There are two sides to every story. We live in a world where the customer is not always right. However, we know first-hand that it is ingrained into our minds that, well, “the customer is always right.” This is a slippery slope that leads to us chasing the customer that costs us thousands of dollars. The one that leaves hateful, irrelevant reviews.

That negative review though can also have a damaging effect on the brand. However, in retrospect, the customer will also look at your average rating. Sure there may be some instances where you have an off day. But that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t respond to the review, and close the issue!

Here are the top reasons you should respond to a negative review:

• Dealerrater suggests that responding to negative reviews can help remove a ⅓ of them! While this isn’t all of them every bad review deleted is good!

• Responding to a negative review shows you care and are willing to try and rectify the situation. A simple yet efficient manner to respond to a negative review would be to say “Mr. Customer - I am sorry that we did not meet your expectations. We strive for excellence in customer service. We missed the mark, and I would like to see if we can make things right. Please call me @.” You can even provision a recorded line so that when the customer calls back, you can keep track of how situations are handled. And how many customers call you back.

• There are some instances where the customer blatantly lies in their review. In this case, the best way to handle the review is of course not calling them a liar, but rather offering “Mr. Customer, we offer excellent customer service. And I am sorry that we were not able to meet your expectations. We appreciate your input and are pleased that we did (insert services) within (time frame). We try our best to avoid these instances, and are truly sorry you feel this way.” This is not always going to work. But if their demands/rants are that absurd it only makes them stick out. Not you.

Bottom line, we want to protect our brand image. There will be times where we dropped the ball, and in those instances, humility can go a long way. Not responding to the review at all, however, can also show that we are not proactive or worse that you ignore issues.

As mentioned above, if you have 1,200 gleaming reviews one bad one is not going to destroy your image. But a bad review is a bad review. And if they start accumulating customers only read the first page usually. In fact, most people will also sort the reviews looking at both the “best & worst” reviews.

That said if s/he only sees a bunch of negative instances they might not visit your service lane. And if they do - they might have a bias preconceived notion that they might have an issue, which starts you off on the wrong foot!

How do you respond to negative reviews? Do you find that it helps or in some cases, the customer deletes their negative review?

Related resource: Act, Don't React, to Negative Online Reviews

A brand is more than just your OEM’s logo slapped on the website or POP Marketing. In fact, customers know who your manufacturer is, but do they know who or what your Service Lanes Brand Message is?

More often than not when looking at various dealers websites, there isn’t anything that sticks out. All of the coupons (if there even are any) all look the same. And there is nothing that says who or why you should service at “ABC Service Center.”

Or in some cases, there is the occasional video of “why service here” where no one watches the whole thing. (when is the last time you watched an entire brand video on YouTube?)

Instead of capturing who and what your brand is on your website the customer is left reading the reviews - using them to shape their opinion of your brand. Something we have to remember too is that the customer is not servicing their vehicle every month or once a week. Therefore, it takes that much longer to change their perception about your brand if they have had a less than perfect experience.

Think about it for a moment. If the customer has a bad experience at a restaurant - sure s/he might write a bad review. But that bad experience does not shape their views on the restaurant industry in a whole, no? Why? Well, the customer goes to the next venue mostly forgetting about their bad experience.

Whereas, in our industry, the service intervals for many could be as much as 6+ months apart.  And so when the time comes for them to do service again they will go back to their last visit, which in some cases might not have been so pleasant. Sure, you might have reached out to the customer to apologize trying to rectify the situation. However, the damage is already done, and the customer will think twice before s/he returns to the dealership.

That is why there is so much emphasis and focus on what your “brand is,” which can make or break keeping the service customer!

Here are some tips/suggestions that can help identify who and what your brand is:

• Do your service advisors know what your brand stands for? Does your brand logo have a meaning?
• Does your service lane or dealer have a “slogan”? Might sound cheesy, but successful brands have a message or a theme that is recurring in all of their campaigns. While the OEM has one, which many require being visible in the showroom - do any of the advisors know what it is?
• If you do have good reviews - are they visible on your site? This will surely help with converting the customer who's on the fence about returning.
• Bottom line, there are so many places to choose from, and your customer will choose what is best for them. So it is essential to have a consistent brand image that translates well to the customer.

