David Keller - I just finished attending a couple of conventions where I spoke on various expert panels and met with hundreds of dealers. I have spent many hours on the phone with dealers who have called wanting help to “stay alive.”
Thomas B. Hudson - Could we make this stuff up? The plaintiff thinks that “certified pre-owned” means “new,” is handed a CARFAX report by the dealer that shows two accidents for the car, but relies on a salesman’s assertion that the car has been in only one wreck and drives the car 80,000 miles before suing the dealer.
Glynn Rodean - Database mining, or organic business development, is maximizing the opportunities that are sitting in a dealer’s database uncultivated or, to be frank, being ignored. These people are not being called; they’re not getting letters.
Kimberly Long - Riding out the rough waves of the economy hasn’t been a breeze for anyone, but Phil Smith Acura in Pompano Beach, Fla., seems to be weathering the storm quite nicely. The store, which has been a part of Phil Smith Automotive Group for three years, focuses intently on attracting and engaging customers online.
David Keller - As we all know, 2009 is a year we are willing to lock away in the attic and forget. There have been many changes in management styles, efficiencies, inventory values, personnel, sales, income, et cetera this year, and there will probably be more to come in 2010.
Jim Rucker - Credit is a big topic in the automotive industry, especially for car dealers struggling with slow, post-Clunkers sales. Selling the vehicle is difficult enough but once it gets to finance, an entire other world of concerns is present.??
Thomas B. Hudson - I’ve done a bit of sailboating on the Chesapeake Bay, and the current mess in Washington brought back a memory from those sailing days.
Thomas B. Hudson - “Throw enough of it against the wall, and something will stick,” says the adage, and plaintiffs’ lawyers heed that advice. In a recent case, the lawyer claimed that the dealer violated the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act’s (MMWA) anti-tying provisions, and also claimed that the MMWA violation constituted a separate violation of a state “unfair and deceptive acts and practices” or “UDAP” law.
David Kain - For some dealers, the Web site remains the proverbial red-headed stepchild of their marketing efforts. Most people by now know they have to have one, so what they do is set it up, and put it in the hands of a low-level employee and hope for the best. After all, you and your sales team have more “important” things to do, like greet customers who ...
Jennifer Murphy - For most, rebranding or repositioning a business is a choice. Today for some dealers, there isn’t much of a choice involved in their rebranding and repositioning efforts. With the bankruptcies of two domestic automakers, well over 2,000 franchise signs had to be taken down.
Jim Rucker - It doesn't matter how much traffic you drive to a site or how big your Facebook fan page is if they aren't optimized for lead conversion. The process is very simple:
Todd Swickard - Since the world is changing, your marketing strategy needs to change too, or you’ll be left in the dust. It’s time to trade in your old ways of doing things to get the most mileage out of your marketing budget. So, here are a few tips for how to go about reviewing your strategy to make sure it’s ready to roll.
Glynn Rodean - All incoming sales calls and every lot up should be ad-sourced and lead-sourced—no exceptions. Determining the source of every lead allows you to generate a report that will show you whether your dollars are being spent effectively. Without this reporting, you may wind up wasting thousands of dollars a month.
Kimberly Long - Several years ago, any dealership that had an online strategy was looked upon as forward-thinking and cutting-edge. Today, however, the Internet has become an advertising staple for almost all dealers. Indeed, most in the industry now believe online advertising is an absolute necessity for success.
David Keller - Now the Cash for Clunkers promotion is over, you can breathe a little. Wrong! You’d better get going and decide what to do now that customers are not walking rapidly into your store ready to sign contracts without expending a lot of sales effort or advertising on your part.
