Voicemail drop results Delivered. Called back. In the CRM.
Two dealerships’ voicemail campaigns from the fall of 2026, read from the campaign records. Every number is defined on this page.
Do voicemail drops work for dealerships? For these two stores, they did. Their records, side by side.
In the two dealership campaigns we can show, 81% and 82% of the voicemails were delivered, and for every 100 delivered, 10 to 16 customers called the store back. The calls and text replies went to each store’s CRM as leads: 282 new leads at one store, 127 at the other. Both stores sent to their own customers, in a salesperson’s voice. Results depend on the list, the offer and the team answering the phone.
* The private sale counts new leads only: updates to leads already in the store’s CRM are left out. The three campaigns count every lead sent, one for each call back or text reply. Counts calls to that number only.
| Private sale | Three campaigns | |
|---|---|---|
| When | Oct 27–29, 2026 | Sep 26–29, 2026 |
| Campaigns | 10, over 3 days | 3, one each afternoon3, on 3 afternoons |
| Voicemails sent | 1,407 | 911 |
| Delivered | 1,157 82% | 736 81% |
| Not delivered, credit back | 250 | 175 |
| People who called back | 190 16% of delivered | 77 10% of delivered |
| People who replied by text | 104 | 33 |
| Leads sent to the store’s CRM | 282 new* | 127 |
A private sale, from its own list. A Ford store in Western Canada, October 27 to 29, 2026. Ten sends over three days, in two salespeople’s voices.
1,157 voicemails delivered, 82% of the 1,407 sent. The 250 not delivered went back to the balance.
190 people called back, 16% of the 1,157 delivered, each person counted once.
104 people replied by text, 115 replies to 1,048 follow-up texts.
282 new leads in its CRM, each with the campaign it came from. Updates to leads already there are left out.
Every voicemail was different. The customer’s first name, who was calling, then a reason that fit the vehicle they drive.
How the private sale ran
The list. The store sent its customer list. The Call Guy team cleaned it, set aside the rows that wouldn’t work, and split it so each customer heard one voicemail, never two.
The voice. Both salespeople recorded a short voice sample once. Every voicemail was in one of their two voices, and every one was different: the customer’s first name, who was calling, then a reason that fit the vehicle they drive.
The offer. A free appraisal for an older truck. Certified pre-owned rates for a customer paying a high rate. A weekend lease price for a customer in a newer Ford. A trade-up bonus for everyone.
The follow-up. A text from the same line went with each voicemail to a mobile: “Call or text me here.” Each salesperson’s callbacks rang their own line, and every call back and reply went into the store’s CRM as a lead.
Counts calls to that number only. One store’s results from one campaign. Yours will depend on your list, your offer and your team.
Three campaigns, three afternoons. One dealership, September 26 to 29, 2026. Each in one salesperson’s voice.
736 delivered 175 not delivered, credit back 911 voicemails to its past buyers, Sep 26–29, 2026
- 81% delivered, 736 of 911 voicemails
- 77 people called back, 10% of the 736 delivered
- 33 people replied by text, 37 replies to 545 follow-up texts
- 127 leads in its CRM, one for each call back or text reply
Counts calls to that number only. One dealership’s results from three campaigns. Yours will depend on your list, your offer and your team.
How we count. Six words, each defined once, and counted the same way for every campaign on this page.
Voicemails sent. One voicemail to each number on the store’s list, each number once. A number outside Canada is set aside when the list is imported and never dialed.
Delivered. The carrier reported the voicemail as delivered. Only a delivered voicemail spends a credit, so this is also the number the store paid for.
Not delivered. The carrier couldn’t deliver it. Its credit went back to the store’s balance, so it cost nothing.
Called back. A call to the campaign’s own line from a number on the store’s list. We count the people, once each, however many times they called. Counts calls to that number only.
Replied by text. A reply to the follow-up text, from a number on the list. An opt-out word like STOP is never counted as a reply.
Leads in the CRM. A call back or a text reply, emailed to the store’s CRM as a lead in the dealer lead format (ADF), with the campaign it came from.
What the records can’t show
Sales. Our records end where the store’s CRM begins: the appointments, the deals and the deliveries are kept there. So this page never says how many vehicles a campaign sold.
Asked about results. The short answers, from the same records.
Do voicemail drops work for car dealerships?
What callback rate should a dealership expect?
How many voicemails get delivered?
How were these numbers counted?
How many vehicles did the campaigns sell?
Are these results typical?
Can we see the same numbers for our own campaigns?
Campaigns for dealerships. Each list you keep is one. Every page has its scripts written out.
Service campaigns
- Service reminders Service due and declined work, monthly, in your advisor’s voice.
- Winter tires Fall and spring changeovers, stored sets first.
- Service win-back Customers you haven’t seen in 12 to 24 months, back in the bay.
- Recall outreach Every owner with an open recall, followed up the day the parts arrive.
Sales campaigns
- Lease-end and equity mining Maturing leases and equity, called four months and two months out, by name and vehicle.
- Sales events Private sales, year-end and model-year events, every owner invited in the GM’s voice.
- BDC follow-up Internet leads, showroom visits and missed appointments, followed up by name.
Guides
- Every dealership campaign Service, sales and lease, from one DMS list, on one dashboard.
- Every script, on one page Each campaign’s voicemail scripts, written out to copy.
- Are voicemail drops legal in Canada? Consent, calling hours and what a message must say, from the CRTC’s rules.
- What a voicemail drop costs Bundles, what a credit buys and what comes back.
- How to choose a service in Canada The questions worth asking any voicemail drop service.