You can’t browse retail automotive news sites today without seeing messages about revolutionizing the sales process or fixing what’s broken. There’s definitely some truth to that, I’m sure we’d all agree. But the retail automotive process has been extremely successful up until recently with billions of dollars in annual sales. So then, how can it be so broken?

Is There a Problem with Us?

For instance, let’s look at the sales process. It was once a platform where customers drove or walked in, the sales person assessed their needs, the right car was found, and the customer drove away happy. And now, it’s so much more complicated.

In today’s sales environment, the customer is ‘afraid’ to visit the dealership before they’re ready to buy. A salesperson can’t use the same tactics of yesteryear for fear of being found too aggressive to the point where the customer leaves disgruntled. What once was a negotiation-based process is now turning to a haggle-free environment or a price discussion that’s led by the customer.

Did the sales process actually get worse over time? Or is it simply no longer acceptable to do business the same way it was done twenty, thirty, or forty years ago?

It Goes Further than Automotive

We see the same changes in retail outside of the automotive market too. Retail giants like Sears are losing their market share at an alarming rate, even closing all their stores in Canada through bankruptcy. Amazon and eBay are a common place to do your retail shopping. What’s even better is it’s dropped off right at your door and you never have to wait in line or talk to a sales rep.

SkipTheDishes will pick up your restaurant order and deliver it to your door. You don’t even have to leave home to buy groceries if you don’t want to.

It’s a Technological Shift

What was once a profitable business practice is making a hard left turn. It used to work – maybe it still does - but it won’t for much longer. If the rest of the retail industry no longer requires a customer to leave home for their purchase, the retail automotive sector won’t be able to stand as it is for very long.

‘The way it was’ wasn’t ever a problem. It just needs to change with the times, like everything else. As technology increases, business practices need to become innovative to stay relevant. Otherwise, it’s the way of the dodo bird…

What’s Right for Today?

For the current automotive market, the trends are to do with technology and the customer visit. It’s about providing a service rather than making a sale. Heavily dependent on technology, the customer bases authority on the information presented and on research done before the dealership visit. It’s no longer the salesperson’s role to be authoritative – at least, not in most cases.

What’s Coming Tomorrow?

The future is coming faster than we think. Research has pegged off the current dealership model in as little as seven years, although it’s probably longer than that. If that’s the direction we’re going, however, there are ways to remain relevant.

- Offer at-home services. Manufacturers like Hyundai are already testing it at 30 stores in the US. A customer can request a test drive and the car will come to them so they don’t have to visit the dealership. Perhaps it’ time to get on board with at-home services.

- Provide online F&I products and paperwork. Let the customer see what’s offered before sitting them in an office with an F&I manager. They feel like fish being shot in a barrel. You might be surprised at the selections customers will make.

- Service department pickup and delivery services. Some dealerships already offer valet services, and good on you. If you want customer loyalty – especially if they no longer have to visit the dealership to buy their car – you’d better give them a reason to stick around for service.

The automotive industry wasn’t doing it wrong twenty years ago and beyond. It just failed to change with the times and is now playing catch-up. But if the retail automotive industry wants to survive, it needs to make some serious changes, and now.

I know you’re thinking, “Great, another article on employee retention.” It’s a topic that has been quite popular since NADA’s Dealership Workforce Study gave it the attention it deserved a few years ago. But the statistics are staggering, and until the issue is fixed, the effects need to be driven home. It deserves to be a focal point for you in the coming months and years. Think of it as one of your KPIs.

First, the numbers:

• Overall dealership employee turnover in 2016 was 43 percent, trending downwards by a few points from the year before.
• Sales positions at non-luxury stores saw annual turnover rates of 67 percent, a modest decrease since the previous year at 71 percent.
• Service advisor employee turnover also dropped from 41 percent to 39 percent.

But that, my friends, is far from good. We’re going to focus on service advisor employee turnover rates, how it affects your store, and what you can do.

How Service Advisors Who Jump Ship Hurt Your Store

Like all sales positions, people are replaceable. That might raise your eyebrows to hear, but it’s true. There are a few extremely tough aspects of replacing a service advisor, though.

