IRVINE, Calif. -

Autobytel this week revealed its first-ever Autobytel Dealer of the Month, for March.

The recipient of the inaugural award is Patti Scipione, manager of M’Lady Nissan of Crystal Lake, Ill.
 
The new Dealer Awards Program honors Autobytel dealers who “employ the highest standards in customer service, Internet automotive retail sales and lead management processes,” officials said.

Commenting on the first winner, Jeffrey Coats, president and chief executive officer of Autobytel Inc., said, “Patti and the M’Lady Nissan team represent the best in online automotive sales and service.

“The benchmarks Autobytel created in 1995 when it pioneered the automotive Internet serve as the foundation upon which this entire industry operates today. Our longstanding history enables us to identify exceptional dealers who exceed the expectations of online automotive consumers, and M’Lady Nissan does this time and again,” he continued.
 
Each month, Autobytel’s sales and dealer operations teams evaluate prospective candidates from a competitive field of thousands of automotive retailers in the Autobytel network, with a monthly finalist selected based on key online automotive best practices, the company said.
 
Criteria evaluated for the Autobytel Dealer Awards Program include conversion rates, lead management processes, customer service principles, customer and brand retention analytics and Internet department practices, among others.

But there’s more to this program — the Autobytel Dealer Awards Program culminates at the NADA Convention & Expo in New Orleans in January 2014, when the Autobytel Dealer of the Year Award will be announced, chosen from this year’s pool of monthly finalists.
 
Commenting on her recognition, Scipione said, “I’m really honored to be named Autobytel’s Dealer of the Month.

“I work with a great team of people who understand the importance of Internet customers and who make them a priority in our business. It’s a new generation of car buyers out there and you have to be willing to change with the times. Autobytel helps with these efforts by sending us the best quality customers compared to other lead providers,” Scipione continued.
 

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