Tag: Thrive and Survive

Necessity is the mother of innovation. It’s the proverbial catchphrase of progress, and in the past 18 months, it’s practically become the new motto of automotive sales. When dealers are put in difficult situations—pandemic-imposed lockdowns, for example—many are forced into survival mode. Yet, a revealing look back at the 2020-2021 year in automotive revealed something fascinating. Many of our thriving dealer partners who embraced the quick shift to digitization (up to 83%) said the changes made now were creating long-lasting, positive results. In other words, the change may have been swift, but there’s simply no going back.

Things may have settled a bit—for the time being—but there’s no telling what’s in store for the future. When the next big digital shift hits hard and fast, will you and your business be ready to lock down and make those difficult decisions once more? Based on the data and feedback from our thriving partners, here are five steps for dealing with the next lockdown market.

1. Go Digital

The move to digital shopping, servicing, and even inventory management is changing. Your dealership depends on data from your DMS to manage everything from payroll to parts inventory to Tech Time. Yet, for many franchise operations, these systems can be disconnected, with multiple data entry steps, slow upload processes, and manual re-entry. While switching over to a new system may seem overwhelming at first, leveraging the assistance of a reliable partner (not just a vendor) to ensure you’re connected goes a long way. Going digital is a no brainer, for your customers at least. But, going at it alone? That might be a bad move.

“A DMS is such a critical part of the dealership, and choosing Dealertrack DMS was a no brainer… But the number one thing for me, hands down, is the fact that Dealertrack DMS comes with a Performance Manager.” — Matt Garner Dealer Principal, Downtown Auto Group

2. Brand Your Digital Presence

As more and more dealerships adopt digital technology, implementing new technology tools alone isn’t enough. You have to find a way to differentiate your offerings from all the rest. Your dealership has its own reputation, identity, and brand. And you’ve worked hard to establish that identity. Therefore, your online presence should also encompass its own name, logo, and visual identity. Remember, your online presence should be grounded in your core brand. But allow your online presence to exist as its own entity by adding the word “Online” or “Direct” after your dealership’s name.

3. Have a Strong Online and Social Media Presence

Leverage your social and online presence to convey closures, updates to holiday hours, and safety regulations. Use your platform to share important information with your consumers, including (and perhaps most importantly) about how they can continue to do business with your dealership. Take time to make sure your Google information has up-to-date store hours and that everything a prospective customer could find online about you matches. Nothing is more frustrating than conflicting customer-facing information about how, when, and where they can contact your dealership.

4. Offer Convenience Services

Lockdowns don’t just impact car sales. The service side of your business needs to make big changes too. When consumers are concerned about health and safety, they place greater value on convenience services like service pick-up and drop-off, rideshare, and loaner vehicles. Think about services that increase value to the customer, and spread the word about your digital service offerings. On the car sales side of things, offer convenience solutions that are on par with your in-store offerings. Home deliveries, for example, should involve a delivery person that can give your customers the same superior vehicle handoff experience they get at the dealership.

5. Facilitate Remote and Online Services

Even during lockdowns, the hiring and onboarding process must go on. It’s possible, even probable, that this process will be accelerated during a lockdown market, which can present problems. With technology that enables you to complete more of the paperwork and onboarding process remotely, however, your employees can hit the ground running and be more productive right out of the gate. This concept also applies to your customers. A DMS that gives your customers more online options, including facilitating faster service pick up and drop off, better communication (texting the status of car while it’s being serviced), and a faster sales process, you can work around restrictions and still give customers the experiences they want.

The necessity of recent lockdowns, and the possibility of future ones, has paved the way for industry innovations that are here to stay. The future is now, and there’s no going back. Top dealers are taking advantage of the “new normal” to implement new technologies and practices that will shape the future of the industry, while seeing real benefits in present day.

 

To learn more dealership survival tips, including more information about how top dealers are thriving in today’s environment, download our eBook, A Dealer’s Guide to Dealing with (Almost) Everything.

