He will come back some time, really. Just not to you.
Last year's customer has no complaint and is not angry. He has simply forgotten you, and drives on until something breaks. Then he calls whoever is nearest, or whoever wrote to him last.
A customer base that slowly empties out.
Every garage has hundreds of names of people who were customers once. They did not leave after an argument, simply nothing happened any more. Servicing is the kind of thing you postpone until you are reminded, and nobody does the reminding.
Franchised dealers do this, and that is why they hold on to customers longer. Not because their work is better, but because there is a system behind it that sends a message on time.
The good news is that these customers already know you. They do not need convincing, only reminding.
- Postponed servicing becomes a more expensive repair, usually elsewhere.
- Your customer base grows on paper and shrinks in reality.
- Your quiet weeks stay quiet while the names are simply sitting there.
What the system does.
On mileage or on date, whichever works best for you.
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01
Your own interval, not a standard one
You decide yourself whether you count in kilometres, in months, or by what the manufacturer prescribes per model. There is no fixed schedule that fits everywhere.
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02
The list comes out
Who is approaching the next service, and who is already past it. That second group is often the biggest and the most forgotten.
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03
A message that knows the car
Not "time for a service", but "your Passat was on 158,000 in March, which by now is probably around 175,000". That reads like a garage that is thinking along with you.
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04
Offering a moment straight away
With the right duration for a minor or major service, and the question of whether he wants to wait or drop off.
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05
Combine where possible
If the MOT is also due soon, or a tyre change is still outstanding, that is proposed in one appointment. That saves the customer a trip.
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06
Anyone who does not respond is not forgotten
No endless repetition, but a new attempt at the next natural moment.
A conversation that comes out of this.
An example, not a recording of a customer. You set the tone yourself, this one is ours.
Customers you already had.
No new customers needed
These people already know your business. They do not need convincing, only approaching at the right moment.
Two jobs in one appointment
A service and an MOT together is more turnover per visit and one trip less for the customer. Everyone wins.
Filling quiet weeks
Because you decide how many messages go out per day, you can use this list to close gaps.
Postponement turns into servicing instead of repair
A service on time is cheaper than the damage postponement causes, and that is an easy conversation to have.
Not a loose little helper.
This is the workflow that asks the most of your existing data and also gets the most out of it. It works better the better your integration with your package is.
- UnderstandLast visit, mileage, interval and the MOT date.
- ActApproach, propose and book, with jobs combined.
- ConnectCustomer history from your package makes this a lot sharper.
- MeasureHow many dormant customers booked again.
- MOT reminderGets combined as soon as both fall within the same period.
- Tyre changeCan come along in the same appointment when the season fits.
- Workshop schedulingReserves the right time for a minor or major service.
What this agent does not do.
- He does not invent a mileage. Without data about the last visit there is little to say.
- He does not decide which servicing is needed, only that the moment is approaching.
- He approaches nobody who has said they do not want messages.
- He does not keep repeating with people who systematically do not respond.
Your next customer is already in your records.
Twenty minutes on your own numbers. We show what this workflow would do at your place, or why you are better off starting with another one.
Book a demo