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iPads in Dealership

He says the difference between showing payments on paper vs. "under glass" is unbelievable.
When dealerships changed to printed worksheets with payment grids & options, instead of handwritten worksheets & 4-squares, the level of professionalism and trust increased. I can definitely see how there will be more trust and professionalism that is gained by moving "under the glass." Not to mention it would decrease the amount of time you spend going back and forth to the desk and printing out the worksheets. Must be a nice CRM ;)
 
There was a company at digital dealer speaking of the dangers of securing an IPAD connected to the dealers WIFI.

Maybe it was just hype to get their services or maybe there is some things to watch for.

Could we get the IT guys reading this thread to share some opinions on this?
 
There was a company at digital dealer speaking of the dangers of securing an IPAD connected to the dealers WIFI.

Maybe it was just hype to get their services or maybe there is some things to watch for.

Could we get the IT guys reading this thread to share some opinions on this?

I don't doubt there is a need for this service somewhere. And I could back it up if I REALLY needed to, but my opinion is that most people won't need this.

Think of it like a home security. You could go away on vacation for 3 weeks with the doors unlocked, windows open, and let everybody in the neighborhood know you are away on vacation. Come back and everything will be in place as you left it. On the other hand, you could go out and drop 100k (nobody has a 100k home security system) on the latest and greatest. Go to sell some cars, come back, and have everything broken into.

It's like anything. If it's being used the wrong way and you let the wrong people around it. There's a chance you could have issues. Pretty much as long as everything is public facing (so for example your website .. something everybody can see) or is https you will be OK. YES, there are many other ways to capture the data to and from, but I HIGHLY doubt you need to worry about it.

I know I said it earlier in the thread, but you should be more worried about a pissed off employee getting their hands on it or a customer with lack of tech knowledge swiping it. Whether they hop off with it and throw it out the window on I-95 and let a tractor trailer run over it or try and sell it to the local pawn shop for a couple extra bucks. You are looking at a bit of a headache.

Long story short, make sure they are in the hands of the right people, keep tabs on them, and make sure people aren't using them for personal use or doing anything shady on them.
 
We have a number dealerships using iPads on the sales floor. The feedback has been very positive from the stores. Upping customers while walking the lot and during test drives etc... I've seen a Griffen case used that has a strap on the back to help the user hold it.
 
I had my first B2B walk in presentation of dealership IPad software yesterday, so it's interesting that this topic came up. Much like Quinn mentioned in the blog section, the playing field is changing and this will become big. I think getting someone to combine the right mix of data into one software based app without infringing on copywrite laws would be difficult. If the solution is to just send people out with an internet enabled device so that the sales person could go after the right data as it becomes requested, then I would contend success would be awarded to the most tech savvy salesperson at the dealership. Good software would make this easy for anyone.

This will really take off when the CRM vendors make a complete commitment to offering a mobile product that isn't just a "mobile version" of their CRM. It would be an actual sales process app with all the right info and accessibility, and would work directly with their coinciding desktop CRM software. This would allow dealers to make smooth transitions from their current process to a mobile process, while enabling dealers that want to take the desktop off the desk to really rock and roll at a much reduced monthly obligation. When the powers that be figure this out, it will be the new norm...