You may already have the tools you need. Part of shifting into high gear on creating safe, digital interaction with your customer includes an audit of the software and platforms currently in your service department. If you have Xtime Engage, you are already on your way to promoting social distancing in our changed world.  

During the Be Safe Workshop: Best Practices for Digital Interaction with Engage, Xtime senior performance manager Will Crouch talked through the Engage features that you need to fully understand and utilize right now.  

Self Check-In 

Enable the Self Check-In feature of Engage to give your customer the opportunity to check in to their service appointment through a link they receive in their confirmation text or email. Your customer can review their selected services and sign off from their own phone, without contact with an advisor. There is no app required for your customer to download. They will access Self Check-In through a web browser. You can find more detailed information on Self Check-In in a Be Safe Workshop dedicated to best practices.  

Walk-Around 

Once your customer has initiated check in and left the dealership, your advisor still needs to complete the check-in process. You can deliver the same world-class walk-around you always do with your Engage tablet at this point. Take pictures and video and note any damage. This help reassure your customer the vehicle will be delivered in the same condition it was received and protects your dealership from false claims.  

Now let’s consider the walk-around for the customer opting for valet pickup and delivery to get their vehicle in your shop. Social distancing has bolstered the desire for this level of service and a walk-around is just as, or maybe more, important for customers that select valet pickup.  

When your employee arrives to pick up your customer’s vehicle, they can use the Engage app on their cell-enabled iPad and most Android phones and perform the walk-around just as they would on the service drive.  

Service Menu 

You need to get the most out of every check in all the time. With fewer service appointments, it’s undoubtedly top of mind now. Your advisor can still safely do a menu presentation with factory and mileage recommended services in a couple of different ways: 

• During pre-write, you can use Schedule’s Menu Print button to generate and email the menu to your customer. 
• Your advisor can text the Online Maintenance Menu link to their customer’s phones so that customers can see the menu on their device. 

Now you need a layer of accountability. There is reporting built into your Engage reports to help you see utilization and additional sales by advisor.  

Estimate Delivery 

Deliver a touch-free RO process with Engage. To do that, you must start with getting verified contact information entered into customer data fields. Your customer will also need to be opted into text and email communications.  

If it’s not already part of your process, work in emailing the inspection and the line-by-line estimate at the conclusion of each check-in. This gives your customer the information they need and protects both the customer and your advisor from close contact.  

Payment and FlexPay 

You can have the ability with Payment, an Engage feature, to capture the customer’s payment without the need to pass a credit card back and forth or enter a PIN into a touch pad. The advisor should send online payment requests via email or text to the customer at the end of active delivery. More than a safety measure, it could boost your CSI scores if the customer does not have to wait in line for a cashier.  

The funds to pay may be holding some of your customers back from bringing their vehicle in to be serviced right now. You can use FlexPay with DigniFi to offer financing options to your customer during each digital communication. Economic uncertainty does not have to keep your customer from getting the work they need done. If they see the option for FlexPay when they arrive at your website to schedule their service visit, it may give them the confidence they need to get the appointment on the books.  

Summary  

As we digitally transform, consider what you already have in your dealership. The experience you can provide with Xtime Engage will be important now and into the future. Just as customers have come to expect the free car wash during their service visit, they will now expect these fully connected digital service visits. Watch the full webinar to see step-by-step instruction within the Engage product as well as insight as to what is working for other dealerships and how they’ve adapted to new customer expectations.