Audubon, N.J. — Dealer…

Stop Shadow Boxing and Become a True Leader

The psychology is described as trying to overcome a negative self-image that may prevent you from achieving the successes that you desire. It is my belief that no matter what position you hold within the automotive industry we are all shadow boxing in some way or another. So what can we do to overcome the negative…

The most trusted name in live chat brings the top ten blogs and auto news stories right to you! We monitor industry trends, current events and the auto dealer community every week to bring you the top ten blogs and automotive stories from around the globe. In this weekly edition – Google home page gets an ad, the GM…

It’s time for a continuation of the mini case study focused on the objectives established and challenges faced in building processes to develop, measure and manage OTDBs in the operating departments of an NCM client automotive dealership group. In our article titled OTDB Measurement and Management – Part Two, published on March 20, 2012, I discussed the structure of the vehicle sales department and the general expectations that we defined and communicated to the members of the sales…

Here I was sitting in a landing page optimization course and the first thing they did was throw a formula at me. C=4m+3v+2(i-f)-2a.Thankfully, it really wasn’t a mathematical formula, just a conversion sequence that helped you visualize conversion. Dr. Flint McGlaughlin the founder of MECLABS, the world's…

After going in an out of dealerships for over 20 years, you start to see ( like superman sees through buildings) the good, the bad and the ugly without even looking for it.  Each store has it's own characteristics and to the untrained eye it all looks like the same things are going on.  Some dealerships are just lucky right?  How can they be selling 50 cars more a month than the average dealership in that area?  Must be product....No wait, maybe location, no has to be  the 'deal" the…

Everyone has an opinion about how to use Google+ and posting reviews.  We see the extreme from hoping your customers post a good review to allowing the “real experts to post your reviews”.

Those of you, who finish reading this blog, will receive information many companies don’t want to tell you or just don’t know how to do.  Furthermore, your sales both repeat and referrals will increase, your branding will…

There may be many, wondering what do I mean when I say the Reverse TO. Yes! We have all heard of the TO effect when we actually “turn over” the call or up to a manager on duty and in sight. NOW! Let’s stop and take a little bit of time to learn about The Reverse T.O..  The Reverse T.O. is touch bases with the Manager and log in with the customer.  We see how the Reverse T.O. has already taken effect, as you notice I stated we touch bases with the Manager FIRST! All of my…

The post-war generation known as the Baby Boomers has changed society in countless ways, from music to rules of social behavior. Now that their kids are adults and they are nearing or entering retirement, they’ve got enough money…

Pinterest and Instagram, the two new kids on the block. They are niche social networks each catering to a specific gap in the market and each are growing at exponential rates. We can expect Facebook and Twitter to remain the supreme social media leaders but these alternatives are growing in popularity very quickly, Instagram doesn’t have a huge value for marketing but…

If there is a bright spot in the economy these days, it’s the auto industry. Pent-up demand, lower interest rates, great product, and easing gas prices are driving consumers online and into showrooms, ramping up sales for dealers across the country. But it is not all sunshine – at least for new car dealers, who are feeling increasing pressure on margins (attributable to some of the same factors that are also driving sales…

A new report released by Maritz Research recently claims that four in 10 customers are not even test driving their cars before purchasing. This is an astounding number of consumers, even if half of them didn’t tell the truth.

This phenomenon of customers bypassing the test drive can actually cause a backlash of issues…

Starving for Attention

I’m sitting in the manager’s office. He’s got the blinds up and is pointing to the showroom floor.

“That’s him – third desk. Ed. When he started, I thought the guy would be a natural. Young, good-looking, knows the cars, knows finance, friendly, great recommendation… I think I must have spent $10K on getting him trained. But I don’t understand him. He’s making me look bad, like I can’t pick ‘em anymore. The other guys are starting to crack jokes.…

AutoTrader.com and vAuto announce the integration of AutoTrader.com’s Trade-In Marketplace (TIM) into vAuto’s suite of inventory management tools.

Integrating TIM with vAuto enables dealers to efficiently acquire more trade-ins and deliver a more market-transparent and customer-satisfying appraisal and purchasing process.

“This integration advances our goal to build greater synergies between AutoTrader Group companies and provide more value for dealers,” says Jim Menard, vice…

The team at PCG Consulting, Inc. has always been one to share relevant information regarding issues that affect dealerships. We have been writing and teaching about the importance of your online reputation and ways to not only grow your presence but to market it as well over the past few years.

Due to the many changes with…

Good morning Dealer Elite members and friends,

In my travels I visit hundreds of dealerships as a consultant and sometime as an observer or even as a consumer. Some of the things I see amaze me, some in a good way and some in a bad way. For example I was touring a series of dealership locations over the weekend and I must say that each dealership had a different customer experience.

It was saturday and it was quite warm so I was dressed casually and I visited…

AutoCon Coupon Book Worth Over $10,000

All dealership attendees will receive their Exhibitor Cash coupon book with over $10,000 in discounts when they check-in on September 5th.  There will be over 50 companies in the Exhibit Hall and the Exhibitor Cash book will allow attendees to identify the right solutions for their dealership and lock in instant savings.

The coupons range from $200 - $2,500 off world class products and services.  The…

Great article recently published in The Car Connection: "Car Customers Hate Haggling More Than Anything." It might seem obvious, but sometimes dealerships can get caught up in the sales game, and forget that customers are so disinclined to participate. Getting a great price for the customer while also turning a profit for the company is a high priority (and rightly so) but a new survey found that the one thing customers hate above all else is negotiating the price of their new…

 ActivEngage, the most trusted name in live chat brings the top ten blogs and auto news stories right to you! We monitor industry trends, current events and the auto dealer community every week to bring you the top ten blogs and automotive stories from around the globe. In this weekly edition – portraits made out of beef jerky, alternate…

Facebook is undeniably one of the most influential companies on the internet; they dominate the social media landscape and cause web-wide rage with even the most minor of updates. Could they do more, though? They certainly seem to think so.

The social media…