Brands with the Best Customer Experiences in Automotive

Brand loyalty is a key factor in the automotive industry and customer experience management is a driving factor behind customer retention. Industry data has shown that the brand retention rate in automotive is an estimated 43.9% — meaning just 43.9% of customers will return to purchase from the same brand. Additional research by Cox Automotive has estimated that a 1% increase in customer retention for a brand could generate an estimated $700 million in revenue. Brands and dealerships that want to learn how to improve customer retention in automotive may want to take a closer look at customer experience management platforms, like boostCX. 

5 Ways To Improve Customer Retention in Automotive

To stop the loss of customers to independent repair shops and other dealerships, automotive brands can leverage advanced Customer Experience Management (CXM) tools to create a more consistent and enjoyable customer journey. By implementing data-driven analytics and automated platforms, dealerships can transform periodic customer transactions into a long-term customer relationship.
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Implementing a strategy focused on these five key areas ensures that your customers feel valued long after they drive off the lot and has the potential to turn one-time buyers into lifetime customers.

1. Improve the Customer Experience to Build Trust

Trust is the currency of customer retention, and it is earned through transparency and consistency at every customer touchpoint. By streamlining processes — such as offering transparent service pricing and digital vehicle inspections — you demonstrate respect for the customer's investment and eliminate the anxiety that can go hand in hand with car maintenance.

2. Communicate Proactively

Silence is the enemy of retention. You must stay top-of-mind without being too forward or intrusive. Employing automated systems to send timely service reminders, recall alerts, or lease-end notifications shows customers that you are managing their vehicle's health for them, shifting your role from a simple salesperson to a trusted automotive resource.

3. Create Customer Loyalty Programs

Incentivize customers to choose your service lane over cheaper independent service shops by offering loyalty rewards. Well-built loyalty programs that offer points for maintenance visits, discounts on accessories, or exclusive perks create a more loyal ecosystem where the customer has a financial motivation to return to your dealership or service center.

4. Employ Innovative Tech Solutions

Modern problems require modern solutions, and relying on outdated spreadsheets or basic CRMs is no longer enough to improve the customer experience and drive retention upward. By employing innovative customer experience management tools, dealerships can collect and analyze customer data to predict defectors, track customer sentiment in real-time, and personalize engagement based on specific vehicle history.

5. Engage with Customers on All Channels

Your customers are talking about you online, and you need to be part of that conversation to build a community around your brand. Active social media engagement — responding to comments, sharing user-generated content, and addressing reviews quickly — humanizes your dealership and keeps you relevant in the minds of your customers.
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READ MORE: How To Improve the Customer Journey in Automotive 

In the end, understanding how to improve customer retention in automotive requires a shift from a transactional mindset to a relationship-driven mindset. By employing technology, like customer experience management solutions, to build trust and communicate effectively, you can secure the long-term loyalty of your customer base.
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Contact boostCX today for a demo and shift your retention strategy into high gear!

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Do you work in the automotive industry? Are you looking for ways to improve the customer journey at your service station or dealership? It may be time to revamp your customer experience management strategy and boostCX may be able to help provide some answers. Learn more about how to build a customer experience management strategy in automotive with this quick guide created by boostCX. 

5 Steps to Build a Customer Experience Management Strategy in Automotive

Building a winning customer experience management strategy requires shifting focus from simple transactions to long-term customer relationships. Recent data has shown that customer loyalty has dropped to its lowest level since 2019 in the automotive industry, with an estimated 12% decline in customers who return to dealerships for repeat purchases or service in 2024.
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In addition, Cox Automotive reports that only 54% of owners that recently purchased vehicles returned to their selling dealership for service, a significant 72% drop from a year ago. To reverse this trend and capture the estimated $47,700 in lifetime value a loyal customer represents, automotive businesses must implement a data-driven customer experience management strategy.

1. Know and Understand the Customer Journey

You cannot improve what you do not see, so the first step is to visualize and understand the entire lifecycle of your customers. This involves detailed customer journey mapping to identify every touchpoint — from the initial online search to the first service appointment. By mapping this journey, you can spot the specific pain points where potential buyers drop off or where existing owners decide to go to independent repair shops.

2. Personalize Customer Experiences Across All Platforms

Modern car buyers expect a clean transition between your website and your showroom. Whether a customer is building a vehicle online, chatting with an AI bot, or walking onto the lot, the experience must be consistent and tailored to their vehicle and purchase history. If a customer has already calculated payments online, your in-store team should know this already, creating an omnichannel experience that respects their time and data.

