With brand loyalty at its highest point ever, it’s time to take a new look at customer loyalty within your own dealership. According to IHS Automotive, as of the first quarter 2015, the automotive industry is sitting on a ten-year high of 52.8 percent in brand loyalty - mostly attributed to an increased diversity in model offerings and an increased popularity in…

According to an article in Automotive News, one dealer in Illinois has come up with a pretty ingenious loyalty rewards program idea – to leverage taxpayer dollars to increase car sales, while also helping to support local businesses.…

In a recent press release, Amazon announced that, in celebration of its 20^th birthday, July 15 will be “Prime Day” – a day on which Amazon claims it will offer more deals to its loyal Prime members than Black Friday. Amazon promises, “new deals starting as often…

A recent article in Automotive News relayed the story of Obi Obeke and how he had sold 39 cars to world-famous boxer Floyd Mayweather. The article explains how Okeke has been willing to do whatever it takes for his client to keep him…

If you were to ask today’s consumers if they’d like to hang out at a car dealership, chances are that the majority would respond “no.” When consumers do visit a dealership to purchase a vehicle or get their vehicle serviced, many times the process can be longer than desired and is not always a great experience for the consumer. Dealerships have been attempting to streamline…

It’s no secret that dealerships have been in a crazy race to the bottom in terms of profit per vehicle. Consumers are always looking for the best deal and automotive Internet resources are providing them with more ammo to negotiate with. Dealers have been complaining for years about decreasing profit margins on vehicles, blaming manufacturers for lowering margins and…

I recently had the pleasure to work with a very innovative dealer who implemented the concept of “dealer currency” in his dealership with great success. Dealer currency allows you to eliminate cash discounts on sales (in both Variable & Fixed Ops) by instead issuing a form of “dealer dollars,” redeemable anywhere in the dealership for the future purchase of parts,…

We all want new customers. And it’s certainly mandatory to retain a customer to create a loyal one. But how we market our dealerships is increasingly important -- as each form of marketing will deliver different results. The three terms: loyalty, retention and acquisition marketing, all have their own distinct meanings and should be used to satisfy different goals and…

When will I see you again? No, I am not talking about the 70’s pop song, although the lyrics just may fit the content here. I am talking about the continued trend in customer defections from our dealerships. 

Customer’s defect for many reasons and the longer an individual owns a car, the harder it can be to keep that customer. It’s not necessarily because the…

The largest complaint that consumers have when considering a vehicle purchase is the fact that the process takes too long. Even with all the new technology processes that dealerships have employed over the past few years, the purchase process is still as long and cumbersome as it was twenty years ago.

AutoNation recently started to roll out a vehicle purchase…

When did you last walk through the customer entrance of your dealership and look at what is truly being experienced by the customer?

Forget for a moment whether a sales consultant’s work area is messy, or if there are smudges on the windows. Let’s look a little closer at what a customer could see, hear or feel when they interact with your dealership in any…

A couple generations ago, if you didn’t carry cash on your person, perhaps a personal check was accepted at your favorite store.  Then credit cards became an option, followed quickly by debit cards.  And now, with technology changing seemingly overnight, two new payment options are becoming available to consumers at select and very notable retailers.

Apple…

Competition in business is usually a good thing.  Sure, we’d all like to have the market cornered, but without a little competition we would perhaps never figure out ways to improve our products or services and keep our customers coming back. 

In an interesting article on…

When consumers think of loyalty programs, they typically think of racking up miles, or frequenting a business in exchange for rewards, perks or freebies. No matter what business you patronize, there is a good chance that it is offering some sort of loyalty incentive. In fact, many argue that loyalty programs are so prevalent nowadays that they are losing some of the initial…

I had just finished reading this article on marketsoft.com about customer loyalty, when a business associate told me about a similar situation that happened to him. In his mailbox was a glossy, oversized postcard offering a discounted oil change for his vehicle from the dealership from…

It sounds backwards, at first, but when was the last time you asked your customers for a complaint or some constructive criticism?  If you’re like most dealerships, you’re doing everything you can to avoid complaints and negative reviews. In the past, you may have even ignored customers that voiced a complaint. However, in today’s world of instant feedback and review sites,…

Is your car dealership doing everything possible to keep your customers satisfied and happy?  Now, more than ever, your reputation for building relationships and retaining customers may depend on your company’s focus on providing the very best customer service.

How is good customer service defined?  There isn’t a clear cookie-cutter answer to the…

There are many stories of young kids or teens starting successful businesses. And there are as well the simple stories of kids mowing lawns or washing cars to earn extra money while their friends are out playing. A similar story gained…

Do you think your customers feel the same about your company as you think they do?  Think again, they probably don’t.

These days, car dealerships, try to express their individuality from their competitors through value propositions. Almost every dealership has some sort of template or message as to “Why Buy from Us” integrated into their communications with…

With NFL football fans gearing up for another season, DIRECTV is once again offering new customers the 2014 NFL Sunday Ticket for free along with deeply discounted prices and an upgraded DVR Genie on several of the programming packages.  What’s the catch?  The special prices are valid for only the first twelve months of a twenty-four month contract. And if you want to…