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If you run a new or used car dealership, one of the most important tools you can use to ensure profitability is a comprehensive software management system. There are many variations of car dealership software for different functionalities, so it can be difficult to decide which software program is right for your business. To determine which software best suits your business objectives, there are several factors to consider.
Car dealerships software — making the right choice
When considering all of the features you would like in a new software management system, it is important to think about future competencies and objectives you want to achieve. The automotive industry is ever-changing, making software that can keep up with your needs all the more important.
If you want to make sure your dealership remains relevant and profitable in the future, you will need a system that does more than automating your day-to-day tasks. A purpose-built software platform ideally makes it easy for you to offer new services demanded by your customers through integrated functionalities, make systematic changes - all whilst offering responsive account support.
Automation of common tasks
Before we look at future services you may like to offer, it is important to consider the basic functionality that any car dealership software needs to provide.
Regardless of the software management system you decide to choose, these are the perquisite requirements for any car dealership software platform:
- Automated invoicing and billing — Countless hours are consumed by menial, repetitive tasks such as the issuing of monthly bills and invoices. With fully-featured dealership software, you can automate this process and give your employees more time to spend exploring new business opportunities and building customer relationships.
- Payment processing — The ability to accept and process online payments in a secure environment is essential for car dealerships that wish to offer their customers the option to rent vehicles as well as to buy them outright. This will require a software system that is able to process secure online payments.
- Automatic reminders for overdue payments — Chasing down overdue or failed payments can be a manual intensive process without the help of software. The best CRM software for car dealerships makes it easy to set up automatic reminders, which are sent to customers at the relevant time. Not every customer will pay their remaining balance instantly, but a fair percentage of overdue payments only require a gentle reminder. By configuring your system to take care of this automatically, you can significantly reduce the workload that your team has to deal with every month.
- Self-service — A comprehensive software management system that allows your customers to pay bills and update their payment methods online will also help cut down on the amount of paperwork your employees have to process. Removing the manual process can also reduce the likelihood of errors. This is a feature that we recommend car dealerships look for in their management software.
- Risk assessments — With the ability to perform credit assessments and verify identification documents within your car dealerships software, you can streamline the process of setting up payment plans for new customers and reducing the possibility of future bad debts. Integrating this function in a single platform rather than stitching together separate software modules can also improve overall workflow productivity level.
- Inventory management — The ability to manage your inventory from a central interface will help you to fully utilise all of the assets at your disposal. Car dealership inventory management software can help you to increase the overall profitability of your business by identifying idle assets and ensuring that you know exactly what vehicles you currently have available at any given time. A software that also provides you with access to live data on each vehicle will help you to streamline maintenance procedures and keep track of the whereabouts of every car at all times.
Car dealership software and car subscriptions
Although many people still choose to buy new vehicles outright, an increasing number of drivers are considering car subscription services as a more flexible alternative. With this in mind, we recommend that any car dealerships software solution you consider should be able to support a car subscription service for your organisation. Rather than leaving unsold vehicles idle in your showroom, you can make them available to potential subscribers and generate additional recurring revenue for your dealership.
Car subscription services are designed to fill a gap in the market that leasing and renting do not cater to. They do not involve a long-term commitment to one specific vehicle, which means they are more flexible than leasing agreements. Unlike most rental contracts, they can be open-ended, which makes them a better choice for drivers who know they need a car for the foreseeable future but are reluctant to tie themselves down to a particular make or model. With a subscription service, drivers can change vehicles to suit their changing needs, without any financial penalty. For all these reasons, car subscription services are likely to become even more popular over the next few years.
Ridesharing and micromobility services
Two other areas that offer new opportunities for revenue generation are ridesharing and micromobility.
By making unused vehicles available for rideshare drivers to rent, your dealership can generate additional income every month. A software solution that provides you with the tools you need to manage a rideshare rental service could be instrumental in increasing your business passive income and should be heavily considered when choosing your dealership software.
By adding e-bikes and scooters to your fleet, you can enter the micromobility market as well. Last-mile micromobility solutions are currently growing in popularity in densely populated cities across the globe, which makes this space incredibly interesting to follow over the next few years.
Loopit car dealership software
Loopit is proud to be a leading global provider of purpose-built car dealership inventory management software. With years of experience in the automotive industry, you can trust our team isprepared to offer a suite of solutions that will accelerate your business growth.
If you would like to try car dealership software that allows you to manage your business more efficiently and helps you to attract subscribers to a new car subscription service, you can request a demo of our advanced platform right now.
