Let’s start off with some statistics on women and their dealership experience:
- 50% are dissatisfied with the car they end up purchasing
- 77% feel they need to bring a male with them to the dealership
- $500 more money is paid for their vehicle compared to men
What are you doing to gain the trust of women — a combination of 85 percent of those purchasing new vehicles either for themselves or directly affecting the choice for the household?
Both online, and in-person, there are changes big and small a dealership can make to cater to women and to make them feel more comfortable visiting your business.
When over ¾ of women feel they need to bring a man with them to be treated fairly, getting them to trust you is critical for long-term success and to help drive revenue.
How does a dealership gain trust?
Reviews
Did your female customer have a good experience at your dealership? Encourage them to write an online review about their purchasing or service process. According to CBT Automotive News, “Women are 50% more likely than men to rely on dealership reviews and they prefer reading reviews from women.”
Women are loyal to good service, a study by Erasmus University found, whereas men are more brand-loyal. If a female customer had a satisfactory customer journey and writes a positive review, more women are likely to be persuaded to give that business a try.
Build a Relationship
Every customer looking to purchase a vehicle or is in need of service, deserves respect. Regardless of gender, customers simply gravitate toward those they deem trustworthy. When sales or service representatives take the time to listen to a customer and ask the right questions, it increases the likelihood of higher satisfaction and revenue.
- 73% said they will service their car at that dealership in the future if they received excellent service
- More than half said they would bring their car back for service at the dealership where they purchased their vehicle
Relationship-building starts before the point-of-sale and continues well-after. This drives retention and increases dealership revenue without the cost of conquest.
Connect
Most vehicle research is completed online, and yet most dealership websites are built to sell cars with marketing strategies that lack emotion or connection. Showcasing vehicle inventory and listing the number of vehicles you have available will hardly build trust or show any real benefit to visiting your dealership for a test drive. What’s the difference between your 100’s of vehicles and your competitor’s 100’s of vehicles?
Sharing why your vehicles are safer and stronger, and built with features that highlight what matters to women, will indicate that your dealership is ready to connect with women and their needs.
This includes the service center. What amenities do you offer to ensure women will want to return to you for service? Do you have a children’s area? Free rental? Shuttle service? What magazines do you have out in the waiting room? It’s important to communicate to your customers, and potential customers, what sets you apart from other service centers.
Referrals
People talk. If your dealership becomes known as a trustworthy place for women to shop for and service their cars, they will share. Referrals not only show that your dealership is catering to their customer, but it’s one of the most cost-effective ways to acquire and retain new customers.
OneClick Loyalty has been able to connect dealerships with their customers and provide a journey that builds trust and establishes a relationship with female customers. By encouraging referrals and reviews, sharing information about the dealership amenities and connecting with relevancy, OneClick Loyalty can drive retention and revenue from female customers.
Guided-Selling has found that “Women are more likely to respond to email marketing” making it the best way to reach this demographic. “Educate, empower and provide reassurance,” and you’ll see more women eager to visit your dealership for sales and service.
