Neptune, NJ — New car dealer Paul Sansone Jr. has announced the national marketing rollout of the EZ Referral Network, a technology-based referral program designed to use mobile technology and social media to increase dealership referrals.

Created by a dealer for dealers to address high sales professional turnover and dwindling consumer loyalty, EZ Referral Network supports brick-and-mortar sales associates with technology to enhance their ability to build relationships and create referral networks.

“In my dealerships, closing ratios are 5 to 6 times higher with repeat and referral customers than on purchased leads,” said Sansone, CEO of EZ Referral Network and owner of Sansone Jr’s 66 Automall – KIA, Nissan, in Neptune, N.J.

“According to NADA, referral sales have up to a 40 percent higher gross versus Internet leads sent to a BDC, which close at a 9-10 percent rate.”

Customers referred to a dealership by family or friends are more comfortable knowing they have a relationship with the sales person. Deals close faster, have higher grosses and result in greater satisfaction. In fact across all dealerships using EZ Referral Network, 35 percent of all leads are getting delivered.

“It is vitally important that we, as an industry, support both our sales team and the communities where we operate,” Sansone said.

EZ Referral Network improves the sales professional’s ability to create a network of incentivized sales referrers. The program provides each user with a personal website for marketing and a mobile website that makes it easy to sign up new referrers.

The results of using EZ Referral have been dramatic for Sansone Jr’s 66 Automall.

“When I purchased my dealership in 2010, we had a regional sales penetration of 53 percent. We were dead last — 35th out of 35 stores,” Sansone said. “After 20 months of using EZ Referral Network our sales penetration is now at 125 percent, and we are in the top third — 14th out of 35. Thirty-eight percent of our sales are now the result of referrals from family and friends.”

How the program works
EZ Referral Network is a technology company that provides dealerships with a mobile-friendly referral solution and in-store training for their sales associates. The company coaches the sales team on use of the technology as well as on how to network for referrals. Online videos and regular webinars support the in-store training.

When a sales associate enters a referrer’s lead into the EZ Referral Network database, that lead passes to a BDC representative who sets an appointment for a test drive. EZ Referral Network sends a prepaid card to the referrer who provides a lead that results in a successful sale.

“This program works well with non-profit organizations or individuals who want to generate donations to service organizations,” Sansone said. “The referral fee may go to an individual, or it can just as easily go to a food bank, homeless shelter or youth group. Local communities can benefit tremendously as a result of the EZ Referral Network and the dealership takes an active and visible role.”

Why we created EZ Referral Network
Referral networking has become a lost art in the industry, Sansone said, and dealers recognize that to maintain their brick-and-mortar operations, they must combine the most basic, old-school sales techniques with the latest technology.

Purchased and organic leads have their place in today’s virtual dealership, but as owners of a brick-and-mortar, dealers must have sales people working with referrals to maximize sales. Their sales result in a vibrant enterprise within the local economy, and now the community can benefit even more.

“I use the EZ Referral Network,” Sansone said. “I have added 3,800 referral agents who have generated 1,500 leads in 20 months. Of course, this builds over time. Those 1,500 leads have resulted in 465 sales, which is a delivery ratio of about 31 percent, and I have another 150 leads in the buying cycle.”

“When customers arrive home with their new vehicle, family and friends naturally ask where they purchased it. Our program makes it easy for these happy customers to refer people to you and they get paid for doing it. These are hot leads, and it’s easy for the sales associate to see the value of building their referral network with numbers like these.”