Is your website constantly asking for or taking information from visitors? By providing information to visitors rather than requesting information from them, you can expect to see a rise in conversions and a decrease in bounce rates. Watch this week's Think Tank Tuesday and find out how to rethink your web strategy.

There have been a lot of postings and discussions over how best to improve a Sales Organizations performance. I personally have written many of them.…

It starts with the arrival of the customer. They either make connection with the salesperson or not.  There is no middle ground, and there is not enough time to make up for what isn’t working.

AutoTrader, Experian Partnership Allows Dealers to Include AutoCheck Reports with Listings

AutoTrader.com and Experian Automotive have entered a partnership that will allow dealers to include Experian’s AutoCheck vehicle history reports with their listings on AutoTrader.com.

Here’s how it works.

Starting in September, AutoCheck-subscribing dealers will have the option of including those reports on AutoTrader.com.

In its statement announcing the…

Last week I had the experience of visiting with dealers in a well-known city in New York. I figured that they would be a 21^st Century dealers in tune with all the latest regulations and process technologies that will improve their overall business.  To my dismay, they were not keeping up to date. Much worse is, I observed willfully ignorant sales processes where pencils were being delivered with no concern for their dealer‘s liabilities that management is creating by doing…

One idea to improve sales that most people don’t want to talk about is the ability to recharge your batteries. Salespeople who run on low batteries don’t perform as well as when they are charged up. Recently, I went with my family on a cruise and had a fantastic trip. We went scuba diving in Grand Turks and, during the dive, had three dolphins come up to us and play with us for most of the dive. The dive masters on the trip said it was a once in a lifetime experience to not only see the…

Written By: Dennis Kane

 I have seen a significant number of high value claims as a result of contractors or subcontractors not carrying insurance or inadequate limits of insurance.

Examples of high value claims against dealerships include:

• Claim against a dealership’s workers’ compensation carrier or general liability carriers due to an injury of a subcontractor’s employee and the subcontractor doesn’t carry workers’ compensation…

I came across an article recently on LinkedIn by A.J. Jacobs, editor of Esquire magazine, in which he discussed using self-delusion as a tool to becoming more productive. He’s a published author as well and he discussed…

New technology for dealers

Three companies, AutoRef.com, BankHunter.com and ClearMechanic.com, which offer  unique and innovative technological contributions in sales, finance and the  service phase of a dealership’s business.

July 2013 saw history happen -- and it happened with flying sharks. The Syfy Network aired what has been universally reviewed as a horrible movie about sharks caught in a tornado that then go on a flying shark rampage. The show was cheaply made and had almost no viewers (including the actors that were in it).

Yet, this movie, according to SyFy channel owners,…

The new 50^th anniversary Lamborghini Veneno carries a price tag of $3.9 million, making it one of the most expensive cars ever produced. It sits on a $400,000 chassis, is adorned with custom made aerodynamic panels, all cradled with a V12 engine that cranks out 750 horsepower-reaching 60 mph in less than 3 seconds and top speeds of 220 miles per hour (Just what we need to sleep in a little later). In spite of the millions of dollars poured into the…

Buy-in. Utilization. Execution. Process. Training. Accountability. Management. These are all things that dealerships require to function in today’s competitive marketplace. And yet, on far too many dealership lots, those being tasked to execute their job’s duties are turning a blind eye to them. Your dealership needs a Hans Gruber.



It is commonplace for salespeople to push back or simply choose …

Previously seen as an afterthought, more companies are seeing the value to be had in actively improving their website.



Is your company’s internet presence going unnoticed? This might be because what you thought was the hard part, has only just begun. These days it’s not enough just to simply have a website to bring in visitors, you have to actively…

How To Sell More Cars To Millennials Like Me

I would be considered a millennial, or a Gen Y consumer.  After all, I’m twenty-eight, a new mom,born in 1984, just about to have my ten year high school reunion and often think to myself-“If I wasn’t in the auto business, if I didn’t do this for a living, what would…

Believe it or not some states are bringing legal action against "experts" who are unlicensed in their states for giving advice to the public.  States like Ohio, North Carolina and others require car sales professionals to be licensed, so is it possible someone unlicensed could be breaking the law?

Well if you ask the Attorney General in Kentucky maybe they are in violation of the law.  Watch this video or read about this case here. …

There's an exciting thing that can happen when you first start advertising on social media. The organic measures of exposure are quickly fading away, so when you get that first boost of exposure as a result of spending very little money, it can become addicting.

It's a trap. Overexposing at the wrong time to the wrong people can…

Frequent travelers have many choices when choosing airlines. Some choose an airline for their frequent flier benefits; some for their convenient routes or frequent itineraries and some have airlines chosen for them by their companies. For many years, Delta Airlines has been at or near the bottom of almost every survey conducted regarding airline customer service. In fact,…

When you think of sales, do you think of pejoratives such as pushy, sleazy and dishonest? Most people do.

Yet in “To Sell Is Human: The Surprising Truth About Moving Others,” Daniel H. Pink contends that most of us, regardless of job title or salary structure, are salespeople.…

Google can’t seem to make up their minds. That being said, they sneakily introduced a change that I believe most businesses (and consumers) will welcome.

In May of 2012, Google implemented their Zagat rating system which was confusing for both businesses and…

Hi Guys -

I have a 'green' finance person that I want to send away to receive some training in all aspects of F&I.  Can anyone recommend a company that will teach the fundamentals of Menu selling, etc.  I am located in the NW, so west coast would be preferable.