A single experience can have a defining impact on a customers’ perspective of your dealership – both positive and negative. Sometimes it can be hard to recognize and decode the signals to know how a customer feels after interacting with your store. But customers leave a trail of crumbs that you can follow to determine how engaged they are. It’s important – engaged customers advocate for your brand, and according to a recent study by Rosetta, they spend 60% more per transaction and are more likely to indicate yours is the only brand they would purchase in the future.

Here are key indicators to tell if your customers are engaged and true promoters of your dealership.

They follow you on social media, download your app, or subscribe to updates

When a customer makes the effort to reach out and stay connected it shows your relationship is valuable to them and is a sign they will be back for future purchases and service needs. Engaged customers by:

• Provide welcome communications from you
• Work within seasonal variations and provide at least monthly updates to keep them informed
• Share information valuable to your customer such as information about upcoming specials, product improvements or new features, industry trends they might find interesting, upcoming events, or spotlight on personnel in the dealership.

They recommend your dealership to friends

Do your customers share how they heard about your store? Do you ever ask your first-time customers the reason they choose to do business with you? Start to get to know your customers and listen to both what they say and what they don’t say. If you hear they are there because of a friend you’re on the right track! An even better sign is if they bring a friend with them. Advocacy is a key indicator of customer engagement.

They keep coming back

Engaged customers are open and willing to reach out to you, even if it’s for something small. When a customer is engaged they don’t think twice about picking up the phone or dropping in. They trust that your dealership is working in their best interests so they return not based on price but because of the quality and exceptional service received.

They write a positive review/share positive feedback

Customers share feedback using many different forums- Twitter, Facebook, and Google, just to name a few. If you see your customers actively going out of their way to share their positive experiences about your dealership, it’s a sign they are actively engaged! Be sure to “like” these reviews and retweet or share them on your social media sites to keep connected with your customers between scheduled monthly updates.

If you still aren’t sure whether your customers are engaged with your business it may be time to conduct a customer satisfaction survey. The answers will help you learn the small things that let you go that extra mile, engaging your customers and fostering loyalty. There is no single one-size-fits-all experience for every customer. By learning what could be improved, communicating with your customers, developing trust, and doing what’s best, your customers will engage and reward the effort with loyalty.

To learn more about how we can help you, schedule a meeting here.

Originally published on October 13, 2017 Updated on September 23, 2022.