Opinion: Service reminders more important than ever

Ben Roberts, managing director at Motor Trade Technologies and The MOT Club on how data cab boost efficiency and retention

Opinion: Service reminders more important than ever
Image: Bigstock.

Keeping your customers informed and up to date with their vehicle maintenance is seen as a valued service by customers and can be offered cost effectively nowadays.

Using SMS and email is a convenient way to communicate with your customer base, with a few clicks or an automated routine you can remind customers when an MOT or service is due.

With more homes than ever with multiple cars it can be easy to miss a service, added with the MOT extension, people can be confused when their MOT is due.

Also, a simple SMS reminder the day before a booking can reduce no shows by 70 per cent, based on a study done by a multi-site garage network.

Using an efficient workshop package in your front of house can help your business keep on top of these reminders, helping you fill the workshop during quiet periods and offering a valued customer service will help with customer retention.

A successful reminder system relies on accurate customer data, so good quality validation of mobile phone numbers and email addresses is needed to reduce errors by front of house.

The better the data the higher the success rate you will have.

Keeping the balance right is important too, you do not want bombard your customers with communication to the point where they opt out.

Provide them with useful and pertinent information to maintain engagement, remember this is a reminder service and not a marketing service.

AutoInTouch by MTT will update MOT due dates on mass across all records on your system, to keep reminders accurate and up to date.

It will filter out reminders for customers who have already booked in and you can send a single letter, email or SMS for all vehicles within a households.

To help you manage the volume of messages sent you can review what will be sent and to who, you can filter out certain customers and any undelivered SMS messages will be credited back to your account, so you are not wasting SMS credits.

Make use of the valuable data you hold to boost workshop efficiency and customer retention while providing a valuable service to your customers.

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