Daytona Beach, Fla. – DMEautomotive (DMEa), an automotive marketer, this week introduced Journey NXT, a retention marketing solution that targets the realities of today’s service customer, and gives dealers and OEMs the tools they need to pursue a strategy of total customer retention.

Built on a platform that combines DMEa direct consumer and industry research with the latest technology advances, Journey NXT offers an automated platform that delivers five key retention weapons: direct behavioral targeting, automobile, mid-interval communications, loyalty and support for marketing to owners of prepaid maintenance plans.

“Service customer behavior has changed drastically and, as a result, the average service interval has increased over the past year to 145 days from 140, costing dealers, on average, approximately $91,000 a year. Yesterday’s vehicle-based service reminder program is now a failed strategy, which is why we developed Journey NXT,” said DMEa CEO Mike Walther. “Journey NXT gives our industry the tools they need to achieve total customer retention. This means first transitioning sales customers to service customers, and then those service customers into long-term repeat service customers who purchase their next car at that dealership. And this can only be accomplished with new era technology and techniques, and by marketing to the customer and how they behave, not to the vehicle.”

Walther noted that today’s consumers are driving fewer miles, keeping their cars longer, and researching more which is costing U.S. dealerships hundreds of millions of dollars in lost service revenue annually.

Journey NXT is built around the unique behaviors of each specific consumer for each individual dealer. NXT is able to communicate to each customer, keeping that customer close when servicing and buying. Journey NXT is available immediately.