There are numerous ways to build success into your live chat strategy, but if you want the ONE THING that is sure to guarantee embarrassment and failure (not to mention waste time and money), try this: make your guests give you contact information before you (or your live chat vendor) have a live chat conversation!

Done. Kaput. Fin. Nyet. Nada. Zilch.

That pretty much sums up your live chat success with this very ill-advised practice. But maybe you wonder, why not ask up front so you can generate a ‘lead’? Here are five good reasons you should not force your website shoppers to give you their contact info to ‘earn’ their chat conversation:

1. You will definitely upset them
2. The information is likely bogus
3. You will definitely upset them
4. The lead is low quality and will have low closing probability
5. You will definitely upset them

This won't be a QUALITY lead

Let’s face it – people shop online for convenience AND anonymity. One of the key principles and goals of a successful live chat strategy is to earn trust and build a relationship by communicating with buyers on THEIR terms. Forcing information out of them without the benefit of a mutual information exchange is not only bad business practice, but it’s rude.

Would you REALLY have your receptionist demand contact information before forwarding a sales call to the sales floor or BDC? I have seen dealers try it, and for as long as the experiment lasted, it created more of a problem than a solution.

Yes, businesses really do this

I recently shopped on the website of a leader in discount electronic accessories. I had a simple question about a product with some vague information in the description, and thought I would see if the chat operator had (or could get) the answer. When I saw them forcing my hand for full contact information, I moved to another source. It was that simple. They lost the sale. And so will your dealership. Since automotive buyers typically only visit one dealership after shopping several online, why would you blow them out before the conversation gets started? This was with a company who HAS MY INFO because I have spent hundreds of dollars with them, but I didn’t have the time or desire to indulge their arrogant (in my perception) demand.

Use Live Chat to earn the buyer's trust

Just like your salesperson on the floor has to EARN the right to ask for the sale in the product presentation, you have to earn the right to ask for contact info in a chat conversation by providing a certain amount of good faith information exchange. Whether you handle your own live chat conversations or contract a chat vendor for hosted service, be sure there are scripts in place that both address the shoppers’ needs and build the trust required to gather quality lead information that can result in a car sale.

Photo: freedigitalphotos.net / Grant Cochrane

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

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

There are numerous ways to build success into your live chat strategy, but if you want the ONE THING that is sure to guarantee embarrassment and failure (not to mention waste time and money), try this: make your guests give you contact information before you (or your live chat vendor) have a live chat conversation!

Done. Kaput. Fin. Nyet. Nada. Zilch.

That pretty much sums up your live chat success with this very ill-advised practice. But maybe you wonder, why not ask up front so you can generate a ‘lead’? Here are five good reasons you should not force your website shoppers to give you their contact info to ‘earn’ their chat conversation:

1. You will definitely upset them
2. The information is likely bogus
3. You will definitely upset them
4. The lead is low quality and will have low closing probability
5. You will definitely upset them

This won't be a QUALITY lead

Let’s face it – people shop online for convenience AND anonymity. One of the key principles and goals of a successful live chat strategy is to earn trust and build a relationship by communicating with buyers on THEIR terms. Forcing information out of them without the benefit of a mutual information exchange is not only bad business practice, but it’s rude.

Would you REALLY have your receptionist demand contact information before forwarding a sales call to the sales floor or BDC? I have seen dealers try it, and for as long as the experiment lasted, it created more of a problem than a solution.

Yes, businesses really do this

I recently shopped on the website of a leader in discount electronic accessories. I had a simple question about a product with some vague information in the description, and thought I would see if the chat operator had (or could get) the answer. When I saw them forcing my hand for full contact information, I moved to another source. It was that simple. They lost the sale. And so will your dealership. Since automotive buyers typically only visit one dealership after shopping several online, why would you blow them out before the conversation gets started? This was with a company who HAS MY INFO because I have spent hundreds of dollars with them, but I didn’t have the time or desire to indulge their arrogant (in my perception) demand.

Use Live Chat to earn the buyer's trust

Just like your salesperson on the floor has to EARN the right to ask for the sale in the product presentation, you have to earn the right to ask for contact info in a chat conversation by providing a certain amount of good faith information exchange. Whether you handle your own live chat conversations or contract a chat vendor for hosted service, be sure there are scripts in place that both address the shoppers’ needs and build the trust required to gather quality lead information that can result in a car sale.

Photo: freedigitalphotos.net / Grant Cochrane

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

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 than a dozen years ago, I learned a priceless life lesson from Grant Cardone – to use proven sales techniques “every day, every time, without fail, no exceptions”.

But before you get to the point of this magical consistency he teaches, you have to discover what works – and what doesn’t in your situation. What definitely doesn’t work very well is a team of salespeople and managers who have one year of experience five to ten or more times, rather than several years of growth. Salespeople who ‘wing it’ may end up with a certain amount of success, but just like a novice in Vegas who gets lucky with an unadvised hit on 18 or 19 at the blackjack table, ‘winging it’ eventually fails.

Carly with a ‘Y’ or Carli with an ‘I’?

