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Larry Goering · Apr 27, 2012

I have also been a supporter of personalizing the users experience on our group's sites but is it feasible to develop right now with the onset of the "Do Not Track" options being built into all of the major browsers and the W3C, Center For Digital Democracy, Interactive Advertisers Bureau and who knows who else all trying to decide what the correct behavior or response a web site should be to it?

Apr 27, 2012

@DealerPeak Hello. First question that comes to mind is are you charging extra for these features, or do they come standard with all of your websites?

Also something that I believe is important is the target demographic for the website. For a younger audience, these features will soon be a must on a website, but will the 60 year old Chevy Impala buyer care about them? I doubt it.

This is the first time I'm hearing of DealerPeak (no insult intended), but I don't see very much in terms of marketing regarding the dealer sites on your own website. I don't want to have to 'request a demo' to see what you offer. Show me why I should get excited about it with well constructed landing pages that appeal to my emotions. Show me photos of the features in use. Show me stats that show how user engagement & time on site increases w/ new tools such as these. 1 website example isn't going to cut it (to get me excited at least).

I believe the features themselves are not the only piece to the puzzle -- the implementation is also very important. I notice you have to register to save vehicles on DealerPeak sites (which you don't have to do on Edmunds) and the 'save vehicle' feature is not promoted heavily save for the vehicle detail pages. If you're going to require registration, show me why it's of value to me and promote the tool! I should be seeing a link to "Your Saved Vehicles" on every page of the site in the navigation so I can easily get there on a return visit or so that I know your sites are different if I'm getting there for the first time.

Just my .02. Hopefully you found this to be constructive.

Apr 27, 2012

As a Website / CRM vendor I am very interested to hear feedback on this. Our website platform has supported these types of "Personalization" features for many years, but we've had limited success in getting dealers excited about this ability. I suspect it's because there isn't a clear short term ROI that they can sink their teeth into. Our view is that Personalization is one of the most important aspects to offering a great User Experience on a dealers Website.

Apr 27, 2012

Love your post but please change your bio.

Apr 27, 2012

When I first joined the auto industry, I was shocked to learn that some dealers had yet to solidify their web presence with a full-featured web site. After all, the Internet is the most utilized research tool in the vehicle purchase process and the easiest way to garner attention toward your vehicles from those who are in the market. Fast forward a few years and we’re now at a point where the vast majority of dealers use a third party website provider to manage their web presence. It was a slowly adopted change that was necessary for the advancement of the industry, but now that all dealers have their own website, what’s the next step?

What will it take to adopt the latest trends and break free from the pack of like- minded web properties?

One Sided Experience

As it stands, the function of the “dealer website” that we’ve all come to know so well is highly one sided. The experience of the vehicle shopper is similar to that of a classified site whereby the content is dominated by specials, promotions, and inventory that the dealer thinks the user will appreciate. We’re guilty of this as well. We tag vehicles as specials that we believe will attract attention in the hopes of generating quality leads, but do users really care what the dealer thinks is important?

Innovation From Netflix

Netflix has an amazing website that tailors the experience to the interests and browsing patterns of each visitor. They do all of this with the help of some fairly robust infrastructure & engineering teams, but the principles remain relevant -- give users what they want so they’ll spend more time on your site & come back more frequently to utilize your tool.

Every visit to the Netflix website is different, providing a sense of identity for an individual user that is unmatched on other platforms. Furthermore, Netflix makes use of prediction models to suggest content on the site that will be relevant to an individual user. The more accurate the prediction model, the easier it is for users to find what they’re looking for and the higher the likelihood that they will return in the future.

Application on Dealer Sites

Modern dealer sites are a great tool for taking a selection of inventory and filtering down options to ultimately reach a match that suits the user’s tastes. From a macro perspective though, this process requires a fair amount of work on the user’s behalf before any tangible decision can be made and there is no tool available to bypass this process during a return visit. We can start utilizing modern web technologies to create a new breed of dealer sites – sites that function as more of a smart web app than a standalone classified tool.

Prediction Models

The average dealer does not have the resources available to implement complex prediction algorithms in the same fashion as Netflix. Luckily, there are third party tools and APIs available for developers to utilize these functions without having to invest in the entire infrastructure necessary to predict content. As time goes on, these tools will become increasingly accessible to the forward-thinking dealers – the question is whether or not this is of any priority to website vendors (or dealers for that matter) in the industry and who will make the first move in adopting the technology.

