Quick Check: Lead Volume and Where It Lands

• How many internet-sourced leads does your dealership receive in an average month? Options: Under 200, 200–500, 501–1,000, Over 1,000, Unsure
• In a typical month, what percentage of those leads come from your website versus third-party providers, phone calls, and showroom traffic? Options: Majority website, Even split across sources, Heavy third-party, Mostly phone/showroom, I don't have this split
• Who on your team is accountable for first response to each lead source, and how is that assignment decided?
• Walk me through the journey of a website lead from capture to a logged opportunity in your current tools.
• When you compare your legacy CRM and a parallel test, which single metric do you check first—response time, follow-up completion, or appointment set ratio? Options: Response time, Follow-up completion, Appointment set ratio, DMS integration accuracy, Other
• Which specific CRM fields or mobile actions do your sales consultants most often skip when logging showroom activity? Options: Contact source, Follow-up task, VIN/vehicle match, Appointment outcome, Notes

Where the Process Breaks and Who Feels It

• What single lead-response failure would prompt you to escalate the issue to the general manager the same day?
• Tell me about the last week your appointment-set rate fell below target, what early signals you saw, and how the team reacted.
• How often do leads sit unassigned past your target response window today? Options: Almost always, Weekly, Monthly, Rarely, Unknown
• Who usually discovers a missed high-value lead first, the BDC, a sales manager, or someone else? Options: BDC, Sales manager, General manager, IT/ops, Other
• When an assigned rep fails to follow up, which downstream process suffers most often, reporting accuracy, DMS updates, or OEM compliance? Options: Reporting accuracy, DMS updates, OEM compliance, Customer experience, Other

Customer Moments We Keep Losing

• Imagine a ready-to-buy lead that slipped away—what would that case reveal about your response and routing steps?
• Describe a recent customer interaction that became an appointment, what actions made it work, and who executed them.
• On average, how many follow-up attempts are made per internet lead before it is closed or abandoned? Options: 1 attempt, 2–3 attempts, 4–6 attempts, More than 6, We don't track
• Which touchpoint — phone, chat, email, or showroom — most frequently drops off during the conversion process? Options: Phone, Chat, Email, Showroom, Other
• What practical impacts do duplicate records or DMS sync delays create for your sales and reporting teams?

What Success Must Look Like (and What Breaks It)

• If a pilot showed a 30 to 50 percent lift in appointment sets, what would stop you from signing that week?
• Name the single KPI the general manager will use to decide this project was worth the investment. Options: Average response time, Follow-up completion rate, Appointment-set ratio, DMS match accuracy, Adoption rate
• Within what window would you expect to see measurable response-time improvement: 14 days, 30 days, or 60 days? Options: 14 days, 30 days, 60 days, Longer than 60 days
• List the decision roles that must approve a paid rollout after a pilot, and indicate who holds budget authority.
• Give one example of a vendor pilot your team ran recently, how success was measured, and the final decision.

Where Daily Routines Stall

• Where in the sales or BDC workflow does follow-up most commonly fall apart during a busy day?
• Describe a typical morning for a sales consultant on your floor, including how they check and act on new leads.
• Estimate how many minutes it takes a rep to log a showroom upsell and set a follow-up with your current tools. Options: Under 30 seconds, 30–90 seconds, 1–3 minutes, Over 3 minutes, Unknown
• Do you have a documented follow-up cadence for internet leads, and is it enforced by management or left to individual reps? Options: Documented and enforced, Documented but not enforced, Advisory only, No documented cadence
• Select the mobile capability that would most increase consultant adoption: one-tap follow-up, fast showroom logging, push reminders, or quick appointment confirmation. Options: One-tap follow-up, Fast showroom logging, Push reminders, Quick appointment confirmation, Other
• If a mobile change reduced logging time under 30 seconds for most reps, who in your organization would champion rolling it out to every lot? Options: BDC director, Sales manager, General manager, Operations manager, IT lead

Integration Reality Check

• Point to the integration point—DMS mapping, API access, or lead-feed connectivity—that you expect will be most fragile. Options: DMS field mapping, API credentials, Lead source tokens, Nightly batch feeds, Unknown
• Does your DMS provide real-time APIs, or do you work with batch exports, and who on your team owns that integration? Options: Real-time APIs, internal owner, Real-time APIs, vendor-owned, Nightly batch exports, Hybrid/API + batch, Unsure
• List the lead sources we must connect to and indicate whether credentials or API access are available today. Options: Website form (credentials ready), Third-party lead providers (credentials needed), Phone/IVR (requires setup), Showroom traffic (manual), Unknown
• Identify the person or role who will provide test data, API access, and final sign-off for integrations.
• Are there known data quality issues—duplicate VINs, incorrect contact fields, or missing source tags—that we should budget time to resolve? Options: Duplicates, Missing contact fields, Incorrect VINs, Missing source tags, No known issues
• Should we find protected or siloed customer data that blocks full sync, can your team resolve access within your projected timeline? Options: Yes, internal process exists, Needs legal/OT approval, No, access is restricted, Unsure

