The automotive social network for dealers and dealership management

April 2009 Blog Posts (30)

Sales is a tough racket

I was working in the Aircraft industry for years. The industry pays well as aircraft parts produce large profits. Then came 9/11/2001 the industry as a whole took a major hit. I made it until 2003 before my number came up.I was laid off. I could not make the money I did outside of the aircraft industry with the skills I had.

My wife and kids were out of town when I was laid off. I decided I wanted to get into sales because I thought If I hustled I could make the type of money I needed to… Continue

Added by Stanley N Esposito on April 30, 2009 at 8:42am — 3 Comments

Need a second income? We have put together a team of Car Pros part time to make a six figure income in 1 year with the greatest company ever!

Click on the link for more information: http://wbraithwaite.greatesthomebusiness.com/video

Added by Walter Braithwaite on April 29, 2009 at 10:29am — No Comments

Credit Correction Services for Dealerships??? Is It Possible???

Is this a great network of people or what??? I am so pleased to have been invited to this group. I have a challenge for this group and that is that I have a company that consults with consumer credit and have been very successful with the Mortgage market,Builders (first time home buyers) and have helped hundreds of clients correct credit issues by either assisting them through the process or actually doing it for them.

As many of us know, Credit is a complex topic that many consumers… Continue

Added by Harry Snedden on April 28, 2009 at 5:44pm — 2 Comments

Quick Tip: Lock Up Your Social Media!

I get it. Most dealerships don’t have time to deal with various social media applications. However, even if you choose not to use these sites, it is important that you set up a dealership account for each one. Doing so will help protect your trade name and URL from use by your competitors, employees or others that may compromise your dealerships online reputation.

Sites to Lock Up!

MySpace…

Continue

Added by Merla Turner on April 27, 2009 at 8:30am — No Comments

Should Car Dealers be on Twitter? Facebook? MySpace?

The short answer: ABSOLUTELY!

The longer answer: yes, but only if you’re going to do it right. Doing it wrong is worse than not doing at all.

The complete answer:

Social Networks have been used as marketing tools since they started getting really hot a few years ago. Businesses have been using MySpace, Facebook, and more recently Twitter to get their message out to an online world that is willing to listen. The problem that most businesses, including… Continue

Added by JD Rucker on April 26, 2009 at 10:53pm — 3 Comments

Arbitrating a vehicle bought online

Im currently arbitrating a vehicle i purchased on openlane. as usual the folks at openlane have been great. i know it must be hard trying to cater to two sides without seeming like your favoring one side or the other. Its a 2001 Civic Ex 106,000 miles. I wasn't looking for a new car to end up on my lot but the vehicle headliner is coming off, the roof have two dents in it and the radio is in operable. I know it sounds small but just got the estimate to repair and its nothing but. I say all this… Continue

Added by Jermaine on April 26, 2009 at 10:41am — 1 Comment

NO LONGER BUSINESS AS USUAL BUT BUSINESS UNUSUAL

IT IS NO LONGER BUSINESS AS USUAL BUT BUSINESS UNUSUAL! I know some of you would disagree and may think this to be an overstatement and I welcome your comments but what I am saying is that business as usual is over. You are no longer in the car business, for the first time in maybe ten years you are in the business again of selling cars rather than in the business of cars selling. This is very important- quickly and immediately understand that you are no longer in the car business as the… Continue

Added by Grant Cardone on April 21, 2009 at 9:46pm — 1 Comment

Online Reputation Matters

It’s 2007 and I’m the Internet director at a large, family owned dealership. I type in my dealership’s name on Google and what shows up on the first page? Negative customer reviews that say things like ‘Worst place to buy a car ever’ and ‘Manipulative Sales Techniques’! Now the killer was that the dealer group I worked for was not only 100% committed to customer satisfaction, but we regularly bent over backwards to do things right.

It got… Continue

Added by Merla Turner on April 21, 2009 at 8:30am — 3 Comments

Read to your kids....managers,salespeople,staff,friends,loved ones.....then your kids again.....and then read it to yourself!

Characters

Narrator

Chicken Little

Henny Penny

Ducky Lucky

Goosey Loosey

Turkey Lurkey

Villain: Foxy Loxy

Narrator: Chicken Little was in the woods one day when an acorn fell on her head. It scared her so much she trembled all over. She shook so hard, half her feathers fell out.

Chicken Little: "Help! Help! The sky is falling! I have to go tell the king!"

Narrator: So she ran in great fright to tell the king. Along the way she… Continue

Added by Craig Lockerd on April 20, 2009 at 8:08pm — 2 Comments

Understanding Why Customers Behave The Way They Do

All of us in this group sell a product or service on a daily basis. We are all dependent upon someone buying what we have to offer. They in turn are dependent upon someone buying what they, (we) are selling, and so on. It may be worthwhile to take a step back for a moment and help our clients communicate more effectively with their customers.

The intent of this discussion is to open a dialogue; share thoughts on an ongoing basis on the topic of understanding customers and to provide… Continue

Added by Ernie Kasprowicz on April 16, 2009 at 12:07pm — No Comments

Can You Start EVERYDAY in FRONT of the Competition?

