ROSEVILLE, Calif., July 13, 2001 (PRIMEZONE) -- Recently renovated Autowest Honda of Roseville has retooled its sales force with DealerAdvance(tm), a groundbreaking mobile sales system that is changing the way cars are sold and information is processed at auto dealerships across the country.
"Autowest Honda is putting technology into the hands of our sales consultants to better serve our customers," said Don Palombi, general manager of Autowest Honda, an AutoNation company. "By equipping our sales staff with DealerAdvance, Autowest Honda can provide data, shorten the sales cycle, stay accountable to customers and have a competitive advantage."
The DealerAdvance system uses wireless, handheld devices that have the memory and processing power of a PC to store, manage and distribute information in real-time, placing a wide range of information at auto dealers' fingertips.
Autowest Honda predicts that once the DealerAdvance system is fully implemented, it will reduce the sales transaction time by a minimum of 30 minutes.
"It's all about saving time and helping customers make informed decisions," Palombi added.
With DealerAdvance, sales consultants can scan in customer information using a driver's license, and gather customer needs and contact data electronically; check new and used car inventory; provide side-by-side new vehicle comparisons on all makes and models through Chrome Systems Corporation, an independent information source; check credit ratings; register customers into the dealership's database for follow-up; and issue reports of all customer information and product queries on the spot.
"Consumers are intrigued by DealerAdvance the minute they walk into the showroom. They know that there is something different going on at Autowest. It's not just the same old dealer," Palombi said.
According to Palombi, the majority of sales consultants are excited about DealerAdvance and have become proficient at using the handheld system in just a short amount of time.
"DealerAdvance's easy-to-use platform, hands-on training and continuous follow-up has been critical to the initial acceptance and successful implementation of this initiative," Palombi added.
Last year, Autowest Honda was among 122 companies out of 1,000 selected to receive the Honda President's Award for excellence in customer satisfaction. The dealership sells an average of 300 new and used vehicles per month.
"We believe that DealerAdvance will set a new standard of utilizing technology to improve customer service and operating efficiencies so that high-volume dealerships such as Autowest Honda can continue to increase sales and deliver the highest levels of customer service," said Chris Carey, CEO and president of Stronghold Technologies, the company that developed DealerAdvance.
Founded in August 2000, Stronghold Technologies (www.strongholdtech.com) is a privately held mobile solutions company based in Whippany, NJ.
Several auto dealers across the United States have purchased DealerAdvance in the second quarter 2001. Members of the media interested in a demonstration of the DealerAdvance system can contact Angela Harrington at 973-912-8196 or e-mail angela@harringtoncom.com
About Autowest Honda
Autowest Honda (www.autowest.com) is an AutoNation company, the largest automotive retailer in the country. AutoNation (www.autonation.com) has more than 400 vehicle franchises in 26 major metropolitan markets and was ranked by Fortune magazine in its 2000 Fortune 500 issue as one of the fastest growing automotive companies in America for the third consecutive year.
Autowest Honda is located at 500 Auto Mall Drive, Roseville, Calif., and be reached at 800-882-5204.
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CONTACT: Harrington Communications
Angela Harrington
973-912-8196
Cell: 201-306-7163
Fax: 973-912-7225
angela@harringtoncom.com