Facial recognition software could be the next big thing for dealers looking to improve their level of customer service and sales potential.

As reported by the BBC, companies such as Japanese technology experts NEC and American company FaceFirst use the latest tech together with cameras at a retailer’s entrance to identify those who enter.

Knowing who a customer is before they walk in the door could be beneficial to dealers in a number of ways, for example, if the person entering is a high potential buyer or even a returning customer, knowing their name will give a much more personalised service.

A text message can be sent to sales staff on the floor when the system recognises a potential customer entering the showroom.

From a buyers perspective this will give them the ‘VIP’ feeling – an almost celebrity status.

Systems such as FaceFirst’s require a back log of photos which could be prove time consuming but beneficial none-the-less, if you assign a dedicated person to collate sales leads from social media sites a good base could be built – naturally image databases will have to differ for each of your dealerships to reflect local people and local interests.

"If a particular brand has 10,000 likes on Facebook, you could use the profile pictures of all the people who have liked it,” FaceFirst's chief executive Joel Rosenkrantz told the BBC.

"You can tell customers that if they agree to enrol with their camera, then they will be offered a discount coupon when they walk into the store, or get them to tick a box saying they agree that their picture can be used when they log on with Facebook," Rosenkrantz said.

FaceFirst currently markets its system as a way to detect known shoplifters and alert security but NEC promotes its technology as a way of identifying individual customers.

Check out FaceFirst's software here: