The one that got away — we’ve all experienced it. Enthusiastically jumping in the air to just miss that fly ball soaring over the fence. Going all in at the poker table with a full house and losing to a four-of-a-kind. Waving goodbye to your middle-school sweetheart when they move away. Coming up short is practically a fact of life.

Dealership managers often feel the same way about leads slipping away. With fewer opportunities, every lead makes a difference, but tracking down leads lost to unanswered phones, dropped calls, or even bad customer service experiences can be a headache.

The good news is rescuing lost leads doesn’t have to be a nightmare. Here are some things you need to know about lost leads and how to save them.

Recovering From Bad Customer Service

Research firm Luntz Group revealed 40 percent of Americans dread the idea of buying a new car. Before they even pick up the phone, they’re already cringing. The first impression holds a heavy weight in whether or not a buyer feels comfortable doing business with you.

However, phone conversations don’t always go as planned. A new sales rep might not be fully trained yet, and a flubbed pitch could lead to a frustrated customer hanging up abruptly. That new salesperson will probably just move on to the next lead, and management will be none the wiser. What if you could be notified when these types of calls happen?

Consider deploying a service that listens to and reviews calls happening in your dealership. A team of highly trained professionals can spot mishandled calls and inform you when a caller needs extra attention and follow up, so you can correct the problem. With this approach, your potential customers aren’t left frustrated and telling their friends how unhappy they were with your dealership. Instead, they’ll be impressed you took time to make things right.

Returning Missed Calls

Sometimes customers slip through the cracks. In an ideal world, every call is answered. However, for various reasons, some calls just don’t get through. Since many callers don’t leave voicemails, how will you know who needs a call back?

It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking a customer will try to call again if they don’t get through the first time, but that next call could be to a different dealership. If your employees aren’t answering calls, customers might think they’re not important to you. At that point, it’s not as simple as a call that slipped through the cracks — callers view lack of responsiveness as bad customer service.

Be sure you have a way to capture call information whether the caller leaves a message or not. Notifications of missed calls also help during a time-sensitive process. You might not know exactly what the customer was calling about, but following up on a missed call lets customers know you care and want their business.

Letting leads slip away is unacceptable in today’s competitive market. Make sure you’re not letting leads slip through the cracks.

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