ALBANY, N.Y. – July 28th, 2014 – Auto/Mate Dealership Systems (http://www.automate.com), a premier dealership management system (DMS) provider, has received a "Platinum" award in the 2014 Auto Dealer Monthly Dealers' Choice Awards. This year marks the first time that Auto/Mate was honored with a top ranking in the magazine's annual award program that recognizes the industry's best product and service providers as selected by hundreds of dealers and dealership personnel.

"To receive this recognition is a real honor because the votes for Auto/Mate came from our customers, and this Platinum award lets me know that we are successful in our primary goal which is to be the top dealership management system provider in customer satisfaction," said Mike Esposito, President and CEO of Auto/Mate.

In May, voters weighed in to recognize their favorite partners in 27 categories. Providers were scored on the product or service itself, customer support and service, value, and whether they would recommend the company to another dealer. To qualify for a first-place “Diamond,” second-place “Platinum” or third-place “Gold” award, a company must be among those that scored above the group average score in each category.

Recently Auto/Mate was also honored with the "Highest Rated" dealership management system (DMS) vendor award in the 2012 and 2013 DrivingSales Dealer Satisfaction Awards. In 2014 Auto/Mate also received a "Top Workplace" award for the third consecutive year by the Albany Times-Union, and a "Best Place to Work" award for the fourth year in a row by the Albany Business Review.

Auto/Mate's DMS is a full-featured, user-friendly solution that is scalable for any size dealership or dealer group. The system comes with the best customer support in the industry, has an open API for third-party vendor integration, is currently in use at more than 1,000 auto retailers nationwide, and is available in both web-based and in-house server solutions.

For more information call Auto/Mate at 877-340-2677.

About Auto/Mate

Auto/Mate Dealership Systems is a leading provider of dealership management system (DMS) software to retail automotive dealerships. Its Automotive Management Productivity Suite (AMPS) is a user-friendly, feature-rich DMS in use by more than 1,000 auto dealers nationwide. Auto/Mate received the “Highest Rated DMS of 2012" and the "Highest Rated DMS of 2013" awards in the annual Driving Sales Dealer Satisfaction Awards.

Auto/Mate’s employees have more than 850 years of combined experience working in auto dealerships – the foundation of its “Designed By Car People For Car People^TM” slogan. For more information visit our website, follow us on Twitter @AutoMateDMS and subscribe to our blog at blog.automate.com

Drive360®CRM from Interactive 360 is now a certified CRM system for Ford and Lincoln Dealers.

PRLog - Jul. 24, 2014 - Interactive 360 announces that they have completed the FordDirect certification process for their Drive360® CRM and have become an approved CRM vendor for Ford and Lincoln dealerships. Due to the integration of Drive360® CRM (http://interactive360.com/packages/drive360-crm) with FordDirect, Ford and Lincoln dealers currently utilizing the CRM system now receive FordDirect referrals directly into their CRM.

Interactive 360 (http://www.interactive360.com) has become one of the fastest growing marketing and technology companies in the industry today. Due to the vision of CEO, Rick McLey, Interactive 360 has brought the car business an evolved CRM system that combines robust performance with ease of use and the opportunity to manage customer relationships on the go – right from a mobile device. Using the Drive360^® CRM mobile app, a salesperson can easily enter customer data by scanning a Driver’s License, enter a customer’s desired vehicle or trade-in by scanning a VIN barcode or QR code, plus manage tasks, appointments and inventory.

Interactive 360 supports their Drive360^®CRM system and other services through their boutique style customer support, which has been demanded by dealerships and seems to be lacking in the vendor market today. For more information on Drive360^®CRM, contact Interactive 360 at 888.762.7407 or sales@interactive360.com.

DMEautomotive survey reveals that less than one in four drivers do what experts recommend most: pull over and take a nap

With more than half of Americans planning road trips this summer – and the majority intending to drive 7 or more hours a day – dangerous, drowsy driving looks to intensify

Daytona Beach, FL – June 25, 2014 – With the summer road-trip season hitting high gear July 4^th,, and in the wake of a deadly crash, allegedly caused by drowsy-driving, that critically injured comedian Tracy Morgan, DMEautomotive (DMEa) recently surveyed American drivers on the top ways they try to combat sleepiness on the road.

