Auto Retail News

Rob, it looks like the John Marazzi group in Florida has a strong online presence. What is your role there? My role is help us capture as much of the digital market as possible. It all starts with well performing web sites. I realized early on that c

The past two years have been the roughest time in the history of the automotive business. The number of car dealerships in the United States has been declining for decades. Roughly 200 dealers close their doors every year. Last year, however, 2,000 d

We are a time-hungry society. We need and demand more – period. As consumers, we are no different than our customers. We demand convenience in what we do, as well. We have developed a dependence on it everywhere we turn. It never ceases to amaze me

My first GSM told me that customers would tell me how to sell them – I just had to listen.  I’ve carried that belief with me throughout my career and continue to find that customers – both sold and unsold – are the absolute best source of in

In October, I unveiled an updated ACES (Automotive Continuum of E-commerce Success) chart at the well-attended 9th Digital Dealer Conference in Las Vegas. With the 2011 edition of this popular chart, we asked dealers to focus on thirty core activitie

It is no secret that customers are using the Internet to broadcast their buying experiences, and in doing so, directing customers toward or away from your dealership, many times without you knowing. More and more prospective customers are using feedb

It is stating the obvious to assert that core systems such as your Digital Response Management (DRM) system, Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system, dealer web sites, inventory management system, vehicle locator system and dealer management sy

Whether training recruits or re-training “old school” folks, we always warn them of who to avoid, including the waiters!  I mean that in two ways: The sales rep out front waiting on a deal with incomplete tasks on multiple fronts in your CRM rig

There is a place on the Internet that the largest search engine in the world sends people before they get to your website. It is called Google Places and reflects the importance Google is placing on local search. Google Places is a profile for your b