how reputation effects car dealers - digital dealer magazine

Most marketers engaged in e-mail marketing do notrealize the important role

that their reputation plays, not onlyon their deliverability, but also onthe overall return of their marketinginvestment. Monitoring your com-pany’s e-mail marketing reputationand the reputation of your e-mailservice provider (ESP) is vital toyour business.

There are several things you shoulddo to ensure your company’s reputationremains positive to subscribers. This isthe first in a three-part series of articlesthat will cover how to determine a base-line for measuring your reputation,how to fix potential problems, andwhat you can do to keep your reputa-tion separate from the reputation ofyour ESP.

Why should I care about my reputation?The amount of unsolicited e-mail

that ISPs and corporate mail serveradministrators receive has forced themto adopt creative methods to reduce orhalt spam delivery. While content filter-ing works to block spam, it also falselylabels many e-mails as spam and blocksthem from being delivered to the recip-ient. As a way to combat this, usershave been forced to abandon contentblocking in favor of reputation-basedsystems which have a much lowerpropensity to block conversational e-mail. However, doing so may wreakhavoc on e-mail marketing campaigns.

Last year, e-mail receivers broadlyadopted various reputation-basedsystems that helped them determinewhether the mail they were receivingwas coming from a source that they, ormore appropriately their e-mail clients,deemed positive or negative. Thesereputation systems were not builtaround published protocols such asSPF or DomainKeys. Rather, they werebuilt upon homegrown technology

centered on a “this is spam” reportingdevice. AOL was the first major e-mailreceiver to implement such a device andthe virtual overnight success of theprogram prompted others, such asYahoo, MSN/Hotmail, and Gmail, tofollow suit.

Today, the majority of addresses on e-mail marketers’ lists originate from ISPsthat have active reputation systems inplace. Unfortunately, each one of theseISPs sets its own rules governing e-mailtraffic and enforcing policies thatprotect its users from the barrage of

unsolicited spam. While the rules varyfrom one provider to the next, there area few things that savvy e-mail marketerscan do to ensure that their e-mails getdelivered to the inbox and not acciden-tally filtered into the junk mail folder.

Many e-mail marketers that use anESP mistakenly think that reputationand deliverability are the sole responsi-bility of the provider. While the ESPhas a knowledgeable staff and the hightech systems in place to help manage

How Reputation ImpactsDeliverability, Part 1

D IGITAL Dealer INTERNET SALESPeter Martin

DD 14 May 2009 DigitalDealer-magazine.com

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DigitalDealer-magazine.com May 2009 DD 15

Ibelieve I am fortunate for havingspent time in dealerships that werelittered with “characters” and old

school, stereotypical car sales folks. Itdefinitely opened my eyes to the fullspectrum of sales strategies employedby others and also taught me how neg-ative perceptions of our industry werecreated. That being said, having seen

and been taught some of these trickshas allowed me to expand my reper-toire for online tactics. The oldest,meanest of car sales tricks have someuseful applications within the Internetsales realm, good and bad.

Disclaimer: The views, tricks, obser-vations, and opinions in this article aremine and should not necessarily reflectthe official policies and beliefs of thismagazine. (I don’t want anyone else toget in trouble but me.)

Up systemsOld school: Rules of most dealer-

ships were set. The first salesperson inthe dealership every morning took thefirst customer. The order you came inwas the order you took your dealership’sups. A simple round robin system wasemployed after that. If you were thefourth salesperson to walk in that dayand there were only three customers,you didn’t speak to anyone.

New school: Internet leads should beset round robin as well, but dealers

should use the CRMs that allow anautomatic transfer of a lead if it hasn’tbeen answered within a specific time.That way, the e-prospect is answeredmore quickly by someone availablerather than waiting on the ISM theywere originally assigned to. It is nolonger about fairness for the sales crew,but what is convenient for the prospect.

The bait and switchOld school: Advertise your cheapest,

stripped down, bare-bones new car foran amazingly lowball price (or yourrattiest beater on your used lot) to lurecustomers into the dealership, and oncethey see how miserable that particularoffering is, you switch them intoanother vehicle.

New school: A similar, but accept-able bait and switch tactic you canemploy online is by offering theprospect several different options ofvehicles, with one being “models start aslow as”. It may be misrepresenting whatthe customer actually wants, but since itis just one option you provide out ofmany, it is allowed. While they stillhave the price of the vehicle theyinquired about, it is the lower numberthat will stick in their head.

