Assistance Needed on Aisle 5

For so long, AI (Artificial Intelligence,) has been viewed with a negative connotation. Various industries have utilized this service for the most simple tasks, up to, and including chatbots, voice automation, scheduling, and customer service. We as consumers have become accustomed to calling the 1-800 number for any company and listening to an IVR prompting us to press/say 1 or 2 depending on the services or answers needed. What we don’t quite understand as a consumer is the need for this type of assistance within these companies. Why would they elect to bring this type of automation into their business? What positives do they hope to accomplish?

“In a world . . .” in my deepest, most theatrical movie-trailer voice, but with all jokes aside, automation of this manor started in 1973 as an inventory control system. However, “Chatbot” was started in 1966 at M.I.T with the name ELIZA. It was an early stage of Natural Language Processing. Since then, the exponential increase in technology has allowed innovators to push the boundaries of what a computer is able to do as well as increase the ability to reduce the task load for many industries. Now we utilize AI in so many various ways it would take me a year to organize, filter, and explain its many uses.

AI within the automotive industry, however, is a relatively new concept. From service scheduling to inventory questions, AI technology has been increasing its abilities to assist and service many dealerships, and the projections of its growth are astronomical. In fact, AI is within the top five industry trends with anticipation of its increase within other avenues of automotive.*

With the staffing struggles the industry has faced during and post-COVID, implementing an AI component of communication is vital to the success of not only sales but just as importantly customer satisfaction and retention. Customers are engaging more frequently through digital channels and the use of SMS communication is at an all-time high. Looking at the statistics of open rates, deliverability, and engagement, SMS is at the top of the list when it comes to effective communications.

So my question is, why not imbed AI SMS communication as a part of your customer response strategy? Advancements in communication, engagement, and its conversational abilities increase exponentially each passing year. Starting now will allow your team and your customers to understand the ease of releasing initial parts of the communication over to AI, while allowing your team to focus on the more pertinent conversations with detailed responses needed. Communicating effectively with customers' questions and concerns is not just important but it's also imperative to be able to respond in a quick time frame with the correct information.

There are various companies that are able to accomplish this Assistance AI within the industry. Before aligning with any particular company make sure you are asking the future partner proper questions to ensure that it matches your needs as well as your internal processes.

For instance:

Is your company’s software embedded inside the dealership's current systems?
Does your company pull information from the dealership's various data sources?
Does your company have an effective process to notify the proper agent of the customer's communication?
What data points is your company willing to share with our customers, and what is it not?
Is your company T.C.P.A. compliant as well as registering numbers with A2P 10DLC?
Does your company focus on solely inbound inquiries or does it function with outbound campaigns as well?

These questions will ensure that you vet the company you are choosing to serve as a channel of communication to your customers - just like you would interview a new BDC rep or Sales Consultant so make sure you ask enough questions to ensure they are a great fit.

Regardless, AI is coming. It will be an integral part of a customer's journey to purchase or service their product. So, in efforts to reduce the workforce needed to ensure all customers are provided the best experience, in my opinion, adding AI services, after vetting, is a must for any dealership in automotive.

Are you ready to discover more about how Konect.ai can benefit your dealership? Schedule time here to speak with our team!

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