The reason for asking about the differences in Carli’s is that it actually makes a difference (FYI – with an ‘I’ garners better response). The scientific testing methods we use to test Live Chat details actually show that even something as seemingly insignificant as one spelling actually affect the outcome. How many salespeople or managers make the conscious effort to sharpen their skills to the point of knowing which greeting is more effective, which walk-around points elicit the most emotion, or the specifics of price discussion that close the most deals? A high-achiever recently pointed out to me that he was the ONLY one taking notes in the weekly meeting because he uses this kind of attention to detail to stay atop the car sale board.

Because ALL we do is provide live chat services and software to dealers, we can tweak each element of the customer experience without compromising lead acquisition count or shopper satisfaction. But this also works in the showroom. Times change. Buyers change. Technology changes. Why shouldn’t word tracks?

Legendary trainers, Jackie B. Cooper and Grant Cardone wouldn’t have developed their systems without adapting their approach until they knew it was effective and it worked  and then used it every day, every time, without fail – no exceptions.

How to grow

Examine every aspect of your customers’ experience to figure out your ‘best practices’. First, correct those points that need immediate attention, THEN start looking for ways to improve best practices to make them even better so you can sell more cars and stay on top of the competition.

Check out Jeff Sterns, CarChat24 VP of Sales and Business Development, at AutoCon 2013 in Las Vegas

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

Tom LaPointe
CarChat24

Interactive Media Manager / Industry Analyst

www.carchat24.com/
24/7 Interactive Automotive Dealer Website 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 than a dozen years ago, I learned a priceless life lesson from Grant Cardone – to use proven sales techniques “every day, every time, without fail, no exceptions”.

But before you get to the point of this magical consistency he teaches, you have to discover what works – and what doesn’t in your situation. What definitely doesn’t work very well is a team of salespeople and managers who have one year of experience five to ten or more times, rather than several years of growth. Salespeople who ‘wing it’ may end up with a certain amount of success, but just like a novice in Vegas who gets lucky with an unadvised hit on 18 or 19 at the blackjack table, ‘winging it’ eventually fails.

Carly with a ‘Y’ or Carli with an ‘I’?

The reason for asking about the differences in Carli’s is that it actually makes a difference (FYI – with an ‘I’ garners better response). The scientific testing methods we use to test Live Chat details actually show that even something as seemingly insignificant as one spelling actually affect the outcome. How many salespeople or managers make the conscious effort to sharpen their skills to the point of knowing which greeting is more effective, which walk-around points elicit the most emotion, or the specifics of price discussion that close the most deals? A high-achiever recently pointed out to me that he was the ONLY one taking notes in the weekly meeting because he uses this kind of attention to detail to stay atop the car sale board.

Because ALL we do is provide live chat services and software to dealers, we can tweak each element of the customer experience without compromising lead acquisition count or shopper satisfaction. But this also works in the showroom. Times change. Buyers change. Technology changes. Why shouldn’t word tracks?

Legendary trainers, Jackie B. Cooper and Grant Cardone wouldn’t have developed their systems without adapting their approach until they knew it was effective and it worked  and then used it every day, every time, without fail – no exceptions.

How to grow

Examine every aspect of your customers’ experience to figure out your ‘best practices’. First, correct those points that need immediate attention, THEN start looking for ways to improve best practices to make them even better so you can sell more cars and stay on top of the competition.

Check out Jeff Sterns, CarChat24 VP of Sales and Business Development, at AutoCon 2013 in Las Vegas

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

Tom LaPointe
CarChat24

Interactive Media Manager / Industry Analyst

www.carchat24.com/
24/7 Interactive Automotive Dealer Website 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

Let’s stay that estimate is accurate (we began offering 24/7 service BECAUSE of overnight demand). With our lead conversion rate of more than 60 percent, that’s at least nine leads – with a potential for two or three car deals –plus timely intervention in a potential sales or service CSI issue. So if a chat vendor tells you 24/7 doesn’t work, they’re really saying they can’t figure out how to MAKE it work.

YES, THERE REALLY ARE ENOUGH VISITORS

Do you really want to pass up these opportunities? Less than 10 percent of typical weekday floor traffic is between 8am and noon – that doesn’t have you keeping your doors shut. Statistically, Tuesday or Wednesday will typically experience less than 10 percent of your weekly floor traffic – why not take those off? Because it makes sense to be open when customers want to shop, as long as it is feasible to schedule staff.

24/7 LIVE CHAT MAKES SENSE WITH A TRAINED STAFF

Don’t miss out on leads and sales just because your chat provider hasn’t solved their training and staffing issues. If the overnight chat operator shifts receive the same extensive training and expert management, and have the same (and sometimes more) job dedication as the daytime shift operators, then why WOULDN’T you want them responding to customers?

You want your best face-to-face salespeople working deals on the floor. You want great phone people staffing a BDC, and you want great chat operators manning keyboards. Typically, you hire and train staff with the right personality for each role, and everyone starts out ‘new’. The key is to provide world-class training and retain team members. Many chat operators (or so-called virtual sales assistants) perform this role as a stepping-stone in their career. As with any vendor, you want seasoned professionals with a proven commitment to their career, ideally with several years in the role.

