Customer retention at the dealership level is abysmal after a customer’s new vehicle warranty expires. Extended service contracts help somewhat, but the Cox Automotive 2018 Service Industry Study shows that, at best, 33 percent of vehicle maintenance and repairs happen at the dealership. Keep in mind, that doesn’t even mean it happens at the selling dealership.

It’s obvious that customers don’t trust dealerships. Focus groups have shown that the general public believes dealerships are obscenely expensive, usually with the perception that their service department charges double the rate of an aftermarket provider. That’s why customer defection rates are so high.

And whether you think your clientele are loyal or not, they’re shopping you for price. On average, car owners call around for two additional quotes before deciding who will get their business.

Price matters.

Lowest Price Doesn’t Mean the Winning Bid

Now, you don’t have to have the lowest price to gain a customer’s maintenance and repair business. You just need to be close. You might be thinking, “Our service prices are very competitive with other local dealers and aftermarket shops, but it’s not enough!” You’d be right. It’s not enough to just have competitive prices.

Customers need to know your prices are competitive.

On this topic, I performed some firsthand research. Don’t worry, service managers, I’m not naming names. What I found are these contrasts between the customer’s perspective and the dealership’s view:

- Dealers perceived their prices to be in line and, in some cases, lower than the aftermarket. That is a very different view than the customer has of the dealership charging twice as much.

- Across the country, service managers believed customers would be willing to pay between 5 and 90 percent more for their services than an aftermarket provider. Customers are more likely to choose the dealer if they’re within 20 percent.

- None of the dealerships were aware that customers think they charge double the price of an aftermarket provider.

The Extras Make the Difference

Consumers have no doubt that their OEM dealership is the best place to service their vehicle. They’re the only place that can perform warranty repairs and they have the special equipment necessary to handle the most complex diagnosis. They can expect to wait comfortably in the lounge, get a ride home with a shuttle, or even get a loaner car. There’s confidence in using OEM parts and fluids, plus a host of other advantages over the competition.

Consumers will happily pay more for these extras.

The challenge is for consumers to understand your dealership isn’t double the price. It’s on you as the authority in auto service to show them that your menu pricing is competitive.

A Massive Opportunity to Gain Trust

If your sales-to-service customer retention is only 33 percent, that means 2 in 3 customers are going elsewhere. Some of that will be due to their proximity to your shop while others might be DIYers. But you can be certain that some of those – maybe 1 in 3 – don’t come through your service drive because they don’t trust your service pricing is fair. You can influence that figure.

Provide a consistent message through data-driven marketing that shows your pricing is competitive. Competitive comparison pricing data is the tool to use, and it’s readily available through most OEMs.

Use competitive comparison pricing data to show the value your store provides for services through service mailers, in-store menu boards, and on your website. And if you can keep the theme consistent, your customers will begin to take notice while they’re shopping around for the best price.

Again, it doesn’t have to be the lowest price in the neighborhood, but it must be within 15 to 20 percent.

You can:

- Send mailers to current customers, and especially to those who haven’t serviced at your store in the past 12 months. Show the competitive pricing along with the extras you provide.

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• - Post local competitive prices on your menu board. This transparency lets your customers know you’re aware what other places charge, plus it lets them compare firsthand if your pricing is reasonable. 
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• - Be deliberate in posting customer testimonials. Another customer places more weight on a third party’s words than on what you say.

How Competitive Comparison Pricing Benefits the Dealership

Over time, implementing intentional strategies around competitive pricing analysis is bound to pay dividends.

Consumers develop trust in your dealership. Through transparent pricing and data-driven marketing, you’re able to build a trusting relationship with customers over the long term.

Customer retention rates are higher. The customers who would’ve gone elsewhere because they once thought you charged too much now continue to service their vehicles at your store. And when 74 percent of car buyers complete their purchase where they regularly service their car, that’s going to mean referral and repeat vehicle sales business.

Service department revenue increases. Even though you might be dropping the occasional price on a menu item, your overall revenue increases from the other RO lines you sell, as well as the multiple annual visits each customer makes between vehicle purchases.