Alternatives You're Actively Weighing

• Under what conditions would your team choose to keep the current CRM or an internal solution instead of moving to an external platform?
• Please name the types of alternatives you are considering, for example staying with the incumbent, an internal rebuild, or another third-party provider. Options: Stay with incumbent CRM, Internal build, New third-party vendor, Small point solution for BDC only, Unsure
• Has anyone on your team proposed solving lead routing and follow-up without an outside vendor, and if so who proposed it? Options: Yes, IT proposed it, Yes, operations proposed it, Yes, a manager proposed it, No internal proposal, Unsure
• Assuming your current tools could meet the five-minute response and 15 percent appointment-set targets at no extra cost, would you still prefer a new platform? Explain. Options: Yes, for usability and adoption, No, current tools are fine, Maybe, depends on risk and timeline, Unsure
• Name the timeline a competing proposal would need to hit to beat an in-house fix on speed to value. Options: Under 30 days, 30–60 days, 60–90 days, Longer than 90 days

Risk, Compliance, and OEM Requirements

• Tell us about an OEM audit where compliance gaps mattered, what happened, and the consequences for the dealership.
• Provide the OEM reports and frequencies your dealership must produce from day one, for example monthly lead logs or 90-day follow-up evidence.
• Identify the role that will own OEM report verification and audit responses within your team.
• Are there dealer agreements or OEM clauses that restrict where customer data can be stored or who can access it? Options: Yes, strict restrictions, Some restrictions, negotiable, No restrictions, Unsure
• Faced with an unmet compliance requirement at go-live, would you prefer to push the timeline or accept a phased acceptance of features? Options: Push the timeline, Phased acceptance, Cancel pilot, Undecided

Acceptance Criteria and Decision Triggers

• Specify the measurable acceptance criteria—response time, follow-up completion, and appointment-set lift—that would let you declare the pilot a success.
• Within your decision process, who holds the tie-breaking vote if pilot results are mixed and procurement is split? Options: General manager, VP of operations, Finance/CFO, Regional director, Other
• By what date does the pilot need to conclude in order to influence next quarter's budget?
• Point out the risks that, if left unresolved, would immediately terminate the project before rollout. Options: No API access, Unresolvable data quality, Lack of exec support, OEM compliance blocks, Other
• Should the pilot reach target KPIs, what internal procurement steps remain before a contract can be signed? Options: Final budget approval, Legal review, OEM compliance sign-off, Vendor contracting, All of the above

Next Steps, Pilot Logistics, and Quick Wins

• Under which specific condition would you want a timed pilot to start within the next 30 days — immediate data access, a live test feed, or a named internal champion? Options: Immediate data access, Live test lead feed, Named internal champion, Not ready for 30 days
• Provide the earliest three-week window you have available for a controlled test, and list any blackout dates for sales events.
• Please list the team members who should be included in week-one validation and name the day-to-day point of contact.
• Are there blackout periods, model launch weeks, or month-end closes that would prevent training or integration work? Options: Yes, many blackout periods, A few blackout dates, No significant blackout periods, Unsure
• By what date do you need the completed integration to feed into your monthly GM review?
• Faced with missing integration pieces discovered during the pilot, would you prefer a stop-and-fix approach or phased feature acceptance? Options: Stop and fix before proceeding, Proceed with phased acceptance, Depends on which pieces, Undecided

• Solution Experience: Lead Routing & Follow-Up

• Confirm the current state and its cost to your team
• You confirm the demonstrated lead routing removes the manual assignment gaps that were losing leads.
• Provide five representative recent leads, including lead source, timestamps, and the expected outcome for each scenario.
• You confirm the cadence enforcement keeps measured response times under five minutes in the shown scenarios.
• End-to-end routing proof using your lead scenario
• Provide DMS integration endpoint details and a sample customer record for field-mapping validation.
• Configure a test environment and run a sample of 50 recent leads through the configured routing rules, deliver a conversion and response-time comparison before the follow-up session.
• You confirm the showroom mobile logging is fast enough for adoption and maps to DMS data without creating duplicates.
• Follow-up cadence enforcement and response-time proof
• Showroom activity logging with a mobile scenario
• Agreement on the remaining evidence required to move to parallel run testing.
• Confirm a two-week parallel-run window and identify the internal test users who will participate in the trial.
• DMS integration and data fidelity check
• Validation checkpoint