• It’s expensive to replace an advisor. It costs your store thousands of dollars per month in unrealized service sales, training costs, and in guarantees you provide while the advisor gets up to speed. According to a DrivingSales study, employee churn costs approximately $45,000 per employee!
• CSI scores suffer. It’s a matter of getting up to speed again. A new employee has bumps in the road and typically has a few complaints here and there. Unfortunately, OEM CSI scores don’t take employee churn into account.
• They take customers with them. Some customers only trust one service advisor. If that service advisor leaves, certain customers may not return (even if they don’t follow the advisor elsewhere).
• It hurts morale. When staff leave, it has other staff members wondering about the ship’s stability. Do they need to be looking elsewhere too?

Why Service Advisors Leave

There are really just three reasons that a service advisor will want to leave your dealership. Some might argue it’s more or less, but these are the basics.

• More money/workflow elsewhere. Often it’s a pipe dream, thinking the grass is greener elsewhere. But if a service advisor is starving and can’t make ends meet at home, they’re going to be searching for a new job. Whether it’s their pay rate or the amount of work that is or isn’t coming into the shop, the result is the same.
• Disagreements with management. It happens that service managers and service advisors can butt heads. If a service advisor can’t get on the same page as their manager, regardless of whose fault it is, eventually they’ll move on.
• Better hours/location/promotion elsewhere. While you can’t fault an employee for trying to better themselves, it can cost your dealership big time. Losing a good team member outside of your store or dealer group always hurts.

How You Can Change Employee Retention Stats

Unless you have a promotion to offer every service advisor that’s moving up the ranks, you’re going to lose one here and there. But there are a few things you can do to minimize employee churn in the service department.

• Review your hiring process. I once had a manager who based the hiring process solely on the interview, never called references, and barely read the resume. Make sure you truly source the right candidates for your service advisor positions – the ones who have the drive to succeed, not necessarily the job history. You’ll eliminate needing to fire poorly-performing staff if you hire good ones at the start.
• Pay them fairly. I’ve never been a proponent of commission-based service positions (unless I had a really good month)! Instead, a healthy salary-based position with performance incentives and regular performance reviews is the best, in my opinion.
• Build a team atmosphere. People clash, especially when you’re in each other’s faces for 10 hours a day, five days a week. As a manager, take time to build your team up by providing non-work-related activities where you and your staff can mingle without titles hanging over your heads. Also, allow your staff to disagree with you, carefully consider their input, but make it known that your decisions are to be honored.

Thirty-nine percent service advisor turnover is too high. It costs you much more than you realize to lose a good service advisor, so do what you can to hire good ones and retain them. Minor costs to keep your good people are definitely less expensive than paying $45,000 for a new person.

It sounds ridiculous, I know. It’s not as easy as just writing more repair orders in a day. Yet, when your RO count is down, typically your gross profit and net are lower too. A stopgap can be to bring in more customers as temporary relief.

When it’s slow, there’s tension in the air. You see it in the faces of everyone who depends directly on customers rolling in the door for their income: service advisors who can’t make sales, technicians who won’t make hours, and even the poor lot guy who can’t stay for overtime. Ebbs and flows are common in the industry, but when it’s been slower than normal for longer than you expect, you need to do something about it. If not, here’s what happens:

• Your service advisors look for home runs. Every customer that comes into the service drive gets hit with the whole service menu at once. Because they’ve put on the full court press instead of properly caring for the customer, the all-or-nothing approach often leaves them with the one-line oil-change. Obviously, that hurts the bottom line even more.
• Your technicians target the cream of the crop. Instead of properly looking for additional repairs with a thorough vehicle inspection, they rush through the minor jobs, hoping to snag a big engine job or transmission rebuild that will feed them for a few days.
• Your support staff get complacent. Detailers, cashiers, and lot attendants are found hiding in corners, checking Facebook accounts or talking amongst themselves. It hurts your department even more as the few customers you have rolling through are left waiting longer than necessary.

What it takes to get things on track again is simple: more work rolling in.