Access Comparison Pricing Data the Expert Way

There’s no need to make mystery shopping calls by yourself to a few local shops. InteliChek provides competitive comparison pricing data from local dealers and aftermarkets. It’s up to date and ready to put into action.

Better yet, InteliChek can make marketing your competitive edge easy through printed promotional materials, your website, and a nifty little widget. And because it’s all fueled by a third party, it gains traction with your customers in a way you can’t on your own.

Transparent service pricing is only effective if you’re competitive in your locale. With intentional use of competitive comparison pricing data, you’ll build customer trust while you’re at it.

As a former service advisor for one of the busiest Chevrolet dealerships on the prairies, I know firsthand how many customer interactions frontline staff have on a daily basis. It becomes so incredibly easy for the job to take on a factory-style assembly line feel. One after another, you check customers in for appointments, send them on their way, call them with an estimate, and call again when their car is ready.

Some days, you feel like you hit a rhythm and things are great. You’ve written 15 to 20 customer ROs or maybe more, you haven’t forgotten any phone calls, and all the work is done at the end of the day.

But for some reason, the customers don’t seem impressed. The problem is this: the workflow has become about YOU, not serving the customer to the best of your ability.

Not Always the Advisor’s Fault

Honestly, I get it. With as busy as it gets in the service department, it’s might be all you can do to keep your head above water. There are days where you just have to push through the heavy, hard parts of the job – expensive estimates, unhappy customers, and people who don’t have the same passion and care as you do. Those days happen.

However, some days become self-centered when the service department should always be about serving the customer. To do that well involves determining the customers’ needs and finding a way to make their experience better.

Making the Shop Process More Customer Friendly

One of the things I hated about being a service advisor was managing expectations, both for the technicians and the customers. There are two very different views:

• The technician thinks, “My time is valuable. For every five minutes I’m waiting for the customer to approve this work, I lose $XX dollars. I’m kicking it out – I can always bring it back in later.”
• The customer thinks, “I’m paying my hard-earned money to have ABC Motors service my vehicle. If they won’t respect my time, I’ll just take it elsewhere.”

A technician expects a fast answer for upsells and estimated repairs. A customer expects fast service for the expertise at the dealership.  But only one of those opinions truly matters – the customer.

How Does the Service Advisor Factor In?

To manage these expectations falls on the service advisor largely. It becomes their job to contact the customer quickly, sell the work, add the RO lines, and get the technician rolling. But the customer call isn’t always quick as the tech wants or the call goes a different direction than expected.

With a few adjustments to the service process, it can serve both the customer and the technician well… especially the customer.

• At service checkin, ask the customer for a pre-authorization. “Mr. Jones, if the cost to repair your brakes is under $300, should I have the technician proceed? Or would you prefer I call you first?” With an option to approve a pre-authorization as well a ceiling for that pre-auth, around 70% of customers will give the go-ahead. You’ll still need to call before the vehicle is ready, but you’ve bought a bit of time.
• During checkin, confirm the fastest method to reach the customer if necessary. Offer text messaging, phone calls, or emails. With smartphones, most customers can respond quickly if they know it might be an urgent call about their car.
• Adjust the workflow to diagnose and estimate concerns before preauthorized maintenance and repairs. With a diagnosis complete, the tech can move onto the other services while you reach out to the customer. It’s a common process for many dealers already, but certainly not all.

It’s All Contingent on a Few Basics

Any of these suggestions can be used to improve the service process. For them to be effective, a few things need to be in place.

First, a walkaround has to be done on every service drive check-in. Every time. No exceptions. This builds trust that you’re caring for their car and, ultimately, for the customer.

Second, the customer has to be convinced that your pricing is competitive. If you don’t have regionally competitive service pricing, there could be a delay in an approval if they feel the need to call around for quotes first.

