In a previous blog post, I discussed the importance of using live chat conversations to build rapport with your online shoppers -- and how this can help improve your dealership’s follow-up processes.

But what about the trackable data acquired through live chat outside of the content in a conversation -- such as consumer click path and the…

People buy from businesses they like, trust, and know -- which is a big reason why establishing rapport is so important in the sales process, both on the showroom floor and on your dealership’s website.

The number one reason live chat will fail at your dealership…

When we look at texting as it pertains to the car business, it's easy to see that the mobile revolution has people letting their fingers do the talking. It's a method of communication that is becoming the primary way for millions of people in North America. How does a dealership translate this trend into lead generation on their website?

We're already seeing…

Automotive marketing as we know it has changed. The Internet now forces dealerships to have an online presence and build relationships with consumers in the digital world. Why? Because the modern shopper expects it.

Consumer research is no longer solely accessible via phone calls and drive-bys. Now, your prospective customers are…

In a perfect world, shoppers would be able to find your dealership’s unique selling points, such as your amenities, “why buy” statements, and your specials on your website.

However, that’s not always the case. Many times websites have too much or too little information, or shoppers are just too lazy to navigate the pages and find a reason to buy from you.

If you aren’t providing an effortless online shopping experience, chances are these shoppers…

“You don't have to swing hard to hit a home run. If you got the timing, it'll go.” - Yogi Berra

Three American League MVP awards, 10 championships, and 15 All-Star Games -- Yogi Berra is arguably one of the best catchers in MLB history and knew a thing or two about the importance of timing.

It got me thinking about today’s post and how lead…

Hey Auto Professionals -- catch up on last week’s latest and greatest automotive news stories and blogs from around the Web! In this edition of the Top 10, we’ve got articles about the best tips to streamline your dealership’s internal processes, how using multisource data can help automotive marketers, a hands-free Cadillac, and much more. …

Investing in self-managed live chat can be a big, yet profitable step for your dealership. It saves you money and allows you to connect with your online shoppers in a way that builds trust and starts lasting relationships before they even reach your physical store.

However, in-house live chat can be a bit challenging if you’ve never done it before. That’s why I’m sharing some quick tips to help any first-timers get started.

CHAT…

According to Hubspot, emotional intelligence is the ability to absorb emotional cues and use it to guide behavior. It’s essentially the combination of personal and social competence(which are then divided into 4 skills: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management),…

The internet has changed our world. The concept of "business hours" has been turned on its head. People are buying things online at 2 in the morning. They're researching vehicles after the kids are in bed. They're planning out how to drop off their vehicle in your service department and still get to work on time at 4am.

When they have questions, are you there…

 Happy Friday, Auto Dealers! As always, ActivEngage has the top 10 most interesting automotive articles from around the web --RIGHT HERE!

In this week’s post you’ll learn why you might be annoying your sales leads, what space station droplet tests could mean for the auto industry, and much more! Check them out!

10. Now There's a Fitness Tracker for Your…

“My dog ate my homework.”

For anyone who went through the United States’ public school system since the 1970s, this should be a very familiar excuse. And it may very well be the same excuse some dealers use to avoid doing their homework of test chatting their…

In his book, Customers for Life, Carl Sewell says to MEASURE EVERYTHING. So how do you measure how well your team is doing with live chat? For many dealers handling chat in-house, ‘measuring chat’ means tracking the number of chat conversations and…

The conversations your sales team has with your customers often dictate whether they’ll purchase or not. That’s why having a sales team trained in customer service is so important. 

Your standards should be exactly the same for your live chatting team. But how are their conversations even remotely similar?

The Greeting

As the saying goes, you only have ONE chance to make a good first impression. You have to make it count! Your…

One of the most disturbing trends we're seeing on dealer websites is when they use chat areas as another contact form. It's true that chat is a way to generate leads, but when collecting contact information is the primary goal, the whole point of chat is missed.

Here are some things that we have found to be true with chat that dealers should keep in mind when…

I've taken some criticism over the last week for selecting CarChat24 as the dealer website chat provider that I like the most. Angry calls. Angrier emails. Nobody wants to hear that their product was not selected and I understand the vast majority of the criticism from other chat providers in the industry.

One piece of criticism that I do not understand comes…

There's a disturbing trend I'm seeing in the automotive industry when I visit websites. Perhaps it's been like this for a while and I simply took my eye off the chat ball. When I see chat windows that instantly prompt for the customer's contact information, it makes me cry a little inside.

This isn't what chat is supposed to be about. I'd love to have that…

If you’ve been above ground at any point during the past week, you probably heard about Facebook’s staggering$19 billion acquisition of private messaging service What’sApp. Last Wednesday, Mark Zuckerburg bought his most expensive Facebook friend  -  the largest Internet deal in …

Often I find myself having a recurring conversation with my dealers. The topic? Website Chat. Chat is essential to a dealership if they want to capitalize on all potential leads. Many argue, “It’s a waste of money…it’s a waste of time… and it requires too much attention.” This is where I beg to differ. The average chat provider charges about $250 a month. Even if your dealership only sells three cars in a month directly from chat leads, wouldn’t you say that it’s worth it? As far as managing…

Do it on Purpose!!

Another part of relatedness and trust is the signals you send out about your

similarities (trustworthiness). This is real documented stuff. Pick up any book on

NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming). You can get even better relatedness

through matching the clients’ breathing, posture and speech tempo. You can

listen for cues about how they get information, which will ensure that yours goes

“in.” For instance when they are a slow talker and use a…