The future of car dealerships: The largest risk in 2022

The future of car dealerships involves automation and optimised efficiency. Because of this, the largest risk for dealerships heading into 2022 is a lack of reliable business intelligence software. Failure to embrace this technology will only serve to hold automotive dealerships back as they rely on outdated methods of managing data.

If you're not implementing business intelligence software for your dealership, you're likely to fall behind in 2022 and beyond.

Why auto dealers need business intelligence software

Business intelligence has become more and more popular among dealerships in recent years as they make the shift toward automation. Business or data intelligence entails the use of various types of technology, practices, and tools to effectively analyse all raw data collected within an organisation. Once they’ve gathered the data, dealerships can visualise and better understand it through dealer analytics to make more informed business decisions.

Owners of dealerships can ultimately use business intelligence to determine what changes they need to make to their organisation and keep up with industry trends. As a result, dealerships benefit from improved adaptability and flexibility.

Below are some more specific benefits of incorporating automotive business intelligence into your operations and preparing for the future of car dealerships.

Increased accessibility of data

Auto dealers that still depend on Excel spreadsheets and other tools across multiple computers will suffer from a lack of data accessibility. This is particularly detrimental in today's hybrid work environments. A growing number of businesses implement a combination of in-office and remote operations.
With the help of business intelligence solutions, you can consolidate and maintain accessibility for all data across your systems. Both remote and in-office staff can also access data from any location. This continuity ensures everyone is working with the most up-to-date data. Additionally, business intelligence software will interpret any data collected and provide actionable insights that allow for more informed decision-making.

Improved communication and efficiency

Agility will be critical in the future of car dealerships. Dealerships need to be able to quickly and accurately project change and react accordingly. The ability to remain agile will ultimately come down to improved communications and overall efficiency.

Through efficient processes, owners and staff will be able to focus more on growing the business and making sales. In the meantime, clear communication will help avoid any miscommunications and misunderstandings between staff members and teams. Additionally, if someone makes any changes to data, you can eliminate the chance of "blame games" by tracking who made a particular change and when. This helps ensure accountability throughout your organisation, further clarifying communication.

With the help of good communication, dealerships will be able to more easily gather feedback, review performance, and execute certain necessary changes.

Better sales processes

Automotive customers are shopping for cars online, much like with other types of consumer products. With the increased convenience of online ordering, physical dealerships are less important. But they're not going anywhere. Although 33% of consumers would consider purchasing a car online, 58% still want to visit a physical dealership before buying.

The key here is that dealerships need to be able to cater to both customers by providing them with the ideal experience both on and off the lot. Business intelligence in the automotive industry can help achieve this in a number of ways. For example, automotive BI can:

• Help generate digital assets for your business
• Accurately attribute sales in a multiplatform process
• Share relevant information to provide a seamless experience for customers alternating between channels

The right software will also give you clear insight into how customers are interacting with staff and vice versa. This gives you the ability to determine the point where sales occur. In the process, you can more effectively optimise your sales processes to increase sales both in-person and online.

Read more about these major challenges impacting the automotive industry in Australia.

Determine how best to serve customers

In addition to allowing customers to seamlessly connect with your dealership online and offline, automotive business intelligence software can also help you take advantage of new and innovative ways to satisfy customers.

For instance, you could try drop-off and pick-up services that involve delivering a car to a customer after they purchase the vehicle online. Additionally, you may want to offer a package that includes both repair services and insurance financing. Another potential solution may involve a "pay-as-you-go" model that helps customers pay off their purchases over time.

Using BI software, you can gauge how well these efforts perform by tracking customer engagement. Based on how customers respond to these or other services, you can figure out what requires improvement to better serve them. In the process, you'll be able to develop the ideal customer experience with every interaction.

Stay competitive and adapt for the future of car dealerships

By implementing an effective business intelligence solution for your dealership, you'll have the ability to get and stay ahead of competitors. Your organisation will benefit from optimised efficiency, centralised data, better insights, and more all-around efficacy. Keep in mind that no one tool will give you the results you want. Instead, look for the right platform that not only collects and centralises data but also enables you to interpret it.

A good business intelligence solution like SalesLogs will truly empower your dealership to meet the future of car dealerships. You'll benefit from:

• Optimal accessibility of data
• Accurate and in-depth reporting
• Clear communication

Actionable insights that keep your dealership functioning the way it should
In turn, your dealership will maintain a critical competitive edge as you automate processes and make better decisions that facilitate long-term growth.

To learn more about how SalesLogs can benefit your business with a dependable business intelligence solution, book a free demo today.