VinSolutions Virtual Contact Assistant (VCA)

DateJuly 28, 2026

AttendeesBrian Harris AG · Lance Faucheux

PresenterKyle Smith (CAI – Kansas) · VinSolutions / Cox Automotive

Product shownVCA · labeled “Vinessa” / Virtual Contact Assistant in CRM

VCA pricing stated$700/mo (from $1,000) · month-to-month

Current Podium AI BDC$1,100/store/mo

What was demonstrated

VinSolutions presented an agentic virtual assistant that runs sales conversations and writes results into the CRM. Presenter contrasted it with VinSolutions’ older NLP-based system.

Stated behaviors during the demo:

Conducts multi-topic sales conversations (hours, vehicle interest, trade, appointment)
Primary goal described as scheduling test drives / in-person appointments
Gathers trade and vehicle interest details
Creates appointments, test-drive, and appraisal entries in CRM under the salesperson and consumer profile
Reads recent communications (about the last 20 messages in 30 days)
Pulls inventory details (year, make, model, trim, features) and availability from the inventory feed
Creates tasks or appointments in CRM when needed
Can present as human-style or identify as a virtual assistant; can be named (dealer-controlled)
Escalates pricing/finance discussion to a human and creates a task for the assigned salesperson

Pricing

$1,100

Current Podium AI BDC / store / mo

$700

VCA monthly price quoted

$1,000

VCA list before discount

VCA setup fee stated

MTM

VCA month-to-month billing

30-day

VCA cancellation window stated

Podium AI BDC: $1,100/store/month as currently paid by the stores (AI BDC line only — not review invites or website chat). VCA figures and terms as stated verbally on the demo; Jeff (VinSolutions) to include pricing in the recap email with the demo link.

Items confirmed on the call

Pricing$700/month discounted; month-to-month; 30-day cancellation; no setup fees; no long-term contract.

Demo / role-play linkCox Auto demo VDP provided: VCA wired to Check Availability and KBB ICO buttons (see Product screens section).

Open technical checkConfirm whether the assistant can send direct website vehicle links from the inventory feed, and any constraints.

Feature → what it does (from the demo)

Agentic multi-topic conversation

Handles store hours, vehicle questions, trade interest, and appointment scheduling in one thread.

Appointment-focused goal

Demo conversation ended with a booked test drive and appraisal on a specific unit and time.

CRM write-back

Creates appointments, test-drive, and appraisal records in VinSolutions under the assigned salesperson.

Inventory feed

Answers with year/make/model/trim/features and availability from the inventory feed.

Conversation context

Reads roughly the last 20 messages within 30 days for continuity.

Process include / exclude

Dealer chooses which CRM processes trigger the assistant (e.g. new leads, KBB ICO, after-hours, aging).

Cadence and buffers

Configurable timing (example shown: delayed re-engage; optional human-first window such as 5 minutes during business hours).

Suppression on human contact

Checks suppression events; disengages if a human contacted the consumer within a configured period.

Pricing / finance handoff

Does not complete price negotiation in the demo thread; creates a task for the salesperson and keeps the appointment.

Identity and tone controls

Settings shown: greeting by name, tone of voice, store differentiator text, email sign-off, texting time window, site/finance URLs.

Podium AI BDC vs VinSolutions VCA (scope only)

Item	Podium AI BDC (current)	VinSolutions VCA (demoed)
Role under review	AI BDC / automated sales messaging follow-up	Same role — AI BDC via text and email inside CRM
System home	Podium platform	VinSolutions CRM (Cox Automotive)
Channels shown / stated now	Podium AI BDC messaging (as currently used)	Text and email
CRM appointments / tasks	Depends on current integration setup	Demo showed appointments created in CRM by “VCA Virtual Contact Assistant”
Website chat tool	Separate Podium capability — not part of this swap	Not shipped on this demo; listed on roadmap
Review invites / reputation	Separate Podium capability — not part of this swap	Not part of VCA as presented
AI BDC monthly cost	$1,100/store/mo (current store spend on Podium AI BDC)	$700/mo quoted (discounted from $1,000); $0 setup; month-to-month; 30-day out

This page documents the VCA product demo for the AI BDC function only. Review invites and website chat remain on Podium unless addressed by a separate decision.

