Every dealership in the United States wants to have greater retention. It is no secret that the car
business is easier, more profitable and a heck of a lot less stressful when working with repeat
customers.
There are really only two things a dealership needs to have a successful retention program; benefits and rewards. To get the customers involved you will need a brand and a means to deliver your message. And finally, you will need ongoing training and accountability. Sound too simple? It really can be broken down into these simple steps.
First the benefits. Benefits are something that the customer receives just for doing business with you. This can be lifetime engine or powertrain, oil changes, tire rotations, key replacement, car washes or any combination of these and more. The Program term can be anywhere from 1 month/1,000 miles to 10 year/250,000 miles. You decide on the Package of benefits you want to offer and for how long you want to offer them. Next the rewards. Rewards are what the customer receives for continuing to do business with you. It’s simple… the customer earns rewards when they spend money with you. The more they spend the greater their reward.
To get the customers involved and on-board with your program you will need a brand and a means to deliver this brand’s message. Decide on what you want customers to associate you with to start developing your brand. Do you want to be the Powertrain for Life store, the Oil Changes for Life store, or both? Your brand can include a slogan or just a story about who you are and what you do in the community and how you assist your customers with their automotive needs. Building a strong brand is an art form, and you may want to enlist the help of some professionals if you do not feel that you are able to absolutely nail this part. How you are perceived by your market goes a long way to success with your program.
How do you deliver your brand message? This is the fun part. There really is no wrong way other than not going all in. Be creative! Dealerships have had success with brochures, custom log-in and landing pages, desk mats, banners, posters, web graphics, addendums, service drive cards, custom email blasts, personalized enrollment mailers, direct mail, stickers, flyers, frisbees, postcards, glovebox enrollment cards, mobile apps…. The sky is the limit. If reaching out with your brand works when you do it timidly, imagine how well it will work when you are aggressive with it!
Your brand is who you are and you must include it in everything you do. Now for the training and accountability. There are dealerships that have done this internally and had some success. There are far more who have tried, failed, and abandoned the idea of a retention program. It’s not typically due to a lack of talent or knowledge; it normally just comes down to time. Very few people reading this article right now have the time to train and mentor every employee in the dealership through the metamorphosis that is required to have success with retention. Every customer interaction with every employee has to drive retention. Every phone call answered, every service appointment made, every sales follow-up call, every desked deal, and every service bill paid will have the whole interaction designed to drive retention.
Once you have trained everyone on everything, now you have to mentor and make sure it sticks. Sales managers have tried to get everyone up to date for decades, but how is that going? This is the place where the right partner can really help.
If you decide to look for a partner to help you achieve your retention goals, look for a company that is about process and not just product. Every company out there will offer some level of training. But remember; bad training is worse than no training at all. The company might lose you as a customer after a year. Think about how many customers you will lose during that year. Look for a partner that will stay with you and your people, and will help you every step of the way. You need someone that will not only set you up but also help you straighten things up when you start to go off track… before you derail. Ask any potential partners for references that you can speak with; furthermore, ask those references not only about successes but also about a time when things got tough and how the potential partner handled it. True character is shown in times of trouble. Good luck in undertaking your journey to retention.
Jack Garrity
