Saturn Goes 24/7 with Online Chat

[wt2ga]

Automotive News

By Rick Kranz ... Feb. 26, 2007

CHICAGO – Saturn is hoping that a little online chat with a company representative will lead to a test drive and eventually a sale.

This month Saturn added a feature to its Web site that allows consumers to get questions answered through live chat 24 hours a day. Shoppers also can schedule a test drive.

At the Chicago Auto Show this month, Saturn General Manager Jill Lajdziak said Saturn "is the first automotive brand to make this move in the marketplace. We have a big story to tell. We are using lots of different mediums to communicate our message."

Lajdziak wants people to know that Saturn's vehicle line is being redesigned or replaced.

By this fall, the oldest vehicle in the lineup will be the two-passenger Sky roadster. That vehicle went on sale in 2006.

The mid-sized Aura sedan went on sale last fall. Sales of the Outlook crossover started in December. The redesigned 2008 Vue crossover goes on sale this summer, and the first shipment of Astra cars will arrive from Belgium late this year.

Meanwhile, the Relay minivan was dropped last year, and production of the Ion car ends in March.

Lajdziak declined to estimate the percentage of auto dealers likely to participate in the online scheduling of test drives. "We'll see as this rolls out," she said. "My guess is the majority of our network is going to say, 'I need to do this.' Some of our retailers are doing this already."

[reedred]

Originally Posted by wt2ga

By this fall, the oldest vehicle in the lineup will be the two-passenger Sky roadster.

[SKYtime]

I've used online chat with Saturn.com. I found it helpful actually.

[Ruthie]

Sooooo - let me get this straight...you still can't register your vehicle online due to technical problems but they have a 24/7 chat line up & running? Doesn't make sense to me.

[SKYtime]

That chat's been up and running for quite some time. Ain't nothing new, really.