Integrating Smartphone Technology in Car Dealerships.
By NEIL GALE (DrGale.com)


Recently
a client asked me, “How do I know if somebody snaps a picture of the
QR code (fig.1 - Quick Response Code) in the ad I placed?” Well… there really is no way to know if a Smartphone camera takes a
picture of a QR code. Smartphones must have a QR code application
(app) installed to decipher the photo of the QR code. When the code
contains a phone number that is auto-dialed that phone number would
be tracked to that specific QR code, thus providing the metrics
every dealer wants. There are quite a few free QR code reading and code generating apps available for the Android, iPhone and iPad platforms (I counted at least 18 QR code apps on the Android
Market), so customers that are technology savvy can use the app for
free and businesses can create QR codes on-the-fly.

Incorporating QR codes in your conventional marketing strategy is
just one way to use Smartphones to communicate with a quickly
growing segment of the public. Over 285 million people, over 91% ofthe population have mobile phones in the U.S. and nearly 40% of
those phones can access the Internet. It's predicted that within the next 12 to 18 months the percentage of Smartphones will reach over 60%penetration.

There are many great Smartphone apps available today that truly
engage car buyers, car enthusiasts, vehicle owners, car dealers and
automotive industry professionals. The apps I’ve highlighted in this
article only scratch the surface of what’s to come for mobile
technology and application development in the near future.

Applications for Car Shoppers and Owners:

The Chrysler Group (Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram) has new apps for Android, Blackberry, and iPhone platforms for some 2011 models. They provide vehicle operation, maintenance and warranty information, as well as product feature video demonstrations, connections with fellow owners via the company’s brands on social media sites, access
to customer care and 24-hour road-side assistance and other features
depending upon the model.

“CarLocate QR Scanner” is a proprietary Smartphone app by Reynolds
and Reynolds that reads a QR code on the vehicle's window sticker
(aka: the Maroni) and immediately links you to the CarLocate.com
mobile site to view all the details about that vehicle. The customer
must be at the vehicle to use this app, or the QR codes can be
provided on a website like eBay or Craigslist (what a time saver!).
With this type of app dealers can get 100% track-ability since the
vendor will have website metrics to provide regarding how many
records were viewed from your dealership.
http://www.appbrain.com/app/carlocate-qr-scanner/com.reyrey.clqrsca...
  

The race is on. Smartphone apps are being developed at supersonic speed by automakers. Toyota now has an app allowing customers to get the latest Toyota info, live Twitter feeds and the ability to find the nearest Toyota dealership, which is perfect when traveling. Some of the latest Smartphone apps by manufacturers are: My Acura, Audi - CarMonitor, BMW - M Power Meter, Kia - Optimap, Lexus Enform Mobile,
Mazda Assist, Mini - Mini Link, My Nissan Leaf, Porsche - gForce,
Saab Automobile, Scion Owners, Smart - Smart Drive U.S., and Volvo
On Call. These apps are continually improving with more options and
features. Updates are pushed to the Smartphone via the application
making it easy for vendors to provide the latest and greatest.

  

Applications for Salespeople and the Dealership:

General Motors has Smartphone apps for Cadillac and Chevrolet salespeople; called the Cadillac Mobile Workbench and Chevy Mobile Workbench. The content in these apps is not intended for use or viewing by
consumers. The Mobile Workbench apps are designed to provide
relevant tools and information to sales personnel from their mobile
device. The apps are feature rich with the ability to locate a
vehicle of interest in dealers inventory or from trading partners’
inventory. It displays available exterior and interior color
choices, checks for current GM offers, compares vehicles against key competitors and displays the top ten selling points for each
vehicle. There is a VIN barcode scanning function used to verify the
dealerships’ current in-stock inventory.

