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Wards Auto
Some Dealership Effectiveness Gets Lost in the Email
March 2015
Lexus dealerships respond best to customer Internet inquiries, even though Toyota's luxury brand shows imperfections here and there.
That's according to consultancy Pied Piper's annual by-brand mystery-shopping study for its Internet Lead Effectiveness Index.
Lexus ranks first with a score of 70 (out of a possible 100), followed by Porsche at 65, Fiat at 62, Dodge and Infiniti both at 61 and Acura, Honda Jaguar and Toyota at 60.
Low scorers include GMC and Scion (49), Hyundai (50) and Volvo and Buick (51). This year's industry average is 57.
Pied Piper's mystery shoppers send emails containing specific questions. Those go to large and small dealerships nationwide. The firm measures how quickly the stores respond, if at all. In the latest study, 8% of inquiries received no response of any kind. That hasn't changed in five years. For the index, it's a cardinal sin.
The study also measures quality of responses and how quickly a salesperson tried to reach a shopper by phone. In addition to the index's numerical scoring, individual auto brands receive letter grades in particular categories. Even top-scoring Lexus got a few Fs.
This is the seventh year of the Pied Piper Internet lead-effectiveness study. WardsAuto spoke with CEO Fran O'Hagan about the latest results. Here's an edited version of the interview.
That's according to consultancy Pied Piper's annual by-brand mystery-shopping study for its Internet Lead Effectiveness Index.
Lexus ranks first with a score of 70 (out of a possible 100), followed by Porsche at 65, Fiat at 62, Dodge and Infiniti both at 61 and Acura, Honda Jaguar and Toyota at 60.
Low scorers include GMC and Scion (49), Hyundai (50) and Volvo and Buick (51). This year's industry average is 57.
Pied Piper's mystery shoppers send emails containing specific questions. Those go to large and small dealerships nationwide. The firm measures how quickly the stores respond, if at all. In the latest study, 8% of inquiries received no response of any kind. That hasn't changed in five years. For the index, it's a cardinal sin.
The study also measures quality of responses and how quickly a salesperson tried to reach a shopper by phone. In addition to the index's numerical scoring, individual auto brands receive letter grades in particular categories. Even top-scoring Lexus got a few Fs.
This is the seventh year of the Pied Piper Internet lead-effectiveness study. WardsAuto spoke with CEO Fran O'Hagan about the latest results. Here's an edited version of the interview.
