All humans have feelings and those feelings can absolutely affect their decisions in life, including any products purchased, where they buy them and to which companies they are loyal. Large companies know this and realize that corporate social responsibility programs are important to brand image, customer sentiment and loyalty. And these programs can also motivate and inspire employees to become brand advocates.

Who wouldn’t want to do business with a company that shares its values? And, who wouldn’t want to work for a company that is loved? These two things are an important part of transforming a business from one that’s simply a place to transact, to one with personality.

An excellent example of this, and how one small good deed reaped huge benefits, is the story of Jake Nelson and a Ford dealership in Apple Valley, Minnesota. Jake is a special needs boy who loved cars, but was told he could never drive. Because of his passion for cars, his parents took him to dealerships just to wander and look at all of the objects he so loved. Upon visiting Apple Ford Lincoln, a salesperson took the time to talk with the boy and introduced him to others at the dealership. He soon became a fixture at the store, helping in the many ways that he could on the lot, making sure the cars are all locked and well presented. It has brought great joy into his life and acts as an inspiration both to customers and other employees at the dealership.

This story garnered wonderful national media attention for Ford and highlighted the dealership in this great video:
 

This act positively affected a young life and is a wonderful example of how one car dealership’s image transformed in the eyes of its employees, community and the world. And ultimately that’s exactly what social responsibility is all about.

Ford has now announced the launch of its FordInclusiveWorks program. This pilot program, starting June 1st, is designed to provide meaningful employment to adults with autism. With a national unemployment rate of 75-90 percent, Ford recognized an opportunity to make an impact on these adult’s lives.And, while this pilot may only involve 5 people for now, there’s no telling what the future holds should it succeed. Felicia Fields, Ford group VP of human resources and corporate services, couldn’t have said it any better when she said; “We recognize that having a diverse and inclusive workforce allows us to leverage a wider range of innovative ideas to make our customers’ lives better.” [emphasis added]

While Ford may dominate this blog, there are many other automakers and dealers that make an impact in our world. Dealers are well known for being a huge support to their local communities.

Automakers typically have individual charities they choose to assist (such as Chevrolet and the American Heart Association), but also quickly render aid in times of crisis -- as was the case in the Hurricane Sandy disaster, for example.

With each and every one of these; whether a huge expensive campaign by OEMs; or simply a dealer seeing someone in need and choosing to help; it helps to humanize our industry – to show consumers that car dealerships aren’t places filled with people looking to take advantage of them, but rather businesses employing people who care about other people.

So whatever your passion - rescuing animals, helping the homeless or countless others – know that social responsibility, being involved in and part of your community and taking action when others are in need is not only something you could do…

…but something you should.
 

There have been countless studies about employee engagement and how, when engaged, employees tend to be happier, more productive and deliver a better customer experience. With a 70 percent annual turnover rate in sales, this is an area that the auto industry – at least on the sales side – has a problem with. Don’t think the auto industry is alone, however. According to an article posted on Digitalistmage.com,  a recent Gallup poll found that “67 percent of workers aren’t engaged—or worse, they’re actively disengaged—a number that’s been pretty stagnant for the past 16 years.”
 

The article went onto state that companies who are participating in these polls and then taking action to create initiatives within their organization are failing as well. Why? According to the article, the reasons are two-fold:

1. By the time the poll results are published, the results are outdated. This means that initiatives are created based on data that is no longer be valid.
2. Management wants to fix things on their own (i.e. create initiatives, champions, etc.)
3. Apparently companies are too sensitive.

You can’t fix any problem with old data. If you don’t know what’s going on in the dealership RIGHT NOW, any attempt you make at changing culture and winning over employees will more than likely fail. On top of that, engaged employees aren’t something that can be magically created. Management can peruse data and create ineffective programs even with the best of intentions. Employees must decide on their own to be engaged with a business. Management can’t make them.
 

