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Which CRM are you using?

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#31
Chuck said:
Has anyone ever used Buzztrak? How does this compare to other CRM/ILM Systems?
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Chuck,

I didn't want to see your question get lost. I have not used it, but I think this is the ILM tool ADP wanted us to use in lieu of iMagicLab ILM when we were struggling with ADP's CRM. Because it was presented as a workaround to ADP's lack of handling Internet leads I wasn't interested. I have heard from 2 happy ADP CRM dealers who speak very highly of Buzztrack, but that's all I can say about it.

I tried searching for it on Google to no avail. Do you have their URL?
 
#32
Alex Snyder said:
Chuck,

I didn't want to see your question get lost. I have not used it, but I think this is the ILM tool ADP wanted us to use in lieu of iMagicLab ILM when we were struggling with ADP's CRM. Because it was presented as a workaround to ADP's lack of handling Internet leads I wasn't interested. I have heard from 2 happy ADP CRM dealers who speak very highly of Buzztrack, but that's all I can say about it.

I tried searching for it on Google to no avail. Do you have their URL?
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I think you are looking for this:
http://nettraklm.com/

The problem is you have to ADP CRM + Nettrak. I think they have some workarounds to sort of sync the two together... but having two systems and training your staff on two systems doesn't sound like fun.
 
#33
mattwatson81 said:
I think you are looking for this:
NettraK Automotive Lead Management and CRM System | NettraK - (888) 229-0023

The problem is you have to ADP CRM + Nettrak. I think they have some workarounds to sort of sync the two together... but having two systems and training your staff on two systems doesn't sound like fun.
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That's it! Thanks Matt.

Yep, using two different systems is just stupid. That's what took us to ADP originally. They told us all their modules were ready and we bit. It was also DMS-recontracting time.

Here's my synopsis on using a DMS company as the entire technology bread basket. This synopsis is based off of personal experience with ADP, and may not be the same experience someone else has.

We have too many different technologies for different things: DMS, Inventory Solution (with differing modules), Website, ILM, CRM, Campaign Management, SEM, OEM portals for ordering cars and managing new car inventory, desking tool, F&I solutions, aftermarket solutions, and I can go on and on....not to mention you need some of this stuff to push/pull with the DMS. It boggles the mind that we can actually keep up with all this stuff.

In 2006 ADP told us they had most of this good to go in a package of: ADP DMS, ADP CRM, webVehicle, a phone system, and BZ Results websites. Because of our relationship with Dealer.com we immediately axed BZ Results from the package. And because I was leary of their lack of options for handling Internet Leads there was no way I was giving up iMagicLab ILM.

So, at the time we had:


  • CRM: AutoBase
  • ILM: iMagicLab
  • Web: Dealer.com
  • SEM: ReachLocal through AutoBidSystems
  • Desking: ePencil
  • Inventory: pushing ourselves

We were going to be able to replace AutoBase, ePencil, and have a good inventory module all for a cheaper price than what we had been paying just for AutoBase alone. We could have gone even further with ADP and really reduced our bill....that is, if you factor the very expensive Cisco VOIP phone system out of the equation.

At the end of the day, because these new ADP tools couldn't deliver on our needs, we ended up partnering with HomeNet, DealerTrack, not having a desking tool (major gross hurt) and found we had to buy more Internet Leads because our ADP CRM utilization rate was 63% (the best in the country according to ADP) and we needed to balance things out with more customers to talk to. So, what was supposed to save us money ended up costing us a lot more.....even when we got the CRM for free.

In retorspect, I believe it is too early to put all your eggs in one basket. I have also discovered that the big companies are too large to move the ship fast enough to be proactive in today's technology world. As you get more advanced they can't pump out solutions quick enough, or if they do, it is such a tangled web/mess of solutions you need a degree in computer programming to figure it out....on top of that, they're all done in the same logic the DMS is written so you have to speak another language to make logical changes.

Even though I am wishing for a single solution, I know it is too early. There are just too many pieces to the puzzle for one company to handle it all. And the puzzle changes all the time. So, I'll continue to bang my head against the wall :banghead: with the frustrations that come from trying to get different systems to work together.....but I have the experience with the "single solution" to know this is the best way to do it right now.
 
