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Automotive Sales & Service BDC Essentials Course​ (GS)

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  1. LESSON 1 BDC: AUTOMOTIVE SALES & SERVICE BDC - BDM COURSE INTRODUCTION

    Automotive Sales & Service BDC - BDM Course Introduction
  2. LESSON 2: ESSENTIAL BDC AND BDM STEPS TO TAKE PROPER CARE OF AUTOMOTIVE SALES LEADS
    Essential BDC and BDM Steps To Take Proper Care Of Automotive Sales Leads
    7 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
  3. LESSON 3 BDC: EVERYTHING A BDC REPRESENTATIVE NEEDS TO KNOW ABOUT AUTOMOTIVE SERVICE REPAIR ORDERS
    Everything A BDC Representative Needs To Know About Automotive Service Repair Orders
    7 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
  4. LESSON 4: FEATURES, BENEFITS, AND SELLING POINTS OF EACH SERVICE MAINTENANCE ITEM FOR BDC REPRESENTATIVES
    Features, Benefits, And Selling Points Of Each Service Maintenance Item For BDC Representatives
    8 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
  5. LESSON 5: BREAKDING DOWN THE NEW CAR FACTORY WARRANTY FOR BDC REPRESENTATIVES
    Breaking Down The New Car Factory Warranty For BDC Representatives
    10 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
  6. LESSON 6: UNDERSTANDING AUTOMOTIVE SERVICE CUSTOMER AND PERSONALIZING THE SALES EXPERIENCE BDC REPRESENTATIVES
    Understanding Automotive Service Customer And Personalizing The Sales Experience BDC Representatives
    2 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
  7. LESSON 7: GROWING A BDC REPRESENTATIVES SOFT SKILLS AND SCHEDULING APPOINTMENTS
    Growing A BDC Representatives Soft Skills And Scheduling Appointments
    7 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
  8. LESSON 8: HOW TO TACKLE CHALLENGES IN THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY AS AN AUTOMOTIVE BDC OR BDM
    How To Tackle Challenges In The Automotive Industry As An Automotive BDC Or BDM
    4 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
  9. LESSON 9: MEASURING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT KPI'S & FORECASTING AS AN AUTOMOTIVE BDM
    Measuring Business Development KPI's & Forecasting Metrics As A Automotive BDM
    2 Topics
  10. LESSON 10: BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT SCRIPTS & TEMPLATES FOR AUTOMOTIVE BDC REPRESENTATIVES
    Business Development Scripts & Templates For Automotive BDC Representatives
    16 Topics
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Inbound Sales Lead BDC Workflow

A sales BDC representative’s task is to qualify the inbound sales lead by actively listening to them, then asking a series of pre-scripted open-ended questions to help narrow down the choices. They spent a lot of time nurturing new leads, documenting their vehicle needs, and recording as much information as possible. The goal is to be informative and answer all the customer’s questions. But after the lead’s questions are answered, the BDC representative will have a list of their own questions. Some qualifying questions can be what type of vehicle they are interested in, what they use the car for, what type of passengers are in the car, when they intend to purchase, and if they intend on financing or leasing.

The foundation for inbound sales calls and internet leads can differ slightly between dealers. The workflow outlined in this lesson will start you on the right path as an Automotive Sales BDC representative.

Most dealers use a software called Customer Relationship Management system (CRM) to take care of leads. The CRM helps dealers stay connected to customers. CRM’s store information about their inbound and outbound leads, streamline processes and improve customer retention.

The CRM can send and receive email or text responses from leads. They automate activities like follow-up scheduling with new leads and track which leads have replied or haven’t so far. They allow BDC representatives to add personal notes and meaningful details about each lead. The CRM shows at a glance how hot or cold a lead is. As a BDC representative, a CRM will be your go-to software system.

Each of these steps is explained in detail throughout this course; BDC sales email templates and phone scripts are included in the last chapter.

 

Inbound Phone Lead

  1. Answer the phone within two rings
  2. Record the customer’s full contact information
  3. Search for the customer’s information in the CRM
  4. Create a new customer account if they are new
  5. Listens to customer’s needs
  6. Ask open-ended questions
  7. Provide answers to every question
  8. Include a low-end and high-end price and provide stock numbers that match the prices quoted
  9. Log customer’s requests in CRM
  10. Schedule customer’s appointment with a salesperson
  11. Confirms appointment with the customer
  12. Finish inputting information and the conversation into CRM
  13. Print appointment information sheet and give a copy to the BDC manager, sales manager, and salesperson
  14. Automate the appointment reminder text or email the evening before or the morning of a customer’s appointment
  15. Write down their name on a “Welcome” board in the showroom and inform the greeter or receptionist
  16. Follow-up with the outcome of the appointment the day after every scheduled appointment
  17. Follow-up on missed appointments
  18. Follow-up on unresponsive leads

 