Third, and most important, it’s all in the customer’s hands. Follow the customer’s lead in how they want to be treated. If they want to ask more questions or need some extra time to make a decision, give it to them. Being pushy or trying to fit a customer into your ‘box’ won’t work. You’ll just tick them off.

With new car sales trending downward, dealerships will be relying more heavily than ever on their service departments to attract, serve, and keep the customers. Do your part by making the experience about the customer, not about you.

No matter what industry you look at, there are things we’d change as a customer. For the health care field, the wait time to see your doctor wouldn’t be as long (and they’d be on time for appointments!) For the food service industry, the kitchen would only use fresh ingredients instead of pre-prepared or frozen.

It’s probably safe to assume that all of us here are in the automotive industry. We think we’ve done a pretty good job of increasing efficiency for the customer, specifically for the service department. The customer can book an appointment online, there’s an option to wait for your vehicle or take transportation home or to work, and the workflow through the shop has become as streamlined as possible.

But that’s streamlined for us, not the customer.

Both firsthand and anecdotally, the service process isn’t as customer friendly as we think it might be. Just like all other industries, customers find flaws (often, MANY flaws) in how dealerships operate their service departments.

Online Appointments

It’s become an industry standard to offer an online appointment calendar. Customers can choose the services they think they need, pick a convenient time, and bring their vehicle in. But it’s never that smooth, is it?

Think about it from the customer’s perspective. You’ve booked an appointment online and arrive precisely on time. You’re met with a busy service drive and a 10-minute wait to see your service advisor. The advisor then reviews your appointment details and performs a walkaround (hopefully). Then, you’re given your quote for the services requested, and you’re on your way.

Doesn’t sound bad, but the customer sees:

• An inconvenient wait when they arrive for an appointment time.
• Duplication between their online request and the advisor’s review and upsells.
• Often a different estimate between the online booking and the in-person visit.

In today’s world of ‘omni-experience’, I’ve yet to see an online appointment scheduler that mimics the in-dealership’s experience and pricing. It’s inconsistent, and that damages trust.

And this is just one facet. We could talk about how your workflow through the shop isn’t customer-centric or why someone from a call center might be performing follow-up calls instead of in-dealership staff. Customers don’t view it as efficient.

Making Processes More Efficient for the Customer

So, let’s take a look at how a customer’s online appointment might serve them better.

Before the Visit

Online appointment forms typically do alright to suggest required services…for the current mileage. They assume maintenance and repairs are up to date and that there aren’t any declined services. Aside from a walkaround, this is where an advisor would need to upsell.

For online appointments, have a service advisor – or well-trained BDC member – contact the customer to check up on any declined services. State the quote they’ve received online for consistency. Then there’s less time spent in dealership when they check in for their appointment.

At Check-In

Have a ‘fast lane’ for online appointments. There’s no need to review the work order requests unless there are add-ons by the customer. Have a pre-work order ready for a signature once the mileage is recorded. And once again, review the pricing from the online appointment, plus any potential add-ons.

The Walkaround

One step that can’t be skipped or trimmed: the walkaround. You’re building trust in this stage by showing thoroughness and consistency by performing a walkaround every time. After a 90-second walkaround, the customer is ready to go.

When Service is Complete

When the vehicle has been completed in the shop and the customer is informed (with their desired method of communication), review the work completed and re-state the price they were first quoted along with the final price if there were any additional services or repairs. When a customer has heard the same pricing consistently between the online appointment and vehicle pickup, even if there have been changes, it builds trust.

These facets all increase efficiency for a customer, and we’ll look at others in the coming weeks. You might find they cost your service department in additional staffing. But if a customer-centric omni-experience is what you truly want to offer, start asking questions from the customer’s perspective.

Recently, I’ve been asked to audit a few dealers’ fixed operations presence on their websites. They’ve found that their customer engagement hasn’t been performing how they expected, especially for online appointment scheduling. The main trouble they’ve cone into is that their one-line work orders have increased and it’s harder to upsell in the service drive.

If you look at it from the customer’s perspective, though, it’s hard to be surprised at the results. It’s true that customers feel empowered to make decisions when they can book an appointment online, at their convenience, and with transparent pricing, but there’s a deeper issue.