Once implemented, the experience on a dealer site quickly turns toward a user-centered shopping experience similar to that of Amazon where the site is not only a listing of all available inventory, but also a tool for helping the user find what they’re looking for based upon their unique interests.

Favorites

For the first 4 months of 2012, 30% of our web traffic consisted of returning visitors. Many of these visitors will have undoubtedly viewed our inventory and gone through the process of filtering our vehicles multiple times before eventually moving elsewhere. Is it in our best interests to force them through this same monotonous process each time they visit?

User favorites are a current trend being under-utilized in the auto industry. I recently noticed Edmunds.com added a tool for saving vehicles (without requiring registration), but I have yet to see a widespread adoption of this idea across individual dealer sites. When users save vehicles, they have an increased incentive to return to your dealership’s website because they have already shown interest in something and they’ve made it easy to locate. Smart websites like Amazon use this data to offer increased incentives for returning visitors to convert online and increase revenue. With so many dealers being involved in a single shopper’s buying decision, every additional tool counts.

Browsing Activity

Prediction models make use of browsing activity in their algorithms, but when I refer to browsing activity, I’m talking exclusively about tracking the pages that users view via cookies. Keep in mind this doesn’t mean that some webmaster is sitting in a room looking at every single page that you’ve viewed on your computer at 2am. This is merely a method of tracking browsing history in order to create a tool for users to access information that they’ve already seen on your site.

We’re aiming to make the experience on a dealer site as easy and painless as possible, so if I have to go back to a search page and repeatedly input filters to find vehicles, then we’re doing it wrong. Giving users access to vehicles they’ve already viewed is a great way to easily get them back to that vehicle details page to convert and start working with your sales team.

What do you think? Are these features important enough to your dealership/group to implement?

What challenges do we need to overcome as an industry to make it happen?

bpulseadmin · Apr 25, 2012

HookLogic and PureCars Work Together to Increase Dealership Walk-In Traffic

NEW YORK, NY — HookLogic, the leading provider of ecommerce media solutions and services, today announced its new partnership with PureCars™, an automotive research company dedicated to answering the top concerns of car shoppers. As a result of this new relationship, PureCars will now leverage HookLogic's popular Lead-to-Show incentive solution for the over 1,500 automotive dealerships they represent.

PureCars' mission is to answer the top concerns of a car shopper using a fully automated technology for the dealership. This goal is in part achieved by providing car shoppers with PureCars Value Reports, which showcase a wealth of detailed information that clearly conveys the value in a vehicle. HookLogic's Lead-to-Show solution will now generate additional walk-in traffic from car shoppers that view the Value Reports, resulting in incremental sales at an exceptional ROI for dealers.

"We are excited to have Hooklogic as another industry leading integrated partner. The result of our partnership allows dealers, who subscribe to both products, an even higher ROI, which is what our integration partnerships are all about," said Jeremy Anspach, president of PureCars.

When people are shopping for cars, they typically spend hours researching on websites, such as PureCars.com, before stepping foot inside a dealership. HookLogic helps accelerate the decision process and provides in-market customers with an easier and better buying experience. The partnership between these two leading technology providers in the automotive industry will create an integrated solution that drives unprecedented results for dealers and a better shopping experience for their customers.

"We are excited to partner with PureCars. This is just the first stage of a very synergistic relationship of two progressive companies. We are now poised to build industry-leading solutions for car dealers," said David Metter, president of automotive for HookLogic.

To learn more about Lead-to-Show, visit www.leadtoshow.com or call 646-532-4707.

About HookLogic's Incentive Solutions for the Auto Industry:
HookLogic powers targeted incentive programs that drive in-market shoppers to auto dealerships and other lead-driven businesses. HookLogic solutions are easily implemented, work with nearly any marketing medium and enable end-to-end reporting and optimization. Headquartered in New York City, the company has offices in Ann Arbor, MI, Atlanta, GA and Manchester, UK. Clients include MileOne Automotive, Germain Motor Cars, Suburban Collection, Acton Toyota, and AutoTrader.com. Learn more at www.leadtoshow.com.

