Service advisors can make the difference of hundreds of thousands of dollars annually in revenue to the dealership. They see your customers more than anyone else, yet receive little support from the dealership. Many dealerships consider advisor staffing a cost that must be limited, which is very shortsighted. They throw people into the position without any training just to fill the slot with a body. When considering customer retention and satisfaction wise dealers understand these days must end. Advisors need consistent training and adequate staffing to properly care for customers. They must have the time to support the technician staff with quick approvals and communication with all customer concerns.

There is one thing, however, that must be a consideration for every service advisor in any dealership across the United States. This one thing should be mandatory for keeping someone in the critical position of service advisor. They must love the customer! Too many times I’ve witnessed advisors that get irritated because of the stupidity of the customer. They get irritated because they view the customer as an interruption instead of the purpose for their position. Consider the advisors in your dealership and ask yourself do they love customer care? If you can’t honestly answer that it’s their passion, your advisor performance will be unacceptable and will not retain your customers.

Many service advisors are underpaid with six day work weeks and long hours every day. They are shown little appreciation from dealership management and are hit from the dealership, the manufacturer, and the customer. Many times dealerships hand down policies that seem to be designed just to irritate the customer and the advisors are the front line of these poor decisions. Dealerships need to support the advisors in a manner that hasn’t been seen in the industry. We need to stress communication and the correct processes to care for the customer. They need to be empowered to make decisions immediately for the customer and illustrate how much they care. Fill your dealerships with advisors that love to help customers and your results will never be in question.

Sincerely,

Rob Gehring, President

Fixed Performance Inc.

1 (888) 205-8718

Fixed Performance Inc.

rgehring@fixedperformance.com

To receive more stories like this one, subscribe to my newsletter by clicking here