What is a BDC Dealership & Why This Is The Next Step For Your Business

A dealership’s Business Development Center serves as a crucial hub for both inbound and outbound communications with potential customers. In support of both sales and service departments, BDC representatives are often the customer’s primary dealership contact, and that means going above and beyond playing the role of receptionist and taking full ownership of customer relationships.

In practice, BDC responsibilities can take the form of fielding inbound calls as well as proactively nurturing warm leads by encouraging in-person appointments and test drives. A team of high-performing BDC representatives helps customers feel more comfortable with what can often be an intimidating car-buying process. They also help sales reps focus on those customers most likely to buy and aid service departments with customer challenges.

Benefits of Having a Dealership BDC

Any automotive dealership that wants to build better customer relationships, drive sales, and improve customer retention can benefit from a BDC.

1. Improve Agent Productivity

A strong BDC department goes beyond appointment setting and asks how else they might support sales and services teams in their specialized role. As the frontline contact between dealers and car shoppers, a BDC rep essentially provides the road map for a car buyer’s path to purchase from initial inquiry to final sale by nurturing sales leads, incentivizing customers to make and keep appointments, and following up regularly to keep as many sales opportunities open as possible.

When done right, each of these actions primes car shoppers for their in-person experience with the sales team and effectively streamlines the customer service process; when a customer has a question, your BDC reps should be the first ones they think to call.

2. Increase Professionalism

As the voice on the other end of the line whenever a new customer comes calling, BDCs establish your dealership as a trusted authority for all things related to the car buying process.

Whether fielding questions about used vehicle value or placing outbound calls to shoppers likely to be interested in new inventory, the BDC gives dealerships an organized, professional appearance that builds trust and encourages greater customer satisfaction.

3. Boost CSI Rating

And while we’re on the topic of customer satisfaction, it’s worth emphasizing a BDC’s positive impact on a dealership’s Customer Satisfaction Index (CSI), the metric often used by automakers and dealerships to gauge a customer’s overall impression of their businesses. Stronger CSI scores indicate customers are satisfied with their overall car-buying experience, making them less likely to stray toward your competition and more likely to tell their friends about you.

4. Save on Costs

All that time BDCs save dealerships by serving as dedicated call-handling specialists adds up to real-world cost savings.

Compare sales agents without BDCs taking time to follow up on customer voicemails and missed sales opportunities to a sales staff fully focused on meet-and-greets, test drives and closing conversations — which team do you think performs more efficiently?

5. Consistent Outbound Calling

The last thing any dealership needs is an eager customer falling through the cracks. Sales agents left to balance phone calls with opportunities on the showroom floor will inevitably let a crucial call go unanswered without BDC assistance.

The automotive space is much too competitive to let leads slip away—a dedicated BDC team mitigates this potential weak point and allows sales teams to focus on selling.

6. Omni-Channel Selling

As much as we like the personal touch that comes through in a traditional phone call, there are other ways for customers and dealerships to communicate. Omni-channel selling, or the practice of giving customers a consistent sense of your brand no matter where they happen to come across it, takes every channel into account when engaging leads. Live chat portals on dealership websites have grown into an industry mainstay in recent years. After-hours calls are among the biggest missed opportunities when it comes to getting appointments set with first-time customers. Depending on the brand, omni-channel selling might include emails, calls, texts, social media, paid search, and could even extend to influencer or affiliate marketing.

A dedicated BDC monitors these channels to ensure someone is always available to field questions and guide customers toward their next steps.

BDC Dealership Best Practices

Business development center representatives are at their best when handling calls naturally and with confidence (ie. not following a stiff call script). Customers know dealerships aim to sell cars. Instead of shuffling around the subject, dealers can train their BDCs to have honest, productive conversations by emphasizing the following points:

Confirm the customer appointment as soon as possible

The best calls with customers stay focused on setting an appointment. Sales can handle the finer details of payment plans and pricing (more on that below). But for BDC reps, extending the invitation to meet in person within a phone call’s first 30 to 60 seconds or a text conversation’s first few messages is the ultimate goal of virtually every interaction.

Know that cars are sold in person, not over the phone

The temptation to sell is strong when a customer’s questions naturally lead to conversations about which vehicles might be a great fit or what exciting new inventory may be worth further exploration. Good BDCs resist the urge to close sales over the phone (or text, or webchat) before even suggesting an in-person appointment or test drive.

Car sales come from shoppers who take the leap from simply considering a new car to scheduling a test drive. A BDC capable of helping leads consistently make that leap is a worthy investment.

Do not go into finances over the phone

There’s a lot of financial information to cover when purchasing a vehicle; throwing terms and APRs at a customer over the phone before closing them on an appointment is a great way to overwhelm potential buyers.

Use positive language to make the customer comfortable

Every serious customer is really just looking for a fair deal and a smooth car buying process. Positive language will help build a customer’s confidence in your dealership as the place to find both of those things. BDCs are experts in providing customers with a sense that the automotive sales process doesn’t have to be a hassle.

Sell the test drive

No aspect of the sales process illustrates the power of “show, don’t tell” quite like a few minutes behind the wheel. One 2021 study on consumers’ post-pandemic buying habits discovered 79% of car-shoppers would still “never buy a vehicle without test driving it first.” Test drives are a pivotal component of the car-buying process—and frequently the most fun—which is why good BDCs steadily guide car-buyers past the consideration phase and into a physical vehicle.

Sell the aftermarket bonuses

There are more opportunities to offer customers great deals than just the base price of the vehicle. Whether it’s tech add-ons, security packages, or aesthetic upgrades (more than a few cars have drawn extra showroom attention with nothing more than a slightly sportier set of rims), there’s almost always some unique vehicle component to further entice potential buyers.

Podium’s AI BDC instantly connects dealerships with prospective car-buyers through fast, fully-automated communication. Built to streamline the customer’s transition from “just looking” to owning their new favorite vehicle, the AI BDC answers questions, responds with timely follow-ups, and accesses real-time inventory details to book test drives with potential buyers. Watch Podium’s AI BDC in action now with a free demo.