A new survey has found that 77 per cent of UK motorists would be more likely to book their car into a workshop that found a way to combine MOT and service work into a single visit.

In Marketing Delivery's new consumer survey, which polled 1,000 motorists across the UK, those aged 18 to 24 were the most receptive to the idea of a combined appointment for both MOT and service, with 85 per cent saying they would be more likely to book with a workshop that made that possible.

The findings are consistent with the experience of Marketing Delivery's dealer partners. The company evaluated conversion rates from its automated email aftersales marketing campaigns from January to September 2022, and found that messages intended to encourage an MOT booking had an average conversion rate of 12 per cent, while those for a service had an average 35 per cent conversion. However, when the automated messages were timed to facilitate MOT and service work into a single visit by the customer, the booking conversion figures increased to an average of 42 per cent.

The survey also found that an overwhelming majority (59 per cent) would prefer to be reminded about service and MOT work between three and four weeks before it is due. Only 13 per cent said they would not be likely to book a car in for aftersales work with a dealer or workshop that provided reminders.

Jeremy Evans, managing director at Marketing Delivery, said: "The consumer research and our own data illustrate the growing importance of well-targeted automation in digital comms.

"Reminders are clearly critical for driving workshop utilisation, but they create a big administration burden for the aftersales department. Automation takes that pain away, but that is just the start - dealers need to devise campaigns where messages are personalised, timely and maximise convenience for the customer."

Marketing Delivery's VoiceBox software allows dealerships to send automated SMS and emails to customers to remind them when their MOT and / or service is due.