Fast, consistent follow-up can determine whether a dealership closes a sale or loses a customer. On today’s episode of CBT Now, Kyle Disher, founder and CEO of RevDojo, shares insights from his experience in mystery shopping and dealership consulting, highlighting strategies to improve response times, customer engagement, and sales performance.
Dealerships often overestimate the effectiveness of their sales processes. Disher emphasizes that while management teams may believe follow-up is strong, mystery shopping frequently reveals significant gaps. Dealerships spend substantial marketing dollars per vehicle, but inconsistent responses to calls, emails, and online inquiries limit the return on investment. The top-performing dealerships respond to emails within one minute, phone calls in just over a minute, and text messages in slightly more than one minute. In contrast, the bottom 10% of dealers average nearly 15 hours to respond to emails, 22 hours for calls, and more than 28 hours for texts.
The average U.S. dealership, based on 50,000 mystery shops, takes three hours and 11 minutes to return phone calls, one hour and five minutes to respond to emails, and two hours and 12 minutes to reply to texts. These delays often result from process inefficiencies, team overthinking, or a lack of accountability for follow-up. Dealers frequently cite lead quality as a problem, but poor response and follow-up processes are often the root cause of lost opportunities.
"There's an old saying: time kills deals. If you believe time kills deals on the showroom floor, you better believe time kills deals on the internet."
Disher notes that regular, structured follow-up is critical. The top 10% of dealers contact potential customers multiple times over five days, using a combination of emails, phone calls, and texts. In contrast, bottom-performing dealerships often contact leads only once, leaving opportunities unaddressed. Following a consistent, documented process ensures accountability, reduces variability in customer experience, and allows dealers to identify areas for improvement.
A formalized process includes clearly defined timelines for outreach, structured follow-up sequences, and consistent review with management. Disher recommends designating a “chief repeating officer” to reinforce these processes daily, ensuring the team executes follow-ups as designed. Mystery shopping provides an additional layer of accountability, offering third-party verification of team performance from the customer perspective.
Personalized video messaging is an underutilized tool that can significantly improve engagement. Fewer than 15% of internet inquiries currently receive video follow-ups, and less than 5% include personalized videos addressing the buyer by name. Implementing video messaging allows dealerships to stand out from competitors while providing a human connection in digital communication.
Disher also stresses the importance of expanding inventory conversations beyond the initially requested vehicle. Most customers rarely purchase the exact model they inquire about. Sales staff should guide buyers toward alternative vehicles within the same class or price range, increasing the likelihood of securing appointments and eventual sales. Using a structured call guide ensures consistency and maximizes each lead’s potential.
Ultimately, dealership performance in 2026 depends on speed, structured follow-up, and accountability. Mystery shopping and third-party reporting reveal real-world gaps in response times and sales practices, enabling dealerships to adjust processes and training effectively. By integrating timely outreach, personalized communication, and structured processes, dealerships can increase both customer engagement and closing percentages, improving profitability despite margin pressures and market challenges.
