Getting a lead at your car dealership is one thing, but gaining valuable leads that will actually convert into sales is another. Going through the follow-up process and narrowing down which leads to focus on will save you time, stress, and is an overall good strategy for selling cars.
As an auto dealer, the ultimate goal with your dealership leads is to get your customers to set an appointment, schedule a test drive, or visit your dealership in person and sell them your car.
Don’t waste any more time on leads that don’t respond and focus on spending time with your qualified leads. The most important part of your marketing strategy will be how you create a unique and personalized experience for each and every customer. In today’s blog post, we’ll talk about different tips on following up with your leads.
1. Follow up promptly, and not over just email.
One of the most common mistakes that people make when they’re following up with their leads is to wait too long. Following up promptly is the first step, and possibly the most important one. After assigning a lead to a salesperson, that person should aim to make a phone call within minutes if it’s possible. If your lead doesn’t answer, consider leaving a voicemail, but sending a text message letting them know that you tried to call them will be helpful.
Another common mistake is to default to emails. Emails can be useful, and powerful even, for marketing and sales. However, when it comes to getting your lead to visit your dealership, it makes it so much harder to connect with your customers than a phone call.
2. Use a CRM to keep track of your leads.
Customer relationship management (CRM) is a tool that helps companies keep track of their relationships with current and potential clients. Our CRM allows you to keep track of contacts and leads, giving you the ability to log notes from phone calls or meetings, schedule appointments, segment contacts into different lists, and much more. Keeping track of your conversations will help you have better, more personalized, and more productive conversations in the future.
3. Don’t rely on chatbots or automated responses.
Chatbots can serve as a useful tool for when your dealership is closed, but they can actually hurt you if you rely on them too much. Businesses and dealerships alike will often use chatbots on their site to help with their communications and alleviate some of the tasks. However, when you rely too much on automated responses, you start to lose the authentic experience that customers are looking for.
4. Always include a call to action.
Whether you’re sending an email, making a phone call, or having a face-to-face meeting with your customer, make sure to end the conversation with a call to action. In this case, the call to action would be to encourage another meeting, get the customer to come visit your dealership in person, or to complete a sale.
Try using phrases such as:
- “So, when is a good time for us to reconnect?”
- “When should I schedule for you to come in?”
- “When are you available to come test drive the car?”
- “Do you have any time this week to come in?”
- “When is a good time for me to call you again?”
5. Be proactive in sharing updates.
If there was a specific car on your dealership lot that a customer was interested in, send that customer updates on that vehicle. Did the vehicle price drop? Do you have a special or sale going on? Did it get sold to someone else, and do you have other recommendations? Do you have a special incentive for that customer? These are all great things to share and are bound to get responses.
We hope this article was helpful! For more car marketing tips, how to sell more cars, and creating better relationships with your customers, check out our auto dealer marketing blog and feel free to send us a message today with any questions!