All Blog Posts (12,642)

Vehicle Upgrade Personnel in the Service Drive: Benefit or Detriment?

Over the past few years, managers have been working to turn every stone in the dealership regarding opportunities. One phenomenal idea created is called an “upgrade” or “exchange” program. If you’re not up to speed, a sales associate spends time in the service lane, and their job is to speak to potential service customers and work to convert that customer to a new vehicle sale AND retain a trade from the…

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Added by Chris Vitale on January 4, 2023 at 12:00pm — No Comments

Reflecting its Innovative Products and Solutions that Incorporate Customer Experience Management, InteractiveTel Becomes TotalCX

Company Rebrands to Emphasize Focus on Revolutionizing the Customer Experience in the Automotive Industry

HOUSTON, TX. JANUARY 3, 2023 - TotalCX - formerly InteractiveTel - announced today the official launch of a new company name and branding. TotalCX reflects the evolution of…

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Added by Leez May on January 3, 2023 at 11:13am — No Comments

New Leads with NO Response... oops!

As a customer, there’s nothing worse than being ignored or getting a response to your inquiry that doesn’t answer any of your questions. Before the world of Covid, many dealers heavily focused on answering leads in a timely fashion. Heck, even most, if not all, of the OEMs had standards in place to ensure that all leads were answered within a certain time frame. Yet during the height of Covid, when…

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Added by Chris Vitale on January 2, 2023 at 12:00pm — No Comments

4 Proven Ways to Improve Your Phone Training for Car Sales

Appointment setting is one of the best ways that a dealership can get people into the showroom to buy a car. But if your agents don’t see success on the phones, it can feel like a waste of time. Luckily, proven training methods increase your agents' efficiency in getting people into your dealership and closing sales.

 

Hold Regular and Ongoing Training…

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Added by Chris Vitale on December 29, 2022 at 12:00pm — No Comments

The Service Drive: Selling a job over the phone vs. in person

When breaking down the job of a service advisor in terms of selling work, a question that can get asked sometimes needs a bit more explanation. What is that question, you may ask?



Well, here it is:

 

To sell a job to a customer in the most effective manner possible… is it better in person or over the phone? A service department is a BUSY place. There’s always something going on…

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Added by Chris Vitale on December 26, 2022 at 10:30am — No Comments

The "sales to service" (and "service to sales") handoff is a little thing that makes a BIG difference!

The department-to-department handoff at a dealership is something that can be overlooked during the sales process. However, it’s a crucial step to creating a stronger bond between the dealership and the customer as a whole. Hearing, “I’ll buy a car from you, but I’ll never service my car here,” is something that should not be coming out of a customer’s mouth during the sales process. While that statement is…

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Added by Chris Vitale on December 20, 2022 at 11:00am — No Comments

Auto Dealership Buy/Sell Stays Hot with Yet Another Record in 2022: Earnings Climb as Dealers Plan for More Acquisitions

According to Third Quarter 2022 Blue Sky Report® by Kerrigan Advisors, dealership buy/sells increase 25% YoY as auto retailers overcome economic headwinds to achieve a 205% increase in earnings compared to pre-pandemic averages; dealers focus on expansion through acquisition with almost 50% planning to add one or more store, but low stock prices dampen public auto retailers buy/sells

 

Incline Village, NV – December 20th…

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Added by Crystal Hartwell on December 20, 2022 at 8:30am — No Comments

How Active Coaching is Critical to Your Dealership’s Success

With the constantly shifting car market, it is more important than ever to focus on the things that will make your dealership successful and allow you to continue business as normal. While there are plenty of things that you can do to keep your inventory up to date, it is just as important to invest time and energy into making sure that your employees stay up to date as well. Ensure they’re getting the…

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Added by Chris Vitale on December 19, 2022 at 11:30am — No Comments

How to Maximize Holiday Sales for Your Dealership

With the holidays in full swing and plenty of shopping happening, it’s important for your dealership to get in on the action to close out the year with a bang. Cars are a fairly popular Christmas gift, so it is up to your dealership to find a way to get the maximum value out of this time of year.

 

Get Involved in Charity

Nothing…

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Added by Chris Vitale on December 15, 2022 at 3:08pm — No Comments

Kerrigan Advisors Represents Earnhardt Auto Centers in Sale of Two Arizona Dealerships

Earnhardt Volkswagen and Rodeo Kia in the Phoenix metro area sold to Ken Garff Automotive Group; marks 177th dealership sale led by Kerrigan Advisors since 2015, and the 5th dealership sold by Kerrigan Advisors in Arizona since 2020, making the firm the most active in the state

 

Incline Village, NV – December 14, 2022 – Kerrigan Advisors, the premier sell-side advisor and thought partner to auto dealers nationwide,…

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Added by Crystal Hartwell on December 15, 2022 at 8:17am — No Comments

Space Auto Revolutionizes Car Buying with First Integrated Software and Marketing Solution for Auto Dealerships

Car dealerships can now meet their software and marketing needs all in one space. Space Auto is taking the auto industry by storm with its launch of innovative solutions that connect auto dealers with customers, drive sales, and grow their business — all in one unified system.

