Numa, an innovative AI platform designed specifically for auto dealerships, has released critical insights for 2024, revealing the significant challenges faced by service departments in managing high inbound call volumes. The analysis suggests that dealerships risk losing substantial revenue by not adequately responding to customer calls, which indicates a growing issue within operational efficiency and customer experience in the automotive service sector.

The report highlights that service departments could be forgoing an average of $853,000 annually due to missed customer calls and unbooked service appointments. According to Numa’s analysis, dealerships are missing approximately 158 appointment calls each month. For those in the 75th percentile, the figure rises sharply to 216 calls. Considering the average value of a Repair Order (RO) is estimated at $450, the total missed appointment revenue for a single dealership could amount to about $1.17 million per year.

Further breakdown of the data shows that peak appointment scheduling times occur chiefly in the morning, specifically between 8:00 a.m. and 11:30 a.m., when service departments often struggle to keep up with demand. Additionally, the findings indicate that Mondays and Tuesdays are particularly busy, with more than 52% of weekly incoming calls directed towards appointment bookings by the end of Tuesday. This trend suggests that customers prefer to address their car-related issues early in the week.

The rise of AI adoption in dealerships is also notable, with statistics indicating a considerable increase in the volume of calls managed by AI agents. From 2022 to 2024, the number of annual AI-handled calls per dealer approached 16,500, with call durations elongated by 16%. This reflects an increasing comfort level among customers in engaging with AI, as well as a general improvement in AI performance.

To assist dealerships in overcoming these challenges, Numa provides a series of actionable strategies:

  • Optimise Staffing: Dealerships are encouraged to adjust staff levels during peak hours and on busy days to improve customer response times and enhance operational efficiency.
  • Shift Demand: By promoting shorter wait times proactively, dealerships could shift scheduling to later in the day or week, helping to balance demand and improve shop utilisation.
  • Utilisation of AI Technology: Incorporating AI technologies like Numa can facilitate answering every call with minimal wait times, thus capitalising on emerging customer preferences and technology integration.

CEO and co-founder of Numa, Tasso Roumeliotis, commented on the potential benefits of the platform, stating, "Numa works with well over 600 franchise dealerships to deploy AI that not only handles repetitive tasks like booking appointments and giving status updates, but also more complex ones like rescuing dissatisfied customers and unlocking trade-ins." His remarks underscore the broad opportunities for dealerships to enhance customer service operations and improve the efficiency of Business Development Representatives (BDR) teams through AI adoption.

The implications of Numa's findings are significant for the automotive industry, as they emphasise the necessity for dealerships to embrace technological advancements in order to rectify operational shortcomings. The data-driven insights provided by Numa may empower dealers to make more informed decisions and realise improved outcomes in both service efficiency and profitability.

For those interested in delving deeper into the findings and accessing accompanying data visualisations, Numa encourages visits to their website for further information.

Source: Noah Wire Services