Bring the Work In

A tactic that the sales department uses can and should be used by service departments also. Buying leads is common when sales are slow in the showroom, so why not do the same for service?

If you’re not familiar with the strategy, it’s straightforward. Your dealership places ads or deals in strategic places online. The deal captures the viewer’s attention and demands a click-through. The offer brings the viewer into your store, creating the extra traffic you need to keep your staff busy. Your store pays a fee for each response to the online ad.

It almost sounds too good to be true, but there are a few things you need to know to make it work for your store.

1. The quality of the offer is critical. Paid leads are all over the internet. You can buy placement in the best places, but a shoddy offer or unattractive ad is almost as ineffective as not doing it at all.

2. The placement is crucial. Targeting the right online traffic is the only way to get return on investment. Non-specific placement is like burning your advertising budget.

3. The ad design and wording can make it or break it. You’ve seen online advertisements that make you giggle because of bad grammar or spelling, and it totally trashes your credibility. It has to look and sound professional.

What You Need to Do

You have enough on your plate without adding ‘internet marketing guru’ to your job title. Leave it to the professionals. The sales department already advertises online, and I’ll almost guarantee that someone has the contact information for an agency. If they’ve been effective for the sales department, use them.

However, I don’t suggest letting them work for you unchecked. While some of what they do is far beyond what you’ll comprehend, you should have some idea of what to expect from their work. Ask about how you’ll be paying – cost per click, cost per impression, and so on. You need to know how much you expect to pay per response to your online ad.

Find out where the advertisement will be placed. Make sure it’s on social media, and provide criteria for the type of customer you want to draw in. The agency you use will likely help you figure this out. If they don’t ask, you might wonder if they’re right for the job.

Follow up on the ad. You should be able to receive a metric of some sort to see the results. Once the ad begins to run, it shouldn’t be long until the trickle into the service drive begins to flow a little stronger.

Disclaimer: this post is NOT about over-selling. You might find that it resounds with you, or you might completely and wholeheartedly disagree with me. But in my very humble opinion, the North American ‘customer service’ model is overly intrusive in the way service is provided.

I’m coming to the end of my vacation in Italy where you are served in a much different way than Americans are used to. From the waiter at the Michelin-star restaurant to the attendant at the fuel station, the employees in the leather shops to the tour guides, they are available at your beck and call.

Need a different size? Just look in their direction where they attentively watch at a distance. Want a top-up of Prosecco? Simply raise your eyes to the waiter a few steps away. Yet, in most cases, you aren’t pestered every minute about how you’re doing. You aren’t rushed to make your decision about dinner, nor are you asked how it tastes before your first bite is chewed and swallowed. It’s attentive but not intrusive.

The North American experience is much different with an emphasis on ‘excellent customer service’. At least, that’s what we say it is. You have a waiter hovering to take your order, ask you how it tastes, clearing your plate as you pick up the last bite, and bringing your bill so they can flip the table quickly.

And I contest that dealerships are similar in North America. You bring your car in for service, choose from the menu after you hear the ‘specials’, receive several phone calls to touch base and update, a follow-up call, thank-you email, CSI survey, and constant emails. After your next visit, it’s the same thing again.

The over-the-top customer service experience isn’t special anymore. It’s what is expected by all, dreaded by some, and appreciated as intended by only a few. So then, I ask you:

Would Your Customers Appreciate Less ‘Service’ From You?

In the craze of the daily life in a busy dealership service department, it can feel like you’re riding on the edge control. If one small thing goes haywire, your whole day can run off the rails. Might that ‘busyness’ come from doing too much unnecessarily? I think so.

I don’t know if there’s an easy answer, or if this is an opinion shared by others. But I’d like to know if you agree or disagree. Are there aspects of your service experience that are unnecessary? Are there processes that would free up much needed time for your staff if they were trimmed? I’ll give you just a few ideas I have about it.

The 80/20 Rule

If there’s something you do that benefits 80 percent of your clients – or just think of the vast majority -  it’s worthwhile. But if you’re implementing processes to satisfy the very occasional customer – the 20 percent – then is it really necessary to implement it across the board? Likely not.

