How to Keep Customers Coming Back to Your Dealership

The car dealership business is getting very competitive, and dealers have started acknowledging the benefits of retaining the customers they already have. If you are a dealer, one of the ways you can keep your customers coming back is by setting up loyalty programs.

How Loyalty Programs Keeps Customers Coming Back

Provide them with loyalty cards that promise discounts or other benefits if they come back, and you can be sure they will not go anywhere. Everyone loves a good bargain, so when you focus on that, the revenues customers pay at your dealership will keep flowing through the years.
The old adage: Customer is king is still relevant. Your marketing priorities in your dealership should focus on making customers feel appreciated.

Some of the things you can do to improve customer loyalty in your auto business include:

Set Up a Rewards Program for Members

When you have car dealership loyalty programs that promise to reward customers who either service or buy their vehicles at your premise, you are likely to get customers visiting twice or even three times in a year. Those who do not have a reward card or signed membership will however hop into any place they can find.

Averagely, a member will spend almost 45% more than a nonmember in a particular store every year. This is because members who come frequently ultimately spend more.

Another reason why you should have a membership program for your customers is the likelihood of them buying another vehicle from you. If you indicate that they will get a discount when they transact with you, then you would have enticed them even further. If you work things right, they are likely to buy it at a better rate, even four times more than a non-member.

Giving incentives does not necessarily lead to losses. Some of the ways you can do it include:

1. Make them feel important by giving VIP packages

You can offer VIP packages that give discounts when they come for service visits or buy spare parts.
You can create an application that spices things up by recording and rewarding them when they visit your facility. You can even set up one that gives them offers for their birthdays and anniversaries. The offers can be redeemed in form of restaurant vouchers, price discounts, travel opportunities and other great deals.

2. Keep your past customers’ profiles

When doing loyalty market campaigns, you can also go for those who have done business with you in the past. If you have their data base, email addresses or even social media contacts, reach out to them and tell them of the deals you have to offer if they become your members.

3. Improve your services

No matter how good the deal you give is, if your services are not good, you are unlikely to get repeat customers. Insist on good customer service from your staff, give positive feedback and interaction whenever you have customers, and you will see them coming back when they want to buy or service a car.

4. Communicate often about your program

Make sure you engage with your customers on the car dealership loyalty programs that you offer. When you communicate, you solidify the relationship and make them feel even closer. When they know that you are communicating with them on how they can benefit, and not just when you want to make a sale, they trust you more.

Communication can be done through quarterly email messages, birthday messages, postcards and even text messages to remind them of your brand. If you do not have capacity to do all that by yourself, you can hire a third party to keep up with your customers or customize automated messages that will be delivered to them at scheduled time.