Efficiency has always been key in the automotive industry, especially in managing customer interactions. With the advent of AI technology, it’s easier than ever to leverage advanced natural language processing to offer faster and more personalized interactions with customers. Freeing up your advisors for important tasks by having an AI Voice Agent seamlessly handle scheduling appointments, status checks, and other common calls is no longer a vision of the future, it is the current reality.
Why do attitudes and results surrounding AI in dealerships vary so wildly, even when using similar or the same technology? The most common difference is whether AI is being seen as a tool or feature, rather than a full-fledged solution that needs a well-thought-out process to set it up for success. The environment in which you place your AI Voice Agent, as well as its ability to communicate with your data and other software, make a huge difference in resulting production.
Here are four areas to consider when implementing or improving your AI Voice Agent process.1. The Forest of Phone Trees
No matter how good the technology is, some percentage of customers will always want to speak with a live person, whether due to a complex issue, frustration, or just personal preference. If your AI agent is able to route a frustrated customer to a live person (and they actually pick up), it becomes a part of the solution and will be viewed more positively. If, on the other hand, a frustrated customer gets stuck on the phone with the AI agent, they will be far less likely to adopt it for regular use in the future.
It's important to thoroughly plan your phone tree or phone routing sheet to ensure you always have live coverage. The issue becomes even more complex when you consider things like:
Changing staff rosters
Time off
Sick days
Does your AI agent have the ability to connect to your phone system or software for easier routing
Do you have a plan in place for escalation around the clock
Are absences and call outs detected by the AI or do you need to manually update your routing sheet when they occur
The list goes on and on. These are all important questions to consider before implementing an AI system, as escalation on its own can make or break an overall positive customer experience.
2. The Power of Integration
It is common for an AI Voice Agent to come bundled with an appointment scheduler or have integration agreements with popular appointment systems, as automated appointment scheduling is one of the chief functionalities. However, to truly function as a dispatcher and part of your dealership ecosystem, it’s necessary to consider any other modules you may need your AI to communicate with.
Does your AI have access to inspection results and vehicle status?
Can it answer questions about part orders?
Are those systems housed separately at your dealership or are they all under one provider?
Consideration of your software systems’ structure and how they interact with your AI is crucial to ensuring reliability and success.
3. Overcoming Challenges Through Collaboration
Many people’s initial concerns regarding AI systems are about the functionality. If demo videos seem too good to be true, simply call another dealership using the vendor and try to schedule an appointment! Most of the time, language processing works great out of the box and it’s integrating the AI into a seamless part of a dealership’s ecosystem that presents the greatest challenge. Disjointed communication and lack of deliberate adoption can stop the success of your system even before you get it off the ground.
Even with properly configured phone routing and integration, you may find yourself encountering new and unexpected issues. Perhaps a sizable part of your customer base speaks a foreign language you need the AI to be able to speak. It is possible that your AI will struggle with a specific customer’s name due to unusual spelling. It’s crucial to have a long conversation with your AI vendor, both when getting set up and as a continued open dialogue. You will need to keep them apprised of issues and know what they have the resources to solve.
4. Human Touch in a World of Technology
Everyone knows the importance of positive human interaction and relationship building. Most dealerships do a great job of maintaining personal relationships even when implementing AI. It is possible to go a step further however: support your AI and it will support you. When an advisor gets a frustrated customer routed to them from the AI agent, the low hanging fruit is to blame the AI in an attempt to relate to the customer. While this is a common de-escalation tactic, it undermines the entire system you’re investing in and lowers customer confidence in the long term. The better route is to understand the customers’ frustrations without disparaging the AI agent. By delivering top-tier customer service while understanding concerns, you can both keep the customer and work to improve your voice agent system to avoid similar issues in the future. Building a culture of positivity around AI with your advisors and staff is an absolute must.
AI is an incredibly powerful piece of technology and AI Voice Agents are a readily accessible tool to reduce costs and boost productivity. But it’s always important to remember that your implementation of the system makes a world of difference. Consider the general content your staff deals with in customer calls, and what processes and integrations an AI agent would need to replicate their performance. Set up human safeguards for escalation and checks to monitor and assist the AI process when needed.
Keep an open dialogue with your vendor so you are always prepared for new feature requests, adjustments, and reporting. Lastly make sure to remember the importance of human touch and building out a culture of positivity in your staff around AI. If you approach all these steps with deliberate consideration and careful planning, the sky's the limit for time and cost savings.
Steve Guyette is a veteran of fixed op departments with over 20 years of management experience in multiple dealership groups. Steve presently is Regional Vice President for Total Customer Connect (TCC).
