SPARKS, MD – PHH Arval was named a finalist in The 2012 American Business Awards in the Business-to-Business Marketing category for its campaign titled “Creating the Customer Experience.”

The nomination focused on the organization’s vision of customer experience, which is driven by an unwavering commitment to customer service and to evolve how customers interact with PHH Arval.

“Providing a flawless customer experience is a top priority for us,” said Dave Zuidema, PHH Arval Senior Vice President, Customer Experience. “To ensure this, we developed a Journey Map that allows us to focus on the quality of each customer interaction.”

To create the Journey Map, PHH Arval conducted in-depth assessments to identify the nearly 200 ‘touch points’ of customer interactions and understand how customers feel about these interactions.

PHH Arval utilizes a dedicated innovation laboratory called the Customer Experience Center to visually display the different ‘touch points’.

Interactive, multi-media technology is used to simulate different aspects of the Journey Map which allow for more in-depth analysis and a more precise view of information.

“We understand that technology shouldn’t replace customer service. It should be used to elevate service to an experience,” said Zuidema.

More than 250 clients have visited the Customer Experience Center, which one company executive described as "hands down the best technology vision and tools in the industry."

The American Business Awards – nicknamed “the Stevies” for the Greek word “crowned” – are the nation’s premier business awards program. All organizations operating in the United States are eligible to submit nominations – public and private, for-profit and non-profit, large and small.

For the first time, The American Business Awards will be presented at two awards events: the ABA's traditional banquet on Monday, June 18, in New York, and a new tech awards event on Monday, Sept. 17, in San Francisco.