On the service side, DealerSocket’s CRM Service Dashboard enables managers and staff to keep a comprehensive record; whether it’s the number of customer appointments per each service advisor, tracking confirmations and no shows, to hours required for individual service work and status of each job.
New CRM technologies enable dealers to look after their customers like never before, as well as helping them grow their business.
Dealers work hard to earn customers. Yet once they have them, the challenge remains how to hold onto them.
Advances in technology have enabled retailers to engage with consumers like never before; whether it’s a follow up to that initial contact, booking service appointments, or informing them of special promotions or appreciation events.
To help dealers keep track of their retail customers and respond to their needs quickly and effectively requires diligence, planning and effective communication. However, given the demands placed on automotive retailers and the need to coordinate activities on both the sales and fixed operations side, it’s often a challenge to keep track of each customer and provide a customer relationship management (CRM) solution that’s tailored to their needs.
As the truism says, it’s harder to earn a new customer than retain an existing one. Perhaps, but once the dealer has worked hard to earn the customer’s business it can be all too easy to take it for granted. Stories abound of dealers not following up on specific customers requests in a timely fashion; of ignoring them during special promotions, or not being able to coordinate service appointments based on the customer’s schedules.
Yet in today’s automotive retail marketplace, such scenarios can easily be avoided, provided effective CRM strategies and solutions are put in place. Making the situation easier is a whole raft of CRM tools available to dealers.
In this article, we take look at a few of these solutions, how they operate and by using them, how dealers can help improve their profitability and grow their business.
Mobile platforms enable staff to respond to customer inquires also anywhere at any time, as well as track sales leads, status and follow ups among other things.
It started out in 2001, yet DealerSocket, whose products have been adopted by 2,700 dealerships across North America (250 in Canada alone), has grown to become a leading provider of CRM solutions for automotive retailers.
“Dealers have traditionally struggled with CRM because they were required to have a number of separate tools to cover different aspects of operations,” says Sam Rizek, executive sales manager for DealerSocket’s Canadian operations.
“There was a CRM tool for sales, one for Internet leads, one for service and so on. It proved tremendously difficult for dealers to coordinate all of these separate tools between departments. So while you might have had an effective solution for Internet leads, it was let down by patchy service or F&I related programs.”
Dealership experience a boost
The DealerSocket model, originally created by Jonathan Ord and Brad Perry, was designed from the outset to provide a complete CRM solution that’s integrated between all departments. “Jonathan and Brad developed it from working inside a dealership,” says Rizek “and built it based on their own experiences in day-to-day operations.”
DealerSocket created its own Dealer Advisory Board, which has proven effective in receiving feedback to improve services available. “It’s been fantastic,” says Rizek. “To really improve the services you offer, you need real feedback and the board has been great in providing that.”
Those include developing a centralized program so that all information is contained and readily accessible through a single, main database. “A dealer’s customer database is one of their most valuable assets,” says Rizek “and they want to make sure they can maximize its effectiveness.
One view of customers
What DealerSocket does is make everything accessible through a central portal, so whether it’s a CRM tool tailored for sales leads, follow ups or status, F&I or fixed operations it can all be readily accessed without duplication of effort and wasted time trying to access files on separate machines. This used to be a major issue if one department was open at certain times and another wasn’t. This way, everything is accessible, all the time through multiple different levels.
DealerSocket has also made strides in developing focused marketing campaigns targeted specifically at dealers’ individual customers. “It enables the dealer to interact with their customer on an intimate level,” says Rizek. “Too often, with an automated system, customers can feel like a number or statistic. As a result they don’t make that connection with the dealership, whether its through sales or service. Opportunities to generate business are lost, simply because the dealership isn’t able to actually listen to what the customer is asking and respond to their particular requirements accordingly.”
One thing Rizek is particularly enthused about is the way that DealerSocket is constantly evolving, along with the industry, so new platforms and developments are happening all the time. “We’ve introduced a mobile CRM that enables dealer staff to access information via their smartphone or iPad, no matter where they might be. In a world that’s becoming increasingly connected on a 24-hour basis, it’s becoming ever more important to be accessible,” says Rizek.
Another feature recently added has been text messaging via portable devices. “This was another one that we introduced based on feedback,” says Rizek.
DealerSocket holds a yearly summit held at the company’s home base of San Clemente, Calif. where dealers gather to share ideas, while DealerSocket helps guide them through and implement its latest CRM tools. “Some of our top-performing dealers provide workshops on how to use the tools we offer to generate business,” says Rizek. “It’s really proving popular.”
Future plans include integrating DealerSocket’s CRM with other vendor software, such as DMS systems from ADP and Reynolds and Reynolds, as well as launching an Enterprise Dashboard, which will enable dealer groups to access all the information for each of their stores from a single location.