When you’re making or changing processes, consider how many will benefit from it, and if the work involved is worth it.

Ask Your Customers

Every store has a few clients that are willing to give brutally honest feedback. All you need to do is ask them and you’ll quickly know if your store is doing too much to serve them. It wouldn’t surprise me if some said they get too many calls and emails from the dealership.

Consider What You Appreciate In Other Industries

It’s tough to think about what you want in the auto service industry – you’re too close to it. You can, however, apply the same principles from other industries such as restaurants and retail. When you come across something that annoys you, consider whether your store is similar and if it might annoy your customers.

For example, does the waitress ask if you’re ready to order as soon as you sit down at your table? If you haven’t heard what’s on the menu today, how should you know what to order? Similarly, if a service advisor asks a customer what their car is in for without reviewing the recommended services, a customer may be frustrated or unsure what they should get.

I’d love to hear what some thoughts and perspectives from others. Weigh in – I might be out to lunch!

As I write this, I’m resting comfortably in the Tuscan hills. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing Michelangelo’s David at Galleria dell’Accademia, visited the world-famous Uffizi, and roamed the labyrinth of streets in Venice. But perhaps the most impactful was the trip to Ferrari’s factory in Maranello. That’s the one place I’d model my business after.

This past month, the focus has been on the customer experience. It entails the type of people you employ and the training you provide right through to the building your store is housed in and the equipment you use. If you ever have the chance to see all those tools in action simultaneously, it will be at the Ferrari factory.

What’s So Special About Ferrari (besides the obvious)?

It really boils down to knowing who you are. The brand behind the prancing horse has it down to an art. If you ask someone at Ferrari what their all about, you’ll get a definitive answer. And more than providing an incredibly exceptional product, they are all about delivering precisely what each customer wants.

The customer experience is paramount, and that’s made clear from the first point of contact. If you want a new Ferrari – Portofino, LaFerrari, or any other model – the first step is visiting the factory to decide on your options. You choose your fabric, your paint colors, your stitching, accents, upgrades, and on. The tour guide emphasized that no two Ferrari cars are ever exactly alike.

That customized service experience is the exact model that has taken Enzo Ferrari’s 1947 startup to one of the most recognized name brands in the world. The customer is the focus, not the car. It’s simply assumed that the car will be of the utmost quality, because that’s what history has already proven.

See where I’m going with this?

It’s a process to become a ‘Ferrari’ in your city – that dealership that stands out above the rest. It isn’t overnight, and it takes commitment, dedication, and resources.

Steps to Become a Ferrari Among Jalopies

Your dealership might be the epitome of modern, using the latest technology, and carrying the full line of your brand’s models. But without a differentiator – without that exemplary customer experience – it’s all just cogs in a machine that doesn’t work. A jalopy or clunker, in a sense.

On a very high level, here are a few steps to become who you need to be to succeed.

The Complete Process

I once worked for a dealer principal, Larry, who always seemed like he was micromanaging. It’s been a few years, but now I see it for what it is: perfecting the process. If the ship had even a small leak, even one that posed no danger of sinking, a solution would be sought to not just plug the hole but prevent it from re-occurring.

 Enzo Ferrari did just that. He eliminated the smallest of concerns so there was nothing to detract from the Ferrari ownership experience. If there’s a health issue in your store, that’s something different altogether that needs to be addressed. But when a few problems keep popping up, or if there’s a bottleneck, get it fixed so it doesn’t interfere with the customer experience.

Commitment

At the factory, I saw one of the last Ferrari California models getting water tested after its build was complete. It’s fascinating that a car that has been perfected in engineering for several years still gets tested every single time.

If it seems to be running smoothly in your store, remain vigilant. Just one person cutting corners on their job will affect the other staff they work with, their management, the product, and ultimately the customer experience. Remain committed to providing the top-level service for each of your clients, and test your process.

Invest in Your Store

The Ferrari factory is incredible in size, employing more than 3,100 people in over 600,000 square feet of space. That doesn’t come without sizeable investments. If you want to offer the Ferrari experience, you can’t do it on a Fiat budget.