So if, as the article states, we’re all doing it wrong and have been for almost two decades, how do we improve? The article suggests that a more modern – and effective - approach to increasing employee engagement lies in three areas:
 

1. Empowering individuals – Everyone likes to talk about open door policies between management and employees. However, in reality many employees hesitate, especially in our industry, as there can be a fear of repercussion or that it perhaps won’t accomplish anything. It’s not uncommon for management changes to usher in a spat of terminations, simply because the new managers want to bring in people loyal to them. Trust tends to be lacking and without that trust, employees will never be engaged.
2. Increased transparency – If you think that dealerships only struggle with transparency issues when it relates to consumers, you’d be sadly mistaken. There is plenty of information that is withheld from sales staff under the presumption that it’s for their own good and justified by the fact that sans the information, the sale will end up with a higher gross. The mistake here is that chances are good the customer already knows the information that the dealership is withholding from the salesperson. I get the philosophy behind it. And, prior to the auto industry getting hit between the eyes with the information revolution, perhaps it was a good strategy. Not anymore. How is a salesperson supposed to consult and build trust with a customer when they have less information than the customer?  It’s highly likely that the customer won’t believe the salesperson doesn’t actually have the data, but think that they are withholding it intentionally.
3. Prioritizing wellness – Retail car salespeople work brutal hours. We’ve all been there. And even salespeople fortunate enough to work at dealerships that offer flexibility, and/or moderate work schedules, must learn to cope with the stress of feeling as if they need to be at the dealership all the time, as the customer may come back and buy from another salesperson, so they lose half the commission.

Employee wellness is imperative to employee engagement. While the auto industry may be their career, don’t force employees to choose between family time, healthy living and mental well-being. Working 70 hours a week, never seeing their families and living off of whatever fast food place is nearby your dealership is a recipe for burn out regardless of the industry.

Employee engagement, employee retention, customer experience and the value of human capital are hot terms in the auto industry right now. To truly create a culture where employees want to work for your dealership and are actively engaged in its success, consider the importance of and think about how the three areas above might be applied in your dealership Just because we’ve always done it that same old way doesn’t mean that way is still viable. The employees are voting with their feet and to keep them happy and engaged with your dealership, it may be time to change things up a bit.

Loyalty is a fickle thing. While your customer has consistently serviced their vehicle with you, when they get that $19.95 oil change coupon from your competition, will it go in the trash, or will they choose to take advantage of it and defect to the competition?

Most consumers love sales and discounts. In fact, the whole reason negotiation exists in showrooms is the perception of a “good deal,” which is completely subjective and varies from dealer to dealer, as well as customer to customer. A whole new sector of business has sprung up that offers consumers advice on what a good deal is. Then let’s look at Black Friday -- a cultural phenomenon where customers camp out for weeks to save $200 on a television. It’s surprising the lengths that some consumers will go to and the time they are willing to spend researching and shopping for that sometimes elusive “good deal.”

So what if your business decided to never have a sale again? Gone would be those customers that only come in to your business for that discounted service, or that customer that drives 100 miles to save $250 on a vehicle, that you’ll never see again.

But, we still want to keep our customers coming back. So, how do we continue rewarding our truly loyal customers and make them immune to competitor offers?

A fascinating article on RetailDive explored the tactic that many businesses are adopting – the premium loyalty program. Amazon has been extremely successful with this program. According to the article, it’s estimated that half of all U.S. households belong to Amazon Prime. Let that sink in a moment. Half of the households in the U.S. pay Amazon $99 per year for the privilege of buying merchandise from them. In return, they get special perks, including 2-day shipping, and that $99 expense is revenue generated before the customer has ever purchased a single item!

The article also states that Restoration Hardware chairman and CEO, Gary Friedman, recently announced that his company is adopting a premium loyalty program. Friedman stated that, “Our lives are filled with complexity – and we long to break through the clutter to find simplicity. We want to shop for what we want, when we want and receive the greatest value. So rather than navigating countless promotions, we’re changing things… because time is the ultimate luxury.”  The company plans to charge participating customers $100 per year for membership. In exchange, members get a flat 25% discount on all regularly priced merchandise and 10% off of clearance items.

