While there are many differences between working in a car dealership – selling vehicles – and working in estate agency – selling property – there are several business aspects that these industries have in common. Looking at the differences, many of these centre around the buyer’s requirements and constraints. Here are 3 examples:
- Frequency
People will buy a new car more frequently in their lives than they will buy a new home.
- Finance
A ‘middle of the road’ home costs far more than a ‘middle of the road’ car, and the sales chain is less complex when buying a car. On average, mortgages are taken over a 30-year period, while car finance may be paid off in 36 to 60 months. A property is generally considered a better long-term investment. A home tends to appreciate in value over time while a car depreciates substantially the moment you drive it out of the dealer showroom.
- Meeting wants versus needs
The key difference in buying a car versus a home can be summed up as providing mobility versus stability. When buying a car, an individual’s wants usually focus on features like style, technology, and performance, while their needs prioritise safety, practicality, and fuel efficiency. However, when buying a house, client wants usually include desirable amenities like a garden, or a specific neighborhood, while needs may center on square footage, proximity to transport, and affordability.
When it comes to industry similarities, most of these centre around business infrastructure and support – in areas such as efficient business systems, quality administrative support staff, and well-conceived marketing campaigns. Whether we are assisting a car dealership or an estate agency, it is in these areas of the business that our already well-developed pool of experienced Virtual Assistants and our dedication to placing the right VA with the right company make a profound difference to sourcing the ideal candidate to suit each of our clients’ unique businesses.
Here’s a deeper dive into the areas common to both estate agencies and car dealerships, in which taking on a Virtual Assistant can give your business a competitive edge:
- Exceptional customer service
Both estate agents and car sales representatives need to get to know their clients on a personal level. This is crucial for building trust and generating repeat business through referrals. Virtual Assistants can elevate client service by handling routine inquiries, managing multiple communication channels, providing prompt responses, and resolving basic issues. This frees the sales team to focus on building personal, face-to-face relationships and closing deals.
- Excellent sales administration and support
Nothing puts closing a deal on the back like sloppy sales support. It erodes credibility and kills trust. An experienced Virtual Assistant can support sales by acting as the central point of contact throughout the sales process, anticipate and trouble-shoot problems, act as a client-finance company go-between, and generally free up the sales team’s time to focus on bringing new clients into the business.
- Managing efficient systems
Streamlining and automating processes and systems saves both time and money. These are efficiencies that can make all the difference in supporting speed to lead and business growth. Today’s Virtual Assistants are tech-savvy. Adding their skillset to an estate agency or car dealership can catapult the business into the digital era. A tech-savvy VA can shift customer relationship management (CRM) systems online. They can also oversee AI-enhanced sales and marketing analysis, automate lead generation and nurturing, and generally relieve the sales team from having to do time-consuming routine admin work so they can focus on building client relationships.
- Well-considered digital marketing
No matter the nature of the business, creating and posting social media takes a lot of time – and digital marketing takes special know-how. Specialist Virtual Assistants can provide significant help with marketing and social media by managing your online presence across various platforms. This includes creating and scheduling engaging content, responding to comments and messages, monitoring analytics, researching trends, and running targeted ad campaigns
Taking on a Virtual Assistant, or building a whole team of VAs, can significantly help to improve the efficiency of any business. Today’s Virtual Assistants are experienced professionals who have wide-ranging skills – from executive assistants to administrators, project managers, bookkeepers, marketing, and social media managers. If there is a position that can be filled remotely via a laptop, there is a Virtual Assistant who fits the profile. Not only does this bring valuable skills into the business by rounding out the team’s expertise; it also frees up the business principal’s valuable time. As a result, their productivity increases, and they can focus on high-priority activities that will grow the business.