A customer spends time browsing your website, finds a vehicle they’re interested in and submits a lead.
At that point, they’re not necessarily looking for a lengthy conversation. They may just want to know the vehicle is available, get an answer to a question, or decide whether it’s worth taking the next step.
What the dealership does next could mean the difference between gaining or losing the sale.
Building Trust Early
The more time shoppers spend researching independently, the fewer opportunities dealerships have to build rapport before the customer decides where they want to buy.
Vehicle shoppers form opinions about a dealership long before they visit the showroom. Every website interaction, lead response and follow-up message contributes to that impression.
Customers want confidence that the information they’re receiving is accurate and that someone will be there to help when they’re ready to take the next step. The challenge for dealerships is creating that confidence through digital interactions alone.
A quick email follow-up may provide the information a customer needs, but it doesn’t always provide much confidence about who they’re working with or what they can expect from the dealership experience.
That’s why dealers are rethinking how they engage shoppers during those early interactions, turning routine outreach into engaging conversations that customers want to respond to.
Making Digital Communication More Personal
One way dealers are approaching this challenge is through personalized branded videos.
Now when there’s a lead inquiry, instead of receiving a standard follow-up, the customer gets a short video recorded right from the lot. The salesperson introduces themselves, confirms the vehicle is available, points out a few features the shopper may be interested in and invites them to schedule a test drive.
It’s not scripted or professionally produced – and that’s part of the appeal.
The video helps answer a question that many shoppers may not even realize they’re asking: “Is there a real person on the other side who’s ready to help me?”
For dealerships, that’s often where trust starts.
Personalization Without Added Complexity
Of course, no dealership wants to create entirely new processes just to make communication feel more personal.
The goal isn’t to replace email or text messaging. Dealers still need efficient ways to manage lead volumes and follow up consistently.
Instead, many are looking for ways to add a more human touch to the communication they’re already doing.
When video is incorporated into an existing workflow, sales teams can create more personalized outreach while staying focused on the activities that move customers toward an appointment.
Bringing Video Into the CRM Workflow
Because the CRM is already where customer communication happens, it’s a natural place for video outreach.
VinSolutions Video is native to VinSolutions CRM and allows dealership teams to record, personalize, and send branded videos directly from their workflow. Sales representatives can create videos on the go from the showroom or the lot, while managers have visibility into sends, views and engagement activity.
Rather than requiring another standalone tool, VinSolutions Video becomes part of the same follow-up process teams already use every day.
Building Trust Early
As vehicle shopping continues to evolve, dealerships are finding that trust is no longer built only during a showroom visit. For many customers, it starts with the first interaction.
The dealerships that stand out will be the ones creating interactions that feel helpful, authentic and worth responding to.
In a buying journey that’s increasingly digital, those early moments of human connection can help dealerships stand out before a customer ever steps onto the lot.
Sources:
1Cox Automotive Car Buyer Journey 2025