Playing keep awayOld school: When a showroom

customer wanted to leave before thepurchase because they were unhappywith the figures/numbers, the salesper-son would say they’ve misplaced theirkeys. This would keep the customerthere and allow for more time to makethe deal. If the used car manager wereapproached, they would appear scatter-shot and act as if they were looking forthe keys (that they had in their pocket.)

New school: In today’s market, ISMsmistakenly attempt to keep informa-tion away from customers, hoping thattheir interest in the vehicle willoutweigh their displeasure with the lack

of transparency. This is still an unrealis-tic tactic with dangerous implications.There is no way to play “keep away”with information regarding an Internetcustomer and come out unscathed.

The evil ‘attaboyOld school: Salespeople used to offer

gifts (oil changes, tube of touch-uppaint) if their customers would bringtheir CSI surveys back into the storeafter the sale. This way, the dealer’s staffcould fill it out for them and pump uptheir numbers.

New school: Since coaching isforbidden and you cannot directly tell acustomer how to fill out their survey,new tactics have been invented. (Iinvented this, actually, so I don’t believeit is widely used by any means.) Thisoccurs after a deal is completed, whilethe customer is speaking to his/her salesrep and waiting to enter finance. Havea manager walk over and speak to thesalesperson directly. “Hey John, youjust got in another survey, all excellent,100 percent across the board again.Great job. Keep it up.” It doesn’t evenhave to be true, but since it is said to thesalesperson and not the customer (butwithin earshot), my belief is it passesthe “coaching” rules. (I never asked anOEM so I am out on a limb here.) Thebenefit is that a customer sees what apositive survey can do for a rep and alsolikes to be involved with a dealershipthat promotes positive reinforcement.

The ‘Columbo’Old school: Just when a customer was

walking away because they couldn’tagree on numbers with management,the manager would pull a Columbo andremember one more trick to try or ques-tion to ask. Often, they’d make thesalesperson run out and knock on thecustomer’s window as they were about to

E-commerce Uses for Old School Tactics

continued on P-DD31

D IGITAL Dealer INTERNET SALESJoe Webb

“Whether right or

wrong, these old school

tactics do have new

applications in today’s

online market.”—Joe Webb


Did you notice how your DMS’new advanced reporting moduleis finally what you have been

asking for all these years? Neither did I.But, before you open that window and

“throw out the baby with the bath water”let’s take a closer look. Most of you useADP or Reynolds + Reynolds DMS andin my opinion, what you are getting isnot so much state of the art advancedreporting as an evolution of the advancedreporting products that you have beenusing for some time now. There are goodreasons for this.

First, the underlying “flat file” databaseis probably based on one of the earliestdatabase management systems. The ideabehind “flat file” is a very simple, single,mostly unstructured data file, whichmirrors pre-computer data storagesystems such as notebooks, accountsledger pads, and so on. You couldcompare it to a desk drawer that holdsvirtually everything; just toss it in alongwith your small change. While requiringlittle effort to put information in, thisdesign becomes a nightmare to get theinformation out. That is you would haveto scroll through each and every recordsearching for the right one. Now to beclear, they have put relevant data intoseparate files and even organized theminto tables similar to a filling cabinet,which does alleviate a bit of the problemsbut does not remove major obstacles suchas data redundancy (the same informa-tion might be stored numerous times indifferent files), slow processing speed(where is that item stored?) and error-prone storage and retrieval. What is more,it requires intimate knowledge of thedatabase structure to work at all as itwould be utterly useless to search for, say,sales information in the expenses file. So,when you consider how difficult it is topull data from these “flat file” structured

databases you have to admire theprogramming expertise that produced the“Advanced Reporting” modules for thesesystems.

Second, on the plus side ADP’s andReynolds’ user interface with its familiarlook and feel that you and your employ-ees have known for years (some for theirwhole careers) eliminates the need forextensive training and there is practicallyno learning curve involved. This has valueand is a large reason many of you staywith these systems. So, introducing aproduct that advances from the evolutionneighborhood into the revolutionuniverse, with its accompanying trainingexpense and learning curve could be aproblem for you and a support problemfor them.

