Midas Spain Uses EyeDetect to Prove its Employees can be Trusted
With mechanic shops the fifth most complained about sector annually, Midas launched a public awareness campaign in Spain, using EyeDetect — the world’s first eye behavior-based deception detection test, to reassure the public that Midas employees are trustworthy.
Midas’ new advertising campaign in Spain, “Los Ojos Que No Mienten” (“The Eyes Don’t Lie”), aims to reassure the public its services and employees are trustworthy. Mechanics and franchisees from various company locations throughout Spain are taking the EyeDetect exam — a new lie detection method that’s 85 percent accurate in detecting deception.
LEHI, Utah – April 21, 2016 – To refute research data from the Spanish National Consumer Institute showing mechanic shops are the fifth most complained about sector annually, Midas launched a public awareness campaign, “The Eyes Don’t Lie.” In the campaign, Midas challenges its repair shop professionals to undergo a revolutionary lie detection test called “EyeDetect,” invented by the Utah-based company Converus. EyeDetect is the first solution to detect deception by analyzing eye behavior.
Midas, the chain specializing in complete auto care, is the first company in Europe to use EyeDetect to scientifically demonstrate the truthfulness of its values: innovation, quality, and confidence in the maintenance services it provides to its customers. The campaign focuses on demonstrating employee compliance with the following company objectives: (1) the Official Vehicle Inspection (LA Revisión Oficial) is followed for all vehicles serviced, (2) all customers are offered a courtesy car, a benefit that Midas pioneered in the industry, (3) employees follow process and quality controls for all vehicles serviced, (4) all parts or products are guaranteed to be as good as the original equipment manufacturer, (5) all mechanics have been professionally certified, and (6) the service bill estimate provided to the customer prior to work commencing will be the final price paid.
“The goal of our new ‘The Eyes Don’t Lie’ campaign, using EyeDetect, is to demonstrate our commitment to our brand, and that customers can rely on Midas,” said Midas CEO Ramón Rueda.
Based on the creative resources of its ad agency, Proximity, the campaign encompasses online, radio and outdoor media to show consumers that Midas is a trustworthy, reliable brand. Using a high-speed precision camera, EyeDetect tracks involuntary eye behaviors that result when a person is lying. EyeDetect has been shown to be 85% accurate. More than 20 Midas mechanics and franchisees from various locations throughout Spain were involved in the challenge, demonstrating their truthfulness with an average reliability score of 88.3%. Anyone scoring below 50% is deemed not credible, or untruthful.
By screening its employees for unethical behavior via the new EyeDetect lie detection technology, Midas’ new campaign hopes to demonstrate the trustworthiness of its LA Revisión Oficial (Official Vehicle Inspection), as well as the courtesy car Midas pioneered in the industry, process controls and quality benchmarks, product guarantees, and confidence in the final service bill based on the estimate the shop offers to its clients.
“As an early adopter of our new, scientifically validated lie detection technology, Midas is poised to potentially gain a commanding competitive advantage among auto care companies in Spain,” said Converus President and CEO Todd Mickelsen. “Consumers are much more apt to do business with a company they know has trustworthy employees.”
EyeDetect was originally created to fight fraud and corruption in businesses and government entities, estimated to be a $2.6 billion problem worldwide. More recently, it’s also being marketed as a tool in countries to screen refugees and visa applicants for terrorists, as well as a way for communities to screen parolees and sex offenders. The technology is currently used by more than 225 organizations and government agencies worldwide as a screening tool for job applicants, and for periodic testing of employees, to detect illicit conduct or other unethical behavior.
“Our goal is to help companies like Midas maintain integrity in the workplace by helping identify and prevent any unethical or illegal behavior,” said Mickelsen.
EyeDetect monitors involuntary eye behavior — such as pupil dilation, blink rate and eye gaze fixations — to detect deception while a person answers true/false questions on a computer screen. The test takes 30 minutes and provides a “truthful” or “deceptive” score within 10 minutes. Polygraph exams, the long-time standard for lie detection, require a trained examiner, take at least 90 minutes to conduct, and reports can sometimes take hours to receive.
When EyeDetect is used in conjunction with the polygraph, and when both tests have the same result, the Confidence Outcome in the result can be as high as 99 percent, says Mickelsen.
For more information, visit www.converus.com and www.midas.es.
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About Converus
Converus (“with truth”) is committed to providing trustworthy credibility assessment solutions. Its flagship product, EyeDetect® is the first ocular-motor deception detection solution. It’s an accurate, cost-effective, efficient, secure and nonintrusive method that detects deception in 30 minutes by analyzing eye behavior. The same scientists credited with computerizing the polygraph in 1991 developed EyeDetect. It’s a new way for organizations to manage risk and ensure workplace integrity, and for law enforcement agencies and governments to detect deception. Ultimately, it helps protect countries, corporations and communities from corruption, fraud and threats. Converus is headquartered in Lehi, Utah. Visit www.converus.com.
About Midas
Midas specializes in complete auto care, primarily through its LA Revisión Oficial (Official Vehicle Inspection) program, launched in 2010, which maintains the manufacturer’s guarantee. According to the latest TNS study, performed for Grupo Mobivia in 2015, Midas has the best visibility (90%) in its sector. 94% of customers would recommend Midas to the people closest to them. The chain currently has 144 complete auto care centers in Spain; 127 are franchises, and 17 are owned by Midas. Visit http://www.midas.es.
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Press Contact: Jeff Pizzino, APR / +1 480.606.8292
