- Dealer Marketing Magazine

Chicago — December 5, 2017 — Affinitiv, a leading provider of marketing and technology services to automotive manufacturers and dealerships, today introduced the Connectiv1 Platform, an end-to-end loyalty marketing solution designed to create connected customers for life.

Connectiv1's advanced predictive analytics engine makes it easy for auto dealerships to leverage their customer data and target customers with the right message at the right time on the right communications channel.

“Every dealer knows that it's critical to keep customers engaged throughout the ownership life cycle, but the question is how to effectively do that," said Scot Eisenfelder, CEO of Affinitiv.

"Connectiv1's analytics engine connects data across the entire customer journey, providing dealers with a 360-degree view of their customers, vehicles and campaign effectiveness all in one place."

Connectiv1 allows dealers to create and manage marketing campaigns using a multi-channel approach proven to increase reach and frequency, boost response rates, lower marketing spend and improve customer retention.

The platform provides dealers with a cost-effective way to implement their manufacturers' customer loyalty and retention marketing programs, and can also be used by individual dealers to create their own retention programs.

Connectiv1 is a cloud-based, mobile-first platform that dealerships access through a user-friendly, modern, and personalized portal. The portal, dashboards and reports can all be used on smartphones, tablets and PCs.

The platform includes an advanced predictive analytics engine that allows dealers to leverage the customer data they already have in their dealership management system (DMS) and CRM.

"Big data has been a buzzword for a while but the challenge for dealers is how to analyze the data and what to do with it," said Eisenfelder.

"Connectiv1's analytics engine removes that challenge by creating models that automatically determine the best timing for communications, best offer types, amounts and best channels to reach customers."

In sales, these in-market timing models can be used to target customers most likely to purchase. In service, timing models can be used to target customers in the service consideration phase and give dealerships an edge over local independent repair shops.

The Connectiv1 Platform manages communications delivery by determining which channels the customer is most likely to see a dealership's offers. Multi-channel marketing campaigns are implemented across mobile/text, digital ads and PPC, social media, direct mail, email and voice channels.

The platform supports OEM branding and content management. Only Connectiv1 allows for digital and social to be treated as a channel for any marketing message. "Typical email and print programs reach about 80 percent of a dealership's active customers," said Eisenfelder.

"Leveraging digital and social media channels can effectively capture customers that have partial mailing addresses or have opted-out of traditional channels."

The Connectiv1 Platform includes Affinitiv's groundbreaking Social Roots program, allowing dealers to leverage trigger-based targeting algorithms to drop service reminder notifications and other messaging directly into a customer's Facebook and Instagram feeds. Through Affinitiv partnerships with auto manufacturers, Connectiv1 is also integrated with vehicle telematics technology.

When it's time for a scheduled service, this enables customers to receive in-vehicle notifications and schedule an appointment at their local dealership.

Connectiv1 is the only marketing solution with an integrated service appointment scheduling feature that allows dealers to send promotions, offers, real-time notifications and easy online payment options to customers via email or text.

Customers can schedule appointments using their mobile devices and also decline or approve work in seconds from their mobile device.

The Connectiv1 Platform offers dealers unparalleled reporting and dashboard capabilities. Dealers can access a library of reports pre-configured by their manufacturer, as well as create their own custom reports.

Reports can be scheduled for daily, weekly or monthly delivery and can be exported to PDF, Excel or image formats for sharing and presentation. Rich visualization of key performance indicators (KPIs) can be viewed through the integrated Dashboard application, allowing dealers to easily monitor and analyze campaign trends and performance.

Connectiv1 has a core library of hundreds of KPIs, charts, and tables that are aggregated to the regional- and OEM-user levels. Additionally, a built-in notifications engine allows users to subscribe to key alerts with a directed response path.

This creates greater marketing campaign collaboration, simplifying processes such as campaign order approvals and proofing. Connectiv1 also has a built-in marketing calendar, providing a visual guide to campaigns fulfilled in the past and information on upcoming campaigns.

Currently, a dozen OEMs are using Affinitiv aftersales marketing solutions to create loyal and repeat customers. Affinitiv's current OEM partners include BMW, Kia, Lexus, Chrysler, Volkswagen, MINI, GM, Porsche, Mitsubishi, Volvo, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, and Maserati North America.

About Affinitiv

Affinitiv is a leading marketing technology company exclusively serving automotive manufacturers (OEMs), dealership groups, and individual dealers. Affinitiv enables its customers to produce, manage, measure, and optimize multi-channel communications to drive brand loyalty and increase revenue across the dealership.

Affinitiv’s digital and analytic capabilities offer an end-to-end solution that supports a consistent experience across the entire consumer lifecycle. Affinitiv was formed through the strategic combination of DPS, Peak Performance, OneCommand, and TimeHighway.com. Headquartered in Chicago, Affinitiv has seven offices across North America and India, and employs more than 500 team members. Affinitiv solutions are currently in more than 5,500 dealerships across the U.S. For more information, visit www.affinitiv.com.