Since setting up my consultancy business

Since setting up my consultancy business, the last 4 weeks have been a whirlwind: meetings with Heads of business, Industry commentators, High St Retailers, Marketing Directors, Call Centre Managers, and the guys at the coal face (the Operators); I am starting to see some trends emerging.

Since setting up my consultancy business, the last 4 weeks have been a whirlwind: meetings with Heads of business, Industry commentators, High St Retailers, Marketing Directors, Call Centre Managers, and the guys at the coal face (the Operators); I am starting to see some trends emerging.

As the used car market begins to soften and sales leads return to pre-Covid levels, it would seem in some cases the industry has lost some of those best practices that had started to be Implemented and exercised before the pandemic hit. It may be that stock shortages, Consumer demand, record PPU, and profits meant that it became far easier to sell a car and that if one lead did not result in an instant sale, then the next one would.

With the acceleration of technology, dealers have had to invest large sums into their IT/website infrastructure as they play catch up to consumer demands and disruptors. However, we need to question whether there is a case of heavy implementation but a lack of integration, as we still seem to have the basic issues:

Speed of response

• Are dealers answering consumer enquiries immediately?
• Are dealers using speed of response software?

Next action follow up

• What communication channels are dealers using to communicate with the consumer?
• Are dealers using telephone, email best practice templates, SMS, WhatsApp and Personalised videos to follow up with the consumer?

The investment made in tech & and marketing spend requires a return on investment, which can only be achieved if the operators understand the process, the benefits to both the consumer and the business and possess the skill set to maximise the opportunity from the technology. This can only be achieved through training, coaching and accountability.

If you need help in driving transformation through your business with a team that has a Proven track record of delivering digital solutions and integration to provide operational Excellence, performance improvements and efficiencies feel free to get in touch.

Ian Godbold

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