But as for any software provider, the key to ongoing success is providing top notch customer service support to users. “It’s simply not stressed enough,” says Rizek. “While you might have the best CRM tool in the world, if you cannot back it up with good after sales service and technical support, then so much potential is lost. We’ve prided ourselves in offering the best customer support we can, which is what differentiates from many other vendors.”
DealerSocket does this by employing the services of some 70 consultants across North America. Essentially what they do is follow up with individual dealerships and visit them every 90 days. “The idea is to follow up, see how the program is working to address any concerns they may have and how to maximize its potential.” He is also clear to point out that no additional fees are charged for this after sales service. He says DealerSocket has witnessed a retention rate of approximately 90 per cent from those stores that have purchased its CRM.
eZ results
While some CRM tools focus on the specifics, EZ Results is somewhat different. Created five years ago as a provider of automotive, web-based marketing solutions, this Toronto-based company takes a boutique approach to web solutions, essentially providing a select number of dealers in regional markets with a complete portfolio, ranging from Search Engine Marketing, to building custom websites and providing effective CRM tools, whether its for large, corporate or group owned dealerships, or smaller independent locations.
“We’ve developed our software so it can be tied in with existing CRMs, or it can be used as a stand-alone solution,” says CEO Dan Drolet. “For larger stores, EZ Results generally offers solutions that are designed to integrate with what the dealership already has in place,” he says. For independent and smaller stores, which often don’t have the same kind of budgets, EZ results can tailor a complete web based solutions program that covers all aspects of operations.
“When it comes to CRM, our tools enable dealers to get a quick, detailed look of daily metrics, so managers can make informed decisions based on the data that’s presented to them,” says Drolet.
What is fascinating about EZ Results’ CRM is the sheer level of detail. It can track information on customers from just about every angle and point possible, whether they’re searching for a car online, are in the process of scheduling a test drive, or have bought the car and are scheduling a service appointment. “By having access to this information, the dealer is able to recognize each individual customer and contact them at the appropriate time with the appropriate information,” says Drolet.
Other features include Sales Rep Activity Reports, showing which sales staff are engaging with customers and scheduling appointments; Pipeline Performance, which shows where each customer is at in the sales process; Inventory Performance, that compares new to used vehicle stock and illustrates which particular models are selling and which aren’t, as well as closing ratios and gross profit for each vehicle. It can also track website performance (that not only includes standard statistics, such as unique visitors, page views and vehicle views but also referral and user system information).
Additionally, by including a Dealership Group Overview feature that enables dealers to manage multiple websites within a single dashboard, EZ Results can provide them with information on which sites are doing better than others in terms of lead generation, ranking and sales. As a result, managers can make informed decisions quickly and develop effective plans to improve profitability and performance.
Besides all this, Drolet believes that a major element to any successful CRM solution is having a first class website to initially grab the customer’s attention, essentially creating a solid foundation on which to build. “First impression is absolutely everything,” he says. “Effective search optimization can drive consumers to your site, but you need to keep them there in order to take advantage of the CRM tools you have. Provide them with the information they’re looking for so it’s readily accessible. If they can access information, images, even videos directly from your site, they’re likely to stay longer. We live in a visual world, so the more you, as a dealer are able to provide online, the greater chance you have of turning a search into a sale.”
IQ 7/24
“It’s not so much about the technology but the marketing,” says IQ 7/24 President Daniel Tardif. “The more you know about your customer, what they do and what they don’t do, the better position you’ll be in to maintain and grow your business.”
IQ 7/24’s approach, is to specialize in generating customer loyalty via tailored marketing programs, at the centre of which is a unique CRM tool called LoyaltyTrac.
“What we do is offer a full range of campaign services to our clients,” says Tardif. “Rarely does a dealer have a dedicated marketing person on site, most of the marketing is carried out by the OEMs. The problem is that the message being delivered by the manufacturer might not always align with the services or promotions the dealer is able to offer, particularly as it relates to the service side of the business.” As a result, he says, dealers don’t or aren’t able to take advantage of the opportunities available to them.
If a customer comes in for regular maintenance and you already know them, they’re more likely to purchase their next vehicle from you if they’re happy with the service. They’re also more likely to purchase parts or accessories; think about items like rust proofing, winter tires or even detailing services. And if you’re able to offer loyalty programs for good customers, you stand a better chance of keeping them.
As a result, LoyaltyTrac, IQ 7/24 provides not only a CRM tool but also an email deployment tool, designed to enable quick, effective and ongoing contact with customers in the dealer database, in relation to their needs. It also provides access to a server that’s able to manage the dealer’s database online, along with a loyalty marketing engine and effective management of promotional offers and programs such as points, awards or special privileges offered to “preferred” customers.
