The importance of First Impressions in the Drive-Thru
As service writers, our primary job is to deliver information in a way that is clear and concise. That information will usually pertain to the need for repairs, costs, and the estimated time of completion. Let's face it, no one really wants to hear that kind of news. Especially from someone they do not know or trust very well.
This is why first impressions are vital. First impressions begin with how credible your customers see you. Advisors have 30 - 60 seconds to make a first impression. People will not trust someone they do not like, and they will not do business with someone that they do not trust. Human nature does not change in the drive-thru. So, how do we apply it or at least start to recognize it?
Let us look at how customers feel when they come in for service and how first impressions are created.
Usually, the deck is stacked against us before we even start. Why?
1. Customers do not generally want to be there. Here are a few reasons why:
a. They are too busy to take time out to service their cars
b. They need their car for work
c. They don’t have the budget to fix the car
d. When the car breaks down, it has always interrupted a busy day
e. Generally, they may feel they have no choice but to repair it and therefore have a feeling of being pushed into the repair
f. Some have a negative misconception about dealerships/cost/honesty etc.
2. Everything is confusing in a dealership, especially if it is the first time they come in:
a. Everyone is usually looking too busy to help them
b. The customer does not know where to go
c. There is a generally cold feeling about the atmosphere in a dealership
d. No one is paying attention to them
e. Sometimes we make them go back outside and bring in the car because we did not explain to them to bring it into the drive-thru when they booked
3. They are usually rushed in and out too fast to understand what is happening at check-in:
a. Advisors are under pressure to get people in and out asap
b. We have to get them on the shuttle before it leaves
c. If it is a job that does not pay well, we don’t want to waste too much time
d. If there are multiple concerns and the customer is explaining at length, we miss other opportunities.
In these moments, how do customers feel? Are the service staff and advisors rushing them in and out, barking at them to go get their car? Are they speaking so fast that the customer could not absorb what the advisor was saying? Or, do they take time to slow down and listen? Are they speaking with posture? Are they even credible? Are they an authority on the subject? Do they look the part?
In the first 30 - 60 seconds of any interaction, customers are already done creating the first impression. Advisors must use this time wisely and create an initial bond with the customer. First impressions can also be affected by past experiences that the customer has had long before anyone on your team or I have ever met them. If your advisors are like every other advisor, they have ever dealt with in the first 30 seconds, their fate is already sealed and they will have to work extra hard to win them over again from the dark side of the force so to speak.
When they are initially engaging a customer that they have not dealt with before it is VITAL they set themselves apart from the other 95% of advisors that do a humdrum job.
Any greeting should be warm, friendly, genuine, and done within 30 - 60 seconds of them driving in or walking into the area in which they are working. If you have a valet or porter that greets the customer before an advisor does, make sure they are doing so in a warm and friendly way. Because their first impression will affect the advisor and the dealership as well.
When initially greeting the customer, they should avoid saying the following;
Do you have an appointment today?
Why do people as this? 95% of people are there for a booked appointment or think they have a booked appointment that day. Saying that sometimes puts some people on the defensive or gives them the feeling that they were not expected for some reason. Imagine all the things that are going thru their minds.
Oh my God, here we go, I took time out of my day and they didn’t even book me properly.
Why would I be here if I didn’t have an appointment?
And cue the negative internal talk about how dealerships are terrible and unwelcoming.
My process, which may not work for everyone, is that I approach the car clipboard in hand, I walk toward the car, note damage on the front, I give the customer a wave if they are looking at me, I AM SMILING while doing so as if they were an old friend I not seen in years. If they are outside their vehicle already, I give them a warm welcome, with a higher pitch in my voice. Then I walk down the passenger side noting damage, then around the back to get the plate number. By the time I get around to the driver’s side, I am still noting damage, and if not already out, the customer is usually just opening the driver’s door. I greet them warmly, smiling and making them feel that I am so glad they came in today. And this works, because I AM GLAD. (Imagine my day without this opportunity) I secure the key and advise them to meet me at my desk. Grabbing the mileage, I am already thinking of things that are due for service.
This is the process I follow normally because walking right up to the driver’s door and standing outside waiting for the customer to collect their things is a waste of my time. My time is important. An advisor can spend approximately 1 – 2 minutes sometimes at the driver’s door.
I have seen it happen for even longer than that. If I spend 1-2 minutes on 15 cars a day, that is potentially 30 minutes I have wasted. I can do a lot in 30 minutes. Compile estimates, check history, check my incoming appointments for the next day, make sure parts are here for them, answer the phone, review my special-order parts list, and on and on. In 30 minutes, I can update every single one of my customers on the status of their vehicle. A practice that should be done by every advisor.
With this process, my walk-around is already done. All I have to do is look at the driver’s front fender panel and meet the customer at my desk. Striving for efficiency in all things is part of my DNA. I like to “clean as I go” even to this day when it comes to my job. My husband would argue that this is not the case at home. He says when I cook, I use every dish in the house and clean it at the end. Well, no one is perfect at everything.
The best we can do is try and be perfect at one thing, my thing is advising.
When I get to my desk with the customer, I try and engage them in some sort of genuine small talk. Sometimes it is something I have noticed. Bumper stickers, dash ornaments, weather. Something to break the ice and make the customer feel at ease after all the stress they must have felt booking the appointment for a day they could do without their car, negotiating to get into the drive-thru behind the other 45 cars that were in line, and then waiting for someone to help them. And we wonder why customers get fed up with this process before it even has started?
This chat must be about something that the advisor has honestly noticed or feels noteworthy. If it is not, the customer will subconsciously recognize this and the seeds of distrust will be sown.
Examples:
“I love the color of your truck; it is one of my favorites.” (If it is)
After pulling up the information, noting the year if it is older and in good shape:
“I cannot believe your truck is 2009, it is in impeccable condition! Nice work keeping it so.”
“Oh my gosh, is that a Boba Fett bobblehead on your dash!?” (This happened, and sparked a conversation about the new series on Disney Plus.) We spent several minutes talking about it before we even addressed what he was in for.
“I am sorry; we don’t serve Green Bay Packer fans here.” Said in total jest after I saw a Green Bay Packer decal on a customer’s rear window while I was walking around the back of his truck. I stopped and looked at him and said that. With a totally serious face. He looked at me for a second, then I burst into laughter. He realized the jest and started laughing as well. He then asked me who I cheered for. I explained, that because the Miami Dolphins have been my favorite team since the 70s I have had to learn to cheer for many different teams.
Point is, that I am trying to connect, genuinely with them. This is what I love best about my job. In that effort, I am cementing the foundation of my relationship with these people through a commonality so that when they come in next, they hopefully will want to deal with me again.
If I make suggestions or have to deliver less than fantastic news, they will be more likely to trust what I am saying. Or, if something goes sideways, I will be the person they call because they remember me and how I tried to build an actual relationship with them. They see me as a human being, like-minded and with similar interests. And, because of that, we can likely work together, in one direction, to solve whatever issues come up during their ownership of that vehicle.
The memory of your first impression lasts and lasts. If you left a bad first impression you have to work 3 times as hard to undo it. Sometimes first impressions are made harder for us by other first impressions created at different dealers and by different people.
First impressions are vital to the growth of the business. If advisors leave the customer with negative feelings after a great delivery from the sales staff, there will be a higher defection rate, and the long-term profit generated from the service department will suffer.
First Impressions! Learn how to make great ones, because the opportunity is gone in 60 seconds.
If you are struggling to connect with customers, reach out! I would love to help.
Message me: adviseme@goldstandardservicetraining.com
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