Dealership consultant saves $5,000 per month with Uber
Doug Smith has always been a team player.
After a career in the Air Force, Smith carried his affinity for structure and teamwork to an automotive career. His team-centric approach means his people and his customers come first. Today he’s taken those values into his own venture in Hamilton, Ontario, where he co-owns 3 Speedy Auto Service locations, a glass repair shop, and a dealership.
Customers are key
Smith first entered the automotive industry as a fixed ops manager at a GM dealership. He quickly learned how crucial customers are to success: “There’s a lot more to the automotive industry than just nuts and bolts. Customer retention is the most important part of the business.”
To improve the customer experience at GM, Smith started providing courtesy rides to customers whose cars were at the dealership for maintenance or repairs. “Back then, it was taxis and loaners, but it’s not just getting them a taxi—it’s the little things that matter,” he says. Customers appreciated not having to spend hours waiting at the dealership or dealing with a shuttle.
Years later, after starting a successful fleet repair business, Smith decided to become a consultant for dealerships. His first customer was the second-worst-performing dealership of its brand in Canada. After a year with Smith, it became the top dealership in the country for customer service and production. His secret sauce? Using Central to provide courtesy rides for customers and the dealership team.
Central: a secret to success
The Central dashboard allows dealerships to request rides for anyone—even if they don’t have the Uber app. Service center teams can use Central to request one-way or round-trip Uber rides for customers, control pickup and dropoff locations, track usage and spending, and more.
Switching to Central means dealerships can set up rides for customers as needed, without having to manage or rely on shuttles or a limited number of loaner cars. By using Uber instead, customers enjoy a flexible, familiar way of getting where they need to go without long wait times. “I’ve brought [Central] into 5 dealerships,” says Smith, who becomes part of the team at each business he works with. “There’s no question it’s helped build CSI scores. Customers get picked up in their own ride, it’s fast, and they just like it.”
Savings, savings, savings
Smith has found that using Central provides multiple benefits to the dealerships he works with. It’s been good not only for their CSI scores but also for their budgets. Historically, dealerships offered loaner cars or shuttle rides to customers whose cars were being serviced, but the shuttles were expensive and inconvenient.
At one dealership, Smith says, “I saved nearly 80% from switching to Uber rides [from a shuttle]*. When you add up the cost of vehicles, maintenance, salaries, and insurance, I was spending about $6,500 per month on shuttles. It’s about $1,500 per month for Uber rides for the same amount of customers, so the savings are monstrous.”
Thanks to Uber for Business, Smith’s dealerships have more happy customers and a better bottom line: “[Central] helps on so many levels. It supports the dealerships and [their CSI scores]. It’s more convenient for the customer and for the dealership; it’s so much simpler.”
Next steps
Next steps After successfully rebuilding 4 dealerships, Smith moved on to his next project, joining a friend’s new business venture in Hamilton, which includes a used-car dealership, 3 Speedy Auto Service locations, and a Novus Glass location. “I’m doing the same thing I did everywhere else with Central. In 5 weeks, we’ve already doubled our business,” Smith says.
*Cost savings based on customer calculations. Cost savings may vary and are not promised or guaranteed.
Uber for Business can help your dealership drive great customer experiences.
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