The results are a wake-up call: While the #1 method, drinking caffeinated beverages, can be a temporary, yet not fully effective fix, drivers report they’re more likely to open windows, pull over and exercise/stretch, blast loud music and the air conditioning (which studies indicate have very short-term to no effect), than do what safety experts recommend most: pull over and take a nap. Pulling over and napping (only 23% reporting) ranked a lowly 7^th, on a par with eating or singing (21%).  The findings indicate most drivers are doing things to fight sleepiness-at-the-wheel that don’t work, and it’s likely contributing to the scary statistics: drowsy driving is responsible for somewhere between 15-33% of all fatal crashes,[1] or more than 100,000 accidents each year.[2]

The DMEa survey of 2,000 car owners[3] also found that a lot of drowsy drivers may be out on the roads these next months. The majority (53%) of U.S. drivers reported that they are taking a road trip this summer, and that they plan to drive at least 7 hours each day – with 1 in 10 reporting they plan to drive more than 12 hours.

“The recent crash involving Tracy Morgan was tragic, and draws attention to an incredibly dangerous driving behavior that doesn’t get taken nearly as seriously as drinking or texting while driving,” said Mary Sheridan, Director of Research and Analytics for DMEautomotive. “This survey reveals a big problem: when people get sleepy on the road, too many take measures that simply don’t work. Most of us do ineffective things like stopping for that third triple-shot cappuccino or slapping water on our face just to keep going. As drivers, we need to heed our drowsiness: and stop and sleep, or let a rested person drive.”

The Top Ways People Attempt to Combat Sleepiness While Driving

Notably, among the top 15 things drivers do to fight drowsiness, only #3 (switching drivers, provided they’re rested) and #7 (pulling over and napping), are supported as working by medical evidence and safety experts. For the #1 method, drinking caffeine, the expert consensus is that while it does temporarily boost driver alertness, it’s no replacement for sleep.

Younger Drivers Far Less Likely to Stop for Naps – Far More Likely to Sing, Eat, Blast Music & Talk on Phone:

While studies show younger drivers are more likely to be involved in drowsy-driving crashes,[4] this new data shows that those under 35 are significantly more likely to do ineffective things to “fight the drowse” than over-35 drivers: they’re more likely to listen to loud music (43% vs. 31%), eat (33% vs. 14%), sing (32% vs. 15%), talk on the phone (14% vs. 5%), talk to themselves (15% vs. 9%) or slap themselves (13%. vs. 9%). And they’re less likely to pull over and nap (19%) than those over 35 (24%). The survey also finds that under-35 drivers will be hitting American roads in greater numbers than those over 35 this summer: 64% have a summer road trip planned, vs. 48% of those over 35.

What Medical Studies/Safety Experts Say Works, and Doesn’t:

DMEa aggregated authoritative and available medical evidence on which “fight the drowse” strategies work, and which don’t (hint: most don’t, and a good night’s sleep is the best preventative!).

Drinking caffeine: Caffeine can be an effective, if temporary, drowsy-driving fighter, but should not replace sleep. Caffeine doesn’t overcome the effects of drowsy driving: for instance, you can still experience “micro-sleeps,” falling asleep for a few seconds unconsciously. And because caffeine doesn’t enter the bloodstream for 30 minutes, scientists recommend the “caffeine nap”: taking a 30-minute nap first, then drinking the equivalent of 1-2 cups of strong coffee.

Opening window/sunroof: No evidence of benefit.

Switching drivers: Effective, if new driver is rested.

Pulling over to exercise/stretch: Contrary to what many people may imagine, offers very little benefit. Exercise only provides a very temporary alertness-effect (only lasting 10-15 minutes) in studies.

Loud music: No benefit, and can serve to distract drivers from their drowsiness.

Turning up AC: No real benefit.

Napping: Studies have shown naps between 20 minutes - 3 hours prevent fatigue and restore alertness. Experts recommend scheduling a driving break every 2 hours, and napping. Napping is, however, not a substitute for longer sleep, and getting at least 7 hours sleep before a long drive is critical. Drivers’ main sleep periods should happen at night, driving between midnight and 6AM should be avoided, as should rotating night and day duty.

The Consensus: Just stop driving if you’re sleepy, and the only real recovery strategy is sleep.

Sources: AAA report from Univ. of Pennsylvania (review of medical studies, including Horne and Reyner’s, Horne and Foster’s), AARP, NHTSA, UCLA Health Sleep Disorders Center, University of Maryland Medical Center

About DMEautomotive

DMEautomotive (DMEa) is the industry leader in science-based, results-driven automotive marketing, and provides turnkey marketing to the largest and most innovative automotive organizations, from automobile dealerships to many of the largest aftermarket companies in the U.S. DMEa's uniquely panoramic view of the complete automotive sales and service market, combined with its cutting-edge, science-based marketing programs, increases customer yield, conversion and retention.

DMEa does not take marketing performance on faith, and each product and service is measured by a simple, precise scientific approach: Is it true? Prove it. Will it work? Test it. Does it generate results? Show it! Supported by DMEa’s proprietary, cloud-based Red Rocket Technology Platform, the DMEa product suite includes science-based, data driven, multi-channel customer acquisition and retention marketing programs; best-in-class campaign reporting; data management and analytics; auto-focused Customer Interaction Center solutions, and complete on-site mail and email fulfillment services. Headquartered in Daytona Beach, Florida, DMEa also has major operations in Jacksonville, Florida.

