As an Internet and Social Media nut I love technology. I also love the fact that there are companies in the market who are trying to help Dealerships sell more cars. There have been websites for years that have sold consumers invoice pricing and of course Automotive brokers have also be playing games with consumers for years now.



Before you make a decision on True Car you need to read these articles:…

Those of us who have been around the retail automobile industry will sooner or later find a customer that says your product, store or staff sucks. This usually happens when a salesperson is working the service area and runs into that customer. You know the one who can't wait to unload all his problems on you.

Oddly enough, this person is as good of a prospect as…

What’s rational about buying? NOTHING. In sales, we work in a world full of irrational behavior. Think about some of the "rational, logical" reasons why customers decide to trade in their vehicle.  Maybe they trade because of the newest, popular color; or, while waiting for an oil change, a shopper falls in love with the looks of that chromed out Jeep with the…

http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite?blobcol=urldata&blobheader=application/pdf&blobkey=id&blobtable=MungoBlobs&blobwhere=1251759218613&ssbinary=true  

An AskPatty Christmas Tale...



'Twas the night before Christmas, and at the North Pole

Old Santa was pacing a path through the snow

On his rosy cheeks he now wore a frown;

His new fancy sleigh had just broken…

Good morning all,

I wanted to share some great news coming out of our camp. OpenRoad Auto Group in Vancouver recently acquired the re:member group as their loyalty marketing firm.

Here's a link to the press release, for those interested.

There wasn't a news page I could post this on,…

    It is my belief that the single thing that seperates the Sales Professional from the Ameture. In order to achieve true success in sales of any form, most especially the automotive industry, waiting around for someone to pull up will not prove to be anything other than mentally draining and stressful. The truth is that people are still buying and trading cars. Not everyone is out of work, and not everyone is broke.

          People complain about competition, but arent…

The holiday season is a great time to combine “giving” and your dealerships social media presence!

While I am sure you and your dealership have your own charities that you give to during the holidays, a sure fire way to expand your social media footprint is to contribute to the charities of your customers!

A great way…

We have had our share of drug addicted employees over the last year. Many were productive salespeople and kept their problems from being our problems, except when they didn’t. That is when we reviewed our policy, fine tuned it and began testing all new hires, anyone suspected of drug use and anyone involved in any kind of accident or mishap.

It is my observation that our industry either attracts people with addictive personalities or drives more people to use illicit drugs. Might it…

Looking to reach customers that are in your area right now?

Sick of spending thousands on marketing that just does not deliver the customers?

Think Social Media is a passing fad?

Facebook just bought Gowalla!

I just learned that one of the heavy hitters in Social Media a little known company called Facebook just bought http://gowalla.com/, which is…

I'm tired of hearing it. As you all know I'm a social media guy, different than the rest. I believe that in order to truly harness the business changing aspects of social media that you must first create a social change, not only in your own dealership but within the entire industry as a whole. I'm tired of hearing, "That's not the way we do…

Another night of being up late...thinking about work, personal life, work...and of course this whole TrueCar debate.  I'm not sure if this it's a good or bad thing that for the past two hours I have been catching up on all of the blogs, videos, phone conversations recorded etc.



Now, before I state my thoughts on this.  I realize that there are a few close friends and mentors in the automotive online network here that may have a different opinion.  I am the type of person however,…

Good Memories:

The Gift That Keeps on Giving

In a world preoccupied with the quest for material possessions,

it's easy to overlook the fact that the most valuable…

Time for Part 3 in a series of social media marketing tips for businesses...



Tip #103~ Embrace The Power of Tagging



Your company knows the importance of getting involved with the community. Whether it's volunteering for a fundraising dinner, hosting a team building campaign for charitable cause, or being one of the sponsors for a local event, letting your customers and friends know that you are working to make a difference in the world around you is a fundamental way of…

http://www.getcarseller.com

Car Seller is an easy and fun to use sales tool designed to revolutionize the auto sales industry. This tool gives fast real-time information on your sales team, enables easy communication and makes the sales process seamless.

About us

Steve Maynock is the President and a founding member of CarSeller. Steve has spent a lifetime in sales & marketing organizations holding virtually…

Happy Holidays!!!

Thought this was an intersting article about TrueCar from the LA Times yesterday.

[LINK]

Honda in fight with TrueCar.com over prices displayed online

Honda has told its dealers that it won't give them advertising allowances if they offer vehicles below invoice on TrueCar.com.

 This True car deal is no different than the guy down the street advertising at cost or below. It's no different than when the internet came out and people were worried everyone will come in with the cost of a car. This simply is not the case. One thing will remain the same. The best trained sales force can overcome anything. What's your thoughts?