[October 18, 2006]

Automotive CRM From Dealer.com Released for Checkered Flag

By David Sims

TMCnet Contributing Editor

First Coffee's quite a fan of CRM for the automotive industry, so it's good to hear news like that today from Dealer.com, a Burlington, Vermont-based vendor of eMarketing products in the automotive industry. The vendor has announced its success in launching the revitalized CheckeredFlag.com -- in less than three weeks.

Using its SmartSite technology, Dealer.com built Checkered Flag's most complex site to date, with products for Checkered Flag's need for superior inventory management and tools with which to provide customer service.

Checkered Flag Motor Car Corporation, a family owned and operated dealership group serving Hampton Roads, Virginia, sells a lot of foreign cars down there -- over 1,000 cars per month at its five dealerships. Checkered Flag approached Dealer.com after internal surveys showed that more than 80 percent of its customers use the Internet as a search tool prior to purchasing a vehicle.

Which to First Coffee would be a red flag -- sorry, guys -- for lots of other car dealerships to get serious about CRM, but mysteriously, it seems most don't want to bother. Anyway, Checkered Flag saw the need to update its existing website -- a system that had become increasingly difficult to manage, particularly in capturing current inventory and overcoming design and functionality limitations imposed by rigid website templates.

Another company doing good work in this space is Autobytel Inc., an automotive CRM vendor, which was recently named to Deloitte and Touche's Technology Fast 50 Program for Orange County, a ranking of technology, media, telecommunications and life sciences companies in the area by Deloitte & Touche USA LLP.

In 1995 Autobytel was one of the first companies to sell CRM to auto dealers, which is still kind of an ugly, Rodney Dangerfield stepchild in CRM, it's not an area that's been looked at by established vendors yet. Autobytel sells its Web Control customer management system, Retention Performance Marketing service reminder program, Special Finance Leads, and AIC data center to auto dealers.

Checkered Flag's Dealer.com-built website came online mid-September with the functionality Checkered Flag was seeking, and the speed and success of the design and build process.

The most critical aspect of the new site is inventory management. Dealer.com used its proprietary CarFinder technology to enable customers to custom "build" or enter specifications for new or used vehicles. Customers can enter any number of specifications -- brand, price, features, best warranties, monthly payments, and more. The system then scans current inventory across Checkered Flag's dealerships and displays every vehicle in inventory that matches the search or may suit the customer's needs.

As vehicles are added to inventory, CarFinder automatically sends e-mail to the customer with information and photos about any new matches.

With Dealer.com's support, Checkered Flag plans to integrate the body shop, service and parts, finance and outside vendors into CheckeredFlag.com. Future integration with the dealership's CRM and sales force management systems will further enhance sales and customer retention efforts.

And last month, after what company official say are three years of testing and development, 5square.com has released completely integrated software that manages the entire process of selling a car.

For some reason selling cars isn't one of the tasks that's covered by much of the CRM studies, except at the high end like tracking Mercedes' service programs, one feels it's almost like it's too dirty shirt of an industry to merit serious coverage. That's puzzling to this reporter, since it's one of the industries well-suited to CRM, one in which customer loyalty is of great importance.

The Web-based system automates every part of the sales process, including lead management, CRM, showroom control, desking, F&I, inventory, customer marketing campaigns, and dealership analytics. It guides the sales team on every lead and every deal, improving sales processes, customer satisfaction, and closing ratios, and integrates with both ADP and Reynolds and Reynolds DMS systems.

NADA statistics show that the average dealer spent $571 in 2005 on advertising and lead generation for each new vehicle sold. This investment dwarfs the cost of all management systems combined -- DMS, CRM, Desking, F&I, etc.

David Sims is a contributing editor for TMCnet. For more articles please visit David Sims’ columnist page.

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