Space Auto is the brainchild of Nick Askew, who worked for more than seven years in auto dealership retail and then founded a technology agency. Through these…

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Added by Lisa Lazarczyk on December 14, 2022 at 10:38am — No Comments

5 Mistakes Sales Reps are Making on Inbound Sales Calls

The telephone is your most reliable source of leads. Inbound phone calls allow dealerships to gather more detailed information about a customer's needs, resulting in higher conversion rates. Since six out of every ten inbound calls to the sales department have…

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Added by Chris Vitale on December 13, 2022 at 12:30pm — No Comments

InteractiveTel Awarded 2022 Unified Communications Excellence Award from INTERNET TELEPHONY Magazine

TotalCX Recognized for excellence and quality in delivering unified communications solutions

 

HOUSTON, TX, DECEMBER 12 2022 — InteractiveTel, a leading provider of AI-driven communications services and customer interaction analytics, announced today that TMC, a global, integrated media company, has named TotalCX as a recipient of the 2022 Unified Communications Excellence…

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Added by Leez May on December 12, 2022 at 1:00pm — No Comments

Phone Skills: Fixed Ops vs. Sales | What’s different? What’s not?

Generally, when someone thinks of customer service for a company functioning out of one singular building, they assume it should be the same across the board. When it comes to a dealership, however, customer service can vary based on the job and its purpose. Not saying that it shouldn’t be excellent no matter the department; however, each department functions differently. Some interaction is B2B, other interactions are front facing to the public, and a large portion of interactions are…

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Added by Chris Vitale on December 12, 2022 at 11:30am — No Comments

Use Video to Differentiate Your Store

Using video to engage sales prospects is an effective way to provide information and enhance the customer experience. By creating engaging and informative videos, car dealerships can showcase their inventory, highlight features and benefits of specific vehicles, and even offer virtual test drives. This can help car dealerships position themselves as a trusted source of information and a go-to destination for car buyers.

 

Let's explore some of the reasons why your dealership…

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Added by Chris Vitale on December 9, 2022 at 3:54pm — No Comments

WOLTERS KLUWER INDUSTRY SURVEY SHOWS WHERE AUTOMOTIVE AND AUTO FINANCE PROFESSIONALS ARE MAKING PROGRESS IN ADOPTING DIGITAL TOOLS

WOLTERS KLUWER INDUSTRY SURVEY SHOWS WHERE AUTOMOTIVE AND AUTO FINANCE PROFESSIONALS ARE MAKING PROGRESS IN ADOPTING DIGITAL TOOLS

While eSignature and eContracting Technologies Becoming More Widespread, Digital eVault Tools for Securitization & Collateralization Now Major Focus for 2023

 

NEW YORK – December 8, 2022 – Wolters Kluwer, a global leader in professional information, software solutions and services, announced…

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Added by John Sternal on December 8, 2022 at 11:37am — No Comments

How Window Sticker and Buyer's Guide Generation Solutions Can Streamline the Automotive Retail Process

When browsing for a new or used vehicle at a dealership, the first thing consumers tend to examine is the window sticker and buyer’s guides on the vehicle’s window. Especially with window stickers being required for new vehicles under the Automobile Information Disclosure Act of 1958[1] and buyer’s guides being required for used vehicles under the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Used Car Rule…

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Added by John Sternal on December 8, 2022 at 9:31am — No Comments

Kerrigan Advisors Represents Lasher Auto Group in Sale of Five Elk Grove Dealerships

Sale of five Sacramento dealerships to Canadian-Based Knight Automotive Group marks the 175th dealership transaction led by Kerrigan Advisors since 2015

 

Incline Village, NV – December 8, 2022 –– Kerrigan Advisors, the premier sell-side advisor and thought partner to auto dealers nationwide, represented Lasher Auto Group in its sale of five dealerships: Elk Grove Acura, Audi, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram (CDJR), Subaru, and…

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Added by Crystal Hartwell on December 8, 2022 at 8:18am — No Comments

Service to Sales Handoff: When, How, and Why

At a dealership, we are responsible for doing everything we can for our customers. Sales and Service are set up to make a profit in their respective departments; however, sometimes their paths cross when it comes to assisting a customer to the fullest extent in an all-too-common situation… When to keep servicing and when to upgrade. 

The sales…

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Added by Chris Vitale on December 5, 2022 at 2:30pm — No Comments

How Automotive Investors Can Access Better Transparency In Their Due Diligence

Getting sued is an automotive company’s worst nightmare. Litigation isn’t just a problem because it consumes a lot of time and adds to executive stress levels, it can also be extremely expensive, too. Billable hours for top litigants can exceed $500 per hour, and each lawsuit can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, too. 

 

But lawsuits happen, good or bad. And it’s important that shareholders, investment firms and those…

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Added by John Sternal on December 1, 2022 at 10:00am — No Comments

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