Spend money on high-quality equipment, pay the ransom for your dealership’s facelift, and most of all, invest in your employees. Onboard only the staff that will make you better and pay them accordingly. Train them so you can keep them at their peak performance.

You don’t need to sell Ferrari’s, Lamborghini’s, or any other high-end brand. The customer experience is of paramount concern. Become the brand you want your customers to experience, and you’re going to be successful.

As a service department, your day is filled with serving customers. That’s your purpose for being there, after all. You see familiar faces that visit every three or four months, and there are new customers who are trying your store for the first time.

In customer service, the experience is a large chunk of what separates the good dealerships from the bad ones. But what also weighs in heavily, elevating the great service departments from the good ones, is beyond the in-store experience. It’s how you express your appreciation to your customers.

It’s More Than Just Follow-Up

Absolutely no one in their right mind would dispute the value of following up with customers after a service visit. It’s a valuable practice; one that tells you how your team is performing and ensures the customer is satisfied. Follow-up must be done, but there’s something to add to it.

Every customer MUST know their patronage is appreciated.

For some service department staff, there are times when you feel like you’re the hero of the story. It’s your helping actions that saved the day, and the customer should thank you for it. Sometimes they may, and that’s great. But it’s a business transaction for the customer and they are the ones paying the bill. It’s a payment for a service provided, and it’s a service that you don’t exclusively provide.

But for your dealership’s service department, there’s something at stake: future business from the customer. If it’s left as a simple business transaction by both the customer and the shop, it’s easy for the customer to take their business elsewhere.

‘Thank You’ as Positive Reinforcement

- “I know you have choices for your vehicle service. I just wanted to say thank you for choosing us to service your car. I appreciate it.”

- “Thanks for your feedback. We’ll check if there’s a way to make the shuttle service more efficient. Still, thank you for your patronage. It’s customers like you that make my day.”

- “I’m so glad everything went smoothly for your service visit. Thanks again for choosing me as your service advisor. See you again soon.”

These phrases are what you can expect when you call a customer simply to show your appreciation for their patronage. It’s nothing much to you, but it’s invaluable to the customer and their future visits.

You can’t honestly believe that your dealership’s service department is a customer’s only choice. Even for warranty work, very few customers live too far away from another dealer to make the switch. So, keeping your customers is a principle goal, or at least it should be.principle goal, or at least it should be.

When a simple thank-you call is what it takes to create positive reinforcement after a service visit, is there a good reason not to? You’re not honestly too busy, are you? It would be good if every customer received follow-up call from your call center, then a personal thank-you call from a front-line staff member.

Give it a Couple Days

It feels scripted or forced if the thank-you call is the day after the service. That’s a good time for a follow-up call, but not a thank-you call. Ideally, you want the customer’s memory of their visit to begin to fade. Then, when it’s no longer fresh, you call.

Your thank-you call reminds the customer who you are. It brings a positive spin after the service visit, whether it went perfectly well or not. And, it shows a caring attitude. These things should help retain your customers as your own. Why give them a reason to defect to a different shop?

At the dealership level, the customer’s expectations are high. For the price your clients pay, they want an experience – even more so than their car fixed right. Now, while you absolutely must be committed to ‘Fixed First Visit’, there are little things that aren’t prerequisites that are just as important, or perhaps even more important.

The Dealership View vs Customer Perception

In your store and your service department, the staff have one overriding thought (from what I’ve seen anyway): get the car fixed right and the customer will be satisfied. It’s a service department where you fix cars, and shouldn’t that be the main concern?

The problem is that nearly any shop can fix the customer’s car – dealership or the corner shop down the street. Staff members think your premium charges are for your expertise in vehicle maintenance and repairs, so naturally, that becomes your daily focus. But that’s not how the customer sees it.

The customer’s perception on a service visit to the dealership is minimally on the repair or service. It absolutely must be done correctly, but in the customer’s view, that’s a foregone conclusion; a natural expectation. They are in your store for a purpose beyond the vehicle’s requirements. And that’s where the problems come from.

Realistic Expectations?

