Tighten up your digital processes to improve closing rates and customer experience
In my July column, I related my recent experience of buying a new vehicle from start to finish, and the processes that got me down the sales funnel and driving off the lot.
To jog your memory, a lot of the journey was digitally-focused. Even though they were short, the in-person moments were equally important for creating excitement and overcoming crucial obstacles to the sale. Let’s review these important staples in today’s customer journey.
Be Quick on the Draw
Time and time again, when I am in a dealership talking about customer traffic and lead management, I am astonished at the disparity in opinion on what constitutes a reasonable lead response time.
Some dealers are still not responding to leads the same day, let alone within the premium standard of thirty minutes. Take a moment to think about what a potential prospect may encounter in thirty minutes.
They submit an inquiry on your website asking for a lease payment range on a specific vehicle. Maybe they submit another inquiry at a different dealer. Following that, the various social apps on their phone, family group chat drama, and maybe a work emergency compete for their attention.
Without a timely response to their inquiry, the idea of buying a car can quickly become buried in their information deluge, or even replaced by the idea of buying something else.
Prospects will invest more time working with the dealership that provides the most relevant and engaging information, such as custom video responses.
Be Transparent and Helpful
Of course, it would be ideal if all digital inquiries led immediately to a showroom appointment, however we all know that customers are spending less and less time shopping in-person and fully expect to procure most critical information ahead of the test drive stage.
Answering lead questions directly and comprehensively continues to guide the prospect further down the funnel and builds trust. Prospects will invest more time working with the dealership that provides the most relevant and engaging information, such as custom video responses.
Maintain a Top-Form Digital Showroom
Even those walk-in customers who haven’t submitted a lead arrive in-person because of a digital journey they have taken with your brand and dealership.
Whether it is simply being able to find information about your store on a well-maintained Google MyBusiness listing, or getting attached to an in-stock vehicle because you’ve got real photos and comprehensive information on the vehicle display page. Your dealership website should be as simple and easy to “walk through” as your showroom, free of clutter and unnecessary distraction.
The Main Event
Congratulations! You’ve performed all the right digital steps and now have a prospect at your store. Based on modern statistics, your dealership may be only one of two they actually visit in person.
At this stage, establish quick rapport and determine primary objectives for the visit, as the clock is ticking and other distractions that can pull them away from your store are mounting.
Comfortable prospects will spend more time at the store, therefore ensure all of your customer-facing areas are warm and inviting. If they were an appointment, have the appropriate demonstrator vehicle ready to go.
Perform seamless data capture throughout the process to provide a tailored experience, minimize wasted time, and maximize follow-up and remarketing opportunities.
Ensure Quality at the Finish Line
Selling a car is great — it is not, however, the only measure of a successful transaction. Following through in terms of a great delivery with an integrated introduction to the service and parts departments is vital to ensure customer retention.
Make sure your CRM and DMS-based processes are tuned to track the customer’s lifecycle and highlight important milestones or opportunities to convert to the next vehicle.
The other benefit to having solid customer data processes is to mitigate the effect of employee turnover, which tends to orphan customers before their next purchase cycle.
Lastly, have a concrete process for obtaining express CASL consent from your prospects and customers. This will enhance your marketing and retention efforts, while reducing your dealership’s legal risk.
With the price of vehicles on an ever-increasing trajectory, every customer and transaction should be viewed as valuable. Dealers use only a fraction of the available features in the technology they pay a lot of money for. To even out the market ups and downs, now is the time to tighten up both your digital and in-person sales process.
