Blueprint Series: Automotive CRM Solutions

[Todd Brooks]

Jeff,

To expand on this topic, how about lead data augmentation, segmentation and scoring within CRM products. The standard data that comes with a lead is fine, but what additional data would users like in their CRM to help with working and closing leads?

 

[umer.autojini]

I would add these to CRM...
1. Gives me same functionality as SalesGenius.com so I can see if prospect opened my emails... visited the site...
2. Send service reminders.
3. Searches by email address... or other data... provides me any sites where customer profile is one... they have commented... on... facebook, myspace, linkedin... etc... etc...
4. Integrates with route one or other financial companies...
5. Has built-in support for commission Calculation... something like QCommission or Xactly Incent...
6. I can view current and previous marketing material... all postcards, newspaper ads, adwords... etc...
7. and most important of all... it can handle reports for any vendor... so I only have to log into to one place to view my reports... and better yet... able to link the third party reports to data in my CRM.

 

[Jeff Kershner]

I want my CRM company to truly understand CAN SPAM and actually monitor their email servers and take whatever measures in order to stay on the whitelists that way my emails make it into the inbox of Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail and all the rest! Most CRM vendors say they take the proper measure but they are foll of CRAP! And if you have a CRM that allows you to just BLAST out email campaigns, this is your first red flag.

I'd like to have a CRM to match up "like models/trim" of new and used inventory according to what the customer requested. From there, allow me to click on the inventory that I want to import into my email. While you do that, give me the flexibility to format the inventory data anyway I want. Automatically place a link to that car on my website in the email as well.

When I call for tech support, that the person I'm calling actually know more about the CRM then myself.

I've only started!

 

[John Meadows]

There seems to be a huge disparity between what is currently available and what advanced users would like in a useable format. Certainly, current systems are capable of doing much of what is listed in this string. The problem is the learning curve to implement and maintain those systems. You almost need a programmer to be able to keep up with demand.

A CRM needs to have some level of "intuition". Multiple non-linked pages to add, transfer, delete, etc. users and customers keep the dealerships in the "training mode" as attrition of sales people is a constant theme.

Outsourcing of these programs (BDC, sales followup, service followup, marketing) is going to continue to increase if we can not implement a user-friendly and cost effective solution long term to the CRM world.

Unfortunately, many of the CRM decisions are controlled by the accounting world of the DMS. So, I would look for a DMS/CRM solution that best meets the needs of the dealership group.

I was hoping that Microsoft's entry to this area would be a significant alternative. It does not appear that is the case in the near future.

 

[Ashley Antonio]

I want to thank a few CRM tech support reps for making me feel super smart, insanely angry and on the verge of severe verbal abuse all at the same time. Is there a ticket they can put in which says
"I have no idea what you are asking me and why it's relevant. Or what you are trying to do and frankly I don't care."
And where do these tickets go anyway? I never hear back concerning my issue until bad Ashley comes out. Then I end up explaining the quite simple thing I was trying to do in the first place to 4 or 5 different people who all put in a "ticket" while I become more and more frustrated.
Can any of you relate?

 

[Jeff Kershner]

Totally relating to "Bad Ashley"!! That's your new name by the way.

 

[Alex Snyder (blog)]

Can we relate....c'mon Ashley, are you serious? That one crosses over the CRM threshold into so many different automotive-vendor arenas. As for CRM companies, the one we're with now is so bad you can't get anything done unless you speak to a Vice President.....and this is a HUGE company (one of the two Automotive biggest....but I won't say exactly who it is), so you can imagine how hard it is to talk to a VP. I'd rather pay $150 a minute to Microsoft to talk to their tech support in India than waste my time talking to one of the _ _ _ (not saying who it is) support reps in America for free. In fact, they're a major inspiration for this thread and why I've become such an expert on what features every other CRM company has.

You did nail a major feature request on the head Ashley: Customer Support. I would like a CRM with customer support that does not have the word "no" in their dictionary. You're catering to sales staff - in fact - your support is probably catering to senior sales staff and management. These are people who typically "get it". I have to spend 5-10 minutes of every support call trying to make the support rep understand I wasn't born yesterday - I almost think I should send my high school transcripts, SAT scores, college diplomas, and resume before calling. Then I should play a recording of everything the CRM salesperson said to us before we signed the contract.....and remind them our CRM salesperson was a VP, CFO, CEO, etc. Okay, I need to stop, I feel my blood pressure rising. I'll end this little rant by saying there is an ENORMOUSLY HUGE disconnect between tech support and corporate ideology at most companies (not just CRM).

Request: How about making customer support history accessible to the customer?

 

[Jeff Kershner]

Yes, Alex! "customer support history accessible". Totally!!

When I was using a CRM that my sales people coined "Lower Gear" every time I would ask for the history of our customer support, it was like pulling teeth to get it.

I remember asking the support guy for our history and he told me "Ok, i"ll probably loose my job but whatever". I told him with an attitude like that he out to quite his job.

My point is, allowing me the see the history was not something they seemed to excited. This was a few years ago and policy's might had changed by now.

I second you request for accessible customer support history.

 

[Mitch]

As I've said dozens of times... give me a usage report, and not only will I be able to tell who is adopting the system and who isn't, but I'll be able to defend the CRM vendor when a Sales Manager (who opens the tool once a week) tells the owner the product sucks. Why a CRM vendor wouldn't want to show client usage reports is a mystery to me.

And looking way down the road (for most dealers anyway), we need the capability to add customers to our DB for reasons other than "new Sales lead"... as we move into the era of opting in and subscribing to blogs, etc. As it stands now for most CRMs, where would you enter a new prospect who opted into email updates on your web site? Or a customer who read your blog and submitted their contact info just so they could leave a comment? As a regular new lead? They're not a lead, and they shouldn't be counted or f/u'd as one. The whole customer record concept needs to be expanded to include Sales/Service/Finance/Parts/Other histories, and you should be able to plug a new customer in through any of those histories independently. A guy who lives across the country just bought a new grille from Parts? Great... plug him in as a new prospect in Parts, not Sales or Service.

 

[Jeff Larsen (blog)]

Relating to the frustrations as Bad Ashley...

I wish for a CRM tool that helps me sell more cars, not beta test their product.

I wish for a CRM company NOT to sell me on the features/benefits of the product that are not finished or do not work at all, then leaving their skeleton tech support crew to clean up the mess.

Meanwhile, I look like a jerk (being nice) to dealership management for selling them on a product that takes more time to troubleshoot, work around bugs, and anxiously awaiting for the over-worked/under-staffed tech support to respond with a VALID answer or solution.