DealerPager.com has a new custom messaging platform available for dealerships, designed to send custom text notifications to vehicle service clients.

With mobile usage in auto sales growing at a rapid rate, texting is becoming a prime way to reach customers — especially those interacting with the service department.

“It’s as simple as asking a customer if it’s OK to send a text with progress updates or when maintenance is complete. If your service department repairs 100 vehicles a day, that’s up to 100 fewer times your service writers have to leave their desks. Searching for a customer can take 3-5 minutes, or more, so we’re talking about a significant amount of time,” said David Mizer, owner of DealerPager.com.

The company contends the messaging service is a great way to share useful information while customers’ vehicles are in the service department for regular maintenance or more in-depth work.

One reason a tool such as this could be particularly useful in the service department is because of the fast-paces nature of the business, with quick turnover and cars constantly coming and out of the service bays.

With service writers jobs getting busier and busier, especially in light of the influx of recalls, a quick text can be much easier and more convenient than a phone call.