Now I know many of you are frustratedwith the wasting-away of the plethora ofwonderful information stored in yoursystems underlying databases. And some,you know who you are, have voiced adesire to go “Elvis” and use the ultimatepoint and click technology, “Smith andWesson” to express your disappoint-ments.

But, hold on, before you do that, let’stake a closer look at the problem by firstdiscussing some advanced reporting cate-gories; and then some solutions.

Not advanced reportingAll DMS vendors provide a limited

(although they may seem unlimited)number of built in reports, which areprimarily available via a menu. For themost part they have been carefullydesigned with specific staff needs, pre-programmed and optimized forperformance by expert programmers.These are solutions for specific problemsor tasks. This makes them quick and easyto use. But, when your favorite reportdoesn’t provide you with all the pieces of

the information jigsaw puzzle you need tocomplete the comprehension picture;well, that is when the Smith and Wessonsolution comes to mind.

And that’s why we need advancedreporting.

Ad hoc queriesAd hoc is a Latin phrase which means

“for this [purpose]”. More to the point:this type of reporting tool that is theanswer to one of my favorite songs “IWant It All.” That is, “ad hoc” reportingtools allow you to get what you want, howyou want it and when you want it. This isin extreme contrast to the built in reportsas this reporting tool allows you, the users,to create specific, customized reports thatsatisfy needs that are hard to foresee andyou design it on the fly. This means thateach report could be different (specialized)in every way. Kind of like the structure ofthose deals coming into accounting at theend of the month but of course thesereports are more happily received.

Executive dashboardsThis user interface that is similar to an

automobile's dashboard is designed to beeasy to understand. The Dashboarddisplays graphs and data projecting thecurrent month-end Profit & Loss status.It also shows important indicatorsconcerning the data. Based on themetaphor of the instrument panel in acar, the computer or digital dashboardprovides a manager with the input neces-sary to "drive" the business. Highlightswith colors similar to traffic lights, alerts,drill-downs, summaries, and graphicssuch as bar charts, pie charts, bulletgraphs, sparklines and gauges are usuallyset in a portal-like environment that isoften role-driven and customizable. Mostallow users to view the high-level resultsand then drill down into low level, trans-

What is so Advanced aboutAdvanced Reporting?When you hear ‘advanced reporting’ do you get that ‘deja moo’ feeling; like you've heard this bull before?

D IGITAL Dealer DMS WORKSHOPJim Skeans


lighting results is a great way to make sureyour presentations speak you message andspeak it loudly.

For examples of some of these toolswork in the typical dealership environ-ment check the “free tools” page on myweb site www.jimskeans.com.

For most dealership managementsystems that sit atop flat-file databases,your options are pretty limited. Choosethe vendors’ solutions or contract withone of the handful of companies such asDealer Intelligence and PhoenixInformation Management Services. Alsoyour CPA firm may offer specializedreporting tools, especially if they are anATA member firm. Other solutions thatalso work with all types of databases arethe “data warehouse” or “informationwarehouse” and the “data mart”. Thesesolutions involve extracting data from themain, transaction-based database into aseparate server where the data can beeasily accessed by analysis or advancedreporting programs. But just to be clearthis type of approach is suitable for alldatabase designs. For example AutoSoftdoes this automatically and in a way thatis transparent to the users. In any caseonce you have moved to a relational data-base be it a warehouse or the DMS therea large number of reporting tools thatcover the gamut of advanced reportingand for most systems these can bepurchased and implemented, independ-ent of the DMS provider.

It’s an expectation thingOf course no one expects you or your

staff to be conversant in all aspects ofDMS database design. And why shouldyou be? You and your staff are retail auto-motive experts, not experts in databasedesign theory and implementation. Butyou should know enough about the data-base that is the foundation of the DMSyou use or are investigating to purchase inorder to frame your expectations for itsutilization. That is how the different data-base designs affect the way the DMS fitsinto your business plan; for both usabilityand for the cost to deploy and use.

Now that you have come this far with

action detail. This tool is often referred toas designed for the few, the proud, thedata challenged.

