Successful service consultants in the automobile industry do the following:

1. They plan their day the night before. They review all appointments and service histories for potential sales opportunities before the customer’s arrival.

2. They show up for work early:

a. Write up “drop off” appointments.

b. Review the day’s staff, and any issues or…

That first day at the beach was always exciting.  It was a TOO day.  Too much food.  Too much water.  And way too much sun.  It often made the second day at the beach a depressing stay in the house day.  Everyone new you were burnt and would try to slap you on the back or grab your arm to watch you cringe.  Yet, we did it every year because we knew the effects would only be temporary.  In a couple of days the burn turned to a tan and then by vacation's end, you began to peel.  It was as if…

Dear Google:

You amaze and confound us daily.  You have created an infrastructure, tools and resources for accessing and organizing information that the majority of people and businesses all over the world rely on every day.  That is truly awe-inspiring.  You are pulling search, social and reviews together in envelope-pushing ways.

Nevertheless, change and innovation are rarely universally embraced as you have experienced first hand.   As the old saying goes – you can…

As marketers, weʼre always looking for the hottest new thing to get our brand in front of people. For ages, we had signage and print ads, then we progressed into the auditory realm with the radio, then it was video ads on TV, and finally, the ultimate advertisers playground: the internet.…

The world of paid search is never boring especially when Google has been testing new paid "ad units" for the automotive industry.  

I wrote last month about the Google Advisor product (aka Google Cars) and now Google is testing an ad unit that includes LIVE CHAT powered by ActiveEngage.…

If you want to track the details in the back of the dealership, use Kleantrac.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_gfKGh01jg

www.gcprocess.com…

If you haven't noticed, about 14% of dealership website visitorsare coming on mobile devices with another 5% on tablets.  Your numbers may vary slightly but dealers would be remiss if they did not take mobile shoppers seriously.

Google searches done on mobile phones have a different urgency compared to searches done on mobile devices. How do I know this?…

Announcing the AutoCon 2012

“Digital Tips” Contest

SEATTLE, WA – July 27, 2012 – Dealer Marketing…

Think your shot at living like an Olympian ended after your high school or college athletic career? Think again. Successful Olympic athletes employ a set of traits and techniques that you can still use to help market your car dealership. The elements that work together to create popular medalists, with thousands or millions of people rooting for them, can…

Facebook has had their analytics tool called, Facebook Insights, for a while now, and since its conception it has grown more and more complex. Insights are now able to show Facebook Page Admins all kinds of useful information which can be a huge help when trying to hone your…

Sounds redundant, but if you have ever worked for an automotive group, you've probably actually heard those words. Meetings after meetings. The sad thing about it is the meetings usually involve only management. Walk up to any tech and ask them how many hours they have for the week and they'll tell you up to the minute. Ask them what your gross profit objective is for the month, you'll probably get a blank stare. Usually the first tech meeting I have after coming into a store, I ask "What…

The “7 Habits” of a Strong Internet Sales Process

Why our Internet Sales Process matters more now than it ever has, and the seven key points we must execute to be successful.

By: Henry Staniecki

Advanced customer-attracting tactics like SEO and Social Media Marketing are a big focus in the retail automotive industry right now. A great many tools are being developed by every vendor imaginable to take advantage of the latest…

The “7 Habits” of a Strong Internet Sales Process

Why our Internet Sales Process matters more now than it ever has, and the seven key points we must execute to be successful.

By: Henry Staniecki

Advanced customer-attracting tactics like SEO and Social Media Marketing are a big focus in the retail automotive industry right now. A great many tools are being developed by every vendor imaginable to take advantage of the latest…

My name is Jeff Suggs owner and operator of Paint Overspray Removal of Texas International Services.  I specialize in repairing vehicles from all sorts of paint damage for major dealerships around the country.  My company just repaired 300 hundred vehicles form industrial paint overspray damage for Joe Holland Chevrolet & Imports.  This was over 9,600,000 million in inventory on 2012 vehicles of several different makes and models.  I ran into a product called "Quantum" backed up with a…

It's not often that Google announces when they are going to make changes to their algorithm in advance, but they did just that on Tuesday.

The latest update under the Panda name went into effect Tuesday night, Panda 3.9.  Panda was originally released in February 2011 as a way to remove low-quality content from Google's search results.

Google…

This summer has been a series of ups and downs for the hockey fan in me. On July 4th, I got to see my hometown Minnesota Wild pick up the 2 best free agents on the market, along with a few solid core players. In the weeks that have passed, I’ve gone from figuring out where the championship parade would begin, to accepting that the NHL may be cancelled this year.

That’s classic Minnesota sports luck for you: Fans get hopeful and excited about a great team, then something gums up the…

Those words were actually said to me but I'll get to that in a little bit. 

Well the dog days of summer are upon us. The showrooms are filled to capacity and your next available service appointment is in two weeks! Every marketing piece you've done has been a home run. Your biggest problem is where to park all these customer cars and all the managers can think of is how sweet their commissions are going to be. Some are even thinking that, at this rate, I can retire in a couple of…

OK – you don’t TRY to prevent preventive maintenance, but occasionally you may get in the way.  An illustrative story first: on July 3 someone poked their head in the door of our management meeting and told me my wife called and said that the mountain behind our house was on fire.  That was about 3 o’clock.  I was home 20 minutes later.  The fire had started around 2:15 at a…

The 2012 Canadian Digital Dealer Conference is coming, and the event is shaping up to be the educational event of the fall! Keynote speakers include Tim Wilson, a Google marketing guru, Rod Black, CTV and TSN sportscaster, and ActivEngage CEO Todd Smith!

Todd will be giving a keynote address at the second annual CDDC entitled Inbound…