Leads: Time Is Of The Essence
Posted by admin | Filed under Lead Follow Up, Lead Generation
Occasionally I receive a refund request from other lead brokers or auto dealers that want a refund on a lead in which the explanation for the request is “Customer Already Bought” or “Customer Already Bought Car” or something similar.
I believe this is and will be an area of huge improvement for lead brokers and auto dealers in 2009. “Time is of the essence” is a common phrase you’ll find in a legal contract, but it also applies to Internet shoppers. Typically, when someone is searching for a product or service on the Internet they are looking for instant gratification.
As a company that generates loan applications for auto dealers across the country, we see it all to often with email inquiries within minutes after a customer completes the application. They typically ask how long it will take for someone to get back to them and if they qualified for a loan.
For auto dealers to be more successful in 2009 I believe they will have to put more focus and emphasis on quickly getting back to customer.
Just after the .com bubble burst nearly 10 years ago I worked for a start-up Internet telephony company. We helped Mercedes Benz USA implement a web based click to talk solution. Sales people took turns with a shared cell phone that received all of the incoming calls from the Internet. It was so successful with some of our test stores the salespeople would want to take it home in the evening and on weekends. Why? they new that someone calling from the website was highly interested in their vehicles.
In the same fashion, someone completing an vehicle quote or loan application is also a highly interested shopper or buyer. I believe the next phase or evolution in leads will not just for the lead to go to the dealer’s CRM, but also to the salesperson’s cell phone as a text message.
The key is sales people or dealers need to treat every incoming lead with a sense of urgency understanding that “time is of the essence”. Web shoppers won’t sit idle, good credit or bad credit waiting 24-72 hours for someone to contact them. They will move onto the next web site or auto dealer that can help them immediately. It’s up to the industry to adapt and change if auto dealers want to close more sales in 2009.
Note: There are a couple of lead providers that are currently offering text messaging to cell phones. The question is how tightly is the text communication tied to a CRM or lead management system in the event a sales person does not follow up.
Tags: auto dealer leads, automotive lead technology, cell phone leads, click to talk, crm, lead management system, sell more cars in 2009, selling more cars in 2009, time is of the essence
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