Dealer Mobility Ecosystem: How We Made Friends of Official Dealers With Their Customers
There is nothing new in the fact that mobile applications designed to improve the efficiency of workflows and communications are a very effective sales tool. But no matter how developed universal theories of sales, mobile applications in each industry have their own specifics. Today we will talk about the automotive segment on the example of the platform Dealer Mobility . Currently, it is used by 700 car dealers and more than 500,000 car owners.
Unlike the IT market, the automotive segment is not used to constantly updating technology. This is a rather inert market, the implementation of IT solutions, as a rule, is coordinated for a long time at all levels - from the dealer to the representative office of the auto concern or even the central office somewhere in Korea. Customers are still offered to install multimedia systems with a CD changer in the car, and dealers manage to sell these systems for big money. Therefore, it is necessary to promote something new carefully, with healthy conservatism. How to find the only way that will lead the development to success in the car market is a very interesting question.
The first question that arises when considering any new IT solutions is “why”. Historically, car dealers successfully traded cars and accessories, and also served previously sold cars without additional IT solutions. Some companies are implementing CRM and other corporate systems in their own companies to increase efficiency, but such transformations are difficult and, more likely, for a minority. So why retreat from the usual rhythm?
')
As practice shows, the market itself is forcing to seek and implement some kind of "chips". A few years ago, mobile apps were just a way to demonstrate a certain status. Undoubtedly, this function remained with them (moreover, if at first the presence of the mobile application spoke of “advanced”, now the opposite is true - its absence indicates excessive conservatism), but a serious marketing component was added to it. Now it is a tool to retain customers and increase the average bill.
On average, the client stays with the official car dealer from 3 to 5 years - during the warranty period of the purchased car. The task of the dealership is to keep the customer in the transition from warranty to post-warranty service. And here the price of the service plays an important role, which is often higher for the officials. But, as in other markets, the personalized attitude, convenience and transparency of the service can outweigh the financial benefits of care for the "unofficial".
A mobile application in a smartphone that accompanies the user everywhere and always is a great way to put these ideas into practice. First of all, it is an effective marketing tool. Having certain information about the customer (at least about his car model), the dealer can use the mobile application to report on special promotions and discounts, targeting and personalizing the offer. We receive a reminder about the dealer, and additional sales during the customer's life cycle.
Practice shows that, on average, the conversion of offers into bids from a mobile application is 5-10 times higher compared to a site. According to our internal data, for an average dealer, the cost of attracting one customer to a service from a mobile application is about 150 rubles. With an average check on the service 15-20K it is very effective.
In addition, the application brings a higher level of online communication with customers. The usual SMS mailings and “cold” calls have low conversion and are noticeably expensive (for example, the cost of a message in two parts is about 7 rubles, and a call through a callback is 70; taking into account the scale of the base of cold messages and calling the average dealer, such an advertisement quite expensive). E-mail newsletters also do not shine with conversion (according to Silverpop's 2015 Email marketing metrics benchmark study, CTR e-mail mailings in the automotive industry are within 8.8%; on average, the CTR does not exceed 2.8%, and For some companies, this ratio is zero - this is the worst indicator among industries). In addition, mass mailings are automatically blocked by spam filters, without even seeing the potential client.
This, by the way, also applies to mass non-personalized mailings via free instant messengers. Applications for goods or services from the dealer's own site, Google Adwords or the marketplace of car-care center services (taking into account the division of budget into site / placement by the total number of received applications) will cost even more (700 rubles for the site; 350 rubles for the marketplace; 70 rubles - Google. Adwords). A notification via a mobile application does not require large investments. Moreover, within the framework of this communication channel, if the corresponding tools are available, the client can initiate the autocenter itself.
Read what our client from Krasnodar says about us. “We understand that the application will not be for us the main channel of communication. But this is a working tool that we actively use. For example, now we are testing the attraction of users to the application through the site, ”commented Ivan Nikitenko, head of the Internet advertising department at the Klyuchavto auto holding. "And getting leads and saving on SMS messages for us now amounts to about 40-50 thousand a year," the expert concludes.