Media Relations

Melanie Webber, mWEBB Communications, (424) 603-4340, melanie@mwebbcom.com

Gubagoo study also finds: gradually ramping up value of published offers on dealer websites saves $18,000+ a month

West Palm Beach, FL–June 24, 2014 – With dealerships making record investments in driving traffic to their sites, the website engagement leader, Gubagoo, today released new research on what kind of ad formats and published offers convert at the highest rates (and most cost-efficiently) at dealer sites. An analysis* of 1,000 dealerships found that much smaller ad tools that present targeted offers (made possible by tracking that visitor’s click behavior) generate more leads (85% of monthly total) than much larger, more prominent billboard ads that display generic deals (15% of total leads).

The study also drilled down to randomly selected dealer sites to measure the impact of ramping up the dollar value of published offers to repeat visitors over time, rather than presenting static “best” offers upfront. This ramped-up-offer strategy, also enabled by behavioral tracking software that identifies each time a shopper revisits a dealer site, saved the average dealer over $18,000 a month in offer value.

“Dealers spend serious money to drive site traffic, but there has been little research on which ad format and published offer strategies make the highest number of people pull the trigger,” said Brad Title, CEO of Gubagoo. “Every inch of real estate – and every ad and published offer on a dealer’s website - needs to be smartly strategized around true conversion rates. These new findings indicate that tiny ad tools that serve up personal, targeted offers really generate the leads. And also that tracking visitors, so you can step up the value of the offers you display to them on repeat visits, saves dealers significant money.”

With Ad Formats, Small and Targeted is Beautiful: It’s conventional wisdom that large, top-of-the-homepage billboard ads generate the most action and leads. But this new data reveals that much smaller, bottom-of-the-page, minimally intrusive ad formats, that present targeted sales and service offers, converted for dealers at much higher rates.

For the 1,000+ dealers, the performance of three, main types of ad formats/tools were studied: 1) a very small “dynamic bar” at the bottom of pages that continuously presents targeted offers; 2) a “page overlay” format, which is also an always-visible, small tab at the bottom of pages that expands when hovered over to show their offers and the claim form; and 3) very large, top-of-the-page billboard ads presenting generic offers, that are regularly visible, but not “always on.”

Because these dealerships were using behavioral tracking and analytics technology** that captured each shopper’s site actions at each visit (i.e., the pages and cars they viewed), the two small ad tools could present more dynamic, targeted offers to them over time. And because these ad formats are so small, they can run non-stop at the bottom of site pages. The results: when it comes to getting people to fill out forms to claim offers (and hence become a lead), these tiny, targeted ad formats are the most powerful lead generators:

Publishing Tool                     % of Total Monthly Site-Driven Leads

Dynamic Bar                           46%

Page Overlay                           35%

Billboard                                 14%

Other                                       5%

For the average dealer studied, more than 4 in 5 leads generated each month came from the two tiny “deal bars” at the bottom of pages, while less than 1 in 7 leads came from big, splashy billboard ads with static offers.

The ROI of Tiered Site Offers: Most dealer websites present a variety of static, unchanging offers, whether a $50 gift card for taking a test drive, or $500-$1000 towards a new or used purchase. And they often present the highest deal value out of the gate. The dealerships studied used the same behavioral tracking software to re-identify each shopper at each visit, so that the value of published offers displayed (initially passed over) could be ramped up over time. (For instance, a visitor that was initially presented with $250 towards a new-car purchase would see that offer rise to $500 on a subsequent visit, and then up to $750 after several visits.) And this strategy resulted in significant cost-savings and more leads: with more people ultimately filling out forms to claim the deal.

The average dealer studied had over 160 different offer claim forms filled out each month, and the maximum value of the offers “on the table” per dealer was $115,000. But by incrementally ramping up offers to returning visitors (rather than displaying the highest-value offer) the average dealer saved more than $18,000.

And the data also reveals that had the dealers not ramped up the offers from their lowest value, they would have failed to incite the majority of visitors to take action. The average dealer had 71 offers claimed at the lowest dollar value, but 98 claimed at a second or third higher increment. The lowest offer proved sufficient for roughly 40% of visitors to fill out the claim form, while a ramped-up offer drove roughly 60% to pull the trigger.

“The takeaways: when dealers present static, highest-value site offers they’re just throwing money away. And when they serve up unchanging, lowest-value offers the majority of their site visitors will not fill out the form to claim the deal, and, hence, turn into an actionable lead,” said Title. “The strategic ramping-up of the value of published offers is the only way to squarely hit more people at their personal ‘deal threshold’ – and the only way to make this happen is by putting tracking software behind your site.”

