RV dealership software is not all created equally. This article offers RV dealers transparent insight into RV dealership software and the top 5 problems.
Specifically, we’ll address dealership management software, commonly referred to as DMS. If you’re an RV dealership owner, you’ve likely come across discussions about the problems with dealership software. We’ll show you what the causes of the problems are and how to avoid them. While no software is a perfect solution for any RV dealership leader, the goal of most DMS systems is to provide a solution. This solution must not only integrate the main components of RV dealerships, such as sales and finance. It must also include service, parts, and long-term customer relationships.
RV Dealership Software: The Everlogic Difference
At EverLogic, we care deeply about the benefits of RV dealership software. For one thing, we know firsthand how it positively impacts bottom lines. It impacts employee retention, efficiency, customer success, and more.
Since 2003, EverLogic has been the only DMS designed specifically for RV dealerships with no long-term commitments. Hundreds of RV dealers in the U.S. and Canada trust EverLogic to help run their dealerships with ease. For this reason, we’ve also designed our pricing to make life easier for RV dealers.
LEARN MORE: EverLogic Dealership Management Software
Designing RV dealership software that meets every need of every RV dealership is challenging. In fact, it’s impossible because no two dealerships are alike.
However, we’ve done our best to create software for RV dealerships that’s simple, effective, priced right and meets most needs well. Through our conversations with hundreds of RV dealers, we know what works and what doesn’t in RV dealership software. Now we are sharing this information with you, so you’ll have more efficiency, more profit, and happier employees.
Beyond that, you’ll have completely satisfied customers at your dealership. In other words, it is all possible with the help of the right software.
RELATED: EverLogic Pricing
Common RV Dealership Dealership Software Problems And Solutions
- DMS is not built specifically for RV dealerships.
- DMS does not work with current accounting system.
- Long-term financial commitments.
- Training and support are lacking.
- The value is not worth the overall cost.
Top Five Problems with RV Dealership Software
# 1: Software Not Built for RV Dealerships
There are many software solutions RV dealers can use.
It’s not uncommon for an RV dealership to buy multiple customer relationship software. You probably have service department management software, sales and inventory tracking software, accounting software, and more. Truly, you need all of them to simply run your dealership.
RELATED: Best value RV Dealer Software
Unfortunately, all of these solutions are built for businesses in general. They are not exclusively for RV dealerships. This leads to high costs, low interconnectivity or integration and poor overall effectiveness.
In fact, your employees may completely abandon software if it doesn’t make their lives easier.
There are hundreds of dealership management systems (DMS) to choose from. Many of them work well for most consumer automotive dealerships, but not RV dealerships.
Of the DMS solutions built with RV dealerships in mind, they are often constructed with marine, power sports, and other types of dealerships in mind. RV dealerships have unique and specific needs, such as:
- Taxes.
- Bank financing.
- Service departments.
- Inventory management.
- Add-on costs.
- Title work.
- Multiple serial numbers.
- Waste disposal fees.
- Time tracking
Unique issues require unique software solutions.
There is a profound need for software designed specifically for RV dealerships. Generic software leaves RV dealers paying too much or overcomplicating things.
What’s the solution for RV Dealerships?
The solution is simple: RV dealerships need software designed for RV dealerships and doesn’t cut corners.
The most effective RV dealerships require:
- Simple, fast onboarding – It’s common for DMS systems like Motility, CDK Global, and IDS Astra to take several weeks or months to be running fully. EverLogic’s DMS onboarding time is 30 days, even for large dealerships.
- Accounting that makes sense – Most RV dealerships use QuickBooks. EverLogic is the only DMS that’s certified by QuickBooks and integrates directly with the desktop or online versions of QuickBooks. As a result, this saves RV dealerships hassle and time. And it does this without sacrificing the use of the most effective accounting software available. Software solutions with built-in accountants lack time-saving features and functionality. This comes standard with QuickBooks. While it is true of other accounting specialized software like Sage Intacct or Oracle NetSuite, QuickBooks is best.
- One software solution for all – RV dealers want a one-stop shop. They want one solution that’s built for RV dealers. Other DMS solutions claim to do this, but EverLogic is the only one that does it specifically for RV dealers. Why does that matter? One example is the connection between your accounting department, state taxes, and the multiple serial numbers. There are also the trade-ins, inventory and floor plan tracking to account for. These are connected in the RV dealership space in ways that few other dealership categories have to navigate.
- Mobile tools – The world is moving away from desktop computers and toward mobile devices. To that end, RV dealers need their sales and service team members to conduct more business from their mobile devices. EverLogic has mobile covered. Consequently, our mobile apps integrate seamlessly with the EverLogic desktop DMS.
RELATED: EverLogic Mobile: The perfect app for dealership technicians and sales
Problem: Most software isn’t built for RV dealerships.
Solution: Use a DMS built specifically for RV dealerships.
#2: DMS Doesn't Feature Adequate Accounting Solution
QuickBooks Desktop
The range of ways RV dealerships handle their accounting varies. For most, software like QuickBooks is invaluable. It’s relatively simple for accountants, bookkeepers, and owners. And it allows them to collaborate with managers, and tax professionals.
So, what happens when you want to integrate your accounting system with your new or existing DMS?
Many DMS systems have built-in accounting modules. Common complaints we hear from RV dealers are that the accounting functions in their DMS are inflexible and limited. A built-in accounting module does not give them all the information they need to analyze their financials. Ad hoc reporting is limited or useless. Also, usual common accounting functions like payroll must be completed in another program. Sometimes it is outsourced to a third-party provider. Additionally, online banking and other productivity features are limited or non-existent.
That is unless their DMS is properly and fully integrated with QuickBooks and QuickBooks Online.