It’s much more difficult to build value in a service online.

All of the dealerships I audited had one main problem: their effective labor rate was decreasing because customers were booking their loss leaders. The online appointments contributed to one-line oil changes, price-shopped tire services, and the like. Very few customers were booking the scheduled maintenance package, going so far as de-selecting items recommended by time and mileage.

Not one of the dealerships recalled a timing belt replacement booked through their website. Same goes for the start of a major powertrain job. And only one dealer specifically recalled selling a full set of tires in an online appointment.

Why Customers Don’t See Value

Auto maintenance and repairs don’t have the same appeal as purchasing a vehicle, I think we can all agree on that. It’s money that car owners have to spend that doesn’t have any visible results, which is why it’s easy for people to cut back on vehicle maintenance. It’s perceived as an expense, not a valuable purchase – at least, that’s how it is for most car owners.

As dealerships, employing a website to drive traffic to service and parts is a fundamental component now, and it’s growing even more important. It must be done well to have the same effectiveness as customers calling up to book with a BDC or service advisor. That’s not easy to do, so how do you build value while the customer is online?

Service Pages Really Are the Key

Creating service content pages for the website was primarily for Search Engine Optimization (SEO) previously. In today’s market, service pages must do much more than be keyword-heavy. They have to deliver content the customer is going to consume.

A whole library of service pages should be available for the customers, especially while booking their appointment online. Pages such as timing belt replacement, wheel alignments, transmission fluid change, brake fluid flush, and any other services that could be commonly booked for your OEM’s vehicles – there should be a dedicated page for each. And every page should contain:

• What the service is about
• Why it’s necessary
• What happens when the service isn’t performed
• And a brief explanation of how it’s done

And for even more engaging content and added value, include a video of this information on the page. If it’s a service advisor or a technician featured in the video, it can become more trustworthy yet.

The Presentation

Serving your customers online properly includes answering questions as they come up. When will your online appointment-bookers most often wonder why a wheel alignment is recommended? It’s while they’re booking the appointment.

If it’s at all possible with your online appointment scheduling system, link to the related service page in the service description. When the customer wonders, “Why would I need that?”, the answer is only a click away.

If linking in the appointment scheduler isn’t possible, add a list of services above or below the scheduler for reference. While not ideal, it could still help.

If customers can see the value in specific services while they’re booking the appointment, they’re much less likely to un-check that box. It’s another step in transparency and trust-building, and certainly can’t hurt the customer experience online.

As a consumer, I expect my experience to be consistent with the research I’ve done online. To me, it doesn’t matter if it’s finding an item I want in stock or having the prices match between online and on the shelf. And I’ll bet you share the frustration with me in how often consistency just isn’t there.

Two quick examples to show what I mean.

Very recently, I participated in soliciting quotes for a venue to put on a fundraising dinner. One company offered a menu online for exactly what I was researching – four-course prime rib dinner for $30.95. Upon calling to clarify availability and a few other details, the events manager emailed me the menu with additional information…but the menu was different than I’d seen online. The same dinner was $32.55. While not a huge price jump, it affected how I thought I could expect other aspects to go.

And more applicable yet to the automotive industry was a recent service visit I made for my wife’s vehicle. After a frustrating online booking process, I checked in at the dealership for my appointment. As the service advisor confirmed my requests, it was nothing like I booked online. The ‘Service B’ package for $89.95 was completely gone, replaced by an oil change and tire rotation. Plus, a note had been added that I was interested in purchasing winter tires. Not so! All I needed were TPM sensors programmed, and I specified exactly that in the appointment notes!

Consistency Isn’t Just Convenient, It’s Crucial

What might seem like minor inconveniences that didn’t have a huge effect on the outcome really are a big deal. Here’s why:

• According to a Demand Metric report in 2016, revenue increases by 23 percent when a customer sees consistency across all channels.
• In the same report, “less than 10 percent of this study’s participants hit this level of consistency.”

