Golden Eye's DMS was born out of two observations: the existing big DMS vendors did not react to changing market needs quickly, and their very business model was adversarial. The first was a reality based upon a long legacy of archaic technology, software and business processes. As computerization of the dealership occurred in the late 70s and early 80s, computers and software replaced repetitive and complex computations on ledger pads or other paper systems. Bit by bit, various other departmental processes were computerized and added to the whole system piece by piece, upgrade charge by upgrade charge. Eventually, the whole dealership ran on a single box, and all major functions, accounting to sales to parts, were covered under a common system.
As the years went by, past development investments were being paid for by new customers, and R&D became a tool to build new features, which could be added on to the existing system for a fee. Growth for the big DMS vendors became a contest in competitive unhooks (eating away at their competition) and incremental sales and upgrades (you need a new server to run the new feature).
In the meantime, something happened; something wonderful. The World Wide Web debuted to consumers in 1994. People started to change the way they acquired information, shopped for purchases, and entertained themselves. Within 10 years, broadband Internet connections became regular fixtures at most companies, PCs crowded the desktops and every user had at least a basic understanding of how to surf the Web. In fact, surfing the Web taught many people how to use a computer.
And there was that little green screen flashing in the corner. F1 <ENTER>, EX <ENTER>, RAP <ENTER>, 1 <ENTER>, 3<ENTER> wait, wait, wait as the report printer cranks out 100 pages of report detail so you can grab that 1 summary page at the end. While completely useful in 1984, the technology of the past became a huge weight around the ankles of the big DMS vendors. The sheer magnitude of their ever-evolving feature-creep prevented them from modernizing their offerings, and so they began to beautify their green screens with window dressing.
The 2nd observation was about how technology was sold to companies in the 70s and 80s. Computers and software were an arcane science that few understood. Often times, solutions offered to business users were cut-and-paste from company libraries, but charged in the way custom development was billed. Long-term contracts were necessary to protect investment dollars into such huge projects. Maintenance contracts, click charges and user license fees were created to ensure a regular stream of monthly revenue for these companies, and nobody understood the true value of their offerings. They could routinely charge 2X or 3X mark-ups to their unknowing clients for off-the-shelf technology. As long as the customer could justify the expense, they continued to pay.
In the meantime, the largest of the vendors together dominated 80%+ of the total market and created an acceptable level of mediocrity in the DMS world. As new entrants would spring up and show promise, they would get bought up and shelved in order to protect the status quo.
So it was there that Golden Eye DMS saw its promise: modern, off-the-shelf technology, and a business model where dealership growth and prosperity directly rewards both dealer and DMS provider. You should be able to use your DMS as easily as a web browser, Gmail or Outlook.
This is how and why we began to build Golden Eye.