Owning an auto dealership today is big business. With ever-increasing competition, manufacturer retailing demands, data management, the Internet, an informed consumer and attracting and retaining the right team, the business is now extremely complex. Add to that the pressures of …
For the past couple of decades we’ve been promised that fuel-cell powered vehicles were just around the corner. We were also promised that once they made it to market, they would revolutionize the very concept of the automobile. That …
In the modern, ultra competitive auto retail marketplace, what distinguishes one dealership from another is its relationship with its customers, and how the responsibility of that relationship and the processes that make it possible are aligned between the staff at …
Anyone who has completed a construction or renovation project knows firsthand that the last five per cent of it is usually the most difficult. In fact, we often see the final five per cent not completed for many years, if …
Some months ago, I wrote about an informal survey of dealerships in North York, Ont. and how many were just not geared up to greet and engage the digital customer’s attention. Recently, I did some more mystery shopping at retail …
Probably the most common question I get from dealers is “How do I get more leads?” Leads are the lifeblood of automotive retail and when I hear dealers requesting more, I know we can help. With well over 80 per …
A cord cutter is one of 7.6 million households in the U.S. that has chosen to sever relationships with cable and satellite TV services in favor of online offerings. This is the new normal. Traditional media is seeing a decline …
While we’ve seen the availability of battery electric vehicles in Canada jump from five models in 2011 to 17 by the end of this year, the reality is much of that increase has been driven by the need for automakers …
FROM DAY ONE, SEARCH OPTICS HAS TAKEN A PERSONAL, BOUTIQUE APPROACH WHEN WORKING WITH ITS DEALER CLIENTS In the digital age,it’s often all too easy to be seduced by the latest technology. Dealers are bombarded all the time about new …
PAUL POTRATZ SHARES SOME SIMPLE TIPS FOR GETTING THE RIGHT MESSAGE TO THE RIGHT PEOPLE I get a lot of emails every month with marketers and business owners asking me. “What should I be doing to increase leads and sales?” …
WHY A THOROUGH FACILITIES APPROACH CAN PAY DIVIDENDS FOR YOUR USED-CAR BUSINESS One area that’s becoming increasingly important for franchised dealers concerns pre-owned vehicles. From a facilities perspective there are many approaches and variables that can help integrate a successful …
WHY IT’S NOT ONLY MAJOR METRO MARKETS WHERE GREAT CONSOLIDATION OPPORTUNITIES ABOUND I’m often asked whether dealership consolidation really only applies to large markets. The truth is that dealership consolidation takes many forms and sizes and it occurs all across …
