Dealertrack to Acquire Customer Focused Marketing Inc.
Dealertrack predicts the acquisition will accelerate revenue growth for its subscription software business into 2015.
LAKE SUCCESS, N.Y. — Dealertrack has acquired the assets of Customer Focused Marketing (CFM) Inc., a provider of customer relationship management and marketing services.
Founded in 1997, Irving, Texas-based CFM provides consumer marketing and management services to automotive dealers across the United States. It offers a number of services and technology tools designed to help dealerships better manage every aspect of the customer relationship, including prospect, sales, service and database marketing and communications.
“CFM offers both marketing services and an innovative CRM platform, each of which align with our long-term strategy to deliver the industry’s most complete and integrated solution set for automotive dealers,” said Raj Sundaram, executive vice president and group president of Dealertrack’s Dealer Solutions business unit.
“This acquisition allows us to immediately bring to market their innovative and effective marketing services, while taking the time needed to further develop and then fully integrate their advanced CRM tool into our existing broad solution set to drive even greater workflow efficiency and higher profitability for our clients.”
Dealertrack believes this acquisition will position Dealertrack’s subscription software business to accelerate its revenue growth into 2015. As a standalone solution, the business is expected to grow approximately 35 percent annually for the foreseeable future, company officials said.
This transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year, subject to customary closing conditions. Details of the financial impact of the transaction are expected to be reported as part of the Dealertrack’s third-quarter earnings conference call in early November 2013.
More Digital

Fixed-Ops Automation Can Help Dealerships Stand Out
Technology turns everyday service repairs into lasting customer loyalty and dealer profitability.
Read More →
AI and the Auto Dealer
These are risks you can’t ignore as the technology becomes more and more of a presence in the auto retail environment.
Read More →
Data Drives Success
Dealerships that make decisions based on data rather than gut instinct or experience have a leg up on their competitors, according to a recent survey.
Read More →
AI: Facilitator, Not Fixer, in F&I
The dealerships that thrive in the years ahead will be those that embrace technology while continuing to invest in the people who make customer interactions count.
Read More →
Simple But Effective Hacking Surges
Data from the past year at U.S. auto dealerships finds that email and identity phishing are growing threat sources that can dispense with malware by exploiting trust.
Read More →
The Future of Car Dealerships
Artificial intelligence is reshaping the service-drive experience and will help retailers stay competitive.
Read More →
Structure Leads to Optimized Auto Listings
As the average car-buying journey has shifted to a blend of digital and retail, a dealership’s vehicle listings must be optimized to answer shoppers’ questions clearly and accurately.
Read More →
Real Intelligence
AI, though it presents many opportunities for productivity, efficiency and more, isn’t a one-for-one stand-in for people. It can augment human capital but not replace it altogether.
Read More →
Zurich Launches Advisor IQ for F&I Manager Coaching
The new platform uses real transaction data and artificial intelligence-driven insights to help car dealerships improve consistency and performance.
Read More →
F&I in the Digital Age
Digital retailing has not made the F&I manager obsolete. If anything, it has revealed how valuable the role can become when technology is used correctly.
Read More →