For the automotive market, the development of any IT solutions is not a core activity, respectively, using the resources of our own IT department in the dealership center will not work. Thus, the auto center has two ways:
The second way is simpler and shorter, since it does not imply a deep analysis of the functional requirements on the customer’s side (car dealer), the elaboration of technical specifications, testing and other stages of custom development. In addition, it reduces the financial risks due to the monthly subscription fee for the platform instead of advances to developers; plus the company at the start sees what it pays for.
“We considered a lot of options, focusing on two: either make your own platform or use ready-made software. At the same time, Dealer Mobility was the only comprehensive solution, ”says Ivan Nikitenko.
Such a project is not limited to the development of a mobile solution and includes the implementation phase, which requires strong marketing support. It is important to encourage new and current customers to install a mobile application and correctly explain the benefits of using it. With custom development, taking into account the risks associated with the dealer lacking experience with the mobile application market, this will require additional costs. When using a ready-made platform, the task is simplified - usually, some help is provided by the developers. For example, in the case of Dealer Mobility, this is the case.
Dealer Mobility is a platform that allows you to create mobile applications for dealership clients. Due to the integration with the IT infrastructure of the center itself, the application reduces the cost and partially automates the processes of interaction with customers. So, with its help, you can accept applications for service, sell accessories or receive feedback from visitors. For end customers, this is a way to simplify and make more transparent the process of buying and servicing a car from a dealer: using a smartphone, you can monitor the status of a purchase order for a car or repair it, sign up for a service, analyze telematic data (via OBD), which allows to optimize the manner drive, leave your comments about the work of employees.
The Dealer Mobility platform was born from the classic Customer Development - product development commissioned by one large car dealer working with premium brands. We saw that the solution was promising, we generalized the capabilities of the product within the framework of the platform and began to introduce it to other customers. Subsequently, on the basis of the work done, a more flexible independent product was formed that solves the problems characteristic of a large number of representatives of the auto business.
Initially, the solution was focused on dealerships and small dealer networks. However, over time, we adapted it for larger customers and importers with specific business processes, including those working in different time zones.
It should be noted that the work of individual dealers has its own characteristics. For example, car manufacturers may require dealers to adhere to certain design guides or to adhere to specific business processes specific to the network. On the one hand, many of these features are reflected in the platform, and on the other hand, the product team is quite restrained about which of the solutions originally demanded by only one client can be unified and used throughout the platform (i.e. in the future other customers) because Initially, Dealer Mobility is still a scalable product that should satisfy the needs of the majority in the “boxed” form.
The platform includes two main components: the mobile application directly installed on end-user (car owners) smartphones and the dealer control panel, if necessary integrated with its IT infrastructure.
The mobile component of the solution is represented by applications for iOS and Android, which customers can download from official Apple and Google stores — the dealer’s website contains relevant links to the markets or the Smart App Banner, shown to visitors calling from mobile devices.
At the moment, the monthly active audience of mobile applications Dealer Mobility is about 70 thousand users, and the total number of downloads has exceeded 500 thousand. The most popular sections are special offers and news, connection with the dealer, service, maintenance and test drive. From recently introduced a very popular card refueling with prices.
The dealer can customize the capabilities of the application and change the content through the control panel on the Dealer Mobility portal. The solution may not depend on the IT infrastructure of the dealer or integrate with its systems (DMS - Dealership Management System) through special services. In the first case, the representatives of the auto dealer respond to the applications, conduct dialogues with users and manage the content of the application only through the portal. In the second - on the contrary, the control panel as such is practically not used - you can respond to applications and perform other actions directly in the internal systems (application data will be automatically synchronized).
The platform is offered to dealers as a service with a subscription fee of 20 thousand per month, depending on the functionality and the number of connected centers.
Dealer Mobility supports various scenarios of integration with dealer systems, allowing you to use one or several modules:
The most popular tools are to synchronize applications and their statuses, display and update in the application the status of a car purchase order and the balance of points for the loyalty program. In addition, dealers are accustomed to automatically updating the lists of cars on sale - just like ads on any trading platform such as auto.ru, avito. Due to the integration, you can quickly adjust the list of cars in stock (new, with mileage) or other products, such as branded accessories.
If necessary, you can further configure the synchronization of the news feed in the attached with the news on the dealer website, as well as the synchronization of personal data of users in the application and in the personal account.
