Mr. Lube + Tires, Firestone, Jiffy Lube, and all the other aftermarket service shops that are around, are eating our lunch. 100% of every vehicle on today’s roads, was purchased from a new car dealership at birth (if you will). But, the aftermarket shops and parts stores are a much larger (service/parts) industry than us.
The aftermarket service shops, and parts stores are built on the idea, that the dealership will deflect a huge portion of their customer base – and we do, unfortunately. (ie. 70% of new vehicle customers deflect after the warranty expires – and usually, 90%+ of Used vehicle purchases never return to the dealer)
The trigger is the oil change. Tires is another. These are points in the customer’s servicing journey that have to be done, but it’s where all the “gravy” is, and can be found – but you have to get them to the dealership to begin with.
There are dealer staff who hate doing oil changes. I get it – but it’s not exactly about the oil change itself. It’s how we keep all the retail work, and the customer at our dealerships, for the entire “life cycle” (ie. new sale, servicing, trade-in, repurchase new, etc.).
This was something I would jump on any time I heard a tech/advisor/parts person say they hated oil changes/oil change customers, and their demands (for speed/convenience, etc.).
In my last few posts, I mentioned ways we could increase retention, reach out to more lost customers at scale to re-convert them, and unique ways to offer value the aftermarket guys are not, beyond the typical (ie. shuttle/OEM parts, etc.).
But one of the major deflection points in my mind on why customers leave is based on 3 major points some haven’t dialled in yet;
1. Real Convenience (same hours as Lube joints)
2. Speed of Service. It is common to see a wait time that is 1 hour or even more. Or leave it with us for things a lube joint can do right away, or much faster.
3. Process To Cumbersome. When you roll up to a lube joint, it’s very fast and easy. If you have really experienced what it is like to be the dealership service customer, you’ll notice right away, there is just more ask (of time/energy) from the dealership, for what they feel is something basic and straightforward.
Don’t get me wrong – I’m pro-dealership. But even I hate going to other’s service dept’s at dealerships most of the time as a customer, for the reasons I mentioned above. But this is all easy to dial in – you just have to work on it.
If it can be done by 16-year-old high school student, and executed, we can figure it out too. I agree – we have much more to offer for value. But not all of that is exactly clear to a customer who drives past your dealership into a lube joint for fast/easy/frictionless service, or the customer who is waiting 1 hour for an “oil change”.
These are some of my thoughts on why dealer’s are losing their customer base to aftermarket shops, but easy to address (check my posts out).