Earlier this year, Cox Automotive released its 2016 Maintenance and Repair Study, which found that dealerships only capture 30 percent of total service visits.
What was the most surprising finding in the study?
How few people actually service their vehicles at the dealership in general. It really represents a great opportunity for our clients and dealerships in general to grow and monetize the service center.
The study showed that drivers are very price sensitive, and view dealerships as a costlier service alternative. How much of that is just perception, or is there a big price difference?
In talking to consumers, that gap is not as big as it would appear when we asked them what they are spending at dealerships and at other service centers. It’s more of a perception. We recommend dealers be open and transparent about pricing and how they compare to other service providers.
One big disadvantage dealers have is that they are geographically isolated from where their customers live. How can dealerships overcome that?
That’s right. We found that 70 percent of service visits are less than 10 miles from individuals’ homes. There are creative ways to get around this. Some of our customers are arranging to pick up vehicles at their customer’s workplace or home, and providing loaner vehicles. You have to give a better customer experience to get around that location barrier. They are also offering more flexible hours in the evenings and on weekends.
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