360Converge

Founded in 2015 by the entrepreneurial team of Mike McFall and Todd Smith, the Orlando-based company began as 360Converge and has since evolved, rebranding to Dealertxt in January 2023. This name change reflects a strategic pivot to more closely align with its core offering in the automotive sector. The founders identified a critical gap in how car dealerships engage with their existing customer base, particularly those visiting their service centers. McFall's background includes serving as President of the Activator Division for Black Book and VP of Internet Marketing for AutoNation, providing deep industry-specific knowledge. Smith brings a history of serial entrepreneurship in the automotive and technology spaces, having founded multiple ventures, including ActivEngage, Inc., and serving as a dealer principal.

Dealertxt operates as a specialized communication workflow automation platform for the automotive retail market. The business model is centered on providing a SaaS platform that integrates with a dealership's existing Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and Dealer Management Systems (DMS). Revenue is generated through this subscription-based service. The company's primary clients are automotive dealerships seeking to improve customer communication and vehicle acquisition.

The firm’s flagship product, SalesDrive, is a machine-learning-powered solution that automates communication with customers, primarily through text messages and email. A key function of the platform is to automatically identify and contact customers in a dealership's service drive with offers to purchase their vehicles, turning the service lane into a source for pre-owned inventory. This automated engagement is reported to increase customer interaction by 20-23%, helping dealers buy more cars directly from their service customers. Beyond vehicle acquisition, the platform is also utilized to market ancillary products like prepaid maintenance and extended service contracts. A significant milestone was the acquisition of Valuinsight in December 2021, an inventory analysis platform that enhances Dealertxt's data modeling and equity mining capabilities.

Keywords: Dealertxt, automotive CRM, workflow automation, vehicle acquisition, automotive communication platform, text automation, email marketing automotive, dealership software, service drive marketing, equity mining, customer engagement automotive, pre-owned inventory, Todd Smith, Mike McFall, lead generation automotive, customer retention automotive, automotive technology, dealership operations, sales automation, automotive marketing