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Interesting and wanting to see what everyone thinks !

David @The_Marques_Man  And Duncan @CarDealerDunc recently posted they inquired by email about possibly buying  a car - / requesting info - But neither received a reply back from the dealers !

 

Could it be 

1- The dealer didn't get the enquiry

2- why ? if they didnt

3- if they did why not respond?

 

any thoughts - and how much value due to put on an email lead as opposed to a telephone lead?

 

 

 

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Unfortunately most email leads are still a waste of time, what can take 10 emails can easily be done in a 10 minute phone call, mostly the serious enquires are still by phone

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Wheelerdealer1  even if they don't lead to any thing , like some phone calls - it is not polite to reply even if just a thank you but I can't help you or its sold .... etc.

I get the odd one or two like everyone i.e. car advertised at £12000 - they bid you £10000 - I still reply and without being rude tell them they need to get realistic that they WILL Not be buying that car .... the odd one or two have come back and bought ! so personally i reply to all #justSaying 

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Unfortunately most email leads are still a waste of time, what can take 10 emails can easily be done in a 10 minute phone call, mostly the serious enquires are still by phone

+1 here

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We took an email Friday morning requesting first appointment 10am Saturday on a fusion we have/had in stock.

They were waiting at 9.55am, car was sold at 11am, lovely couple and they did comment that they have emailed a few dealers in last few weeks and most haven't replied!

It can be frustrating but I can't see a reason not to reply really.

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I don't agree. Although I'm not selling cars I buy a lot. Usually I'm doing research at night or when I haven't got time for a phone call. I send an email asking for info and do that because I then receive it on my terms not yours. I can read it when I want and do what I want with it. If the information is good I'll push the purchase further.

If a dealer ignores my email he ignores my sale. Simple as that. I'm a serious buyer and I will never call a dealer. It's hard enough getting through and as a consumer you know once you've made contact on the phone you're in line for the hard sell.

In America they have internet sales teams who deal with all in bound emails, tweets and Facebook enquiries and they do very well indeed off the back of it. Times are changing.

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Perhaps for the bigger players then me or ones with the man power it's worth while to reply to every single email, but I really just have a quick glance and hit delete if the email has the wrong vibes, maybe I miss a sale or two each year, but being a one man band most of the time my time is precious

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I think you have to try and qualify your email leads like you would with a customer. Some aren't worth the effort to reply too when its an insulting offer but for the time it takes to reply you have nothing to lose. Some on the other hand are red hot leads with the email asking the right questions and giving the right information about their p/x etc etc. 

 

I amazed at how many on this forum act like they have no time to spare, most of us have a smart phone so could reply to an email where ever we are. Its part of the job and take no longer then writing a text. A frustrating as it can be I would rather waste my time with a tyre kicker via email then face to face when you have to give them attention instantly. 

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I'm like you James, email is just easier than phone as you can ensure you get all the questions written down and not risk getting sidetracked when on the phone and missing something important.

 

When I bought my last car out here I was totally ignored by my local Land Rover dealership when I sent a mail asking for some info and to book a test drive of a car they had in stock, and got the same (lack of a) response from another one I tried as well.  It seemed like Mercedes were the most switched on when it came to replying to mails, with both dealers responding quickly and helpfully, and the Volvo dealer replied too but didn't have the right car in stock (I'm not buying an XC60 D5 with cloth trim).  In the end my wife didn't like the GLK though, so we bought an Evoque from a third Land Rover dealer, and the two I tried to email first missed out on the chance for a nice sale with some finance commission on top.

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Really, it takes a few minutes to reply.

So far, (opened on Dec 1st), no email enquiries have led to a sale but it costs nothing. And ignoring it doesn't exactly promote a good image.

 

A simple Dear Bell End,

Dream on

 

put politely does no harm.

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