected number for each AOI. The Sales Effectiveness percentage is calculated on an overall basis
which allows a dealer to make up shortfalls in one model by achieving sales in another.
(Segment 1 registrations) x (Segment 1 national average penetration) = Expected #
(Segment 2 registrations) x (Segment 2 national average penetration) = Expected #
(Segment 3 registrations) x (Segment 3 national average penetration) = Expected #
(Segment …. )
Total Expected = Sum of expected
Whether the AOI is large or small, or whether the local consumers prefer one type of vehicle more than
another (e.g. mid-size sedans vs. full-size SUVs), Mercedes-Benz only expects a dealer to achieve the
same proportional share of each model’s local competitive segment volume as the average of all
dealers.
The competitive environment and consumer behavior in a dealer’s AOI constantly change, therefore the
same number of sales as the prior-year period may result in a different Sales Effectiveness score than
received in the current-year period.

Scoring & Payout
Sales Effectiveness is measured quarterly based on a rolling three-month total of historic data. January
2018 scores will be based on the rolling three-month total of registrations from August 2017 through
October 2017 (based upon report timing from Experian). February 2018 scores are based on a rolling
three-month total of registrations from September 2017 through November 2017 and so on.
The percentage received at quarter end determines which portion of the Performance Bonus will be
earned in the next quarter. The score is a percentage and the decimal will always be to the hundredth
place, and does not get rounded up (i.e., 79.98% will not round up to 80%).
There is guaranteed payout for dealers that achieve qualifiers and 80% Sales Effectiveness objective.
If less than 80% of the eligible dealer network hits the 80% Sales Effectiveness objective, Sales
Effectiveness scores will be ranked for the entire eligible network and top 80% will achieve full margin
payout.
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Pre-Owned Sales
To qualify for the Pre-Owned Sales Bonus, dealers must meet MB Certified Pre-Owned targets quarterly
as well as Purchases of the Special Vehicle Group quarterly target. Once both targets are met, dealers
will have the opportunity to earn a payout based on Off-Lease Purchases to New Vehicle Sales.
Dealerships will be provided with C3 Acquisition (off lease purchase), C3 Special Vehicle Group (SVG)
Acquisition (off lease purchase of select models), and C3 CPO (CPO retailing of off lease purchase)
quarterly objectives. All 3 of these objectives must be met in order to be eligible to qualify for the PreOwned Retail Sales Bonus.
Criteria:
1. Dealers must achieve a C3 Acquisition objective of 23% of their 2017 New Vehicle Sales less
Courtesy Vehicle Program (CVP) Sales and TRAC Leases by purchasing vehicles through an
eligible acquisition method. The C3 Acquisition objective will have a cap of +/- 15 % vs. the prior
quarter’s C3 Acquisition objective. The list of C3 eligible acquisition methods is below:
• Indirect Customer Purchase (ICP): Retail to original lessee
• Payoff: Payoff lease at Contract Residual
• Dealer Purchase Program (DPP): Direct off-lease purchase by the grounding dealer
• MBonDemand: Purchases of vehicles available on MBonDemand that are specifically identified
as eligible for C3 credit. Live Auction Simulcast sales are not C3 eligible.
• Mercedes-Benz Financial Services Walkaway Balloon
2. Dealers must achieve a C3 Special Vehicle Group (SVG) Acquisition objective that is of 12% of their
C3 Off-lease purchase acquisitions. SVG can be achieved by purchasing eligible off-lease vehicles
through C3 channels from the following Special Vehicle Group models:
Special Vehicle Group: S, SL, CLS, CL, AMG, G, GL, GLS
3. Dealers must achieve a C3 CPO objective that is 60% of their C3 Acquisition objective by retailing
as MB Certified Pre-Owned eligible off-lease vehicles that were originally acquired through C3
eligible channels:
•
The eligible C3 off-lease acquisition may have occurred during the current or prior periods.
•
The retailing dealer does not have to be the same as the acquiring dealer.
•
All qualifying CPO sales must be accurately and properly reported in VISTA in compliance with
the MBUSA Dealer Disposition Reporting (DDR) policy as currently published on NetStar. False
or inaccurate DDR reporting may result in a chargeback of Performance Bonus monies.
4. If a dealer misses their C3 objective in a given quarter, they are eligible for the “Catch-Up Carry
Over” bonus if they meet the following criteria:
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• Must purchase at least 20% of objective in all quarters of the year and achieve at least 23% of
C3 purchases on an annual basis.
• SVG objectives must be met for all quarters
• If both of these qualifiers are achieved, the dealer will be paid for the quarter that was
underachieved at the conclusion of the year.
Vehicle Eligibility:
Vehicles eligible for the Pre-Owned component include Mercedes-Benz Financial Service off-lease
closed-end customer retail leases, Mercedes-Benz Financial Services walk away balloons, and
Mercedes-Benz Financial Services retail and lease repossessions available via any C3 eligible
purchase channels. Vehicles acquired through trade-in, or open-end leases are not eligible.
Off-lease Ineligible Vehicles:
• Low-volume specialty vehicles, such as Maybach and SLR and vehicles coming out of Alternate
Transportation service on an open-end lease.
• Vehicles that have previously received C3 credit.

