One of the biggest benefits of an omnichannel marketing strategy is the ability to deliver the right message to the right person at the right time. In this blog, I'm going to focus on the "right person" part of this equation.

If your goal is retention marketing and building customer loyalty, of course it's always best to market to the…

A few days ago, I wrote about the Fundamental Attribution Error. It’s when people place the motives for behavior on an individual’s character even though the environment is likely the most important driver

Today,…

Tesla has been dominating the electric vehicle market, but it’s now positioning itself as a top contender in the premium vehicle sector as well. In a recent press release, Tesla touted its Model 3 as the best-selling passenger…

Just about every technology company in the automotive space is working hard to produce pieces of the digital retailing puzzle to facilitate a better customer experience. But many are focused solely on crafting a solution that allows the customer to complete the car-buying transaction online -- from start to finish.

Dealerships should certainly…

Se Habla español?

Many dealerships reap the benefits of employing staff that speak fluent Spanish for the simple reason that an increasing number of Spanish speakers frequent today’s dealerships for both sales and service. Language barriers can be a problem when it comes to service recommendation upsells or relaying the value of a vehicle, its…

A decade ago we fought through an economic recession that drove an automotive depression. Dealers across the nation refashioned their business models as Internet departments developed into Internet dealerships.

Much time, energy, and teeth-gnashing abounded as old-school met new-school and an industry that can be decades behind in technology…

In today’s digital world, if you want your audience to hear your message, it’s crucial to stand out among the flood of marketing communications hitting them at every turn. But all too often, marketers use a “one size fits all” mentality, sending messages on a standard interval without taking into account each customer’s unique purchase patterns. The result?…

In my last blog, Technicians are the Key to Dealerships’ Future, I discussed how the race to acquire technicians may just be outweighed by the difficult task of retaining the ones dealerships already employ.

Of course, as consumers keep…

Sometimes you just need to get punched in the face to wake up. For too many days in a row, I went to work doing the same thing over and over like Bill Murray in the movie Groundhog Day.

There are two routes to achievement in your life. The first is conformity in which you follow the crowd down a conventional path and maintain the…

While sitting here thinking about what to write for my next blog, I was taken back in time to a wonderful visit to a quaint little resort near Ocho Rios in Jamaica. Blissfully relaxing, looking at the sunset over the ocean, I recognized how blessed I am.

This was unlike any other trip. The entire resort was taken over by automotive industry…

As many dealership marketers know, search campaigns are a necessary part of a multi-channel marketing strategy. The danger with search campaigns is the potential for pay-per-clicks to become very expensive, which tends to happen when marketing vendors use a single strategy for all dealerships, and set up campaigns as…

Dealerships are always struggling with the decision on whether they need a BDC or not. Some try and succeed, but others try and fail. Why does this happen? How is one dealership’s BDC succeeding when other BDCs are failing and returning to status quo after a significant investment? The following are four reasons BDCs fail and solutions for making your BDC a…

The time is now. Spring selling season is upon us. When your inventory, personnel and plans are in the right spot on February 20th, your 2019 is set up to work to your maximum advantage. Five of the best six seasonally-adjusted sales months over the years happen between March and August.  Working the details and making sure that you’re taking care of them…

Does your service department software remove friction for your customers but add friction for your staff? Perhaps that is why we see so many software companies come and go in this industry.

With today’s transformation from a dealership-centric focus to one that is more customer-centric, technology companies are rapidly developing solutions…

At NADA many exhibitors hyped their digital retailing solutions to support online vehicle transactions. While no one has cracked the code for a complete, seamless online transaction, there are several great solutions that provide enough functionality to meet consumer demands. After all, consumers are not asking for a 100% “digital…

The hottest new models in the automotive space aren’t relegated to cars anymore.

Cars are key, but statistical models are catching favor and acclaim. Rightfully so.

The Houston Auto Show recently debuted the 2019 Aston Martin DBS Superleggera TAG Heuer Edition at their Havana Nights Charity Preview Night. With a carbon fiber…

Just one month into 2019, and we've already received the dire prediction (from NADA) that sales are expected to drop to levels the auto industry hasn’t seen since 2014. …

Google and Facebook, Watch Out! There’s someone approaching in the rear-view mirror, and it’s Amazon.

Don’t worry about Amazon pursuing automotive retail--think expensive land and expensive cattle (aka cars). As far as the desire to pursue automotive advertising--think cloud ready and margin friendly.

The duopoly of Google and…

Service departments account for and absorb most of a dealership’s losses in sales and fixed expenses. That is not going away anytime soon. With new car front-end grosses declining, most dealerships will increasingly rely on service business to, well, stay in business.

The problem isn’t a lack of service business, but a shortage of qualified…

According to an interesting study by Forrester Research, many businesses fail to communicate in a way that enhances and solidifies the business-customer relationship. The same can be said for some…