Welcome to Day 4 of AM Innovation Week 2026, where the focus turns to aftersales and the technologies helping dealerships reduce administration, increase workshop bookings and provide customers with a more convenient service experience.
Aftersales departments are under pressure. Technician shortages, busy workshops and rising customer expectations mean service teams must manage increasing workloads without sacrificing the personal attention that builds trust and retention.
Automation offers part of the answer. Online booking, personalised reminders, digital check-in and artificial intelligence can complete many routine tasks before a customer speaks to anyone.
However, the most effective approach is not to remove people from the aftersales journey altogether. It is to use technology to give dealership staff more time for the conversations where their expertise and reassurance matter most.
How much can happen before customer contact
Our main Day 4 feature examines where dealership aftersales automation improves convenience and where human contact remains essential.
The evidence suggests that many motorists are ready to complete routine stages digitally. A CitNOW survey of 2,000 drivers found that 52% would be happy to use an AI assistant to book or rearrange an appointment.
TekCor4 found that 63% of 1,000 car owners would be more likely to book a service or MOT with a retailer that sent personalised reminders, while eDynamix says an effective digital strategy can result in around three-quarters of customers checking in online.
That creates a clear opportunity for dealers to reduce routine administration while making the customer journey faster and easier.
The challenge for retailers is to create a smooth handover between digital systems and dealership employees. Customers should be able to choose how they want to be contacted while service advisors must have enough information to continue the conversation without forcing them to repeat themselves.
Preparing vehicle adverts for AI-led search
Also today, Dave Syke, product director at Autotrader, joins AM to explain how AI-led search is changing the way buyers find vehicles.
With more than 80% of Autotrader product-page views now taking place on smaller-screen devices, Syke urges dealers to review their imagery, advert layouts and descriptions on mobile. Accurate and detailed vehicle data will become increasingly important as large language models decide which adverts best match a buyer’s requirements.
Register today for AM’s Innovation Week webinar
Dealership innovation will be explored further during AM’s free webinar, Identifying the innovations that count, today at 2pm.
Our expert panel will examine how dealership leaders can distinguish technology that produces a meaningful return from tools that merely add another layer to an already crowded technology stack.
Reserve your place for the AM Innovation Week webinar now and follow AM throughout Innovation Week as we examine innovation in marketing, sales, aftersales and dealership culture.