6 Ways Document Management Helps Auto Dealerships

Auto dealerships manage a constant flow of documents every day. From sales contracts and deal jackets to repair orders, invoices and customer records, these documents keep dealership operations moving.

However, when important information is tied to paper files and manual processes, employees can spend valuable time searching, filing, copying and routing documents.

Document management for auto dealerships can help simplify these processes. By digitizing documents and connecting them to everyday workflows, dealerships can improve document access, strengthen security and reduce manual work.

Here are six ways better document management can help auto dealerships work more efficiently.

1. Find dealership documents faster

Employees should not have to spend valuable time searching through filing cabinets to find a customer record or repair order.

Digital document management allows dealerships to capture, organize and search important records electronically. Employees can access the information they need without sorting through stacks of paper or searching multiple filing locations.

For example, a service employee may need to locate a previous repair order while helping a customer. With searchable digital records, that information can be easier to find and access.

Faster document retrieval can help employees spend less time searching and more time serving customers.

2. Streamline dealership workflows

Many dealership processes require documents to move between departments.

A sales transaction may involve sales, finance and administrative teams. A service visit can require information to move between service advisors, technicians, parts departments and accounting.

Manual document handoffs can create delays and unnecessary work.

With digital document workflows, dealerships can capture information and route documents to the appropriate people or systems. This can help reduce manual steps and keep processes moving.

Toshiba’s automotive solutions are designed to help dealerships digitize documents and automate workflows across their operations.

3. Improve document security

Auto dealerships handle sensitive information every day, including customer records, financial documents and business information.

Keeping that information secure is an important part of modern dealership operations.

Digital document management can provide greater control over how information is stored, accessed and shared. Depending on the workflow, dealerships can use security controls and permissions to help ensure sensitive documents are available to authorized employees.

A more secure document workflow can help dealerships reduce the risks associated with unmanaged paper records and uncontrolled document sharing.

4. Reduce paper and physical storage

Paper documents require space, organization and ongoing maintenance.

As dealerships accumulate sales records, repair orders, invoices and other paperwork, physical storage can become increasingly difficult to manage.

Digitizing documents can reduce the dealership’s reliance on physical files while making information easier to access.

Digital records can also help reduce the need to move documents between offices or departments. Instead, authorized employees can access information electronically when they need it.

For dealerships looking to reduce paper-based processes, document management can be an important step toward a more digital operation.

5. Automate repetitive document tasks

Some dealership processes involve the same steps over and over again.

Employees may need to scan a document, name it, file it, send it to another department and repeat the process hundreds of times.

Workflow automation can reduce the amount of manual work involved in these repetitive processes.

For example, documents can be captured digitally and routed to the appropriate application, department or employee based on established workflow rules.

Toshiba’s automotive document solutions can support document capture and workflow automation, helping dealerships connect information to the systems and processes they already use.

6. Improve control over printing

Going digital does not mean dealerships stop printing.

Sales agreements, service documents, invoices, customer materials and other business documents may still need to be printed. Without visibility into printing activity, however, dealerships can have difficulty understanding where print resources are being used.

Print management can help dealerships monitor print activity, establish policies and gain greater visibility into their print environment.

By combining document management with print management, dealerships can take a more complete approach to managing how information moves through their business.

What should auto dealerships look for in a document management solution?

Not every dealership has the same document workflows. However, there are several capabilities worth considering when evaluating document management for auto dealerships.

Document Capture
Look for solutions that can capture information from paper documents, scanners, mobile devices and digital files.

Searchable Digital Records
Employees should be able to quickly locate the documents they need without relying on physical filing systems.

Workflow automation
Automated routing can help reduce repetitive tasks and move documents to the right people or applications.

Document security
Security features can help dealerships control access to sensitive customer and business information.

System integration
A document management solution should work with the applications and systems employees already use whenever possible.

Print management
Managing digital documents and printed output together can provide greater visibility across the dealership’s information environment.

Start with your most time-consuming processes

Auto dealerships do not have to transform every document workflow at once. A practical approach is to start by identifying processes that create the most manual work.

Ask questions such as:

• Which documents do employees spend the most time searching for?
• Where do paper documents move between departments?
• Which processes require repetitive scanning or filing?
• Which documents contain sensitive customer information?
• Where could automated routing eliminate manual steps?
• How much printing occurs across the dealership?

The answers can help identify where document management could deliver the greatest impact.

Build a more efficient dealership with Toshiba

Modern auto dealerships need more than reliable printers and multifunction devices. They need efficient ways to capture, manage, secure and share information across the business.

Toshiba’s automotive solutions help dealerships address document management, workflow automation, print management and document security. By connecting these capabilities, dealerships can create more efficient processes while giving employees faster access to the information they need.

Whether the goal is reducing paper, improving document security, automating repetitive tasks or gaining better control over printing, the right technology can help dealerships work smarter.

Ready to improve your dealership’s document workflows?

Explore Toshiba’s automotive solutions to see how document management, workflow automation, print management and security can help your dealership create a more efficient operation.