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Digital

Worms Are Simple

Thomas B. Hudson - If you’re running a bait shop, life is pretty simple. You keep the frozen bait frozen, the fresh bait cold and the live bait alive. If you screw it up, you lose some bait.

Making Your DMS Work For You

David Keller - The computer software system used in your dealership should work for you. It should provide you information needed to operate your business, analyze your departments’ profitability and efficiency, and review your expenses and other account details.

The Big Move: Changing Dealership Management Systems

"When it's all said and done and you do make a switch, it's a painful process, but because I let [the department managers] in on the decision-making process itself, they accepted that...

Kimberly Long - If a dealership were a living organism, it’s safe to say the dealership management system (DMS) could be considered the creature’s central nervous system. There isn’t an area of the dealership the DMS does not touch; it holds huge amounts of the data necessary for the dealership to function—customer data, parts and vehicle inventory information, service history, financial data and much more.

Active Listening is Essential to Mastering Communication Skills

Glynn Rodean - Communication is “a process by which information is exchanged between individuals through a common system of symbols, signs or behavior,” according to Merriam-Webster. While the definition does not directly mention listening, it is a key part of exchanging information.

Choosing a New Web Site Provider

Harlene Doane, Jennifer Murphy - Technology changes so fast that it’s difficult to keep up, and that’s especially true when it comes to a dealer’s Web site. What was cutting-edge and met a dealer’s needs a year ago may now be lackluster in performance.

When Catastrophe Hits, Are You Covered?

David Keller - I recently assisted a client with reviewing their claim for insurance due to business interruption. Their facility’s main roof collapsed due to the weight of an excessive ice and snow storm, causing damage to a substantial amount of equipment and making the facility unusable for approximately eight months until it was rebuilt.

I’m Supposed to Pay You $20,000 to Take My Trade?

Thomas B. Hudson - I excitedly ripped open the “Owner Notification” from an area car dealer who sells the sort of SUV that we use to haul ourselves and the dogs to and from our place in South Carolina. Our old bus is pushing 70,000 miles, so I’m thinking that in this market, maybe I’ll get a real steal.

Leveraging Online Auction Leads One Click at a Time

Clayton Stanfield - Dealerships have been heeding the call to build an expansive online presence in order to sell used cars and hard-to-sell vehicles for some time now. However, as more dealers are realizing that other parts of the dealership, such as parts and accessories and new cars, have a viable and active market online, they begin to transform into virtual dealerships with all aspects of the sales floor available online.

Auction Direct USA Networks its Way to the Top

Jennifer Murphy - “My focus is really just the entire online experience … building our online brand, getting that footprint out through as many different channels as possible. Obviously, with the explosion of all the social channels, that makes it a lot easier, especially with all the other platforms we have,” said Miltsch.

Increase Service and Parts Business Online Now

J.D. Rucker - What if I told you that over 95 percent of your service and parts business comes from "traditional" marketing—word of mouth, past customers, location. Nearly everyone who spends time in your service or parts department got there because they already knew something about you.

Departmentalize Your Service Department

David Keller - Your service department is one of the busiest departments in your dealership. Service deals with more customers than any other department on a daily, monthly and annual basis. The service department also sees more potential customers than any other department.

Deciding Where to File

Thomas B. Hudson, Cathy Brennan - Often a plaintiff’s lawyer has a choice about where to file his or her client’s lawsuit. Those choices can involve whether to file the suit in state court in an urban or rural county or whether to file the action in a federal court rather than in a state court.

Make Your Customers Tick

Glynn Rodean - To determine what motivates a customer to buy a vehicle, we first must identify the different things that make customers tick. Each customer has a hot button, but combinations of the following motivators are usually present in each customer’s decision-making process.