What do Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Magic Johnson, LeBron James, and John Wooden have in common?

When these athletes or coaches play in a game, do they warm up? When they practice, do they go through the motions or do they focus on getting better every day? Do they see the sand trap on the right side of the green or do they see the hole 15 feet from the right side of the green? Are they intimidated by the other team or do they expect to win all their games? Have they been told there… Continue

Added by Courtney Cole on April 14, 2009 at 10:58pm — 4 Comments

7 Critical Mistakes Salespeople Make by Mark Tewart

Mistake #1 – Not committing to sales as a career

Many people are reluctant salespeople. When you get into sales to check it out, you wind up checking out. You must make a commitment to sales as a career. You must have a strong belief system supporting sales as an honorable and exciting career filled with potential. Many people say they love sales but their actions don’t support that claim. Ask yourself if you are truly are passionate about sales. Often salespeople have deep seated… Continue

Added by Mark Tewart on April 14, 2009 at 7:30pm — 1 Comment

ITS TIME TO REVISIT YOUR PAST OPERATIONAL CHANGES

Don't fall into the trap that everything you did last year to save costs and streamline operations is working. The next nine months could very well be the difference between keeping the doors open or closing and YOU must make sure your changes are effective and still working.

You may have had a hiring freeze- is it still in place?

You may have changed pay plans-have your PVS costs shown the desired results?

You may have freezed inventory levels- have they come down or… Continue

Added by A Jay Gould on April 14, 2009 at 1:11pm — 2 Comments

How can you better Micro-Blogging?

Sites such as Twitter and Yammer are wonderful Micro-Blogging sites, but how can you make the experience better??? Micro-Blogging is basically what has been called a virtual water cooler. A place to share short thoughts or ideas. This could be a great tool in this industry for sharing links, thoughts, or to post a victory. The only issue that seems relevant to me is the fact that there is no easy way to reference back to these topics. If you could have your way with Micro-Blogging what would… Continue

Added by Marshall Windlow on April 13, 2009 at 2:00pm — No Comments

What happened to the "Special Finance Dealer" and what we can learn from it.

"We don't want that kind in our store!!!"

Ever heard that phrase said before? Me too, but on both ends of the spectrum. I am speaking not from what I have witnessed over the past year and a half but also from personal experience.

We didn't want that kind in our store either....the good credit customer that is. That's right, I said it and many "Special Finance Dealers" are realizing the tragic mistake of using that same phrase.

We didn't want to see a good credit… Continue

Added by Dan Henderson--Special Finance Concepts,LLC 1-800-699-4160 on April 10, 2009 at 6:15pm — No Comments

Back to work

Whew, the uncertainty may still linger but at least I am workin! Back in Feb the Superior Auto Group lost all six stores and myself and 500 other car folks suddenly found ourselves really understanding tough times in the car biz! Luckily I have found work and its with a line that is still selling some what steady (Honda) and in an area still seeing modest sales (Glendale, CA). In searching for work it seems that the only position dealers are looking for the magic bullet from is in Internet… Continue

Added by Michael Correra on April 9, 2009 at 7:30pm — 1 Comment

Grant Cardone Super Freak Program

Craig Lockerd will be getting certified Super Freak Status because of his relentless follow up with a potential client. Craig used actions that were over the top and outside the box in order to earn the business that are consistent with a Super Freak - Congratulations Craig that was an amazing story you sent us thanks for setting a good example.

We are working on the actual certification and I will send you a pdf so you can download it and get it framed.…

Continue

Added by Grant Cardone on April 8, 2009 at 10:46pm — 3 Comments

HAVE YOU DONE SOMETHING THAT WOULD QUALIFY YOU AS A SUPER FREAK?

Grant Cardone wants to know if you have done something that would qualify you as a super freak.

Super- exhibiting the characteristics of its type to an extreme or excessive degree

Freak- an ardent enthusiast b: a person who is obsessed with something.

Superfreak the label a person is given when they take actions in business that are extreme and/or to an excessive degree because they are obsessed with creating a certain effect or obtaining a certain outcome. For… Continue

Added by Grant Cardone on April 8, 2009 at 3:30pm — No Comments

TRAINING FOR TODAY, DEVELOPMENT FOR TOMORROW

Even in our current economy, stories continue to pour in from industry friends about the success’s they have had.

All of these winners realize that to be the best that they can be they must constantly receive training. Good training is a combination of the learning and sharing of new ideas and techniques. The person who receives training is always going to out perform the lesser trained person.

There are two types of training; the first is training which is utilized… Continue

Added by Michael Finnan on April 8, 2009 at 1:43pm — No Comments

LOWER PRICES IS NOT A SOLUTION by Grant Cardone

Price is always a very sensitive issue, especially during times of contraction, when money is tight, consumers are scared and more selective with their money. The first response (incorrectly) is to reduce price in order to make up for less volume. It is a myth that a lower price will sell your product and a formula for disaster.

Unless you are Wal-Mart or the Dollar Store that have entire business models built around very small margins and high volumes, the lowest price model will… Continue

Added by Grant Cardone on April 7, 2009 at 7:07pm — 3 Comments

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