Top Offers Redeemed at Dealer Sites: The 1,000 dealers studied used 21 different published offers, and the top 5 most claimed overall were:

1. $500 towards the trade-in

2. $500 towards the purchase/lease of a new vehicle

3. Free car wash with service

4. $25 gift card for test drive

5. $1,000 towards trade-in

Interestingly, one of the most widely used offers on dealer sites, an oil change special, was at the very bottom of the offers-claimed list.

About Gubagoo 
Based in West Palm Beach, Florida, and staffed by a team of veteran technologists and innovators in lead conversion, Gubagoo offers revolutionary behavioral engagement and scoring technologies for automotive websites. With a mission to provide a smarter, more cost-effective alternative to the old lead generation model, Gubagoo is the first dealership website solution that successfully makes anonymous traffic identifiable, and converts the 95% of dealer site traffic that traditionally defects. Incorporating smart predictive matching and the best chat technology available - and powered by its proprietary behavioral engagement and scoring engine, ‘B.E.A.S.T.’ - Gubagoo engages new and repeat dealer site visitors with unprecedented relevance. Over 1,200 dealerships, including some of the nation’s largest dealer groups, as well as OEM-certified programs, already have adopted Gubagoo-powered websites.

Gubagoo Media Relations: 
Melanie Webber, mWEBB Communications, (949) 307-1723, Melanie@mwebbcom.com 

* Measured 1000 dealerships’ diverse ad formats for conversion-to-lead rates: 30 days, April 2014.

** The 1,000+ dealerships studied use Gubagoo’s website engagement solution, using behavioral analytics technology to track everything a visitor (and repeat visitor) does at a dealer’s site - so they can be individually targeted with relevant, ramped-up offers.

Blue sky pricing remains very high as pricing floor forms; more sellers enter market; privates dominate, while public spend rises 9% year-over-year, according to The Kerrigan Quarterly Blue Sky Report

Irvine, CA, June 23, 2014 – U.S. dealership buy/sell activity dramatically increased in the first quarter of 2014, according to The Kerrigan Quarterly Blue Sky Report for Q1 2014, which was released today by Kerrigan Advisors. The report is the auto industry's most comprehensive and authoritative quarterly report and analysis of dealership buy/sell activity and franchise values.

Laying out the high, average and low multiples for each franchise in the luxury and non-luxury segments for the quarter, the report offers a detailed view of public and private company dealership acquisition activity.  In addition to the sharp spike in selling, among the key findings in the report are that blue sky pricing remains high for most franchises and that the market has established a pricing floor.

“As anticipated, an increase in the number of sellers coming to market has led to a major uptick in buy/sell activity.  We attribute this to high blue sky prices, buyer demand for dealerships and a slow-down in dealership profit growth, meaning sellers are concerned about missing the market and want to ensure they exit on top,” said Erin Kerrigan, founder and managing director of Kerrigan Advisors.  “Private companies continued to dominate the market in Q1, although public company activity rose slightly during the quarter and will likely continue to pick up after the announcement of Lithia’s acquisition of DCH.  The publics, however, are being very disciplined with their capital allocation.  If they believe the better investment is their own stock, they are choosing a stock buyback over an acquisition.  In the first quarter, collectively, they chose to spend 70% more on their own stock than on U.S. acquisitions.”

Report Highlights

• Buy/Sell activity increased 60% in the first quarter.
• More sellers coming to market to capitalize on high blue sky values that may fade as earning growth slows.
• Blue sky values remain at elevated levels as dealership earnings continue to grow, albeit more slowly; and multiples remain high or reach higher levels.
• The multiples for Honda, Toyota, BMW, Mercedes, Lexus and Porsche have increased since 2013. As competition for auto retail market share heats up, buyers are placing an even higher premium on these franchises. 
• Pricing floor forming: with the average dealership earning an annual 28% return on equity, few dealers are willing to sell their franchises for less than a 3x blue sky multiple in today’s market. 
• 48 dealerships were acquired in the first quarter of 2014, 40 of which were acquired by private dealership groups.
• Collectively, the publics spent 70% more on stock buybacks ($163 million spent) than on U.S. acquisitions ($96 million spent) in the first quarter.

“While the future continues to look rosy for dealership acquisitions, we will likely start to see some negative shifts as increasing competition for car sales brings blue sky winners and losers,” concluded Kerrigan.

The Kerrigan Quarterly Blue Sky Report, which is published four times a year, includes Kerrigan Advisor’s signature blue sky charts, multiples and analysis for each franchise in the luxury and non-luxury segments. The multiples are based on Kerrigan Advisors’ view of franchise values in the current buy/sell market and can be applied to adjusted pre-tax dealership earnings to estimate blue sky value. To download the report, click here.

