When I was asked to conduct a basic online overview of a manufacturer-affiliated service department, I approached it the way I always do. With a blend of practical, transferable skills and a clear focus on the customer journey. This wasn’t a deep dive, nor was it an in-store visit. It was a digital walkthrough, just like any prospective customer might do before ever stepping foot inside the building.
Coming from the retail and service hospitality industries, I’ve long understood that technology is only as effective as the experience it supports. No matter how advanced your tools, if your digital front door feels clunky or impersonal, customers will notice and possibly bounce.
My snapshot review of the service experience revealed a mix of strengths and missed opportunities. There’s effort behind the system, but a few friction points, many of them avoidable, still shape the way customers perceive the brand.
Let’s take a closer look.
Website & Search Experience
- Language Accessibility: There was no Spanish-language option available. For many markets, this is a necessity, not a luxury.
- Traffic Tracking & SEO: Urchin Tracking Module (UTM) parameters were missing from the Google Business Profile service link. Adding them allows for better visibility into campaign performance and user behavior.
- Service Detail Visibility: Important keywords like “engine diagnostics,” “brake repair,” and “courtesy shuttle” could be surfaced more strategically to enhance search and clarify offerings.
- Review Engagement: Yelp and Google reviews were either outdated or unanswered. These are key trust signals, ignoring them sends the wrong message.
- Content Freshness: The dealership’s business profile hadn’t been updated since 2022. Posting regularly builds credibility and signals to customers that the store is active and engaged.
On a positive note, the service center’s coverage area was clearly defined, with a smart inclusion of competing brands helpful both for SEO and consumer confidence.
The Appointment Experience: A Real-World Digital Test
At about 2:30 PM, I scheduled an oil change on the desktop version of the site. That evening, I accessed the site from my mobile device to update my mileage and followed up using the chat feature to ask a simple question: Could I get a car wash with my service? And if so, what would it cost?
That’s where things started to fall short:
- No Channel Sync: My inquiry on desktop wasn’t acknowledged when I switched to mobile. I received a text confirmation for my appointment but no email, no follow-up, not even an auto-reply regarding my question.
- Service Knowledge Gap: The agent couldn’t answer a basic, common question. Worse, there was no offer to check and follow up, just silence.
- Slow Chat Response: The response from the chat provider was delayed enough that I eventually put my phone down and had to keep checking back manually to see if anyone had replied. There was no wait time indicator, no expectation-setting, only an open loop.
- Clunky Mobile Experience: Editing mileage from my phone felt more difficult than it should. Add in pop-ups interrupting the process, and it made for a frustrating user flow.
- Inconsistent Follow-Through: I was told I’d receive an email follow-up, but none arrived. Not even a courtesy update.
And worth noting: the wait time I experienced exceeded what would be considered reasonable by most industry standards. Even small discrepancies like this can leave a lasting impression.
The Takeaway
The issues I uncovered don’t require a total system overhaul. Most can be solved with low-effort, high-impact tweaks. My approach is to identify those quickly, pulling from a background that blends customer service instincts with digital fluency.
Technology should streamline the experience, not complicate it. But knowing when to automate and when to humanize? That’s the real differentiator. It’s the kind of balance that keeps customers loyal not just once, but long-term.
These observations are just a few of the elements I focus on when helping teams elevate the user experience. And they’re rooted in what I’ve known since my early days in retail: the best customer experiences still come down to connection.
