Strong relationships are similar to spider webs, especially in the auto industry. Multiple threads are must to build an effective web for business – or spiders. If you want to build long-term success in car sales, you have to recognize that these relationships start with one tiny thread, and by creating additional threads through rapport and nurturing with quality customer care, additional threads and then loyalty can follow.

Loyalty is a fickle mistress in the modern era. No longer do buyers automatically return again and again to purchase their cars like the Buick and Lincoln buyers of old because that is part of their identity. Today’s buyers tie their identity more to a class of car, rather than a particular brand, and their connection to their dealer is even weaker. But as long as I have been around motor vehicles, the dealers that work the hardest to strengthen that bond stand the greatest chance to retain their customers.

The key is to make the most of the first thread. A relationship typically begins one of five ways:

• Floor traffic
• Dealer Website (contact form, phone call, or live chat)
• Third party lead
• Referrals
• Events and Prospecting

Each contact with a customer is a chance to make or break a thread. Whether each contact is through sales, service, parts or the BDC, it is an opportunity for a new thread to be created. Successful dealers ensure their staff is trained to treat each interaction as an opportunity to help or hurt future business. Even the best dealers end up breaking a thread once in a while, so building webs with new customers is a must, and in this day of online reviews, how you treat someone who DOES NOT end up buying can affect your business as much as someone who did. Just like a spider’s web, sometimes forces beyond our control can break those bonds, from a vehicle breakdown to someone moving out of the area, so you have to continue the web-building process.

Even though the internet can create more stress by transforming the buying process and allowing online reviews, it can benefit the dealership’s web-building through both social media and email campaigns. Carefully executed, both these communication methods can be a key part of a dealer’s ability to strengthen and create new threads to connect the customer to the store. Additionally, during and after the buying process, website live chat link on a dealership website is a valuable tool (especially after hours) to see to a customer’s needs with a real-time response to a sales, service or parts inquiry.

Faux spiders and goblins adorn our neighborhoods for Halloween, but dealers who view every client interaction as a chance to strengthen the web of their relationship, can increase sales throughout the year.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tom LaPointe CarChat24  Interactive Media Manager / Industry Analyst

www.carchat24.com/ 24/7 Interactive Automotive Dealer Website LIVE CHAT Solutions Hosted or In-House Options – FREE web chat software 727-638-0195

Tom has an MBA in Marketing and is an automotive writer and author with more than 15 years experience in virtually every aspect of the retail auto industry. He began working with the internet building websites at Johns Hopkins University in the 90's, and has been an performance leader in nearly every dealer role, from sales and service, to web development and viral marketing.

Strong relationships are similar to spider webs, especially in the auto industry. Multiple threads are must to build an effective web for business – or spiders. If you want to build long-term success in car sales, you have to recognize that these relationships start with one tiny thread, and by creating additional threads through rapport and nurturing with quality customer care, additional threads and then loyalty can follow.

Loyalty is a fickle mistress in the modern era. No longer do buyers automatically return again and again to purchase their cars like the Buick and Lincoln buyers of old because that is part of their identity. Today’s buyers tie their identity more to a class of car, rather than a particular brand, and their connection to their dealer is even weaker. But as long as I have been around motor vehicles, the dealers that work the hardest to strengthen that bond stand the greatest chance to retain their customers.

The key is to make the most of the first thread. A relationship typically begins one of five ways:

• Floor traffic
• Dealer Website (contact form, phone call, or live chat)
• Third party lead
• Referrals
• Events and Prospecting

Each contact with a customer is a chance to make or break a thread. Whether each contact is through sales, service, parts or the BDC, it is an opportunity for a new thread to be created. Successful dealers ensure their staff is trained to treat each interaction as an opportunity to help or hurt future business. Even the best dealers end up breaking a thread once in a while, so building webs with new customers is a must, and in this day of online reviews, how you treat someone who DOES NOT end up buying can affect your business as much as someone who did. Just like a spider’s web, sometimes forces beyond our control can break those bonds, from a vehicle breakdown to someone moving out of the area, so you have to continue the web-building process.

Even though the internet can create more stress by transforming the buying process and allowing online reviews, it can benefit the dealership’s web-building through both social media and email campaigns. Carefully executed, both these communication methods can be a key part of a dealer’s ability to strengthen and create new threads to connect the customer to the store. Additionally, during and after the buying process, website live chat link on a dealership website is a valuable tool (especially after hours) to see to a customer’s needs with a real-time response to a sales, service or parts inquiry.