What is your brand image? Do you have a slogan that is part of your brand logo?

Branding your Service Center is more than just having a “why service here” video on your website touting that you have OEM certified techs. Customers want more than that and they want to see who is working for you looking to see how they are rated. Most importantly if the advisor is rated!

There are best practices for collecting reviews that will brand the service center. The two top platforms to collect reviews are DealerRater & Google+ Here are the best practices to start branding your service center with reviews.

First, Let’s Update the Website

It sounds simple. Have the employees reviews listed online. But more often than not many dealers do not have any reviews posted on their site. Not even on their social media pages other than if a customer were to review them on FaceBook or Yelp.

If the customer can see 1000+ positive reviews on your website that are directly associated with customers experiences with specific advisors the review becomes that much more valuable. It allows the customer to connect with the advisor.

In fact, because of the branding, DealerRater offers for your service lane there is the opportunity to receive “DealerRater Connections” as the customer “connects” with you for services on an individual basis with an advisor as they’ve read your reviews!

They even offer the ability for the connection to be sent directly to both the advisor and the managers via email.

Check Out

How often does the customer leave happy at the cashier’s office? Or (better yet) at the advisor's desk for those who take payments in the lane!? That is the time to ask the customer to review his/her experience online.

Albeit, the customer is still going to receive the OEM survey. However, that survey is not “branding” your store. In fact, the OEM more often than not does not even include your reviews or customer feedback on their corporate site for your store. They don’t have any reviews, actually.

Thank You Email

Despite asking the customer in the lane to complete a review for you, it never hurts to include a link to your DealerRater profile in the follow-up email. This serves as a gentle reminder for the customer to hop on and complete a quick review on their experience at the dealership. I will offer, however, that it is not best to send out an additional separate email as the customer might get turned off with too many emails.

The bottom line is this: branding is everything, and it starts with what people see online. If they see positive reviews that are directly associated with the people that are representing your brand, then it creates an incredibly valuable image. One that lends it self in hand when customers are choosing their next service center!

Do you have your reviews listed on line? Do you use DealerRater with great success? What is the best way you have branded your service advisors & service center with online reviews?

Several dealers reported record months in the service drive. With a record number of RO’s hitting the lanes each day, it is a gold mine for selling service contracts. Service contracts are a security net for both the dealer & the customer as s/he will most likely return to service their vehicle.

Here are the top reasons you should offer service contracts in the lane:

A Drop In Deferred Services?

With customers declining large service items a contract - in some instances - can offer the customer the ability to purchase the service with the discounts s/he receives. Or in this case, their contracts would cover the OEM maintenance intervals, which should be stressed to the customer as being important.

If they already have a contract that includes these items, then s/he is far more likely to return to have their services completed.

                                   What percentage of your customers have a service contract?

Vehicles Serviced past OEM Retention Requirements

OEM’s usually have retention requirements for your in PMA (primary marketing area; assigned customer base) customers, which can range between anywhere for 3-5 years depending on the OEM. Dealers spend thousands of dollars marketing to their customer base. Giving away everything from oil changes to steeply discounting services, which can have damaging - devaluing - effect on your dealer's image and pricing. Where customers will continue to expect that service at a low discounted price.

Whereas, if they have a contract they aren’t thinking about the price. Instead, they are thinking about the value the contract offered them. Giving them the peace of mind knowing that their vehicle is being serviced.

Revenue for Dealers

If service can pick up 10-15 contracts per month in the lane that is 10-15 more customers that will keep within their retention time frames. All of which is highly beneficial to the dealership. This service customer is also more likely to be a repeat purchaser vs. a customer who does not service their vehicle regularly with your dealership.

The bottom line is the service lane should continue to diversify its revenue streams. One of those sources of revenue is selling service contracts in the lane. This not only benefits the customer and service advisor, but it adds money to the bottom line.

Does your dealer sell service contracts? If so, has it been successful? If it hasn't been successful why not? 

There are a lot of costs associated with extending hours. However, with fixed-ops being the dealer's life line and main money maker, it seems like a no brainer to have extended summer hours two or three days of the week.

