Covideo x iPacket Summer Series – Episode 5: Enjoyment

Title slide reading "Covideo Dealer Series + iPacket Automotive Summer Series"

Summer may be over, but we still have one bonus episode for you of the iPacket x Covideo Summer Series. All summer, we have explored the ways dealerships can align their values with current automotive trends and improve customer experiences. Our final episode is about how to make the car-buying process more enjoyable.iPacket Sales Director Hannah Farmer and Covideo Senior Account Executive Anna Spade teamed up for an engaging conversation on how to make the car-buying journey more painless, easy, and fun!

See our other iPacket Summer Series episodes:

Building excitement around the dealership experience

What better way to wrap up our Summer Series than with a discussion on making the car-buying experience more enjoyable? By prioritizing transparency, trust, confidence, and quality, your customers automatically will have a more enjoyable experience.In this episode, Hannah describes helping her friends purchase their first luxury vehicle. Hannah, who has been in the car industry for her whole career, often helps people on their vehicle buying journey. But expectations were extra high, knowing this was a luxury vehicle purchase; the group wanted to celebrate the big moment and had lots of excitement.The lead up to the sale was great. They had seen videos and gotten good communication. But when they stepped into the dealership, things were more disappointing. There was a lot of sitting around and waiting. They had a nice café to hang out at, but excitement dwindled the longer time went on.This is a cautionary tale to not lose momentum! Some dealerships are very effective in the beginning of outreach, but the experience falls flat when customers enter the physical dealership.

How can we keep excitement throughout the entire process?

Send a Covideo before an appointment introducing the salesperson, explaining anything the customer needs to know, and even walking through the showroom to show them the car they’re looking for!
Greet customers as soon as possible when they enter the dealership.
Offer snacks, drinks, or other perks to keep energy up.
Offer a space for children to play and consider how to create a family-friendly environment.
Play up special features of your dealerships. For example, are you dog friendly? Do you have a café?
Give materials for customers to look over if they have downtime in the dealership—like the iPacket information for the car.
Be forthcoming about any delays customers can expect—but give them as much attention as possible!

Bringing personality into the car sales process

Anna points out an important mantra here at Covideo: “People buy from people they like.” So, if you want to provide a more enjoyable experience, be yourself!Being a good car salesperson is no longer about being the most charismatic, eloquent, or polished person in the room. Now, people are looking for someone they perceive as a friend, someone trustworthy and relatable. Anna and Hannah note this is a big shift in the industry. Customers are more likely to see someone as an expert if they show their humanity.Of course, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to car sales. In McKinsey’s research on “The Next Normal” of car-buying, Thomas Furcher noted the following:

We asked thousands of customers across different regions, “how do you want to buy a car?” We gave them different options. We said, “should it be like Amazon? Should it be like Cartier? Should it be like Apple?” And the simple answer is, there is no one model that fits all customers. What the customer really wants is a car-purchasing process that is personalized and fun.

How do you know what experience your customers really want? Listen. See how they respond to longer messages, note what makes them uncomfortable, and keep track of unique things about them. Do they have children or pets? Do they participate in sports? What is lifestyle do they aspire to? That way, you can personalize their selling.See the difference between these two approaches:“There is a lot of space in the back of this van.” “Check out this extra storage space for all your kids’ gear when you’re driving them to hockey.”“These seats are easy to clean.” “I know you take your dog on a lot of hikes. The dirt slides right off these seats.”“This car is a hybrid.” “You said you’d like a fully electric car but don’t have access to easy charging. A good compromise would be this hybrid option.”Lastly, make sure you lean on the new tools your customers expect you to use: your website, social media, and videos. Dealerships can no longer survive without a digital presence, and it’s a great platform to show your personality.

Create a dealership experience customers love

In the end, creating an enjoyable car-buying experience is all about attention to detail, personalization, and honesty. Sell to your customers the way you would be a friend. Be attentive to their needs and share your enthusiasm. Though many people dread shopping for a vehicle, we believe the process can be fun!Thanks for joining us for the five episodes of our Summer Series! We hope you’ve gained some helpful insights to bring back to your dealership.If you’re ready to step up your sales strategy with video, you can try Covideo Dealer Services and all its great features on a free trial. If you want more information, schedule a demo with one of our experts.