Car Dealer Increases Used Car Sales By 10% Through Interactive Kiosks

Kiosks have become a powerful new marketing tool for Grubb Automotive, Inc. of Phoenix, thanks to some innovative work by First Wave, Inc. First Wave is an eight-year-old kiosk manufacturer with 23 employees, based in Scottsdale, AZ.

First Wave was initially approached by Grubb Automotive's advertising agency, which had heard of First Wave's interactive kiosks. Grubb's President, Dan Grubb, had met the president of a kiosk enclosure vendor who told him about First Wave. Dan Grubb then asked the advertising agency to investigate whether First Wave's kiosks could solve his problem.

The Problem
As John Glitsos, founder and CEO of First Wave, explains it, the problem was basically one of inventory consolidation. Grubb Automotive has from 900 to 1200 used cars in its inventory. About half of these cars were available for sale at any one time. The remainder were being thoroughly cleaned and given a detailed inspection. These 450 to 600 cars were spread over five geographically separated lots throughout Phoenix. According to Grubb, few customers are willing to drive to five different lots in a large city in order to find a good used car.

The Solution
With First Wave's interactive kiosks, however, the problem was solved. The kiosks were placed in each of the five dealerships. Potential customers can enter any of the dealerships and go directly to a kiosk, with no pressure from a salesperson. First, they review Grubb's car pricing and warranty policies. Then, by using a touch screen, they indicate the price range, features, year, make, model and color of the car in which they're interested.

The computer screen then shows six vehicles at a time, all of which meet the specifications entered. The exact price of each vehicle appears in the lower right corner. Once the customer sees a car that appeals, they can drill down for a closer look and check out all the options. They can then print a brochure on that car and even dial a phone to call the dealership for a test drive. At that point, the kiosk prints a map, which shows how to get to the appropriate dealership.

And How It All Works
First Wave had spent over four and a half years developing its core software for many kiosk applications, so quick prototyping was possible. (In fact, Grubb's advertising agency contacted First Wave on a Thursday and the prototype was ready the following Monday.) Each kiosk contains two Apple G-3 processors, chosen for their simplicity, and two Mitsubishi PrecisePoint touch screen monitors, selected for their quality and durability. Each kiosk also contains one Lexmark Optra printer, chosen for its paper capacity and high speed.

The information in the kiosk had to be updated daily. To accomplish this, First Wave trained lot attendants, the people who wash the cars, to do the updating. Each attendant has a Sony Mavica digital camera with floppy disks. After a vehicle is cleaned and inspected, the attendant takes a digital photo of it. He then goes to the reception desk where there is a computer with Windows 95 and a database so a prepared screen is presented.

He places the floppy disk in the computer and a series of small check boxes appear on the screen. The attendant then simply checks the appropriate box for that car's features, such as automatic transmission, air conditioning, and so on. The only typing required are the year of the car and the mileage. First Wave's software then automatically writes a text file. Finally, the attendant places the disk in the kiosk where it is automatically transmitted by modem to a central computer and thence to all the other kiosks.