Here are a few top reasons you should extend your hours

Late Appointments

Imagine all of the customers that would now stop in after work? If you close at 8 PM, you can set your scheduling software to have the last appointment set for 7:15 PM. This would easily generate 10-15 more appointments per week. The Advisor (or in some cases a service BDC) can use this when booking the appointment via phone or chat if the customer isn’t available during the day.

Appointment Oriented Culture

The goal with the extended hours is to promote appointments. Walk-in traffic (which is most common for dealers) can actually cause for upset customers and chaos. As there is extended wait times in addition to the shortage of staff to handle the flux of R/O’s. That said, this “extended hours” is meant to be used as a means of making appointments for that time frame. Offering as “this Thursday we have extended the hours to 7:15 - that is the last appointment I have available. Are you available at 6:45 or 7:15 PM?” The customer then feels as if you’ve helped them by ‘squeezing’ him/her in.

Investment Revenue

With the extended hours being successful it offers the dealer the chance (based on 4 advisors) to add an additional 35-40k on the books per month. With that said, the money can be used - depending on the overall absorption, which should be 70%+ -  to reinvest in the service department. Whether that is newer technology in the lane (such as tablets) or even newer amenities for the service lounge.  

Bottom line. The cost to remain open for 4 additional hours per week can be paid back in thousands of dollars with appointments. Run the “extended hours” for 90 Days. Use the data to review how many appointments vs. walk-ins there were for the time frame. Understanding that there will be a percentage of walk-ins. If this is making the dealer money, then it will have a huge impact on the dealer's bottom line. In addition to giving the advisors the chance to earn additional income.

Would you consider late nights for the summer? Who has extended hours now and is having success?

Tired of not hitting your monthly goals? Frustrated that your specials aren't adding enough to the bottom line?  Now Imagine if you had an appointment booked online that included additional services & products. This sounds like a home run, no?

I encourage you to test out your service scheduler reviewing the appointments for the month. Looking to see if the customer has selected one of your special offers! If your customer cannot select the special you are offering for service then how do you expect it to work?

If the advisor is aware of what s/he has selected and or if they have opted for the special then it helps prep them for the customer's arrival. Allowing the advisor to focus on other services s/he can sell to the customer. All of which helps them reach their monthly goals!

Here are some other key strategies that will assist you in up-selling online:

Online Marketing

Have an up to date service menu with special offers on your website. Another avenue to upsell products and services is including your OEM’s part store on the website. Allowing the customer to pre-purchase items to be installed at the time of their service appointment.

Product Demos - Yes, Demos on the Website

Have the hot products visible online! Videos are a very effective way to sell the product. The video does not have to be super long, either. Take for example brakes. If you have a special from the OEM for front/rear brake jobs then why not put a simple, quick video offering a brake special! “Take a break for brakes!” - have fun with it!

At the Dealer  -  Visual POP Marketing in the Service Lane

You spent all this time getting the website updated to increase traffic, right? Which in turn led to more appointments, no? Yet you do not have the specials posted in the lane anywhere!  This is absolutely hurting your advisors chance of up selling the item!

If your advisors do not know what the specials are than they are going to sell it! Not to mention, if the customer asks about the special s/he saw online, and the advisor is unable to answer their questions it devalues the special!

This is an excellent way to not only have consistency but to also upsell adding to the bottom line!

Bottom line - start selling your products online. This will motivate the advisors to keep selling. In addition to believing & buying into the offers you put out each month!

Do you upsell online? If so, what special/offer has given you the most success? Do your offers help generate revenue helping you achieve your goals?

There is nothing better than hitting your financial goals in the service department! Especially considering that fixed-op's is the dealerships money maker. But to hit your financial goals - as a department - there are fundamental processes that need to be in place!

That is the following:

Limit Daily RO’s per Advisor - Less is More $$$

NADA statistics offer than an advisor should not be handling any more than 20-25 RO’s per day. Managing too many RO’s leaves room for “underselling” as s/he is trying their best to push everyone through the lane. Leaving hundreds - if not thousands - of dollars in the lane.