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Brand Standards
Critical to the success of Mercedes-Benz brand representation in the marketplace is the dealership
facilities that provide the world class customer experience commensurate with the “Three Pointed Star”.
The goal of the Brand Standards Component is to compensate dealers for achieving criteria that support
the proper representation of the Mercedes-Benz brand.
Dealers must satisfy all the requirements stated below to receive a payout of 2.0% Brand Standards
Bonus.

Facility
The following cover the capacity/function, corporate and Brand identification and appearance criteria
for Mercedes-Benz dealership facilities:
Criteria:
1. Capacity / Function:
At each respective calendar quarter, the dealership facility must meet the minimum current year space
requirements as outlined on the respective dealer AOI space analysis as well as requirements for
function and flow. Key areas include but are not limited to Showroom Display, Sales Department,
Service Reception, Service Department, and Total Parking.
2. Corporate Identification:
At each respective calendar quarter, the dealership facility must be in compliance with corporate
identification requirements with display of the following minimum elements identified below. These
standards for Mercedes-Benz external signage are established to ensure clear visibility of the
Mercedes-Benz brand together with the dealer’s facility in a manner that is unmistakably recognizable
as being an authorized Mercedes-Benz dealership. Unless otherwise dictated by local Code or
ordinances, consistency in the application of these standards at each and every dealership location is
required and expressly approved by MBUSA.
Display of the minimum requirements of current external signage elements as defined below:
•
•
•
•

Mercedes-Benz Pylon
Mercedes-Benz Name Panel
Dealer Name Panel
Directional Signage

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Although these are minimum requirements, additional MBUSA external signage elements for a
particular dealership may be required based upon its size, architecture, layout, location, number of
curb cuts and visibility. Additional external signage elements include the current Mercedes-Benz wall
star module, freeway pylon, multifunctional information sign, and Certified Pre-Owned identification.
The only approved Mercedes-Benz external signage elements recognized by MBUSA are those
currently manufactured to DAG specifications by Architectural Graphics Inc. (AGI) of Virginia Beach,
Virginia. Former Program Mercedes-Benz external signage elements (all other non-approved and
non-Program Mercedes-Benz signage and use of the logo and/or wordmark) are strictly prohibited
and must be rendered useless and removed from the dealership’s premises upon notice from MBUSA.
Dealers not in compliance with the aforementioned MBUSA notice will not be eligible for receipt of the
Brand Standards bonus.
All Mercedes-Benz external signage elements are to stand alone, and not be displayed in
combination with other brands, logos, names or messages and must be maintained in “like
new” condition. See the Planning and Design Manual at https://autohaus.mbusa.com for
additional details on each individual component and related display.
3. Brand Identity:

