From the moment the term “CRM for auto dealerships” started getting tossed around, every dealer in the world wanted the best CRM on the market to help sell cars. Your dealership, most likely, included.

That’s because customer relationship management is what you do starting the second you hone in on a potential customer. You’re managing that relationship from first car purchase to souped-up SUV. So knowing your customer’s needs and continually meeting – or better yet exceeding – their expectations is a must.

Any dealership tool that helps your team do this is golden, and a good CRM is just one piece of the puzzle. But you don’t rely on it alone.

You know that consumers today demand more from the companies they do business with, and you must rise to meet the demand. Your customers want an excellent experience every time they interact with you.

It’s a thin line (if any) between “doing business” and “interacting” – it’s all part of the customer journey!

Understanding What You Offer Customers

That annual birthday card doesn’t do much for customers these days.

Give your customers more – a standout experience at every touchpoint. That’s the best way to build loyalty and ensure that they keep coming back.

Whether they interact with you regularly or even just once on your website, customers are constantly forming an overall opinion of your dealership. A great question to ask yourself is Do I understand my customers and their experience with our dealership?

A simple audit of your customer experience offerings goes a long way. It’s more thorough than relying on reviews – plus, it gives you a process for ensuring excellent experiences going forward. Here are three steps to get started:

1. Get specific, targeting individual experience channels. Where are customers interacting with your dealership the most? On your website? On the lot? In the service lane? On social media? Your app?

• Determine which of your channels are most important to your customers – these are usually the ones used the most. How and when are they used during the customer journey?
• Is there a channel that your customers want to use but isn’t performing well? Maybe you aren’t even offering it. Ensure that you understand the communications preferences of your customers.
• Assess your channels one at a time, from most to least important, based both on volume and on what your customers like to use. Focus your strategy and your resources to create a great CX.

2. Process your processes: Are they customer-focused? Your team may be hitting its numbers and meeting its goals, but is this resulting in an exceptional customer experience every time?

Your policies and/or processes (or lack thereof) could be causing customer dissatisfaction. Do you have a process for greeting customers in the service lane? On the lot? What about for taking calls? More importantly, are these touchpoints personalized to your customer?

Make sure that your actions and interactions are customer-focused, then put your energy behind them.

3. Repeat. Make the assessment a process in itself. Build a customer-first mentality into your culture. You already care about your customers – make it known to your team and community!

With experiences trumping just about everything else when it comes to consumer preferences, you must carefully analyze the channels and processes your dealership uses regularly.

Offer your customers personalized experiences on the channels they prefer for an awesome experience every time.