Fish where the fish are! Convert service customers to E-commerce customers!

FISH WHERE THE FISH ARE:

In my travels around the Southeast I often get asked the question- "What are the successful dealers doing that I can incorporate into my monthly e-commerce success?" I also get asked "What can I do to improve my closing ratios on Internet leads?" 

It seems that everyone is looking for that missing ingredient or the "magic bullet" and dealers want to know what that ingredient is. Most dealerships feel as though they are doing something wrong not to get the results that are reported/claimed by dealers on multiple publications in our industry. I don't feel as though dealers are necessarily doing anything wrong they just aren't taking advantage of the opportunities that are right in front of their noses.

I am not aware of any dealership that does not have ten times as many customers coming through their service drive each day as compared to the front-end (sales floor)of their dealership. So, why not bridge the gap between service and sales with a "Service-Drive Value Your Trade Kiosk"?

If the Internet Managers' most difficult task is to get customers to respond to the inquiry that the customer submitted, and yes getting customers to respond is the hardest part of the Internet equation. I know all too well as I racked my brain for years tweaking email templates, leaving countless voice mails to continually get frustrated by the lack of responses from Internet leads that my e-commerce department had invested heavily into in my former life as an ID/IM. I finally realized that email templates are effective if catered to personality profiles, not one cookie-cutter template for everyone, but templates are another topic altogether and better suited for a future article.

So back on topic, if there are so many more opportunities that exist within the service drive then why not get the customer that is already in your dealership engaging with e-commerce department? Dealers should work smarter not harder! Internet Managers spend most of their time trying to get customers to respond and to schedule an appointment and yet there are customers sitting usually within 100-200 feet of their office, go figure. Wouldn't it be nice to have customers seeking the Internet manager out to get an offer on their trade than it is to send another email or leave another unanswered voice mail?

I have several dealers in my territory that have incorporated my idea over the last four years and have had success converting their service customers into sales each month. This is a simple solution to implement and even I could arrange an area for customers to value their current vehicle while sitting in the service drive with nothing better to do. The worst case scenario is that the customer visits your website, possibly does an appraisal, views your inventory or maybe your specials (provided they are current) and sparks an interest in purchasing a new or pre-owned vehicle for your dealership. Heck even the service department wins because if the customer actually buys a vehicle the service life has just been extended!

So, in closing go "fish where the fish are" and reap the benefits of offering your customer a service that your competition has never thought of! Obviously being a Black Book Online dealer partner will enable your dealership to make this concept a reality.