3. Collect Customer Feedback and Take Action

Collecting data is useless if you don't act on it to close the loop. Implement a system that collects customer feedback at critical touch points — like post-test drive or post-service — and alerts managers immediately to negative feedback. This allows you to resolve issues quickly before they become negative reviews and also demonstrates to customers that their voice has been heard and can effect change. 

4. Give Your Team the Tools to Succeed

Your employees are the face of your brand, and the employee experience (EX) is directly linked to the customer experience. Equip your sales and service staff with integrated CRM tools and easy-to-access customer analytics so they can do their jobs confidently and efficiently. When your team feels supported and informed, they will naturally deliver a higher level of customer service that builds trust.

5. Focus on Strategies to Build Brand Loyalty

Customer retention must be prioritized over acquisition, especially given that keeping a customer is cheaper than finding a new one. To combat a decline in loyalty in automotive, create proactive retention strategies that include personalized service reminders, loyalty rewards programs for maintenance, and exclusive upgrade offers. By continuing to add value after the sale, you immunize your customer base against competitors.
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READ MORE: Top 5 Customer Experience Management Strategies in Automotive 

In a market that has been defined by declining loyalty and rising expectations in recent years, a proactive customer experience management strategy is your engine for sustainable growth. By understanding the journey, personalizing customer interactions, and empowering your team, you can learn how to build a customer experience management strategy in automotive and improve customer loyalty.
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Schedule a demo with boostCX today to see how our customer experience management platform can help you create automotive customers for life!

The customer journey in any industry is the multiple touchpoints that a customer has with your business - from the moment they first encounter your business to any post-purchase interactions. A clear understanding of the customer journey in your industry helps you to recognize customer pain points and adapt your operations to create a better customer experience. With that said - the customer journey is fluid and is always evolving, which makes it important for you to always look for ways to improve. Businesses in the automotive industry may want to know how to improve the customer journey in automotive and we can help at boostCX. 

Best Ways to Improve the Automotive Customer Journey

Understanding and optimizing the automotive customer journey is the key to success for both car dealerships and automotive repair shops. In an economy where 80% of car buyers start their vehicle search online, an easy transition between digital and physical touchpoints is the expectation for businesses. Modern automotive customers demand personalized interactions, transparency, and efficiency at touchpoint along the customer journey. An estimated 74% of car owners report that personalized experiences during their vehicle purchase helped influence their purchasing decision and future brand choices.

Investing in customer experience management strategies that enhance each step of the customer journey is the key to building trust and driving long-term success. Here are a few key ways you can improve the automotive customer journey:

1. Personalize the Customer Journey

Leverage customer data to personalize the customer experience - valuable customer data includes past purchase history, service records, online Browse behavior, and even feedback from previous interactions. For example, automotive businesses can send service reminders based on actual vehicle diagnostics or mileage, or provide personalized financing options and relevant accessory packages based on the customer’s vehicle or special interests.

2. Provide Transparent Communication

It is important to build trust by maintaining clear, honest, and proactive communication at every customer touchpoint, whether that is explaining the pricing for a new vehicle in detail, providing clear service recommendations, or providing status updates on a repair. A clearly itemized repair estimate, explains the necessity of each service, keeps customers informed of progress, and helps them feel like a part of the discussion.

3. Smooth and Efficient Purchasing Process

Automotive businesses can streamline the vehicle purchasing process by minimizing paperwork, reducing wait times at the dealership, and offering digital tools for steps like financing applications, trade-in estimations, and document submission. Customers who complete more purchase steps online report higher satisfaction and can save significant time at dealerships.

4. Effective Post-Sales Support

The customer journey doesn't end when the customer drives off the lot - comprehensive post-sales support is important for customer retention and loyalty. It is important that businesses follow up after a purchase or service visit to ensure customer satisfaction, offer assistance with new vehicle features, and make it easy for customers to address any concerns. A key example of post-sales support is a timely follow-up call or personalized email with maintenance tips that have the potential to improve the ownership experience.

5. Employ Technology

Automotive businesses can improve the customer journey by using modern technology like Customer Experience Management (CXM) solutions to track and manage interactions, collect analytics to understand customer behavior and pain points, and provide omnichannel support for seamless communication across all channels. AI-powered chatbots are a valuable feature that can answer common questions 24/7 and a comprehensive CXM platform ensures sales and service teams have a complete view of the customer journey.