About PureCars:
PureCars is an automotive research company dedicated to answering the top concerns of car shoppers. Car shoppers want to make sure they are getting a good value, buying a reliable vehicle and dealing with a reputable dealership while shopping for their next vehicle. PureCars Value Reports answer these top concerns and more! They are available for $14.95 on PureCars.com and are free of charge for PureCars subscribing dealerships. To learn more about PureCars visit www.PureCars.com or call 877-860-7873.

colson · May 17, 2012

Joe you know I love you, but I have to present a dissenting view on this. While response time may improve by "removing the manager from the equation", our experience has been that your total gross and total sales will suffer when the decisions about a car deal are left in the hands of sales people and not sales managers.

It's the rare occasion you've got salespeople who don't go to the lowest common denominator and send out quotes on a car they're not likely to buy anyway because most people end of rolling out in something other than what they originally requested.

The real issue involves putting yourself in a position to have to make a decision as to whether or not a quote is warranted. Most of the mystery shops we do on dealers every day shows a complete disinterest in actually making phone contact with a customer and asking for the appointment when you get two way with them. Sending out quotes to everyone who submits a request in hopes that a customer is going to rush down to buy that car is like skeet shooting blind folded.

Keep in mind, you're not going to sell everyone who submits a lead. The goal is to make contact with as many people as possible, and then use contact as an opportunity to find out if you have someone who is reasonable or not. Reasonable people say yes when you ask for the appointment. Lets just start there. Everyone else gets a manager live turn!

Apr 26, 2012

Absolute right @Joe Webb

Apr 25, 2012

I think paranoia over a steady pricing matrix might find in its source an underdeveloped sales staff. Since it is not uncommon for customers to ultimately purchase a vehicle other than that about which they inquired the price quote can be seen as a lure of sorts. Good rapport building, needs analysis, and value building through a focused presentation make the initial quote less important. How many customers, having had a consultant listen to their needs and pair them with a vehicle that is for them a better match are really going to go home and calculate ratios and such to make sure they paid proportionally the same for the vehicle they ended up buying? Weak profits should be firstly a clarion call for better sales training!

Apr 24, 2012

What you are proposingb hyere is not just an every now and again Mystery Shop. You are proposing regular, continuous Mystery Shops to use as the basis of your pricing matrix team meeting. How do you accomplish that?

Apr 23, 2012

Agreed. If your store isn't doing a price matrix, expect HUGE results after you implement such a necessary tool.

Jun 17, 2019

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Nov 12, 2012

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Nov 12, 2012

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May 7, 2012

Reynolds has long been known as a DMS company. Now, they will tell you that while a DMS is still a necessary tool, it is not a sufficient business tool. And they are moving away from DMS just like CRM companies are moving away from CRM. What's called for is a retail management system, with ALL the requisite components. The tier one DMS companies already have the most difficult core component - its the CRM companies that will need to get to work to keep up.

May 1, 2012

For the attackers on Brian, please... cool your jets and assaults. What exactly is getting you so angry? I don't think it is at all naive to think that CRM is becoming the dashboard of the dealership from a sales and marketing perspective. As @tomwhitejr Tom White stated, I think everyone is sick of the industry be pushed around by a couple of DMS providers and would welcome competition both for innovation sake and overall operating costs.

I also agree that we are a long way away from a fixed ops and accounting perspective, however that might be as much of a Herculean task as you might believe.

Brian's post is one that should excite you because the ultimate CRM/DMS blurred line creates a system that is better for our business. Dealers and consumers alike.

Apr 28, 2012

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Apr 25, 2012

Blake
Thank you for contributing to the thread and yes, companies that are creating open API platforms do give dealers the flexibility to add new marketing and analytics partners that come to market. Today, for some DMS products, the barriers to creating integrated products are high upfront fees and sticky contractual agreements, which may just very well hinder innovation. Companies like Autobase and DealerTrack obviously want to change that image of DMS software providers.

