Park Place operates nine luxury automotive dealerships in Texas and California. Since the first dealership was established in 1987, Park Place has maintained a reputation of excellence in customer service to match the world-class brands offered within the franchise, including Mercedes-Benz, Lexus, Rolls-Royce and Porsche.
Before deploying the Motion Computing® tablet PCs and MOC1 software solution, Park Place service representatives used a simple clipboard, with pen and paper to record a client’s requests on the service drive. They would later manually transcribe the data into Park Place’s database, a process that allowed for errors, incomplete reports and process latencies. The pen and paper system also limited their ability to interact with the client on the service drive because they had no access to client or vehicle history at the point of service. Often the representatives would escort a client to their office to access history and notes via a desktop computer, which was not an efficient use of time.
Because Park Place has an ongoing commitment to client service excellence, the dealership group looked to streamline and enhance the interaction between service representatives and clients by seeking and implementing the latest technology advancements.
In late 2007, Park Place began evaluating several mobile technology solutions that could improve the service drive process and first came across MOC1 at the National Auto Dealers Association convention. After comparing MOC1 to several different mobile service solutions, a process that included visits to other dealerships to see all prospective solutions in action, Park Place selected MOC1 Wireless Service Advisor™ (WSA™) on Motion® tablet PCs. Park Place purchased 80 Motion LE1700 Tablet PCs preconfigured with the MOC1 WSA solution which have been deployed at the Mercedes Benz dealerships, and are currently rolling out across three Lexus dealerships.
According to Tony Carimi, service director at Park Place Motorcars Dallas, the MOC1 solution running on the LE1700 Tablet PCs was by far the most advanced, client friendly and advisor friendly of the products Park Place considered. MOC1’s WSA software also has a licensed interface to ADP, Park Place’s data management system, which created greater efficiency throughout the transaction. Most importantly, Park Place was extremely impressed with the level of support behind the solution, both from MOC1 and Motion.
MOC1’s solution enables service advisors to create repair orders digitally while at the client’s car so mobility is a key factor. At approximately three pounds, the LE1700 is highly portable. The View Anywhere® display specifically designed for sunlight and glare allows the service advisors to carry the tablet PC to the client’s car or mount it in the docking station at their desk to use with a full keyboard and monitor. In fact, the LE1700s have completely replaced desktop computers for many of the service advisors.
MOC1 and Motion continued to impress Park Place by taking time to set up and customize the technology and software before the service advisors began to work with the tablet PCs. The solution was also tested and piloted by a master service advisor to work through any potential issues. The preparation and planning paid off, delivering a nearly flawless rollout.
Since Park Place Motorcars in Dallas began using the MOC1 Solution on Motion’s tablet PCs in early 2008, giving representatives access to information at their fingertips, the service drive experience for both advisors and clients has changed dramatically. Using the WSA solution, the service advisor is able to retrieve critical customer and vehicle data including repair history, recommended services, warranty and recall information as well as contact information from the portable LE1700. This helps advisors personalize service, more quickly provide recommendations and enhance important relationships with Park Place clients.
Additionally, the solution allows the service advisor to complete a full inspection process, handle customer’s questions, and provide maintenance recommendations in a timely and interactive fashion, even in the form of multi-media videos, all while standing at the customer’s vehicle. Because the service representative can look up schedules and appointments in real-time and immediately estimate the length of repair, a service summary can be emailed to the client with an itemized list of repairs before they leave the lot.
Employee adoption is a key factor in the success of any technology deployment and Park Place was happy to see its service advisors who had recently joined Park Place or who had been using pen and paper for 20 years eager to use the mobile devices. Service advisors cited the LE1700’s exceptional handwriting recognition to write up repair orders, as well as the level of service and support from MOC1 and Motion as reasons they’ve been able to adopt the technology so quickly. Currently, service advisors and greeters on the drive are using the mobile solution, but employees across Park Place have taken notice, and there is potential to utilize the technology throughout the dealerships.
Overall, the technology solution has helped Park Place significantly improve the quality of repair orders and write-ups by prompting the service representatives to complete the comprehensive form and capture data in real time. With immediate access to manufacturer and dealer campaigns or recommended service options, the MOC1 solution has also been a great selling tool for advisors to use with clients. Most importantly, the solution has vastly improved the client experience, which is at the core of Park Place’s company mission.