Faux spiders and goblins adorn our neighborhoods for Halloween, but dealers who view every client interaction as a chance to strengthen the web of their relationship, can increase sales throughout the year.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tom LaPointe CarChat24  Interactive Media Manager / Industry Analyst

www.carchat24.com/ 24/7 Interactive Automotive Dealer Website LIVE CHAT Solutions Hosted or In-House Options – FREE web chat software 727-638-0195

Tom has an MBA in Marketing and is an automotive writer and author with more than 15 years experience in virtually every aspect of the retail auto industry. He began working with the internet building websites at Johns Hopkins University in the 90's, and has been an performance leader in nearly every dealer role, from sales and service, to web development and viral marketing.

It may seem a bit counterintuitive, but if an auto dealership wants to establish a successful website live chat program in-house, it is wise to position your chat staff as online operators, and NOT as internet salespeople. There are three reasons this strategy will help create live chat success:

Allows the operator an excuse to gather lead information. Shoppers have an aversion to salesperson that is nearly encoded into DNA. When you position your staff as ‘operators’, their role is merely to provide information for the shopper and earn enough trust to gather lead information and hopefully, even an appointment.

Stops 30-minute live chats that have salespeople reading numbers off tires on used cars. If your chat staff are operators, the shopper won’t have the power to demand that they run from car to car worrying about speed rating on tires, or transmission ratios. They can stay on script moving toward a quality lead or car sales appointment.

Less likely to prejudge or sell the car online. As sales managers, we have all had sales people who ‘knew’ whether a prospect was going to buy, or avoided an appointment because they ‘knew’ the shopper couldn’t get a loan approved. Chat operators won’t have all this ‘expert knowledge’. Additionally, they won’t be focused on scheduling appointments around a shift or day off, as a salesperson might be tempted.

Numerous factors affect the success or failure of an in-house dealership website live chat program, and having proper fundamentals and training in place can make a huge difference. What is your live chat success (or lack of) story?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tom LaPointe CarChat24  Interactive Media Manager / Industry Analyst

www.carchat24.com/ 24/7 Interactive Automotive Dealer Website LIVE CHAT Solutions Hosted or In-House Options – FREE web chat software 727-638-0195

Tom has an MBA in Marketing and is an automotive writer and author with more than 15 years experience in virtually every aspect of the retail auto industry. He has been a performance leader in everything from sales and service, to web development and viral marketing.

It may seem a bit counterintuitive, but if an auto dealership wants to establish a successful website live chat program in-house, it is wise to position your chat staff as online operators, and NOT as internet salespeople. There are three reasons this strategy will help create live chat success:

Allows the operator an excuse to gather lead information. Shoppers have an aversion to salesperson that is nearly encoded into DNA. When you position your staff as ‘operators’, their role is merely to provide information for the shopper and earn enough trust to gather lead information and hopefully, even an appointment.

Stops 30-minute live chats that have salespeople reading numbers off tires on used cars. If your chat staff are operators, the shopper won’t have the power to demand that they run from car to car worrying about speed rating on tires, or transmission ratios. They can stay on script moving toward a quality lead or car sales appointment.

Less likely to prejudge or sell the car online. As sales managers, we have all had sales people who ‘knew’ whether a prospect was going to buy, or avoided an appointment because they ‘knew’ the shopper couldn’t get a loan approved. Chat operators won’t have all this ‘expert knowledge’. Additionally, they won’t be focused on scheduling appointments around a shift or day off, as a salesperson might be tempted.

Numerous factors affect the success or failure of an in-house dealership website live chat program, and having proper fundamentals and training in place can make a huge difference. What is your live chat success (or lack of) story?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tom LaPointe CarChat24  Interactive Media Manager / Industry Analyst

www.carchat24.com/ 24/7 Interactive Automotive Dealer Website LIVE CHAT Solutions Hosted or In-House Options – FREE web chat software 727-638-0195

Tom has an MBA in Marketing and is an automotive writer and author with more than 15 years experience in virtually every aspect of the retail auto industry. He has been a performance leader in everything from sales and service, to web development and viral marketing.

The cross promotion ad, It Comes Standard produced by Will Ferrell, touts all the great features of the glove box, and has been picked by AdWeek as one of their top ten for the week. I'm still partial to the ad that picks on the horse. Great marketing campaign!

The cross promotion ad, It Comes Standard produced by Will Ferrell, touts all the great features of the glove box, and has been picked by AdWeek as one of their top ten for the week. I'm still partial to the ad that picks on the horse. Great marketing campaign!

An effective dealer chat strategy is a key puzzle piece for increasing leads and sales from dealership websites, and dealers continue to add chat to their portfolio of services – whether they opt for an in-house staff or hosted chat vendor.