According to the article, the thought process behind a premium loyalty program is simple: customers that pay to join are more likely to continue to patronize the business because they want to get the most value from their investment (ROI).

The article further found that interest in premium loyalty programs is strongest among millennial consumers. Three quarters of respondents between the ages of 18 and 24 and 77% between the ages of 25 and 34 told LoyaltyOne they’d consider joining a fee-based rewards program, while 61% of 18-to-24 year-olds and 54% of 25-to-34 year-olds contend that fee-based rewards are better than free ones.

The beauty of a premium loyalty program is that customers no longer feel as if they need to search for the best price, or wait for you to have a sale. For members, any day they choose to do business with you, they save money. Premium loyalty programs also offer retailers valuable data on their best customers, which can then be analyzed and used to monitor shopping behavior and make more relevant and personalized interactions.

It’s all about how you treat your customers, and it’s about digging in and knowing them, working with them and delivering a better experience.

In a recent interview with Automotive News, Masahiro Moro, head of Mazda North American Operations, detailed Mazda’s plan to increase customer loyalty for both the OEM and its dealers. While his plan mostly revolves around vehicle quality and diversity, as well as shifting from a sales-focused goal to one of retention, it also includes a nationwide training push with dealers to help improve the customer experience. Moro explained that in the past, Mazda’s business philosophy was expansion of sales: “Whatever you do, sell more cars.” And that caused a lot of bad business equations.

In the future, Mazda will focus on acquiring those good customers who really understand what the brand is about and not engage with the rational type of price-seeker. Mazda is now focused on how to make a Mazda customer a customer for life. And, to make that happen, the most important part is how dealers treat the customer. Dealers will need to change their focus to look after more customers so that dealer loyalty and brand loyalty are top of mind.

When addressing Mazda’s internal goals, Moro offered an interesting loyalty metric the factory has decided to use that should perhaps be adopted by all franchised dealers. Recognizing that Mazda is at the bottom of the market share list at 2 percent, rather than focusing on increasing that market share, Mazda has decided to shift focus towards the quality of market share. Moro explained, “…if we are not able to improve the market share for the moment, we should be thinking about if we’re getting a good 2 percent or not a good 2 percent. I really want a good quality 2 percent. That makes a huge difference rather than a lousy 5 percent.”

One factor that Moro uses to determine whether Mazda’s market share is “quality” is repurchase ratio which, he says, currently sits at the bottom of the industry.

How about applying this concept to your own customer repurchase ratio – not from the brand itself but from your own dealership? A stable foundation is key to any growth. In the article, Moro further shared that loyalty and retention are a high priority in order to build that quality market share and that retaining a customer is much more efficient than courting a new customer; increasing retention rates while maintaining the same level of conquest is the easiest and most efficient path to sales acceleration.

Consider applying this and making an effort to understand the behavior of your customers, for sales, service and when it comes to repurchase. This will help to better understand the quality of your market share. By knowing that answer, you can then focus on strengthening that quality through a more customer-centric experience. Only then can customer conquest and acquisition efforts actually increase sales, rather than simply replacing lost customers.

Getting your customer’s attention and engaging with them can be a tough task these days. There is so much competition from other marketers -- customers are constantly barraged with messages from every side and in every way.

Social media reach has decreased, digital marketing is ever more challenging and direct mail sometimes goes straight into the trash. This leaves some dealerships pulling their hair out due to the lack of response from their customers and prospects.

However, dealers that think outside-the-box a little bit have had great success engaging with their customers. The key is to really interact with your customers and provide something they want that is not just a pure sales message.

In 2011, Howdy Honda set its eyes on Facebook and ran a contest requesting holiday cookie recipes from its fans in exchange for bonus service reward points. The contest’s goal was to engage their customer base while driving incremental service traffic through bonus service reward points. The contest was run for two weeks at the end of November and saw 48 recipe submissions. They then took these recipes and created an e-book which was downloaded over 900 times. Due to the response they received, they repeated the contest in 2012 with the same format and ended up increasing engagement with 68 submitted recipes and an e-book which was downloaded 1,728 times.

