Auto Dealers Dramatically Cut Deal Process Time

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, CA – 5square.com, which delivers Sales Process Software and Dealership Analytics to automotive dealerships, today announced the results of a study of deal process time using its sales system. Results show a dramatic reduction. In a 12-month period, time from write-up to close fell from 1.37 hours to 0.77 hours, a 43% reduction. The study examined over 21,000 sales transactions.

The study was based on data measured by each dealership’s DMS, and by the 5square Sales Process. The Sales Process system blueprints each dealer’s preferred sales process into software, and then guides every deal through that process. 5square.com’s Dealership Analytics integrates both sets of data in a single massive data warehouse in order to analyze trends and opportunities.

The variation in dealership processes is evident in the raw deal times per dealership, which ranged from 30 to 90 minutes. In the 30-minute deals, Internet departments were typically using the 5square.com system to essentially close on the phone, and the buyer was coming in for the F&I presentation and the keys. In the 90-minute deals the system is being used for more traditional sales mechanisms. But no matter which form of selling they use, every dealership in the study saw a reduction in process time.

“We sell a car in 30% less time than it used to take,” commented John Anderson, Dealer Principal of California-based Courtesy Chevrolet San Jose, Courtesy Chevrolet Morgan Hill, and Anderson Honda, one of the largest Honda dealerships in the world. “Almost half of our Honda sales are conducted through our Internet department. With 5square.com, in many cases, the deal is done and ready for signature when the buyer arrives. I operate in the heart of Silicon Valley, and giving informed buyers what they need is crucial to our success.”

J.D. Power studies have shown that SSI, the sales component of CSI, directly correlates to deal process time. Clearly, customers are not satisfied when they are forced to wait.

5square’s Sales Process Software takes the next step beyond CRM and lead management software. As with those products, prospect information is captured automatically from a variety of sources: an Internet lead, every phone conversation and email. What’s unique with 5square.com is that all this data is carried along into the showroom, the desk, the F&I office, and the DMS. A driver’s license swipe logs the up and pulls in all the DL information, including the photograph. At a PC, prospects fill out their own credit applications and select model-specific accessories. Every step of the sales process is logged and measured. All the standard desking tools are built into the application, and the data is automatically dropped into them. The entire deal is automatically pushed to the DMS. Nothing is ever re-keyed, and everything is easily available at each step of the process. All of this significantly reduces transaction time.

“It’s not about just reducing deal process time, it’s about right-sizing it. Cutting deal process time can improve CSI/SSI; increase units and gross; cut costs; help the dealership appeal to younger buyers; and provide managers with more time to sell and manage. However, it is important to ensure that the early stages of the sale are given the time and attention they require. Software technology can help, but it has to focus on the entire sales process, not just one element of it. 5square.com integrates and automates the entire process, providing management with greatly increased visibility and control,” commented Yuri Pikover, 5square.com CEO.**

5square’s Web-based system guides and assists the dealership sales team at every step of the sales process. Then it gives the management team the tools to analyze what’s working well and what needs to be modified. Because it’s the first completely integrated sales process for retail automotive, it’s the only system that can see not only what could be better, but why it’s happening and how the problem can be resolved.

About 5square.com

Based in Westlake Village, CA, 5square.com brings together a unique partnership of world-class experts in software and retail automotive. The company does two things, both of them Web-based.

It delivers the first Sales Process Software for automotive dealerships. This guides the whole sales team on every lead and every deal, enforcing the dealer’s sales process. The result is more units, higher gross per unit, and higher CSI / SSI scores.

And 5square’s Dealership Analytics takes the data from the sales process -- data that no other vendor in the world can provide to the dealer -- and automatically analyzes it and gives the dealer the information to rapidly increase variable ops profits.

By bringing together CRM, showroom activity, desking, and DMS data, 5square.com builds a complete understanding of the dealership’s sales practices and results. It integrates easily with both ADP and R&R DMS systems.