• Solution Experience: Lead Routing & Follow-Up
• Solution Experience Deck
• Solution Brief

• meeting
• slides
• document

• Connect DMS and sync vehicle & transaction data
• Import and clean historical lead records
• Connect website and third-party lead sources
• Integrate phone call tracking and lead capture
• Configure lead routing rules and BDC queues
• Build automated follow-up cadences and templates
• Deploy mobile sales app with quick showroom logging
• Configure appointment scheduling and confirmation workflows
• Set up desking and deal workflow integration
• Enable service retention and post-sale campaigns
• Configure OEM compliance reporting and audit exports
• Deploy sales performance dashboards and KPI reports
• Implement duplicate detection and record merge rules
• Validate lead response-time alerts and SLA monitoring
• Deliver administrator and end-user training sessions

Connect DMS and sync vehicle & transaction data

• Identify the dealer management system (DMS) you use and the API or export endpoint you can provide for VIN and transaction sync
• Specify which DMS fields must be mirrored in the platform (for example stock number, VIN, sale date, salesperson ID, service order ID)
• Indicate the acceptable maximum lag time for sales and service transaction sync in minutes (for example 5 minutes, 30 minutes, end-of-day) Options: 5 minutes, 30 minutes, 1 hour, End of day
• Select the matching rule for customers and vehicles between your DMS and the platform (for example match on VIN, match on VIN plus customer phone, match on stock number) Options: Match on VIN, Match on VIN plus phone, Match on stock number, Custom mapping
• Provide the acceptance criteria that will confirm DMS synchronization is successful (for example 99% VIN match rate for last 30 days, no duplicate transactions created)

Import and clean historical lead records

• List the lead sources and file formats for historical data you will provide (for example CSV from legacy CRM, XML from lead vendor, DMS prospect table) Options: CSV export, Legacy CRM export, DMS prospect export, Other
• Specify the minimum migration completeness threshold you require for go-live (for example 90% of leads with valid phone or email) Options: 80% valid contacts, 90% valid contacts, 95% valid contacts
• Indicate which data fields are mandatory to migrate for each lead record (for example first name, last name, phone, email, lead source, inbound timestamp)
• Choose how you want duplicates handled during import (for example flag only, auto-merge by phone+email, create potential duplicate task for BDC) Options: Flag only, Auto-merge by phone and email, Create review task
• Provide the success evidence you will accept for the historical import (for example reconciliation report showing record counts by source and a sample of 100 migrated leads validated)

Connect website and third-party lead sources

• Identify each website form or marketplace channel you want captured at go-live (for example dealer website contact form, certified inventory feed, third-party marketplace leads)
• Specify the field mapping required from each lead source (for example map website 'trim' to platform vehicle trim, map marketplace 'lead_id' to external_id)
• Indicate whether you require real-time capture or batched ingestion for each source Options: Real-time (webhook/API), Batched upload (hourly/daily)
• Select preferred validation rules for inbound leads (for example require phone or email, drop leads with invalid VINs, tag paid channel leads) Options: Require phone or email, Drop invalid VINs, Tag paid channel leads, No validation
• Specify who owns connection credentials for each third-party lead feed and any rate-limit constraints on the integration endpoint

Integrate phone call tracking and lead capture

• Identify the phone call tracking provider or list the DID numbers to capture from the showroom and BDC
• Specify the call-to-lead mapping you want (for example create lead on missed call, attach call recording to existing lead by phone match) Options: Create lead on missed call, Attach recording to matched lead, Log call as activity only
• Indicate whether you require automatic speech-to-text transcripts and whether they must be stored for OEM audit purposes Options: Yes, transcribe and store, No transcription needed
• Choose the retention window for call recordings for compliance and audit (for example 30 days, 90 days, 1 year) Options: 30 days, 90 days, 1 year, Custom
• Provide the expected format and transfer method for call metadata (for example SFTP CSV of call logs or API webhook with call JSON) Options: SFTP CSV, API webhook JSON, Other

Configure lead routing rules and BDC queues

• List the BDC queue names and the assignment rule for each queue (for example Internet Leads queue assigned by territory, VIP queue for traded-in customers)
• Indicate routing priority when a lead matches multiple rules (for example VIP tag overrides territory routing) Options: Priority by tag, Priority by source, First match wins, Custom rule
• Specify the time-to-first-contact target in minutes per queue (for example 5 minutes for internet leads, 30 minutes for showroom walk-ins) Options: 5 minutes, 15 minutes, 30 minutes, Custom
• Select whether round-robin, skill-based, or manual assignment should be used for each queue Options: Round-robin, Skill-based routing, Manual assignment
• Indicate who is responsible for creating and maintaining queue membership lists and sales-user handoffs