Interestingly, some DMS systems offer built-in accounting modules and give users the ability to integrate with QuickBooks instead. However, they fall short of meeting the needs of RV dealers. To us, this means those DMS providers know their software is lacking.
What’s the solution?
The only solution we know is to use EverLogic. Full integration with QuickBooks is one of the pillars that make EverLogic powerful for RV dealerships. It’s one of the reasons we get RV dealerships up and running so quickly when they start using EverLogic.
To try and build an accounting system to rival QuickBooks and QuickBooks online is nearly impossible to do. Add to this the need to build a robust DMS that meets the needs of RV dealers. Given that, it’s easy to see why QuickBooks is the most popular accounting system on earth. It’s simple, effective, scalable, robust, and built for businesses of all sizes.
Quickbooks has been around for decades. Notably, it is without a doubt the ideal accounting software for most RV dealers. So, we built EverLogic with RV dealerships and QuickBooks in mind from day one.
Also, one more note about the scalability of QuickBooks. Both the desktop and online versions of QuickBooks are built to scale for RV dealerships of any size, even with multiple locations. As your dealership(s) grow, so grows QuickBooks. Some other DMS providers may say otherwise, but they’re simply not accurate.
Problem: RV Dealership Software Accounting system is broken or difficult to use.
Solution: Use a DMS that fully integrates with QuickBooks.
#3: Long-Term Contracts Only Benefit Software Companies
You’ve likely heard that most DMS providers lock your dealership into annual or multi-year contracts. And perhaps they justify this by saying something like, “We want our customers to get the most out of our software, and it takes time.” Or they say, “Our onboarding period is three months, so we require new customers to be with us at least that long.” We list this as one of the top five problems with RV dealership DMS systems because it is (and should be) a deal-breaker.
On occasion, you come across a DMS system that does bill monthly, like AutoPro.io. While this may be true, those systems lack all of the features needed by RV dealers. On top of that, they are more costly than EverLogic.
What’s the solution for RV dealerships?
A few RV dealership software solutions are available if a long-term agreement is your biggest concern. It’s important to evaluate what you’ll sacrifice to achieve that goal. Something like the Flyntlok DMS could meet your needs if you only care about avoiding long-term contracts in your next DMS. However, Flyntlok isn’t specifically designed for RV dealerships. And that’s just one example of many.
Above all, the best advice is to see if EverLogic works for your RV dealership. It’s the only DMS that’s designed specifically for RV dealers. And it does not require long-term commitments. Choosing the wrong DMS means months of toil and heartache for your team.
Problem: Long-term contracts for DMS systems do not benefit RV dealers.
Solution: Buy a DMS system that allows you to cancel any time.
#4: Training and Support for RV Dealers Fall Short
We’ve all been there. You buy something new, and you don’t know how to use it. The user manual didn’t cut it and there’s no phone number to call to get help. In reality, that’s not how customers should be treated.
You absolutely should not expect anything less than a white-glove experience. This is especially true when you buy software that’s costing your RV dealership hundreds or thousands of dollars.
What’s the solution?
Here’s a simple checklist to determine if your current or prospective RV dealership software is treating you right. Especially where support and training are concerned. You should be getting:
- Onboarding and setup coordinated by a real person.
- Comprehensive training for everyone who uses the software.
- Access to real humans who can answer technical or general questions.
- Help articles and videos.
- A dedicated account manager or point of contact who knows you by name.
If your RV dealership software doesn’t offer every support-related feature above, you simply are not getting the level of support you need. EverLogic offers all of the support features mentioned and we take it a step further. With this in mind, every EverLogic customer gets a dedicated account manager. This manager proactively seeks out ways to help grow the business. Think of them more as complimentary business growth advisors.
Interestingly, here’s some insight from the perspective of a software development company. The only reason why companies don’t offer better support is so they can cut down on costs. Often, they don’t want to make changes to their software.
Honestly, at EverLogic, we know there are ways to improve our software. We make those changes based on feedback we get from our customers. In fact, we have a whole team dedicated entirely to implementing software changes critical to helping the RV dealers we serve.
Problem: Training and support for RV dealerships don’t meet expectations and needs.
Solution: Work with a DMS company that cares about you and your success.
#5: The Cost of RV Dealership Software Is Too High
How do you evaluate the cost of RV dealership software? Is it just price? Payment frequency? Contracts? Or do you look at the whole picture about your employees’ time, your time, employee satisfaction, customer satisfaction? Perhaps you care most about the direct impact RV dealership software will have on your bottom line. Understandably, you want RV dealership software offering amazing financial formulas. You want them to give you precise forecasts based on different operational scenarios.
The new customers we’ve spoken to care most about these things:
- Onboarding time – How long will it take to get my RV dealership started?
- Ease of use – Will new employees be able to use this quickly?
- Scalability – Can I use this RV dealership software for multiple locations?
You probably guessed that EverLogic’s answer to those questions is “yes.”
What’s the solution?
EverLogic’s 30-day onboarding period, simple dealership management system and scalable configuration meet the needs of RV dealers today. We are unlike any other software solution. EverLogic offers extreme clarity for RV dealers looking to position their dealerships for sale or acquisition. This robust RV dealership software connects every facet of the dealership. It reports true costs and profit, powered by QuickBooks. For any dealership pressed for time, our team gets it. We’ve built software from the ground up designed to save your team’s time. They help you profit more with confidence, starting on day one.
Problem: The cost of buying new RV dealership software is too high.
Solution: EverLogic: The only DMS system with fast powerful solutions.
The top five problems with RV dealership software don’t have to be problems for you. To start seeing how EverLogic can start solving some of these problems, fill out the form below to watch our demo.