GROWTH HAS SURGED for dealers using the latest AI-powered ‘chatbots’ to convert customer enquiries into leads, according to new analysis.
Even Christmas Day and New Year’s Day saw a significant appetite among customers for ‘chatting’ with the latest generation of advanced dealer bots developed by AI tech specialists AutoConverse, new figures reveal.
Last month saw a 43% increase in customer conversations with dealer chatbots compared with January 2024 – with a conversion rate of more than 48%.
This means that almost half of all interactions between customers and bots resulted in a concrete lead for the sale of a product or service.
A further 20% of customer contact with an AutoConverse bot result in general queries answered, such as car specifications or the latest offers. Although not classed as leads in this data analysis, such interactions enhance the customer experience, meaning that the bots turn 70% of queries into a positive contribution to the business.
AutoConverse’s AI-powered chatbots provide a virtual representation of a dealer’s entire team, so that customers are not forced to rely on the business’s website for all the information they need. The bots hand over customer enquiries to each other – based on the nature of a query – so that customers can be expertly qualified and offered relevant assistance.
Dealers are benefitting from the switch away from passively offering information on a website and requesting customers fill in the traditional contact form because the bots qualify their needs more intelligently and precisely.
Customers benefit from a more relevant personalised experience and AutoConverse believes that this accounts for the conversion rate of even casual enquiries into firm leads in 48.5% of conversations.
Improvements to ‘dealer bot’ technology – along with increased public use of AI in systems like ChatGPT – are bringing rapid strides in chat conversion rates.
January last year saw a conversion rate for AutoConverse bots of 33%, meaning that about a third of chats resulted in a lead. The jump to 48.5% in January this year represents a 47% increase in the effectiveness of the bots thanks to constant development over the past 12 months.
The value of having a dealership ‘staffed’ by bots out of hours is illustrated by significant activity even on Christmas Day.
On Christmas Day 2023 26% of people interacting with an AutoConverse bot became a potential customer. This conversion rate increased to 32.4% on Christmas day 2024.
“With AI supercharging the understanding and responsiveness of the chatbot they have become the next best thing to an expert human – and typically faster in answering even the most detailed questions while also being available instantly,” said Ross Olsen, co-founder of AutoConverse.
“The experience for the customer is smoother and more satisfying than searching for information that is often not easily available on a website.
“We can also see from the language patterns of customers that although they know they are talking to a bot, their appreciation and confidence is growing as we enhance the experience through analysis of countless interactions.
“That is why the conversion rate from chats to real leads has improved by almost 50% over the past year.”
AutoConverse stress that their bots do not replace dealer staff but make life easier in the dealership by introducing more carefully qualified customers or new potential opportunities who choose to interact with a dealership.
Ross Olsen added: “There’s a significant difference between human-managed solutions, which rely on call centre chat handlers or internal staff, and an AI-driven system that functions as a true virtual sale, aftersales, or service assistant. AI chatbots trained specifically on automotive knowledge provide instant, accurate and contextual responses, leading to real business impact for dealers.”