Harvard Business Review reported that the number one complaint among customers is the absence of follow-up. As a result, 65% of customers are likely to speak poorly of a company and 48% will repeat their frustration to at least 10 people they know.
Automotive salespeople typically work with two customers a day. This gives them a minimum of four free hours each day to follow up with customers who said they’d be back, and with customers who purchased a vehicle. Both are equally important.
While many salespeople rely on automated CRM systems and email, the personal touch of a phone call is much more effective. A recent survey by HubSpot found that the average person deletes 48% of the emails they receive every day without reading them. This same research showed that a phone call is more powerful than email for the first contact and after a sale is made.
Strategic Follow-up
While there are numerous reasons to follow up after a sale, they all lead to one thing: a delighted customer that can bring more business through referrals or repeat purchases.
Today, most customers never receive a phone at all after making a vehicle purchase or nearly any product or service for that matter. This makes it easy to exceed their expectations and strengthen your relationship. Making a follow-up call is even more effective when it is personalized, which is why follow-up strategies must start with your first encounter with your customer.
Listen attentively and make notes, either during your first meeting or conversation or immediately afterward while the information is fresh. While you are discussing the details of various vehicles and the services the dealership offers, engage the customer in casual conversation. Ask the customer about their family. Find out how they plan to use a new vehicle, what types of things they enjoy doing, and the kind of trips they like to take. Find out if they follow sports and how they spend their weekends. Not only will this help you guide them in selecting the right vehicle for their needs, but it will allow you to form a relationship. Write down everything they say whether or not you think it will help in the short term. It may be useful in the future.
Before you make a follow-up call, plan it out. Identify your objective – relationship-building or referrals? Review what you know about the customer that can help you in this effort while being sincere in the conversation. For example, if you know that the customer likes road trips or camping, find a relevant article to discuss, and later, to send to them. Think about your word choices. Avoid “yes/no” questions. Use collaborative words and phrases like we, us, our, or together, and words that inspire confidence like certainly, definitely, and absolutely.
During every call, listen and take notes about what you learn. You may find a way to make future follow-up even more effective. For example, on one follow-up call a customer mentioned that he was out of his favorite brand of coffee so he wasn’t really in the mood to talk in detail. The salesperson didn’t push and the call ended on a positive note. The same day, the salesperson found the brand of coffee that was mentioned and overnighted a box to the customer with a note. The customer called back the following day and the salesperson was able to achieve his objective. Even if he hadn’t, the customer will always remember the coffee, talk positively about the salesperson and dealership, and may refer future business.
With any follow-up call, find out if there are any concerns or issues before you hang up. Then, find solutions, communicate to the customer, and follow up again to be sure they are resolved.
Maintain the relationship by continuing to follow up and check in over time. How often is up to you and the customer. If you aren’t sure, ask them if it’s ok to check in every month or so. Remember special anniversaries like the date a vehicle was purchased, a birthday, or a child’s graduation. These are excellent reasons to reach out to customers proactively.
Ask for the referral.
In 2018, according to HubSpot’s research, 84% of buyers start their purchasing process with a referral from someone they trust, and 90% of 10 buying decisions are made based on peer recommendations. Additionally, after a positive experience, 83% of customers are willing to provide a referral. Unfortunately, most salespeople aren’t asking as only 29% of these customers had the chance to provide the referral.
Follow-up is an essential part of selling that, with proper preparation and consistent effort can bring significant results. Are you following up?