About Kerrigan Advisors

Kerrigan Advisors is a national dealership buy/sell advisory and brokerage firm focused on providing a high level of client service for dealership sellers. Led by a team of veteran advisors who have represented transactions totaling over $2 billion dollars in automotive, private equity and investment banking, Kerrigan Advisors customizes each sale process to maximize the seller’s transaction proceeds. With the most up-to-date buyer database in the industry, Kerrigan Advisors has the industry context and expertise to match each seller with the right buyer.

Each quarter, Kerrigan Advisors publishes The Kerrigan Quarterly Blue Sky Report, which is the auto industry's most comprehensive and authoritative quarterly report and analysis of dealership buy/sell activity and franchise values.  Kerrigan Advisors’ Managing Director Erin Kerrigan, who authors the report, is a recognized industry expert on dealership valuation, real estate and buy/sells, and is a frequent speaker at leading auto retail events and conferences, including NADA, AICPA, NADC and Driving Sales’ President’s Club. She has also been a keynote speaker for events hosted by American Honda Motor Company, Audi of America, US Trust, Ohio Automobile Dealer Association,  and SunTrust Bank and has led webinars for NADA and Automotive News.  Her expertise is also featured in a monthly column for Dealer Magazine. 

Kerrigan Advisors Media Contact:
Melanie Webber (melanie@mwebbcom.com), mWEBB Communications, 424.603.4340

ALBANY, N.Y. – June 16th, 2014 – Auto/Mate Dealership Systems (http://www.automate.com) announced today the integration of its dealership management system (DMS) with SMI's DriveService and DriveSales solutions. For auto dealers using both solutions, the integration ensures that customer information updated in the DMS will be updated in SMI's customer communications.

"The key to a successful integration is for the dealer's data to be transferred instantly, securely and seamlessly between a DMS and a third-party solution provider," said Mike Esposito, President and CEO of Auto/Mate Dealership Systems. "Our Open/Mate platform makes it very easy and inexpensive for any third-party vendor to integrate with our DMS, resulting in more vendor choices and cost savings for dealers."

SMI's products are designed to increase customer engagement and response, proven to translate into higher closing rates on service recommendations in the fixed ops department. Following an inspection report, personalized communications encourage customers to share their information, offer choices regarding their service recommendations and build trust between the customer and service advisor.

"Integration between our service solutions and a dealership's DMS makes both technologies more accessible," said Garrett Jockel, CEO of SMI. "Technology should never get in the way of maximizing fixed ops profitability; it should make it easier."

Auto/Mate's fixed ops module offers a wide variety of tools to help increase service department volume and streamline the repair order (RO) process; including real-time status updates and appointment integration, OEM integration, service history, service merchandising, automated dispatching with electronic ROs and more.

Third-party software vendors interested in integrating with Open/Mate should contact Auto/Mate at (518) 371–4331.

About SMI (www.smidrive.com)

When Nick Jockel, a founder of SMI, worked in his father’s garage as a kid back in the 1960’s he remembered the simple measurement of the garage’s success as a handshake, a smile, or a phone call from the customer when they had a question. SMi increases customer loyalty by building more customer relationships. Customers demand more communication than dealers have time so we created a sales process of service recommendations that builds trust before you sell.

About Auto/Mate

Auto/Mate Dealership Systems is a leading provider of dealership management system (DMS) software to retail automotive dealerships. Its Automotive Management Productivity Suite (AMPS) is a user-friendly, feature-rich DMS in use by more than 900 auto dealers nationwide. In 2013 Auto/Mate received the “Highest Rated” DMS award in the fourth annual Driving Sales Dealer Satisfaction Awards.

Auto/Mate’s employees have more than 800 years of combined experience working in auto dealerships – the foundation of its “Designed By Car People For Car People^TM” slogan. For more information visit our website, follow us on Twitter @AutoMateDMS and subscribe to our blog at http://blog.automate.com

ALBANY, N.Y. – May 19th, 2014 – Auto/Mate Dealership Systems (http://www.automate.com) announced today that Five Star Dealerships, an auto group in Aberdeen, WA has transformed its culture to one of managerial empowerment and has increased productivity with the help of reporting and dashboard features in Auto/Mate's dealership management system (DMS).

"Any time you make a big change like a DMS, it takes some getting used to," said Mike O'Dell, Corporate General Manager of Operations for Five Star Dealerships. "I expected it would take some time for employees to learn how to do certain things differently, but what surprised me was how the changes empowered our managers by making access to information so much easier."