It’s all the little things that your customers expect at the dealership level. There are benefits that only your store provides that they desire, expect, and get frustrated about more than anything. It’s these little details that make or break your CSI scores, convince customers to be long-term clients, and trust your store for their next vehicle.

You’re wondering which details I mean. Here are a few:

• Car washes. If your store offers a complimentary car wash for visiting the service department, you’d better be certain you can handle the volume. Every. Single. Car. After it happens just once, the customer has a realistic expectation that it should happen every time they bring in their car. I can’t tell you the number of customer surveys over the years that complained their car wasn’t washed.
• Shuttle Service. It’s a delicate subject. Obviously, you can’t have a one-to-one ratio of drivers to customers, and wait times have to be expected. But when a customer’s wait time isn’t acceptable and they are late for work or otherwise, it’s going to make them upset. That little thing, a perk that you provide, is a stumbling stone you’ve placed in the customer’s path.
• Vehicle pickup. Sometimes it’s just an oil change, so why should an advisor attend the cashier with the customer? I’ll tell you why from my wife’s perspective: There may have been an expected call that new tires were required, or that the maintenance is up to date. Speaking with the customer when they’re picking up their vehicle gives reassurance and positive reinforcement that they’ve made a good choice for service departments. Or, in my wife’s case, a sour taste in her mouth for NOT getting that level of care.

Driving It Home

Every time. The little things need to happen every time. Do you promise your customers their car will be washed? There’s no excuses for a backlog in the wash bay. Put extra bodies back there to make it happen. Are you concerned with the availability and efficiency of your shuttle service? Add an extra vehicle to the fleet, or take advantage of your manufacturer’s incentives for a loaner fleet. Frustrated about the vehicle pickup situation? Change the process so customers see the advisor, not the cashier, to pick up their cars.

Whether it’s a verbal or written promise or not, the little things are what set you apart from the other shops. The independent and chain repairs shops are narrowing the gap for repair quality. You can’t rest on your expertise as the sole reason customers should see you, and not them.

I hope it caught your attention. The title certainly goes against the grain of every bit of training that you’ve endorsed or been a part of. Honestly, what could there possibly be about bad service that’s better than an average service experience?

But for the automotive service industry, it’s true! Let’s give you a little anecdote, using an experience with a client I’ve had the pleasure of serving in the past.

An Average Service Visit

A customer – let’s call her Lily – was someone that came in when it was convenient for her. Lily would call same day to see if our shop could accommodate her maintenance or minor issues. Usually we could, but if we couldn’t, she’d pop in at a different dealership that could. It was no problem for her.Usually we could, but if we couldn’t, she’d pop in at a different dealership that could. It was no problem for her.

When Lily came into the service drive, she was passive and non-committal for anything aside from the basic oil change. She trusted enough to know a dealership was the best place to service her vehicle, but didn’t really trust us, the staff.vehicle, but didn’t really trust us, the staff.non-committal for anything aside from the basic oil change. She trusted enough to know a dealership was the best place to service her vehicle, but didn’t really trust us, the staff.

So, every visit was average. No shining moments. While courteous and friendly, there wasn’t a connection with Lily.

The Day It Went Really Badly

Then one service visit, everything went wrong. Lily was told to come in that same day but when she arrived, the shop was suddenly overwhelmed. The maintenance her SUV required was more than she expected. Her service advisor (me) was disconnected and simply in sales mode, not service mode. Lily’s quick oil change turned into a nightmare. It was the perfect storm of horribleness that no service advisor wants in their day.

But that day is the best thing that happened between Lily and me, professionally speaking.

What Happened Through a Bad, Bad Service Experience

When it all went south, emotions bubbled over. Lily was super angry and was free with her expressive words. As someone at least partially responsible, I had to take it. I had failed Lily, even though it wasn’t all on me. But something amazing happened.

A dialog opened up.

Sure, it was an inopportune time for it, and certainly wasn’t fun. But now I had Lily’s full attention. The short form involves stepping up to the plate, taking ownership for the failure, and acknowledging the customer’s frustration and inconvenience. Moreover, and pivotally, it gave me an opportunity to FIX the situation and PROVE my trustworthiness.

