Auto dealer phone training is most often discussed as it relates to the dealership’s sales team. Teaching a salesperson to handle an incoming customer call often being the favorite topic. But what about the other phone calls the dealership gets each day? Total sales for service, parts and the body shop was $84.6 billion in 2013, up 5 percent from the previous year according to NADA’s Annual Dealer Profile Report. Would an effective auto dealer phone training program for fixed-ops improve results in your store’s other profit centers?
The big question is: How much revenue is lost annually at your dealership due to poor call performance in service, parts, and body shop?
The right questions is: What can be done now to address, review, and improve my dealership’s fixed-op call performance and stop any potential revenue leaks due to mishandled calls?
The first adjustment to be made in most dealerships is simply one of identification. It’s simple, but begin by having your receptionist keep track of every incoming call for one business day. Make sure he or she identifies the callers needs, what department the call was transferred to, and writes them down for you to review later. Look over all the data. Do you see how each incoming call is a unique opportunity to generate revenue for the dealership? The right viewpoint and message from leadership is a vital precursor for implementing effective education, training, and processes within the dealership.
As you review the call list, sort each call into the following categories:
- Sales
- Service
- Parts
- Body Shop
How many calls were directed to your service department? How did your team handle each of those calls? What calls resulted in a billable service?
(You should personally look into each of these calls and see which resulted in a billable service.)
Consider the following data: For a new car dealership in 2013, the average total number of repair orders written was 14,002 at $250 total service and parts sales per customer repair order. How much revenue would a 10% increase in service call conversions amount to for your store? Using NADA’s profile report for the average new car dealer it would be an increase of nearly $500,000. That’s a worthy addition to any dealer’s bottom line.
To increase incoming call written service orders by as much as 29%, Measure Up Group uses the following call checkpoint process for auto dealer phone training programs.
| Greeting | |
 |
ID Service Needs |
|
Caller Contact Info |
|
Re-confirm Service Needs |
|
Ask For Appointment |
|
Set Appointment |
Is there a similar process in place at your dealership? If so, what process reinforces the behavior? What data and training backs up the results?
Our exclusive Heads-Up Alerts! Your department managers receive real-time notifications and you can measure Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) on your mobile device.
Receiving the call is the first step – handling every call with best practices is even more important! The Measure Up Group will track, monitor, grade and train your team to improve its call handling skills and provide you with a road map to do better for each profit center of your business – sales, service, parts and body shop.
Call us now at 415-898-1112 or visit our responsive design website at measureupgroup.com
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