At each respective calendar quarter, the dealership must be in compliance with all of the following
External/Internal elements (Autohaus2 specifications reflected below):
Exterior:
•
•
•
•
•

Thin roof edge with exposed structure
Black columns with silver finned capitals
Full height glass facade
Autohaus 2 specific entry portal that penetrates the storefront
Compliant signage (see item 2)

Interior:
• Entry pathway (Banded accent tile) leading from the entry portal to the reception desk.
• Furnishing / Equipment - Compliant Knoll or Steelcase furniture in all customer contact
areas, uniform toolboxes and hoists in compliant black.
• Interior Finishes to consist of specific various shades for a consistent Autohaus2 brand
ambiance including floors, walls, ceiling finishes, and millwork.
• The main interior colors of white and silver are to be accented with signature shades
as follows:
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• Direct Customer viewing of the workshop available during all working hours from
customer lounge.
• Open office environment for all customer contact personnel.
4. Maintenance and Cleanliness:
All areas of the dealership will be evaluated for Overall Condition, Orderliness, and Cleanliness
including and not limited to:
Facility Exterior:
•
•
•
•

Parking lot in good condition - free of debris – customer parking clearly marked
Landscaping properly maintained
Lighting in proper working condition including signage
Signs maintained in “like new” condition.

Facility Interior:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Floors, Tiles, Carpets
Glass, Walls, Ceiling Tiles
Furniture, Surfaces, Counters
Lighting adequate and in working order
Workbenches, Hoist, Equipment and Tool Storage
Parts Counters, Parts Inventory Storage and Shipping / Receiving
Compliant décor including images, graphics, banners, interior signs, etc.

Autohaus2*
All dealers are to conform to Autohaus2 requirements no later than June 30, 2018. For dealerships
with Autohaus facilities that qualified in 2015 for Brand Standards, the preceding timeline
requirements are as follows:
• Autohaus dealers must have achieved conditional approval for their submission of
Autohaus2 facility plans from MBUSA by no later than December 31, 2016 in order to
continue receiving Brand Standards up to June 30, 2018. Dealers that did not receive
approval during the 2016 or 2017 program will have the opportunity to earn Autohaus2
during the 2018 program year in the quarter plans are submitted and approved. The
submission must include all interior and exterior Autohaus2 design elements, finishes,
and correction of any existing non-conforming facility design conditions. Additionally,
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the submission must meet all minimum capacity requirements as measured against
the calendar year 2020 dealership facility space analysis.
*Additional Autohaus2 specifications may be referenced at https://autohaus.mbusa.com. At the login
page, click the Dealership Employee dropdown and enter your NetStar credentials.
IMPORTANT: Dealerships that do not currently operate in an approved Autohaus facility will not qualify
for Brand Standards until the beginning of the calendar quarter immediately after successful completion
and final inspection of an Autohaus2 facility.

Annual Facility Certification
The Annual Facility Certification is an assessment made by Region and Field teams as to the general
image of the dealership facility and as to whether it meets expectations of the Mercedes-Benz brand.
An inspection report will be generated and if deficiencies are discovered, the dealer must remedy all
deficiencies within 90 days from receipt of said notice. If deficiencies are not addressed within the
allotted time frame, the dealership’s qualification for the Brand Standards Bonus may be in jeopardy.
For a more detailed explanation of the standards and deadlines for certification, please reference the
“MBUSA Standards Online Reference Manual v1.5.pdf” accessed via the Dealership Facility Planning
and Design Manual at https://autohaus.mbusa.com.