6. Create Long-Lasting Customer Relationships

It is important for businesses to focus on customer experience management strategies that encourage continued engagement beyond individual transactions, and build a sense of community and make customers feel valued. This can include personalized loyalty programs, exclusive events, or relevant content that drives repeat business for both sales and service, leading to long-term success and word-of-mouth referrals. Remember - acquiring new customers can be 5x - 25x more expensive than retaining existing ones.

‍READ MORE: Top 5 Customer Experience Trends in Automotive

Mastering how to improve the customer journey in automotive is about creating a connected, convenient, and customer-focused experience from the first online search to long after the vehicle leaves the dealership or the service department. Contact boostCX today for a demo of our customer experience management platform!

With the advent of online automotive retailers, like Carvana, Autotrader, and CarGurus, the customer experience at car dealerships is more important than ever and customers who invest time into the search for their dream car have come to expect a personalized experience. The expectation of a personalized customer experience has become more and more prevalent, and an estimated 80% of customers are more likely to buy from a brand that provides a personalized experience. Learn more about how to personalize the customer experience in automotive with this quick overview created by boostCX that highlights customer experience management solutions. 

7 Ways to Personalize the Customer Experience in Automotive 

A one-size-fits-all approach will no longer cut it in the automotive industry.
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Customers expect a tailored and customized journey that anticipates their needs and offers, and offers relevant solutions. Personalizing the customer experience in automotive isn't just a bonus thing to have - it's an important strategy for building lasting customer relationships and boosting your long-term brand. Research shows that businesses that excel at personalizing the customer experience grow 40% faster than their competitors. By focusing on individual customer preferences, automotive businesses can enhance satisfaction, drive repeat business, and create a loyal brand following.
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Here are five key ways car dealerships can personalize the customer experience:

1. Emphasize Omnichannel Engagement

A truly personalized experience engages the customer where they are most active, on their preferred channels. This means providing a consistent omnichannel customer experience across your website, social media, email, phone, and in-person interactions. For example, if a customer starts configuring a vehicle online, they should be able to easily pick up where they left off with that configuration with a salesperson at the dealership.

2. Employ Interactive Tools

Engaging customers with innovative and interactive tools can enhance the level of personalization. Virtual reality test drives, online configuration tools with detailed customization options, and interactive quizzes to help customers find their ideal vehicle all contribute to a more tailored experience. These tools allow customers to explore options at their own pace and provide valuable data to the dealership about their preferences.

3. Leverage Key Pieces of Customer Data

Data is the fuel for a personalized experience. By collecting and analyzing data on past purchases, browsing history, service records, and audience information, you can understand individual customer preferences. This allows you to recommend relevant vehicles, present targeted promotions, and even personalize communications based on specific interests, like suggesting an SUV to a customer who frequently browses adventure-focused content.

4. Create Personalized Loyalty Programs

Rewards programs that offer generic incentives can fall flat. Instead, car dealerships can design loyalty programs that offer benefits tailored to individual customer behavior and preferences. This could include discounts on accessories relevant to their vehicle type, exclusive access to new model previews, or personalized service packages based on their maintenance history.

5. Personalize Maintenance and Service

The post-purchase experience is just as important as the sales process. Personalize maintenance reminders based on individual vehicle mileage and driving habits, offer service recommendations specific to their make and model, and provide transparent communication about service progress. Proactively informing a customer about a recall specific to their VIN demonstrates care and attention to the customer.

6. Collect and Act on Customer Feedback

Actively asking for and responding to customer feedback is vital for continued personalization. Implement surveys at various touchpoints – after a test drive, a purchase, or a service appointment – and use this information to adjust your strategies. Showing customers that their input leads to improvements reinforces their value and strengthens their brand loyalty.

7. Excellent After-Sales Communication

The relationship shouldn't end when the customer drives off the lot. Personalized after-sales communication, such as follow-up emails offering tips for their new vehicle, invitations to owner clinics, or birthday greetings, keeps your brand top-of-mind. This consistent engagement helps build a long-term connection and encourages repeat business.
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READ MORE: How Can Car Dealerships Improve the Customer Experience?

By embracing these strategies, car dealerships can move beyond transactional interactions and learn more about how to personalize the customer experience in automotive and create a loyal customer base. These strategies lead to increased brand loyalty, higher sales, and long-term success. 

Are you ready to rev up your personalization efforts and create truly exceptional customer experiences? Contact boostCX today to discover how our solutions can help you drive success in automotive!