Earning Hispanic Consumer Trust Through Communication and Empowerment

Think about the brands that reach you and catch your attention, whether television ads, ink and paper, or online.  How do they speak to you?  How do they approach you as a consumer?  Chances are, your favorite products are delivered to you courtesy of companies that have taken considerable time…

A friend (who happens to also be a client) called me today hoping to pick my brain about his presentation at a conference. He's an experienced General Manager who has seen it all. Sometimes, seeing it all means it's difficult to pick out the gems that you've come across in your career.

In talking about customer retention, it's easy to see the importance of…

If you have been working in a car Dealership where everything is based on the number of units sold, you may not spend much time thinking about Gross.  If all the bonuses are paid for units sold, then you will do whatever you can to move the iron just to get to the bonus money.  If you are selling price alone it is hard to resist the temptation to sell to the Manager instead of the Customer, but…

Check this out I am being featured in August addition of Service Drive Today!

In this particular article, I am not only talking about how the Service and Sales departments need to work together, but how to get them to achieve this goal at your dealership! #moreproductivity…

It has often been said that if you don’t know where you are going the chances of getting there are not very good.  This is certainly true for someone who is seeking to set goals for their life and to make a plan on how to achieve them.  Unless you have a vision for what you want to accomplish in this business, you will probably follow a path that leads to the status quo.  This is often the cause of failure; not the lack of ability, but failure to formulate a…

Tweet Your Leaders…#75 of 99 Things to Know About Social Media with Joey Little

Many people still remember writing letters to their congressmen or senators whenever they had an issue, a complaint, or feedback. It took paper, pens, envelopes, and stamps—as well as quite a bit of determination in order to get the attention of someone in a leadership position.…

           For many of us email management isn’t always a top priority, but perhaps that is something we need to change. By doing so, you can cut the clutter; reduce your stress and delegate tasks to your employees and coworkers.

            One of our team leaders utilizes a method he calls the 3D method and says if followed correctly it works…

A dealer in Washington state has taken a highly unusual - and unheard of - path to customer retention and loyalty. According to Automotive News, Denver Morford, dealer principal at Barry Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram in Ephrata, Wash.,…

Connecting With Your Hispanic Consumer

Hispanic consumers in the U.S. have spoken; they are shopping for brands that affirm their culture

and empower them as individuals. Over 56 million strong, this is a population that does not want to be sold to and highlighted, but rather included. Proud of a rich…

Below is snapshot from the 2015 Toyota Corolla video I posted on our dealership's

Facebook page. The link to the video can be found here.…

Welcome to this week's edition of Black Book Market Insights, with in-depth analysis of used car and truck valuation trends and insights straight from the auction lanes. This week’s report also includes highlights and insights from the Specialty Markets. Click here to download the full report.

The Black Book editors conducted a thorough analysis of segment depreciation performance over the last three months. It is clear where…

Women are responsible for two-thirds of the vehicles brought in for repair. Dealerships who understand this and seek to deliver the ultimate customer experience will reap the rewards at their service drive.

Offering top-notch car services in this department is critical for retaining women clients, as well as for up-selling a new or leased…

Persistence Wears Down Resistance

By: Alan Ram

I said this before and I'll say it again, I have learned so much about selling by being a customer. Here's a saying that we take for granted that you've heard a million times, “Persistence wears down resistance,” as a matter fact, I invented it.

That’s not really true, but it's a great saying that you need to apply to your mindset daily when you sell…

[With the on-again/off-again debate about Third Party Providers currently on (again), it seems appropriate to present this excerpt from our 2015 Online Automotive Leads mystery shop study.]

A high percentage of dealership desk managers still look at the Internet and their own internet sales teams as the enemy. For these shortsighted managers, the elimination of e-leads in their dealership might likely be viewed as a blessing.…

As far as content marketing goes, the most popular types of content educate and help your audience make informed decisions. It’s not enough, however, to simply write a blog article and slap it on your company’s website. All content (great or otherwise) needs syndication of some sort. This could be through newsletters, via social media, or other avenues.…

ACCESS TO YOUR DMS

It’s No Huge Secret that I Dislike Vendors Having Access to a Dealership’s DMS Computers. The majority of Companies Rooting Around in the Dealers DMS are Stealing Your Customer Data, Transaction Data, and even Financial Data.

Let’s Face it, Most Vendors Accessing the Dealership’s Computers are Up To No Good. What They are Doing Betrays the Dealers and The Customers that Buy the Cars Thinking Their Data and Information are Secure. Nobody I know told…

For training to be effective three elements need to be present; you need to have:

1. Education

2. Simulation

3. Accountability

Education, simulation, and accountability! Let me just expand on this. If I want to train in golf, I don’t just watch golf on TV. While watching golf on TV I may become educated in golf, but then I need to train through simulation. I would need to go out and hit bucket after bucket after bucket of balls to get…

It’s unfortunate that so many members of the automotive industry when approached with a genuine request to be of assistance, are prone to wondering  “ What do you want from me?” or “What are you selling?”  I blame the all too common and frequent hidden agendas that often occur in B2B and B2C interactions.

We already understand that a single loyal…

The Value of the Imbedded Sales Process

Ask yourself this question:  “Do you want to run a loose ship and still make money or a tight ship and make lots of money?”  Look, I know that money isn’t everything, but it’s a great way to keep score.  Where am I going with this?  Well, in my opinion every dealership should have an embedded sales process.  For this and many other reasons, structure at the sales desk is imperative.  It leads to consistency and…

In today’s fast-paced world, it’s hard for businesses to cut through the noise. Consumers are bombarded with advertising messages across all mediums from companies that claim they, or their product, is the best. Generally, these messages go in one ear and out the other.

So, how do you get the attention of today’s message-fatigued…