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March 11, 2008 SOUTHFIELD, Mich. — By improving the way they respond to online inquiries, dealers may stand a greater chance of making a sale and increasing brand loyalty, according to a recent study. An R.L. Polk & Co., survey of 570 new-vehicle purchasers found that simply responding to an online vehicle inquiry is not sufficient. To maximize sales potential, dealers must tailor their responses to the customer's needs, the study indicated. To help improve the chance of a sale, dealers must have adequate vehicle content and information in a follow-up and respond quickly in the manner that the consumer wishes to be contacted. "Dealers can improve make loyalty significantly by improving satisfaction with response time and pricing information," explained Lonnie Miller, director of industry analysis for Polk. "If a dealer is not already including price information in their response, they should begin doing so immediately," Miller continued. "That, coupled with speed, can yield an average increase in make loyalty of 3.4 percentage points." According to the study, the content that consumers find most important is vehicle availability and price range. Interestingly enough, Polk noted that finding the lowest price wasn't the most relevant factor. In fact, the study found that consumers are often accepting of a competitive price tag. Regarding response time, almost half (47 percent) of customers who prefer e-mail communication indicated that a 10-24 hour turnaround time is appropriate. Meanwhile, of the consumers who prefer talking over the phone, 68 percent count on receiving a response in an hour or less. "Paying attention to the method of response is critical to the success of a dealer's online leads. Customers want to do business with dealers who listen to them," added Miller. "Polk's study shows that 70 percent of respondents who purchased from a responding dealer were contacted by their preferred communication method," he continued. The study also highlighted the importance of building rapport with first-time buyers through efficient responses. According to the data, 68 percent of all surveyed consumers who received a follow-up from a dealer ended up purchasing from the same store. More than one-third of that group was first-time buyers, highlighting the potential of establishing brand loyalty among these consumers. It's crucial for dealers to tap into this resource, officials pointed out. "Polk's study found that first-time buyers are often overlooked, but can be customers for life if dealers listen to their needs. Of the respondents who did not receive an answer to the leads they submitted, 46 percent were first-time buyers," Miller stated. "Though not all first-time buyers are the same, dealers can reap near immediate reward by responding to them in a timely manner and providing the information they request," he concluded. |
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