The franchised dealer group with the best online consumer experience

Waylands Automotive won the trophy for Best Online Consumer Experience (Franchised), sponsored by BookMyGarage, at the 2024 AM Awards after impressing the judging panel with its comprehensive approach.

Our winner states: “We make contacting us easy and friction-free.”

AM Awards judges were certainly impressed by Waylands’ omni-channel approach that prioritises customer control and captures enquiries that might have otherwise been missed.

It has directly generated several hundred sales for the group’s dealerships and contributes significantly to the bottom line. Online customer engagement has increased by 33% year-on-year and the business has lots of positive comments from users, some of which have bought out-of-hours due to the speed and quality of the response.

The focus is on empowering customers to interact on their terms, facilitated by a team of trained sales professionals and apprentices.

A dedicated team operates online from 8am to 10pm, seven days a week, covering 98 hours a week when 97% of all live chats occur. Having undertaken manufacturer training and FCA-compliance training, team members are able to support online customers with product information, video chats, part-exchange appraisal, finance settlements and document e-signing.

Members of the digital sales team work remotely due to their extended hours, but spend at least one day a week at a dealership during regular hours, to ensure they can collaborate with the in-showroom sales teams they are supporting.

Waylands’ website development follows data and analytics, and the insights gained from live chats is used to shape some of its web content.

On social media channels, the group prioritises responding to comments and messages to build relationships, and its outbound content combines engaging material with encouraging followers to share their thoughts and questions. Doing so boosts brand visibility and allows Waylands to tailor offerings to meet customer needs.

Finalists:

• TrustFord
• Waylands Automotive

Sponsor's comment:

“Congratulations to all the worthy winners on the night. We were proud to have sponsored the Online Consumer Experience of the Year – Franchised Dealer award. We chose this award as we wanted to celebrate dealers which provide excellent customer-focussed digital experiences for customers across all of their user journeys.

"As a digital, customer-oriented business ourselves we fully understand the importance of providing a great experience that can help to increase conversions, improve brand recognition and create strong connections with customers.

"We extend our congratulations to Waylands Automotive Group for winning the award and a special mention to highly commended TrustFord. Thank you to AM Online for yet again hosting a fantastic evening!”

Jessica Potts, chief marketing officer, BookMyGarage.