Every Dealership Should have Chat
As we’ve discussed a lot lately, digitization of the auto industry is here to stay. Part of that is the use of chat on dealers websites. People want quick, simple information, and chat facilitates that. They are more prone to send a question via chat than to submit a lead form on a vehicle or to call the dealership. Chat is (or should be) an easy way that consumers can interact with car dealers.
Taking it a step further, requiring a name and email address to initiate a chat conversation allows dealers to obtain the contact information of these leads without it seeming so official, increasing website conversion. Now even if the person closes the chat window or drops off unexpectedly, the dealer has a way to reach out to them again to follow up on the conversation, which should ultimately lead to more sales conversions as well.
During open hours, assign a team to monitor your chat, so you can give authentic, personalized service to each lead. Having knowledgeable staff to answer questions will allow you to optimize response times and overall customer satisfaction.
Sales is just the tip of the iceberg for chat though. Fixed ops is where dealers really make their money, so chat should be utilized there too. Quoting simple services like oil changes and brake jobs via chat is a great way to get people in the door. In fact, if someone is on the fence, offering them a “special” via chat or in a follow-up email could help to convert them as well.
Something important to remember with chat is that people expect an immediate answer! Being “offline” or unresponsive will only hurt results and reputation. So if dealers can’t man the chat 24/7, they should consider utilizing a service that has a bot option to be used when they’re not available. This allows them to preload the chatbot with responses to questions like “what are your service hours” and “can you tell me more about ____ promotion I saw in your ad?” If people ask about a specific vehicle, a response like “Our sales representatives aren’t available to answer that question right now. When would be a good time for us to call you tomorrow?” is perfect. Then the sales team is less likely to get sent to voicemail.
Some dealerships are using only chatbots, loading information about rebates and incentives, available discounts and even trade-in calculators into the “responses.” This maximizes results without tying up staff, but it does lack the personal touch of a live chat.
Ultimately dealers have to decide if live chat or a chatbot is more realistic for their team’s capabilities and availability, but everyone should be adding something as we move deeper into the world of less contact and more digital solutions.
