EPISODE 56
Convenience Has Changed the Fixed Ops Playbook
Featuring Guest Alysha Webb
Episode Description
Customers are no longer comparing your service drive only to the dealership across town. They’re comparing it to every fast, convenient, transparent experience they have elsewhere. Many dealerships may not realize how quickly that standard is rising. Keeping up means choosing technology and service models that fit your customers rather than adopting every new tool the same way.
In this episode, sponsored by DriveSure, Bill Springer talks with automotive journalist and industry analyst Alysha Webb about what’s changing in fixed operations and what dealers should be watching. They discuss the growing role of video, text, AI, and mobile service, along with the technician shortage and the steady loss of service business to chains and independent repair shops. Alysha also shares what U.S. dealers can learn from the speed of change in China’s automotive market.
Takeaways from this episode:
- Why texts, videos, and 24/7 responsiveness are changing service communication
- How dealerships can decide where AI belongs and where personal service still matters
- Why mobile service can improve retention, expand capacity, and open the door to fleet business
- What recruiting more women and creating accessible training paths could do for the technician shortage
- How dealerships can compete as service chains gain market share and customer expectations continue to rise
BILL SPRINGER
and president of Krex Inc.
Alysha Webb
Automotive Journalist & Industry Analyst
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Turning Service Visits Into Future Vehicle Sales
Your next vehicle sale may already be sitting in the service drive. Yet while one-third of customers say they would be open to a sales conversation during a service visit, only 14% report that anyone actually starts one. The opportunity is not to pitch every customer who pulls into the lane. It’s to build a defined process that helps sales and service identify the right customers, start relevant conversations, and keep the relationship moving through the entire ownership cycle.
The Three Habits Behind High Service Retention
A dealership can deliver a great service visit and still lose the customer the next time around. That’s because retention isn’t won through one strong offer, one new tool, or even one memorable experience. Retention is built by making every part of the customer journey reinforce the next.
Moving Beyond the Discount
A discount may win today’s repair order, but what brings that customer back for the next one? As service prices rise and customers become more price-sensitive, dealerships need to separate the offers that close a transaction from the strategies that build an actual habit.