SA vs order taker

[PucHed]

As David said, a good service advisor is probably as important to customer retention in sales as they are in service. Also collision work if you have a body shop. This is the only person who normally keeps in touch with the customer throughout the ownership.

Just a thought, but how many people on this board go out of their way to go to a certain McDonalds because of the kid taking the order? Probably the same amount of people who will continue to show up on your drive for any reason other than price (every McDonald's charges the same).

[Art_Mopar]

Well, here is my 2 cents. No on order takers and yes on training an advisor to be top notch! I have found that the "killers" with years of experince only last 1 or 2 years at any one dealership and chase out more business than they create. Basically, the vehicle tells the story to the tech, the tech tells the advisor, the advisor tells the customer, and the customer decides yes or no. I have had GREAT success in sponsoring students in apprentice tech programs and all the while training them in house to be advisors. As far as the McDonalds question-I do avoid the ones with LOUSY service!

[tccollins]

I try to avoid fast food altogether as some customers avoid car dealerships.

You get what you pay for; I will not rehash the great CSI and customer retention points. The most important point is your SA comes in contact with your customers more than anyone else employed at your business.

If I had a guy that could earn $75,000.00 a year selling and satisfying customers I would be over the moon, also, if you dont sell it someone else will!

This business runs on:
1.Profit
2.Customer Satisfaction
3.Customer Retention

If a SA can juggle the three he or she is a great SA and deserve to make the big bucks..in my opinion!

[Ser Sol]

One of the main reasons for a pro in the lane is expense vs. revenue. A professional advisor, if his pay plan is correctly structured, will generate his own pay plus a profit for the shop. An order taker,probably hourly, will do only the minimum to keep his job and will become an expense for the shop.
If you have any doubt, calculate the expense generated in customer goodwill(rental cars and refunds to angry customers) and in unpaid warranty claims generated by a rooky!
That alone, not counting poor labor sales missed by the rooky, is a reason to hire a well trained pro.

In my opinion, the order taker is an excuse for a lazy Dealer or Service manager that does not want to have to really manage a service department. It is hard work and it takes organization and intelligence to make all the systems in place work smoothly.

Most dealers do not have a clue as to how service works or what to do to "fix it when it's broke" ---- and they have little interest in learning. They look to their service manager to make it work -- as long as it doesn't cost anything.

John
Ser Sol
Pika68@aol.com

[hwalk]

I would think that the "order taker" might work if all service customers were fully knowledgeable as to what is required to keep their vehicles on the road and when. I find that customer retention is largely a result of the customer's trust in the department personnel, especially the advisor, to "advise" them regarding a critical component of their daily lives(their car), about which they know very little....and really have no desire to become and expert. Order taking falls well short in this scenario.

[wdedgar]

Customers want 3 things from us:
- Make my life easier
- Keep me safe on the road
- Keep my costs down

We should be doing all thw rok that should be done, and nothing that shouldn't. A servcie advisor should point out what a customers needs to have done, and how it meets the three criteria above. The customer still makes the decision. As long as the advisor is provding accurate information, it doesn't matter if the customer comes in for a recall. If the advisor upsells to customer to $600 worth of work the customer will see that it is their best interest, or if they don't trust the dealership, will see it as a rip-off. Fortunately, professional technicians and advisors will alwasy quote actual measurements against specifications, providing credible evidence for their recommendations.

------------------
Dan Edgar
Leadership Ethics

[flyboy]

>>Fortunately, professional technicians and advisors will alwasy quote actual measurements against >>specifications, providing credible evidence for their recommendations.

------------------
Dan Edgar
Leadership Ethics

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So, we gonna see more than just a subliminal sales pitch here or what?

[This message has been edited by flyboy (edited 12-10-2003).]

[This message has been edited by flyboy (edited 12-10-2003).]

[jazdale]

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Or I can hire a top notch advisor who sells the heck out of service - but he costs $55K+ a year. Is it worth it? Will the pro be able to double gross and net?
******************

On a per-day basis, The top-notch advisor may not double the gross, but..
More importantly, he won't drive your repeat customers away from the service AND sales department.
He may also not drive your good employees to seek employment elsewhere.

Theres a definite top-down effect of hiring professional-minded people (read Attitude) to run your front line staffing.

********************
Draw off of your own personal experiences the times you were impressed by a professional in other service industries.
Car rental, travel agent, furnace repair, medical, electronics repair, etc.

Those that impressed you, are the ones you return to, the others are used to simply compare prices (since its not their service that brings you back)

[Michael White]

Your complaining about $55K a year?? In the San Francisco Bay area, I know many advisors making $125-$150K per year. It is not uncommon to see advisor base pays in the $55-$65k base a year. If you can find a great high CSI advisor, with great sales and a positivie attitude who wants to work for $55K a year, I'll move him out here.

[tomv]

a quality advisor/consultant is priceless. there are immeasurable and intangible benefits to someone who can:
a-assist a customer with making choices
b-sell needed maintenance and repairs
c-handle customer concerns both proactively and reactively
d-relay important information between customers and technicians
customer retention and relationships cannot be price tagged. i have a mcdonalds across the street from my facility. i havent been there in 3+ years. they can fill an order but they miss the mark while theyre doing it. i expect little from a mcdonalds as i understand their hiring practices and low personnel demands. but in this case i walk or drive down the road to a short order that services me well and actually provides more than the meal i ordered.
our town was the testbed for a ford experiment that went terribly wrong. it included less than experienced service consultants and suffered immensly for it. it was difficult for us as a dealer to do business with them. i cant imagine what it was like as a customer.