If you own an automotive industry dealership and aren’t using chatbots, you may be leaving money on the table. A lot of it. It’s understandable that you may have been skeptical at first. After all, you may be wondering what chatbots can accomplish that your sales staff cannot. The numbers say it all, though.
According to Salesforce.com, 69 percent of consumers prefer chatbots for quick communications with brands. One of the more surprising results of the Salesforce survey is that Millennials and Boomers alike prefer chatbots for different reasons. These are five ways automotive chatbots are transforming the industry and changing the car buying experience for consumers everywhere.
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After Hours Availability
This one is important to Millennials as well as busy working parents. Essentially anyone who explores car buying options outside of general dealership hours. Chatbots work 24/7 and require no downtime (unless your servers are down).
This means they’re available to help those who are shopping around for options or “kicking tires” so to speak. Consumers like having access to various questions that arise as they’re exploring the inventory, but don’t want to have to miss out on work or sleep to get those answers. Chatbots offer sensible solutions.
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No Pressure Experience
The other benefit chatbots have when it comes to consumer appreciation is that they are not commissioned. This means they aren’t highly aggressive and motivated when it comes to selling vehicles. This gives customers something of Dan Aykroyd’s Sgt. Friday would be proud of, “Just the facts.”
Surprisingly enough, auto industry chatbots can answer highly complex questions for customers in additions to the basics about vehicle availability, interest rate information, and lot inventory.
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Provide Precise Answers to Customer Queries Promptly
When people come into your dealership and ask your representatives and sales staff questions, it can take them several minutes to find answers chatbots can provide instantly. This makes a huge difference in the speed of the sales process for many customers who prefer to spend as little time as possible waiting for answers and key bits of information about the cars they’re interested in.
This is not indicative of a problem with your sales staff. It is simply a fact that salespeople see a steady stream of vehicles coming and going in the dealership. The chatbots have instant access to an essential encyclopedia of knowledge about inventory, vehicle information, credit requirements, current interest rates, recently sold vehicles, and more than sales staff need to take the time to look up.
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Automates Service After the Sale
This is where many dealerships fail to impress consumers and one area where chatbots can be incredibly beneficial. They can follow up with consumers on your behalf. They can set up maintenance reminders and touch base with previous customers to see if they are interested in purchasing new vehicles.
They can even follow-up with customers to make sure they’re happy with their vehicles and ask if there are any problems they’d like to address. It makes it look like you really care about your customers and often turns them into repeat customers.
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Improves Customer Experience and Satisfaction
Because chatbots can accomplish so many things for auto dealerships it creates a better overall customer experience for those who take advantage of them. Gone are the days when customers only had access to specific information about vehicles, features, and packages among other things. during office hours. Now they can perform research when it is convenient for them, greatly reducing the length of time it takes to choose the right vehicles for their needs. That creates highly satisfied customers.
The bottom line is that if you do not have an automotive chatbot for your dealership, you could be missing out on making bigger sales and having more repeat customers.
