Proper data management will literally make or break the long-term success of your dealership. Trying to track all of your daily business operations by hand is time consuming, not to mention it opens the door for all kinds of manual data errors.
The most accurate and effective way to keep your business on the right track is through computerization. If you’ve already made that progression, or are looking to do so, congratulations! You already know the importance of software and why you should have it.
There are tons of systems out there, but which one is right for you? To find the right fit, you need to ask yourself the following questions:
- What is the annual revenue of your dealership?
- How many parts do you track?
- Is serial number tracking and unit history important to you?
- How much of your business is service-based?
- What budget can you dedicate to a software system that meets your needs?
Now that you’ve answered these questions, let us present some options. For the smaller dealer, let’s say under $250,000 in revenue, a solution such as QuickBooks could work for you. If your database is small, you have the capacity to manually enter price and parts information and are just looking for an affordable solution to bring computerization into your dealership, QuickBooks has several packages available. They also offer several third-party plug-ins that will help you track items such as inventory and service with limited integration.
If your business is growing, tracking inventory is a nightmare, your techs can’t service motorcycles fast enough, or you feel like you’ve reached your limits on your current software and it’s simply not working for you, then it’s essential for you to take a look at a more industry-specific option such as Ideal. The main factor that sets Ideal apart from QuickBooks is that it has 30 years of industry experience put into a product designed for specific industries. QuickBooks is a generic retail solution designed to handle the masses from beauty shops, to sporting goods stores, and so on. There are definite limitations to a product that’s not designed specifically for your dealership.
Ideal develops its product based from dealer feedback and implements updates accordingly. Granted, there will more of an investment, however, it will pay for itself as it grows with your business. Here are just some of the advantages to utilizing industry-specific software:
- Automatic manufacturer price list updates – no manual data entry!
- Automatic purchase order creation and integrations with specific manufacturers
- Automatic warranty and product registrations
- Automatic warranty processing
- Industry “Work Flows” from selling and ordering parts to getting a repair unit through your shop
- Detailed customer and purchase history
- Detailed serialized unit tracking that ties back to your service orders and warranty claims
- Floor plan management
- Affordable merchant service rates
- Dedicated F&I management
- Customer support from experienced techs who are well-trained in your industry
- Software updates and enhancement specifically for your industry
The long and short of it is that you need to take the time to evaluate your dealership and its specific computerization needs and communicate that information to your sales rep. Make sure they understand what you’re looking for and that they are genuinely invested in helping you find a solution that will make you money, save time, and improve overall operations. Also check references from dealers that run a business comparable to yours. No one can tell you how well the software will perform and what the customer experience is like better than the people actually using it.
“Do it now or go out of business. Look around because there’s only a couple players. I did extensive, agonizing research before I went with Ideal’s OPE dealer software solution. I chose Ideal because of recommendations from fellow dealers, the fact that they had gone Windows based, and because I was in desperate need of updating my old DOS point-of-sale accounting system. I also needed a national company that could support me. Ideal has been good to me.”
Gary Nichols of Nichols Equipment in Jacksonville, FL
“If you don’t have a system like Ideal in place, you should. The cost of buying and maintaining computers and software is cheaper than the amount of labor they do. If you have an employee who calls in sick or takes days off, you lose productivity and have to fill a void. Ideal is in your business all day, every day. It takes the place of at least two employees.”
Mark Wandersheid, co-owner of Country Cat in Sauk Centre, MN