OLAP 'cubes'An OLAP (Online analytical process-

ing) cube is a data structure that allowsfast analysis of data. The arrangement ofdata into cubes overcomes a limitation ofrelational databases. You think “flat file”type databases have problems? Relationaldatabases are not well suited for nearinstantaneous analysis and displays oflarge amounts of data. Instead, they arebetter suited for creating records from aseries of transactions known as OLTPonline transaction processing. There are aton of report-writing tools that exist forrelational databases; but slow as molasseswhen performing tasks such as summariz-ing the whole database. I think of OLAPcubes as extensions to the two-dimen-sional array of a spreadsheet. For exampleyou might want to analyze sales data bymake, model, model year, by time-period,by city, by type of deal, gross and salesper-son, and compare the actual data with abudget. These additional methods ofanalyzing the data are known as dimen-sions. Because there can be more thanthree dimensions in an OLAP system theterm hypercube is sometimes used. Whilean extremely useful tool for a dealer toanalyze large amounts of data, in myopinion for the typical user this tool isgreat for analyzing, say your e-harmonypower dating schema.

Dynamic drill-downOK, just a quick clarification here. For

advanced reporting purposes, to drilldown means to move from summaryinformation to detailed data by focusingin on something that could explain that“unexpected result” that caught your eyeon the summary portion of the report.ADP and Reynolds have done a great jobbuilding this functionally into theiradvanced reporting. The power here is theability to investigate information inincreasing detail. That is, find not onlytotal sales, but also sales by zip code, byproduct, or by salesperson. In other wordsit is more effective to arm yourself with theinformation gained from the drill-downbefore performing the grilling-down.

Advanced analyticsThese reporting tools are usually

referred to as sophisticated analyticengines. They can access both text andnumeric data and interrogate complexhistorical data to look for trends, outliers,and patterns, all through a visual inter-face. Using predictive analysis, the idea isto mine your database to turn insight intoaction. Example’ if you have the feelingthat you’re Jerry Garcia ties produce thebest sales days this is the perfect tool fordetermining which design produces thebest sales and even which days of theweek or month have the best potential forJerry’s effectiveness.

In a nutshell these are the main cate-gories of tools available to use inretrieving information from your hard-earned database of information and forapplying advanced methods and tech-niques in analyzing the data to identifyopportunities, solve problems or"predict" future outcomes.

Alternative solutionsAvailable advanced reporting tools vary

amount DMS providers. But, all haveone thing in common. That is they facil-itate a transfer of information from theDMS database into an MS-Excel spread-sheet. Why use Excel? First, it is universal.Lots of people use Excel so the userknowledge base is huge and for thosewho are not knowledgeable training iseasy to come by. Also once you master thebuilt in reporting functions such as filter,advance filter, pivot-table, etc.; There area host of advanced reporting modulesavailable for purchase that provideenhancements and automation to thosebuilt in reporting tools which for themost part make it easier for the casualuser to get results.

Now for me content is king and whenit comes to pulling information from thetransaction database more is better. Thismeans the more information you caninclude in your download the greaternumber of analysis options available. Ilike to download large selections of dataand use Excels built-in tools to select datafrom the various worksheets of extracteddata; join and reformat the informationinto a professional, extremely useful, easyto digest report. Reformatting and high- continued on P-DD33


It is very likely that your business haschanged appreciably since you lastcontracted for computer services. If

you take some time now to assess yourcurrent technology situation, you canmake the right decisions for the future.As your current commitments winddown, you should ask yourself the fol-lowing questions before you assume anynew obligations.

1. Do your current discounts andconcessions reflect these global reduc-tions? Beginning in 2005, the emergenceof the second tier vendors was finallyacknowledged by the giants that domi-nated the DMS world for decades. As thenew players began to erode this de factooligopoly, there was significant down-ward pressure on computer prices.Dealers sometimes compare their tech-nology costs to other dealers they know.This method is seldom effective. Do youknow in detail what actual solutionsthese other dealers are using? How doyou know what kind of deal they wereable to negotiate? This is one area wheresome professional help may be in order.

2. If you choose a second tiervendor, will you be able to efficientlyoperate your business? There is a lot ofmisinformation out there and it’s hard toknow what to believe. One of the majorconsiderations, although certainly notthe only one, is the integration eachsystem provides with the manufacturersyou represent. Don’t accept verbal assur-ances; contact your manufacturer forverification. Many DMS providerscannot provide integration with DCSand some bend the truth when theyclaim to be “approved”. Some say theyare right on the cusp of approval. Avendor may say they have integrationand then offer it only through a patch-work of third parties.

