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“About 70% of our successful lead-to-closed-sales now start with a chat conversation. Our customers love it and so do we.”
– Adam Simms, President and GM, Toyota Sunnyvale
Toyota Sunnyvale has been named one of the top internet dealerships in the nation for many years and has used a proven lead follow up system with much success. But the team is never satisfied and is always looking for ways they can improve their already exceptional response times and closing ratios.
That was why two years ago they looked at chat solutions as an enhancement to their existing sales process and a year later added chat to their service appointment setting process as well. The positive results were almost immediate for two reasons:
Prospects browsing from their work computer now had a discreet way to contact the dealership to get questions answered and to set appointments.
Prospects that may have hesitated to call or submit an online lead felt more comfortable due to the initial anonymity that chat affords.
Toyota Sunnyvale selected a “smart chat” solution from ContactAtOnce! that gave them the internal control to respond to chat conversations themselves. The tool also allowed the dealership to customize how it works so it enhanced their existing successful sales process rather than changing it. Outsourcing chat to a call center was not an option as they believe in personal attention to each lead and customer. By answering the conversations directly, the team can build a rapport and are immediately helpful. Potential customers see that the dealership staff members are very responsive, providing immediate answers to their questions.
Toyota Sunnyvale has turned their chat tool into a powerful marketing advantage as it helped to personalize their website, encouraging more online “lookers” to engage in chat conversations. This has resulted in increased appointments and sales, with chat now being the starting point for 70% of all closed sales. And the chat tool is “smart”, dropping down on the wevbsite only when staff members are ready to chat…even alerting them to respond through their cell phones.
Toyota Sunnyvale’s chat software takes advantage of innovative technologies like presence-aware visual cues that turn anonymous website visitors into potential buyers by grabbing their attention and providing a simple, non-threatening and convenient way to connect withour dealership at the exact moment interest is highest.
Toyota Sunnyvale customized their chat tool to include actual photos of their sales team. This made their customers immediately connect with the staff, the lifeblood of the dealership while building a rapport and helping to ensure more appointments show as the customers have more of a connect with the sales team after seeing their picture and having an online conversation with them.
The chat system connects the dealership to multiple websites, not just their own dealership website. Websites such as Cars.com, where prospective customers are shopping, also feature the same chat solution giving prospects a consistent experience and giving the dealership staff a single solution that is easy for them to learn and use. It is also completely integrated into their CRM system and includes additional robust dashboard reporting.
Online chat conversations are generally short and efficient for the sales person and result in an appointment being scheduled. Full lead data is collected and integrated into the CRM.
The chat solution reporting has also given Toyota Sunnyvale a distinct advantage. Managers can see how their staff is performing in terms of responses and conversions, but also how they compare to the industry averages. This information is then used to train staff and identify areas of opportunity to convert more prospects to sales.
Comparison reports can be generated to show how Toyota Sunnyvale stacks up against hundreds (even thousands) of other dealerships that use the same chat solution. In a single month, they have received more than a thousand sales chat requests, making their dealership the highest volume in terms of chat requests in the country. The dealership also ranked first in “present percentage” or the time the staff were online and ready to engage in chat conversations.
Comparison reports can be generated to show how Toyota Sunnyvale stacks up against hundreds (even thousands) of other dealerships that use the same chat solution. In a single month, they have received more than a thousand sales chat requests, making their dealership the highest volume in terms of chat requests in the country. The dealership also ranked first in “present percentage” or the time the staff were online and ready to engage in chat conversations.
Toyota Sunnyvale has 26 agents active on the chat system and 72.4% of the time, measured on a 24X7 basis, someone from a dealership is displaying "presence and availability" to respond to a new prospect. Potential customers on their website or the Cars.com website see chat icons with the actual staff person's photo that is available to chat. Customers get nearly immediate response when they engage in chat, leading to greater satisfaction with the dealership right from the start.
John Hanger is President & CEO at Contact At Once! LLC. John is a serial entrepreneur and co-founder of Contact At Once! whose live chat software for auto dealers is the industry’s most popular and widely deployed. John can be reached at jhanger@contactatonce.com or by calling 1-866-358-3880. You can learn more about their solution and chat live with a representative at www.contactatonce.com.