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Leadership Bonus
At the end of each quarter, dealers are assessed for leadership bonus qualification; dealers must
meet all qualifiers to be eligible for leadership bonus. The metrics listed below are required to be
achieved:
o
o
o
o
o

Achieve Training bonus
Green on Sales CEx
Green on Service CEx
Achieve Brand Standards
Meet StockPro Criteria
o Dealers must be enrolled, contracted, installed and fully participating in the program, or
on schedule to be installed, which is determined at the sole discretion of MBUSA Parts
Logistics

Dealerships achieve leadership bonus in the following way:
1) Dealer must meet all qualifiers to be eligible for leadership bonus
2) If qualifying dealers ≤ 80% of eligible network, then all qualifying dealers achieve leadership
bonus
3) If qualifying dealers ≥ 80% of eligible network, then qualifying dealers are ranked based on
combined CEI score and only top 80% achieve leadership bonus
Dealers that do not participate in the Dealer Performance Bonus Program are not eligible to participate
in the Leadership Bonus Program. In addition, dealers that are receiving a Dealer Performance Bonus
Program new point or buy/sell payment “bye” and/or receiving a Dealer Performance Bonus
accommodation do not automatically qualify as meeting the requirements noted above. A dealer
receiving a “bye” and/or accommodation must meet all of the requirements of the program in order to
qualify for participation.
The 2018 Leadership Bonus will be calculated based on unearned funds accumulated from Q2 2018
through Q1 2019 (4 quarters) divided by earned retail sales including Courtesy Vehicle Program (CVP)
vehicles from Q2 2018 through Q1 2019 (4 quarters). Payout will occur in April 2019.

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Reporting and Payout
The M-B Dealer Floor Plan and Performance Bonus Report

Each month dealers will receive a M-B Dealer Floor Plan, Operational Expense Assistance and
Performance Bonus Report. The Financial Report will be published to NetStar on the 5th business day
of each month. This report will provide retail activity and bonus eligibility amounts.

Dealer Performance Bonus Program Scorecard

The Mercedes-Benz DPB Scorecard is available on NetStar. It displays a dealers’ actual performance
vs. the set objectives for each Key Performance Indictor “KPI”.
The measured performance for the last month of each quarter determines bonus eligibility for the next
quarter (please see the “Payment Schedule” section below). If a dealer’s actual scores are above
objectives, then a dealer would be eligible to accrue the bonus payout percentage on the next quarter’s
retail sales.

Payment Schedule

If a dealer has met objectives, the quarter-to-date total documented on the Dealer Performance Bonus
Report will be paid via EFT within 10 business days of the retail close. If the objective for bonus eligibility
at quarter’s end has not been met, the bonus will be forfeited for all eligible vehicles retailed in the
following quarter. Please see the table below for the payment schedule.
Status Report:
Scorecard*

Applicable Retail Activity

(Qualifying Month)

(Bonus accrued on
Dealer Financial Statement)

March

April, May, June

June

July, August, September

September

October, November, December

December

January, February, March

Month of Payment

(EFT if objectives met)

July

(w/in the first 10 business days)

October

(w/in the first 10 business days)

January

(w/in the first 10 business days)

April

(w/in the first 10 business days)

As indicated, please note the scores received for Quarter 1 will determine payout for the vehicles retailed
in the Quarter 2. For example, the March scorecard will determine if the bonus will be earned for the
April, May, and June retails.
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Payment Details

All Bonus components will be paid out in the first month of a quarter, based upon accrued bonus from
eligible DDRs from the previous quarter. Payments will occur in the form of an electronic funds transfer
(EFT). These amounts will appear as a credit to the Consolidated Account Statement while the EFT
will appear as a debit. These quarterly payments will not include interest. This payment timing follows
the current quarterly, MBUSA Treasury payment cycle.

Treasury Cycle (Qualification, Accruals, Payment)

Adjustment and Inquiries

No adjustments will be made to a dealer’s performance bonus scorecard 18 months after final original
scorecard is published. For example, Q1 2018 KPIs cannot be adjusted after Q3 2019.