That’s incredible branding and engagement! Howdy Honda then further upped the ante and asked participants to add a story concerning the origin of the recipe, along with a sentence or two about the customer’s experience as a Honda owner. Then, in 2014, they added seasonal service coupons and a discount for submitting a recipe and further engaged the customers by allowing them to vote for the best recipe, with the prize being a $250 Howdy Honda branded gift card.122 recipe submissions were received and over 1,000 customer voted online. This time, rather than an e-book, they printed softcover recipe books and handed them out as gifts in the service drive. This, now traditional, contest was a winning success for Howdy Honda. It engaged their customers and promoted their brand.

In an attempt to transform things away from a strictly seasonal promotion, the dealership added a summer picnic grilling recipe book along with the same contest, voting and prize for the winners. This year, they’ve also added a design contest for a new Howdy Honda tote bag.

Howdy Honda set out to do what every great marketing strategy desires – to engage its customers and market to them in a way that, well, doesn’t feel like marketing. Part of their success is their loyalty program and their membership base since adopting their loyalty program in 2008 – which is a little over 63,000 members -- and they are adding an additional 400+ each month due to the success of their promotion. This is a fantastic way to engage a captive membership base.

Every year the dealership has run these promotions it has increased customer engagement. The trick in implementing any contest or promotion is to make it engaging and one that fits your demographic. In addition, as with any branding play, ensure that you are consistent with any deployment. Howdy Honda customers look forward to these engagements as is evident in the increased engagement year after year. You may not see massive viral success in your first attempt. But, remember, with a consistent and committed strategy, you too can win the war for your customer’s attention. And that, my friends, is the recipe for success.

The average U.S. household now belongs to more than 18 loyalty programs, for a total of more than 2 billion memberships. That’s an awful lot of loyal customers. But, all these programs and cards can have an unintended effect: customer loyalty fatigue.

Most consumers do still participate in their ‘favorite’ loyalty programs, and for many businesses, it’s a proven marketing tool that adds revenue to the bottom line.

So what is it that turns customers off? Some of the most common reasons are “I always forget to bring my card,” “the coupon I got in the mail has expired,” “restrictions on merchandise,” “not getting good discounts,” etc. For the most part, it seems that customers just aren’t perceiving much value in their customer loyalty programs.

To combat this customer loyalty fatigue, make it a priority to create a loyalty program that stands out from the rest, and is perceived as valuable by your customers. Here are a few tips on how to accomplish this:

First, you may want to consider adopting a mobile app where customers can store their cards on their phones. People may not have their loyalty cards with them all of the time, but they will always have their phones. Apple’s Passbook, for instance, allows consumers to add all types of cards to it, including loyalty cards. This makes it easy for consumers to always have – and access – their loyalty membership when they visit your dealership. In addition, ensure that there is a way to access and/or credit a customer’s loyalty account when a transaction is completed --even if they do not have their cards with them. It’s also a good idea to have a system that can look up the customer via their name, phone number or perhaps even their vehicle’s VIN or license plate.

Second, a loyalty program is only as desirable as the potential it offers its members. Make sure that the rewards you are offering are desirable, worthwhile and attainable, or you may find customers become apathetic about your program. Rewards can include much more than simple freebies or discounts. Consider offering experiences, front of the line passes or other VIP perks for those customers who show their loyalty through bringing you their business. An excellent way to figure out what your customers are interested in is simple – ask them. You may get some unrealistic answers, but I promise that you’ll get some great ideas that you can then implement. The best part is, by doing this, your customers are engaged and feel included in both the program and the process. For a customer to see a new reward appear that was something they suggested is priceless and further strengthens their loyalty.

