Dealertrack eMenu for iPad transforms aftermarket selling into an interactive experience that will capture the attention of your customers. Showcase your F&I product offerings to increase sales and profits while delivering consistent presentations.
Most of your customers already use an iPad for routine tasks. Change their routine, put on a show, and personalize the sales process for each customer. Data is collected in real-time from the iPad survey tool, providing instant feedback on their interests. Your F&I manager will receive an email with survey results, page views and specific information on the products and videos viewed.
eMenu for iPad Overview
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To schedule a free demo or learn more, call us today or fill out the form on this page.
The Power of INSIGHT and the Power to WOW:
Drive home key selling points using the latest in video, mobile and interactive drag-and-drop technology.
Rate and present your dealership’s package configurations or make adjustments on the fly from the touchscreen.
Create an individualized presentation using customer data collected in real-time from our survey tool.
Customers can submit their survey responses from the user-friendly touchscreen for automatic email delivery to your F&I manager.
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Posted by Martin D'Amato on December 20, 2012 at 10:00pm
While at work I received a text message from a buddy of mine with the new Google Maps App URL. I immediately downloaded the app and began to play around with it. Currently my cell phone service is Verizon and I have been using VZ Navigator. At only $2.99 a month, it is a great deal for anyone who does not have a navigation system or a vehicle with navigation installed. Google Maps App, being FREE, does the exact same thing so I used that for my ride home from work to test it out. I noticed a few glitches, but with anything new those kind of things are going to happen. The next day I was off and wanted to check out some furniture stores. I typed in the Google Maps app “furniture store” and immediately several local stores came up.
But here is the “GAME CHANGER”…
During my search, it gave me each stores Google Places ranting!! Wow!! I didn’t do any homework before I left the house, and now I didn’t have too! I had all the information during my drive. I was able to see which store had 2 stars and which store had 5 stars. I was able to see who to avoid at each store while in my car, while on my phone driving to the location!
My mind immediately turned to my business, the car business. How many customers are driving to your dealership using this app and notice a terrible review? How many of those same people punch in your competitors store who have a higher ranting through Google and head over there? It is going to happen more times then not.
The majority of buyers in today’s market are Gen X and Gen Y. I, myself am Gen Y. I, myself bypassed a store because of a negative review during my drive to that same exact store.
Google Maps App is going to change the game. It is going to cause customers to detour from their original route and head directly towards a safe place to shop. I did… And I consider myself no different then any other shopper out there.
This past week, I made the risky move of upgrading to the newly released Windows 8 operating system; Microsoft’s bold attempt at upgrading their OS which has kept the same fundamental functionality for more than a decade. While slightly hesitant to upgrade before a service pack was available, I ultimately chose to take advantage of Microsoft’s limited time $39.99 upgrade offer. Talk about utilizing the "urgency" close right?
As I’ve played around with the new OS for the past few days, I’ve made some observations that may turn out to be a prediction of a new technological frontier for dealers who are looking to kick things into high gear... or I may just be out to lunch. Whatever your opinion may be, just go with me on this for a minute.
New Windows 8 Features
The most noticeable of all the new features for Windows 8, is the shiny new start screen which really acts as a dashboard to your most visited apps. Though some critics complain that Windows 8 is optimized for tablets, I haven’t had any problems finding my way around with a mouse.
Microsoft has redesigned the UI for many of their apps and have included some new apps, all of which come with a very streamlined and integrated experience. Among my favorites are the new music player app which comes loaded with the ability to stream full length music and a new “smart dj” tool that automatically creates a playlist based on an artist genre of your choosing.
How Dealers Could Benefit From Windows 8
Thanks for listening to me ‘nerd out’ for a second. Let me get to how car dealers could actually use Windows 8 to leverage new business and reach larger groups of car shoppers in their own home.
What got me me thinking was the newly added “Store” app which allows users to browse from a variety of both paid and free applications. Simply select the category of app you wish to download and you have the ability to select from hundreds if not thousands of apps to have installed on your PC. If you know your way around the app store or play market, this will be quite easy for you.
Imagine what would happen if you created a Windows 8 app that was compatible on both desktop PCs and Windows tablets? There has been a lot of talk around whether or not Dealers should develop iPhone and Android apps vs. keeping with dealership mobile websites, but think about the doors you could unlock by tapping into an even larger traffic source!
