Wednesday, April 28, 2010 -- Directed Electronics has invested in a new, high-tech phone system that allows consumers calling Directed to voluntarily talk to a local dealer instead. The company said this system, called “Direct Connect,” has sent more than 40,000 consumer phone calls to local dealers since Directed implemented it.
The company said that the system works as follows: The caller selects their brand (Orion, Viper, Clifford, Python or Avital) and then enters their zip code. Their call then routes to a dealer in, or closest to, the zip code the caller entered. The phone will then ring in the dealer’s store.
According to Glenn Busse, Senior VP of Sales and Customer Care, “There is no better way to serve our dealers during the economic recovery than to send them more business, and that’s exactly what we’re doing. Dealers are increasingly focused on service, helping consumers out with replacement remotes, and making customers for life.”
“No one else in the industry currently offers this level of consumer-to-dealer connectivity,” said Jeff Burt, Director of Technical Support. “No robotic message, no more go to the web and look it up, and no frustrated consumers waiting on hold. Instead they call Directed, and the phone rings in the dealer’s store — with a motivated new customer on the line! The program is working, consumers are using it, and our dealers are taking the calls.”
For more information about Directed’s new “Direct Connect” telephone dealer locator, you can talk to your Directed Sales Manager or call (800) 876-0800.
Apple recently unveiled their newest iPhone television ad titled "Family Man" which features the Viper Smart Start as one of the featured apps. In the ad the Smart Start is shown opening the trunk of a VW Toureg revealing a trunk full of camping or picnic gear. Directed Electronics is estatic over being featured in an Apple commercial and preliminary reports state that after airing on Tuesday (April 20th) night in the 9pm to 10pm prime time slot on popular shows like ABC's Lost, CBS's NCIS: LA, & TNT's NBA Playoff, Directed received more than 5000 hits on the Viper dealer locator page.
If you haven't checked out the Viper Smart Start for yourself already, Directed has scheduled a national "Start Me Up" campaign for consecutive Saturday's in May (15th & 22nd). Factory Sales managers will be performing live demo's in select Viper dealer showrooms and giving away entry cards for a free drawing to win a complete Smart Start system.
Mehdi Narimanian, President of Delaware-based Sound of Tri-State and Chairman of the Vehicle Security and Remote Start Category for MESA, said, “Directed has evolved through the years and is the clear leader in the Security and Convenience category — they have stepped up their game recently and our members have voted!”
According to Glenn Busse, Senior Vice President of Sales and Customer Care for Directed, “We are proud to be associated with a top notch, pro-business, smart marketing and promotionally focused retailer group. On many fronts, MESA is ready for action, and poised to be a think tank for the future of mobile electronics specialist retailing.”
Directed and MESA intend to work closely together in 2010 and beyond, to grow their authorized retailer base and work with members to drive awareness of the category, boost store traffic and attachment rates, increase accessory sales and decrease returns, according to the company.
ABOUT M.E.S.A.
M.E.S.A. (Mobile Electronics Specialists of America) is the industry’s first and only member-owned retailer marketing and selling group. Retailers meeting the criteria for membership and vendors, whose business practices support the independent channel of distribution, make up the backbone of the group. Retail and vendor members are those who have demonstrated the highest level of business principals and acumen. Retail members are comprised of dealers representing the finest installation available to consumers and are winners of multiple industry awards every year.
M.E.S.A. provides members with a wide variety of marketing materials including fully produced TV commercials, radio advertising & printed material. Unlike most marketing materials made available to groups which only offer the member the ability to “tag” a generic commercial, M.E.S.A. marketing deliverables allow retail members to customize their ads to the needs of their individual organizations. This allows members to benefit from national quality advertising layouts and media production at a cost they could never acquire individually.
M.E.S.A. also provides members with group VIR programs, pre-planned product buys with pre-produced marketing materials to support sellthrough of these items and opportunity buys of vendor overstocked or closeout products. Due to our members’ geographic isolation, vendors also benefit by being able to move products in a manner that does not affect dealers across the entire nation.While members will continue to negotiate their own programs and continue to purchase through their individual representatives, the M.E.S.A. programs further enhance their profitability and bring new opportunities through the group’s dynamic.