Third, consider offering coupons with no expiration dates. While the coupons you send may be relevant and desirable offers, there’s nothing more frustrating for a consumer than when they are ready to use a coupon and find it just expired. Whatever you’ve chosen to offer a customer, make it “no strings attached.” You don’t have to send the offer to every member. You can segment the membership list into types of members and then market to them as sub-groups. Consider going through your loyalty program and sending a coupon to all members who haven’t earned any points in the last 6 months. This is a great way to re-engage the customer and potentially recapture their business.

Loyalty programs can be an excellent customer retention tool and help increase revenue while rewarding your customers for taking actions that benefit your dealership. Examine what you’re doing now and how it can be improved for a better customer experience. As a result your customers will be more engaged as they will perceive more value in your program.

According to a study by Colloquy, there are 3.3 billion loyalty program memberships in the United States, which averages 29 per household. Yes, loyalty programs are everywhere. From grocery stores, to gas stations and fast food restaurants, chances are high that a store you’re about to enter for the first time has a loyalty program. And the one thing that most of these programs have in common -- they are based on transactions. In fact, a study by Cap Gemini found that 97 percent of loyalty programs are transaction based – meaning a customer earns points or rewards based on spending money with the store. But what is loyalty, really?

At its most basic, customer loyalty could perhaps be summed up as follows:

Given the choice to go to any retailer which offers the same product or services, the customer would choose your store over your competition.

Then comes the much broader question:

Why would they choose you?

The growing sentiment is that customer experience is the next battleground for businesses. Customers like to feel appreciated. And, with so many loyalty programs, it seems as if every retailer is – in a sense – incenting a customer to spend money with them.

However, simply spending money with a retailer – even if they choose the same retailer every time – does not a loyal customer make. True loyalty is really reflected in how the customer feels about the company and how they chose to describe the company to their family and friends.

And, to help develop this loyal customer, wouldn’t you agree that there are some things a customer could do besides spend money that deserve to be rewarded? For example, rewarding a customer for a referral. Whether that reward is straight cash (as it is in most cases), or some quantity of reward points, the fact is that the customer behaved in a way you wanted them to – and so you rewarded them.

According to the Cap Gemini study, only 25 percent of loyalty programs reward customer for any form of engagement.

One company that has great success at rewarding customer engagement, not just transactions, is the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Their loyalty program rewards members for almost every type of engagement – transactional or otherwise. Follow them on Twitter, post a tweet that mentions their account, like them on Facebook, subscribe to their newsletter, visit their website, subscribe to their online services, and, of course, buy their fights, and you will be rewarded. This list is far from all-inclusive. But their fans love the program and the UFC.

Another example is the pharmacy chain Walgreens, which offers the Balance Rewards program. In addition to rewarding customers for transactions, Walgreens encourages customers to live healthier lifestyles with integrated options that allow customers to connect fitness trackers to their Balance Rewards accounts and actually earn points by exercising. According to Walgreens, 80 million of their 103 million members participate in this offer. How is that for loyalty program engagement?

Those are only a couple of examples of how businesses can become more innovative with their loyalty programs. Rather than having “just another loyalty program” like everyone else, figure out what behaviors you want your customers to show.

In the case of car dealerships, that could include referrals for sales and service, posting online reviews, social media interaction and engagement, attending dealership sponsored events such as owner’s clinics… the list is never ending.

The point is that true loyalty lies in customers that choose you over your competitor AND who are engaged with your business at the same time. Accomplish that and you won’t have to worry about your customer bailing to your competitor because they offer a $19.95 oil change special.

In addition, the more engaged the customer is with you, the more they’ll visit, the more they’ll talk about you to their friends and families and the more they’ll spend. And that’s exactly what a loyalty program is supposed to accomplish.

It’s a well-known fact that retaining customers is less expensive and can be more profitable than acquiring new ones. The reality is essentially, customer churn keeps your dealership stationary. Many dealers blast sales messages across every medium possible – traditional, mailers, and digital; hoping that someone, somewhere will see it and decide to buy a car from them. According to NADA, dealers are still spending upwards of $640 per sale to bring in business on the sales side. And therein lies the problem.

