Aftersales should be a major focus of the March ‘plate change month as retailers look to retain customers in the busiest month of the year, according to Xtime.

The customer retention solution is encouraging dealers to be mindful of the longer term profits each sale could represent as cars are sold at high volumes and the temptation is to chase targets rather than consider longer-term profit possibilities.

In March 2016, SMMT figures show that 518,707 new cars were registered in the UK and, despite uncertainty in the market over the past 12 months, VED increases arriving in April could see this March deliver the highest ever monthly registrations figure.

Paul Humphreys, managing director of Xtime at Cox Automotive UK, said: “With around 80% of UK adults now using the Internet for purchases, it would be naïve to assume that these consumers are not also looking to arrange their car servicing online.

“Xtime provides dealers with market-leading customer retention tools to allow them to reach car owners seeking online solutions to their aftersales needs, from servicing booking systems to MOT reminders.

“We help dealers to maximise their aftersales offering and ultimately improve their profitability, as it typically delivers the highest margins of any part of their business.”

Xtime processes more than 3.2 million appointments per month and has booked more than 100 million service visits since its formation in 2004.

Xtime works with 28 global OEMs to help drive success for their businesses, working with a total of 8,000 dealerships across three continents.