It isn’t just consistency in pricing that matters either. A consistent brand image is important from the logo you put on your website and direct mail to the colors you choose for your email blasts and the in-store finishing details.

For service departments and marketing professionals, the language and presentation for your service menu needs to look the same online as it is in the service drive. Taking my example from earlier (it’s the God’s-honest truth, by the way), your ‘Service B’ package online should be a ‘Service B’ package in the store. Your BDC shouldn’t need to translate it into the actual RO line items you offer – you have the tools to build out the RO lines as you see fit.

You’ll Make More Money

The immediate benefit from omni-channel consistency? It’s financially rewarding. Imagine tacking on an extra 23 percent to every RO, and all it takes is aligning your online experience, your in-store experience, and the campaigns you send your customers. For many stores, an extra 23 percent could be the bridge to achieve 100% service absorption. Take a moment to check if that’s how much it would affect your store.

You Won’t Tick Off Customers

More importantly, consistency is another tool for customer retention. If someone can trust that the information they see online will match the service, pricing, or product provided in store, they’ll become increasingly loyal.

The 2018 Cox Automotive Service Industry Study gives dealers a chance to laud their service advisors instead of admonishing them. One very important statistic that comes up in the report is this: 53 percent of service visits at the dealership included multiple services.

It’s a full 12 percent higher than just three years previous, in 2015. It should not be downplayed either. Tighter sales margins in variable ops means dealers will rely more heavily on service department revenue, and service advisors are bellying up to the bar, making it happen. While 12 percent is sure to benefit the bottom line, there remains a good chunk of customer ROs that are one-liners.

Lucky for dealers, the one-line ROs are less frequently just an oil change, according to the same Cox Automotive study. Whatever the job on that one line, the dealership can only benefit if that same RO had two or more lines on it.

Can’t Always Upsell the Same Stuff

I’m sure most service advisors would agree that upselling the same services customer after customer gets tiring very quickly. Only so many will want that brake replacement package you offer or the seasonal inspection. And the cooling system flush upsell just doesn’t go over as well in spring as it does in the fall.

It wears as thin on customers as it does on advisors. What people want is a service experience tailored to their needs, not one-size-fits-all suggestions.

Some upsells, however, work that way. The question you ask is effectively personal and can be asked of every customer as this summer season rolls around.

Summer Questions Advisors Can Ask

Of course, pay close attention to the customer. If you feel they aren’t in the space for it, give it a pass. There’s no need to tick off a customer just to attempt an upsell. But for anyone who seems mildly tuned into what you have to say, here are a few suggestions.

“How Has Your Air Conditioning Been Working?”

 A/C efficiency is a concern that many customers feel they can live with. It’s normal for an A/C system to lose 15-20 percent of its efficiency by the end of three years, and customers will begin to notice the difference. Often, it only requires a refrigerant evac and recharge to get it ice-cold again. It could also be an opportunity to add on a cabin air filter. Or, an A/C repair might be in order, and the average cost is $488, a nice addition to an RO.

“Did You Know Salt and Sand in Your Carpets Damages the Fibers?”

On the walkaround, did you notice that there are salt stains in the carpets? You’ll find this mainly in northern states after winter breaks. It’s true – the sand and salt in the carpet is an abrasive and causes carpet fibers to break off. It’s a segue into an upsell on detailing packages beyond the normal wash and vac. No matter the client, you’ll find that car owners whose vehicles are less than eight years old take pride in their ride and want to keep it clean and in good shape.

“When Was the Last Time You Looked at Your Tires?”

Going into summer, good tire tread is important for traction in rain, snow, and even the heat. More than one in three car owners can’t tell if a tire is bald. 78 percent of vehicles that enter the service drive require tire services of some kind, whether rotation, tire repair, or replacement. This question opens the conversation to bring the customer to their car and look at their tires with them. Not only is it a time you can build trust with the car owner, but a great opportunity to upsell tires or tire services.

