In today's Potratz online workshop, Dan talked about ways to enhance the look and features of your auto dealership's Facebook business page. One way to give a page a true "custom" feel is to add custom tabs with branded images, content, etc. In our experience with automotive advertising on social media, we find that the more customized the page, the more people like…

The Calgary auto show I visited last week probably has the same format as other auto shows across the country.  It provides a great opportunity for manufacturers to strut their stuff - lots of glitz, some glamour and plenty of consumer interest.  After all, this is one of the few events where consumers pay for the privilege of being qualified and sold to.

I’m not…

Do as I say, not as I do.  How many times have we been in situations just like that and walked away scratching our heads?  Managers and dealers tell us that we need to increase volume, raise gross, or achieve higher CSI in one breath, and then when suggestions to do exactly that come up, they reply, "No!  We've always done it this way."

As a trainer, I have the priviledge to be in a different dealership almost every week.  Part of my obligation is to point out where the…

What’s your ultimate goal in running a search engine marketing campaign for your car dealership? To get more clicks on your ads? To lower your cost per click and get the most for your money? To get more conversions when people fill out forms to get a quote? All of these things work step by step closer to your ultimate goal: to sell more cars. That’s what it comes down to.

An…

Gotta Lovett Promotions is proud to announce the Colorado Custom Motorsports Show!



For 2011, the Colorado Custom Motorsports Show will be at Springs Spree, at Memorial Park, in Colorado Springs, CO, June 18th and…

In marketing for auto dealers around the country, we spend time analyzing their competition to see how they’re doing with everything from social media marketing to website lead management. In order to beat your competition out in sales, your dealership needs to take the time to look at what competitors are doing. Here are a few quick tips to analyze…

I have been around for a day or two.  This car biz is really in my blood.  Started when I was a kid, really.  Back in the day when you could tell what year and model an automobile was by looking at the tail lamps at night.  (A game I played with my Dad in the 60's)

Increase marketing effectiveness 200% to 800% without spending any extra money. And measure effectiveness of this program in hours after launch. That is why I am stunned.  I thought I had seen just about…

You can increase leads and conversions through your dealership's Facebook business page. However, you need to take an approach different from hard-sell methods you may have used in the past with traditional advertising. Social media marketing is all about building relationships with your…

I posted that one of my goals was to help 12 dealers increase their marketshare and decrease their marketing expences.  I am happy to say that one dealer so far is well on their way towards market share improvement.

We developed an agressive campaign.  One that includes facebook, twitter, first page on Google and other search engines.  There are key-word ads as well as intuitive placement on hundreds of popular web sites.  We will also send the information on this dealer out through…

How much of your dealership’s advertising budget goes into promoting your Service Department? Often times it seems that Car Dealers put so much time into getting the Front End ready for Lights, Camera and Action that the Back End gets neglected. Promoting your Service and Parts Center as well as the Body Shop is a healthy way to keep Car Buyers coming into your Service Bay even after their warranty is up.

Consider the age of the average vehicle on the road in your market. All of…

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been sitting with a client when they say, “I’m sick of being held hostage by customers who threaten me with posting a bad review on Yelp.”  Just last Friday, I had a conversation about this with a good friend who’s a successful sales manager for high-line import dealership here in the OC.  “Customers…

Facebook Questions and Polls for Auto Dealers

Once you’ve built a fan base for your auto dealership on Facebook, you want to take full advantage of opportunities to survey them and ask questions to get feedback about how to reach them. Surveys are important to make sure that you…

This week I stumbled upon a priceless video of a Cal Worthington TV commercial from 1979. He’s infamous here in Southern California and I’ve never met a better car dealer than Calvin Coolidge Worthington. He knew instinctively how to draw people into his store. You wanted to go there…