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FAQs
General
1. Do all retail sales qualify for the Performance Bonus?
Qualifying retails include all new Mercedes-Benz passenger vehicles leased or purchased with
the exception of auction and pre-owned vehicles and vehicles reported under the VIP, Diplomat
and European Delivery Program. Vehicles found to be exported in violation of MBUSA
Passenger Car and Light Truck Export policies or not delivered in accordance with applicable
Customer Delivery Policy may be subject to chargeback.
2. The payments for this program are defined by the retail close. If the end of the month falls on a
weekend, the first business day of the following month is included in the prior month’s close.
For example, if the retail close for April 2018 was May 1, 2018, any vehicles retailed on May 1
will appear on the April 2018 Performance Bonus Report.

Net Email Penetration
3. How is Net E-mail Survey Penetration calculated?
(Total E-mails Sent based on survey eligibility date) – (E-mails returned as undeliverable)
(Total Sales or ROs) – (Internals, Repeat Customers & Other Filters*)
* For information on survey filters, please see the “Filtering Criteria” section later in this manual.
• “Net E-Mail” is defined as total emails sent minus any emails returned as undeliverable.
• E-mail addresses will be monitored for fraudulent activity and to ensure that the “ultimate
consumer” is the survey recipient. Please review the Integrity Guidelines within this manual for
more details.
4. Why is my Net E-mail Survey Penetration % in CEP different than the Dealer Performance
Bonus scorecard?
E-mail Survey Penetration is calculated exactly the same in the CEP tool and at MBUSA.
However, it does take 24 – 48 hours to update our data warehouse and scorecards, so there
will always be minor differences between the ‘live’ tool and our scorecards.
5. Which E-mail field is pulled from my DMS?
Within the two main DMS systems, ADP and R&R, please note the following:

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ADP – the E-mail address should be put into the ‘Home or Primary Field’ prior to RO or Sale
close
R&R – The E-mail address should be put into ‘Line 25’ prior to RO or Sale close
6. Why are my scores in CEP different than the Dealer Performance Bonus scorecard?
The 2.0% mulligans are removed on the scorecard for the New Vehicle Sales and Service survey
scores. For the service survey scores, the surveys returned for vehicles >8MY are also removed.

Customer Experience Bonus
7. What survey methods will be used to reach out to Customers?
The New Vehicle Sales and Service Experience Surveys will be administered to customers via
Email. (Note: MBUSA reserves the right to change these methods at any time.)
8. When are the surveys being sent to Customers?
Both New Vehicle Sales and Service surveys will be sent out 7 days from the date the
customer record is posted to the Medallia tool (record load date).
9. Who is eligible to complete a survey?
Customer Verification Questions are asked at the beginning of each sales/service
survey to determine if the person answering is eligible:
Eligible to receive the survey questions:
• Yes, I am
• No, I am not …but I am involved enough with this purchase/service visit
to provide feedback concerning the overall customer experience
Ineligible to receive the survey questions:
• I am … and I or an immediate family member (living with you in the same
household) work for one of the following: the dealership, a company associated with the
dealership, or a Daimler company.
• Yes, I am …but I did not purchase or lease / service a vehicle at
.
• No, I am not .
10. How often will customers receive a survey?
• The New Vehicle Sales Experience Survey will be sent for every new vehicle purchased.
• When a customer is sent a sales or service experience survey, they will be removed from the
eligible pool of customers for 45 days.
Note: this is VIN and dealer specific.
11. Will a mulligan still be administered?
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Yes, the bottom 2.0% of new vehicle and service survey responses will be removed from the overall
bonus calculation. A minimum of one bottom survey will be removed per quarter.
12. Will there be any market/area/region/national reporting related to Requested Dealer
Contact? Yes.
13. Is the dynamic scoring still going to occur if < 600 score?
Yes, if a customer answers an average of 6 or less on the questions, we will put additional
verbiage for the low score “We’ve noticed your experience was less than exceptional, would
you like to be contacted?”
14. What's the timing on the second survey?
Timing on the close the loop survey is within 24 hours of request for contact closure or 7 days
from initial request.
15. Will there be Service Technology Standards question survey questions and will they be
scored?
Service technology Standard questions will not be a qualifier for the bonus, however, they will
be used for diagnostic purposes only.
16. When will the new surveys go into effect?
Any survey accessed on or after January 1st, 2018.
17. When a client request contact from the Dealer, who does that request go to and can we
change who both Service and Sales request go to?
Request for Contact goes to anyone designated in DPMS to get customer alerts for sales and
service, this functionality is dealer controlled.
18. Our dealer is located in a vacation area or our customers feel like they do not have any
friends that are able to afford a Mercedes-Benz. How are you addressing these issues in
the wording of the LTR question?
The LTR question is currently worded as such: “For others that are considering , how likely are you to recommend?” This verbiage takes away the keywords of “friends
and family” to eliminate the objections of “my family isn’t located here”, “my friends can’t afford
a Mercedes-Benz”, etc.
19. Will a thank you email be sent out?
There are no changes to the thank you email process, you can still choose to opt in or opt out.
20. Will there be an ability to customize diagnostic questions?
No.
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21. There are instances when customers do not have email addresses, how is this handled?
We require an 80% email penetration for all customers; no phone survey will be given.
22. Can survey responses be accepted by other methods?
MBUSA will only accept customer survey responses via the avenues that they are sent.

