Unless you live under a rock and have been for decades, you’re familiar with the science fiction trope of robots taking over the world. You have probably seen movies or read science fiction novels about computers learning to think for themselves before organizing a rebellion and wreaking havoc on all of humankind.
With these scary fictional scenarios as a backdrop, it’s easy to see why the mere mention of artificial intelligence strikes fear into people and businesses everywhere, including in dealerships. But with these myths and fears about artificial intelligence come opportunities for those willing to discover the truth. True to mythical form, myths about artificial intelligence are creating competitive advantages for dealerships that adapt.
AI Myth 1: AI is just a fancy name for “chatbot.”
Maybe the biggest myth about artificial intelligence is its scope of capabilities. While it’s true that chatbots are a form of artificial intelligence, they are just a small subset of artificial intelligence’s many applications.
To put it simply, artificial intelligence is a technique that enables a computer system to mimic human behavior. While this does describe chatbots, it also includes Siri and Alexa voice recognition, Apple’s face recognition and Amazon’s personalized product recommendations.
Beyond these well-known examples, artificial intelligence can also be implemented at your dealership. Dealership artificial intelligence tools aggregate and analyze customer data from your CRM and your customers’ web browsing history to produce instant, relevant insights that help personalize the car buying process. Artificial intelligence can also uncover customer buying signals, analyze customer sentiment and measure salesperson engagement strength.
AI Myth 2: AI is going to steal jobs.
Rumors of robots taking jobs from humans have created a natural fear of new technology in the workforce. In fact, 47% of dealers believe that artificial intelligence will take away dealership jobs, according to a recent survey of dealers done by Cox Automotive. In actuality, artificial intelligence is creating more jobs than it eliminates. It is estimated that artificial intelligence will create 2 million new jobs by 2025. And artificial intelligence technology is making existing dealership jobs more efficient, boosting productivity by up to 40% and enabling human workers to concentrate on more meaningful work.
AI Myth 3: Customers don’t like AI.
Did you know that 80% of enterprises already use artificial intelligence? Because many dealers have had negative experiences with artificial intelligence, in the form of annoying robocalls and impersonal chatbots, they mistakenly assume that their customers do not like the technology. But the truth is that most people are already exposed to artificial intelligence applications in most parts of their lives.
Just as artificial intelligence makes employees’ jobs easier, artificial intelligence makes the car buying experience better. In fact, because artificial intelligence gives salespeople deeper insights into what customers are looking for, it provides a more personalized and focused car buying journey for the customer. It also bridges the gap between the online and in-store shopping experience by analyzing a customer’s online behavior and combining it with demographic data points to build personalized profiles. This allows dealers to recommend the right products at the right price points for individual customers, creating a more streamlined car buying experience.
Like all good myths, misunderstandings about artificial intelligence play on people’s fears. And in business, this fear prevents decision-makers from moving forward when they fail to take the time to understand the truth behind the myths.
Artificial intelligence is here to stay. It’s only a matter of time before it’s widely adopted in automotive retail. And for forward-thinking dealers willing to take advantage of opportunity, the technology can improve employee efficiency and provide a better buying experience for customers.
Learn more about VinSolutions’ artificial intelligence product, Connect Automotive Intelligence, in short demo. Schedule it here.