And that brings up the key to it all: building customer trust. Upsells are so important for boosting the bottom line, and making money is the reason a dealership is in business. But it can’t be at the expense of losing a customer’s trust. With every interaction, weigh whether your actions and your speech build up that relationship or damage it.

New cars have more technology packed into them today, and it’s only increasing. Think about this: the world’s first supercomputer, the CDC 6600 in 1964, had just 982kB of memory and weighed in at 12,000 pounds. 55 years later, your smartphone weighs less than one pound and packs thousands of times the CDC 6600’s computing power into its tiny case. Imagine all the tech that can and does fit into a car. It’s mind-blowing.

All that technology is great to have, from convenience and comfort to saving lives through advanced safety systems. But in the service department, these high-tech features are the cause of many frustrating conversations, no fault found diagnoses, and poor CSI surveys.

Why is Tech a Stumbling Block?

What’s meant to enhance a customer’s car ownership experience becomes a sore spot. I’m thinking of a friend who doesn’t know how to operate her new Mercedes-Benz’s Active Parking Assist and doesn’t trust her Adaptive Cruise Control. Are those value-added and safety features doing anything to enhance her ownership? Not at all. If anything, it makes her think about buying a different brand.

Customers like my friend aren’t unintelligent. However, she thinks there’s something wrong with her Active Parking Assist system. And what I can guarantee you is that she’s going to make an appointment at the local dealer, drop her car off in the morning, and become frustrated that there’s nothing to fix. It’s working as designed (I can safely assume).

It’s an education problem.

The Service Staff are Doing Everything Right

When a customer drops off a vehicle for a technology-related complaint, the service advisor has to assume they’ve been taught how to use their car’s features. Unless there’s a glaring bit of the conversation that leads them to think otherwise, you must give the customer the benefit of the doubt, right?

Same goes for the technician. If the feature or system is functioning as designed, it’s their job to declare it an NFF diagnosis.

The ball has been dropped earlier on, back when the car was bought and delivered. The good news is that the service department has an opportunity to turn this negative experience into a positive and build on their trusting relationship with the customer.

Educate in the Service Drive

While I worked for a GM franchise previously, I was the Certified Technology Expert in the service drive. When customers or staff had questions, I was responsible to have the answer or find it. I certainly wasn’t used often in that role but it could have been amazing.

It would be easy enough to have the Tech Expert come over to the customer’s car and see how they’re using the tech feature to determine whether it’s a user issue or a fault. 9 times out of 10, maybe closer to 10, it’s user error. The service department can avoid tying up a service advisor, a technician, and the customer’s car for the day by spending a few minutes digging deeper, even if they shouldn’t have to.

Tackle It Early

I’m a huge advocate for Car Care Clinics. I think dealers should advertise Tech Clinics in the same way for their customers. Contact a car buyer a month after their purchase and invite them to the Tech Clinic to make sure they’re using their vehicle’s features to their full potential. Have staff on hand for one-on-one advice and even to take test drives to get customers comfortable with ADAS features.

Whether it’s through Tech Clinics or a Certified Technology Expert in the service drive, the service department can build trust with the client base and solidify their role as brand experts and ambassadors. That can only do positive things for the ongoing customer-dealer relationship.

A lot of attention is given to providing the customer with an experience they want – deservedly so. It’s an extremely important component for servicing today’s car owners in the way they best connect. Friendly greeting, a comfortable and well-stocked customer lounge, thorough and transparent communication, and high-quality repairs are all expectations that must be met.

Before the customer even comes into your service department for the first time after buying a vehicle from your dealership, there’s a detail they need to know. Just like a wedding is just the beginning of a marriage relationship, the sale is only the start of the relationship with the dealership.

Sadly, this is still a point that gets missed regularly. The sales-to-service hand-off doesn’t happen, or it’s short and sweet. The customer doesn’t know just how much value the dealership puts on their ongoing service relationship. The result? That customer doesn’t feel any sense of loyalty to book their service appointments with the dealership.