There is so much ROI for dealers that many who use their own BDC or sales staff during the day actually contract hosted chat services after hours.

WHY BOTHER WHEN WE’RE NOT OPEN ANYWAY?

I recently had a service issue with Ford. After several days of calls to the service advisor, service manager, and the factory, I am still waiting for the regional representative to help resolve my issue. Everyone was appropriately empathetic and kind, but this shows that just because the dealership is ‘open’, problems can't always be immediately solved. But at least a live person took the call, and that’s the benefit after-hours live chat provides.

Customers will always prefer a conversation with a live person via voice or live chat over leaving a voice message or filling out a form – especially if they have a problem. While it’s true that an overnight chat operator may not have ‘best price’ answer a buyer is looking for or be able to diagnose an engine fault, today’s instant-gratification shopper would often rather ask a chat operator for the hours or address than chase it down on the website, and an overnight conversation still starts the sales relationship and can set a showroom appointment. Shoppers KNOW the store is closed, but still appreciate live contact.

PLUS, it’s been proven time and again that customers with an issue initially want someone to LISTEN. With hundreds and thousands of dollars on the line with CSI surveys, having someone who can respond and begin the resolution process is invaluable.

IS IT WORTH THE INVESTMENT?

A full-time live chat option absolutely makes as much sense as being open weekday mornings. Auto dealership managers always have to weigh the value and ROI of their services – lower quality services will typically cost less for a reason.

Photo credits: CarChat24 graphic, Dreamstime

Check out Jeff Sterns, CarChat24 VP of Sales and Business Development, at AutoCon 2013 in Las Vegas

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

Tom LaPointe
CarChat24

Interactive Media Manager /
Industry Analyst

www.carchat24.com/
24/7 Interactive Automotive Dealer Website 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

Let’s stay that estimate is accurate (we began offering 24/7 service BECAUSE of overnight demand). With our lead conversion rate of more than 60 percent, that’s at least nine leads – with a potential for two or three car deals –plus timely intervention in a potential sales or service CSI issue. So if a chat vendor tells you 24/7 doesn’t work, they’re really saying they can’t figure out how to MAKE it work.

YES, THERE REALLY ARE ENOUGH VISITORS

Do you really want to pass up these opportunities? Less than 10 percent of typical weekday floor traffic is between 8am and noon – that doesn’t have you keeping your doors shut. Statistically, Tuesday or Wednesday will typically experience less than 10 percent of your weekly floor traffic – why not take those off? Because it makes sense to be open when customers want to shop, as long as it is feasible to schedule staff.

24/7 LIVE CHAT MAKES SENSE WITH A TRAINED STAFF

Don’t miss out on leads and sales just because your chat provider hasn’t solved their training and staffing issues. If the overnight chat operator shifts receive the same extensive training and expert management, and have the same (and sometimes more) job dedication as the daytime shift operators, then why WOULDN’T you want them responding to customers?

You want your best face-to-face salespeople working deals on the floor. You want great phone people staffing a BDC, and you want great chat operators manning keyboards. Typically, you hire and train staff with the right personality for each role, and everyone starts out ‘new’. The key is to provide world-class training and retain team members. Many chat operators (or so-called virtual sales assistants) perform this role as a stepping-stone in their career. As with any vendor, you want seasoned professionals with a proven commitment to their career, ideally with several years in the role.

There is so much ROI for dealers that many who use their own BDC or sales staff during the day actually contract hosted chat services after hours.

WHY BOTHER WHEN WE’RE NOT OPEN ANYWAY?

I recently had a service issue with Ford. After several days of calls to the service advisor, service manager, and the factory, I am still waiting for the regional representative to help resolve my issue. Everyone was appropriately empathetic and kind, but this shows that just because the dealership is ‘open’, problems can't always be immediately solved. But at least a live person took the call, and that’s the benefit after-hours live chat provides.

Customers will always prefer a conversation with a live person via voice or live chat over leaving a voice message or filling out a form – especially if they have a problem. While it’s true that an overnight chat operator may not have ‘best price’ answer a buyer is looking for or be able to diagnose an engine fault, today’s instant-gratification shopper would often rather ask a chat operator for the hours or address than chase it down on the website, and an overnight conversation still starts the sales relationship and can set a showroom appointment. Shoppers KNOW the store is closed, but still appreciate live contact.

PLUS, it’s been proven time and again that customers with an issue initially want someone to LISTEN. With hundreds and thousands of dollars on the line with CSI surveys, having someone who can respond and begin the resolution process is invaluable.

IS IT WORTH THE INVESTMENT?

A full-time live chat option absolutely makes as much sense as being open weekday mornings. Auto dealership managers always have to weigh the value and ROI of their services – lower quality services will typically cost less for a reason.

Photo credits: CarChat24 graphic, Dreamstime

Check out Jeff Sterns, CarChat24 VP of Sales and Business Development, at AutoCon 2013 in Las Vegas

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

Tom LaPointe
CarChat24

Interactive Media Manager /
Industry Analyst

www.carchat24.com/
24/7 Interactive Automotive Dealer Website 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