Importers are available additional integration options, depending on the characteristics of business processes. For example, for a large network of centers, this could be an automatic update of contact information for all departments and employees.
The extent of interference with the existing IT infrastructure of the dealer depends on its initial state. Until recently, business processes related to client communications in companies from the non-IT segment were rather archaic. Not all CRM systems existed in principle, and customer information was re-collected and updated by phone with each call. But the need to optimize customer retention costs is pushing dealers to make a difference. In some cases, the desire of automakers to improve the performance of their dealer networks, including through more modern IT solutions, is decisive. With this in mind, integration can mean not just installation and configuration of integration services, but become part of a project on large-scale business process transformations with the goal of increasing their efficiency.
It should be noted that the success and speed of integration is largely dependent on the participation of the dealer itself in this process. We provide full support: our account managers, together with technical specialists, help dealerships with the integration of the solution and report on all new features.
Dealer Mobility develops in two directions: the platform itself receives new opportunities and, in parallel, paid revision is performed to the requirements of individual customers, if the functions they need are not intended to scale to the solution as a whole. The update comes out once a quarter.
Such a significant step between releases due to the number of our customers. We prepare plans for the development of the platform as a whole (whether it be the introduction of new functions or changes in UI / UX) in advance, and we are testing all the innovations as part of webinars with customers before the start of implementation. In general, updates are planned for the year ahead, in detail - for the quarter.
Too bold design or functional solutions (from visual or functional fantasies offered by customers) are not welcome, especially since the update process must adhere to restrictions from Apple and Google. But for 2017, a smooth update of the Dealer Mobility interface is already planned. When developing new functions, emphasis will be placed on textual interaction with customers (including sales and recording to the service from the application chat) and recommendation services based on the analysis of telematic data.
Refinement of individual installations does not obey the quarterly rhythm, but is carried out according to its own plans. Here everything, starting with the statement of the problem and ending with the deadlines, is determined individually.
The bulk of our mobile applications can be found at these links:
→ Google Play
→ App Store
And you can join our team. Now we need:
→ Project Manager
→ Business Analyst
→ QA engineer / Testing Specialist
Unlike the IT market, the automotive segment is not used to constantly updating technology. This is a rather inert market, the implementation of IT solutions, as a rule, is coordinated for a long time at all levels - from the dealer to the representative office of the auto concern or even the central office somewhere in Korea. Customers are still offered to install multimedia systems with a CD changer in the car, and dealers manage to sell these systems for big money. Therefore, it is necessary to promote something new carefully, with healthy conservatism. How to find the only way that will lead the development to success in the car market is a very interesting question.
Do dealers really need mobile apps?
The first question that arises when considering any new IT solutions is “why”. Historically, car dealers successfully traded cars and accessories, and also served previously sold cars without additional IT solutions. Some companies are implementing CRM and other corporate systems in their own companies to increase efficiency, but such transformations are difficult and, more likely, for a minority. So why retreat from the usual rhythm?
')
As practice shows, the market itself is forcing to seek and implement some kind of "chips". A few years ago, mobile apps were just a way to demonstrate a certain status. Undoubtedly, this function remained with them (moreover, if at first the presence of the mobile application spoke of “advanced”, now the opposite is true - its absence indicates excessive conservatism), but a serious marketing component was added to it. Now it is a tool to retain customers and increase the average bill.
On average, the client stays with the official car dealer from 3 to 5 years - during the warranty period of the purchased car. The task of the dealership is to keep the customer in the transition from warranty to post-warranty service. And here the price of the service plays an important role, which is often higher for the officials. But, as in other markets, the personalized attitude, convenience and transparency of the service can outweigh the financial benefits of care for the "unofficial".
A mobile application in a smartphone that accompanies the user everywhere and always is a great way to put these ideas into practice. First of all, it is an effective marketing tool. Having certain information about the customer (at least about his car model), the dealer can use the mobile application to report on special promotions and discounts, targeting and personalizing the offer. We receive a reminder about the dealer, and additional sales during the customer's life cycle.
Practice shows that, on average, the conversion of offers into bids from a mobile application is 5-10 times higher compared to a site. According to our internal data, for an average dealer, the cost of attracting one customer to a service from a mobile application is about 150 rubles. With an average check on the service 15-20K it is very effective.