The statistic is hard to come by, but somewhere between 20 and 35 percent of new car buyers never set foot in the service department after the sale – not even for their first oil change. The bad news doesn’t end there either. By the end of the warranty period, 70 percent of customers have defected to another service provider, whether it’s a closer dealership or an independent store.

They don’t know they are your customer.

Lay Claim to the Customer

I know it comes across as crazy and possessive. However you view it, car buyers need to be educated that your dealership is there to support them as much or more after the sale. This is a point where businesses stumble all the time, not just car dealers.

You need to make assumptions in all your communication with the car buyer that they’ll be back for service, that they’ll send you their referrals, and that they’ll be buying their next vehicle from you. It all starts with that period of three to six years in the service department between car-buying experiences.

Start the Service Communications Soon After the Sale

Long before the car buyer is due for their first oil change, get connected with them. Honestly, as time-consuming as it might be, a verbal conversation is best – a phone call. It needs to come from either a person in authority in the service department or the person they’ll be connecting with during the visit, and that’s either the service manager, assistant manager, or the service advisor. I’d recommend the assistant service manager personally.

Simply ask them how their ownership experience has been thus far and let them know how to get in touch for the first service visit. Book the first appointment if it’s possible. And if you have a pick-up service, this is the time to make that known.

Stay Connected Between Services

70 percent of dealership service customers will drop away by the time the factory warranty ends. But if they feel connected between service visits, that number is bound to drop significantly. It’s as easy as email campaigns crafted to sound personal. Extend invitations to car care clinics. Drop little service nuggets and detailing how-to’s. Just make sure they understand the value of these emails or they’ll go straight to the junk folder.

A service department that makes an effort to connect between services demonstrates that they aren’t just there to take the customer’s money but to provide service and value.

Care About Their Surveys

Half of unhappy customers won’t respond to a CSI survey if they aren’t happy – they’d rather quietly go elsewhere. You’ll never know about them either. But unhappy survey respondents can be saved. Of the 50 percent that will tell you things did not go well, 70 percent are willing to try your store again if you resolve the issue.

A dealership that lays claim to the customer takes responsibility for fixing the issues, whether real or perceived.

It’s crucial for repeat sales and referrals, not to mention the service income that it generates. Keep the lines of communication open with your customers by letting them know you care for them because they are YOUR customer. It makes it much more likely they’ll stick with you.

The popular automotive marketplace, CarGurus, released data from a recent poll of truck owners. This segment, previously thought to be fiercely loyal to a brand and a dealership, has begun to change their views. And the catalyst for their shift? Rising pickup truck prices.

The 2019 Truck Sentiment Survey by CarGurus points to some key indicators.

• 68 percent of truck owners believe their vehicle is overpriced.
• Nearly half – 48 percent – believe that trucks aren’t made as well as they used to be.
• 1 in 6 truck owners say they probably won’t buy another pickup truck.

That’s a problem, don’t you think? While passenger car sales slump, truck and SUV sales continue to grow. This segment of the auto industry is driving sales (pun intended) and if loyalty is suffering through no fault of the dealership, what can you do?

Take Ownership of the Problem

Dealers, you don’t have a choice in the invoice pricing from the manufacturer, and you shouldn’t have to give away the farm on truck deals. But when loyalty is starting to deteriorate in this profitable segment, you need to do something! And perhaps it’s how you take care of their vehicle after the sale.

Before you think it’s going to cost you money – it’s not. At least, it doesn’t have to. Truck customers know their vehicles are more expensive than a four-door sedan or a hatchback. They know their cost of ownership is higher. While this study focused on the relation to rising prices, you can counteract it with awesome service.

Here’s an Example

I have a business acquaintance who owns a medium-sized company with around eight to ten vehicles in their fleet. After a couple decades in business, he knows his trucks are expensive to maintain, and their always Ford. No question. But the reason that his fleet is always Ford has little to do with the manufacturer, but rather the servicing dealer.