 

 

Did digitization change the way buyers interact with your dealership? Or have today’s buyers—and their shifting habits—altered the course forever of the retail automotive process? Time may tell but for now, one thing is clear: a failure to adapt will cost you sales, service clients, and team members! Don’t go ‘the way of the dodo.’ Keep up with thriving dealers and follow the advice below.

Embrace a Hybrid Approach

In the past 18 months, the trend toward shopping for cars online has been dramatically accelerated. In fact, two out of three customers are more likely to buy a vehicle 100% online, according to the 2020 Cox Automotive COVID-19 Digital Shopping Survey. Still, your dealership can’t simply switch to an all-virtual model without leaving a significant portion of your existing customer base behind.

To satisfy both sets of customers, embrace a hybrid car buying approach. That means giving customers the choice to complete as much or as little of the car buying process online as they want. This gives your customers the best of both worlds, while also offering some mixture of in-person and online buying.

According to a recent Cox Automotive research study, the vast majority (84%) of top dealers (those dealers that have become both more profitable and more efficient since the start of the pandemic), say that offering more digital options to customers is critical to retail success. That’s compared to just 64% of static dealers.

Align Communication Channels with Consumer Preferences

As your dealership keeps pace with modern shoppers, it’s important to adapt your communications channels as well. As evidenced by the shift to more online shopping, the car-buying consumer tends to gravitate toward convenience. In communication, that convenience includes more emails and text messaging and fewer in-person visits and phone conversations.

Just like adopting a hybrid car buying approach, give your customers options by providing a variety of communications channels. Cater to customers who want to text and email just as you would to those who prefer more traditional communication. The transition to a digital-centered sales processes inevitably includes embracing these modern communications channels. And the change might be easier than you think.

According to How to Thrive: Best Practices for Accelerated Digital Landscape, 68% of thriving dealers say that it’s been easier than they thought to adapt to a more digital-centered sales process, compared to only 34% of static dealers that felt the same.

Use Data to Discover New Opportunities

As more and more customers shop for and buy cars online, they leave behind data about themselves (and about the industry’s direction) that can help you see new opportunities. As your dealership makes changes to adapt to modern customer preferences, don’t forget to monitor your data.

Watch carefully for trends that can identify new opportunities for earning profit. Have the courage to trust your data enough to pursue those opportunities once they’re found. It can mean the difference between thriving to find additional profit and additional customers, or staying stuck in the past.

The car-buying consumer can be hard to track, but if you have the right tools, processes, and the right information about your customers, you can anticipate their next moves and be ahead of the curve for the next big buying trend. To learn more about surviving and thriving in a new digital landscape, check out our eBook: Thrive and Survive: A Handbook for Dealing with (Almost) Anything.

 

Learn how to thrive against the competition with the new guide, Thrive and Survive: A Handbook for Dealing with (Almost) Anything.

 

 

When it comes to data, it’s not just about what you know, accuracy, access, and speed matter as well. Battle lines have been drawn, and dealerships with access to faster customer data are winning the competition for modern customers. Does your DMS partner work to provide flexible reporting options and role-specific dashboards, helping you access, manage, and protect your dealership’s data? Let’s take a look at how to deal with data management and your DMS and technology partners below.

Keep Your CRM Data Up to Date

Keeping data up to date doesn’t sound like anyone’s ideal job description, especially salespeople who are busy interacting with actual customers. But to succeed in today’s digital world, ongoing data housekeeping is an absolute must. In fact, 75% of thriving dealerships proactively keep their CRMs updated.

Make sure your customer records are up-to-date and filled with as much first-party data as possible. And, there’s some good news for salespeople (and everyone else)—comprehensive technology integrations allow your systems to communicate with each other. These integrations can automatically record customer interactions, eliminating a lot of manual labor and data entry.

