Used Car News Advertorial

Used Car News advertorial 6/22/06

Business pains? Take two aspirin and call Preferred Warranties

You’d think that an impressive array of features and benefits would be at the core of Preferred Warranties’ sales pitch to dealers looking for an aftermarket warranty provider. Surprisingly, it’s not.

Preferred Warranties Inc. is widely regarded as having the business’s best warranties and customer service, offering a spectrum of attractive coverage plans. Callers get hassle-free answers from a customer service team so dedicated to personal attention that they don’t use an automated answering system. In-house ASE-certified adjustors pay claims within five days.

But when Preferred Warranties talks with dealer prospects, they don’t preach traditional features and benefits.

“We find the dealer’s pain, and if we have a product or program that can ease that pain, then we help fix it,” explains Wayne Herring, Jr., Preferred’s national sales manager.

Having been in this business nearly fifteen years, Preferred has helped dealers overcome all kinds of business pains.

A Virginia dealer was spending too much time running his business and not enough time on the lot. Preferred’s Lot Management Software program, along with some one-on-one customer support, gave him a firm, efficient handle on inventory management, accounts receivable, credit histories and sales.

A Tennessee dealer asked for help developing a plan to increase back-end profit. His Preferred consultant fine-tuned the warranty mix, borrowed a technique learned from a Pennsylvania dealer and included GAP deficiency coverage. The dealer exceeded his sales goals the next month.

An Ohio dealer was having trouble getting financing. Preferred put the dealer in touch with a finance source, and the dealer was able to get back to the business of buying and selling cars.

“The real value of our salespeople to dealerships is as consultants,” notes Wayne. “Our people are full-time professionals who visit their dealerships every two weeks to see how we can improve their business. There are a lot of warranty companies out there, all with reps pounding on dealers’ doors and telling them how good they are. We try to stay away from that – dealers have no idea how good a warranty company is until they’ve been through some sticky claims situations.”

As Preferred’s sales consultants continue to meet with dealers around the country, their prospects share all kinds of woes. What are this year’s most common complaints?

“We're not selling enough cars.”

“We’re not getting the quality customers that we want on the lot. We can’t get anybody financed.”

“Profits are down.”

“My warranty company promises the world but doesn’t deliver.”

“When my customers have a claim, they get stuck in another warranty company’s voice mail system and they complain to me.”

“Repair shops tell me that they’re hassled by my warranty company’s claims department and it takes forever to get paid.”

Problems like these are why Preferred is in business, says Wayne. He summed it up by saying, “We have the privilege to work with some of the best dealers in this industry, and we try continually to think of ways to use our products and programs to help move their business forward.”

Email: [email protected] Phone: 800-548-1121