FordDirect, a joint venture between Ford Motor Company and its franchise dealers, launched a new web 2.0 platform, based on SiSTeR's Technologies' VSHOC and Publisher platform, DealerConnection Vehicle Showroom (VSR) for its Ford and Lincoln dealers. FordDirect VSR seamlessly integrates with a dealer's digital marketing or social media platform including blogs, Facebook and their YouTube pages so that consumers can search the most current new and used vehicle inventory without clicking out of their original destination.
The service will be available to all 3,500 Ford and Lincoln Dealers that have DealerConnection websites, and offered for no additional charge to dealers that currently have both DealerConnection Elite and DealerConnection Premier Advanced Inventory Service (DCPAIS) web services.
The VSR's unique interactive filtering and keyword search functions provide users with their desired selection in real time. Furthermore, unlike other video inventory tools, VSR switches automatically to an HTML 5.0 version for users who access it via a smart phone or tablet to maximize the users' experience and the dealer's ROI.
DealerConnection VSR maximizes the effectiveness of a dealer's digital marketing and social media platforms and enhances the user experience by offering consumers the ability to not only search for a new vehicle by make, model and price, but can also submit an inquiry directly to the dealer or refer a vehicle to others without ever leaving the digital or social platform. VSR also automatically displays the desired vehicle on the dealer's website for visitors who come from YouTube and, if such a vehicle is sold, lists of similar vehicles are displayed, saving the users from the annoying "search again" issue.
"We are finding that consumers are turning to social media and other digital platforms to initiate their research for a vehicle purchase, so it's important for Dealers to capture their attention with the most current information in an interactive way," said Valerie Fuller, COO of FordDirect. "DealerConnection Vehicle Showroom provides consumers with an enhanced online experience so that they can find the vehicle that they are looking for and be able to connect with a dealer without the hassle of having to visit numerous websites."
A recent study from Autoguide.com states that 2.4 million in-market shoppers used Facebook in some way to make a vehicle purchase decision. In addition, 58 percent of consumers are likely to mention their new car and/or buying experience via social media and 82 percent of mentions about car purchases on social media are positive.
For more information, visit www.forddirect.com/dealercenter .


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