Vendors need data from dealerships to run their operations effectively. For example, a vendor that assists with dealership marketing efforts will need specific data such as inventory data, services, customer actions, website data, and more.
The sheer amount of data is beneficial to vendors that want to make better decisions. Having access to all of it enables them to segment data based on age, gender, location, and vehicle status, and more, allowing them to personalize their marketing and other use cases such as inventory management, sales recovery, and customer communication.
All of this data comes from several places like the Customer Relationship Management system, website, social accounts, Google Ads, Google Tag Manager, third-party tracking software, and more. Dealerships may give ownership of data over to vendors when they allow vendors to set up various accounts for them. Without entirely knowing this, they hand over their valuable data ownership. Those who wish to remain in control should set up their own accounts and give vendors access, not the other way around.
Choosing who can access the data
Data accessibility and ownership go hand in hand. Dealerships giving vendors access to their data need to be aware of which vendors are still accessing it over longer periods of time. There are many cases where dealerships believe they know who is accessing their data, but when they take a closer look, they come to find vendors they thought had stopped accessing it ages ago, but they are still putting it to use without their knowledge.
Data ownership means the dealership can essentially turn access to their data on and off as easily as turning a tap on and off. If you can’t do this currently, you don’t really have ownership over your data. This is also a revenue concern for dealerships. Data is financially valuable, and dealerships should be at the receiving end of that instead of being taken advantage of by vendors who siphon their data without a proper agreement.
The power of data syndication
Anything that a dealership's data could possibly be used for is only doable if the data is properly cleaned and consolidated into a single source. Otherwise, the data is skewed, unmanageable, and will not provide a clear picture.
Data syndication can work for both the dealer and vendors. If a customer returns to purchase a vehicle, the dealership will be able to clearly see the customers activities, past purchases, and how they reacted to marketing efforts. The same is true for vendors who will be able to take that data and make better marketing decisions to reach the customer through personalized efforts.
All department's data, such as marketing, sales, finance, service, and so on, are no longer separate; through syndication, they come together in one place to offer a clear view and access to the larger picture. This helps to spot trends, assist customers, increase financial margins, and become more efficient than competitors in the same location.
Looking to the future
Dealerships will look to own their data and have the ability to choose who can access it, when they can access it, and what it can be accessed and used for. Instead of giving ownership over to dealer management systems and vendors, they’ll take ownership into their own hands and reap the rewards.
For those who can afford it, dealerships may look to hire a data scientist or analyst in-house and find new and important ways to put their data to use. For others, it will be far more economical to find trusted partners who can clean and syndicate data for them while allowing them to maintain control and ownership.
Authenticom is trusted by thousands of vendors and dealerships to provide secure data syndication that eliminates the hassle of having to go through several DMS’s. We help dealerships keep ownership of their data while providing clean, trustworthy data to vendors with ease. For dealerships looking to take ownership of their information, Authenticom is here.
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