The scary truth is that many dealers who jump on in-house chat or the cheapest hosted chat expecting that it will magically pull them out of a sales slump overnight often end up with the same feelings as someone who 'tried' the latest trendy diet or fitness contraption: “I tried it and it doesn't work”.

We may not be experts in diets or workout equipment, but we know live chat like Chef Ramsey knows cooking, and our experience teaches us that there are three key elements for live chat success:

• Processes and people
• Software
• Web interface

Each piece is critically important, but once you have chosen your software or vendor, the PROCESSES and PEOPLE piece is the one element that dealers can control. First, you have to determine WHO will be involved with your live chat process. In-house, there are several steps to increase your odds of success:

• Determine WHO will take the chats (hire additional staff?)
• Assign management
• Develop effective scripts (effectiveness AND speed)
• Establish policies, processes, and escalation for ALL CHAT TYPES
• Train, train, train for best practices on EVERY CHAT CONVERSATION

Once you have all this in place, be sure to position your chat staff as online operators, NOT as internet salespeople, to boost your chances of gathering lead information. This helps avoid your sales or BDC staff from running around to find out what brand or speed rating of tire is on a specific car, so they can get an appointment set.

If you are using your sales force to respond to live chat inquiries, you want to make sure they are strong on the phones before putting them in front of a keyboard, figure out how you will handle chat conversations when your store is full on a Saturday afternoon, then decide if that is REALLY how you want them spending time.

Choosing to use BDC staff to handle chat conversations needs other questions answered, like how much free time do they currently have and what if they are on the phone when a chat inquiry comes in (response target is 7 seconds or less). Dealers must recognize that industry statistics show that 30% of chat requests are missed by a BDC, and as many as 35% of requests can be missed during off hours.

Generating more dealership website leads and increasing car sales is very possible with an effective live chat strategy, but as with anything else, it take planning and preparation to maximize its chances for success.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tom LaPointe CarChat24 
Interactive Media Manager / Industry Analyst

www.carchat24.com/ 24/7 Interactive Automotive Dealer Website LIVE CHAT Solutions Hosted or In-House Options – FREE web chat software 727-638-0195

Tom has an MBA in Marketing and is an automotive writer and author with more than 15 years experience in virtually every aspect of the retail auto industry. He has been a performance leader in everything from sales and service, to web development and viral marketing.

An effective dealer chat strategy is a key puzzle piece for increasing leads and sales from dealership websites, and dealers continue to add chat to their portfolio of services – whether they opt for an in-house staff or hosted chat vendor.

The scary truth is that many dealers who jump on in-house chat or the cheapest hosted chat expecting that it will magically pull them out of a sales slump overnight often end up with the same feelings as someone who 'tried' the latest trendy diet or fitness contraption: “I tried it and it doesn't work”.

We may not be experts in diets or workout equipment, but we know live chat like Chef Ramsey knows cooking, and our experience teaches us that there are three key elements for live chat success:

• Processes and people
• Software
• Web interface

Each piece is critically important, but once you have chosen your software or vendor, the PROCESSES and PEOPLE piece is the one element that dealers can control. First, you have to determine WHO will be involved with your live chat process. In-house, there are several steps to increase your odds of success:

• Determine WHO will take the chats (hire additional staff?)
• Assign management
• Develop effective scripts (effectiveness AND speed)
• Establish policies, processes, and escalation for ALL CHAT TYPES
• Train, train, train for best practices on EVERY CHAT CONVERSATION

Once you have all this in place, be sure to position your chat staff as online operators, NOT as internet salespeople, to boost your chances of gathering lead information. This helps avoid your sales or BDC staff from running around to find out what brand or speed rating of tire is on a specific car, so they can get an appointment set.

If you are using your sales force to respond to live chat inquiries, you want to make sure they are strong on the phones before putting them in front of a keyboard, figure out how you will handle chat conversations when your store is full on a Saturday afternoon, then decide if that is REALLY how you want them spending time.

Choosing to use BDC staff to handle chat conversations needs other questions answered, like how much free time do they currently have and what if they are on the phone when a chat inquiry comes in (response target is 7 seconds or less). Dealers must recognize that industry statistics show that 30% of chat requests are missed by a BDC, and as many as 35% of requests can be missed during off hours.

Generating more dealership website leads and increasing car sales is very possible with an effective live chat strategy, but as with anything else, it take planning and preparation to maximize its chances for success.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tom LaPointe CarChat24 
Interactive Media Manager / Industry Analyst

www.carchat24.com/ 24/7 Interactive Automotive Dealer Website LIVE CHAT Solutions Hosted or In-House Options – FREE web chat software 727-638-0195

Tom has an MBA in Marketing and is an automotive writer and author with more than 15 years experience in virtually every aspect of the retail auto industry. He has been a performance leader in everything from sales and service, to web development and viral marketing.

