What is the most competitively priced CRM?

[dmacanada]

Hi, I am new to the forum, I am searching for a competitively priced Automotive CRM in the market. Due to slower economy today, I really don't want to spend 2000-5000 per month for some over priced software that was build in 1982. Any suggestions on a cost effective solution? I am a small used car dealership. Thank you. Preferred range per month 200-400.

 

[VJnator]

Hello and welcome:
I had in the past used for al of my dealership AVV Webcontrol due to budget cuts. It is an inexpensive solution, which is around the desired budget you'd like to see. They are offering different module for Floor Sales Mgmt and Internet Sales Mgmt.
Hope that will help to narrow down your search.

All the best and Happy New Year,
Volker Jaeckel (a.k.a. VJ)
Digital Marketing Ambassador
Cobalt Group

 

[sburges2]

Hello and welcome:
I had in the past used for al of my dealership AVV Webcontrol due to budget cuts. It is an inexpensive solution, which is around the desired budget you'd like to see. They are offering different module for Floor Sales Mgmt and Internet Sales Mgmt.
Hope that will help to narrow down your search.

All the best and Happy New Year,
Volker Jaeckel (a.k.a. VJ)
Digital Marketing Ambassador
Cobalt Group

Ditto- you just quoted exactly what I tell people when they are looking for inexpensive, first time Inet Sales Mgmt tools- it's easy to use and learn with! Plus it has the necessary bells and whistles- including low pricing!

 

[Jerry Thibeau]

Remember the old saying: "you get what you pay for." Well that holds true for CRM. For your preferred price range you're not going to get a whole lot in the way of a really good CRM system. You might find a good ILM for the upper part of your range. Of course that's not going to do you a whole lot of good for the other aspects of your business.

In my opinion CRM is not something you should be scrimping on. If it's a matter of keeping the lights on, it's all the more reason to find the right product. When used effectively, a good CRM tool will help you sell more cars and help you manage your dealership.

You don't have to spend 5K to get a good CRM product. A lot of the CRM vendors will modularize their products so you can grow into them. I've seen some of the better solutions go for as low as $1500. Remember times are still tough out there and some of the CRM vendors will negotiate with you. If they drop their price too quickly, I would be a little leery. Stay away from contracts. CRM with no contract = confidence in product.

I hope that helps.

 

[mattwatson81]

For $400 you could get a pretty good ILM product, but definitely not a worthwhile CRM. Cheapest CRM price I have ever seen was around $800.

I would recommend looking at different vendors and comparing while thinking about your short and long term CRM needs. Some have a lot of functionality/add on modules so you could start simple and grow. While some are very simple and don't have any add-on functionality. It just all depends on what you are looking for.

Here are some of the major features to look for of a complete CRM solution

Overall ease of use for salespeople
Inventory integration - Do you have access to all your inventory including full details, pricing, pictures and more (Would be good to know what you are selling.)
Internet lead functions - Can you easily email pictures and details about your inventory?
Showroom traffic - Can you track the activity that occurred in the showroom and do unsold follow up based on it?
Mobile CRM - Responding to leads from a mobile device is a must have. Manufacturers are about to require it.
Desking integration - If you want the managers to use the CRM, it better have good desking
Vehicle Valuations/Book out - Does it allow you to do trade appraisals and price inventory?
Reporting - Are there a lot of reports and can you build your own custom reports?
Marketing Campaigns - Can you mine your data to market to unsold, sold, and service customers?
Service department - Does it pull in service ROs for follow up and so you can see customer value
Phone PBX integration - Does it track inbound and outbound phone calls?
Dealer group functions - Centralized BDC/internet department functions, plus dealer group reporting

I'm sure I forgot some things.

As you can see... a full CRM has a lot of functionality. A fully featured CRM could integrate with over 100 other vendors and products. It is expensive and complicated software to create, maintain, and support. You get what you pay for.

I wouldn't expect to find a good CRM under $1,500 a month. There are also a few vendors that don't require contracts.

 

[Jerry Thibeau]

dmanada,

You'd be wise to have the boy genius above me line up a demo for you. He may look young, but he's built a really nice product. I've seen it first hand. I'd also look at iMagicLab and Dealer Socket. That reminds me, I have to call them to setup a demo.

 

[Ed Braunbeck]

Hi, I am new to the forum, I am searching for a competitively priced Automotive CRM in the market. Due to slower economy today, I really don't want to spend 2000-5000 per month for some over priced software that was build in 1982. Any suggestions on a cost effective solution? I am a small used car dealership. Thank you. Preferred range per month 200-400.

Thanks for the recommendations. We are happy to discuss your needs if you would like to chat.

Sincerely,

 

[dmacanada]

Thank you guys for the advice and suggestions. I appreciate your inputs. I guess the lower end of a CRM will run me 1500 regardless. Is there a setup fee with that?

 

[mattwatson81]

Thank you guys for the advice and suggestions. I appreciate your inputs. I guess the lower end of a CRM will run me 1500 regardless. Is there a setup fee with that?

Yes there will probably be setup fees from almost any vendor unless you sign a contract and they roll the costs in to the contract.

I can't speak for other CRM companies, but we have a huge team of people that are involved with setting up new accounts to ensure that the dealer's accounts are setup correctly so they will be happy and successful customers. That all takes time and costs money. So there are setup fees.

If a CRM vendor just turned your account on and didn't help you setup their software or train you on it, it would never be successful.

 

[Alex Snyder]

Remember the old saying: "you get what you pay for." Well that holds true for CRM. For your preferred price range you're not going to get a whole lot in the way of a really good CRM system. You might find a good ILM for the upper part of your range. Of course that's not going to do you a whole lot of good for the other aspects of your business.

In my opinion CRM is not something you should be scrimping on. If it's a matter of keeping the lights on, it's all the more reason to find the right product. When used effectively, a good CRM tool will help you sell more cars and help you manage your dealership.

You don't have to spend 5K to get a good CRM product. A lot of the CRM vendors will modularize their products so you can grow into them. I've seen some of the better solutions go for as low as $1500. Remember times are still tough out there and some of the CRM vendors will negotiate with you. If they drop their price too quickly, I would be a little leery. Stay away from contracts. CRM with no contract = confidence in product.

I hope that helps.

and have an article on the way for the DealerRefresh Blog that might have you thinking about raising your budget to get a strong CRM.