Five Star Dealerships is an auto group with two locations in western Washington near the coast. One location handles the franchises of Ford, Lincoln, Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram and the other location handles Chevrolet, Buick, Toyota and Scion. Three years ago the group's contract with a legacy DMS provider was nearing its end, and for the first time the principals realized they had additional vendor choices as Auto/Mate and another DMS provider had recently been approved by Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. After a thorough review, Five Star principals chose Auto/Mate for three reasons: significant financial savings, robust capabilities of the DMS and Auto/Mate's reputation for superior customer support.

Once the switch was made, O'Dell immediately realized a benefit he had not anticipated; the simplicity of Auto/Mate's Daily DOC (Daily Operating Control) reporting system. Previously, if managers wanted to view financial reports, they'd have to refer to a chart of accounts with different account numbers, they'd have to know which general ledger the information was located in, enter the account number, pull up a separate executable, enter dates, and then finally get the detail of what was posted that into account. "Out of 120 employees, there were probably four in accounting who knew how to run those reports," said O'Dell. If accounting employees were busy with payroll or other priorities, report requests would have to wait.

With Auto/Mate, if a manager wants to view financial reports, all they have to do is pull up the Daily DOC menu and choose the report they want from pull-down menus. If they want to drill down to see more detail, they simply click on the dollar amount or line item of interest. O'Dell says the ability to run their own reports makes both the managers and the accounting department more productive. Yet an even bigger benefit has been realized as departmental managers have become more empowered.

"Now managers run financials more often and can easily see where they are spending money, where they are saving money, what the trends are and more," said O'Dell.

For instance, if a sales manager wants to see what his advertisement expenses are for the month, he can pull up the DOC in a few seconds, double click on the expense line, then double click on any expense to see the detail. It's also easy to choose different time frames; with a simple click the report can be changed from a current month view to a 12-month trend chart.

The ability to pull up DOCs on demand allows managers to instantly know which models are selling, how the sales department is performing relative to the forecast, which invoices in service are paid and which are unpaid, and more. The level of knowledge enables managers to identify and address problem areas immediately, and ultimately leads to better decision-making and higher profitability. "It's really a whole shift in culture and has changed how we run things, in a way that wasn't possible with the last DMS we had," said O'Dell.

Another feature that O'Dell quickly learned to appreciate is Auto/Mate's dashboard, a visual display of key metrics displayed at the bottom of the computer screen. Users can define virtually any metric they'd like to track; such as rate of new vehicle sales, the percentage of gross estimate met in the service department or the number of vehicles sold with extended warranty contracts. Then the user chooses a 'widget' to represent each metric, such as a bar chart, thermometer, digital clock or other graphical element. This allows users to view critical metrics at a glance.

"The dashboard gives us a snapshot of everything we need to see on a daily, weekly and monthly basis," said O'Dell, who routinely looks at total store sales and total store gross figures, as well as the expense and net figures for every department. "Ten days into the month I can glance at these widgets and know in my head where we are relative to our forecasts without having to run any reports. If there's a weakness somewhere you can see it right away and go talk with that department manager."

The dashboard also enables users to click directly on the widgets to drill down for more detail. "Let's say I'm looking at finance chargebacks for the month," said O'Dell. "I click on the widget and it will take me directly into that account. I can see immediately what has been posted such as insurance contracts, finance products, a gap chargeback, etc. Then I click on a posting and I can see there's been a warranty cancellation, and I can see the dollar amount, customer name and other information. In four clicks I can get every detail without having to run a report."

The productivity savings achieved with Auto/Mate's reporting and dashboard features have been difficult to quantify but O'Dell compares it to buying a new computer that's ten times faster than an old computer. "Imagine when you click on something on your computer, and you have to wait for the circle to stop spinning. It slows you down. That's similar to how the wrong technology can slow down processes in our store. Imagine if someone is trying to do their job and then has to stop and wait for something. But with the right tools, there's no slowing down. It makes all of our processes faster, and the time and cost savings from that are immeasurable."

In addition to the DMS reporting and dashboard features, O'Dell appreciates Auto/Mate's customer support. "What we like the most is that for anyone to work in Auto/Mate's customer support department, they had to work in a car dealership. Their Fixed Ops support person used to be a Fixed Ops Director, and same with the F&I support and hardware guys" said O'Dell. Prior dealership experience enables Auto/Mate's customer support team to understand the questions, challenges and problems their clients may be having. "Their level of personal involvement with their customers is great; it doesn't feel like you're dealing with a big corporate entity at all," said O'Dell.

The principals at Five Star Dealerships chose Auto/Mate for three reasons, all of which have proven to hold true. The auto group has achieved significant cost savings, enjoys the DMS' robust capabilities and Auto/Mate's exceptional customer support. In addition, O'Dell was pleasantly surprised by the accessibility and ease of use of the reporting system and dashboard. "It's changed the way we run our business, empowering managers to make better decisions while increasing productivity."