Why spray and pray with your traditional advertising, hoping that the small percentage of people who actually pay attention to your marketing will convert into a sale? Even if you’re the best targeted data marketer in the universe, conversion rates on non-customer lists are low. The fact is that your single largest source of opportunities in both sales and service is sitting right there in your DMS and CRM!

Every dealer’s CRM and DMS contains tens – if not hundreds – of thousands of customers who have touched the dealership in some way, sitting there ripe for the picking. Tracking down opportunities can be as complex as precisely targeting and mining your DMS or CRM with a little help from some vendors. Or, as simple as pulling lists of customers based on search queries and hitting the phones. How many orphan owners does your CRM have? Is anybody following up with those previous customers? With an average 70% turnover rate in sales, chances are good that the salesperson who sold that customer their vehicle no longer works for you. Yet, rather than stay in touch with, follow up and potentially get a second sale from a previous customer, most dealers buy more leads, or increase ad spends, in order to fortify and increase sales. A better strategy is to follow up with customers in your database to ensure that they are revenue contributors for as long as possible, while also working to acquire new customers. Dealerships are great at the second part but many fail at continuously working their existing customer base.

Consider shifting some of your focus towards customers who are statistically ready to trade-in that vehicle they bought from you 3 years ago, or who have a college- ready child who needs a vehicle. You may be surprised by the results.

Only then will you start gaining traction and seeing growth. Until then you’ll simply be running in place.

Whether it’s an unhappy customer in the service drive because the repair is taking too long; or a customer in sales for 4 long hours attempting to buy a car and less than happy as a result; or a customer making a post-purchase call to report issues with a vehicle they just purchased; dealership managers can sometimes feel as if they are constantly putting out fires and that everyone is unhappy. Sometimes the problem gets addressed to the customer’s satisfaction -- sometimes it doesn’t. You can’t please everyone, right? So what happens when you can’t?

A study conducted by SDL asked 2,784 consumers if they could recall their major customer experience failure in the last 10 years. Of those surveyed, 76 percent reported that this experience occurred in the last 2 years. Of those, only 55 percent could remember a good experience. The good news is that only 6 percent of those surveyed indicated that their worst customer experience involved the automotive industry. This certainly makes sense when you consider the frequency a customer visits a dealership, as compared to other retail businesses such as grocery stores.

An interesting statistic from the study is that the failures most often happened after the sale (32%). While the remembered successes happened during the shopping or purchase phase. This would seem to align with feedback we encounter from consumers in the auto industry. Think about your online reviews. I would venture to guess that the majority of your positive reviews tell the story of an excellent BUYING experience. While the majority of your negative reviews discuss post-purchase failures.

So, what are consumers saying are their biggest customer experience failures? The top four answers include long waits or poor response times (35%); employees not empowered to assist them (31%); unknowledgeable employees (30%); and conflicting or inaccurate information (29%).

By contrast, the consumer experience success stories showed the exact opposite with the top three being that employees were pleasant and helpful (35%); employees were knowledgeable (27%); and employees empowered (24%).

Something to think about is that these very same traits are directly related to the automotive buying experience. Think about those Internet leads that aren’t responded to at all, or if they are the response is too slow. Or, a failure to give customers the information promised (mainly price). Or sales associates that can’t provide information. The “just get them in” attitude is a relic and customers simply aren’t biting on it anymore. Car shoppers have access to more information and choices on where to buy a vehicle than at any time in history.

When a failure does occur, the younger the customer, the more likely they are to simply walk away and never patronize a business again. The older a customer is the more likely they are to want a solution. These failures are costly, too. Businesses can only win back a customer 20 percent of the time (1 in 5). And, if they do come back, they are 59 percent less loyal than they were before.

