Car dealerships can stave off a slumping

economy by focusing on customer relationships, which result in increased referral-based sales, according to Grant Dunning, president of the OCT

Group.

“During expense-sensitive times, dealers can be proactive with prospective and current customers,” said Dunning, whose company has processed more than three million consumer satisfaction-related surveys for car dealers since 1986. “It’s surprisingly simple because most dealers intend to be customer-focused anyway.”

Dunning said that his firm, the OCT Group, had recently collected 6,020 surveys from car buyers throughout the nation and learned that 61 percent of the respondents wanted additional information about extended-service policies they passed up at the time of delivery.

“We also received 1,050 names of potential customers who were interested in buying a vehicle,” Dunning said. “Referrals and new extended warranties were only two of nine other questions in the survey designed to help dealerships' sales and marketing.”

Dunning said the OCT Group, which stands for “One Customer at a Time™,” has three programs to build customer relationships for car dealerships: Prospect Advantage, Service Advantage and Sales Advantage.

Prospect Advantage helps increase the sales conversion ratio of recent visitors, according to Dunning. This program thanks the shopper for the visit with a gift shipped within 24 hours, with a customized package with the dealer’s logo, including a personalized letter and brief, postage-paid survey card to measure the

prospects shopping experience.

The Service Advantage program monitors the customer’s experiences in the service department, including daily alerts with less-than-satisfactory scores and referrals. It also includes a monthly summary of service

satisfaction, according to Dunning.

Dunning said OCT Group’s most popular service is the Sales Advantage program, which launches with the actual sale of a vehicle. Within days, the customer receives a personalized thank you note and gift, customized with the dealer’s logo. A brief survey covering the sales process and customer satisfaction is included, along with a request for referrals. Additionally, the program incorporates cards mailed to all clients on the anniversary of their purchase, according to Dunning.

The Prospect Advantage and Sales Advantage programs include the proprietary Insight Track Executive Management Reports, which illustrate customer feedback regarding the sales experience. From a secured Internet Web site,

the charts measure a dealer’s performance from the customer’s perspective. “Dealers have found this to be a highly valuable sales tool," Dunning said. "By taking Insight Track online, dealers can easily retrieve valuable customer

information from any computer with Internet access and a browser, so they can make decisions that impact sales immediately,” Dunning said.

About the OCT Group

Founded in 1986 and based in Irvine, Calif., the OCT Group helps car dealers “turn good intentions into reality” with gift programs and surveys that enhance customer relationships.

For more information, call (800) 443-8937 or visit www.octgroup.com.

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