8 min read Every day, automotive companies, be it dealerships, rental services, or service centers, receive a flood of customer inquiries.
These inquiries range from vehicle availability and pricing to maintenance schedules and roadside assistance, and the demand for quick and accurate responses is higher than ever before.
But managing these interactions manually can be time-consuming, resource-intensive, and prone to delays. AI-powered automation has the superpower to change it. Intelligent chatbots, automated workflows, and self-service options help businesses handle inquiries better.
This article explores how AI-driven automation is transforming customer support in the automotive industry, the benefits of adoption, real-life examples, and the best-in-class automation for the industry.
Table of Contents
Why does the automotive industry need automation?
Just like any other industry, the automotive sector is undergoing a significant transformation, and the traditional systems do not suffice anymore. Here’s how AI-driven automation can bring much-needed change to the automotive industry:
Enhancing efficiency
Automotive companies receive a high volume of routine customer inquiries daily, ranging from service appointments to vehicle availability. We have the modern tools to cater to these routine questions today and are the best when paired with AI.
Automotive companies can address up to 80% of these standard questions via AI and its deep learning capability, allowing human agents to focus on more complex issues.
This shift not only streamlines operations but also accelerates response times, leading to improved customer satisfaction.
Improving customer experience
According to McKinsey, approximately 60% of car buyers under the age of 45 are inclined to purchase their next vehicle online, highlighting the need and demand for contactless sales and services.
It is time the automotive industry levels up its digital communication strategy to address the need for immediate and accurate responses.
AI-driven solutions provide 24/7 support, ensuring that inquiries are addressed promptly, regardless of time zones or business hours. This constant availability enhances the customer experience, fostering loyalty and trust in the brand and driving sales.
Reducing operational costs
Maintaining large customer service teams is an add-on expense for companies and can be financially demanding. Automation can help curb costs, and automating routine tasks can significantly cut operational expenses.
Juniper Research indicates that the adoption of chatbots in sectors like retail, banking, and healthcare could lead to annual cost savings of $11 billion by 2023. While this statistic encompasses multiple industries, the automotive sector stands to benefit similarly by integrating AI into customer support functions.
Providing 24/7 availability
Customers often require assistance beyond standard working hours, whether it’s for emergency services or last-minute rental bookings. AI-powered chatbots offer round-the-clock support, ensuring that customer needs are promptly met, irrespective of the time.
This continuous availability not only improves customer satisfaction but also provides a competitive edge in the market.
By enhancing efficiency, improving customer experiences, reducing costs, and ensuring constant availability, automation positions businesses to meet modern consumer demands effectively.
Must-have automation for automotive customer support?
Implementing AI-driven automation in automotive customer support can significantly enhance efficiency, customer satisfaction, and operational effectiveness. Here are five essential automations to improve automotive customer support:
1. AI chatbots & virtual assistants
Automotive industries can choose to delegate the major and most tedious customer support task of answering repetitive questions to automation tools.
The automation tools, especially the smart AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants, can handle a wide range of customer inquiries starting right from vehicle information to financing options and beyond.
Notably, as per reports, these tools have been managing approximately 31% of queries about new cars, 20% concerning used vehicles, and 28% related to service bookings.
Impressively, around 90% of these questions are resolved directly by the bots, leading to increased customer satisfaction and reduced workload for human agents.
2. Automated service booking
The traditional way of service booking consists of speaking with a customer rep to block a slot, only to realize there are either of these issues – long wait times, missed calls, conflict in schedules, and more.
All of these result in lost revenue for the companies or customer dissatisfaction.
Automation, on the other hand, streamlines the process of scheduling maintenance or test drives and repairs, reducing manual effort for both customers and service providers. They allow customers to schedule appointments through chatbots, mobile apps, or websites independently.
These systems also integrate with dealership and service center calendars, ensuring real-time availability and reducing the risk of double bookings.
