CARY, N.C. -

From an inventory management dashboard on the remarketing side to a new pricing platform on the retail side, the industry has seen quite a few new tools and products launched this week.

First, Auto Auction Services Corp.  revealed a new tool for AutoIMS users, the company’s inventory management platform.

The new Dashboard for AutoIMS was designed “in response to user feedback to make the initial AutoIMS home screen more useful,” the company shared.

Commenting on the new tool, customer service manager Roger Baldwin said, “The Dashboard puts useful data up front and center for users, and turns the first screen users see into more of a destination, instead of just a map.”

For AutoIMS users, the Dashboard includes a new set of summary reports that cover portions of vehicle inventory that might need attention.

The company gave the following example:

“For instance, auction users will now immediately see how many new assignments they have received in the last 24 hours, along with the number of vehicles that are sitting at the auction without a condition report,” officials said.

And consignor users also have new widgets, the company said, including the number of vehicles with a condition report completed in the last 24 hours, vehicles newly secured at the auction and vehicles scheduled for sale today.

Director of customer service Joe Miller, said, “Part of the value of any dashboard is getting an ‘instant read’ on data that’s important in the moment. That’s why we love these new gauges, and we think users of all levels will find value in these tools.”

The new Dashboard also alters a few ways users use popular existing features.

The company explained that The Status Summary, Recent Reports, and Recently Viewed Vehicles, are all existing tools that are now available on the Dashboard.

“With last year’s upgrade to the menu system in AutoIMS, our members don’t have to sacrifice anything with this change,” said chief information officer, Venkat Krishnamoorthy. “Users can access everything they are used to with the same number clicks, only now they have the great tools of the Dashboard at their disposal along the way.”

Edmunds.com Launches New Pricing Tool

In news geared more for the retail side of things, Edmunds.com revealed its new Price Promise program, which is designed to give shoppers a convenient and reliable way to know exactly what price they'll pay at the dealership, the site explained.

“According to our research, which included talking with over 10,000 car shoppers, the biggest unmet need of car shoppers has been getting an actual price for a car. Edmunds.com's Price Promise resolves that issue by offering an instant, locked-in price that the dealer will honor,” stated Edmunds.com president and chief operating officer Seth Berkowitz.

How does it work?

Through the new program, a car shopper who is interested in a car listed on the site can receive the dealer’s guaranteed price by entering their name, phone number and email address.

“This is about a feel-good car shopper experience. It’s about high satisfaction, no stress – making things smoother at the dealership for both shopper and salesperson,” said Berkowitz.

The site noted that dealers who participated in the pilot “reported impressive engagement among car shoppers.”

“Since signing up for the Edmunds Price Promise program I have received 10 times the number of inventory prospects and have closed them twice as often as other prospects,” noted Michael Bailey, e-commerce director at Town and Country Auto Group in Portland, Ore.

DealerSocket to Serve Indepentent Dealers

DealerSocket also launched a new product on Wednesday, releasing DealerSocket for Independent and Buy Here Pay Here Dealers.

“As an independently owned company, we value the mom-and-pop dealers out there,” said Brad Perry, DealerSocket co-founder and chief technology officer. "We are happy to design our CRM solutions and ancillary tools to cater to their specific needs.”

DealerSocket for used-car dealers features tools such as walk-in, phone-up and Internet and marketing processes, the company said.

Independent dealers will also have the capability to utilize DealerSocket mobile services and pre-built marketing campaigns.

 

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