Why is this so important? It is almostimpossible to communicate with the

factory without a DMS interface and itwill affect your cash flow. In these cases,you will find that your staff will need to“double-input” to accomplish evensimple tasks. When tasks that areroutinely automated become more labor-intensive, you increase your costs and thechance of errors. You should alsoconsider the deleterious effect on yourcash flow of any delays or errors in DCSinputs. Rebates and warranty claims arejust two of the receivables that could bedelayed. Between holdback, rebates,floorplan incentives, warranty claims,new car prep costs and paid commis-sions; it is not unusual for a dealer toexperience initial negative cash flowwhen a new vehicle is sold. Full DCSintegration helps to alleviate thisproblem.

Additional factors that must be assidu-ously evaluated with a smaller vendor arefixed operations offerings (especially ifyou have a large wholesale parts opera-tion), front-end (CRM and BDC)solutions, third-party integration anddata management and archiving.

3. Did I build extra capacity intomy computer system that I never actu-ally used? As recently as a year ago,dealers were routinely adding extracapacity as they configured a new DMS.Dealers were acquiring new points andadding franchises as their core businesscontinued to grow. To put it gently,things have changed for many dealersand there are opportunities for savings ifthey can eliminate excess resources. Ifyou have closed or sold a point, seen areduction in sales, staff and fixed opera-tions, you should explore your optionsand slash some costs. You must deter-mine precisely where to get the mostsavings and how deep to cut. Scalabilityis the new watchword.

4. How much lower will my bill be ifI choose to renew with my current

vendor? No dealer should be expectingan increase. The only question is, “Howmuch less?” In almost every case, yourcost for the same services should be less,even with your current vendor. Any addi-tional cuts in services should result in anadditional reduction. Vendors are fight-ing hard to maintain their revenuestreams and will employ a plethora oftactics to hang on to your monthlycheck. You need to fight back harder andsmarter than ever before.

5. Do I have a copy of all the rele-vant computer contracts? Nearly everyvendor has made crucial changes to theircontract provisions recently. They aretrying to find ways to hang on tocustomers they have in a period of fiercecompetition. If you don’t read, under-stand and seek modifications to thesemore perilous contracts, you will findyourself in an uncomfortable, possiblyuntenable position down the road.Check your current contracts now forpossible problems (automatic renewals,non-cancelable maintenance, etc.). Besure your rights are not abridged. Fiveyears ago, desirable contract addendawere mostly centered on extra priceprotections and future costs. Currentconditions require you to push for muchmore fundamental changes. Be assuredthat these changes are massive and youproceed with peril if you choose to ignorethis advice. Before you sign any DMScontract, it’s smart to have it reviewed bysomeone who is familiar with thesecontracts and how they can go wrong.

6. Does my computer have thecapacity and power to serve my needsuntil the end of my current contract?Be careful if your vendor rep says youdon’t need a new computer. He may tellyou that he just wants to “renew yourcontract” at the same price you are

Check your Excess Computer Baggage!

continued next page

D IGITAL Dealer DMS WORKSHOPPaul Gillrie


drive away to give it their one last shot.New school: The Columbo can be

used effectively in two different wayswithin the Internet lead process. Thefirst way, and most simple to create, isthe use of a pop-under coupon/certifi-cate. After a customer has visited yoursite and they are closing out of theirbrowsers, there is just one more littleattempt for you to lure them back.Whether it is an additional discounttoward a vehicle or a promotion toreceive something free for inputtingtheir information, it is one more way tograb them.

The second way a Columbo is effec-tively deployed is by having an e-mailmessage (preferably a video message)from the owner/GM with a personaltouch. It should let the customer knowthat the primary decision-maker in theplace understands they submitted alead a little while back. Not only doesthe message offer to answer any newlydiscovered questions, but also it shouldoffer a specific value just for mention-ing that particular video. It makes thecustomer feel that they have a connec-tion directly to the top.

The ladderOld school: As a customer agrees to

a deal, the salesperson is told by themanager to put them on the ladder.The salesperson then has to go backand apologize that they forgot about anextra feature/accessory on the car and itwill cost the customer a couplehundred more. The customers usuallyrelent. Then, later, they say they’vereviewed their credit and it won’t be thepayment they expected because thehigher rate raises the monthly expenseanother $20 or so a month. Each timeyou speak to them, you put them onthe proverbial “ladder” taking themhigher and higher.