Let’s talk numbers. By 2008 (according to Forrester), there were 1,000,000,000 (Billion) PCs in use with a forecast of 2 billion in use by the end of 2015. It took 27 years to reach the 1 billion mark and will only take 7 years (from 2008) to reach 2 billion. If that’s not simply incredible to you consider that the average number of PCs needing to be sold year after year since 2008 is 142,857,142 in order to reach the forecasted target by 2015.
Now, have you purchased a new PC lately? Don’t they come pre-loaded with a Windows operating system? According to Amazon, every new PC sold between June 2, 2012 and January 31, 2013 will receive a special upgrade offer of only $14.99, thus placing Windows 8 well within the reach of hundreds of millions of people.
Just To Get The Juices Flowing
Consider how many of the 142,857,142 PC buyers this year are also in the market to purchase a vehicle or are at least conducting some level of vehicle research. I’ll tell you what - that new Microsoft ‘Store App’ is pretty fun to navigate and somehow sucks you in just like Apple’s famed App store and Android’s Play Market, so imagine what competitive advantage you’d have by placing your dealership and your brand in front of the masses.
I envision a personalized shopping experience filled with user reviews, dealership videos, blogs and news. Since the app is installed on the personal computer, (and I’m just thinking out loud here), imagine if there was a way to have your app send notifications to your potential customer's calendar, email, social networks and more. I think this is just the tip of the iceberg and if done strategically, dealers could tap into a massive market of vehicle shoppers.
To take it one step further, though Windows 7 and 8 tablets don’t contribute much to tablet sales as of current, Windows 8 tablets are forecasted to help tablet sales increase by 4% according to Gartner. Apple still remains king of the mobile arena with roughly 60% market share, however,with an estimated 117,000,000 tablet shipments in 2012 alone, 4% works out to 4,680,000 (4.68 million) Windows 8 Tablet shipments and that is more than enough users to inject your dealership with some serious prospects.
In closing, let me say that there are many, many avenues to help drum up new business. I had the pleasure of attending Lon Safko’s keynote at AutoCon in which he enlightened us on the various social media marketing opportunities from Facebook to Second Life. I swear - by the end of his presentation there were multiple silent explosions in people’s heads, followed by smoke trailing out of their ears.
The point is that there are sooooo many ways to prospect for new business and technology, whether revamped or emerging provides you with more ways to reach out to potential buyers than ever before. Windows 8 is just another example of something you could use to leverage new business for your dealership.
What do you think? Kindly leave your comments below. Happy developing.
Everyone Knows that Dealer Synergy's Chief Trainer is LA Williams and LA, is blind. S, when I saw this article my first thought was how this could benefit him AND our Dealer Community. You see, what has been amazing is that LA does such a tremendous job that a lot of our dealership network have actually went out and recruited BLIND employees! Yes, thats right we have dealerships that have Blind or Visually Impaired Automotive Internet Sales, BDC, Call Center staff members.
Here is the article I saw and wanted to share with you all -
Android App Makes Smartphones Accessible for the Blind
When someone buys their first smartphone, the first question is usually, what apps should I get? Apps are part of what make our phones so valuable to us, from getting directions to finding a place nearby to eat, to keeping track of various items when we travel.
And now, thanks to a man who is visually-impaired himself, there’s an Android app that will turn a regular smartphone into a powerful tool for the blind.
Roger Wilson-Hinds, director and co-founder of Screenreader, built the app, called Georgie, specifically to help blind users navigate day-to-day obstacles like catching a bus, reading printed text and knowing exactly where they are at all times.
“It’s the first smartphone that’s been designed for blind people by blind people,” he said. And he should know, he just recently sent his very first text message.
Users can buy an Android smartphone pre-loaded with the Georgie software from Sight and Sound Technology, which provides hardware and software solutions for the blind. If they already own an Android phone, they can buy the app from the Google Play store and install it themselves.
Georgie uses fingers and gestures to let users navigate the software, just like you do normally. However, with Georgie, you hold your finger down, wait for a beep and hear the function you’re touching read out loud, whether it’s to make a call, send a text, or determine your location. Georgie makes extensive use of voice control software.
“Georgie is a suite of applications designed to cater for every single part of a visually-impaired person’s life,” says Glenn Tookey, CEO of Sight and Sound Technology, which distributes the software.
Users can purchase and download additional apps that provide more functions. The lifestyle app pack, for instance, offers newspapers that read aloud, and an online blog that lets you post using voice control. The Travel app has a feature that flags nearby points of interest as well as a sort of bus monitor that will verbally let you know when the next bus is due.
Wilson-Hinds, who named the software after his blind wife’s first seeing-eye dog, says Georgie will “totally change the lives of blind and partially-sighted people all over the world.”