Blake Andreese · Apr 24, 2012

Brian, I like this subject, I will throw my 2 cents in here. Putting the dealer first is paramount. As someone that spent many years in an executive position in a large group, I battled all the time with my DMS provider about data and security, and why I am charged so much for what I receive. But I had no real choices back then. I also had many conversations for no apparent effect to my manufacturer that forced upon me my website provider, my ILM tools, my marketing, among otherthings. The point I am making is the companies that have ability to react daily not annually to widening dealership needs are growing and are becoming masters at their segment. With that said I do not believe that a DMS/CRM inclusive company is the best option. R&R and ADP tried it and have failed. I see a few CRM companies that do everything for the Customer, Sales and Service staff, and management, Including marketing, digital presence and desk management. They are experts and laser focused on the CRM and dealer R.O.I. I see great companies like Autobase, and Dealertrack doing the correct thing and focusing on the dealers wants and needs by having open API and secure data transactions between the dealers third party choices and them. with open mate API it even updates the other 3rd party vendors data realtime. Bottom line is great focus on the DMS front and the CRM companies while allowing the dealer to choose whats best for them, without being forced in any one direction because of integration is putting the person that paid for the store in charge of who to do business with. as well as not be pigeon-holed because one company you need won't integrate with anything but themselves or charge you if you do. "Hostile Integration" started on the corporate side of ADP ad R&R not the dealers and vendors.

@Mike · Apr 24, 2012

@Mike Esposito Thank you for joining the conversation and voicing a perspective from the DMS vendor side. I agree with you that open API's allow for greater integration and best of breed solutions without creating isolated silos of data.

I commend your desire to provide alternatives for dealers who want to choose their data, analytics, and marketing partners and decide which level of access each will get. This is part of the change I was speaking about. It is coming, and your voice is proof that when choice is limited, innovation will come to the rescue.

I would love to learn more about your solution so that my insights to the opportunities that exist for dealers can be expanded.

Apr 24, 2012

Brian
You raise some very interesting points some of which are valid and some of which are a little off base. Also you seem to have a myopic view of the DMS market.

I agree with your assessment... "They depend on the functionality that the software brings but they hate long-term contracts and the cost associated with the technology." of which I assume you are talking about ADP and R&R. If you view the market as ADP and R&R (myopic) then you are spot on BUT this is not what is actually happening in the DMS market today. Non-legacy DMS vendors are, on a daily basis, talking market share from both R&R and ADP owing to the validity of your statement. You wrote in your response to one of the posters "There is an underlying opportunity that smart companies see; tap into the high dissatisfaction with current DMS pricing, functionality, and data integration. " This is EXACTLY what is happening now. My company, Auto/Mate, along with the likes of Dealer Track, AutoSoft and ACS to name just a few are capitalizing on the archaic technologies and business strategies that make up ADP and R&R.

You have to ask yourself why are there multiple silos of data being kept by the dealer. Data from their 3rd party desking solution and data from their 3rd party CRM solution and data from their DMS solution (read ADP / R&R). Well the main reason is that intrinsically no matter what ADP and R&R say, they believe the DMS system that the dealer pays for is theirs and not the dealers. Both ADP and R&R have had a history of making it difficult for the dealer and 3rd party vendors (CRM / Desking / etc) to access their databases hence the term "hostile interface". In current years they have softened their stance in that they now have "certification programs" which are still costly to 3rd party vendors. The new DMS companies like Auto/Mate and Dealer Track have open API's that allow bi-direction integration to a single data silo that is housed on the DMS. Auto/Mate Open/Mate API even allows realtime updating of any 3rd party vendors system data.

There will always be dealer who wants one stop shopping..all products from one vendor. As one dealer I spoke with said "I just want one throat to choke" . But the truth of the matter is that dealers want to be able to choose. To choose the best CRM and the best desking and the best web appointment system, and the best etc., and to have these seamlessly integrate with the DMS system that houses the data. This is what products like Open/Mate are all about.

As the President and CEO of a DMS company I believe in giving my dealers what they want and what I am hearing is flexibility to choose and to know that even though I may not purchase the CRM product from my DMS vendor that my DMS vendor has my back as to ensuring that 3rd party product I purchase will work in the environment of my DMS.

You are probably correct. As Bob Dylan wrote "The times they are a changing" and the DMS vendor who doesn't understand that will most certainly die....

Apr 23, 2012

@Lesterjack1941 Thank you for your passionate reply to my post.

Seven years ago, the thought of an integrated website platform replacing over a dozen stand alone marketing tools, would probably get the same response from newsletter companies, mail houses, video marketers, inventory management tool providers, and service schedulers. (That's why I loved the VinSolutions checklist!)

