Smartphones are changing our lives: the way we think, the way we work, the way we spend our leisure time, and even the way we use cars and drive. Still further, it has long been known that companies with mobile applications are more successful and have a maximum number of customers. In addition, such services bring excellent profit, which affects business growth and scaling. This also applies to apps for car dealerships… and that's the issue we're going to dedicate our article to.
In this article, we’d like to discuss the main points that will make your auto dealer app really attractive, convenient & useful to customers. You'll learn a lot of handy tips which you can put into practice right away.
Read it now, especially if you are thinking of creating a new car dealer application.
Mobile-first trends
Undoubtedly, it's time to admit: information technology has firmly penetrated the human world. We, the people, are unlikely to imagine our everyday life without a smartphone, tablet, or computer anymore, for these devices greatly simplify the solution to so many problems. Thus, mobile applications have become a sought-after market product, and demand keeps growing from year to year.
Among other things, automotive dealership apps have gained popularity. And it’s only natural because they provide us with a lot of cool opportunities including the easiest way to choose a car, diagnose breakdown, monitor fuel consumption, and so on.
But, maybe, you'd prefer to take a closer look at the matter? Let’s do it!
Benefits of owning a car dealer app
A lot of automobile sales centers & car shops develop auto dealer apps to provide their clients with a convenient service. So it’s quite easy to understand why use a dealership app, but why own it? What are the benefits?
They include such perks as...
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Formation of a successful company image due to the provision of modern service to the clients. And keep in mind: branded dealership apps are a logical continuation of the company, and therefore they should reflect its corporate identity.
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Profit growth caused by the ability to sell additional services, and more efficiently.
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Automotive sales business management. The application will help automate your company's business processes, which implies simplifying the logic of the manager’s actions when selling a car.
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Effective marketing. Auto sales apps allow you to perform marketing campaigns, from budget planning to the analysis of the results. You can also record and track sources from which a potential client found out about your company.
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Reporting and analytics. You have the opportunity to analyze data on key business indicators, including the financial results of the company, the best-selling car models, the performance of sales managers, etc.
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Customer loyalty. All of the above leads to the increasing loyalty of regular customers, and more possibilities of attracting new ones.
Best apps for car dealers
it’s time to take a look at the competitors you have to deal with and consider a few striking examples:
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DealerApp Vantage. The program promises users the maximum number of beneficial possibilities, and the promise is already in the name itself (because the word 'vantage' means advantage, profit, or gain). The application functionality is focused on presenting the most targeted offers to the client. Among the features are beacons, geo-targeted messaging, notifications, and so on. The app creators didn't seem to have missed anything, and you should definitely pay attention to such a dangerous rival.
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DriverConnect. The worthy competitor of DealerApp Vantage is DriverConnect - an application with a lot of great features (Service Alerts, Showroom, Test Drive Scheduling, Recall Notifications, and the like). The app owners ask their customers to fill in the appropriate data (name, contacts, preferences, etc.) and warn that they need this information in order to provide the most useful personalized service.
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Auto Dealer App (by Pulse) that claims to be the best app for cars for sale. To prove the point, the possibility of fully customizing the application to meet the needs of both customers and dealerships is emphasized. This works perfectly, which is confirmed by the growing popularity of the program.
Mobile dealer app features
Now we have to discuss a very important topic related to different app options for dealerships. First of all, remember: a mobile program shouldn't be limited to just a simple catalog of your center. It's worth considering adding such features as comprehensive after-sales car service, booking a vehicular inspection, etc. In other words, it's necessary to make the application as useful as possible in order to win a place in the automotive industry market.
Let's cite a few instances:
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Creating a user profile. Your auto dealer mobile app should include the possibility to create and maintain a detailed customer profile. The user enters information about himself (preferences, existing cars, etc.), and you get the chance to take advantage of his personal data to improve your own service. Quick access to complete user information will allow you to implement an individual approach to each client.
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Unified customer base. The feature is connected with the previous one: the creation of user profiles leads to the formation of a powerful client base. It means you can better manage your company and provide the most customer-oriented service.
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Location. Here we’re talking about users’ location determination and route planning to the nearest service center, petrol station, car wash, etc. Ensure that your customers will have enough necessary information due to your app. Taking care of clients is the best way to increase their loyalty.
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Geofencing, which is one more option to benefit from geolocation. Thanks to the geofencing capabilities, your car dealer mobile app would be able to send relevant offers to customers: for example, if a client is close to your service center, ask him to stop by to check the tire pressure or something of the sort... he might agree! Why not?
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Vehicle Catalog. That's about selling cars, of course. Your automotion dealer app should definitely ensure such a feature.
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Advanced Search. In addition to the vehicle catalog, there must be an advanced search system so that a user has no trouble finding a car that best suits his requirements: vehicle model, year of issue, etc.
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Car page. Okay, the user took advantage of your search and found some decent car options. Now he should be able to learn detailed information on each of them. That's why a Car Page screen is required.
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Push notifications, namely, the possibility to send out information on your promotions, special offers, company news, etc. This is the best way to unobtrusively remind the target audience of your online car sale application.
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Social integrations. We’re speaking of integration with social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and more. A feature needed by all applications, and car dealer apps for iPhone and Android are no exception.
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Booking. It's also worth offering customers the chance to book a car review, test drive, vehicle maintenance, etc. Among others, a dealership mobile app with such features allows planning the car service schedule more efficiently.
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Chat. Stay in touch with your customers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week! Around-the-clock contact with the user is possible due to a mobile chat (if you’re unable to hire managers for non-working hours, consider creating a chatbot)
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Car service. Another feature of the mobile app for car dealers is the online consultation of the service center (accident, breakdown, and so on). Provide customers with a really helpful service. Users of your app will appreciate your assistance in such difficult situations as an accident or a breakdown.
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Feedback. The feedback system will increase the trust of your customers by allowing them to choose the services they need with great comfort. All this contributes to the creation of an optimal loyalty program encouraging users to contact you again and again.
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Contacts. The feature contains data about the locations & contacts of all dealers and service centers. It’s really crucial because your app is your promo channel.
We’ve examined the required (must-have) features. Now we’d like to discuss additional ones aimed at further improving user experience. In short, extended functionality would result in increasing the effectiveness and competitiveness of your car dealerships app.
Extra features of the auto sale app:
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Online sales of spare parts and car accessories;
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Management of settlements with suppliers and car owners;
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Automation of all computing processes;
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Integration of the dealer mobile app with your website and email;
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Printing of necessary documents by templates;
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Reports on managers, sales, cars, and other parameters;
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Implementation of SMS and E-mail newsletters;
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Static advertising;
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Car inventory services (in this case, your program is also a car inventory app);
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Collection of information about consumers’ preferences.
Summary
We did our best to explain to you why car dealerships need an auto sale app. And if we managed to convince you, the next step you have to do is to find experienced and high-skilled experts who will help you translate the idea into reality.
