One day a received a call from Paul Sansone Jr., a well known name in the New Jersey car business.   He operates a dealership near my offices and he reached out to tell me about a new product he was developing for car dealers.   I love entrepreneurial passion and Paul has leveraged his lifelong experience in the automotive industry with a cool new product. 

Once I saw the EZ Referral Network and the supporting sales data, I told Paul that he was on to something.  In states that allow a "bird dog" for referrals, Paul's innovative referral network makes dollars and sense!  Simply stated, Paul is leveraging mobile app technology to turn his customers into referral agents and everyone wins. 

There is ample information on the platform and its benefits here: http://www.ezreferralnetwork.com/

Why I Like This Platform

Simply stated, referrals close at over 40%.  Internet leads close at 7-15%.  The math is simple.  Dealers relied heavily on building referral networks prior to the Internet. Today, with high turnover in sales departments and a focus on everything Internet, referrals and equity mining have taken a back seat.

Paul's platform leverages mobile technology and happy customers to drive in a steady stream of referrals.  The platform has also been implemented as a fundraising tool for churches and non-profit organizations.  

I also think that anyone who caters to speciality finance or operates "buy-here-pay-here" lots will love this platform.  Why?  Because buying third party leads for special finance is expensive. The EZ Referral Network leverages friends in similar credit situations and has shown to be a strong lead generation source.  

The Benefits Of The Investment

According the Paul Sansone, here are some of the top line benefits for dealers:

• Uses today’s technology to build a referral network and track performance
• Gives the sales people the easy-to-use tools to build their own business within the dealership.
• Sales people that develop their own clientele will make more money and be less likely to leave
• Dealer owns customer database should a sales person leave
• Improves owner loyalty/retention
• Lower advertising cost per dealer (approximately $200 per completed sale)
• Automates an important lead source that is missing from sales organizations

The Results Speak For Themselves

I was speaking with Paul this week about the growth that he has seen from the Referral Network, and he stated:

 

"EZ Referral business, as a % of total dealership business has gone from 4% 1st month (March 2012) to 17.5% in August with 5 more days to go."

Over 25 units were sold in August through the referral network and the momentum is growing.   The cost per sale is right in line with industry targets, so I encourage dealers to reach out to Paul and get a demo of the product.

See Paul At AutoCon 2012

Paul will be at AutoCon 2012, so industry vendors and dealers who want to see Paul demo the product, should setup an appointment.  You can reach Paul on his cell phone at  732-558-1888 or via email at: psjr@66automall.com.

This product would make a great complimentary addition to larger automotive solutions companies and I have not seen anything this elegant on the market.  Snooze you lose!  If you can leverage the power of your customer's social network for sales and reward them financially, I say why not!

I'll see you at AutoCon 2012.  It's not too late to register and join the 600+ industry professionals that will be attending.  Last minute registrations can be handled quickly by calling Carrie Hemphill at 908-601-6475.

brian@pcgmailer.com

732.672.2356

If you want to setup a private consultation at AutoCon 2012, give me a call on my cell.