DMEautomotive (DMEa), the leader in science-based, results-driven automotive marketing, announced that it has filed two patent applications with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for a new, breakthrough technology for its dealer-branded mobile app, Driver Connect.
The first patent application pertains to advanced technology that enables Driver Connect to communicate with consumers at key, relevant moments in the lifecycle of their vehicle purchasing and ownership journey. A second patent application addresses methods to facilitate event communications between service centers and mobile app users; for instance, notifying mobile app users that service on their car has been completed.
Launched in February 2012, Driver Connect has been generating significant results for its dealership users: thousands of consumers have downloaded the dealer-branded apps in just the last six months, and consumer engagement is soaring, with average app visits lasting over twenty minutes.
"DMEautomotive has always put science and innovation first and we're proud that Driver Connect's patent-pending technology is helping dealers adapt to the mobile app revolution," said Mike Walther, president and CEO of DMEautomotive. "Its user-friendly technology is driving truly eye-opening customer engagement and is significantly boosting service and sales retention for its growing base of dealer users."
Driver Connect enables dealers to market directly to a customer's smartphone or tablet, and combines a suite of cool, useful and personalized automotive tools for consumers with features that keep that customer engaged and spending at that dealership. Users are able to browse new and used car inventory, easily schedule service appointments, manage their vehicles' service histories, and receive targeted dealership alerts and offers on demand - or as part of the integrated sales and service communications that are the centerpiece of DMEautomotive's Customer Journey marketing and retention program.
Walther noted that Driver Connect launched just as the mobile app "wave" began to hit its tipping point. Smartphone adoption is now happening ten times faster than the 80s PC revolution – two times faster than the 90s Internet boom – and three times faster than social media adoption.[1] And no media platform (digital or otherwise) is growing faster than mobile apps, with U.S. app users roughly doubling in the last year (to 102 million) – time spent with apps skyrocketing 120 percent - and people now spending significantly more time with mobile apps than the mobile Web.[2]
[1] Flurry Analytics report, 8/2012
[2] Flurry Analytics report, 12/2012
