Automotive customer retention: useful strategies

Customer Relationship Management: Silver Bullet of Dealership Success

“Leaders who don’t focus on their customers often fail. A relationship with individuals who might buy their products is essential, but for some reason, many miss this absolutely critical aspect of their business. All too often, entrepreneurs spend their energy on everything but having conversations with current and potential customers.” So says Forbes contributor Alan Hall, who is the founder of Grow America, an organization dedicated to helping business builders nationwide and worldwide.

Missing the target about what your customers need is an expensive proposition. Yet, in a recent study, marketers of 80% of brands lacked the right data to produce effective marketing campaigns. Old school demographics such as age and gender are not sufficient to generate increased market share. What proved substantially more potent was the harnessing of “relationship-oriented data,” such as information gleaned from social media and online behavior.

Making Customers’ Lives Better

No matter the size of your business, implementing a system to gather details about the wants, needs, and preferences of your customers is the silver bullet of success. When you have, at your fingertips, your customers profile along with an understanding of their daily life (where they work, their family structure, their hobbies and associations) you can begin to intuit, with much greater accuracy, how your business can make their lives better.

Examples abound that this principle works across industries. A case in point is Stitch Fix, Inc., a company that provides women with customized fashion, delivered right to their door. The concept has resonated powerfully with a whole segment of working women who are too busy to spend time in a store trying on clothes. Customers are in contact with a personal stylist online, answer questions regarding their style preferences, and are sent a package of five clothing items or accessories. Then they are free to decide which items to keep and which to send back, all from the privacy of their own homes. The service, now six years old, is growing by leaps and bounds. In June of 2014 the company was nearing $150 million annual revenue run rate.

Authentic Partnerships

Dynamic businesses are built not on programs but partnerships between an entrepreneur and his customers. You secure their loyalty and support as you listen to them. Even in our high tech 21st century business culture, nothing works like authentic relationship. While it requires communication, understanding and, yes, some risks, the payoff is worth it. Customers will always return to those who seek to understand their world and provide innovative ways to improve their quality of life.

Build Lasting Relationships with Automotive CRM Software

No matter the size or scope of your business, AutoAwards can assist you in building lasting relationships with your clients. Flexstat, our proprietary automotive CRM software, is designed to deliver precise and detailed data regarding your consumer base. There’s no magic involved here, just accurate, comprehensive information that will take your business to the next level. Want to know more? Contact us at 309-696-6000 to talk about your automotive customer retention needs, and to find the right solutions for your dealership.