The typical car buyer today has a certain amount of experience with high prices. They may not like it, but they have accepted today’s prices as the reality of what’s needed to get into today’s vehicles.
This is even clearer with consumers who lease, who today see average lease prices in line with what they spent three years ago. The surge in negativity is driven entirely by process—specifically, the inability to connect.
Review data shows customers are frustrated by unanswered phones, unreturned texts, and disjointed handoffs. Luckily, top operators from the Car Dealership Guy community are already deploying playbooks to fix this specific leak:
1. A Tree Falls in the Forest: Cole Frankman, of Frankman Motor Company, identified that his store was losing deals because calls weren't even making it into the CRM. As he noted, "If the tree falls in the forest and nobody is around to hear it... It’s not in the CRM. It doesn't exist."
The Fix: He implemented a strict phone process that tracks soft appointments—customers who said they might come in but weren't hard-scheduled. By tracking these specifically, he closed the communication loop that usually generates negative reviews.
Source: Phone Process That’s Driving 40% More Sales for This Dealer | Cole Frankman on Daily Dealer Live
2. The Morning Uncontacted Huddle: Nolan Brink, of Youngstown/Boardman, realized that leads were slipping because no one owned the failure points.
We see this in reviews all the time:
"I called on Monday about a vehicle... called back on Wednesday and left a voicemail, but never got a call back. I finally got a call three days later—right after they sold the vehicle I wanted.”
The Fix: Brink runs a daily checklist where managers physically sign off on specific buckets. One manager takes uncontacted leads from yesterday, and another takes proposals sent but not closed. By forcing a manager to own the failed communication attempts every morning, they prevent the "I thought you called them" dynamic that infuriates customers.
Source: The Data-Driven Playbook Behind This GM’s Multi-Store Turnaround | Nolan Brink on Daily Dealer Live
3. Replacing the Buffer with Hospitality: Michael Wood, of Jaguar Land Rover Virginia Beach, takes a new approach. Since the natural excitement of the car is no longer enough to keep customers happy, Wood focuses on manufacturing a new buffer: Hospitality.
The Fix: Instead of a generic "Did you get my email?" follow-up, his team researches clients online before they arrive to create a bespoke experience. This hyper-personalized communication re-establishes the trust that generic auto-responders destroy.
Source: Average Is the Enemy: How Hospitality Became This Dealer's Strategy for Standing Out | Michael Wood
