Article shares good news: prepaid vehicle maintenance plans

Automotive Prepaid Maintenance Plans in the News

You may have heard some buzz about Dealer Marketing Magazine’s article, “3 Ways a Dealer-Branded PPM Improves Retention.” What’s all the fuss? Simply this: Dealerships that embrace a successful automotive prepaid maintenance plan (PPM plan) increase their market share while receiving a substantial ROI. And the results can be pretty impressive: 85% first-year retention; 65% each during the following two years; $70 customer-pay upsell per repair order; and, $1,105 in customer-pay service business for the majority of the six years (on average) that consumers own their vehicles.

Is it worth it to go through all the effort and cost to put a PPM plan in place? What difference will it make for your dealership? Keep reading to find out the three big reasons why PPM can make a big difference in your business.

PPM delivers a competitive edge. Nobody likes those unexpected maintenance bills that always pop up at the least convenient time, leaving you scrambling to find cash to cover the problem. With the PPM plan you provide customers with a substantial added value: decreased stress during car repair. If a consumer has to choose between a dealership that offers baseline service versus one that provides that same service while buffering unexpected costs, the choice is a no-brainer. Put PPM in place and your dealership will be the logical choice for follow-up maintenance on every single vehicle you sell.

Retain more customers, even those elusive used car buyers. Personalized service is the foundation of long term customer retention. With a PPM program in place that anticipates customer needs and preferences, you give your clients lots of very specific reasons to keep doing business with you. Ongoing marketing and promotion help educate customers about your unique services and benefits, which they can choose to redeem at their own convenience. With a structured PPM plan you can drive more consumers to your business, especially your service department.

Because measuring your success has never been simpler, you can continually upgrade your results. A well-constructed PPM plan will include accountability tools that are built into the program to accurately measure customer-pay dollars for each visit. This means there’s no more guessing about whether the program is meeting its goals. Even better, because accurate measurement is built in, your team can regularly assess and further customize services to meet your client profile. No more guesswork, only results that are quantifiable and can guide your business to the next level.

Are you considering implementing an automotive prepaid maintenance plan at your dealership? Make sure your plan is driven by customer needs and preferences, steers clients back to your service department, and has accountability tools pre-set to help measure your ROI.

Developing a PPM plan for your dealership can substantially increase your customer retention, deliver a competitive edge in the marketplace, and provide ongoing data to help your business.

Prepaid Vehicle Maintenance Plans from Industry Leader

AutoAwards, an industry-leader in automotive loyalty programs since 1991, has created top notch dealer loyalty marketing strategies for all sizes of dealerships in the US and Canada. Using their longstanding expertise in the industry, they have developed their own prepaid vehicle maintenance plan. Designed as a platform to allow dealerships to build loyalty and revenue to meet their unique goals, there are no high administration fees, pre-authorizations, or third party interactions required.

Our team can assist you in customizing the plan to your distinct brand. Plans can be sold with any new or pre-owned vehicle, regardless of actual mileage or in the service drive to existing customers. If you are ready to learn even more about what PPM can mean for your business, or would like to learn more about how we can customize your automotive prepaid maintenance program, contact us online or call us at 302-696-6000.