Car dealers: when DMS software becomes the driving force behind your business
As a car dealer or distribution group, are you looking to find out what a DMS can do for you ? To start with, what does mean by the term DMS?
Dealer Management System(DMS) stands for Dealer Management System. This specialised software offers many advantages for your automotive distribution business, and is fast becoming an indispensable tool for supporting your growth.
But what exactly are its advantages? And how do you choose the tool that's right for you and will become the best ally for your new car sales?
Start reading this article now to find out more! 🚘
What is a software DMS?
Definition
DMS or Dealer Management System software is a specialised management system for car dealerships: the sale of new vehicles (VN) and used vehicles (VO), a repair or maintenance workshop, spare parts trading.
As such, it can be likened to an ERP specialising in the automotive distribution industry. It meets their needs, such as
- sales management
- inventory management
- financing operations
- administrative aspects, etc.
But also online marketing and reporting for the more advanced, to manage their entire business.
Who is it aimed at?
Virtually all types and sizes of business can benefit from a dealer management system, including franchisees, independent dealers, leasing companies and finance companies.
It can also be used as software for car garages.
Investing in a DMS is an essential step towards digitising and streamlining your management processes, and ensuring the long-term development of your car dealership.
Key features
This integrated management software package offers the following functions:
- Fleet management: you can manage your new and used vehicle purchases and sales, manage your stocks and storage locations, generate your administrative and commercial documents, identify your vehicles, optimise your trade-ins, etc. ;
- Sales management: you organise all the sales management for your business, from scheduling customer appointments to order forms, and you monitor and analyse your sales indicators, etc. ;
- Accounting management: directly from the tool or via connections to other accounting software, you can manage your accounts simply, without complex calculations;
- Financing operations management;
- Task management: to help all your staff work more efficiently;
- Automobile police bookkeeping in electronic format, etc.
The software bricks fit together because all operations are interdependent and need to be managed in correspondence.
What are the advantages of an automotive DMS?
Allows you to supervise and optimise all your car dealership activities:
- visibility and traceability: makes it easier to manage and monitor your activities and stocks (vehicles, spare parts, etc.), thanks to a collaborative tool that is updated in real time and accessible wherever you are;
- centralisation of information: all your data is on a single interface , including your customer and supplier databases (a great asset when you're thinking of reselling!);
- time and productivity savings: thanks to automation features, you can speed up many processes (sales, invoicing, task planning), and close deals more quickly;
- optimising resources : reporting to give you an overview of the results of your various activities and the productivity of your teams, with a view to improving them;
- improve your brand image: offer better customer service, a unique digital experience, etc.
How do you choose your DMS software?
What about free automotive DMS software?
If you're looking for a DMS to manage your business, there are some free solutions out there, but you have to expect a few things in return for being free:
- the functionalities offered are often very limited
- additional options or services may have to be paid for,
- the security of your data is not always transparent,
- support is not necessarily included, etc.
Ask yourself whether such a tool is likely to meet your needs, or whether you should change in the near future in view of your company's growth.
You should also be aware that most publishers offer you a demo or a free one-month trial. Don't hesitate to take advantage of this opportunity to use the tool in context and see if it meets your expectations!
3 tips for choosing the best software
To help you make the right choice, here's our advice:
- Identify your needs: what specific issues do you need to take into account when choosing the best automotive DMS? Which existing tools already meet some of your needs? Do you need all-in-one software or a DMS with APIs to connect your data to your other IT tools (CRM, marketing automation, CMS, business intelligence tools, etc.)?
- Check the level of security: the software must be capable of protecting your data against external threats (malware, phishing attacks, etc.). You should also make sure that your data is confidential and will not be used for commercial purposes.
- Ask about the other services provided: for example, technical support, assistance and help with installation, as well as all the training programmes and documentation available, are a real asset. They allow you to focus on your core business and develop your added value.
💡 It goes without saying that the features on offer are essential to consider. Apart from the basic features, which ones will be essential to your business? Some can really help you accelerate your growth!
Some software packages are veritable augmented DMSs. This is the case with Spider VO, a full web and responsive management platform dedicated to car dealers and second-hand vehicle distributors. Combining DMS, automotive CRM, lead management and CMS, it offers you the following benefits:
- a CRM tool for organising the monitoring and management of customer relations and marketing automation (email templates, etc.) ;
- a Lead Manager tool to retrieve the email addresses of prospects from all your acquisition channels to maximise sales opportunities;
- turnkey tools for creating a professional automotive website and strengthening your web presence.
To manage and develop your car and new-build business, you now have all the keys you need to choose the best DMS software, i.e. the one that best meets your specific needs.
So get equipped and move up a gear!
Article translated from French