Leverage Cox Automotive Data

Your dealership’s own data can only take you so far. It’s certainly helpful, but it’s also limited to the interactions you’ve had with your specific customers. Cox Automotive data, touch 75% of vehicle transactions in North America—that’s 3 out of every 4 buyers—giving you access to a world of customer information.

With brands like Autotrader, Kelley Blue Book, and Dealer.com, Cox Automotive data can help you know where customers are shopping, what they’re looking for, and when they’re ready to buy, giving you a significant advantage in the competition for customers.

Partner with a DMS that Doesn’t Restrict Data Access

Who really owns all this data anyway? It’s a hot button topic in today’s digital industry, and opinions vary from person to person, and even from technology provider to technology provider. Some providers restrict your data under the guise of customer privacy. Others take your side and support your rights to your use your data.

As the competition for online customers ramps up, you want a technology partner that doesn’t restrict your access to your data. You want a partner that can help you segment your customers lists, target shoppers and personalize messages. In short, you want a partner that can help you win deals. It’s no surprise that the vast majority of thriving dealers (86%) agree that having accurate and complete customer data is a top priority.

Give Your Dealership Some Muscle

Whatever your position at the dealership, having clear insights into the future outlook of your business is no longer just a ‘nice to have,’ it’s critical. Get the data you need delivered to your team in fast, clear, and easy-to-decipher reports and dashboards with Critical Analytics using the data directly from your DMS.

As buying preferences shift and the industry evolves, the more you know about your customers, the better off your dealership will be. Data is the future of the industry, and the future is now. Win the war on data (and partner with a technology provider that can help manage and fight for your data rights), download Thrive and Survive: A Handbook for Dealing with (Almost) Anything.

 

 

Learn how to thrive against the competition with the new guide, Thrive and Survive: A Handbook for Dealing with (Almost) Anything.

 

In your line of work, it’s not enough to merely outlast the competition. When it comes to retail automotive, a willingness to adapt to new trends and pivot on a moment’s notice can make all the difference. You’ve probably seen it—the strong thrive and the weak struggle to survive. Now, as buying options expand beyond the showroom, the world of automotive retail is becoming more competitive than ever. There’s no room for dealerships that aren’t willing to evolve. It’s a dog-eat-dog industry and your biggest threat comes from your competition, as well as your own decisions to keep up with modern customers. Here’s how to deal with an increasingly competitive market.

Differentiate Your Dealership

As more shoppers go online to research and buy cars, it’s easy for dealerships to blend in with the crowd of competition. Your customers can go anywhere they want, so give them a compelling reason to buy from you. Differentiation can take on many forms—you can stand out based on your business model or brand promise, for example. Just make sure that whatever you decide, it’s authentic. Not sure where to start? Look to your original company values to start. What got you into this business? Are you here to help serve people one-to-one? Talk to your vendors and ask them to step in and meet you here, first.

Exploit Competitive Advantages

As you look for ways to differentiate your dealership, you’ll probably find a whole list of things that you do better than your competition. That’s great. These are your competitive advantages, and you should find fun, creative, and strategic ways to tell your customers all about them. Sit down with your dealership’s leadership team to discuss what you do best. Talk about the weaknesses of your competition and how you may be able to make improvements to find new competitive advantages, whether in your sales team, your location, your online presence, or all of the above. Once you have your list of advantages, discuss how to best use them for your benefit.

Adopt Technologies That Differentiate

When you get started, begin by creating a competitive advantage with your technology tools. If you’ve recently implemented technology at your business, or if you’re considering a switch, conduct an audit on the integration points between your tools, technology, and processes. This may seem like a big ask—and it may be—but connected technology should serve to boost the way your business runs. If it’s not helping your people succeed, and improving the customer experience, then it’s likely slowing you down.

You have some big decisions ahead. Adapt and thrive. Or, keep struggling to fight against your competition. Set your business apart with better tools, interconnected technology, and a customer experience that keeps people coming back.

Learn how to thrive against the competition with the new guide, Thrive and Survive: A Handbook for Dealing with (Almost) Anything.