M.E.S.A. members share their best practices, internal forms, sales staff incentive information and other business information. Group forms for RTV, employee manual templates and sales contest templates are other examples of the ways that group members can save time by benefitting from group membership.
Monday, March 08, 2010 -- Directed Electronics has announced the introduction of its all-new Directechs Knowledgebase online resource, which is designed to provide proven field solutions 24/7 to installers, sales associates and other Directed business partners. The Knowledgebase is designed as a support tool for Directed dealers and includes more than 1,500 documents, basic and advanced search options, FAQs, troubleshooting guidance, tech tips and how-to guides, the ability to download articles and more.
According to Jeff J. Burt, Director of Technical Support, “We see the Knowledgebase as a huge step forward for Directed dealers and installers. The vast breadth and easy searchability of the thousands of documents means we can now offer a proprietary resource unique in the industry. Installers – dive right in! Put your problem vehicles and parts in the search engine and you will see that the Knowledgebase should be your first line of defense and the first place you look before picking up the phone. It will save you time and money from the very first time you use it.”
“The new Directechs Knowledgebase is a game-changer that could revolutionize the mobile electronics industry,” said Glenn R. Busse, Senior VP of Sales and Customer Care. “If you have a technical question, it’s very likely you will find the answer in the Knowledgebase. With a solid track record of leadership, Directed is taking technical tools to the next level!”
The new Knowledgebase is located on www.directechs.com, and is available only to Authorized Directed Dealers and partners. “Please visit and comment on the new Knowledgebase on the home page,” added Burt, “and your feedback will further enrich this fantastic new resource.”
For more information about the Knowledgebase, please contact your Directed Sales Manager or call The Snake Pit at (800) 753-0800.
Back in January we first got news of the Viper SmartStart app for BlackBerry. The app lets you control a compatible Viper system in your vehicle and allows you to start the car, turn on/off the alarm and more. The system is now available for purchase with a MSRP of $299, and works with compatible Viper, Clifford and Python systems.
"After we introduced Viper SmartStart for the iPhone, we quickly heard from our dealers and customers who carry BlackBerry devices. They are just as passionate about their choice of smartphone and they have been anxiously awaiting Viper SmartStart for BlackBerry," added Simmons. "By leveraging their smartphone user interface, Viper SmartStart introduces a whole new value proposition to customers. From operating key functions on their vehicle without using their key, to remote unlocking if a family member is locked out of their car, to the most advanced vehicle security features ever available, Viper SmartStart is truly creating a new paradigm for the future of the remote start and car security category."
The app is working with the Storm, Curve and Bold series on release. For more information on the Viper SmartStart system, head to viper.com/smartstart. Check out the full press release after the jump.
DIRECTED ELECTRONICS' AWARD-WINNING VIPER SMARTSTART NOW AVAILABLE FOR BLACKBERRY
"Start Your Car from Virtually Anywhere with Your BlackBerry" Vista, California (February 23, 2010) - Directed Electronics announced that its award-winning Viper SmartStart, which allows users to start their car remotely with their iPhone, can be used with most BlackBerry smartphones starting today.
According to Mike Simmons, Executive Vice President of Directed Electronics, "Viper SmartStart is now available for BlackBerry devices through a free app, available for download now at http://www.viper.com/BlackBerry and soon on BlackBerry App World, providing BlackBerry users all of the great features that iPhone users have been enjoying since the product was introduced in October."
Particularly popular in cold weather climates, remote start allows users to start their vehicle by remote control to defrost the windows and pre-warm the cabin in the winter or pre-cool the car in the summer, so they get into a comfortable car that's ready to drive. Most remote start systems use a small remote control on the user's keychain to activate remote start, but these "keyfobs" typically have limited range. Viper SmartStart has virtually unlimited range - an important feature to remote start users.
"After we introduced Viper SmartStart for the iPhone, we quickly heard from our dealers and customers who carry BlackBerry devices. They are just as passionate about their choice of smartphone and they have been anxiously awaiting Viper SmartStart for BlackBerry," added Simmons. "By leveraging their smartphone user interface, Viper SmartStart introduces a whole new value proposition to customers. From operating key functions on their vehicle without using their key, to remote unlocking if a family member is locked out of their car, to the most advanced vehicle security features ever available, Viper SmartStart is truly creating a new paradigm for the future of the remote start and car security category."
