Ford Sync Sales Surge
by EVANDER KLUM
Since its inception, the Ford Sync has been a great auto phenomenon. Shoppers say their desires are met. Dealerships could not agree more.
Ken Venema told The Detroit News that he has never seen a feature impress customers like Ford's SYNC. "I must have a half-dozen sales because of SYNC. I strongly believe that," said Venema, a sales consultant at Pfeiffer Lincoln Mercury in Grand Rapids, Mich. "I'm sold on it. And I'm sure glad Ford's got it."
To stress, the dealership even shifted its radio spots recently from advertising price to promoting Sync. "I am using (Sync) as a showroom builder. I am pumped on it because it's something that we can offer the market that doesn't focus on price, and it's something we have that our competitors don't," said Kim Winkler, a new car sales manager for Pfeiffer Lincoln Mercury.
Sync is Ford Motor Co.��s industry-exclusive technology which was produced in partnership with Microsoft. It offers in-vehicle voice command compatibility with portable digital media players and most Bluetooth-enabled mobile phones. The technology is helping drive Ford vehicles sales countrywide. Matter of fact, Sync-equipped Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles were moving more than twice as fast off dealer lots in November than those same vehicles without SYNC, reports said.
What��s more, customer satisfaction is high. Nearly 80 percent of respondents "definitely would" recommend it to a friend, according to a Ford survey of Sync customers. "It's early in Sync's launch, we'll know more about its impact in a few months, but so far all indicators are extraordinarily positive," explained John Emmert, the Sync marketing manager of the Ford Motor Company.
The survey also revealed that most customers thought Sync was easy to use, and that dealers were helpful in explaining and demonstrating the new technology.
Sales consultant Everton McLeod of Manhattan (N.Y.) Ford says extensive in-dealership training prior to SYNC'S launch was very beneficial. "It wasn't like they just told us about it. Everybody had to do something - pair a phone, dial a number - so the instructor could see that we actually grasped what he taught us," said McLeod.
The said auto technology is also hitting its targeted market - the savvy, tech-toting Y generation as well as an older group that likes the convenience of hands-free mobile phone operation.
Emmert said Ford employees frequently stop him at work to relate stories about Sync's ability to raise awareness and purchase consideration for the company's products among relatives and friends who swore off domestic vehicles years ago. "When you think about a feature having the power to put Ford back on customers' shopping lists, it's pretty impressive," he said.
At present, Sync is offered on twelve Ford, Lincoln and Mercury models. When offered as an option, the system is priced at $395.
Enthusiasts ask when the Sync will be offered by other automakers such as the maker of Dodge brake hoses. Watchers in the industry responded the wait would not take long.
