Setting up your service advisors and techs to upsell successfully
It would be an understatement to say that dealership service facilities are busy locations. According to the NADA (2019), the typical dealership issues 1,556 repair orders per month, or 18,676 per year.
Yes, a sizable portion of those ROs will be for maintenance that is competitive, such tire rotations and oil changes. However, if your technicians and advisers are collaborating to find and suggest extra work, your RO hours and profit per customer rise quickly.
What happens next if your clients reject those suggestions?
Owning a car already comes with a lot of fees, including monthly loan payments, gas and travel expenses, and routine maintenance. You can easily understand why many Americans put off automobile service for weeks or even months when you include in unforeseen repairs. The majority of owners just do not have the financial means to accept advice when the advisor first suggests the task. They might need to consult with partners, review their budgets, or give some repairs more priority than others.
Will you ever see the customer again if they choose to depart the dealership without finishing the additional work?
According to your procedures. Service representatives frequently have trouble persuading consumers to return. Perhaps the advisors are simply too busy with their other duties to call or email every customer with the pertinent advice. Or perhaps the customer’s “no” they’ve already heard in the drive has convinced them not to call because they felt they were being “sold to” and the repair isn’t actually essential.
You might be able to persuade consumers to return if you have an effective method for following up with them after their visit to remind them of your advice after consulting their family or their budget.
Some of the most lucrative upsells are those for auto maintenance. If you can’t bring in new clients for this service, you’re losing out on a significant profit margin.
Regaining the business
Your technicians have already identified the required fixes. Your clients have received these recommendations from your advisors. When the customer leaves the drive without finishing the work, the dialogue shouldn’t cease.
Ensure the success of your service advisers when they follow up with clients:
In order for any communication with your consumers to really reach them, update your customer database frequently with the accurate car and owner information.
Create customized messages to remind your customers of the precise services they require. General messaging gets missed and will persuade them that you’re only after an unnecessary upsell.
Customers should be reminded on a regular basis to ensure that those who must save money or frequently postpone service don’t forget. They’re less likely to price-shop elsewhere if you combine it with incentives like free or discounted services.
Automate these procedures to promote consistency in follow-up and free up your advisers’ time for other duties.
Techs are incentivized to continue recommending work, and advisers are driven to keep speaking with consumers when upsells and follow-ups are successfully executed. Employee work satisfaction increases as a result, and your dealership becomes more profitable.
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