“MobileAppLoader”, a company out of Canada, develops Smartphone and
iPad custom apps for your business and car dealerships or dealer
groups that can pay off big-time. For a one time investment under $2,000 and a small monthly charge of $35 or less, your dealership
can have a full-blown application for the iPhone, iPad and Android
operating platforms. Costs can be reduced by choosing one or more
operating platforms. Included features will vary per operating platform. You can expect to see links and graphics for: Contact Us
(Call, Directions, and Email), info links, a link to your online
inventory (pictures, specifications, and vehicle details), a service
appointment request form, an “about us” page and links to the social networks (Twitter, Facebook, YouTube). You’ll be able to send visual
alerts and notifications or appointment reminders to the customer.
The customer can retrieve a history of past appointments dates,
repairs, etc., a loan calculator, a settings link (Add to Contacts,
One Touch Call), a news page about the brands you sell, and even a customer testimonial page. If the app is offered to customer for
free it’s a win-win for the customer and the dealership. The
dealership may be able to recoup some of the cost by offering the app for 99¢ or more if they believe that customers would be willing
to pay for the app.
http://mobileapploader.com

  

Applications for Dealership Wholesale Buyers and Used Car Managers:
  

There are some easy ways for car dealers to get instant information for their wholesale buyers, both in-house and when traveling. They can quickly appraise vehicles and determine retail market values (in real-time) using subscription based services and proprietary Smartphone applications.

“vAuto Inc.”, a company based in Oak Brook, IL., provides a
sophisticated, real-time “Live Market View” for the used car market.
If your dealership is using vAuto services to stock, appraise, price
and market your used car inventory then this app is for you. Dealers
are able to access CARFAX reports as well as all third party guidebook values including vAuto's real-time “rBook” (a retail
pricing guide for identically equipped vehicles in your market). The
vAuto app provides the ability to snap a picture of the VIN barcode
with your Smartphone for instant decoding.
http://www.vauto.com

“Autoniq LLC.”, has a Smartphone app that uses a photo of the
vehicles Bar Code to obtain pricing guides by Black Book, NADA,Galves, and Kelley Blue Book and market reports from every major auction in the United States. You can get a vehicles history report
instantly by accessing CARFAX. This is a very useful Smartphone tool
for dealers that send wholesale buyers to auto auctions. Besides the
subscription fees for Autoniq, the associated CARFAX and/or other
vehicle history reporting provider fees apply based upon the
existing dealer agreement.
http://www.autoniq.com

“Dealerslink, Inc.”, provides another option to read the vehicles
Bar Code and buy used cars through their wholesale used car network. The “FastBook VIN Scanner” app allows a car dealer to scan the
vehicle VIN bar codes with their Smartphone cameras. Once the VIN has been scanned, FastBook allows users to simultaneously book out
NADA, Kelley Blue Book, MMR, Black Book and checks Carfax, AutoCheck,
and Dealerslink for comparisons. Dealers can also buy and sell
wholesale used cars by shopping online via Dollar Thrifty Automotive
Group, Enterprise Rent-a-Car, and Manheim auto auctions. It is a
quick and convenient way to acquire inventory without the expense of
travel and time away from the dealership. This may be the perfect solution for dealers with a small staff.
http://www.fastbook.us

The new mantra should be: “Dealer Beware!” Smartphone apps
are popping up like dandelions arming buyers with knowledge, information and pricing. Dealership owners need to be careful not to allow this new hand-held technology and an “app happy” staff to
change your current business model or strategies. You’ll know when you reach the technology saturation point when you and/or your staff begin to focus on working these applications instead of using themas the tool they are meant to be. All too often using applications
becomes the job.

Neil
Gale was born in Chicago, Illinois, and now resides in St.
Louis, Missouri. Neil holds a Ph.D. from the London Institute
for Applied Research in Business Management. As a business and
Internet consultant, Neil founded his third consulting firm, DrGale.com, which specializes in the setup and development of
Business Development Centers and Internet Departments. As an
accomplished website designer and developer, he has led website,
advertising and marketing projects for Fortune 500 companies
including Montgomery Ward, GE Aircraft Engines, Monsanto
Company, AT&T and Lucent Technologies. Neil is considered a true
master of mobile marketing, Search Engine Optimization (SEO),
Search Engine Marketing (SEM), corporate branding and social
media, all of which result in generating more sales or sales
leads. Neil Gale is there to assist you in your businesses
advertising, marketing, and website needs. He can be contacted
by email at Info@drgale.com or by phone at 800-736-1036. For more
information about Dr. Gale view
Neil
Gale's LinkedIn Profile.