Since my post last week, Trust Me, I’m Your Vendor, I’m happy to say that some automotive marketing companies have reached out for advice on how to protect their dealer clients from advertising violations. This is a very positive step and I applaud…

5 Compliance Checkpoints

By Gil Van Over

Let me start by saying that the overuse of tired clichés is one of my pet peeves. I detest them in sportscasts, and I’ve grown a little tired of those clichéd lists magazines put out each year with predictions for the coming year. So, I apologize upfront for the list I’m about to share with you now.

Just so I can live with myself, I’m calling my compilation a checklist. I’ll cover the top…

Rarely do we come across a dealer today who claims to have a sufficient number of vehicle sales personnel. When adding the word “quality” to “vehicle sales personnel,” the dealers’ claims of staffing success turn pretty ugly. Why is it so difficult to attract quality people for automotive sales positions?

Several years ago, I was working with a client in Southern California and conducting one of my rare sales training meetings. The subject of the meeting was "Developing and Engaging…

This has been circling the web for a couple of months, but hit my inbox today. When you're tempted to let the challenges of life get you down, check out the courage, passion, and romance of Taylor Morris.

This tale is about an amazing young man who is a Navy explosives specialist horribly…

http://www.autosuccessonline.com…

This Book is for You Stupid by Mat Koenig is now available for Amazon Kindle and Kindle Reader Apps (iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac and PC) for only $9.99.

Get your digital copy from Amazon at http://j.mp/stupidsalesbook or grab a paperback copy from Createspace at http://j.mp/stupidsalesbookorder

Jim Ziegler is coming to…

Detroit - Orlando - Dallas - Moscow, Russia

Hi, this is Jim Ziegler with a lot of exciting news.

Just returned from Houston where I was a featured speaker at The Digital Marketing Blitz that was tied into the Houston Auto Dealers Annual Car Show. You know it’s still a thrill after all of these years to watch an audience leaning from your expertise. It’s what drives me forward.

Just a week ago we…

It’s on thing to have people like your business. It’s another thing to have them “like” your business, as in on Facebook. Your customers may like you, but there’s a good chance that they won’t like you on Facebook. There are two primary reasons for this: (1) some people simply don’t like very many brands at all on Facebook, and/or (2) the…

Why should you care?

Today as many businesses extend their reach into smartphone, tablet, and touchscreen applications, one challenge still remains: providing the user, regardless of the platform, a consistent and productive user experience.

Software has evolved to perform incredibly complex operations and over the past two decades, the user interface and user experience has also increased in complexity. It's only within the past…

There is no way around it, you need a Facebook page. Now, far too many companies and dealerships fail to realize that simply having a Facebook page isn’t in and of itself much of an accomplishment. After all, there is a tremendous difference between having a sword, using a sword, and being a skilled and highly trained swordsman. Creating a Facebook page isn’t magic. Keep in mind that about 1 billion (yes with a “b”) people have sat down at a computer and created a…

What is for the good of the store is sometimes an unpopular choice for the employees. It requires them to do more than what they are currently doing.  It asks them to solve problems, take initiative, and complete more tasks.  It is very common that salespeople will care more about what is “in it for them” than what is in the best interest of the dealership.  At no point should a salesperson’s unwillingness to execute tasks supersede what is in the best interest of…

Take a look at Jeff Cowan's video:

To find out the Quickest way to be an expert:

Click…

Recently, I conducted one of my sales seminars where I spoke about ideas that center around the following skill sets — sales, people, life and marketing. Some of the attendees at the program had been to three, four or more of my seminars in the past. In listening to the results of many of the repeat attendees, it struck me like lightening what the most important word I heard over and over in their successes: action.

In a series of recent sales meetings, I explained a…

Depending on your perspective of the month,  you either have 6 more or 6 days left. It is your choice to either take action and focus on the making the most of your opportunities or instead you can choose to stand around, in the ring of mediocrity, and explain to others what did, should, or could've happened the previous 20 days.…

"Our clients genuinely don't know what the hell I am or what I can do to help them."

I've been working for the past few years as a social media consultant. In some ways it's sort of a fake, made-up job because what we offer and do is always changing. And also, because the whole area of social media is so new, our…

At the NCM Institute Center for Automotive Retail Excellence, the training that we provide in our Service Management courses focuses primarily on strategies and tactics. However, we have discovered that the effective execution of the strategies that we teach is most often hampered by an important missing ingredient:…

Currently, the biggest problem with using Bing for SEM and Business SEO is the lack of search volume. Sure, they came in with roughly 20 percent of the total U.S. searches by the end of last year, but Google is still dominating them, essentially getting the rest of the market share (ignoring the pittance of Yahoo, AOL, and ASK.com). Optimizing for Bing hasn't been on the top of many to do lists, it has simply made more…

In regards to customer service, some phrases have become redundant and out right stupid to say to customers. From working retail to chatting for your dealership, I’ve gathered some phrases that need to be revamped so that your customer service can remain top notch!

Some customer service phrases that needs work:

“How can I help you today?”

What’s wrong with that one you say? It’s not personal enough, everyone and their mother’s say this.…

Public Broadcasting Service PBS Premiere of American Experience Presents Henry Ford Tuesday, January 29^th, 2013 9:00 – 11:00 PM on PBS – A Review