Automotive E-Commerce — RTR Vehicles

From 4 reps to 1 part-timer. $15K/mo saved. 92% auto-resolved.

RTR Vehicles is an automotive aftermarket e-commerce brand selling performance parts, custom wheels, and vehicle accessories. Their support team was drowning in repetitive inquiries — fitment questions, order tracking, return requests, and compatibility checks — all handled manually by 4 full-time customer service representatives.

The Problem

  • 4 full-time CS reps handling 200+ inquiries per day
  • Average response time: 4.2 hours during peak
  • 70% of tickets were repetitive (tracking, fitment, returns)
  • Scaling meant hiring more people at $3,500-4,500/month each
  • Night and weekend coverage required overtime or went unanswered
  • Product catalog of 10,000+ SKUs made training new reps take 3+ months

The Digital Hire™ Deployment

  • Week 1: Audited 6 months of support data — identified 12 ticket categories, resolution patterns, and escalation triggers
  • Week 2-3: Built an AI employee trained on RTR's full product catalog (10,000+ SKUs), fitment database, return policies, and shipping rules
  • Week 4: Launched AI alongside existing team — monitored accuracy, resolution quality, and customer satisfaction in real-time
  • Integrated directly with Shopify for order lookup, tracking, and return processing
  • Custom fitment engine: AI answers 'Will this fit my 2019 F-150?' from actual compatibility data

The Results

4 → 1
Full-time reps to 1 part-timer
92%
Inquiries auto-resolved
8.3s
Average response time
$15K/mo
Monthly labor savings
6x
ROI in first 90 days
24/7
Coverage without overtime

Implementation Timeline

Week 1Support data audit and ticket categorization
Week 2AI training on product catalog and policies
Week 3Integration with Shopify and fitment database
Week 4Launch alongside existing team + performance verification
Week 5-8Gradual handover — 3 reps reassigned, 1 part-timer for escalations

The AI knows our catalog better than reps who've been here for years. It answers fitment questions I couldn't answer without looking it up.

Josh HippDirector of Operations, RTR Vehicles

The Bottom Line

RTR Vehicles went from spending $18,000+/month on customer support to under $7,000/month — with faster responses, better accuracy, and 24/7 coverage. The AI employee didn't replace the team — it eliminated the repetitive work so the remaining person handles only the complex, high-value conversations.

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