A service advisor, also known as a service consultant, is the person in charge of advising customers on which service, or maintenance, may be required on their vehicle in many car dealerships. A service advisor is frequently the customer’s first and primary contact with a dealership’s service department, serving as a liaison between the customer and the technician. Service advisors are critical to a car dealership’s success because many dealerships rely on their service departments for the majority of their revenue rather than the actual sale of vehicles.
The first interaction with a client for many service advisors will be over the phone or via an email request. It is critical for the advisor to correctly determine the type of problem the customer is having with the car during the initial contact with the customer. After gathering all of the necessary information, the advisor will usually schedule a meeting with the customer. Some dealerships encourage service advisors to recommend additional preventive maintenance work to customers. For example, a customer bringing in a vehicle to have the brakes serviced may receive a recommendation from the advisor to have the oil changed as well.
Customers are frequently greeted a service advisor when they arrive for their appointments. The advisor will usually confirm the reason for the visit and perform a visual or road inspection of the vehicle at that time. The advisor will then provide the customer with a written estimate of the work that will be required, as well as estimated parts and labor costs. Service advisors may also make transportation arrangements for their clients if necessary, especially if the required service will take a long time to complete.
The advisor is then in charge of providing a description of the problem to the mechanic or technician. For obvious reasons, a service advisor’s ability to accurately communicate what may be wrong with the vehicle to the mechanic is critical. If the customer needs to be contacted while the car is being worked on, for example, if the vehicle requires additional service or repairs that were not included in the original estimate, the service advisor is usually the one to contact them.
It is usually the responsibility of the service advisor to notify the client once the repair or service has been completed. When the customer picks up his vehicle, the advisor will go over the details of the work done, the charges, and any other questions the customer may have. In many dealerships, a service advisor is also responsible for following up with a customer after the service has been completed to ensure the customer’s satisfaction.