The pandemic and continuing supply chain disruption have meant there is no shortage of stories to write on the retail technology beat.
I’ve written about the acceleration of technology that can help dealerships sell vehicles online, dealers’ adoption of those new tools and many consumers’ willingness to buy online.
We’ve explored the concept of omnichannel retailing — technology and processes aimed at providing a seamless buying experience for consumers, whether they shop online, in-store or both — and how technology alone can’t create a seamless experience if the dealership hasn’t defined the experience it wants to offer.
I’ve covered public policy initiatives to expand the use of electronic signatures to replace wet ink as well as legislative debates over allowing consumers to buy electric vehicles directly from startup automakers.
We’ve written about how technology is contributing to the transformation of the franchised dealership model more broadly, including automakers’ plans for online vehicle reservations, over-the-air updates and brand-level digital retailing platforms, and how new-vehicle dealers will play a role in this future.
These trends are ongoing and evolving. Our coverage of them will continue, too. But I’m interested to know in what other ways technology is reshaping the way dealers do business. Dealers, how are you using technology today to sell or service vehicles? To recruit employees? To improve profitability, efficiency or back-end operations?
Vendors, what new features or capabilities are you adding to your technology that don’t yet exist in the market or are solving problems in new ways?
Send me an email and help me stay up to date on the newest technology and emerging trends that auto retailers need to know.