BlackBerry users with most security or remote start systems from Viper, Clifford or Python will now be able to download the free app, have SmartStart professionally installed on their vehicle, then activate their account. Depending on installation, users will be able to start their car, lock and unlock the doors, arm or disarm the security system, pop the trunk, or panic the siren, (which can also be used as a car finder) - all using their BlackBerry. Users with a compatible security system will also be notified on their smartphone if their siren has been triggered by an attempted break-in.
According to Kevin Duffy, President of Directed Electronics, "Today we have made Viper SmartStart technology accessible to tens of millions of BlackBerry users - a significant and distinctly different market from the iPhone, whose users are likely to be just as receptive to the innovative features offered by our product."
Retailers already carry the necessary hardware - either the VSM100 Viper SmartStart module, or the equivalent DSM100 Directed SmartStart module, each with an MSRP of $299. Besides the free app, users will also need a compatible Viper, Python or Clifford remote start or remote start/security system, available at thousands of authorized retailers nationwide including Best Buy stores.
"We will continue to develop the Viper SmartStart product roadmap in 2010 and beyond," according to Duffy, "with new products and features enabled by software, on a variety of hardware platforms and in new markets around the world. Viper SmartStart truly is a game-changing product."
Directed Electronics has launched a customer support website geared towards helping the consumer find information on Directed product. It's chocked full of training videos, install tips and guides, FAQ's and much more! For those of you that need more help or want to know where the right place to go to get more info there's a convenient dealer locator. Already have an alarm or remote start and just want professional installation? Directed has gathered an army of qualified installation centers that will be more than happy to provide you professional installation. Having trouble with an old remote and need to replace it? Directed has step by step videos to walk you thru troubleshooting to programming a new remote. Alarm too sensitive? Did you know that some systems can be adjusted right thru the remote control? Directed has a video to show you how. Lost your owners manual? Directed has posted hundreds of manuals in PDF format to download. Directed has also set up a interactive knowledge base of questions and answers to hundreds of questions. Can't find the answer to your question? Register for knowledge base, post it online and have it answered by other members. As the community grows, it will be an excellent source of information for 12V electronics. Be sure to visit Directed Support
Best of Innovations Award-Winning Viper(R) SmartStart(TM) will Launch on BlackBerry App World in Q1 2010 Using Existing Hardware
'Start Your Car from Virtually Anywhere with Your BlackBerry'
VISTA, Calif., Jan. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- (CES) - Directed Electronics announced that its award-winning Viper SmartStart, which allows users to start their car with their iPhone, will also work on most BlackBerry Smartphones starting in Q1 2010.
According to Mike Simmons, Executive Vice President of Directed Electronics: "Viper SmartStart will soon be available on BlackBerry devices through a free app in BlackBerry App World, providing BlackBerry users all of the great features that iPhone users have been enjoying since the product was introduced in October." Particularly popular in cold weather climates, remote start allows users to start their vehicle by remote control to defrost the windows and pre-warm the cabin, so they get into a warm car that's ready to drive. It can also be used to pre-cool the car in the summer. Most remote start systems use a small remote control on the user's keychain to activate remote start, but these "keyfobs" typically have limited range. Viper SmartStart has virtually unlimited range - an important feature to remote start users. BlackBerry users with most security or remote start systems from Viper, Clifford or Python will be able to download the free app from BlackBerry App World, have SmartStart professionally installed on their vehicle, then activate their account. Depending on installation, users will be able to start their car, lock and unlock the doors, arm or disarm their security system, pop the trunk, or panic their siren, which can also be used as a car finder - all using their BlackBerry. According to Kevin Duffy, President of Directed Electronics, "We are making Viper SmartStart technology accessible to tens of millions of BlackBerry users - a significant and distinctly different market from the iPhone, whose users are likely to be just as receptive to the innovative features offered by our product." Retailers already carry the necessary hardware - either the VSM100 Viper SmartStart module, or the equivalent DSM100 Directed SmartStart module, each with an MSRP of $299. Besides the free app, users will also need a compatible Viper, Python or Clifford remote start or remote start/security system, available at thousands of authorized retailers nationwide including Best Buy stores. For more information, please visit www.viper.com/smartstart