Skills listed on the deck

From the VinSolutions slide “Virtual Assistant: Skills”:

Confirm vehicle availability for customers
Provide basic vehicle info (year, make, model, miles, MPG, type, trim, features)
Schedule appointments for customers
Trade-in questions
Collect trade-in info and update customer profile
Provide dealership info (hours, address)
Get dealership staff involved when needed
Remind customers what to bring for appointments (DL, title, insurance)
Determine customer sentiment — requires Predictive Insights

Virtual Assistant skills slide — **Skills slide**Nine skills listed by VinSolutions on the demo deck.

Process control (when it runs)

Slide titled “Virtual Assistant: You control when it will reach out via processes” listed:

New sales leads
New KBB ICO leads
New lead received after hours
After a visit has ended
Aging leads
Schedule appointments and send appointment reminders
Reschedule missed appointments
Cancel existing appointments
Sold delivered (goal: set service appointment — shown grey on the slide)

Process control slide — when VCA reaches out — **Process control slide**Dealer selects which CRM processes trigger outreach.

CRM process events Notify Virtual Assistant — **CRM process events**Example “New Internet Sales Lead” process with “Notify Virtual Assistant” steps (immediate, 2-hour, 3-day). Edit panel shows timing, vehicle type filter, and suppression if actual contact occurred within a set number of minutes.

Advanced settings for Virtual Assistant — **Advanced settings**Dealer website and finance URLs; earliest/latest text delivery times; vehicle designation; store differentiator text; greet by name; tone of voice; email sign-off.

Product screens from the recording

VinSolutions customer dashboard with Vinessa engagement bar — **Customer dashboard**Vinessa engagement row on the customer record (shown as “Not engaged” before the thread). Controls include Pause Assistant and Change History beside standard CRM actions.

VCA conversation booking Monday 8am appointment — **Sample conversation — appointment set**Customer said “Monday morning” and needed to be done by 9:00 AM. Assistant confirmed Monday, January 26, offered a morning start, booked 8:00 AM for test drive and appraisal of the 2026 Honda CR-V EX, and listed what to bring (driver’s license and appraisal documents). Sentiment shown as Positive.

VCA responding to out-the-door price request — **Sample conversation — pricing request**Customer asked to be “out the door at $34,000 before my trade.” Assistant stated the sales team would discuss pricing and trade appraisal at the 8:00 AM appointment and did not quote a negotiated price in-thread.

CRM appointments created by VCA Virtual Contact Assistant — **CRM appointments tab**Appointments listed with By: **VCA Virtual Contact Assistant**, assigned to named salespeople, with vehicle/stock description filled in (example: in-person test drive and vehicle appraisal for 2026 Honda CR-V EX).

Demo VDP for 2026 Honda CR-V EX used in role-play — **Demo vehicle page (Cox Auto demo site)**ROI Motors Honda demo tenant VDP for the 2026 Honda CR-V EX used in the walkthrough. Same environment as the live bot link below.

Live bot / role-play link (Cox Automotive demo site — not a Brian Harris store site):

https://demo.roimotors.com/new/Honda/2026-Honda-CR-V-burlington-79cc884dac1808e420067eb1abb9f037.htm

On this VDP, the VCA demo is wired to:

Check Availability button
KBB ICO buttons

Use those controls on the page to start a conversation with the bot. Demo tenant only.

Screens from the July 28, 2026 demo recording. Tenant shown is VinSolutions / Cox Automotive ROI Motors Honda demo environment. Customer names and phone numbers on screen are demo data, not Brian Harris AG customers.