About Auto/Mate

Auto/Mate Dealership Systems is a leading provider of dealership management system (DMS) software to retail automotive dealerships. Its Automotive Management Productivity Suite (AMPS) is a user-friendly, feature-rich DMS in use by more than 1,000 auto dealers nationwide. Auto/Mate received the “Highest Rated DMS of 2012" and the "Highest Rated DMS of 2013" awards in the annual Driving Sales Dealer Satisfaction Awards.

Auto/Mate’s employees have more than 850 years of combined experience working in auto dealerships – the foundation of its “Designed By Car People For Car People^TM” slogan. For more information visit our website, follow us on Twitter @AutoMateDMS and subscribe to our blog at http://blog.automate.com

# # #

Two Leading Providers in Their Respective Industries Join Forces to Help Dealers Improve Business Operations and the Consumer Experience

DAYTON, Ohio, and ATLANTA – May 19, 2014 – The Reynolds and Reynolds Company and Global Payments Inc. (NYSE: GPN) today announced an agreement to offer point-of-sale, electronic payment solutions for automotive dealerships. Reynolds is a leading provider of automobile dealership software, services, and forms. Global Payments is one of the largest worldwide providers of payment solutions.

As part of the agreement between the two companies, Reynolds will add Global Payments’ payments technology across Reynolds dealership management system (DMS) platforms and software solutions to deliver secure, cost-effective, and efficient electronic payment solutions in-store, online, and on mobile devices.

“Consumers today expect their experience with the dealership to mirror their experiences with other retailers,” said Ron Lamb, president of Reynolds and Reynolds. “That expectation applies whether the consumer is browsing the dealer’s website or paying for service at the dealership. To meet those expectations, dealers are looking for the tools that support a familiar shopping experience for consumers. Certainly, one of those tools is secure, efficient payment processing with the dealership.”

Lamb noted that adding payment technology will also deliver a number of productivity benefits for dealership personnel, in addition to the consumer benefits.

“This partnership demonstrates the strength of Global Payments’ distribution, combined with a differentiated service offering,” stated Eddie Myers, president of Global Payments’ Integrated Solutions division. “Our ability to provide a breadth of integrated payment processing products and services is ideally suited to meet the needs of automotive dealerships, especially when combined with the strength of Reynolds’ other technology offerings. We continue to expand our technology channel across different vertical markets and segments.”

Lamb concluded: “As we looked for payment processing solution partners, we looked for companies that shared our vision for the consumer experience, security, and advanced technology. We found this in Global Payments, as well as a company with deep experience in their industry. Adding this technology is one more step for Reynolds in helping dealers improve how their businesses operate and how they deliver a true retail experience to their customers.”

About Reynolds

Reynolds and Reynolds is a leading provider of automobile dealership software, services, and forms to help dealerships deliver better business results and transform the customer experience. The company is headquartered in Dayton, Ohio, with major operations in Houston and College Station, Texas, and Celina, Ohio. (www.reyrey.com)

About Global Payments

Global Payments Inc. is one of the largest worldwide providers of payment solutions for merchants, value added resellers, financial institutions, government agencies, multi-national corporations and independent sales organizations located throughout North America, South America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. Global Payments, a Fortune 1000 company, offers a comprehensive line of solutions and services for credit and debit cards, business-to-business purchasing cards, gift cards, electronic check conversion and check guarantee, verification and recovery including electronic check services, as well as terminal management. Visit www.globalpaymentsinc.com for more information about the company and its services.

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Reynolds and Reynolds Contact:

Thomas Schwartz
Thomas_Schwartz@reyrey.com

VinSolutions, Inc., a marketplace leader and developer of Internet-basedcustomer relationship management (CRM) for the automotive industry,announced today the integration of Carleton's SmartCalcs consumerlending and leasing calculation engine into its recently enhanceddesking platform.  Carleton provides lending compliance softwareproducts to many of the major lending captives and lenders in the autoindustry. This new integration will enable VinSolutions dealers to stayin compliance with auto lending regulations, which frequently change.
 

"At VinSolutions, we are committed to making it easier for salespeople to close deals faster and easier, and providing a comprehensivedesking solution is a key component in achieving that goal," said Brian Skutta,vice president and general manager of VinSolutions. "We needed apartner that understands the ever-changing auto lending regulatoryenvironment, and this integration of SmartCalcs will help our dealercustomers stay in compliance today and when regulatory changes occur inthe future."
 

