Leverage AI for a More Efficient Front Office

Today, dealers echo one refrain in terms of their top strategy: Deliver a terrific customer experience. It’s become one of the key findings of CDK’s Friction Points Study, and this year, 84% of dealers say they’ll increase their focus on customer experience as they believe it’s essential to stay competitive and grow their business.

As their lots are finally filling with inventory and sales volume is increasing, it’s more important than ever to reestablish processes and examine areas that need improvement.

The Data and Analytics team at CDK looked at Customer Relationship Management system traffic and found that dealerships actually receive their highest number of leads from the phone and internet while their teams are actively selling to other customers.

Then, when they’re not actively selling, 87% of their sales staff is turning around to follow up on leads.

With that data in mind, it begs the question: What’s the best use of time for your dealership agents to generate the most efficient process, the happiest customers, and the most sales?

Increase Staff Efficiency and Simplify Lead Management

Knowing a sales staff is engaged so heavily in the lead process it makes sense to maintain a workload that’s as efficient as possible. Artificial intelligence is the fastest way to accurately respond to specific questions that come from leads in a timely manner.

In a recent study, it was estimated that 29% of labor time can be automated using AI. In dealerships, this is exceptionally valuable as Sales associates spend much of their time working through hundreds of leads per month. Free up associates to focus on higher priority tasks and you’ll improve employee retention and deliver better customer service.

Create a Personalized Customer Experience With AI

Poor customer service can occur at any time throughout the shopping process, but how often do dealerships miss the opportunity to sell a car when the misstep occurs within minutes of their first interaction? When consumers are shopping for their next vehicle, it’s likely they’ll reach out with questions. Does the car come with side airbags? Which trim level comes with leather? And, of course, is this car still available?

If the first impression of the dealership is an automated response with no acknowledgement of the customer’s questions, you can lose an opportunity quickly. To increase consumer satisfaction and loyalty, dealers must provide a more proactive and customized level of engagement. Dealers can give customers the experience they want by combining the right AI technology with customer-focused approaches. Stores that use AI to enhance their current processes will have a competitive advantage.

Ensure Dealership Success With AI

CDK leverages AI sensibly, to tackle the real challenges dealers face today, and we do it seamlessly to enhance existing workflows. There’s no need to learn entirely new and separate tools. In the front office, CDK unlocks AI to assist in equity mining, deliver useful insights into your customers’ journey, and deliver predictive suggestions to your teams to assist their customers. AI is an incredible technology with game-changing implications, and a trusted partner can help dealers realize its benefits.