#34
Alex Snyder said:
Even though I am wishing for a single solution, I know it is too early. There are just too many pieces to the puzzle for one company to handle it all. And the puzzle changes all the time. So, I'll continue to bang my head against the wall :banghead: with the frustrations that come from trying to get different systems to work together.....but I have the experience with the "single solution" to know this is the best way to do it right now.
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As you have said there are companies that offer "all the solutions". ADP and Reynolds do. But theirs are several products they purchased along the way that don't actually work together very well.

The real solution is one single solution that is all built on one platform that all works together. That is the passion that drives me everyday. :)
 
#36
This is a really good conversation.

We use Reynolds for DMS and CRM. The integration is obviously better than anything else on the market but even so, it has its limitations. For example, there is not a corresponding field in Contact Management for every field in ERA. They are changing that in the next release of CM (so I hear). CM has the best customer survey follow up mechanism i have seen and tracking the three main types of leads (phone, internet, walk in) is easy. Sales managers hang out on the desk log and they can see everything currently happening...fresh ups, be backs, internet leads, phone ups, etc. Service marketing, while not perfect, is better than anything i have seen from any other company and that is largely due to the level of integration with ERA afforded to CM. As for desking, Dealer Tracks desking tool is the best i have seen. ePencil is good but was overpriced when i demo'd it and entirely too complex i think. I'd be on DealerTracks desking tool but it doesn't integrate with Reynolds which was a big hurdle for us. I really like the entire DealerTrack suite of products except for their vAuto knock off. eLeads looks pretty good. I know Hyundai is pushing it right now. I liked AVV when I demo'd it. Bottom line is that you really can't tell until you play with it for awhile and get the system implemented into your processes. That's when the bugs really come out. THe other issue with third party software integrating with the DMS is duplicate name file creation which absolutely drives me crazy.

When it comes to these CRM and DMS companies, the biggest thing is support I think. When I am told a product is going to do something, I expect it to do something. If it doesn't then I expect the support teams to fix it. Companies that sacrifice existing product support and troubleshooting for the sake of new product development just so they can be the talk of NADA next year are doing a disservice to dealers. They are counting on the fact that we will get frustrated and forget about the problem so they don't have to fix it. That's not right. We spend TONS of money on this stuff and it should work. Reynolds under Brockman has really stepped up the support side of things and they have made utilization a priority which is big.

I think the major issue for all of us should be the unwavering support of an open data exchange protocol or an "Open Source" environment whereby third party vendors can freely interact with the DMS providers while keeping data secure. I have urged Bob Brockman and his team at Reynolds to continue to support the Reynolds Certified Interface program. Vendors claim its expensive and onerous. Reynolds should make it cost effective while maintaining a set of security standards that are attainable. The certification process should be timely as well. ADP should do the same. We have tremendous amounts of data in our systems at our disposal. Any company with a product that can help us harvest the data should have access to it with our permission if we choose provided that certain security parameters are met.

Bottom Line...i haven't seen one company that can be all things to all people. That's why migrating toward an open source environment is huge so we can have a centralized name file along with sales and service records that are accessible and parsable by all that are given permission to do so in a secure fashion.
 
#37
andwrig said:
I think the major issue for all of us should be the unwavering support of an open data exchange protocol or an "Open Source" environment whereby third party vendors can freely interact with the DMS providers while keeping data secure. I have urged Bob Brockman and his team at Reynolds to continue to support the Reynolds Certified Interface program. Vendors claim its expensive and onerous. Reynolds should make it cost effective while maintaining a set of security standards that are attainable. The certification process should be timely as well. ADP should do the same. We have tremendous amounts of data in our systems at our disposal. Any company with a product that can help us harvest the data should have access to it with our permission if we choose provided that certain security parameters are met.

Bottom Line...i haven't seen one company that can be all things to all people. That's why migrating toward an open source environment is huge so we can have a centralized name file along with sales and service records that are accessible and parsable by all that are given permission to do so in a secure fashion.
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This is why Arkona is changing the game, because it is an open system. It is very easy to integrate with and the integration costs are inexpensive. Quite the opposite of other DMS providers.

As a vendor, I'm a big Arkona fan because of the integration they support. :hello:
 
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