New school: This also is used twoways in Internet sales, but I don’tapprove of either. One way to put anInternet customer on the ladder is bysending them a quote on the vehiclethey desired, minus one option; ortelling them their vehicle is in stock,but not telling them your in-stockmodel also has a sunroof forinstance. You get them in and hopeto sell them on the feature, puttingthem on the ladder. The other way toput a customer on the ladder is bysaying “plus fees”. The customerexpects the fees to just be taxes, butis asked just prior to signing, “How

do you want to come up with thedestination fee/Internet negotiationfee, etc?” They’ve spent time withyou and are invested in the sale andthe car. They will usually pay aportion of the fee, bringing in moreprofit on the deal. Either of thesetactics will give your dealership a badreputation in my opinion.

The time bombOld school: When a customer is

about to leave before purchasing aspecific car, the salesperson tells them itwill not be available if they walk out.Whether it is a ‘today only price’, or thatanother customer is coming to pick itup, or that it is being transferred to a‘sister store’, it won’t be here when theyget back. It attempts to force a decision.

New school: When e-mailing aprospect an Internet price, ISMs canattach a statement saying that theInternet pricing changes every monthand offers the prospect a ‘good untildate’. Then, toward month’s end, itgives the ISM the ability to call/e-mailand ask if they haven’t yet purchased,would they like a new, updated quotewhen the pricing changes. The samecan be done for incentives. This is atactic to have a specific reason for thedealer’s follow up with the e-lead.

Even with the industry turningonline, there are still lessons to belearned from our predecessors.Whether right or wrong, these oldschool tactics do have new applica-tions in today’s online market. Thenewest performers in our dealershipscan still benefit by having a few tricksup their sleeves.

Joe Webb is the president ofDealerKnows, LLC, specializing in auto-motive e-commerce consulting andassisting dealers and vendors with theadvancement of their online efforts, solu-tion successes, and processes throughhands-on training. He has worked in thedealership trenches and now shares hisknowledge of e-commerce, online advertis-ing, and Internet initiatives nationwide.

If you wish to discuss this article withother dealers, or with the author,please go to the “Discussion Forums”at www.DigitalDealer-magazine.comand enter the “DMS” forum or e-mail him at [email protected].

paying. In normal times, this sounds likea perfectly reasonable offer. But by nowyou know that the price is too high andthe terms are, indeed, not the same. Still,some dealers will think this is an attrac-tive alternative. It is not. Buy into thissuggestion and you could expose yourselfto the “mandatory upgrade”. Rememberthat the actual computer (server) is theleast expensive part of the DMS equa-tion. A state-of-the-art server for a largedealership (or group) should probablycost no more than $6,000 in the realworld. But, if you buy it from a vendor inthe middle of a contract, it can cost up to$300,000! Anytime you sign a newservice agreement with your vendor, youshould insist that it include the latesthardware technology. This prevents thevendor from discovering a “computerinsufficiency” halfway through yourcontract and compelling you to exerciseone of these excruciating options:• Upgrade it at a huge premium. (Youhave no leverage at this point and thereare no real market forces in place to holddown the cost.) Or,• Sign another contract extension to getthe enormously inflated cost of the hard-ware reduced to just seriously excessive.

By keeping the old hardware, youdidn’t save much money but you gave upyour strong negotiating position withoutgetting anything in return. The onlywinner was the DMS vendor.

Ultimately, dealers have never had asmany choices or as much leverage as theyhave today. Don’t squander this potentadvantage. Heed these suggestions, getsome help and finally take control ofyour DMS costs.

Paul Gillrie is North America’s leadingconsultant and advocate for automobiledealers in their quest to reduce technologyexpense in their dealerships. He foundedThe Paul Gillrie Institute in 1992 and thisscrupulously independent research “thinktank” now provides dealers and their advi-sors with the most current, accurate analysisand consumer reports on the technologyissues facing them daily.

Internet Sales, Webb (continued from P-DD15)DMS, Gillrie (continued from P-DD30)

If you wish to discuss this article withother dealers, or with the author,please go to the “Discussion Forums”at www.DigitalDealer-magazine.comand enter the “Internet Sales” forum or e-mail him at [email protected].