How is Bad Better than Average?

The customers that come into your service drive just because of convenience are alright with just an average service experience. They don’t need to be committed or emotionally involved. And if you’re not able to service their vehicle when they want, they’ll go elsewhere without a second thought.

A bad service visit, on the other hand, has several impacts.

• It’s memorable. A snapshot of the moment is engrained in the customer’s brain.
• It involves emotion. When a customer is able to express their frustration or anger, that means something. An emotional response means there’s a specific concern or a need that hasn’t been met.
• There’s communication. Do you hear about average service visits? It’s unlikely. But you hear from the angry customers or those who hate your guts. That line of communication is unguarded and allows you to respond. HOW you respond is the most important item.
• It gives you an opportunity. When you KNOW about the problem, which you do from a bad service visit, it gives you an opportunity to correct it, or fight back. If it’s unclear, the right response is to find a resolution.

How Lily’s Situation Turned Out

I knocked Lily’s socks off with my opportunity to resolve her bad visit. It involved a financial hit with a rental car and a service credit for a future visit. But what I promised to do to resolve the concern happened to the letter, and I earned her loyal service business on absolutely everything.

I saw Lily every six weeks or so, for one thing or another. If I was busy, she’d wait. If I was off, she’d make an appointment. She followed every recommendation without question from then on. Her loyalty was earned through a response to a bad service visit, an opportunity you NEVER GET from an average customer’s visit.  

To Be Clear…

Don’t tick off your customers on purpose. That’s a horrible idea. And don’t settle for average in the service drive, because that’s a great way for another fantastic shop to steal your customers away.

When you see a frustrated, angry, annoyed, or otherwise disturbed customer, take it as your opportunity. Embrace the opportunity to astound that person with your care and concern, and your willingness to take responsibility and take action to correct their situation.

You arrive at the dealership in the morning, and you set down to your role. Whether it’s service advisor, cashier, service manager or even the lot attendant, it’s a job or career that’s going to cash in at the end of the pay period. Yet, if that’s your only focus, you’ve missed the bigger picture.

The service department is more than a name. It’s a place where customers bring their vehicles, and in exchange for an excellent job, they fork over fistfuls of cash that, partly, pay that healthy salary of yours. Between paydays, your number one purpose isn’t to show up on time, dress appropriately, take a lunch break, then head home at the end of your shift. It’s to provide expert service for each and every client that comes through your dealership’s door.

I Know, I’ve Been There

From more than a decade of experience behind the service desk, I know how easy it is to lose focus on your purpose. Your dealership promises customers that they’ll be cared for in the best possible way every time they visit. That job is why you have a paycheck coming in, and that promise is supposed to be the purpose.

I’d be a liar and a fool if I told you I had my priorities straight even half the time I worked at the service desk. I worked for myself, earning the fat check that would pay for my next vacation, a bigger TV, or a better car.

The other portion of my tenure as a service advisor, when I was focused on the customer, was the best part of my job overall. There were difficult customers to be certain, but there were many more pleasant or even happy people that I could sincerely help in their day. When I could give my honest advice about how best to complete a repair or what maintenance we could schedule for next month or next visit instead of today, I was the most satisfied as a service team member.

It's All About Service.

You can’t forget about dollars per RO, gross percentages, or CSI scores. But when your focus is on the right thing – the customer first – those other items fall into place. In the service department, it’s all about honest, helpful customer service.

Find the Bullseye Every Morning

In a short 18-month period that I worked on the sales floor, there’s one thing that I think the service department could mimic to stay focused. Saturday mornings always had a sales meeting, a rally to give salespeople an extra pep in their step. In the service department, a morning huddle is one of the greatest things we never did.

Think of it: everyone on the service front line gets together for a three to five-minute meeting every morning before the service drive doors open. The service manager gives a brief overview of the day – which technicians are off, which departments are scheduled heavy, current spiffs, etc. It’s the perfect time to tell team members of known picky customers coming in, and small adjustments that could be made to make the day better.

