How Philip Raby Specialist Cars Transformed Customer Communication and Cut £500/Month
(Using an AI Phone Answering Service)
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When it comes to prestige vehicles, every detail matters - from the way an engine is tuned to how a phone call is answered. For Philip Raby Specialist Cars, a respected independent Porsche garage in Bosham, near Chichester, reputation and relationships are everything.
Meet Phil Raby - Porsche Expert and Business Owner
Learn more about Phil and his passion for Porsche in this feature from DESIGN911
Key Takeaways
£500/month saved by switching from an outsourced call centre to AI.
200+ calls answered in a single month by the AI receptionist.
Zero missed opportunities – high-value calls now captured consistently.
Tailored to the garage – trained to handle Porsche-specific enquiries with expert-level nuance.
Natural, human-like voice – no robotic tone or awkward pauses.
Structured call data delivered instantly to the team – no more chasing messages.
Customer trust maintained – callers feel heard, helped, and looked after.
Hands-free call management – Phil gets to focus on running his garage, not answering the phone.
The Business
Known for classic restoration, precision servicing, and high-value sales, the business has built a loyal following across West Sussex and beyond.
But as the business grew, so did the volume of incoming calls. Sales, service requests, general enquiries - each one important, each one demanding time, attention, and continuity. Phil Raby himself, a hands-on specialist, was spending more time than he wanted ensuring calls were being answered professionally and promptly. The solution? For a while, he employed a well-known outsourced phone answering service.
At first, this service seemed like the right fit. A team to answer calls, route them accordingly, and provide some relief. But over time, cracks began to show. Despite a monthly spend of up to £700, the service became increasingly impersonal. Key information was being missed. Some calls were mishandled or delayed. And the cost, both financial and operational, began to bite.
That's when Phil turned to the team here at ARROW.
The Challenge
Despite investing heavily in an outsourced phone answering service, Philip Raby Specialist Cars faced mounting operational and financial challenges that threatened their reputation for excellence.
High Monthly Costs
Up to £700 per month for outsourced call centre services
Impersonal Service
Generic responses that didn't reflect the specialist nature of the business
Missed Information
Key details about Porsche models and specific customer needs were being lost
Delayed Communications
Calls were being mishandled or delayed, affecting customer experience
The ARROW Solution
ARROW is a leading provider of AI Phone Answering Services in West Sussex, and has introduced a solution tailored specifically for independent garages like Phil's. Our AI receptionist is not a generic chatbot or offshore assistant. It's a smart, trained system built on real transcripts and training, designed to sound human, understand nuance, and handle real-world customer needs, from sales enquiries to service bookings, with clarity and consistency.
Meet Charlotte
She may be virtual, but her ability to handle Porsche enquiries with expertise and charm is very real.
Expert Training
Trained specifically on Porsche model names, terminology, and garage-specific workflows
Porsche Expertise
Understands Boxster, 911, GT3 models and can handle nuanced customer enquiries
Natural Conversations
Human-like voice with no robotic tone or awkward pauses
Instant Response
Immediate pickup without waiting or holding, maintaining professional standards
The Training Process
The transition was seamless. But it wasn't automatic.
One of the unexpected challenges we faced early on was handling the variety of Porsche model names and customer questions around them. Whether it was a Boxster, a 911, or a GT3, our AI Receptionist needed to understand, not just what the caller meant, but how to pronounce, interpret, and respond to those specific terms accurately.
Phil's deep product knowledge and willingness to collaborate helped train the system properly, reinforcing key distinctions that we'd have never caught on our own. That kind of expert input was critical in making the receptionist truly garage-ready.
The Results
Monthly savings by switching from outsourced service
Calls answered in a single month
Missed high-value calls
Structured call data delivered instantly
How It Works Now
ARROW took the time to understand the flow of calls at Philip Raby Specialist Cars. We studied transcripts, identified key questions asked by customers, and trained our AI to distinguish between sales, service, and routine enquiries. Now, when someone calls the garage, the AI Receptionist responds immediately, without waiting or holding, and initiates a natural, helpful conversation.
If it's a sales enquiry, the AI captures the details, including the model the caller is interested in, whether it's a trade-in, and any timelines. If it's service-related, the AI gathers the vehicle details, the nature of the issue, and availability. This information is then structured into a clean, concise message and forwarded instantly to the team.
The result? Phil and his team no longer misses high-value calls. There are no dropped leads, no confused messages, no noisy background environments. Just clear, consistent communication delivered in real time - without the £700 monthly overhead.
What Phil Says
"It just works. I don't have to think about it, and I don't have to worry about what I'm spending each month. The AI is polite, smart, and fast, and it's made a real difference to how we run the business telephones."
Owner, Philip Raby Specialist Cars
The Impact on Service Excellence
What makes this transformation even more powerful is the tone and quality of the AI itself. It doesn't sound robotic. It doesn't fumble with names or mishear details. It's been tuned to sound natural, calm, and helpful - a reflection of the high standards Phil holds in every part of his business. Customers continue to feel valued and heard, and the team at the garage can focus on what they do best - working on exceptional cars.
For a business like Philip Raby Specialist Cars, this isn't just a technical upgrade. It's a strategic one. In a market where trust, precision, and customer experience are paramount, ARROW has helped maintain the highest standards while significantly reducing costs. The AI receptionist doesn't take lunch breaks, doesn't have off days, and never lets a call go unanswered.
And that's exactly what a prestige independent garage needs.
And here's the kicker:
You get your own 24/7 AI Receptionist that answers every call, set up for you in days, for less than your phone bill.
No contracts. No hidden fees.
Most trades spend £10K+ a year trying to solve this with admin staff or answering services.
⚡Guaranteed Results
Book four real jobs in 60 days using our tools - or get your money back.
No stress. No risk. Just leads, sorted.
Talk to Arrow now, and hear for yourself how we capture leads and handle a real potential customer enquiry.