January 22, 2026
GoTo Applies AI to Call Handling and Service Scheduling in Auto Dealerships
GoTo is applying AI more directly to one of the most operationally demanding environments in customer experience — auto dealerships. With new updates to GoTo Connect for Automotive, the company is focusing on how dealerships in the US handle calls, manage service appointments, and understand customer interactions across sales and service teams.
The changes are designed to solve familiar problems, including missed and misrouted calls, slow responses when dealerships are busy, and service requests that fall through the cracks.
Customers may call multiple times just to book an appointment, while staff juggle systems that do not always work well together. GoTo’s latest updates aim to reduce that friction by using AI to support call handling, automate scheduling, and give teams clearer visibility into what is happening across the customer journey.
New Integration with Dealership Systems
A key part of the update is expanded integration with dealership systems. GoTo has strengthened its connections with CRM and DMS platforms, including BLiNK AI, DealerSocket, and Reynolds & Reynolds FOCUS. These integrations allow call activity, customer details, and outcomes to be logged automatically. Instead of relying on manual notes or disconnected records, dealerships can keep customer interactions consistent and traceable across teams.
AI monitors calls in real-time to detect signals such as frustration, urgency, or strong intent, and alerts dealership managers as they occur. This lets leaders step in during the conversation to resolve issues or support staff, rather than reviewing and scoring calls after the fact. Last year, GoTo introduced AI receptionists that handle calls and messages when human receptionists are busy, helping ensure customers still get timely responses
Service scheduling is another major area of focus. GoTo has added AI-powered automatic scheduling that operates around the clock. When staff are busy or unavailable, the system can still answer calls and book service appointments. Missed or overflow calls can be converted into confirmed bookings instead of becoming lost opportunities. Through integration with Xtime, appointments are sent directly into the dealership’s DMS, reducing follow-up work and scheduling errors.
Call Routing for Efficiency
Call routing has also been refined to reflect how dealerships actually operate. By using CRM data, incoming calls can be routed to the most appropriate person based on customer history, intent, time of day, or call source. Screen pops give staff immediate context before answering, helping conversations start faster and feel more relevant, reducing the time it takes to resolve customer requests.
Beyond operations, GoTo is also applying AI to performance tracking, allowing dealerships to see which marketing campaigns and channels are generating inbound calls and booked appointments. Tools such as Number Reputation help protect outbound calls from being flagged as spam, increasing the likelihood that customers will answer follow-up calls.
Overall, GoTo’s approach reflects a practical use of AI in automotive customer experience. Rather than introducing new channels or complex workflows, the updates focus on improving how dealerships already communicate.