The world, soon, as Georgie is branching out beyond the UK. US Android users can find the link in the Google Play store here. Sight and Sound Technology is currently working with distributors to offer Georgie pre-installed on handsets in the US.
Here’s a video so you can see for yourself how Georgie works:
What are other ways technology is allowing people with disabilities to gain more independence? Is Georgie something you would buy for someone you know?
Many of you already have websites which are (hopefully) integrated with your offline advertising channels (radio, tv, billboard, newspaper, magazines, direct mail), and you probably generate a substantial part of your traffic and leads through this channel.
What if I were to tell you that Google has made a game changing, strategic move that could reduce your online leads, traffic and profits considerably within the next 2 – 5 years if you do NOT pay attention to the implications of that move?
Google spent $12.5Billion last year to acquire Motorola Mobility, and this acquisition was so strategically important that Google spent more than 41% of it’s free cash for the deal. Now, why would Google bet almost half its cash reserves to make this deal? Is this acquisition telling you something about the future of the internet that WILL have a profound impact on your business if you ignore it? Note that, Google almost OWNS the internet today, but was willing to bet nearly half of its cash reserves to get into the mobile app design solutions playing field!
To understand why, consider these facts:
The Whole World Is Going MOBILE!
· There are 5.2Billion mobile phones worldwide and growing rapidly
· There are 1.1billion smart phones worldwide and growing rapidly
· About 80% of US households have mobile phones
· In the US, about 25% of mobile web users are mobile ONLY!
· A whopping 10% of Google’s page views are mobile
· About 83% of people go online to find a business
Bottom Line: Mobile apps are now replacing web sites. And if you are not thinking about or taking steps TODAY to integrate your existing websites with mobile, you will slowly find yourself out of business!
So What Do You Do?
Fortunately for the small to medium sized business person, there is still time to act, even though the window is closing fast! There are a few, affordable, scalable and functionally powerful ; cross platform mobile app solutions on the market for you.
What Features MUST You Look For In Your Mobile App Design Solution?
· Your App Must Have Cross Platform Capability – Must work on Iphones, Ipads, Android, Windows, Blackberry and if you can afford it, Kindle and Nook!
· Push Notification – This feature allows you to send unlimited offers/coupons to ALL your customers who have opted to download your app ( at NO additional charge)!
o And by the way, the open rate on push notifications is 97% within 5 minutes, vs. only 4% for emails and even lower for newsletters!
GPS Direction – One tap by your customer; and directions to your business is displayed!
Quick Response (QR) Coupons – Can be used to download your apps and also as a ‘frequent buyer” card similar to the paper cards used by coffee shops, etc
Tap To Call – One tap, and device calls your business, no more fumbling to find a # and dial
Tap To Email – For your newsletter, etc
Mobile Appointment Scheduling/Reminders – For the Service Division - Should integrate with your existing platform and allow you to schedule and/or remind customers of upcoming service by text messaging.
Simple, Inexpensive, Complete Integration: Your app must be capable of handling the existing functionality and features on your website, and must be scalable to handle future changes. You must not accept high cost, ongoing code changes.
Guaranteed Submission & Acceptance Into Apple I-Stores & Android Market Place: Your app is no good unless it is accepted by Apple & Google. Your mobile app developer must have the credibility and ability to deliver your app to Apple and Google!
Finally, WHY Should You Consider Getting A Mobile APP? Your current and/or future customers comprise the majority of the ‘untethered” consumer. Whoever is in their pockets (via smart phone app), will COMMAND their attention, loyalty and $$$ dollars!
Their smart phone are within reach 24/7
97% of them will open/read your messages/coupons or offers within 5 minutes, vs. only 4% for email (within 24hrs)
It Is A Question Of ROI And Profitability- Your mobile app will help you better integrate and tie together ALL your online and offline marketing channels. and reduce your advertising seepage!
Your websites must be integrated and connected to your mobile apps.
You will reduce advertising expense seepage, and with the same amount of ad spend, you should expect to get more customers, keep your existing customers coming back more often and buying more often from you.
A mobile app allows you to have a one on one intimate communication with your customers
Constant Branding – You are right ON your customers’ mobile device 24/7!
Users can purchase and download additional apps that provide more functions. The lifestyle app pack, for instance, offers newspapers that read aloud, and an online blog that lets you post using voice control. The Travel app has a feature that flags nearby points of interest as well as a sort of bus monitor that will verbally let you know when the next bus is due.