The costly mistakes dealers are making with their phone leads

A recent report by Car Wars analyzing the phone performance of U.S. dealers throughout 2024 speaks to the importance of one of the oldest yet still most dominant parts of the sales process—inbound and outbound calls.  

Why it matters: The phone remains a primary customer touchpoint for dealerships. Whether it’s a potential buyer calling to check inventory or a service customer scheduling an appointment, every call represents revenue. Yet, data shows that many dealers are struggling to handle call volume efficiently, leading to missed opportunities.

The details: The report—drawn from an analysis of nearly 3,000 automotive dealerships throughout 2024—zeroes in on several key trends, providing some valuable insight that can help improve their overall phone call productivity in 2025.

• Monday topped the list as the busiest day for inbound dealership calls in 2024, with call volumes consistently tapering off on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

• The study also revealed that the hours between 10:00 AM and 12:00 PM are the most active across all peak days—a time block dealers often overlook. 

• Among all months in 2024, July and August had the highest call volumes, with November ranking as the lowest month for inbound calls—making it an ideal month for dealers to make more outbound calls.

Digging deeper: The study also reveals some interesting trends about connection rates, which could help dealers improve another critical aspect of their call productivity.    

• 31.8% of unconnected calls were the result of customers hanging up while on hold, highlighting the impact of long wait lines.

• Even more concerning, the average call hold time among dealers surveyed was 3 minutes and 5 seconds. 

• 32.3% of the non-connected calls at dealerships consisted of customers leaving a voicemail message, with another 20.2% leaving a message with a person.  

Bottom line: While connection rates have gradually improved over the past four years, the numbers reveal a painful truth—dealers are losing customers simply because they can’t get them on the line. And while online retailing is a hot-button issue—this report is a clear reminder—sometimes, picking up the phone is the biggest dealmaker of all.

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