He’s been to the dealership once. Ever. When he needs a truck serviced, the dealership picks it up from him, leaves a loaner if necessary, and drops it off when it’s ready. He rarely questions the service costs. And he’s going to continue using that dealership for his servicing and vehicle purchases because they go above and beyond. His time is his most valuable commodity, and they recognize that.

 If vehicle prices rise, he won’t complain for a second because his service experience is so ideal that he’s going to be loyal.

Low- and No-Cost Ideas to Drive Truck Loyalty

I don’t believe that my friend is unique. What it takes is acknowledging what a customer values most and delivering on it. That’s especially true for truck owners who have already spent significant coin on their ride.

Pick Up and Drop Off Vehicles for Service

You’ll need staff for this so there is a small cost. It’s one of the extra services business owners and truck owners alike appreciate like crazy. You’re valuing their time and if it’s done well, they’re going to remain loyal unless you lose their trust. It’s such a valuable service that you could charge a nominal fee to cover expenses and most people wouldn’t think twice.

After-Service Detailing

CSI survey or not, give service customers back a clean car. When the average service cost per visit for a pickup truck is more than $200, the customer should be able to expect a clean truck back. Go a step further than a car wash and perform a light interior detail as well.

Offer a Truck Specialist

As a customer, there’s nothing more frustrating than a service provider that doesn’t know what they’re talking about. A junior advisor means well but can they accurately explain which truck services – diff service, transfer case service, Allison transmission service, etc. – need to be done and why? For dealers with a high percentage of truck customers, assign one or more of your senior advisors as Truck Specialists to establish a more authoritative, knowledgeable, and comforting service experience for truck owners.

These are just a few ideas to boost truck loyalty from the service side. Does your store do anything special for your truck customers to keep them loyal to the brand and your store?

The 2019 U.S. Customer Service Index Study results by J.D. Power have been published. You’ve seen the report before, but it should be more than just information for any dealership. It should provide valuable feedback on how to better serve and connect with your customers.

For 2019, a key indicator from the US CSI Study is about communication with customers in the most appropriate way. It’s not about how YOU want to communicate, but rather what resonates best with your customers.

This is directly from the J.D. Power press release:

“Satisfaction is 75 points higher (on a 1,000-point scale) among customers who have an all-digital experience compared with one that is all analog, preferring to schedule service via the internet and communicate with the dealer through text messages, rather than doing those tasks via phone. Satisfaction increases further when a service advisor uses a tablet during the service visit.”

Let’s spell that out very clearly. Customers value text messaging and the use of technology in the service experience. You’ll find the proof in the 2019 CSI Study.

Why Don’t Dealers Act On It?

Perhaps your service department is among the elite who text regularly and integrate iPads in the service walkaround. From the statistics, the vast majority do not.

Chris Sutton, Vice President of U.S. Automotive Retail Practice at J.D. Power, says, “For example, 34% of customers indicate they prefer to communicate via text message—but this only occurs 9% of the time! There’s no reason why this isn’t a more widely adopted practice across the industry.

“Dealers have easy access to these tools, so they don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Technology not only improves efficiency but also the more satisfied a customer is with their overall service experience, the more likely they are to return to the dealership for service and to recommend the dealership to friends and family members.”

Let’s make those numbers even more real. 34 percent want to communicate by text message, so approximately every third customer that enters your store. 34 out of 100 customers. Of those 34, only 9 – that’s right, 9! – receive communication in the way they prefer. For customers who expect text messaging as the communication method, only 1 in 4 gets the experience they want.

A Way to Differentiate

The gap in CSI ranking scores between first and last are narrowing (save for one or two outliers). A boost of 75 points on that 1,000-point scale makes a major difference in ranking. One single approach such as text messaging can have rather significant implications. Customers have spoken, and it’s what they want from you, the servicing dealer.

Without taking from all the other things you’ve been doing well, it’s time to make the customer’s preferred method of communication a priority for the service department. It might require DMS-integrated SMS texting. There’s a webinar through DrivingSales on March 28th by LivePerson Automotive on that very topic.

Your customers are telling you what they want. Time to deliver.