The best way to combat this issue is to a) make sure you are staffed correctly by reviewing your average daily appointments, which is most likely a *small* percentage of your business and daily average walk-ins. Track your *busy* times making sure you have your “A” team in place. In doing so, your advisors will not only make more money BUT - you will hit your goals!

Focus on an Exclusive Monthly Offer

I am confident that the parts department might have an overstocked item, and depending on your OEM many do not have a “buy-back” program for unsold stock. That said, have contests in the lane for the unsold stock. Paying the advisors a flat bonus per item.

For example, if you have a surplus of one brand of a tire - sell it! Try adding an additional special. The buy three and get the 4th for a dollar is the *oldest* trick in the book. Customers are not as easily fooled. Besides, when you break down the pricing - the tire cost is hidden in the other three, right? The markup isn’t that great.

Review the Weekly Appointments

This sure does sound tedious. I get that. But what if the advisor (depending on how your store’s scheduler works) were to review their upcoming appointments. Looking to see what s/he is coming in for? This is *huge* not only does it give the advisor the chance to see what's coming up, but it affords them the ability to plan ahead on what they need to focus on!

This also assists the advisor in understanding when their *busy* times are. Making sure that the lane is staffed accordingly. If the lane is not staffed, then you are absolutely leaving money on the table.

Shuttle Service

If you do not already have a shuttle service. Get one. If you offer to take the customer to work - or wherever within reason - s/he will not be sitting in the service lounge bored. Instead, when you call to offer them the recommended services s/he might be more inclined to take the recommended service. However, it is crucial that when you are “upselling” to focus on the “discount.” Namely, explain to the customer “Mr. Customer, everything is going very smooth - btw, we noticed that the windshield wipers were a bit cracked. It is common with the weather we’ve experienced. But the good news is we are running a special of $15 off! Not to mention, these guys will keep your windshield clean!”

Discuss Dollars Per RO

Going back to how many RO’s the advisor should handle daily - is also reviewing how much s/he is averaging per RO. If you don’t know what your average per RO is then you might not be as motivated to focus efforts on upselling. Not to mention, when reviewing average dollars per RO you might be shocked at just how much money you are leaving on the table. This is the selling tactic to the advisor when they argue that they need 50+ a day!

It is best practice to have a quick pow-wow in the morning with the service advisors to discuss what the stores average is and strategize a plan for each advisor. For example, you have 45 appointments for the day. Calculate the percentage of the appointments that should have one or more upsells. And at the end of the day tally the results. Going over them the next morning. This will help increase average dollars per RO, and build up the momentum in the lane!

When is the last time you had a morning meeting with your advisors? How many RO's do your Advisors handle on a daily basis? 

We have all been there - that is trying to get a repair estimate, but are unable to find the pricing online!  And good luck calling the Service Center! The same age old tactic of “the best thing to do is just to come in” is still the main go-to phrase in selling services. The problem with this mentality is that for every dealer that is afraid of pricing is the dealer (Service Center) who puts pricing online. Of course, they make sure (in most instances) to disclose that the special pricing is based on a particular vehicle.

Here are some top reasons that you should offer service menus online:

• Not showing prices at all online can cause for not only a high bounce rate but fewer customers! Customers have been educated and have several resources at their fingertips.  If it is a customer that has purchased from you  - and there was a proper sales to service handoff - the customer will most likely understand the value in using an OEM certified technician. Not to mention, because s/he has had good experiences they are likely to return regardless if the service is more expensive.

• Customers want to know the value s/he is receiving. That said, it is a best practice to show the competitors pricing on the website. This way the customer can see the value that they are receiving; or why your shop is more expensive. In most cases, your oil change is actually less than the big box stores such as pep boys and Midas.

• The word transparency is overused. I get that. But at the same time, customers do want to know what an estimate repair cost is whether it is on the phone or on the website. Apps like Repair Pal & Open Bay are already doing this! Now I understand that when it comes to more tedious repairs that the customer will need to *understand* the costs associated with it.

• Showing pricing online actually makes your coupons more effective. If you get a coupon with “10% off any repair,” but you do not know what the cost is how likely are you going to use the coupon? Probably not. When is the last time you checked your click & print rate on dealer website coupons?

