CallSource^® Aim Higher

Chris Leith Automotive in Wake Forest, North Carolina, is part of the Leith Group, which has been in business since 1969. Its operations manager, Johnny Dudley, has been in the automotive sales and management arena for more than twenty years. He oversees the daily operation of the dealership’s Kia, Dodge and a pre-owned superstore.

When asked for his business philosophy, Johnny gives one word… “Commitment.”

And his outlook for the automotive industry?… “Bright.”

“Things are picking up steam from a few years ago,” he says. “There’s a lot pent up demand, and as more people start to get jobs, they’re going to need a car. So our business will just keep getting busier and busier.”

Dudley recognizes that sales success depends on the building of relationships and continually finding ways to improve upon customer service. “We get so caught up in technology today,” he says. “The Internet, texting, email…that we take for granted how critical the phone is in our business. There is nothing more important than training the people who answer your phones. Customers want a relationship, and the phone is still the best resource dealers have.”

Prior to working with CallSource, the dealership had tested a variety of call monitoring services to track and record telephone leads. “But at the end of the day,” reports Dudley, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything quite like CallSource. No other company we tried, anywhere, represented or offered the customer service and support…there is nothing better.”

The dealership began using the CallSource Suite of products in May 2011 to track sales leads, measure marketing effectiveness and improve the telephone skills of its call handlers. “There are so many ways CallSource contributes to our dealership and our sales force,” says Dudley. “First of all, to be able to actively listen to how our incoming prospect calls are handled, has naturally improved our telephone performance across the board.”

He also notes a significant increase in phone volume and a more effective way to track the dealership’s marketing campaigns. “With CallSource, we can tag a unique phone number to any ad or project, like a flyer, and can track the results. My sales people like this a lot. By using different phone numbers it makes it easy to see exactly how many phone calls you get per day and what ad source those calls are coming from.”

What does Dudley say is the biggest advantage of using the CallSource suite at his dealership?

“The big contribution,” he says, “has to be DealSaver.”

How Does DealSaver Work?

DealSaver reviews every incoming call to a dealership identifying lost sales opportunities due to a mishandled call. It then promptly alerts sales management, providing them with the caller’s name, telephone number, analyst’s notes and the reason the call was considered a potential sales prospect. This information gives management the information they need to follow up – and a second chance to save the deal.

“DealSaver is our eyes and our ears,” explains Dudley. “Calls get mishandled for a variety of reasons. It happens. Knowing that someone from CallSource is watching out for those missed or cut off calls from interested customers – that has made a real difference in savings deals. With DealSaver we save one to two deals every month!”

There are currently 37 call handlers at Chris Leith being reviewed under the DealSaver program and four sales manager, including Johnny Dudley, that receive the alerts and reports.

DealSaver helps build and improve Chris Leith’s customer relations as well. “Customers honestly appreciate the follow up,” says Dudley. “When a sales manager calls them back right after a mishandled call? Well, that makes people feel good. It’s a neat way to get a ‘wow’ out of a customer by going that extra mile.”

“Johnny and his whole team, including Melanie Conner-Campbell, are such a pleasure to work with,” says Aynsley Zulpro, Regional Sales manager at CallSource. “They truly understand the value of successfully tracking and reviewing their sales leads. Using DealSaver, along with the CallSource lead management solutions, few, if any leads are ever lost. Johnny and his team know what a great tool this is and make excellent use of it every day.”

“I make sure to take the time, every day, to listen to these calls and take action whenever a DealSaver alert comes in,” agrees Johnny. “Because I believe if you make the effort, you’ll see the reward.”

Now that’s commitment.

www.chrisleith.com