In addition, the application brings a higher level of online communication with customers. The usual SMS mailings and “cold” calls have low conversion and are noticeably expensive (for example, the cost of a message in two parts is about 7 rubles, and a call through a callback is 70; taking into account the scale of the base of cold messages and calling the average dealer, such an advertisement quite expensive). E-mail newsletters also do not shine with conversion (according to Silverpop's 2015 Email marketing metrics benchmark study, CTR e-mail mailings in the automotive industry are within 8.8%; on average, the CTR does not exceed 2.8%, and For some companies, this ratio is zero - this is the worst indicator among industries). In addition, mass mailings are automatically blocked by spam filters, without even seeing the potential client.
This, by the way, also applies to mass non-personalized mailings via free instant messengers. Applications for goods or services from the dealer's own site, Google Adwords or the marketplace of car-care center services (taking into account the division of budget into site / placement by the total number of received applications) will cost even more (700 rubles for the site; 350 rubles for the marketplace; 70 rubles - Google. Adwords). A notification via a mobile application does not require large investments. Moreover, within the framework of this communication channel, if the corresponding tools are available, the client can initiate the autocenter itself.
Read what our client from Krasnodar says about us. “We understand that the application will not be for us the main channel of communication. But this is a working tool that we actively use. For example, now we are testing the attraction of users to the application through the site, ”commented Ivan Nikitenko, head of the Internet advertising department at the Klyuchavto auto holding. "And getting leads and saving on SMS messages for us now amounts to about 40-50 thousand a year," the expert concludes.
Ready platform against own development
For the automotive market, the development of any IT solutions is not a core activity, respectively, using the resources of our own IT department in the dealership center will not work. Thus, the auto center has two ways:
- hire a team of developers who will make a mobile application for an individual TK;
- Take an existing platform and create an application on it that best satisfies the requests, and customize it if necessary.
The second way is simpler and shorter, since it does not imply a deep analysis of the functional requirements on the customer’s side (car dealer), the elaboration of technical specifications, testing and other stages of custom development. In addition, it reduces the financial risks due to the monthly subscription fee for the platform instead of advances to developers; plus the company at the start sees what it pays for.
“We considered a lot of options, focusing on two: either make your own platform or use ready-made software. At the same time, Dealer Mobility was the only comprehensive solution, ”says Ivan Nikitenko.
Such a project is not limited to the development of a mobile solution and includes the implementation phase, which requires strong marketing support. It is important to encourage new and current customers to install a mobile application and correctly explain the benefits of using it. With custom development, taking into account the risks associated with the dealer lacking experience with the mobile application market, this will require additional costs. When using a ready-made platform, the task is simplified - usually, some help is provided by the developers. For example, in the case of Dealer Mobility, this is the case.
Little about the platform as a whole
Dealer Mobility is a platform that allows you to create mobile applications for dealership clients. Due to the integration with the IT infrastructure of the center itself, the application reduces the cost and partially automates the processes of interaction with customers. So, with its help, you can accept applications for service, sell accessories or receive feedback from visitors. For end customers, this is a way to simplify and make more transparent the process of buying and servicing a car from a dealer: using a smartphone, you can monitor the status of a purchase order for a car or repair it, sign up for a service, analyze telematic data (via OBD), which allows to optimize the manner drive, leave your comments about the work of employees.
The Dealer Mobility platform was born from the classic Customer Development - product development commissioned by one large car dealer working with premium brands. We saw that the solution was promising, we generalized the capabilities of the product within the framework of the platform and began to introduce it to other customers. Subsequently, on the basis of the work done, a more flexible independent product was formed that solves the problems characteristic of a large number of representatives of the auto business.
Initially, the solution was focused on dealerships and small dealer networks. However, over time, we adapted it for larger customers and importers with specific business processes, including those working in different time zones.
It should be noted that the work of individual dealers has its own characteristics. For example, car manufacturers may require dealers to adhere to certain design guides or to adhere to specific business processes specific to the network. On the one hand, many of these features are reflected in the platform, and on the other hand, the product team is quite restrained about which of the solutions originally demanded by only one client can be unified and used throughout the platform (i.e. in the future other customers) because Initially, Dealer Mobility is still a scalable product that should satisfy the needs of the majority in the “boxed” form.