Inbound Internet Lead

  1. An automated response is sent immediately (if applicable)
  2. BDC searches for the customer’s information in the CRM
  3. Create a new customer account if they are new
  4. Personalized email response is sent within 5 minutes during business hours
  5. Provide an answer to every question
  6. Include a low-end and high-end price and provide stock numbers that match the prices quoted
  7. Ask if they have a quote from another dealer (from who, how much, terms, VIN)
  8. Log customer’s requests in CRM
  9. Call the customer 10 minutes after sending out a personalized email (if a phone number was given)
  10. Schedule customer’s appointment with a salesperson
  11. Confirms appointment with the customer
  12. Finish inputting information and the conversation into CRM
  13. Print appointment information sheet and give a copy to the BDC manager, sales manager, and salesperson
  14. Automate the appointment reminder text or email the evening before or the morning of a customer’s appointment
  15. Follow-up with the outcome of the appointment the day after every scheduled appointment
  16. Follow-up on missed appointments
  17. Follow-up on unresponsive leads

 

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

BDC representatives will primarily use the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software to track and interact with customers at dealerships. The crucial role of CRM’s is that it allows the whole dealership to share and manage customers from one system and provide a personalized shopping experience.

The technical details provided by CRM’s vary from one system to the next. However, the principles of CRM system functionality remain the same.

The most important feature of a CRM system is its ability to automate specified marketing strategies to retain new leads. Staff needs to update the status of the lead’s progress to use its built-in sales funnel effectively.

These are the essential information required by a dealership CRM system:

Locating Or Adding Customers To CRM

Check to see if the customer is already in the system. Search by typing in one of the following:

  1. Customers last name
  2. Customers phone number

Next, click search. If the system finds a match, ask the customer to confirm their address to ensure they match, then click “Select.”

Select “Add New” and finish completing the customer data fields if no match is found.

 

Lead Type

Select the appropriate lead type:

  1. Walk-in
  2. Phone
  3. Email

This step (task) triggers the appropriate CRM follow-up process. Contact information must have first and last name, phone number, and email to trigger correctly.

 

Lead Source

How did the lead hear about the dealership or car?

  1. Dealership website
  2. Friend
  3. Third-party site (will require specific site location)

 

Locate Vehicle

In many cases, the CRM will have an icon called “Find Car,” type in the stock number the customer provided to find the vehicle in the inventory. Note: Without a stock number, sold units may not appear since the system is programmed to remove sold units immediately off the list.

Selecting a car is essential; it’s part of the automated marketing process coded into the CRM. If the vehicle is sold, then manually type in the model year, make, and model line.

 

Customer Comments

Log customer comments and other relevant details about the customer’s car preference.

 

Set Appointment

Schedule an appointment to meet with a salesperson after the lead agrees. This step (or task) triggers automated reminder messages for the customer, the salesperson, and the BDC department.

 

Showroom Visit

Update the status after the customer has met with the salesperson. Another essential step (or task) triggers a follow-up process in the CRM.

 

Other CRM Tasks

Each dealership CRM will have a different set of tasks that can trigger a follow-up process, some of which could be:

Phone Task: Called, Received – Made Contact, Left Message, No Contact, Etc.

Email Task For Inbound, Outbound: Replied, Responded, Do Not Respond, No Recent Contact, No Two-Week Response. Etc.

 

Additional Customer Data

When you add a new lead or prospect into the CRM, always capture as much customer contact information for their profile.

For phone-in customers, make sure to get the customer’s phone number upfront. It’s as simple as, “Just in case I lose you, what’s the best number to reach you?” It’s a simple way to get their contact information without being intrusive. Also, ask if this is their cell number and get permission to send them text messages.

Where possible, try to ask for detailed customer information, even if you cannot accomplish it with the first contact. Aim to know more about them with each future contact. Knowing more about your customers will help you understand their needs and be better positioned to assist them with their vehicle purchases.

A good rule of thumb is to capture the following information for their profile:

  1. Contact information: Full name, address, cell phone, work phone, email, and social media account.
  2. Contact preference? Email, phone, text
  3. Current vehicle? Year, make, model (VIN preferable)
  4. Current vehicle ownership status? Do they own, lease, finance
  5. Current vehicle contract Ending Date? 30, 60, 90 days
  6. Current payment amount? $
  7. Trade-in details? Year, make, model, mileage
  8. What do they use the vehicle for? Personal, business
  9. The number of passengers and who? Young family, friends, coworkers, and pets

The last question may not be as helpful, but it shows leads that you care and are interested in hearing more about them and their lifestyle.

Next, BDC representatives will log the customers’ contact information along with their questions into the customer retail management system (CRM). If the customer is ready to come in, the BDC staff will assign the customer to a salesperson and schedule the appointment. However, if the lead needs more time to think about their options, then the BDC representative would need to stay in touch with the lead and schedule a follow-up in the CRM system.

 

 

Additional Notes: This guide is not a complete BDC workflow. There’s no one-size-fits-all workflow for BDM’s because each manufacturer, dealer, or independent store may have additional steps or perform these steps in a different order. This lesson is to get you started in the right direction, use the guide in the beginning, then build on it by creating your own workflow.