Do you remember as a child being asked what you wanted to be when you grew up? After being asked the question, your eyes instantly glazed with excitement as you stared into the abyss of your future. You were too ignorant to understand how and too young to understand why-you just knew that you knew; you were determined.  How high was high,…

Hello to all my dealerElite friends:

We may all think that September is a long way off but it will be here before you know it. I'm sure all dE members would like to invest in our careers by attending one of the the fall conferences in September or October. I personally recommend attending AutoCon2012 on September 5-8th. DealerElite will be hosting this convention in partnership with ADM.

If you have not visited the conference website,…

That question often depends on who you ask.  Salespeople will talk about the dealer up the street or across town who is absolutely giving the cars away.  F&I will talk about lenders who seem to favor other dealers and cost them deals.  Managers will discuss factory incentives, advertising, and the like.  But is that what we're really up against?

 

After 33 years in the business and over 15,000 salespeople and managers trained, I think there's more to competition than we…

When I was teaching the Sonic Dealer Academy from 2001 through 2008, my co-instructor, Steve Hallock, became famous for asking each class why they thought we spend so much time talking about the service department. He would explain that it’s because, at a 75% gross profit margin on labor sales, the service department offers, by far, the greatest incentive to increase sales. "So why bother?" Steve would ask. "Because it’s only75…

Marketing experts agree that online video is the wave of the future and to some extent may replace television altogether. eMarketer predicts that 169 million people (71% of US internet users) will be watching online video each month by the end of 2012. This sizeable market share should not be overlooked as their attention is easily captivated through Pre-Roll Video, a short video…

I created a video that gives a brief overview of the Google Cars program, officially called the Google Commercial Unit For Cars (CUFC). A few more details on the program are now available but dealers still have a number of questions left unanswered.

Take a minute to watch the video and see my comments at the bottom of this page.…

Before I decide to make a purchase on any big ticket item,  I search the company’s name in Google and see the rating  the business received. I also read a couple of the customer reviews. I, like most shoppers, am turned off by bad reviews. Shoppers are using the Web now, more than ever to research and review companies.

Which rating service should dealerships pay most attention to? Google and here’s why:

I googled a local dealership here in Orlando, and the first…

This isn't going to be a long rant because I do most of my ranting in the video below, but it all definitely needs to be said. Taking an image that someone else took from one of the various picture-sharing sites on the internet and then slapping your watermark on it is a very poor practice. It's dishonest. It's a potential hit to your reputation. It's a little creepy.

One thing I do not mention in the video is that it reduces the chances that someone else will share the image from…

Check out this blog by Tori Hoffman as she talks all about how important your actions are to customer.

Do What You Say!

Sounds simple enough right? You’d think so, but unfortunately a lot…

I bet you thought Internet fame means increased sales for your business. Nope. Just ask Chuck Testa. The California taxidermist became an internet phenomenon when he released this comically…

The NCMi faculty members and the NCM Retail Operations field consultants have learned that managers who effectively manage the elements of “controllable profitability” within their respective operating departments normally produce a significant departmental net profit. This, of course, assumes that the majority of dealership expenses (limited-control and fixed) are fairly distributed to each operating department.

Many managers, however, lack the proper focus on controllable…

Another prediction that I wrote about has come true.  Change is in the air again at Google.  Paid Search just took a big step forward or backwards, depending on how you think.  It's called "Google Cars"

In November 2011, I wrote about a product called "…

Work the service drive. That’s grist for the weekly sales meeting. The General Sales Manager wants his sales team talking to the service customers. This is smart for a number of reasons:

a) The service customer is familiar with service team and presumably comfortable with the dealership as a whole.

b) The service customer is statistically more likely to buy a car at the dealership where they service their car.

c) There is more information about the service customer and…

A traveling salesman had come to the end of a long day and was very hungry. He had not made many sales and was feeling a little frustrated with his results. He decided to stop and get something to eat and mull over his next step.

He stopped in town, parked on Main Street and looked around. He found two restaurants side by side.  Above each there was a sign.

The one on the left said “Food, more…

Today, more than ever, online reviews can make or break your month selling vehicles.  We can search for online reputation management companies and we will get hundreds if not thousands of opinions on how to manipulate the system of posting positive reviews.  Many of these companies state that they have a secret to help your dealership look like they are flawless.  This is done utilizing a lot of smoke and mirrors.

Studies by consumer behavior and search experts say that 7 out of 10…

After watching this 60 Minutes bit on The Age of Millennials, I thought to myself- oh great, apparently we are the doom of civilization. Being born in the 80’s lumped me into the Generation Y category, but I felt insulted when we were described as narcissistic praise-hounds that didn’t know how to cope with…

Good morning Dealer Elite Members, True Car is back for a second round.....

As I mentioned in my post last week there are big changes coming in the automotive space. True Car has learned from their past mistakes and hopefully has a little more respect for dealerships this time. Their president a former Nissan executive visited the Auto News office last week and was featured on their site this morning.

Here is the link:…

I was brought into a discussion today with a dealer who is considering hiring a new digital marketing agency. This is a common occurrence within the automotive community since I offer my advice regarding vendors, products, and services to dealership executives seeking a third party opinion.

This conversation was interesting in that the agency…

The truth is, selling cars and becoming a True Professional is not easy.  Yes, selling cars is easy for some and tougher for others.  With a great desk manager and some superior training you can even make good money, this series is more about how to make great money every day, not just a few time a…

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