Business-class VoIP and more: Atlanta Classic Cars, one of the leading Mercedes-Benz dealerships in the southeastern United States, takes pride in the level of customer service it provides to customers. A move to a new location provided Atlanta Classic Cars with an opportunity to upgrade its network and deploy an IP Communications solution to further enhance it service to customers. The new system provides sales, maintenance, and other personnel with up-to-date customer records while they're on a customer call. Read more about business class voip telephone systems and Cisco voice over ip network solutions.

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by Tom Starner, photograph by Michael Schwarz. iQ Magazine

Atlanta Classic Cars improves customer experience by converging voice and data communications on one network.

Summary
Atlanta Classic Cars, one of the leading Mercedes-Benz dealerships in the southeastern United States, takes pride in the level of customer service it provides to customers. A move to a new location provided Atlanta Classic Cars with an opportunity to upgrade its network and deploy an IP Communications solution to further enhance it service to customers. The new system provides sales, maintenance, and other personnel with up-to-date customer records while they're on a customer call.

From Cisco: Communications Brings You Closer to Customers Buddy Conner, IT manager at Atlanta Classic Cars (ACC), has many positive things to say about the company's Cisco IP Communications solutions. But at the top of the list is the way it integrates into ACC's CRM and DMS applications-two key technologies that support the company's efforts to provide world-class customer service. That smooth integration provides unquestioned productivity enhancements for ACC's sales and service departments. For example, the IP phone system is integrated with the desktop or laptop computers, so ACC's sales or service staff can see who the caller is and get the customer's profile even before they answer a call. That's a major customer-service advantage, one not possible with ACC's previous phone system. "You want the customer to feel like the sales or service representative knows the person individually," Conner says. "And, as your dealership grows, it's harder to remember everything. This gives you a visual aid to prompt you, and lets you do some quick research." In the end, blending IP Communications with key dealership applications helps ACC make each customer interaction a positive experience.—T.S.

Chances are that the last time you visited your car dealership for an oil change, you probably didn't hit some golf balls, practice your putting, get a manicure, enjoy a massage, or check your e-mail via high-speed Internet. Unless, that is, you're a customer of Atlanta Classic Cars (ACC). At ACC, one of the largest and most successful Mercedes-Benz dealerships in the southeastern United States, amenities like these are strictly status quo.

"It's about giving customers another reason to do business with us," says Cathy Ellis, owner of ACC, which opened for business in 1975. "Most people believe going to a car dealership is like going to the dentist. We try to prevent that feeling."

ACC continually seeks new ways to provide its customers with a unique experience. When the dealership, with around 200 employees and $130 million in annual sales, decided to upgrade its location to a massive 20-acre site more than two years ago, it had an opportunity to implement an entirely new technology solution that could boost customer service and employee productivity simultaneously. According to Buddy Conner, ACC's IT manager, the business challenge was threefold:

• Move to a new physical location
• Add a cutting-edge network application that would complement the company's customer service tradition
• Enhance employee productivity

IP Communications, which use the network rather than traditional copper phone lines to transmit voice, proved to be the answer.