Shortly after I began writing this post, an article popped up on my Google Alerts about another dealer group, accused of deceptive marketing by their state attorney general’s office, having to pony up a six-figure settlement. Not surprising at all, I’m used to seeing these types of articles on a regular basis. Another day, another enforcement action against a car dealer.

In this case, the dealerships were accused of “having advertisements online and in print publications that misrepresented the actual prices of automobiles”, “dealership employees asking consumers to sign incomplete documents with the understanding that they would be completed using the negotiated vehicle price, but later entering a higher price”, and “allegedly charging consumers fees for unwanted or undisclosed warranties and services”. According to the article, the auto group denied any wrongdoing but agreed to the settlement.

But I digress. The above story really isn’t the point of this post, nor is it my intention to try to warn you of the legal dangers of non-compliance with the laws of the land. I, and my peers, write enough about that. Sure, I’m now a compliance consultant, but my ramblings here are based on the things I learned during my 20 plus years in automotive retail - and the realization that I probably had it all wrong.

This post is about Transparency. It’s about the Big Picture. It’s about opening your mind and stopping to think about the absurdity of old school tactics. Not from a legal or ethical mindset, but from a common-sense business perspective.

I realize that “Transparency” is the latest, and perhaps most over-used, buzzword in the car business. But please bear with me for a few moments while I pose a few questions. Hopefully, it will stimulate some “outside the box” thinking.

First, what is the upside of hiding information from your customers?

Sure, you have to do whatever it takes to stay ahead of the competition. Sure, that’s what the legendary automotive sales trainers taught us. Sure, the chances of getting into a legal bind are pretty slim. Sure, everybody else is doing it. Sure, if you give customers too much information they’ll just use it to shop you. Sure, there are ways to “manage” your online reputation, even if you have some unhappy customers. I get all that.

But – Big Picture Time – is the “anything it takes to make a deal” mentality really a sensible way to do business in today’s world? Do you really think this will lead to customer satisfaction and retention? Do you really believe that customers will continue to put up with this type of behavior forever?

Here’s how I look at it: Every time you…

Post a misleading ad, or

Charge a customer more than the advertised price, or

Lie to a customer about a vehicle being in stock, or

Present a foursquare with inaccurate numbers in order to confuse a customer, or

Present “packed” payments, or

Fail to truthfully disclose a vehicle’s history, or

You’re not completely honest and upfront with your customers

…there are some things you might want to consider:

  1. You may be breaking the law – but it’s only illegal if you get caught, right?
  2. What you’re doing may be an unethical business practice – but customers have no loyalty and you’re just trying to make a buck in a fiercely competitive marketplace, right?
  3. You may be pissing off customers (or potential customers) – but “ya gotta have haters, right”?
  4. You’re gambling with your future - this is an unsustainable way of doing business in the modern world and your continued success is greatly at risk.

Now you may be perfectly comfortable rolling the dice on number 1 and not care a lick about numbers 2 or 3, but what’s your answer for number 4?

I challenge you to think about it. Just think about it. Unfortunately, I didn’t when I worked in dealerships – I was a faithful practitioner of the old school ways.

Now, I realize that you may feel that this post is just more nonsense from an ex-car-guy-turned-consultant who doesn’t get it - and you may be right. Only time, and customer sentiment, will tell. But you may still want to ask yourself just how long are customers going to put up with business as usual?

Let’s face it; consumers have access to much more information, and choices, than they ever did. You can hate the internet and all its information. You can hate the idea of “transparency”. You can hate all the regulations that dealers have to contend with. You can hate the consumer advocates. You can hate the media and all of its anti-dealer sensationalism. But guess what? None of it is going away. The “But We’ve Always Done It This Way” mentality just doesn’t hold water anymore.

Now, I’m not a believer that the internet is going to somehow take over car buying. I totally agree that dealerships are, and will continue to be, the primary way that customers will purchase vehicles for a long time to come. But remember this; while customers may always choose to do business with dealerships, they don’t have to choose to do business with your dealership.

One final question: Are you a true professional who is ready, willing and able to succeed in the new world or are you hoping that things will never change?

In my book, transparency is not a dirty word, but complacency is.

Good luck and good selling.

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Comment by David T. Gould on May 21, 2012 at 12:38pm

Mike Stoner great effort. Treat the customer right, the vast majority will return the favor.

Comment by AutoSTARR on May 16, 2012 at 12:25pm

Fantastic post, Jim! Definitely sharing this with my team.

Comment by Bill Gasson on May 16, 2012 at 7:37am

Good wake up aswell as true !

Comment by NANCY SIMMONS on May 15, 2012 at 3:57pm

Jim Radogna...I love this blog at so many levels!  I come from the same era as Bobby...(cigarette smoking in the showroom...LOL or earlier)  Mike's ad is awesome...I have to comment on that...We call it Transparency; you'll call it awesome! 

Ashley said it well too.... You want customer retention?  Returning customers costs less to market, maintain and offer the biggest grosses!  Then you need to provide them with an Excellent Experience, that is handled with Synergy, Honesty, Integrity and Transparency... (I am not going to coin an acronym for that)..LOL

Thanks again Jim R for a fantastic share!

Comment by Ashley Poag on May 15, 2012 at 3:47pm

True customer loyalty is what will set dealers apart in a competitive market place. You can’t achieve a high level of customer loyalty without a high level of integrity and transparency.. Especially in this information age.

Comment by Mike Stoner on May 15, 2012 at 2:26pm

1995 Seattle Ford Dealership. 5110 Units sold. 75 unanaswered Attorney General complaints. Dozens of BBB complaints. Seattle region worst in country for Ford CSI. Dealership second from bottom in the region. Dealership net profit $150,000. GM gets fired.

April 1996 Mike Stoner named GSM. Researches what do customer want. Begins developing sales process to address dealership problem areas. Implement Transparent pricing/negotiating process and word tracks intended to increase write ups.

1997 5400 units sold. Zero Attorney General letters. 2 BBB letters (can't make everybody happy). Won first of several successive Presidents awards. Dealership net profit $6,000,000.00. Big turnaround.

1998 Mike Stoner named group GSM. Duplicated improvements in 3 additional stores. 2000 a new dealership added (2nd largest volume in state) beat their best ever record by over $400,000.00 in first 30 days.

Since 2000 have had similar results in dealerships all over the U.S. and in Canada.

Transparency is not only the right thing to do, it is the most profitable way to sell cars.

Comment by Chris Fritcher on May 15, 2012 at 11:49am

Very nice post Jim. I agree with you and Bobby. I think that being transparent can lead to more profit if done right. Great post and topic.

Comment by Jim Radogna on May 14, 2012 at 9:24pm

Thanks so much to all of you for your kind words and comments. Mike, your example is outstanding! Thank you for sharing that.

Comment by Marsh Buice on May 13, 2012 at 7:18pm

Jim good post. I love your final words, "In my book transparency is not a dirty word, but complacency is." Right on with that one. As an industry if we want to be viewed differently then we must be the change. The old way of doing things (often the wrong way too) is becoming extinct. Cross a customer and they will blast you on every social site they belong to-as the industry continues to take a new shape, it's our chance to get it right. The strong will survive-the deceiving ones will dry up and die. Thanks for the post, brother.

Comment by Mike Stoner on May 13, 2012 at 3:45pm

This is how one of our clients advertises it.

 

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