Your Branded Site As A Profit Center

[Pat]

Recently I was hired away from the local Dodge Dealership by the Local Chrysler Dealership to help bring their Internet Department online.

Now I guess I had grown comfortable in my office at the Dodge Dealership and I now have been working overtime in site design and layout. The Dealer has posed some great questions about this new site being a profit center for all his departments. I have been able to incorporate F&I and Sales quite easily, however now I must bring Service and Parts to the net, a job my old employer did not care to expend energy on.

I am looking for a few suggestions in these areas from my esteemed colleagues.

1. Other than E-Mail has anyone found a service that works in giving your service department a hand up, without trying to steal your customer for their own evil purposes? i.e. Carpoints Cyber Garage, a neat feature, but still Carpoints, and since Carpoint is a interdisamediator (hate long words) I refuse to use it.

2. Has anyone located a service, or has suggestions to stimulate retail parts sales online?

3. Although we do not have a body shop thought I would ask for those that do.

4. In the Area of CRM (Customer Retention) does anyone have a suggestion as to best tackle this with our online customers? Again I prefer not to use a service that markets to my own customer.


I have a few ideas in what I would like to see in these areas, but without a professional service to assist us I think a one man operation would get an error message (Operation Timed Out).

Thanks in advance to all your suggestions.


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pat@vanwyks.com



[This message has been edited by Pat (edited 03-19-2000).]

[This message has been edited by Pat (edited 03-19-2000).]

[EFConn]

Turning your website into a Customer Service Website....

If you can offer an incentive to join a Dealer Cyber-savers club on-line. (Like $10.00 offer their next service or something)
You can start doing Service Marketing Direct via e-mail. In the near future, you will also, hopefully, be able to let these customer schedule their own service via the website. Both of these efforts will lower your current Scheduling and Merchandising Costs.

Also, you have a seamless way to develop Customer Loyalty if e-mail with Service Writers are involved. Think of how much CSI will improve if Service Customers talk to their advisors about that funny e-mail joke they sent out last week instead of their "broken car".

The sky is the limit...