Why Should You Automate Your Auto Dealership Service BDC?
STELLA handles all incoming calls with consistency and professionalism.
What is a Dealership BDC?
A dealership BDC is the business development center of any retail automotive rooftop. Typically, BDC team members work in conjunction with the dealership's sales and service departments- responsible for developing new leads and scheduling appointments. Usually, BDC employees work as a team to create and manage their leads. This is accomplished first by making outbound call which creates new leads, and then by responding to incoming sales or service requests and setting up appointments. The primary responsibility of an automotive BDC is to drive growth through lead generation and customer acquisition.
Should Your Dealership Have a Service BDC?
Historically, when referencing an automotive BDC it has been associated with the sales department of that store or dealer group. An automotive service BDC, however, offers the same functions, but for service appointments. The department of the dealership answers the flood of incoming calls to schedule service appointments and engages with new or returning customers to earn their business with service specials or loyalty offers. A positive experience with a dealership's service department can generate years of customer loyalty and retention, which consequently, leads to additional sales for the dealership from happy, returning customers.
The service department at any dealership has a tremendous opportunity to become a driver of ongoing revenue and customer loyalty. For many dealerships, 75% of all initial customer interactions occur through the service department. Each service customer has the potential to become a long-term client. Since most consumers formulate their opinions about the quality of a business based upon a first impression, this is especially important in the service drive. That first impression of a dealership's service department BDC can literally make or break future vehicle purchases from that store.
A service-focused BDC allows a dealership to properly deliver clear value to potential customers. Business models tend to skew away from a single transaction view of customer value and towards a more holistic view of the lifetime value of the product or service. Creating a service BDC gives dealerships a better opportunity to capture service customers and establish their loyalty through consistent and professional customer service and outreach.
Advantages of Automating Your Service BDC
The advantage of automating a service BDC can be summed up in a single word: consistency. By automating incoming service call responses, dealers can be sure that every call is answered professionally. In addition to this, almost no calls are forwarded to voicemail when a service BDC is automated. With the fast-paced advancements in voice artificial intelligence (voice AI), dealerships using automated service BDCs can provide potential service customers with helpful and intuitive service scheduling processes. Recent studies show that as many as two-thirds of service advisors fail to offer an appointment option, and an increasing number of customers will not leave a voicemail. Just imagine how much revenue is being tossed aside by a simple mix of incorrectly trained staff and poor phone practices. These missteps in the service department not only deprive dealers of possible service appointments, but also potentially eliminates future business opportunities.
STELLA AI for Service Scheduling Automation
STELLA Automotive AI sets the standard for interactive voice artificial intelligence. Our system can deftly handle calls in real time, and never miss a call. Even better, STELLA AI's Voice Assistant handles every incoming service call exactly as the dealer wants. STELLA AI eliminates any concerns around employees going off script or failing to set appointments accurately in the system. Instead, the dealership's service clientele are treated to a seamless, consistent and professional encounter. Ready to take your inbound service scheduling to the next level? Contact us to find out how STELLA Automotive AI can help.