Aside from arriving five minutes earlier, is there a negative in this plan? Here’s what I see:

• Staff are more prepared for the day’s customers.
• The advisors can adjust sales approaches for upselling.
• The team can give feedback about how small problems could be smoothed out today.
• The customers get a better experience from a well-oiled machine.

Whether it’s a morning meeting every day or another type of interaction, I know from personal experience that employees need to be refocused frequently. When your eye is focused on the bullseye, you hit your mark more frequently. If you’ve lost your focus, looking elsewhere or your gaze is drifting off target, who knows where the dart will end up?

It is evident recalls aren’t going away. The scourge of the Takata airbag inflator recalls is just the tip of the iceberg. No manufacturer is exempt from the issue, whether it’s BMW or Mazda, Ford or Nissan. In the past, the plight of the service department was simply to grin and bear it, pushing through recall work to get to the profitable customer-pay repairs, like a light at the end of the tunnel. But in the recent months and years, the tunnel just hasn’t ended.

It looks like recalls are the new normal. And that means the service industry needs to find a way to turn recalls into an advantage. It’s no easy feat to make vehicle recalls a positive thing for your customers; the recall notice in the mail has soured their taste, sometimes creating a disconnect with the car they once loved and the manufacturer to which they’ve been loyal.

It’s possible to turn recalls into a profitable business, if you’re up to the challenge. While it’s no simple thing to spin recalls into a positive light, you can make the most of your situation. As they say, “Make hay while the sun shines”.

Bring On the Vehicle Recalls

It’s tempting to simply wait until the recalled cars show up at your door, or wait for the scheduled appointments. But at that point, you’re leaving the customer’s attitude to chance. Will they be frustrated and irate or complacent about the recall? They certainly won’t be singing your praises – in fact, you’ll be cannon fodder for their anger.

You should have the ability to print lists of recalls for vehicles retailed at your store. Print them; all of them. Then, begin piling you schedule high with recall work.

Carefully script the calls to emphasize your store’s role in correcting the issue. And even though it’s not anyone’s fault at your store, own the recall. Apologize that it affects the customer. Then offer the correction – an appointment at a convenient time.

The goal is to create never-ending work for your shop, filling any gaps that may have been open in the service bay. Make hay, my friend, make hay.

Provide a Complimentary Service

A customer can go to any franchised dealer for their brand for their recalls. You must set yourself apart to capture the appointment, especially the customers who have defected or haven’t entered your doors in years. What do customers appreciate more than anything? Freebies.

Offer a complimentary service that benefits your customer and you. A car wash isn’t enough because it doesn’t do anything for your future business – it needs to be in the shop. Provide a complimentary multi-point inspection, as an example. It’s a service that can identify deficiencies in the vehicle and a platform from which you can sell. Which bring us to…

Upsell in the Service Department

It’s the penultimate purpose for bringing in all those recall customers. Dealers have reported increases of 33 percent in customer-pay revenue on the backs of recalls. Capturing those dollars can’t be a passive thing. It must be actively sold, which is why a complimentary multi-point inspection is so beneficial. From the proof – a checklist or estimate sheet – you can demonstrate why you have earned their business, all from actively seeking out their recall appointment.

It’s fundamental that service staff understand the importance of these upsells. Converting recall-only appointments is hard work and often ends in a $0-dollar CP RO. But it’s the customer who bites the baited hook and drops their money at your dealership that you want. You’ve proven to that customer that you’re worthy of their business, and you should expect repeat business from them also.

Convert into New Car Sales

The summit of the recall visit, should your dealership be able to climb the mountain successfully, is a new car sale. It results when the service staff understand the purpose isn’t just to sell CP service work but to capture a client for life. And it’s why the service-to-sales handoff is so critical.

Opening a dialog with the customer at the service desk, planting ideas about the benefits of trading up, and even walking them over to your sales counterpart is the holy grail of vehicle recalls. If you can achieve this with just one or two percent of recall customers, you’re doing fantastic.

Seldom will a recall customer buy a new car on the same visit as their recall appointment. However, planting that seed, establishing friendly faces across multiple departments, and starting the conversation builds the relationship towards that ultimate goal of future sales.