Auto sales persons have typically been stereo-typed as smooth-talking, back-slapping, and dishonest persons. Whether the stereo type is true or not is irrelevant. One must take steps to prove that they and their dealership stand in direct opposition to this view. Continue

Everyone has had some time to settle back in after returning from NADA so now it's time to think about what was the best and the worst the show had to offer.



Let's hear what was the best and the worst of the show - from education sessions to exhibitors to the products on the floor.



The theme of the show if there was one was certainly social media with many of the education sessions, networking events and products on the phone focused on how to harness social media. I'm not… Continue

While it is agreed that training can improve the production results of a company there is no shortage of companies and executives that question the return on investment (ROI). Before you calculate the cost of training you should calculate the cost of mishandling opportunities that result from not training your people. Sales training has failed many companies because it was incorrectly implemented, not measurable, outdate and not relevant and did not actual assist in solving problems and… Continue

Complete responses are in the March issue of Auto Dealer Monthly



Simply implementing an in-house solution intended to achieve organizational goals is not enough to achieve CRM success in fixed operations. The process should ensure that these goals are achieved. - Ash Ahmed, Fixed Operations Director, Rich Morton Lincoln Mercury,… Continue

Is social marketing for everybody? Should every dealership jump on the social media bandwagon? I'm sure most social media consultants would say yes, without even thinking about it, but I would have to disagree with them and say no. Yes, you heard me correctly, I said no.…

Continue

Check out Loyalty Cash ..... http://www.screencast.com/t/ZDFlZmNiZTUt

Please call Brandon Rogers - 888-786-6489 for further details and info!

www.loyaltycash.com

In the last blog, we talked about being The Trusted Adviser when it comes to establishing yourself with credibility to potential clients and existing customers.…

Continue

In 1998 I went to one of my dealers and explained an idea I had to generate traffic and sales

for his new dealership in Kansas City. At first he and other dealers said it wouldn't work and

that people would not participate in the program. He however took a gamble and invested $10,000

into the program I developed. Needless to say from day 1 it took off and over an 8 year period

I did this program with over 100 dealers.

Now, in a deep recession, I came up…

Continue

One social media tip that many people are unaware of are "mentions". It is a powerful way to expand your network and begin to engage your social following. It works like this. If you see someone say something on Twitter or Facebook, and you think it's interesting. Go ahead and "mention them" to spread the message further. What this does is post the comment on their page as well as your page. Expanding the conversation to other people. All you… Continue

Dealers typically pay marketing companies for their efforts when attempting to produce incremental sales, especially when they are trying to get customers to buy that have no previous sales history with that dealership. We can call these efforts a quest for 'fresh business'. Fresh business direct marketing is based on predictions and guesses. RL Polk, Experian and other list providers rely on 'predictors' to determine who is likely to buy a car. I have proof that these predictive lists do…

Continue

As the saying goes, an elephant never forgets, neither does the internet. Everything said, everything posted, every video created and image uploaded is there for the world to see. People are forming opinions about your dealership without ever having to be a customer, of course this could be good or bad, it just depends on the opinions being formed.…

Continue

Marketing Options: Hunt or Gather or both

The number of buyers in any given market is pretty much set by the simple fact that only a certain number of people are looking to buy a vehicle at any given time. You could incentivize additional people to join in by offering late model Escalades for $3000 and Camrys for $1500, but there aren't a whole lot of dealers out there who could afford to do that. So, you're stuck with what the market provides.

you can…

Continue

This title is being borrowed from the real estate industry, but it works in the BHPH industry as well. This is a total customer focused approach to selling that will revolutionize the way you do business and more importantly will help you build a strong customer base which will keep them coming back time after time for the services that you offer in your dealership. Continue

I just read this great article “Top Three Myths about Workplace Injuries” in EHS Today. A summary of the Myths:



Myth #3 – You cannot create a hazard-free workplace – It requires discipline and diligence to recognize and mitigate every hazard.

Myth #2 – Being safe takes too much time and money – If you feel… Continue

Usually, we think that helping a customer means getting them into the vehicle that they want or need. However, there is a bigger picture to helping your customers. And that includes helping your customers pay off their vehicles so that you realize your full profit potential.



What do we mean by this? When your customer pays off their vehicle in full, you realize your full profit on the sale. When they do not, your profits are not as great and therefore you are not as successful as you… Continue

I found this news story rather interesting today.



Ernie Boch Jr. is temporarily doubling his Toyota salespeople’s salaries to make up for commissions lost due to the Japanese automaker’s massive car recall.



Read the entire piece



I… Continue

In the auto industry social media can play a huge role in brand management by bringing trust, recognition, and awareness to more than just your sales department. It can also boost your service and parts business as well as highlighting specific aspects of your F&I, such as buy here pay here and special finance, the latter of which will be the cornerstone of this post.



The special finance customer is in an uncomfortable spot. This uncomfortableness can quickly lead to… Continue