The platform includes two main components: the mobile application directly installed on end-user (car owners) smartphones and the dealer control panel, if necessary integrated with its IT infrastructure.
Car owners
The mobile component of the solution is represented by applications for iOS and Android, which customers can download from official Apple and Google stores — the dealer’s website contains relevant links to the markets or the Smart App Banner, shown to visitors calling from mobile devices.
At the moment, the monthly active audience of mobile applications Dealer Mobility is about 70 thousand users, and the total number of downloads has exceeded 500 thousand. The most popular sections are special offers and news, connection with the dealer, service, maintenance and test drive. From recently introduced a very popular card refueling with prices.
Dealer centers
The dealer can customize the capabilities of the application and change the content through the control panel on the Dealer Mobility portal. The solution may not depend on the IT infrastructure of the dealer or integrate with its systems (DMS - Dealership Management System) through special services. In the first case, the representatives of the auto dealer respond to the applications, conduct dialogues with users and manage the content of the application only through the portal. In the second - on the contrary, the control panel as such is practically not used - you can respond to applications and perform other actions directly in the internal systems (application data will be automatically synchronized).
Integration with the portal
The platform is offered to dealers as a service with a subscription fee of 20 thousand per month, depending on the functionality and the number of connected centers.
Dealer Mobility supports various scenarios of integration with dealer systems, allowing you to use one or several modules:
- order status;
- purchase order and purchase history;
- online entry to the service;
- car showcase and accessories;
- maintenance cost calculator;
- history of accrual and balance points;
- mobile payments (prepayment);
- integration with the personal account on the site, etc.
The most popular tools are to synchronize applications and their statuses, display and update in the application the status of a car purchase order and the balance of points for the loyalty program. In addition, dealers are accustomed to automatically updating the lists of cars on sale - just like ads on any trading platform such as auto.ru, avito. Due to the integration, you can quickly adjust the list of cars in stock (new, with mileage) or other products, such as branded accessories.
If necessary, you can further configure the synchronization of the news feed in the attached with the news on the dealer website, as well as the synchronization of personal data of users in the application and in the personal account.
Importers are available additional integration options, depending on the characteristics of business processes. For example, for a large network of centers, this could be an automatic update of contact information for all departments and employees.
The extent of interference with the existing IT infrastructure of the dealer depends on its initial state. Until recently, business processes related to client communications in companies from the non-IT segment were rather archaic. Not all CRM systems existed in principle, and customer information was re-collected and updated by phone with each call. But the need to optimize customer retention costs is pushing dealers to make a difference. In some cases, the desire of automakers to improve the performance of their dealer networks, including through more modern IT solutions, is decisive. With this in mind, integration can mean not just installation and configuration of integration services, but become part of a project on large-scale business process transformations with the goal of increasing their efficiency.
It should be noted that the success and speed of integration is largely dependent on the participation of the dealer itself in this process. We provide full support: our account managers, together with technical specialists, help dealerships with the integration of the solution and report on all new features.
Platform development
Dealer Mobility develops in two directions: the platform itself receives new opportunities and, in parallel, paid revision is performed to the requirements of individual customers, if the functions they need are not intended to scale to the solution as a whole. The update comes out once a quarter.
Such a significant step between releases due to the number of our customers. We prepare plans for the development of the platform as a whole (whether it be the introduction of new functions or changes in UI / UX) in advance, and we are testing all the innovations as part of webinars with customers before the start of implementation. In general, updates are planned for the year ahead, in detail - for the quarter.
Too bold design or functional solutions (from visual or functional fantasies offered by customers) are not welcome, especially since the update process must adhere to restrictions from Apple and Google. But for 2017, a smooth update of the Dealer Mobility interface is already planned. When developing new functions, emphasis will be placed on textual interaction with customers (including sales and recording to the service from the application chat) and recommendation services based on the analysis of telematic data.
Refinement of individual installations does not obey the quarterly rhythm, but is carried out according to its own plans. Here everything, starting with the statement of the problem and ending with the deadlines, is determined individually.
The bulk of our mobile applications can be found at these links:
→ Google Play
→ App Store
And you can join our team. Now we need:
→ Project Manager
→ Business Analyst
→ QA engineer / Testing Specialist
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/323990/
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