CEx Survey Close the Loop
23. Does Close the Loop only apply to customers who want to be contacted by the dealer?
Yes. The Close the Loop survey only applies to customers that request follow-up from the
dealerships. The dealer has 7 days to contact a customer that has requested contact by the
dealer. If the dealer contacts the customer within that 7 day period, a survey is sent within 24
hours to the customer once the alert is closed. If the customer is not contacted within that 7 day
period then the Close the Loop survey is automatically sent to the customer.
24. A customer requested contact from our dealership and I closed the alert in Medallia.
The Score Status column in the Dealer Performance Bonus Scorecard’s Survey Detail
Report remains “Open”. Why is that happening?
The Score Status column in the DPBS Survey Detail Report will remain “Open” until the
customer answers their Close the Loop (CTL) survey or until 7 days have elapsed since closing
the alert in Medallia, . A status of “Open” in the DPBS Survey Detail Report indicates that the
customer has not yet answered the Close the Loop survey. Once the Score Status will change
to “Final”, otherwise the survey status will show “Expired” if they did not answer the Close the
Loop survey.
25. If the customer requests contact from MBUSA on the survey, what happens?
An alert is sent the Customer Assistance Center (CAC) and they will follow up with all alerts.
They will make two contact attempts and will document any discussions via an SR #. This SR #
will be posted in the Medallia record and the record will be closed. You can access the results
of the SR # by accessing C1C via NetStar. A Close the Loop survey will not be sent to the
customer if follow-up is requested from MBUSA.
26. Is there an opportunity to redeem or regain points on a survey?
If the customer requests contact from the dealership the opportunity exists for the Likelihood to
Recommend (LTR) score to change.

Scoring
27. If the Likelihood to Recommend (LTR) score on the Close the Loop survey is lower than
the original LTR, which LTR score is used?
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The Close the Loop survey LTR score is always used as the final score whether it is higher,
lower, or the same score.
28. How are New Vehicle Sales and Service survey score objectives determined for each
quarter?
We use the actual network’s overall data available from the previous quarter to determine the
objectives such that 80% of the dealer network is projected to achieve full bonus.
29. In the past, Objectives rose steadily during the course of the year. Do you expect the
survey objectives to rise during 2018?
It is likely that as the dealer network continues to improve their customer experiences that
there will be an increase in the CEI objectives throughout 2018.

