Arnold Clark Automobiles is rolling out Contact At Once! chat software across its 165 car dealerships.

Initial deployment of Contact At Once! has begun and has already delivered a significant uplift in sales enquiries during the first few weeks of use. 

The software allows Arnold Clark staff to instantly chat with website visitors and answer questions as customers browse vehicle detail pages from mobile devices and desktop PCs.  

Contact At Once!, a LivePerson company, is to help boost engagement by making it easier for consumers to connect with automotive manufacturers and dealerships at the moment their interest is piqued.

Arnold Clark was familiar with Contact At Once! having used the software to connect with shoppers from its online advertising on Autotrader and Motors.co.uk. 

Arnold Clark’s group internet sales manager Paul Brown said: “We’ve been chatting with shoppers from online advertisements for over a year. Knowing that many customers prefer using chat as opposed to phone calls or emails made the decision to add Contact At Once! chat capabilities on Arnoldclark.com a simple one.

“We will begin by using chat in sales; however, we can see how our other lines of business such as servicing may take advantage of chatting with customers in the future.

“As more customers turn to mobile devices for Internet access and online shopping, text-based communications stand to become one of the fastest means to connect with them.”

Roll out to all dealerships will be completed by the end of this month.