Build automated follow-up cadences and templates

• Specify the initial multi-step cadence for a cold internet lead including timing and channels (for example SMS at 2 minutes, phone call at 5 minutes, email at 24 hours)
• Choose template languages and branding needed for email and SMS templates Options: English, Spanish, Other
• Identify the escalation actions when a lead does not convert after N steps (for example escalate to BDC manager after 5 missed contacts)
• Select personalization tokens required in templates (for example vehicle VIN, stock number, salesperson name) Options: VIN, Stock number, Salesperson name, Last service date
• Indicate whether you require suppression rules to avoid over-contacting the same consumer across channels Options: Yes, enable suppression, No suppression

Deploy mobile sales app with quick showroom logging

• Identify required quick-actions in the mobile app for showroom staff (for example one-tap showroom visit log, rapid appointment set, voice note linked to lead)
• Specify supported mobile platforms and minimum OS versions for go-live (for example iOS 14+, Android 10+) Options: iOS 14+, Android 10+, Other
• Indicate whether offline data capture is required in the showroom and how often the app should sync when online Options: Offline capture with hourly sync, Offline capture with immediate sync, No offline needed
• Choose the authentication method for mobile users (for example single sign-on, email/password, dealer LDAP) Options: Single sign-on (SSO), Email and password, Dealer LDAP
• Specify any time-to-complete targets for common mobile flows (for example log showroom visit in under 30 seconds) Options: Under 15 seconds, Under 30 seconds, Under 60 seconds

Configure appointment scheduling and confirmation workflows

• List the appointment types and required booking fields (for example test drive: date, time, vehicle stock, salesperson)
• Specify confirmation channels and cadence you want (for example SMS confirmation immediately, email reminder 24 hours before) Options: SMS immediate + email 24h, SMS only, Email only, Custom
• Indicate how double-booking should be prevented with inventory and salesperson calendars Options: Block on stock reservation, Block on salesperson calendar, Allow double-booking
• Select the reschedule and cancellation policies to enforce in the workflow Options: Allow reschedule online, Require phone for cancel, No cancellations allowed
• Identify any OEM-required confirmation language or consumer disclosures that must be included in appointment messages

Set up desking and deal workflow integration

• Specify which deal data from desking must sync to the DMS (for example sale price, trade value, finance terms, salesperson ID)
• Indicate whether desking approvals require workflow steps and who must sign off before submission to DMS Options: BDC approval then sales manager, Sales manager only, No approval required
• Select required integrations for payoff and lien checks during desking Options: Payoff API, Manual entry, Third-party payoff service
• Identify audit fields that must be preserved for manufacturer audit trails (for example salesperson ID, timestamp, consumer opt-ins)
• Specify whether desking sessions should be restorable and how long session state must be retained Options: Yes, retain 30 days, Yes, retain 90 days, No session retention

Enable service retention and post-sale campaigns

• List the triggers for service retention outreach (for example time since last service, upcoming recall, warranty expiration)
• Specify campaign cadence and channel mix for post-sale retention (for example email monthly, SMS for recalls, postcard for 12-month service)
• Indicate required integration points with the service lane and DMS service orders for retention personalization Options: Service order sync, Last service date field, Vehicle mileage sync, All of the above
• Select acceptance metrics that define campaign success (for example 10% appointment conversion from service campaign, 20% open rate) Options: Appointment conversion rate, Open rate, Click-through rate, Custom
• Identify any OEM marketing restrictions or co-op tagging required for post-sale communications

Configure OEM compliance reporting and audit exports

• Identify which OEM reports you must produce and their required fields (for example lead log with timestamps, activity audit by salesperson)
• Specify the export format and delivery cadence for OEM audits (for example CSV daily export, monthly PDF summary) Options: Daily CSV, Weekly CSV, Monthly PDF, Custom
• Indicate retention and access controls required for OEM audit data (for example 3-year retention, role-restricted access) Options: 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, Custom
• Choose whether automated OEM tagging should be applied to inbound leads based on source and campaign Options: Yes, apply automated tagging, No, tag manually
• Specify who will attest to OEM compliance exports and the evidence you will accept during OEM audits

