Last year, the Nova Scotia Automobile Dealers’ Association (NSADA) tried a new style of conference, more intimate and interactive, with high profile speakers. This new approach was well received, as the event doubled in size this year when it was held April 5 at the Casino Nova Scotia in Halifax.
Called the CADEX East Conference, the event kicked off with an interview style question and answer period with Dianne Craig, the President and CEO of Ford Motor Company of Canada. Sitting comfortably on a couch, Craig seemed relaxed and at ease answering questions from event moderator Niel Hiscox, the publisher of Canadian auto dealer.
Craig was warmly greeted by local Ford dealers when she arrived, and several delegates we talked with said they were impressed with her openness and ability to answer some tough questions.
Craig said Ford dealers in Canada taught her a lot about the business and about the differences between the Canadian and U.S. markets. She also said dealers are a vital part of Ford’s operations in Canada. “Our dealers are our customers first. They are our business partners second,” says Craig. “It’s just as important to listen to the dealers as it is the customers.”
Craig also said she doesn’t like the big incentives that exist in Canada, saying they are good for short-term sales but aren’t good in the longer term. “If I am a customer, why in the world would I not take that?” she says. “I think it’s bad for the industry.” She did add, however, that at the end of the day Ford still has to keep its dealers competitive.
Craig also talked at length about emerging trends affecting OEMs and dealers such as social media and the changing customer. “It’s moving so fast for our dealers, and it’s moving so fast for Ford,” says Craig, who says when she arrived Ford didn’t even have a Facebook page.
She said dealers and Ford play a key role in the social media conversation, adding that Ford needed to put resources in place to ensure they could respond properly to customer voices.
Craig also addressed issues such as succession planning, facility image programs, the new customer and fielded some questions from delegates.
Succession planning was a hot topic at this year’s event, and was debated at length by an expert panel consisting of Chuck Seguin, President of Seguin Advisory Services (and widely regarded as one of Canada’s top experts on succession planning for dealers) Rick Gauthier, President and CEO of the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA), and Andrew MacKinnon, from Sinclair, Billiard and Weld, a Dartmouth-based wealth management and employee benefits firm.
The panelists shared stories of how many dealers don’t yet have a proper exit strategy in place. Seguin said this lack of planning puts the family’s wealth at risk, and dealers need to start having discussions about their future with their successors. “They think that ‘Deep Pocket Jones’ is going to come along and write them a big cheque,” says Seguin.
Digital marketing expert Paul Potratz led delegates through an energetic presentation about the changes in digital marketing and social media. Potratz said a key to marketing in the digital world is to stop doing “Me” marketing focused on yourself, and focus on answering questions and being a resource to your customers. That requires a change in the way you conduct yourself digitally.
“You need to be innovating every single day,” says Potratz. “We are an on demand economy. We have to become an on demand dealership.”
Potratz was followed by an engaging presentation on the state of the automotive retail sector with an overview of the health of the economy in Canada and Nova Scotia by Michael Hatch, the CADA’s Chief Economist. Delegates said they appreciated gaining insights into how the local economy could affect car sales in the province.
The day wrapped up with a “fireside chat” with Rick Gauthier, CADA President. Moderator Niel Hiscox discussed a broad range of issues of interest to dealers, and Gauthier provided his perspective and insights into work the association is doing on behalf of dealers. Gauthier also discussed the Suzuki Canada withdrawal from the Canadian automotive retail market, and said the association would be working in support of the dealers. “These dealers need help and they need representation,” says Gauthier.
The CADEX event was followed by the largest ever President’s Dinner, an annual event celebrating the industry.
The NSADA’s members consist of 120 new car franchised dealers in the province and an associate membership comprising suppliers to the automotive retail sector in Nova Scotia.
Look for more event coverage in the next issue of Canadian auto dealer magazine.
