Implementing Anvil: A Practical Look at Dealer Installation Experiences
Anvil customers shared their experiences with transitioning to and installing Anvil’s CRM and inventory management software in their dealerships.
Chatter is a Communication Game Changer
The Chatter collaboration feature is a surprise powerhouse in Anvil according to Brian Marshall, Corporate Systems Director at United Ag & Turf.
“Whether you are talking about admin, sales, or service departments, Chatter helps solve problems and makes everyone more efficient.” says Marshall. “We would have never guessed that feature would save us as much time or eliminate as much confusion as it has.
“When a problem comes up, Chatter gives us the ability to start a chat directly out of an existing deal, stock unit, or customer record,” he adds. “It sends out an immediate notification via phone and email. Team members can click on it and directly access the conversation. It then brings them straight to the record you messaged from, so they see exactly what you see — no lengthy explanations necessary.”
4 Ways Chatter Transforms Team Collaboration
Marshall highlighted four examples from across the dealership where Chatter enhances critical communication or resolves issues faster:
- Settlement Team. If a deal comes through missing a tax-exemption form or other required document, they can flag the deal as “escalated” and then tag the salesperson and the store manager to notify them of the problem. A notification links them directly to what the settlement team sees, so they can act quickly to resolve the issues.
- Sales Representatives. When a deal is pending, salespeople can use chatter to communicate the stock number and customer ID to let the rest of the team know that the unit is sold — wherever they happen to be.
- Service Team. If a question arises about a get-ready request, the service manager or technician can start a conversation in Chatter right from the service request and tag the appropriate salesperson to clarify the situation immediately and keep things moving.
- Location-to-Location. To transfer equipment, United Ag & Turf requires it to be released by the location’s general manager before it moves to another location. Chatter puts those requests front and center, so there is no complaining that someone didn’t get the message or is not returning phone calls. Competing interests can be resolved and deals can progress immediately.
Create Visibility and Accountability
One of the benefits to using chatter is the visibility, according to Marshall.
“It eliminates a tremendous amount of emails back-and-forth,” he says. “Everything gets tracked within Anvil. It creates accountability: who you’re waiting on or what you’re waiting for. There’s also a date and time stamp on each communication. That ensures things get dealt with in a timely manner, because everyone can see it and nothing gets lost.”
And Marshall only sees Chatter becoming more important to his operations.
“We’re deploying two portals for inventory and parts,” he says. “That’s going to promote better communication between our parts and service departments. They can use Chatter to respond to a service team request for a particular part or customization bundle, confirm the order and relay the expected delivery date.
“Or they can tag the service team on updates if a critical part is backordered, causing a potential delay,” he continues. “It really enhances that communication and accountability.”
Chatter is only one of many tools Anvil provides to make your staff more efficient and informed. Find out what else Anvil can do to improve your operations and keep customers engaged and happy.
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Chatter is a Communication Game Changer
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