Dealers wonder why we lose so many deals to Jiffy Lube, etc. - I get it - but it comes down to the fact that they aren't afraid to show pricing. Bottom line - we cause the heartache when it comes to pricing, and it is not worth the frustration it ensues. Instead, let’s be competitive, but realistic and get pricing online!

How do you handle service pricing? Do you have success without having a service menu online? If so, what do you use online?

It is no secret that your service customers are valuable! And while there is a lot of debate on what the best practices are for “X-Change” programs are - here are some best practices for running a successful program. Ones that will encourage the service advisors to assist with the growth and development of without fighting back!

1. The Service Advisor should be a part of the “X-Change” program. Remember, the advisor is the one that has “carried” on the relationship with the customer when s/he purchased the vehicle. All too often, the sales consultant approaches the customer with a hard sales tactic. One that turns off the customer. Whereas, the advisor - who has rapport and trust with the customer - can offer the program instead of an expensive shop bill. As if they are “watching” out for them.

2. Have a Service Liaison in the lane that can assist the advisor with the greeting of customers as they make their way into the lane. This will not only ensure that the customer is greeting within OEM standards (many of which are within a minute), but are also “checked” in and ready to go when the advisor becomes available.

3. Use a CRM/DMS program that is linked or a part of the appointment software. Namely, if you use a program that is familiar to both the service advisor and service liaison s/he will easily be able to identify customers in equitable positions. Allowing them to inform the service manager before their visit, which allows the service manager to notify the advisor. Teamwork makes for dream work. Dreamwork makes for happy customers and profits!

4. If the customer agrees to “reviewing” the program make sure to have the car of choice pulled into the lane so as the customer is checked in they are test driving the new vehicle. This allows for a cohesive flow. Allowing the sales department to appraise the vehicle while they are test driving!

5. if the customer is not inclined to participate in the program offer a “soft” approach by including a “payment” summary quote of a similar vehicle with their service paperwork. Sometimes an “extra” touch peaks their interest. You can also use a hangtag in the vehicle as well. 

Lastly, make sure to not “over-sell” this program. Whether that is sending too many emails - more than one per month - in addition to the regular marketing. Instead, make sure to have strong POP marketing that is in the lane as well as the customer lounge. And remember, this a soft sales approach. Too much marketing can cause for opt-outs and upset customers!

How do you run your service “X-Change” program? What are some of your best practices? Do you have sales consultants manage it?

In recent months the OEM has set new standards using KPI’s, which have set a new tone with the survey. Giving the dealer the dealer a new means of setting the performance benchmark with yes or no questions. And while the “survey” scores were always consistently the best in the area the new survey has shed some light in *key* areas where the advisors might need some training.

When is the last time you have brought in training for your service advisors? If you have to think hard on that one, it has been too long.

The service department is the money maker, yet it is the one department that is often ignored when it comes to training!

Here are top reasons your advisors need training!

1. Training is not just about getting a good score for the store.  It is about ensuring the service advisor is equipped to handle situations. Ones that can then be diffused leaving the upset customer happy wanting to come back to the dealer for services again.

2. Working with your advisors on the “walk-around” can increase revenue. If the advisor is better equipped - or trained better on the newer products - s/he will better understand how to up-sell services that would benefit the customer.  

3. Keeping the customer informed - to this day - remains to be an issue for many dealers. That said, setting the standard with your team listening to their concerns can help increase overall customer satisfaction, which will show in the increased survey scores. Ask your advisors “what is the most preferred method of contact” Whatever it is - make it a priority by making sure that it is accessible. For example, if texting is most preferred then make sure the advisors can text from their computers.

4. Using previous scores (avoiding names) can help with discussing potential breakdowns in the process. In turn allowing you to collectively work towards a better way of handling those situations.  As it is safe to say that advisor is most likely not the only one handling the situation that way. One of the best ways to review this is to look at a 90-day scoring period.  

5. The most significant benefit of monthly training  - even if it is just for 20-30 minutes - is getting the inside scoop on the team that keeps the dealer afloat. It offers the advisors a platform to bring their concerns to the table. Offering you a meaningful way to provide insight, and prevent future issues from happening as it can honestly just be a breakdown in communication!

How often do you have training? If so, have you seen a positive impact?