Mulligans

30. How many surveys do I need to receive a mulligan? How many after that initial amount?
For 2018, every MB Passenger Car dealer receives 1 mulligan up to the 75th survey at which point
they will receive a second mulligan. After that point there is a mulligan given for every 50 surveys.
Please note for Commercial Vans there are no mulligans applied to the dealership average score.
31. Will PO and CPO sales surveys count for Dealer Performance Bonus?
In 2018 they do not count for the Dealer Performance Bonus. However, we will continue to
survey these customers to gauge their experience with the expectation that dealers will
continue to follow up with customers that requested contact. It is possible in the future that
these surveys could be included in the bonus program.
32. A long term customer has an email that is sourced by MBUSA. How does that email
process work?
If the email we receive from the DMS is undeliverable (mailbox is full, SPAM block, invalid
email, etc.), Medallia will use a secondary email address for the customer if available that
MBUSA has appended as part of the record. If the secondary email is undeliverable, we will
use a third email address if available. MBUSA appends the second and third email addresses
on the customer’s record on the day it is received from the DMS if available.
33. Are there any new word tracks we can use when speaking with customers?
Remember that coaching a customer is not permitted and asking them for a high score on any
question is not allowed. Using a phrase such as the following is acceptable: “It is our hope that
you would recommend us to other potential customers and if there is anything keeping you from
doing that please let me know”.
34. Is email the only way to get the survey?
Yes. At this time email is the only way to send a survey to a customer.

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35. If a customer gave us the wrong email address but it was updated the next day in our
DMS, will MBUSA try to find the updated email before the survey expires?
No. Once we have received the record from your DMS system we do not search for updates in
your DMS.

Customer Survey Integrity Guidelines
36. Who determines if an integrity violation is found and how will I be notified?
The Strategic Retail Development Team will identify violations through several sources. A
NetStar notification will request acknowledgement by the GM or higher. This will allow the
summary report to be accessible which will notify dealers of any non-compliant surveys that had
been removed.
37. How can we expect to get a good score if we can’t ask for one?
The purpose of the Customer Experience survey is not about attaining a good score from each
customer. The goal is about receiving valuable customer feedback to evaluate current
performance and plan for future modifications to increase customer satisfaction.
38. How will you identify violations of the guidelines?
An analysis of violations could be conducted primarily using any of the following, among other
methods:
o
o
o
o

Time to finish survey
Geo location
IP address verification
Device tracking

Training
39. I cannot find a specific employee when drilling down from the Dealer Scorecard.
Re-sort the columns in the display and look for the employee in question.
40. Do Body Shop employees affect the 85% Certification Requirement?
No. While Body Shop employees participate in the Standards of Excellence (SOE) Program,
they do not impact the overall dealership certification percentage.

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Sales
41. What does top 80% of eligible network mean?
Any dealer that participates in the Dealer Performance Bonus is an eligible dealer. In the event
that less than 80% of the eligible network achieves 80% Sales Effectiveness, Sales
Effectiveness scores will be ranked and the Top 80% eligible, qualifying dealers will achieve full
New Vehicle Sales margin.

Pre-Owned
42. My dealership is part of a larger group. Will acquisitions at affiliates count toward
Acquisition Objectives for the entire group?
No, each dealership will be tracked independently.
43. Does every CPO retail count towards my achievement of the Pre-Owned Sales
Performance Bonus?
No, CPO retails must have originally been acquired as C3 vehicles in order to qualify and have
not previously received C3 CPO credit.
44. What if I meet my Pre-owned Sales Performance Objective some quarters and fail to
make it in others? Is there a periodic reconciliation?
Yes there is a “Catch-Up Carry Over” opportunity. In order for dealers to achieve this, dealers
must purchase at least 20% of objective in all quarters of the year and achieve at least 23% of
C3 purchases on an annual basis. If both of these are achieved, the dealer will be paid for the
quarter that was underachieved.
45. Why are my CPO retails accurately reported each day and the Off-Lease purchases,
Special Vehicles Group, and C3 CPO not reported daily?
The CPO retails are reported through an MBUSA system, however the Off-Lease Special
Vehicle sales, and C3 CPO are reported through 3rd party systems, so there is an approximate
10 day data lag on receipt of data. Please contact your Liaison if you are aware of any VINS
that are pending C3 credit for greater than the 10 days.
46. Why do the CPO retails of C3 purchases reported on the Dealer Performance Bonus
scorecard reflect prior day activity while C3 Off-lease purchases take longer to post?
The CPO retails are reported through the MBUSA DDR system, however the Off-Lease sales
are reported through 3rd party systems. Consequently, there is a delay on receipt of vehicle
purchase information.
47. If I hit all three Pre-Owned Objectives (C3 Acquisitions, C3 SVG, C3 CPO) and overachieve
my C3 acquisition objective for the 2017 Pre-owned component, but do not maintain the
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60% C3 CPO to Off-lease Acquisition ratio, will the dealership still earn the Pre-Owned
component?
Yes, the target 60% C3 CPO to Off-lease Acquisitions ratio is based on initial dealer objective.
Overachievement will allow the dealership to further participate in the other bonuses.
48. Does the CSI Pre-Owned Survey count towards my dealer performance?
No.