Within VinSolutions' newly enhanced desking platform, Carleton'sSmartCalcs software provides greater compliance and accuracy for all thelending and leasing computations at the state, federal and lender levelnationwide. Along with handling all methods of computations in the autoindustry, the robust calculation functionality of SmartCalcs alsohandles the expansive tax and fee computations for loan and leasetransactions nationwide. 
 

"Accuracy and compliance support are certainly critical to thesuccess of VinSolutions providing a complete desking solution to theirdealers," said Patrick J. Ruszkowski,president and CEO of Carleton.  "With more than 40 years of experience,we are confident that our time-tested expertise in providing compliantcalculation support will be highly beneficial to VinSolutions'customers."
 

This new integration is the latest in a round of enhancements thatVinSolutions has released this year for its desking platform. Other newfeatures provides sales people with the ability to manage multiple dealsat once, render deals on a tablet or mobile device, reduce redundantdata entry, and provide for a more transparent and improved customerbuying experience.

http://bit.ly/1uZZS38

National study of over 366,000 vehicle purchases shows, for the first time, that dealership branded mobile apps influence consumer vehicle purchases

Daytona Beach, FL – May 6, 2014 –DMEautomotive (DMEa) today released key research findings from a first-ever study of over 366,000 purchase records, from a mix of 111 dealerships that offered a dealership-branded mobile app during the course of a full year, that sheds new light on the emerging criticality of mobile apps to auto dealerships – and how they are dramatically influencing consumer vehicle purchases.  According to the research, a customer with a dealership’s mobile app is 73% more likely to buy a vehicle from that dealer than a customer without a mobile app -- and these app-users spent 7% more on their vehicle purchase than non-app-users.

“This initial data is an eye opener: app-users are not only more likely to buy, but they spend more than non app-users,” said Mary Sheridan, Director of Research and Analytics for DMEautomotive. “This is a compelling reminder that a fast path for dealers to increased sales units and higher grosses runs through the dealership’s mobile app. Dealerships need to enter the app arena – and soon, because that’s where consumers are increasingly engaging.”

According to Flurry Analytics, time spent with mobile apps increasingly crushes time spent on the mobile Web: 86% of consumer “mobile time” (2.5 hours daily) is now spent with apps – with just 14% (20 minutes) on mobile sites. Furthermore, according to recent DMEa research, today’s shopper is avoiding the dealership, and even the test drive, stealthily comparison-shopping dealers/inventory online, and then swooping in to buy when their minds are made up. 

Mobile apps can be a potent weapon in countering this “dealership avoidance” phenomenon. This latest study finds that 15% of the vehicles purchased during the study period were by mobile app users who had no prior service history at that dealership, underscoring the growing role mobile apps can play in conquest sales for dealerships.

According to Mike Walther, president and CEO of DMEautomotive, the ‘always-on’ power of mobile apps provides a critical retention weapon for dealers - and against the growing epidemic of ‘dealership avoidance.’ And, as the data shows, it appears to be working.   Because mobile apps can allow dealers to track their customer’s vehicle lifecycles - and signal they’re entering the buying phase - dealers and brands can target people with personal offers at the right time.

“Consumers who have downloaded a dealership’s app quite literally have that dealership’s inventory in their pocket. So, when it is time to purchase a vehicle, it makes sense that they will check there first,” said Walther.   “We are hopeful that this compelling evidence of the power of the app will help more and more dealerships see the ‘app light,’ and see it right now.”

The DMEautomotive research studied over 366,000 consumer records representing over $2 billion in transactions, between the months of 4/1/2013 and 3/31/2014. The study covered a mix of 111 dealerships, representing multiple brands, store sizes, and regions, all of whom offer Driver Connect, DMEautomotive’s dealership-branded mobile app, to their customers.

About DMEautomotive
DMEautomotive (DMEa) is the industry leader in science-based, results-driven automotive marketing, and provides turnkey marketing to the largest and most innovative automotive organizations, from automobile dealerships to many of the largest aftermarket companies in the U.S. DMEa's uniquely panoramic view of the complete automotive sales and service market, combined with its cutting-edge, science-based marketing programs, increases customer yield, conversion and retention. 

DMEa does not take marketing performance on faith, and each product and service is measured by a simple, precise scientific approach: Is it true? Prove it. Will it work? Test it. Does it generate results? Show it! Supported by DMEa’s proprietary, cloud-based Red Rocket Technology Platform, the DMEa product suite includes science-based, data driven, multi-channel customer acquisition and retention marketing programs; best-in-class campaign reporting; data management and analytics; auto-focused Customer Interaction Center solutions, and complete on-site mail and email fulfillment services. Headquartered in Daytona Beach, Florida, DMEa also has major operations in Jacksonville, Florida. 

Contact: 
Media Relations 
Melanie Webber, mWEBB Communications, (424) 603-4340, melanie@mwebbcom.com