How automated communications benefit your auto dealership

The ideal car buying experience is relatively streamlined. A potential customer, having already done their research, comes to your lot, picks a car, loves the test drive, and walks away with the car thanks to favorable financing.

But every dealership manager knows the reality doesn’t tend to be nearly that straightforward. Potential customers leave without buying a car, or find out their financing options are below their expectations. For these cases, you can significantly increase the selling process in your auto dealership with automated communications through website live chat or automated email options.

In the auto industry, though, the concept of automating promotional conversations on the front end is still relatively new. But the potential to reach customers more quickly, help them feel more valued, and retain open communication with them is huge.

So how can you get started?

At the core of marketing automation is email. With the right back-end system, you can set up standardized emails with some personalized components that will automatically go out when triggered by certain activities — like voluntarily submitting an email address, purchasing a vehicle, and more. The possibilities of the concept are significant.

Imagine: If every customer who was interested in a car but didn’t end up buying received an email letting them know whether that car was still on the lot a few days after the visit. What about an email that offers additional financing options for any customer who left because they were not happy about their rates?

Both of these may sound labor-intensive when done by hand. But when executed through marketing automation, they are easily possible and take only a small amount of work on the front end. You can even set up emails to customers who have already bought a car, letting them know that you appreciate their business and encouraging them to refer their friend.

What else can you do?

Of course, marketing automation doesn’t stop at email. You can, for example, set up live chat functionality on your website to allow potential customers to get in touch with you directly before and after buying a vehicle.

Live chat has become increasingly important and successful across most industries, and with automated response messages you can direct various types of inquiries to the best person to respond.

The more you consider it, the more clear it becomes: There is virtually no downside to implementing a system that automates at least some of your electronic communications process. Instead, it can become a vital component of your auto dealership, streamlining its processes and giving your team more time to work on what matters most: selling great cars to great customers.

Even considering the above benefits, automated communication is only a small part in the larger equation that gets customers to purchase a car from your lot.

To help increase your dealership’s retention of interested prospective customers, consider better financing software. Our platform allows you to streamline your sales and finance process, significantly reducing the time it takes from decision to handing over the new car keys. To learn more about our solution, and how it can benefit your dealership, contact us.