Ben Comen was always welcome to be a member of any sport-as long as he accepted the position of ball boy or water boy- that is until Coach Chuck Parker welcomed him with open arms to be a member of Hanna High School’s cross-country team. Ben wasn’t the most talented nor the fastest runner- as a matter of fact, he comes in dead last in nearly every race. What…

We all want to have a better opportunity to take care of ourselves and our needs in life. Where do we start? How do we get the ball rolling? First and foremost, we need to be honest with ourselves. We need to write down, what we want, why we want it and what we are willing to do to accomplish our goals. This must be everywhere you go for 90 days. I mean…

As a child when your parents asked you to do something, it meant now!!! When you were asked to do something in school, it was right now!!!

If you truly understand people today, we live in an instantaneous gratification society. People decide on something, they want it now!!! Not only now, do they decide to spend money, buy…

Definition: Ambition is the desire for personal achievement.

As dealer principals, general managers, sales managers, parts and service managers. do we truly understand  the meaning of this on a daily basis? Are we on the same page, with every employee’s, personal achievement? We are driven…

If your website isn't built on a true content management system (CMS) that allows you to put up pages in minutes without technical experience, don't read this article. It'll only make you jealous.

If you are on one of the various platforms (TK Carsites, Dealer.com, etc) that has a robust and easy-to-use CMS, today's the day to start using it more often. Google (and…

If you’ve ever worked in retail sales, electronics or otherwise, you’ve probably seen my type walk through your store doors. The type who knows what they want, and will spend as little effort and time to get that product, before abruptly leaving. When I need to get something at an electronics store (maybe an auxiliary cable or that new video game I shouldn’t be wasting my money on), I head right for the item I need, grab it, and get out of the store as soon as I can.

 For…

How valuable is a used car manager for a single point dealership?

In my recent travels I have started to see dealerships do away without a used car manager.  I am talking about dealerships that are selling between 70 and 100+ used cars per month.  In fact, it seems to be a role and responsibility that a GSM or even GM have started to take over.  The technology…

Whether you're looking for a management job, sales job, job training, any position in a dealership, or you're a dealer or dealer manager seeking to hire the right talent. It's imperative to work with the right recruiting entity. Use a company where the core motivation is to fill the order for the dealership. There is a difference between executive placement, and head hunter services. There is also a difference between recruiting companies, and staffing agencies. There are also…

Why Best Buy is Going out of Business...Gradually

Electronics retailer Best Buy is headed for the exits.  I can’t say when exactly, but my guess is that it’s only a matter of time, maybe a few more years.…

http://traffic.libsyn.com/sellingsuccess/AutoSuccess_228_-_Marsh_Buice.mp3 (19 minutes long)

In this week's podcast, we discuss how you can set yourself up for success on the sales floor. Sadly, selling has become a lost art-form. Many sales people approach their…

NCM Associates was on hand at NADA 2012 with the express purpose to open a dialogue with attending dealers and managers to listen to their issues, concerns, successes, and desires relative to their automotive dealership operations.  It was a great opportunity for us to connect with dealers inside and outside the NCM family and as always, the conversations were compelling in many ways.  In particular, one dealer told me about his vision for developing his future leaders, which I found to be…

Do yourself a favor and don't wait until you have a harassment case on your hands. Being proactive in prevention is the key to stopping harassment at your dealership. This webinar topic is always one of the favorites for HR managers, owners, principals, and general managers. (the other favorite is Wage & Hour Law).

This webinar will cover what is considered unlawful harassment, the cost of harassment in the workplace, and strategies to prevent harassment in your dealership.…

Nearly every week someone says "What's new?" in the Fixed Ops Training world as if there is something wrong with what works.

And every week, the answer is the same. When it comes to Fixed Ops Training, Coaching and Mentoring..."Not much."

Oh to be sure, there are "new" things in Fixed Ops every day.

There are at least a zillion ways to keep in contact with the Customer. And there must be a bazillion CRM companies that can manage a "lost souls" campaign. And, yes, there…

Advice From a 30-Car Guy

People often ask me what is the most amount of units I sold on the showroom floor…? 33, that is the most I ever sold in one month,…

I just got finished with a fun session at the Innovative Dealer Summit in Denver and as promised to the DE community, I'll be doing a video on the topic. We decided to do it in the form of a webinar to keep it on pace with the original presentation, so I'll post it here once it's done on March 28th.

In the meantime, there's no need for suspense. Here are the daily activities that will allow you to make a difference in your SEO. One of the participants at the session asked me…

(I wrote this article a couple of weeks ago while in the service waiting area of a franchised dealership in Eastern Washington; though in order to fully grasp my points, imagine that I wrote it from your dealership.)

The little things are all that matter.

I’m here to get my wife’s new car serviced. Just a couple of small items we noticed when we bought the car. One was placed on a “We Owe” and one was discovered during the delivery. The salesman was (of course) very…

Exactly NOT what you are thinking! Let’s look at these 10 examples of the “EX’s” we want to find in your stores!

1. Examine the processes of the daily routine operations of your dealership. From the way the phone is answered and your callers greeted…

If you haven’t heard, there is a bit of political campaigning going on right now.  Candidates are using every medium of communication to engage potential voters.  They are using the social mediums, but, shockingly, that isn’t all they are using.  They are out stumping.  They are shaking hands and kissing babies.  They are standing behind podiums in public.  Are you campaigning for customers in the same way?  Not sleazy, like a politician, but publicly in the community?

It is…