UPDATE: 9/19/11 - The Digital Dealer Webinar scheduled for 9/22/11 with Phil Zelinger has been postponed until after the 11th Digital Dealer Conference & Exposition. Stay tuned for more details. 

Digital Dealer Webinar: How to Sell More with Less Using Technology Driven Processes Powered By Social Media

Date: 9/22/2011 at 11:30am EST -…

We all know by now that at the end of July, Google changed how they calculate star counts on Google Places.  (see previous post)

Dealers that relied heavily on Dealerrater.com, Yelp.com, or…

Dealer Elite's Exclusive Interview with "CarsDirect.com"





1.What is CarsDirect?

CarsDirect.com has been in the online automotive business for over 12 years now. We are one of the pioneers of selling cars online. As a leader in the online automotive community, we partner with dealers to give them access to our automotive network. Our network spans to nearly 100 automotive enthusiast and forum sites. We also own Autos.com, SellMyCar.com,…

Google Places.  Facebook.  Twitter.  Foursquare.  Etc.  All free.  Car dealers have to love that price, right?

My caution is not about whether to use these services, as YOU MUST USE THEM.  It’s not an option any longer—it’s just a matter of when you can get to using them with the attention they deserve for the result you need.

My caution IS, however, about…

Do the "RIGHT THING".. You can make mistakes and be forgiven,but dishonesty lingers in people's memories forever.It's much easier to keep your reputation than rebuild it. Nothing will turn people against you more than being percieved as dishonest.People forgive for making mistakes.In LINCOLN ON LEADERSHIP , Author Donald Phillips…

We have a responsibility to our people to set expectations not goals.

You set a goal and if they don't hit it then it's "oh well" maybe next month! or they come to you all proud and say ohhh i got so close, maybe this month!

Expectations put a little responsibilty on the shoulders of the person that is trying to make them a reality, then have consequences for those who do not meet them. As managers we sometimes want to soften the blow by saying " well he was…

Dealer Elite Interview

1. What is "Cars Out The Door"?

If you are the car buyer, Cars Out The Door is negotiation-free online car buying, with online trade-in, lowest out-the-door price, and know your loan amount and car payment before you click the button to buy the car.

If you are the car dealer, Cars Out The Door is every single internet efficiency you were promised to offset your compressed internet margins - but never received. Cars Out The Door…

I try to spend at least a little time each day reading forums and blogs from outside the auto industry because I think there is a lot to learn from other business communities.  Today, I found an interesting question up for discussion, and would like to pose the same to you.

What would it take for you to leave the auto industry?

 …

I started some advice for Nancy Simmons in another section and it grew into a story I think some of you might find interesting.

Nancy is developing tailored CRM software for a client. I had the opportunity to do the same thing for my own dealership twenty years ago. Here's my advice and story to her:

At the point at which a prospect is willing to identify themselves to a dealership as a prospect they become HOT prospects, all of them. They may be saying I'm not currently in the…

Dr. King believed “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he

stands at times of challenge and controversy.” What is a motivational quote for most was a creed for Todd Beamer and…

Reputation Management requires you to have a great online presence so you grow your business and make an impact in your market. Credibility is everything in business. A bad reputation means bad business, and bad business means lost revenues and low sales numbers. Every customer represents an opportunity.

Boost your Online Presence Visibility and searchability. Appearing on the first page of search engine results with intriguing content and good reviews…

We have all had the experience of going out to a restaurant for lunch.

The process is nearly the same in every restaurant.

• First we are greeted at the door
• We are then guided to an open table
• We are then given a menu to choose from different options
• We are asked if we would like anything to drink while we look…

That is the phrase that can pop a salespersons bubble faster than anything!

This is a great way to turn the focus on the sales proccess and how important it is to never skip a step or to never show the customer all of the choice in vehicles that fit just above or just below what they are looking at on the lot. It may be a lack of investigating the way the customer is going to use the…

Last month I posted a discussion, "When's the Last Time you saw an Evidence Manual", I was delighted to trigger some positive discussion.  

Are you having your customer sign a "Release Form" to use their photo, image, testimonial and / or video?  I have attached a pdf of a generic form I used to use and have signed in the Business Office.  Please have it reviewed by your counsel or advertising agencies.  It is always wise to exercise due…

Made you click from the title or the picture, didn't I?  Well, this article is about Pay-Per-Click (PPC), but a short story first to explain my point:  When I had my entertainment company ten years ago, we always laughed at the long-standing joke that naming a band “Free Beer!” would make all the honky-tonk signs read “Free Beer Tonight!”—ensuring strong attendance.  I still…

Alexander H. Leighton says..."morale is the capacity of a group to pull together persistently and consistently in pursuit of a common purpose.

Something that has always been apart of the automotive industry is the group of tough love managers and owners... you know the ones that pull the team together for a meeting and all hell breaks loose, Screaming and Yelling and demoralizing the group like that is going to get them pumped up? I know everyone in the industry has seen it…

All too often what we think are strategies are mere tactics and are driven by technology vendors want to sell us. I put together this 2.5 day class for our clients and perspective clients on Strategies to help them better define their own strategy online & off.

This is a 2hr version of a 2.5 day class.

 …

How can you solve ANY problem that you might have???

There is a very simple process…to solving any and all problems…

The process… is basically 4 steps…

And you are going to need to write out your answers…to every step of the process…

So get yourself some paper and a pen…or type it out on your…