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| A Guide to Your Successful CRM Implementation |
| Dealer Marketing Magazine
Earlier this year, we published our annual Customer Relationship Management (CRM) issue-exploring the evolution and significance of CRM in automotive retailing. Reader response was overwhelming. We received a high volume of emails and phone calls from dealers (including our Canadian neighbors!) looking for additional information, or armed with CRM questions that required additional thought. While we welcome feedback and requests for more information from our readers-we feel that the best way to answer dealers' most frequently asked questions is to direct such questions to a panel of CRM experts for their insight. Accordingly, we've reached out to some of the industry's premier CRM solution providers to do just that. We hope that you find the answers useful, and if you still have unanswered questions, we're all ears!
Question: What should I expect before an effective CRM installation?
Autobase: Process, process, process. This is one of the biggest reasons you're able to cut that check to your CRM rep. Any company worth its salt will first listen to you, and then work with you to determine the processes needed to bring success to your team. Be sure to invest the time necessary to fully understand how new processes will integrate into your existing ones. Be wary of the "up in no time" sales pitch. Time invested in developing the right processes may be one of your greatest tools in achieving ultimate success. Their CRM might be a great product in their development lab, but in your dealership, great product plus poor process equals moderate success-at best. Considering what is available to you, that should be unacceptable.
Question: Why do most CRM installations only achieve moderate success?
Autobase: Hands down, a lack of focus is the greatest factor to limit your success. Every CRM has 15 to 20 key features. Most dealers attempt to implement all of them out of the gate. Executing too much too soon can overwhelm your sales staff, hinder buy-in, confuse operations, and ultimately result in failure. Instead, choose four to five necessary features that comfortably integrate into your current processes and stick to them! Then, as usage and buy-in of the CRM increase among your staff, consider which new feature or features can be added to help you to make even more money.
Question: What is the best way to introduce a CRM solution to my dealership staff?
Autobase: Throw a party or a fun all-company meeting to rally your team! Explain that few dealerships in the country have an effective CRM in place and "We are one of the few!" Give a rah-rah speech emphasizing the importance and benefits of turning customer data into more sales with higher gross. Your CRM implementation is an opportunity. Use it. Encourage each and every employee to embrace the technology by highlighting the long-term benefits: repeat and referral business. It won't be long before your team experiences these benefits firsthand. And when they do, they'll be ones telling you that it's a better way to do business and a smarter way to sell cars. That is real CRM success.
Question: Which dealership employee is most important to successful CRM implementation?
Autobase: Would you believe the most important individual isn't an employee at all? The dealer principal actually has more to do with determining the success of implementing a CRM than any one person. It's true. Without the dealer's direct endorsement of the CRM initiatives (which, incidentally, must be mirrored in your store's sales management), your dealership will, at best, achieve moderate CRM success. Though more and more dealers are realizing the need to implement CRM in their stores, it is unfortunate that most only reach a moderate level of success for this reason.
Question: What should my contract with my CRM vendor look like?
Autobase: Simple: it should look the way you want it to look. Most tier one CRM providers should be able to meet your needs based on the terms of your contract. Ideally, you should break out the training and equipment costs from the licensing and support. And instead of wrapping a ton of training into your contract, purchase it on an as needed basis. There are many great training companies out there that can help you take your CRM initiative to the next level. Be leery of the term, "free training." If a monthly training program is thrown in, it is typically a quick drive-by and will fail, ultimately, to make a huge impact in usage and performance.
To read the rest of this article, please click here.
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