Car technology has come an incredibly long way in an exceptionally short amount of time. What seemed nearly impossible 20 years ago – like in-car Wi-Fi – became available within the last five.
The same kind of technology that was only available in the most high-end vehicles is now becoming a common feature across all models.
If you own a dealership, this is nothing but good news. These advancements will only drive sales further. In many cases, it will no doubt convince buyers to purchase vehicles earlier than they had originally planned.
However, many dealerships will leave a lot of money on the table when selling these advanced vehicles because their F&I department will remain in the past.
New Car Technology Means New Opportunities for F&I Departments
The reason for this is simple. All of these new technologically-advanced features have created new opportunities for selling F&I products.
This isn’t even a completely new trend, either. In recent years, vehicle buyers have increased their spending on F&I offerings. Much of this increase has come from the service department, as well. Buyers have begun to better appreciate how important it is to take full advantage of the F&I process when they purchase a new vehicle.
It only makes sense that as vehicles are manufactured with more advanced – and expensive – features, customers would become even more likely to invest in protecting them.
Technologically-Advanced Vehicles Provide an Educational Opportunity
Another reason advanced car technology will see greater sales is because they offer your F&I experts an opportunity to educate buyers.
Again, this is nothing new. F&I training has always focused on ensuring that the department is just as educated about vehicles and their features as the sales team. This way, there’s no knowledge gap between the two and no missed opportunities by the F&I professionals. It also means they can educate buyers about how F&I products will help them better enjoy their vehicles longer without spending as much on maintenance fees and other costs.
With new technology, there are now new opportunities for educating customers. Someone who’s already owned a couple of vehicles might feel as though they can skip the F&I presentation because they’re already “well aware” of what they need.
When it involves features they’re less familiar with – like hybrid cooling systems and electronic suspension control modules – they’re more apt to sit and listen to someone who understands these new components.