VinSolutions, Dealer.com, Dominion Dealer Solutions, and ADP/Cobalt are expanding their suite of single login software with integrated data collection and analytics. This is proof that the single silo data solutions are heading for consolidation. The backend tools continue to grow to meet the expanding data management needs of dealers.

Keeping track of the entire customer record and leveraging all data connection points is critical for effective customer management and retention. Fixed Ops customer data has been an orphan for integrated marketing. VinSolutions recently added Service scheduling and data marketing to their website platform.

Parts? Today most dealers are forced to use TradeMotion websites to sell parts which are ugly, cumbersome, and they suck at search optimization. I don't know why there is not a better alternative on the market. I do know that products are coming that will make their crappy websites obsolete.

So, where does the line stop for software development? It doesn't.

Ask a dealer how they are marketing their parts customers? Ask them if they are using their parts purchasing history to create more revenue? What happens when service and parts transactions are part of the rich CRM database and integrated marketing tools.

Yes, today DMS software seems like it's indispensable but so did VisiCalc and WordPerfect to early PC users. The change that I wrote about will not happen overnight. What we see today is a poor excuse not to connect the dots.

There is an underlying opportunity that smart companies see; tap into the high dissatisfaction with current DMS pricing, functionality, and data integration.

All it will take will be companies that unlock the value of dealership data and integrate that data into a comprehensive marketing platform, and things will change. The separate data silos will become one and the potential of fully leveraged dealership data will finally be a reality.

Finally, thank you for pointing out that I never worked at a dealership. That is actually where my clients find great value. I bring a new set of eyes to budgets, processes, and strategy that are often needed to pull dealers ahead of their competition. It's a great collaboration actually, because both parties learn from each other to yield amazing ROI.

Apr 23, 2012

I am completely amazed that a man who has never worked on the floor, knew what bell to bell meant or had any understanding of what it takes to operate a car store gets so much attention here. Clearly Mr. Pasch has never used a DMS nor understands how it provides dealers with what is needed on a day to day basis. CRM has its place regarding sales and service but don't think that it can ever replace the accounting functions and fixed ops requirements of a dealerships. I have been in the CRM space for a number of years and don't know of one company that can adequately provide the dealer the ability to open a repair order, maintain a parts inventory, calculate a month end financial statement and so much more. Perhaps you Mr. Pasch should stay in the area of your expertise and not delve into areas you know nothing about.

lahru · Apr 22, 2012

DRM or CRM? I see it as all of the entries into either system are customers and the position they occupy in the cycle of ownership, and their postion in this cycle certainly require differing datapoints. Allowing each department to analyze and use this data to maximize customer satisfaction and profitablity should be the same, be it for the parts, service or vehicle sales customer. As to the accounting and inventory management, the data required for these functions can be a ancillary set of data that gets managed right along with the customers and employees. In the end I believe that there similar practices that can be used for every type of customer, parts vs service, they just require differing labels to identify thier position in the cyle. IE, prospecting for service and parts customers should be the same as vehicle sales. In the end it's all sales and customer satifaction brings them back.

Apr 20, 2012

Great article Brian... I would echo Jeff in that DMS is WAY more involved than anything any CRM provider is currently addressing. From the Parts Department (think depreciation, inventory, Fast Moving Parts, shrinkage, obsolescence, parts matrix and markup calculations, and billing/invoicing/accounting etc.). Or Service Department (think dispatching, Open RO reports, Scheduling, ELR, Margin Calculations, and billing/invoicing/accounting etc,) Let's not forget the Accounting Department (think payroll, A/R, A/P, Financial Statements, Cash Flow Statements, DOC sheets, and the list goes on and on). Finally you have the Manufacturers who require their specific Financial Statements submitted electronically in a specific way...

While I foresee the lines between CRM and DMS blurring in the coming years, we have a LONG WAY to go before someone pulls it all together. From what I'm seeing on the DMS side of things, these companies are FINALLY realizing the importance of CRM and are taking steps to bring this into their fold. I still gotta think we see a DMS company figure out CRM before a CRM company figures out DMS. I'm not saying this is right or something I personally support - just more the reality IMHO.

I would like nothing more than to see a CRM company conquer the blue bloods of the DMS systems, opening up competition and thus driving down costs to the Dealers. DMS is a significant investment and is severely over-priced. Until another alternative arrives, we are stuck with the two different components of our businesses.

Just my two cents...

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