More and more auto dealers see the value of an effective live chat strategy for their website, and choosing the right software is critical to help ensure a strong return on investment (ROI). Successfully managing live chat in-house requires a commitment of manpower and development of processes, and since CarChat24 is just one of several companies that offer affordable or even free chat software, choosing can be a daunting task.

Essentially, a dealership live chat program is an extension of existing tools, like your website and BDC. After all, the goal is to increase the amount of quality leads (and sales) without cannibalizing leads from the CONTACT FORM, so the last thing you (or we) want is for your live chat implementation to end up like the last unsuccessful private sale you held.

Here are seven key elements your dealer chat software should include:

• Engineered specifically for the auto industry so it can be easily incorporated into current processes
• Comprehensive, yet easy to operate DASHBOARD for both users and managers
• Compatible with your website / web integration / branding, so it looks organic to your brand, rather than seems stuck on
• Forward lead information (including transcript) to CRM / Email so prospects receive effective follow-up and follow-through
• Usability features, including an ability to watch as guest types, easy information lookup, versatile user management
• Variety of looks for invites / icons / surveys so your interface doesn’t look 'cookie cutter' to website visitors
• Powerful reporting so you can measure the progress and success of your team

Setting up live chat in-house can entail a substantial investment of time and energy, and many dealerships are able to show a positive impact on their bottom line. If your team struggles to make an in-house chat strategy work, or you discover you can't answer chat requests after hours, you will want to look at a managed / hosted live chat option either as a backup to your staff or even as a full-time option.

Dealers that find the right chat software or managed live chat service typically stick with it, because the ROI us undeniable.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tom LaPointe CarChat24 Interactive Media Manager / Industry Analyst

www.carchat24.com/ 24/7 Interactive Automotive Dealer Website LIVE CHAT Solutions Hosted or In-House Options – FREE web chat software 727-638-0195

Tom has an MBA in Marketing and is an automotive writer and author with more than 15 years experience in virtually every aspect of the retail auto industry. He has been a performance leader in everything from sales and service, to web development and viral marketing.

www.facebook.com/CarChat24 / https://twitter.com/CarChat24 / bit.ly/CarChat24GooglePlus

More and more auto dealers see the value of an effective live chat strategy for their website, and choosing the right software is critical to help ensure a strong return on investment (ROI). Successfully managing live chat in-house requires a commitment of manpower and development of processes, and since CarChat24 is just one of several companies that offer affordable or even free chat software, choosing can be a daunting task.

Essentially, a dealership live chat program is an extension of existing tools, like your website and BDC. After all, the goal is to increase the amount of quality leads (and sales) without cannibalizing leads from the CONTACT FORM, so the last thing you (or we) want is for your live chat implementation to end up like the last unsuccessful private sale you held.

Here are seven key elements your dealer chat software should include:

• Engineered specifically for the auto industry so it can be easily incorporated into current processes
• Comprehensive, yet easy to operate DASHBOARD for both users and managers
• Compatible with your website / web integration / branding, so it looks organic to your brand, rather than seems stuck on
• Forward lead information (including transcript) to CRM / Email so prospects receive effective follow-up and follow-through
• Usability features, including an ability to watch as guest types, easy information lookup, versatile user management
• Variety of looks for invites / icons / surveys so your interface doesn’t look 'cookie cutter' to website visitors
• Powerful reporting so you can measure the progress and success of your team

Setting up live chat in-house can entail a substantial investment of time and energy, and many dealerships are able to show a positive impact on their bottom line. If your team struggles to make an in-house chat strategy work, or you discover you can't answer chat requests after hours, you will want to look at a managed / hosted live chat option either as a backup to your staff or even as a full-time option.

Dealers that find the right chat software or managed live chat service typically stick with it, because the ROI us undeniable.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tom LaPointe CarChat24 Interactive Media Manager / Industry Analyst

www.carchat24.com/ 24/7 Interactive Automotive Dealer Website LIVE CHAT Solutions Hosted or In-House Options – FREE web chat software 727-638-0195

Tom has an MBA in Marketing and is an automotive writer and author with more than 15 years experience in virtually every aspect of the retail auto industry. He has been a performance leader in everything from sales and service, to web development and viral marketing.

www.facebook.com/CarChat24 / https://twitter.com/CarChat24 / bit.ly/CarChat24GooglePlus