Identifix, an industry leader in vehicle diagnostics and repair for more than 25 years, has achieved another milestone: 1,000 dealerships throughout North America now subscribe to Direct-Hit, the company’s award-winning online tool, to repair vehicles more quickly, accurately and profitably.
Identifix’s favorable reputation among aftermarket repair shops and positive word of mouth endorsements were mainly responsible for the initial growth in dealership subscribers. In January 2012, the company began actively pursuing the dealership segment with its own dedicated sales team, website and marketing communications.
Timing also played a role, said Jeff Sweet, Identifix president, who recognized that as new vehicle sales were slowing, more cars than ever before were on the road and no longer under warranty.
“We knew dealerships were realizing that in order to stay profitable, they had to expand their service offerings and concentrate on repairs that fell outside the realm of normal wear-and-tear. Dealerships also had to switch to an all-make strategy, not just servicing the cars that drive away from their lot,” he said.
Direct-Hit contains over 700,000 short-cut diagnostic test and confirmed fix procedures for most makes and models, thereby eliminating time-consuming factory flowcharts. This real-world fix information is validated by Identifix’s own factory-trained, ASE Master, L1 carline specialists. Coupled with genuine OEM service and repair information on more than 35 vehicle makes, Direct-Hit helps dealership technicians work on older and off-make vehicles with the same level of expertise and confidence they have for their dealership’s brand(s).
“Direct-Hit is one of the most used, most profitable shop tools that we have,” said Dylan Arnold, service manager at Gaier Chrysler Dodge Jeep in Fort Laramie, Ohio. “It allows us the benefit of having access to actual manufacturer information for most vehicle makes. It also gives us access to repair information from thousands of technicians across the country, along with repair labor guides and parts pricing for accurate estimating.”
Identifix's Direct-Hit also helps boost dealership productivity and increases revenue when it comes to reconditioning used cars, enabling technicians to turn vehicles quickly for profitable re-sale without sacrificing repair accuracy or quality.
“We currently have a group of 15 stores and introduced Identifix to all of them nearly three years ago,” said Brenda Daniels, fixed operations director at Hertrich Family of Automobile Dealers which include Chrysler, Honda, GM and other brands in New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. “Direct-Hit has increased our service closing ratios, and also helped to decrease costly errors in the estimates,” she said.
“Again, it’s all about speed and efficiency,” said Sweet. “Direct-Hit helps to move all makes of cars in and out of the dealership lot faster and gives the technicians confidence in knowing what to look for so they can quickly assess what’s wrong and how to fix it, which, in turn, provides assurance to the customer.”
For more information on how dealerships can utilize Direct-Hit to improve profitability, increase efficiency and expand service capabilities, visit dealerships.identifix.com.
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