CLIFTON PARK — Earlier this month, Annette Sykora, chairwoman of the National Automobile Association, told a gathering of automotive reporters in Detroit that her organization expects to lose 700 dealerships this year.

Sykora’s announcement was particularly disturbing to Mike Esposito, whose Auto/Mate Dealership Systems in Halfmoon equips automobile dealerships with software that manages their day-to-day operations, from accounting to inventorying auto parts. Esposito does not expect NADA’s annual convention in New Orleans in January to be as big a boon for business, as it usually is, because fewer dealers might attend.

But even as the McLean, Va.-based NADA braces to lose 3.5 percent of its 19,700 dealers, Esposito expects to continue expanding Auto/Mate’s customer roster. Since Auto/Mate’s founder retired and sold the company in 2005, its customer roster has grown by 66 percent to 500.

To maintain that growth, Esposito is looking more to large dealer groups — reflecting the consolidation pressures and other challenges stand-alone operations face in the nation and Capital Region.

“The smaller dealerships are getting less and less because they’re having trouble. We’re just trying to grow our business in the part of the business we were never in,” Esposito said.

Auto/Mate, which employs 75 mostly in Halfmoon, last week announced its national sales manager, Andrew Massa, will move into the newly created position of director of strategic accounts. Over the past year, the company’s customer list of dealers with more than one location has doubled to over 50.

During the same time, Auto/Mate has lost 18 accounts nationwide, primarily among smaller dealerships. Esposito said his company has not been affected by any of the Capital Region’s recent dealership closings or consolidations, which include Amsterdam Chrysler Dodge and Metro Dodge in Albany.

Wedekind Motors in Schenectady continues to use Auto/Mate’s software, even though it in July sold its Pontiac franchise back to the General Motors Corp. and now only sells used cars.

“Even if it gets worse, our phone will be ringing. While we lose some dealerships, we will get a lot more,” Esposito said.

At the Automotive Press Association meeting, Sykora attributed many dealership closings to problems with Detroit’s Big Three automakers, high land values and the real estate industry’s meltdown.

Fueling Esposito’s growth aspirations are outlooks like those of Sykora, who said “dealers are looking at every possible way to cut costs.” While Sykora said some dealers are employing energy-efficient lighting and heating and cooling systems, Esposito said others are employing Auto/Mate software.