Stoneacre Motor Group has joined forces with AutoConvert in pursuit of an all-encompassing approach to lead management which fuses detailed lead tracking with paperless online finance applications.

The Thorne-based AM100 retailer, which is targeting a £1 billion turnover by 2020 following a string of recent dealer group acquisitions, said that its new system is helping to manage its stream of digital leads more smoothly and efficiently following a successful trial of the CRM system.

“In Q1 our digital sales have increased 36.6% year on year, which is largely attributed to the automation, rules and credit search facility within the software,” said Stoneacre head of digital, Mark Zavagno.

“We no longer need to send information manually to our lenders which has allowed a re-distribution of our administrative efforts to those customers who have been automatically pre-approved.

“This has increased efficiency, response times and processing speed, these being key objectives in the digital platform.

“Our tasks are now pre-populated for the day as our communication scheduling has allowed us to build communication strategies based on the status and age of the lead. We can also set pre-determined rules so that the system can automatically deal with new leads.

“Finally, the integrated communication allows us to audit and quality assess our team’s performance all in one place without having to log into different email clients or call recording software.”

Stoneacre said in a statement that formation of its partnership with AutoConvert had come in direct response to changing consumer requirements, with the digital experience being seen more and more at the top of the sales funnel.

The new system, initially trialled through the part-exchange process over a six month period and now being rolled-out across the group, has optimised the consumer journey through its website, allowing potential customers to apply for both finance and a free part exchange valuations.

The AutoConvert software automates a large part of the process, although there remains a requirement for Stoneacre’s Digital Lead Coordinators to assist with the completion of the experience.

There are also procedures in place for those customers who may not meet the criteria for finance acceptance to assist them to complete their application, Stoneacre said.

AutoConvert’s automated system delivers a ‘Single Customer View’ which can be tracked from initial entry at its point of origin to the final sale.

David Teatum, Stoneacre’s head of F&I operations, led the roll-out of the new system and was quick to praise the impact it had had on the workload of the groups business managers.

Teatum said: “The system has been designed to match the F&I Process, streamlining the whole experience by applying various bespoke rules in the system which in turn deliver a quicker, easier and compliant buying experience for the customer.”

He added: “It has removed the need to fill-out multiple finance application forms and is fully FCA compliant, leaving our business managers with a far easier job to do and time to focus on other parts of the business.”

AutoConvert director, Paul Livsey, said: “Although initially designed for broker use, it soon became clear from our dealings with Mark at Stoneacre, that this technology was also needed in dealer networks.

“Many dealers now operate Central Processing Units, handling digital enquiries from multiple sources including Google, Facebook, Instagram, live chat and appointing to branch.

“Using our extensive knowledge and experience of financial marketing, we recognised how important reporting and tracking every click of the process is to be able to measure Return on Marketing Spend.”