Business and, as a matter of fact all relationships depend upon good communication. If you do not know something it makes perfect sense to ask. When you do, you may get an answer you either like or dislike, but you will have the most powerful thing, the answer.

This is why OEM’s have CSI (customer satisfaction index) and this is how dealers are measured.

How to measure customer satisfaction

Surveys are very powerful. Based on the results of the customer satisfaction survey, you can learn how your customers feel about your business, your employees, and whether or not they will come back to do business with your dealership again. These surveys help measure your company and are the perfect tool to use to learn if you are meeting customer expectations. Based on CSI scores, your business’ and your employees’ bonuses – and sometimes even jobs – depend on it.

Business feedback loop goes something like this: Ask, Fix, Improve, Change, Ask...and the circle goes on and on.

Asking questions and getting answers will improve the process significantly. You can strengthen your weaknesses and provide your customers with better service, which should ultimately return in the form of better ROI.

How to boost your CSI scores

There are different ways you can improve CSI scores via customer satisfaction surveys. Here are a few suggestions:

1. Be polite. This one is a no-brainer. Nobody likes a grim salesperson or a rude mechanic. Without getting into the terms of a deal you are trying to make with a customer, it is always wiser to help out your customer with a smile and a good attitude.

2. Reduce waiting time. Do you like waiting in line? Why do you think your customers do? Treat them the way you like to be treated and show how much you appreciate their time, in fact, this is an excellent way to get better CSI score. Try to eliminate wasting time and show your customers that their time is just as valuable to you as it is to them. Today missed calls, voicemails and emails are a sure way to lose customers and get lower CSI scores. Instead, by implementing a mobile texting solution will save your customer’s time and your time all while increasing your bottom line and improving your CSI score.

Our solution, Advantage txt, is TCPA and FCC compliant texting solution. You can contact us now to set up a demonstration at your dealership.

3. Surrounding environment. Things that surround us often influence our decisions, so even if the music at your dealership is too loud or your dealership is not neat and clean, this can influence your customer’s opinion about your service. Make sure that the dealership surrounding is pleasant and you will surely notice nicer comments in your surveys.

4. Ask for a positive review. Asking your customer to give you a positive review on Google, Facebook or in your follow-up survey has become a totally normal thing to do. Majority of happy customers, if you do not ask them, most likely will not do it no matter how happy they are with your services. However, if you show your customers that you care about this as much as you care about them, they will certainly pay you back and reward you with a good score. Education is the key: use a tablet or a computer to personally show your customer how to login and leave a review and/or a nice comment about your dealership or tell them that they will receive a text with one question survey and how important their opinion is to you.

5. Always give more. And the last, but not the least, giving away things is a perfect way to winning their heart. Gifts and discounts are not the only things you can give. Time and concern about their needs are even more effective. Show them that there is more at your car dealership than just making deals – organize events, give discounts and show other things to them. As an example, you can install digital signage or banner TV in your dealership waiting room and tell them about you and your staff, offer your customers extra services, service and accessories specials and newest deals which they can ask about.

As you can see, customer satisfaction survey can give you a decent insight of how you and your employees perform with customers. However, getting the perfect score is not easy due to a lot of other factors, but it can be achieved.

Read more about customer satisfaction:

• Value of customer satisfaction
• The subtle and critical differences between customer engagement and...
• The influence of emoji on car dealership texting
• On the state of customer experience
• Make your service advisor team better
• Texting growth in customer support