In addition, businesses who fail their customers will lose 65 percent of the revenue they would have received from that customer in the year after the fail. The sad part is that, of these failures, 24 percent could have been fixed for less than $20 -- or one-hour worth of work. And it gets worse. 64 percent of failed customers will stop recommending the business and those with the capability to do the most damage to a business’ reputation – namely those with large social media footprints – will broadcast these failures more aggressively. These are the customers that are anti-brand advocates on Facebook, Twitter and online review sites viewing their crusade against a business as a means of HELPING other customers by sharing their poor experience.

The news isn’t all bad, however. While the consequences of leaving a customer failure unrectified can be costly, there is light at the end of the tunnel. The study compared what these customers SAY will win their business back, versus what will REALLY win their business back. The top answer was the same – if the business owned the failure, admitted their mistake and showed the customer that their poor experience helped the business improve.

We’re not perfect and things happen. As you can see, it doesn’t take much to win a customer back or rectify a failed customer experience. The first step towards avoiding these failures is ensuring that the customer experience during the purchase phase is great. Respond quickly, provide information, empower your employees and provide accurate information. Doing these things will exponentially increase the odds that you create brand advocates. When you do fail, simply suck it up, be humble and fix the mistake. That’s all most customers want from a business. Allowing ego or policy to prevent you from satisfying a customer’s issue can result in future revenue loss and seeing these consumers standing on a virtual mountaintop warning others against doing business with you. And it’s much easier to soak in a customer’s praise than silence an unhappy one.

In this age of always-connected consumers seeking instant gratification 24 hours per day, consumer engagement and the customer experience are more important than ever in order to earn that elusive thing: Customer Loyalty. Consumers are more independent than ever before. They’re tired of chasing automated phone systems and having to tell their story multiple times as they get bounced from one rep to another. In fact, a study conducted by Aspect Software has a pretty fascinating conclusion:

Consumers don’t want your help. They want to be able to solve the problems themselves. And, if your company allows that, they will be loyal to you.

Don’t get me wrong. When they are dealing with your company directly – whether that means they’re at your dealership or in a retail store -- they want a great experience. And whether that experience ends positively or negatively is increasingly dependent on one thing – customer service. In fact, 76 percent of ALL GENERATIONS view customer service as the true test of how a company values them as a customer. And, for many, a great customer service is one in which they can solve their own problems without your help. 73 percent said that when dealing with a customer service issue they should have the ability to solve most issues on their own.

How much do they want this? They want it so badly that about a third of those surveyed reported that they’d rather clean a toilet than talk to customer service.

But if you give them the ability to solve their own problem, 65 percent of all generations reported that they left feeling good about both themselves and, more importantly, the company.

Yet, in the automotive industry, we have typically shied away from allowing consumers to do things on their own, for fear of loss of control, decreased gross profits, or perhaps an unwillingness to invest in technology. That’s changing. As companies, including manufacturers, increasingly adopt an online buying process, consumers are getting more used to interacting with car dealerships in the same way that they do an Amazon – online. Consumers won’t want these online interactions, however, to be isolated to sales transactions. You better believe that those customers that actually end up buying their cars online from you will expect interactions with you to continue after the sale and, if you don’t provide that ability, they will find a business who will.

And why shouldn’t we give them the experience they want? All of the technology exists. As an industry, we need to bolster our customer loyalty by addressing the expectations and providing the experiences that our customers desire. Right now, our customers are from a wide variety of generations with differing life experiences and expectations. The day isn’t that far off when every customer we deal with will have no memory of a time without self-service, instant gratification and interaction through technology.

So, let customers interact via text, chat or email. If they want to buy cars online, make sure you have an option for that. Ensure that they can schedule a true service appointment – not just a form that gets e-mailed requesting an appointment that never gets confirmed and that nobody knows about when the customer arrives.

We can’t sit back, stay 5 years behind the rest of the retail world and expect to become a more popular shopping destination. Adopt technology that allows your dealership to operate more efficiently and delivers the digital experience that consumers desire and your business will be in good shape for years to come.