Just perusing my Facebook and Twitter feeds this morning, and seeing a LOT of April Fool's posts from businesses. For example, YouTube is shutting down after 8 good years; Google has a new scent project out in Beta form called GoogleNose, and Twitter now costs $5 a month if you want to use vowels.

These and many other pranks are seeing a lot of traffic and a huge number of shares. Businesses can definitely get in on this to get fans' attention!

What kind of pranks are you…

Leadership consultant and entrepreneur David Ibarra; Erin Kerrigan, Managing Director of the Presidio Group; Duncan McCall, CEO of PlaceIQ; Jonathan Ord, CEO and Founder of DealerSocket, Inc.; Shaun Raines, Director of Business Development for DrivingSales; Raj Sundaram, President of DealerTrack's Dealer Solutions Group, and Tom Webb, Chief Economist for Manheim Consulting join keynoter Seth Godin at exclusive NYC event in April…

http://www.internetsales.com

Make Money Mondays With Sean V. Bradley "Motivation, Inspiration &…

 Company continues to expand reach to below-prime consumers through dealer partners and CarFinance.com

Irvine, CA, April 1, 2013– CarFinance Capital LLC announced that it has renewed and increased its warehouse credit facility from $200 to $300 million. The increased credit line, which is provided by Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse, further bolsters the Company’s ongoing mission of helping the…

Every time a social network makes a change to their layout, design firms around the world groan about how they now have to redo a ton of different artwork. Social media is big business and companies will pay big bucks to look just right on their pages and profiles.

Google had a change of their own recently on Google+, including one major change to profile and page layouts that made the…

Successful sales consultants in the automobile industry do the following:



1. They plan their day the night before in writing or in their CRM. This means they can hit the ground running with a well thought out plan of action and purpose.They don’t waste time during the day stopping to think or decide "what do I do next ?" 

 

2. They show up for work early, and do a walk…

People in the world of marketing and businesses trying to use social media for promotions almost always face a paradox. It’s like a Chinese finger trap – the harder you pull, the more trapped you can…

I just put an article up on the site.  That talks about the 5 Key Web Properties Dealers keep losing control of that they can't afford to lose control of.  

 …

Your business depends on your prospects and customers knowing what you wish they already knew.  What is the best way to convey that knowledge during your best opportunities?  Go to our article in the March – April edition of Fixed Ops Magazine for some very effective suggestions.  See you on page 44.…

Many times people say they don’t like to negotiate; yet, they still shop around and never pay full MSRP. Most people act in their own best interest. And most people who say they don’t like negotiating, actually still want to.

There are three things you should always listen to in this business:

1. What people say.

2. What people are trying to say.

3. What they really mean.

Often, what people are saying is they ‘hate’ to…

There’s a saying in online marketing that has been around for a while. “Content is king.”

The truth is this – before the last year, it really wasn’t. Content has always been important, but it wasn’t until recent updates in Google and…

The Nature of Character

~ Michael Josephson

Abraham Lincoln was very concerned with character,

but he was also aware of the importance of having a good reputation.

He explained the difference this…

Hybrid wave raises marketing questions

March 28, 2013 - 2:23 pm ET

The wraps came off of the 2014 Infiniti QX60 Hybrid Wednesday afternoon in New York,…

Written By: Robin Cunningham

For the last sixteen months I have had the incredible experience of being a lead instructor with the NCM Institute.  I have had the opportunity to work with hundreds of dealership managers in our multi-level classes for general managers, general sales managers, used vehicle managers, service managers, financial managers, and some private dealership training, as…

Please read, share and pass this article I wrote "Are You Treating Customers Like VIP's?" for Fixed Ops Magazines March/April 2013 edition along to everyone you know in customer service. It applies to every Industry we work in, not just Automotive retail. I am confident all of you who read and or share in it will take at least one, maybe several things back to your professional work environment, no matter what you do and immediately improve the way customers are acknowledged, treated and…

Be a professional specialist and not a “Jack of all Trades”

   My father was a farmer and contractor and was very good at both. But the one piece of advice that he gave me was when you had something important that you had to hire someone else to do, be sure that you hire a professional their field and not some “Jack of all Trades” because it will cost you less in the long run to hire a professional, someone that knows what they are doing rather than to hire someone that just  thinks…

Let’s call it what it really is, shall we? Despite efforts by Bing/Yahoo to stay relevant as well as efforts by Facebook and Twitter to enter the search game, there really is only one. For years, I’ve always had to add the caveat when discussing search marketing that “When I say Google, I mean Bing and Yahoo as well.”

I won’t be saying…

Neil Rackham, author of Spin Selling, blows traditional thinking about features and benefits out of the room when he introduces us to the term “advantages.”   Everyone has heard of the first two, but I love what happens to the sales process when the term advantage is infused  into the equation.  As with all points in Spin Selling, Neil clearly defines the word advantage and provides research to define its effectiveness in the sales process.

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