by David Cates » Tue Dec 21, 1999 12:18 pm
From an Internet standpoint, the service and parts department have lagged behind the vehicle sales departments. While most dealerships have their vehicle inventory on-line, very few provide their on-line customers with information on vehicle service history, parts special order information, etc...
I am curious if this is an area dealers are interested in expanding their Internet presence in. We have developed a completely integrated web application that not only offers the traditional vehicle listings and information, but will also allow a dealership's customers to view their vehicle service history, view past invoices, look up special order parts, look at parts inventory (not costs, etc...), create a service appointment based on history and recommended service schedules, and even view the status of their vehicle in the shop if they have ADP's ERO or R&R's ESI.
This application is integrated with the dealership's in-house computer system, and requires no updating by dealership personnel. We have also included automatic e-mail reminders for vehicle maintenance, special order parts that have been received, service follow-up questionnaires, prospect follow-up, and a report generator feature.
My question are dealers interested in expanding their parts and service offerings to their existing customers and prospects? I believe the more information a dealer can provide for their customers and prospects, the more successful their web site will be. The more information a dealer can provide a customer electronically, the less time dealership personnel will have to spend on the phones, etc.. We have been working with one dealership locally on this project, so I have not had the opportunity to ask other dealers and managers what their thoughts are on this. I am curious as to what others think.
Thanks,
David Cates