Deploy sales performance dashboards and KPI reports

• List the KPIs you want on the executive dashboard (for example lead-to-appointment rate, time-to-first-contact, appointment conversion) Options: Lead-to-appointment rate, Time-to-first-contact, Appointment conversion, Follow-up completion
• Specify the user roles that should receive scheduled reports and their delivery channels Options: General Manager via email, BDC Director via dashboard, Sales Manager via PDF
• Indicate refresh cadence for live dashboards (for example real-time, every 15 minutes, hourly) Options: Real-time, Every 15 minutes, Hourly, Daily
• Choose the data accuracy threshold required for reports to be considered reliable (for example 98% accurate lead attribution) Options: 95% accuracy, 98% accuracy, 99% accuracy
• Identify any role-based KPI filters needed (for example filter by rooftop, by salesperson, by lead source)

• Order Form / Subscription Agreement
• Master Services Agreement (MSA)
• Statement of Work (SOW)
• Acceptance Criteria & Go/No-Go Signoff
• OEM Compliance Addendum
• Data Processing Agreement (DPA)
• Implementation Responsibilities & Integration Annex
• Change Order Agreement

• Go-live health check (weeks 1-4)
• First measurement review (weeks 4-10)
• Acceptance gate meeting (around day 90)
• Monthly adoption operations review (ongoing monthly)
• Quarterly business review, realization and follow-through (quarterly)

• Schedule focused retraining or coaching for identified low-adoption user groups.
• Publish the acceptance record showing pass/fail status for each numeric criterion and the buyer signatory or documented owner decision.
• Execute the agreed incumbent wind-down steps, including disabling write access or archiving data, and confirm completion.
• Open and assign remediation tickets for any failed criteria with clear success conditions and close dates.
• KPI snapshot for the month
• Confirm rep adoption rate is stable or improving and document any user groups needing targeted support.
• Verify OEM compliance reporting accuracy is within acceptable bounds and list actions for any gaps.
• Agree priorities and timelines for the top 3 backlog items that affect adoption or compliance.
• Re-confirm success criteria and owners
• Create integration error remediation tickets with sample records and target fix dates.
• Publish prioritized backlog with expected delivery windows for the next monthly cycle.
• Quarter-to-date KPI trend vs Solution Scope targets
• Confirm whether quarterly rep adoption rate and appointment-set ratio meet the targets recorded in the Solution Scope stage.
• Validate OEM compliance reporting is audit-ready or list the remaining actions and owners to reach readiness before the next audit.
• Agree the prioritized enhancement slate for the coming quarter with owners and delivery windows.
• Produce the quarter summary document showing KPI performance vs Solution Scope targets and circulate to stakeholders.
• List remaining compliance readiness actions with owners and due dates to close before the next scheduled audit.
• Confirm delivery windows and owners for the top prioritized enhancements for the next quarter.
• Confirm integrations are live and a sampled set of leads sync to the DMS without duplicate records.
• Identify and document all critical blockers that prevent users from basic operation and set remediation dates within 7 business days.
• Verify that the initial user cohort completed required onboarding steps and can access mobile lead workflows.
• Publish a short remediation plan for all critical issues with owner and target resolution date.
• Deliver a sample sync verification report showing end-to-end lead flow for three recent leads.
• Complete access and training checklist for the initial user cohort and circulate completion status.
• Present first-period results for lead response time and appointment-set ratio
• Determine whether average lead response time is improving toward the target recorded in the Solution Scope stage.
• Confirm whether appointment-set ratio and follow-up completion rate are trending in the expected direction or require corrective action.
• Document a time-bound corrective action plan for any metric not on-track, including owners and due dates.
• Implement agreed routing or cadence changes and publish the change log with effective date.
• Schedule targeted retraining for any user groups showing low mobile follow-up completion.
• Open integration defect tickets for any DMS sync errors discovered and attach sample failed records.
• Restate acceptance criteria and numeric targets
• Produce a documented acceptance decision against the targets recorded in the Solution Scope stage, with pass/fail noted per criterion.
• Confirm the incumbent system disposition is agreed and the data archival or migration is scheduled or completed.
• If any criterion failed, set a remediation plan with named owners and completion dates that will close the acceptance gap.
• Integration fidelity and DMS sync review
• OEM compliance and audit readiness
• Present outcome data against each criterion
• Diagnose root causes for gaps
• Deployment and data validation
• Adoption blockers and targeted remediation
• Document pass/fail per criterion and acceptance decision
• Persistent issues and root-cause resolution status
• Agree corrective actions with dates
• Access and onboarding status
• Backlog prioritization and next quarter commitments
• Early operational signals and quick wins
• Confirm timeline to acceptance gate
• Enhancement and issue backlog triage
• Incumbent system wind-down and data archival
• Open issues, blockers, and remediation plan
• Remediation items and resolution timeline