CRM Data Cleansing: Do you have dirty data in your CRM?

In automotive retail, data is your dealership’s most valuable asset. When that data doesn’t get the routine maintenance it needs, both your customers and bottom line will feel it. With today’s advanced software, most auto dealers gather customer information across thousands of data points. However, many dealers struggle to tie all the data together to deliver the personalized experiences their consumers expect.

Think about the hidden costs of these missed opportunities:

• Marketing to invalid emails
• Wasted phone time dialing invalid phone numbers
• Lost data due to noncompliant employee texting from personal phones
• Reduced sales productivity sifting through bad records and bad leads
• Sales team losing faith in data quality, leading to a drop off in utilization of tools

If you want to compete in the age of instant connectivity, you need to turn your dirty data into clean data. Here are a few steps to get you started.

Assess your current data

Take an honest look at what’s in your current CRM database. How many duplicate contacts do you have? What are you doing to manage the entry process so you don’t continue to create duplicate entries? Are entries complete? How many contacts are old and should be deleted?

Break down data silos

If you’re tracking Service customers in a different system than your Sales customers, you’re creating mounds of dirty data. This practice limits the view of each customer in each department and results in lost opportunities to deliver an experience catered to their current needs and history.

Your customers expect you to know their history and tailor your messages to their needs. Breaking down data silos gives employees a single and complete view of every customer, which helps your dealership capitalize on every business opportunity.

Improve the phone process

A recent J.D. Power study of inbound calls to dealerships found that 11% of phone calls to a dealership yielded customer data. That means only one in ten customers is actually providing data or getting logged into your CRM with any kind of information you can follow up on.

If you don’t believe this is a problem, ask your Marketing partners how much it costs to make the phone ring one time. Once you figure out that number, multiply it by ten. If you’re only collecting data on 10% of your opportunities, it’s costing you ten times that amount to make the phone ring.

If you’re not confident that your team is handling phone calls properly, try outsourcing to a BDC with agents who are trained to capture the data you need. Another option is to hire a consultant who can train your staff so they know the right questions to ask on each phone call.

Log every opportunity every time

There’s an old saying in car sales that’s still true today: the more you log, the more you sell. You should log every opportunity, whether it’s a customer who is kicking tires or just wants to see the new body style. If you can gather information and build a little rapport, you’ll end up selling to more customers.

Many dealerships still have room for improvement when it comes to logging prospects. CRM mobile apps with drivers’ license scanners can make the logging process easier and faster. All the employee has to do is confirm the data is accurate, rather than enter it all in manually. Once the basic contact information is entered, you have more time to customize questions about what’s important to the customer, such as how they use their vehicle and who will be driving the most.

Data hygiene isn’t a glamorous process, but clean data is essential for the future success of your dealership. If your staff can’t keep the data clean, find a technology partner that offers data hygiene and BDC services to improve your CRM data accuracy.