How Workshops Can Increase Customer Retention With Text Message Reminders

The need for regular vehicle maintenance should be driving customers back to your workshop year after year, especially if they’ve previously had a good experience with your service department. However, increasing customer retention can be a struggle for businesses, with motorists spoilt for choice with being able to easily research other garages online – so you need to foster customer relationships to increase loyalty to your company.

After their initial visit, retaining the same customer for future work isn’t as easy as simply making contact with them ahead of their next pending service. Phone calls to the customer can often go unanswered, especially if your number isn’t immediately recognised, and emails aren’t guaranteed to even reach the inbox, with modern spam filters incorrectly sending some messages to the junk folder. This is why more and more workshops are instead taking advantage of automated text message reminders.

Text messages allow you to all but guarantee reaching your customer with essential information about their vehicle, and at a fraction of the time you would spend making phone calls or writing emails. The direct and straightforward approach of using text messages means your customer can instantly see the information on their phone and will be ready to book themselves into your workshop as soon as it’s convenient for them, with more than enough notice to increase the likelihood of you having the availability for their preferred date.

Automating this service saves you even more time by putting an end to the time-consuming task of manually checking upcoming MOT and service dates for individual vehicles and sending text messages one by one, as your system will be sending out the reminders automatically when a customer is almost due back in the workshop.

Garages can send out text messages to customers automatically with the DragonDMS dealer management system, letting your workshop bookings literally take care of themselves and giving you more time to focus on running your business. The DMS will record a vehicle’s MOT and service information when it is first uploaded into the system, with these details then being used to automatically remind customers each year about upcoming due dates, helping to improve your retention.

Customers who fail to respond to your automated message will be flagged in the DragonDMS, alerting your staff to either try re-sending the message or use an alternative contact method to maximise your chances of bringing them into the workshop. Upon booking their appointment, a second automatic text message can be set up in the DragonDMS to remind your customers about the MOT or service the day before their visit, which can help to reduce no-shows and maintain productivity in the service department.

Dragon2000 have been helping dealers and garages drive their businesses forward since 1995. Contact our sales team today by calling 01327 222 333 or emailing sales@dragon2000.co.uk to find out how our dealer management system, car dealer websites and mobile apps can help your business increase profits and reduce costs.