AutoPoint, the leading provider of software products and service processes that help improve fixed operations performance and profitability, announced today that Dublin Toyota has added nearly $3.7 million in annual service up-sell revenue while achieving top five CSI rankings in a competitive region.
In the heavily populated Tri-Valley area east of San Francisco Bay, vehicle owners have plenty of choices for service and repair. Dublin Toyota Fixed Ops Director Larry Tate implemented AutoPoint in 2009 to improve customer retention and track lost sales and up-sell profits. “We had a clearly defined sales process and well-trained employees,” said Tate. “What I lacked was a way to track individual performance and identify areas of strengths and weaknesses in the sales process.” With the help of AutoPoint’s performance reports, Tate had to the tools he needed to help coach employees on where they were deficient based on fact, not opinion.
An improved sales process was the key to boosting the up-sell labor revenue.
“Most guys will sell what they feel is easy and like to sell; it’s natural to get comfortable doing things you like and to avoid doing things you don’t like,” said Tate. The new software generates reports that make the coaching process non-confrontational and often inspiring. “It’s hard to argue with fact, and the techs like it because the reports show the direct correlation between performance and pay. If they want to increase their pay, they can see exactly what they have to do.”
The ability to identify weaknesses and coach employees gradually improved the sales closing ratio on failed items from inspections. In 2009, the closing ratio was in the mid-20’s percentile; in 2013, the closing ratio reached 33 percent.
A better sales process and closing ratio led to an increase in the average customer-pay repair order (RO) revenue. In 2009, Dublin Toyota’s average customer-pay revenue was $260 per RO; in 2013 it increased 40 percent to $365 per RO.
Of this amount, $135 is the average up-sell labor per RO that Tate attributes directly to the new inspection process. When multiplied by the more than 27,300 customer-pay ROs that Dublin Toyota generates every year, close to $3.7 million in fixed ops revenue is added to the bottom line on an annual basis.
Nearly one quarter of this annual up-sell revenue is a result of up-sells from previous inspections. “If we have customers coming back for repairs, that tells me the advisor is keeping the customer happy and informed,” said Tate. “For the advisor this is important because it lets them know what they’re doing is working.” Before it was virtually impossible to track how much of their revenue was from previous inspections, which is also an important indicator of customer retention levels.
“Customer retention is what differentiates us from other dealers who don’t have AutoPoint,” said Tate. “Many times I’ve had customers tell me they tried another repair shop but they returned to us because of the transparency of our reports.” After every customer visit, a service advisor generates a Know Your VehicleTM report that can be printed or e-mailed to the customer. The reports that are e-mailed have a 92 percent open rate and Tate says the customers have come to like them so much that if they don’t get their report they get upset.
The Know Your Vehicle report provides detailed pricing, explanation of services, along with pictures of good part/bad part that helps the vehicle owner understand what is being recommended and how it impacts the health of the vehicle. In addition to being printed or emailed, the report can be accessed from a personalized customer web portal. Using the AutoPoint Portal, the vehicle owner can have access to their recommendation report, declined service history and videos that explain the “hows” and “whys” of the importance of the recommendations to their vehicle maintenance. “The customers really trust the information in there,” said Tate.
Building customer trust with the Know Your Vehicle report has helped to boost Dublin Toyota’s retention and CSI scores. Previously, the store’s CSI scores ranked in the bottom third in their region. In 2013 and 2014, Dublin Toyota has been ranked in the top five out of 57 Toyota stores in the Tri-Valley area.
Tate credits AutoPoint with helping Dublin Toyota’s service department improve their sales process, attain top CSI rankings and add millions in revenue to the bottom line. “The system took us to the next level,” he said. “We can drill down on the right things at the right time, allowing us to consistently raise the bar.”
About AutoPoint
AutoPoint (formerly MPi) is a leading provider of revenue and retention solutions for automotive dealership service departments. AutoPoint is a business unit of Solera Holdings, Inc., the leading global claims solutions provider serving the automotive industry. Solera provides world-class claims, underwriting and information solutions that help customers automate their processes; managing millions of claims each year efficiently and effectively, and resolving billions of dollars in claims settlements. AutoPoint enables automotive service centers to operate at the highest levels of performance by increasing productivity and effectiveness, thereby improving the customer experience and raising service. For more information, please visit: www.autopoint.com.
