Better Closing Rates and Customer Satisfaction Among the Benefits
By Pete MacInnis
Dealers and their F&I managers are always looking for an easier and quicker way to pre-qualify customers in order to shorten the sales cycle, as well as to ensure better qualified buyers. Early results from eLEND Solutions’ ID Drive show that not only is the sales process shortened, but that dealers are having impressive closing ratios.
ID Drive, a product from eLEND Solutions, is an ID authentication program that instantly and automatically converts a driver’s license scan into a consumer consented soft pull credit pre-qualification application, without even requiring a social security number. Its pre-qualification differs from pre-screening or hard pull inquiries because it does not require a SSN or impact the consumer’s credit profile while providing the dealer with a full credit report and real-time credit score.
In addition, ID Drive is the only ‘driver license scanner’ that authenticates every version of driver license for all 50 states, appending validated address and phone information, and automatically converting a driver license scan into a consumer consented pre-qualification application.
Once scanned, the consumer’s lead information is electronically integrated with any pre-existing lead or credit application data – prior to the test drive, then securely exported into the dealer’s CRM and finance systems. This integrates the historically fragmented sales and finance processes. ID Drive’s Pre-qualification also includes much lower costs per credit pull and simplified compliance requirements and cost savings for dealers.
This new enhancement is designed to help dealers sell more cars in less time, improve CSI by reducing bottlenecks in the F&I department and improve overall profitability. Dealers get the information they need to put customers in the right vehicles with the right deal structures, matched to specific lender programs at the front of the sales process.
Huntington Beach Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Huntington, Calif., scanned nearly 900 driver’s licenses in one month and captured the relevant data for its instore systems as well as providing an accurate record of who drove its vehicles. The results were quick and impressive. Of those scanned, nearly 50 percent opted for pre-qualification and the dealership converted 36 percent of those into a sale. “It is one of our highest performing and most profitable channels,” said Pete Shaver, managing partner. “And, because the process is so fast and easy, we can verify their address and pull credit in less than 10 seconds. We are saving a huge amount of manpower and time.”
Shaver estimates that the software eliminated between one to two hours off the sales process, a benefit both to the customer and the dealer. “Customers appreciate not having to share their SSN and knowing there won’t be any negative impact on their credit score – and they love the fact that it shortens the sales cycle,” said Shaver.
