With everyone working from home and staying inside as much as possible, the automotive industry was hit hard by the pandemic. According to a survey done by McKinsey, sales plummeted 47% in the US and up to 80% in Europe. Many car dealerships had to close, but for those still standing there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
McKinsey’s statistics also showed that the purchase intent is slowly coming back to the level it was before COVID-19 hit. As the economies are starting up again, people are returning to work and going out more. Car dealerships are working hard to ensure future business, making changes to their daily routines to stand out. One thing that can make a big difference in this is the cleanliness of your dealership.
Your facility is highly important in establishing a positive image for your company. A clean environment will impress clients and make them feel comfortable, which increases the chances of them purchasing a car. The visible perception of clean makes customers feel at ease in your facility but is also important for your own sales force. When they are working in a clean and healthy space, they will be motivated to deliver their best work.
When cleaning your car dealership there are a couple of areas you should focus on. First of all, your showroom, and especially the floor. A clean floor is crucial to making a good impression and impacts the overall health and wellbeing of everyone inside.
According to CleanLink: ''other high-profile areas are front entrances, glass doors and displays''. The entrance to your showroom should be spotless, since this is the first thing customers see when they enter the facility. Cleaning these areas frequently and thoroughly is highly important.
HOW TO KEEP YOUR DEALERSHIP CLEAN
1. Find A True Partner for Your Dealership
Cleaning teams are the key to achieving that “dealership clean” level of cleanliness. If you have a good team, they can make a big difference, but if staff is unreliable, they can cause stress and cost you valuable time and money.
Finding a true partner in your cleaning team and service provider is key. Ideally, you would want your cleaning team to be just as invested in the equipment and the job as you are. However, this isn’t always possible.
A solution to this is with the subscription service offered by ICE Robotics. By subscribing to our Intelligent Cleaning Equipment, you will gain a true partner that is invested in the equipment with you. Our Client Care team is dedicated to providing you reliable service whenever you need it, at no extra charge.
For example, our team can monitor regular usage patterns for your equipment, so if you have routine cleaning processes set up our team would be aware. If a machine was not plugged in to charge at the appropriate time, our team would receive an alert and be able to notify you in time. This way, downtime is avoided, as the machine would not be left uncharged for the next shift.
Ultimately, ICE Robotics is just as invested in the equipment and cleaning as you are—so through the subscription, you gain a team to support the cleaning team, making sure your dealership is always clean and ready for customers.
2. Use Data to Increase Cleaning Efficiency
Another issue you might run into is showing up to work and finding your showroom less than clean. Achieving the same high quality of cleaning each day can be a challenge. Although you might have a cleaning checklist, it might occur that staff has a different idea of "clean" than you do.
You can always keep your showroom spotless by using Intelligent Cleaning Equipment. With i-Synergy fleet management software you’ll gain access to data, reports, and proactive alerts, so you can track when and where equipment is being used and manage cleaning protocols and processes for greater efficiency and productivity.
This information will give you a clear overview of what, where, when and how your dealership is being cleaned. In this way you will be able to speak to a confirmed clean, continuously delivering a clean and healthy environment for your customers.
3. Build the Dealership Team with Automation
Finding a good cleaning team can be a challenge, but keeping it is often the real issue. According to research the cleaning industry continues to face turnover rates that run up to 200%. Absenteeism and these extremely high turnover rates make it difficult to accomplish the consistent and quality cleaning that is necessary to impress customers.
This problem can be faced with the help of cobots, collaborative robots, that are designed to work alongside staff. They increase efficiency and productivity by taking over repetitive and mundane tasks from cleaning teams.
These cobots, like the autonomous floor scrubber EMMA by ICE Robotics, can take time off a cleaning crew's hands, so they can focus on other high-priority areas.
Not only does autonomous equipment clean thoroughly but their presence during opening hours is also important to impress clients. Seeing -- and thus knowing -- that an effort is being made to clean the facility will make customers feel safe and confident while shopping for a car.
The cobots have built in safety features such as 2D & 3D cameras and Lidar sensors, always ensuring the safety of clients and staff. They are reliable and consistent, meaning you will never miss a clean.
4. Invest in Durable Cleaning Equipment for Your Dealership
Cleaning staff needs equipment that will work consistently and effectively at any time to ensure the quality of their work. Obsolete equipment can be a major obstacle when you are trying to optimize the cleaning process of your dealership.
The use of outdated equipment comes with different problems. Firstly, it will cause more downtime, meaning the machine might sit idle for longer periods of time. This will increase the workload for staff and subsequently diminish the quality of clean. Aside from this, obsolete equipment has a short lifespan, resulting in higher costs for your business.
Intelligent Cleaning Equipment can help to address this issue. Investing in intelligent equipment comes with many benefits. The machines are easy to use, which means staff will not require extra training to use them. They also have a longer lifespan, due to the durable lithium-ion batteries that power them.
Moreover, Intelligent Cleaning Equipment by ICE Robotics provides you with the benefits already mentioned above: fleet management software, all-inclusive service and parts through the subscription model.
All these tools will help you reduce downtime, keep your annual cleaning costs low and your dealership clean all year long.
Intelligent Cleaning Equipment will offer you all the benefits you will need to keep your car dealership spotless and ready to impress customers with that "dealership clean" feel.
Feel free to reach out to our service specialists with any questions.
If you would like to read further, we suggest What is a WELL Building and How to Get Certified.