One of the great examples of the best use of AI and automated service booking in the automotive industry is implementing AI-driven predictive analytics to identify vehicles due for servicing based on factors like mileage, diagnostic data, and driving patterns.
The system can automatically send personalized reminders and service recommendations via email, SMS, and app notifications, making it easier for customers to remember their maintenance requirements and schedule appointments at their convenience.
3. Intelligent lead qualification
Handling leads gets inefficient in a manual setup because they can be poorly prioritized, routed to the wrong salesperson, or lost altogether due to slow response times. Salespeople can also end up chasing low-intent leads and disregarding high-value prospects who become disengaged.
AI-driven intelligent lead qualification solves these inefficiencies by analyzing customer interactions, behaviors, and engagement levels to determine intent and prioritize high-quality leads.
For example, an AI system can assess a prospect’s activity, such as time spent browsing specific car models, inquiries about financing, or responses to marketing emails, and assign a lead score based on their likelihood to convert.
Sales reps can then follow up with prospects who have a high score and assist them in making a purchase. This ultimately ramps up sales for companies.
4. Rental & lease assistance
Just like sales, the rental and lease processes in the automotive industry are manually extensive. This results in long wait times, booking errors, and lost revenue due to abandoned inquiries.
AI-driven rental & lease assistance automates and streamlines the entire customer journey, from instant availability checks to digital contract processing.
Smart chatbots and virtual assistants can handle pricing inquiries, vehicle availability, booking confirmations, and policy clarifications in real time, reducing the need for human intervention.
For instance, ride-hailing platforms like Lyft have integrated AI assistants to handle driver inquiries, resulting in an 87% reduction in average resolution time for driver requests.
5. Smart call routing
When a customer calls a dealership or rental service, they may be bounced between departments, placed on hold, or disconnected due to high call volumes.
AI-driven smart call routing ensures that customer inquiries are automatically directed to the most relevant department or representative based on caller intent, past interactions, and urgency.
By integrating these AI-driven automations, automotive companies can enhance customer interactions, streamline operations, and achieve significant improvements in service efficiency.
Why use AI over traditional workflows?
Let’s go through the reasons why automotive companies using manual and traditional systems must make the shift to AI-powered systems as soon as possible:
1. Faster response times
Studies have shown that AI can reduce customer support resolution times by up to 50%, leading to quicker issue resolution and increased customer satisfaction.
AI-powered systems can process and respond to customer inquiries instantly, eliminating the delays often associated with human-operated support.
2. Scalability
Unlike human agents who handle one customer at a time, AI solutions can manage multiple interactions simultaneously. This scalability ensures consistent service quality during peak periods without the need for proportional increases in staff.
For instance, AI-powered customer support solutions have been found to cut response times by 40% and boost customer satisfaction by 25%.
3. Data-driven personalization
By accessing previous interactions and understanding customer preferences, AI tailors responses and recommendations to individual needs and delivers a personalized experience.
Notably, 71% of consumers expect companies to deliver personalized interactions, and 76% express frustration when this expectation is not met.
4. Seamless omnichannel support
AI integrates across various communication platforms, such as phone, email, and chat, offering a unified customer experience. This ensures that customers receive cohesive support regardless of the channel they choose without having to repeat information or restart conversations.
This centralized interaction experience ensures the context is not lost, reducing any possible friction in the process.
Research shows that businesses with strong omnichannel engagement retain 89% of their customers.
Conclusion
Automation in automotive customer support isn’t about replacing human interaction, it’s about amplifying it.
It doesn’t mean companies can plug pre-built frameworks and generic automation into their systems and play the efficiency notes.
Every business has unique workflows and customer needs, and constant fine-tuning of systems according to the market dynamics is the key to efficiency.
With Auralis AI, you get more than just automation. You get custom-built workflows that adapt to your business needs, ensuring efficiency without sacrificing the personal touch.
Book a demo of Auralis AI today.