Brand Standards
49. Must Brand Standards criteria be met for all buildings/locations for a multiple facility
dealership?
All facilities with customer contact must be in compliance with current Mercedes-Benz Facility,
Signage, and Brand Standards requirements.
Dealerships – Temporary Facilities
50. We are currently in a temporary facility, how does the Brand Standards Bonus apply?
The Brand Standards Bonus applies only to the permanent facility.
51. How does a dealer ensure that the dealership facility is in compliance with the Brand
Standards criteria for continuous and uninterrupted Brand Standards bonus
qualification?
Your Mercedes-Benz market team will monitor your dealership and your facility indicator in
NetStar will reflect compliance. Your market team or the Regional Franchise Manager in your
facing Regional Office is available for questions and advice.
Dealerships – Dual Franchise
52. Are dual franchise dealerships required to meet all Brand Standards criteria?
Yes, all dealerships including those dualed with other line makes must meet the Brand
Standards criteria in order to qualify for the Brand Standards bonus.
Local Zoning Restrictions
53. What if local zoning and design restrictions exclude the use of the exterior Brand
Standards colors, elements, or Mercedes-Benz signage?
In situations involving restrictions on the use of Brand Standards colors, elements or MercedesBenz signage due to local zoning / government ordinances, the dealer will be required to present
satisfactory written documentation from their governing municipality evidencing the inability to
meet such requirements. In addition, MBUSA reserves the right to exclude participation in the
Program until such evidence is presented and reviewed by MBUSA. MBUSA may attend any
such hearing of a governing body in order to fully understand the issues of non-compliance and
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how they may be resolved. Any exterior requirements not conforming to MBUSA standards are
to be reviewed and approved at sole discretion of MBUSA.
Dealership Space Requirements
54. If my dealership does not meet any one of the “Key Area” minimum space requirements,
is the dealership ineligible for the Brand Standards Bonus?
Yes, the dealership must meet or exceed the minimum capacity requirements for the current
calendar year in showroom display, sales department, service reception, service department
and with total parking. Please contact your Area Manager or Regional Franchise Manager to
determine the specifics of your dealership space requirements. Any space requirements not
conforming to MBUSA standards are to be reviewed and approved at sole discretion of MBUSA.

Leadership Bonus
55. When does the Leadership Bonus begin?
The 2018 Leadership Bonus begins with accruals starting in Q2 2018 for April, May
and June DDRs. The 2018 Leadership Bonus will be calculated based on all
unearned funds accumulated from Q2 2018 through Q1 2019 (4 quarters) divided
by earned retail sales from Q2 2018 through Q1 2019 (4 quarters). Payout will
occur in April 2019.
56. Are there any exceptions to participating in the Leadership Bonus?
• Dealers that do not participate in the Dealer Performance Bonus Program cannot participate in
the Leadership Bonus.
• A dealership must achieve all of the following in order to qualify for participation:
• Green status in both Customer Experience Scores (Sales & Service)
• Brand Standard Bonus (2.0%). Non-Autohaus Dealers are excluded from Leadership
Bonus participation.
• StockPro
• Training (0.5%)

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2018 MB DPB Manual

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