Auto Dealerships Using Customer Management Systems Performing 23 Percent Better Than Competition, According to Industry Research

IRVINE, Calif.--July 12, 2006--

Final Updated Results from University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business Study Shed Light on How Dealerships Can Better Serve Consumer Needs

Auto dealerships using customer management systems are performing 23 percent better than their competition, according to updated research from the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business. The information is part of the final results from a comprehensive third-party research study conducted earlier this year by the Smith School. The research is based on a survey issued by researchers in the school's Department of Decision and Information Technologies and distributed through Autobytel Inc. to thousands of customer dealerships, including those that use Autobytel's Web Control(R) system and Retention Performance Marketing (RPM(R)) program.

Customer Management Systems Linked to Performance

Initial survey results, reported in February of this year, indicated dealerships using customer management systems were performing 15 percent better than their competition. With all analysis complete, the final results indicate that benefits to the dealerships can reach 23 percent(1).

"The study's results further validate the transformational effect technology, and CRM in particular, is having on the retail auto industry, particularly in improving the relationships dealers have with their customers," said Jason Kuruzovich, lead researcher, Robert H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland. "Today's informed consumers want to work with dealers who give them the most relevant information in a timely and direct way. It's apparent that dealers who properly utilize technology in their customer communications are ahead of the curve in delivering what consumers want."

While the benefits of CRM are clear from the study's results, one of the most significant findings was that simply having the technology in place at the dealership does not make a significant difference in performance. Dealerships that see the greatest success share three distinct characteristics: they are using the technology on a daily basis; they have implemented business process change tactics, such as providing incentives for sales staff who use the system; and they are taking full advantage of the automation capabilities available in these systems.

For example, a tool that many of the study's participants use, Autobytel's Web Control customer management system, contains automated tools that enable dealers to broadcast emails targeted to each consumer, based on his or her position in the purchasing cycle. Therefore, if a consumer is interested in a vehicle but has to put off shopping for a few weeks, the dealership can use Web Control to stay in regular touch with them until they are ready to purchase, thus increasing the chance they will buy from that dealer. Using Web Control has enabled some dealers to increase their customer closing ratios from 5 percent to 20 percent in less than four months.

Customer Management Systems Help Better Meet Consumer Needs

The study's findings also shed light on how today's dealerships can better serve their customers. In the current Web-driven environment, consumers want information to be delivered on-demand, in an easy-to-read format that is targeted to meet their specific needs. Technologies such as Web Control make it possible for dealers to do just that. If dealers implement and use the right technology to assist in handling consumer requests, this study indicates they can reasonably expect to perform better than their competitors.

"It is very exciting to see an academic institution like the University of Maryland's Smith School of Business take a pioneering role in producing research that clearly validates how technology is making it easier for dealers to offer an enhanced customer experience that translates into better overall performance for the dealership," said Ed Braunbeck, vice president and general manager of AVV, Inc., a subsidiary of Autobytel that developed the Web Control system.

The study defines customer management systems as information systems used to attract and manage leads/customers through pre- and post-sales activities. As initial results confirmed earlier this year, an overwhelming 91 percent of survey respondents reported customer management systems have created value in the vehicle sales process.

The academic white paper detailing the study and its results is available at www.autobytel.com/content/home/help/index.cfm/action/pressMedia; click on "Case Studies." Building on the results of the study, an Autobytel consumer checklist "What Does your Dealer Do for You?" will be issued later this year.

About the Robert H. Smith School of Business

The Robert H. Smith School of Business is an internationally recognized leader in management education and research for the digital economy. One of 13 colleges and schools at the University of Maryland, College Park, the Smith School offers undergraduate, full-time and part-time MBA, Executive MBA, PhD, and Executive Education programs, as well as outreach services to the corporate community. The school offers its degree, custom and certification programs in learning locations in four continents including North America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. More information about the Robert H. Smith School of Business can be found at www.rhsmith.umd.edu.

About Autobytel

Autobytel Inc. is one of the largest online automotive marketplaces, empowering consumers to make smart vehicle choices using objective automotive data and insightful interactive editorial content. The result is a convenient car-buying process backed by a nationwide network of dealers who are committed to providing a positive consumer experience. Every day consumers choose Autobytel-owned and operated web sites -- Autobytel.com, Autoweb.com, CarSmart.com, Car.com, AutoSite.com, Autoahorros.com, and CarTV.com -- to facilitate their car-shopping decisions. Autobytel's ability to attract millions of highly qualified, in-market car buyers and connect them with retailers has made it a leader in facilitating the entire customer car-buying lifecycle.

The Company's innovative marketing, advertising, data and CRM products, including its Web Control(R) customer management system, Retention Performance Marketing (RPM(R)) service reminder program, Special Finance Leads(SM), and AIC(R) data center, are designed to enable dealers to offer a premium consumer experience. Since pioneering pro-consumer online automotive content and purchasing in 1995, Autobytel has helped more than twenty-seven million car buyers, generating billions of dollars in car sales for dealers.

(1) Final results account for factors related to how the customer
    management systems have been implemented.