Anyone that knows me knows that I enjoy writing about our industry and reviewing conferences after I attend them.  Well it has been 2.5 years since I attended my last Digital Dealer conference in Orlando, FL. After 2.5 years of not attending I missed the vibe, the networking and the opportunities that this incredible conference provides to both dealers and vendor partners. From the moment I arrived felt at home, full of…

It seems that in recent years retail automotive conferences have gained momentum in popularity. In fact so many conferences are popping up that car dealers now have a difficult time deciding on where they want to go. The reality has become that some conferences duplicate one another while others bring true value to the industry by offering unique speakers and settings. Let’s talk a look at this fall’s conferences and discuss what makes them.…

What?

It is time to talk about the F&I department in the dealership and how the BDC (GRC) department can help improve product penetration. The typical discussion with regards to business development is always about lead handling and appointments. The BDC discussion is one that can go on for hours and even days because it is interesting to hear different…

So it seems that the spring automotive conference season is over.  This means that a small percentage of dealers have brought back valuable statistics and resources to potentially improve their businesses.  However, one thing that no conference can teach is the importance of car dealers and where they stand with human resources practices.  In addition to human resource practices most dealers have not begun to implement a proper…

Have you ever had a customer play with their mobile phone while trying to work a car deal?

Have you ever needed to justify value in order to close a deal?

Do you use your mobile phone as a marketing and branding tool?

If this sounds like new and interesting information then chances are it is new for the improperly trained sales and marketing professional, that is.  The Forward Thinking Consultative Selling (FTCS) method has been created to evolve the next generation of…

Christmas is over and New Years just passed. They say the New Year brings positive change and opportunity. Since the big celebration, 2 days have passed and there are 363 days left in the year. So I ask the magic question, "Is your dealership prepared for 2014?”

Being that we are in such a competitive industry that changes by the month it is common for sudden changes to be made at the dealership level. These changes usually involve Budget (spending), Human Resources,…

Stan Sher of Dealer eTraining discusses how sales management needs to properly work with the internet sales and BDC department. This includes understanding the functions of the department and what each person in the department does. While it is important to monitor and…

When is the last time your dealership had a progressive training solution?

Is your dealership handling phone calls just like the “guy” down the street?

For generations automotive professionals have been provided automotive phone training with traditional ways of handling phone calls.  These…

Does your dealership have a call monitoring solution in place?

Does your dealership consistently train phone skills?

Chances are if the dealership has a large advertising budget and a proper setup for a BDC the answer is "yes".  However, it is mind blowing to see how many dealerships in 2013 still do not pay attention to call monitoring.  I look at…

Does your dealership have tools that should help your sales and business development people be more effective?

As consumer transparency becomes more important in the automotive industry dealers are hooking up with more vendors that allow for transparency.  It is no secret that some of the most effective dealers are making it easier to retail…

Are you a master or a student?

Do you know everything that you need to know to pass on your knowledge to others?

Recently, I spent four days on site at a dealer group consulting and training a brand new BDC Manager.  This BDC Manager is a remarkable individual with many college degrees and a lot of business world experience.  He was brand new to the automotive industry but not a stranger to call centers.  In…

Do you spot check your employees?



Do you spot check your customers?

If you are confused about what I am talking about then read on...

Too many times when a manager asks their people if they did something they get an answer and they take their word for it.  In some cases this happens because of too much trust or…

The automotive industry is always evolving and with that evolution we must constantly adapt to the changes.

Question: When is the last time you thoroughly reviewed your CRM processes in your dealership?

Think about it.  A CRM in the dealership is generally setup for sales people to enter an UP and follow up with sold/unsold…

Recently, I have been playing around with various tools in order to increase how BDC departments connect with their internet leads.  It has been painful to watch BDC coordinators solely rely on the telephone that the dealership provides.  At one dealership I asked for an investment of a mobile phone and the dealer did not want to do that.  I had to come up with…

There has been plenty of controversy about cars.com and other vendors taking dealers inventory and feeding them to some really nasty anti-dealer sites such as cargurus.com. I believe that Jim Ziegler has done a great job standing up for the automotive retail community by fighting for what is right. I am seeing dealers cancel cars.com left and right while others just…

The other day I was in a dealership speaking with an owner.  He said to me "I have 315,000 VDPs" to which I responded "wow, that it is great".  He then said to me "however, VDPs do not cash checks, sales do".  I was so happy to hear that because here is someone that really gets it.  I am not saying that focusing on VDPs is not important.  In fact it is one of the…

Who is Jason Becker you might ask?  Before I tell you I want to let you know that the reason for this post is because I am tired of hearing people tell me that they cannot do something or that things are impossible.  I hear it from sales professionals at dealerships.  I hear it from people that I meet in social environments that tell me they are looking for a job after I mention the possibility of car sales.  I even hear it from people in my family who sometimes make excuses instead of…

As I watch new episodes of "Bar Rescue" on Spike I am amazed at some of the things that I have learned about the food and beverage industry.  I have been watching this show with a very open mind to understand what I can do to improve my business practices.  What I have found was that this show has business practices that even automotive professionals and managers need to consider taking a look at.  Let's take a look at what I am talking about.

1.…

http://dealeretraining.com/

It is Monday evening and you are back from the 2013 NADA convention.  You have travelled across the country to attend workshops and meet with vendors to review the latest and greatest products in an effort to improve your own business.  At this point, you are…

Dealer eTraining

http://www.dealerwebinars.com/monitoring.html

Learn how to implement and optimize call monitoring in your dealership.

Attendees will learn the importance of having a call monitoring solution in the dealership that will help improve the way…