10 percent. This operation is now aggres-sively going after the sub-primecustomers through print. One commentthat summed up the entire conversationwas, “I didn’t need the Internet five yearsago and I don’t need it today.”

What about the social sites? I hit thisaggressively last month. I received feed-back from a General Motors dealer whosold a pre-owned Porsche Cayenne sportutility vehicle to a “friend” in the dealer-ship Facebook site. The customer hadbecome frustrated with the trade value ofthe GM product at the Porsche opera-tion. The Internet director from the GMoperation exchanged some e-mails anddelivered the Cayenne within 72 hoursand kept the customer’s business.

What about web sites? The dealer whohas a cookie cutter approach with his website will get cookie cutter results. Theaverage customer visits seven dealer websites during the sales process. How canyou leverage that reality? • Work with web companies that allowflexibility.

•Work with web companies that effectivelyoptimize your site. Use the following analyt-ics tool: www.compete.com to determinethe number of unique visitors that youare getting compared to the other dealersin your area. • Determine how well the site isindexed by the web site. Example: thesite is www.johnbrownchevy.com. Enterjohnbrown.com into the Google searchand look at the numeric count in thetop right hand corner. Compare thatcount with the other dealers in yourarea. I have looked at a total count ofindexed sites as low as five. The numbershould be in the thousands for a largemetro operation. • Demand customer service or fire theweb company. I understand that someOEMs force their dealers to work withone specific web company. I don’tbelieve that this is a good practice. Mostof the larger dealers are complying withthe wishes of the OEM, but creatingmultiple sites to promote their opera-tions when possible. This isn’t an option

for Lexus but it certainly is with GeneralMotors. The problem with theapproach that one web site size fits all, isthe dealer loses the opportunity tobrand himself in the market and the realrelationship is not between the dealerand the web company even though thedealer is paying the invoices.

I encourage each of you to adapt to therule of the new market. It is more power-ful than you. Recognize that the Internetis here to stay. It isn’t a fad. Learn to playthe game with the new rules.

Phil Sura is a VP of the AutomotiveDivision of UnityWorks Media.

comes in. The key lies in shifting the salesfocus from haggling over price andpayment to focusing on a techniquecalled “value closing.” Like consumeroptimized advertising, in this more trans-parent approach to selling, retailersharness the power of the Internet to sellthe value of their vehicle and price byemphasizing:

1. Vehicle highlights – Focus thecustomer on the high value equipmentthat differentiates your vehicle fromsimilar vehicles on the market. Thisincludes equipment and options such as‘heated seats’, ’rear entertainment’, and‘built-in navigation’, as well as lifestylefeatures such as ‘family car’, ‘sporty’ or‘tough utility’.

2. Quality and risk profile – Highlightvehicle attributes that have the potentialto reduce risk and reinforce vehiclequality. This may include ‘Carfax one-owner’, ‘still in original warranty’ or ‘lowmileage’.

3. Certified pre-owned – Highlightvehicle certifications, which provide ageneral sense of quality (better inspected,reconditioned, etc.). It is critically impor-tant to emphasize some of the powerful

benefits of Certified programs thatcurrently have low consumer awarenesssuch as ‘seven-year, 100,000-mileextended warranty’ and ‘24-hour road-side assistance’.

4. Sell the value of your pricing – If youhave done a good job in the aboveemphasis points, selling your price shouldbe easy. In addition, if you are alreadypriced to be “in the game,” you shouldalso be in a position to sell the value ofthe price you are offering as it comparesto trusted sources such as Kelley BlueBook, Edmunds TMV and J.D. PowerInformation Network as well as thevehicle’s own pricing history (i.e. originalsticker price, your original list price,average selling price).

By unleashing the power of sellingvalue or consumer optimized selling,retailers can achieve the following bene-fits:

• Drive more sales• Set up stronger gross profit• Improve CSIBottom line: Consumers don’t have to

be the only ones who are Internetempowered. Now is the time for dealersto empower their own teams with

consumer optimization technology aswell as by training them in the techniquesof consumer optimized selling. In doingso, you should be in a position to workout a straightforward deal relative toprice, payment, trade-in value and cashdown. This scenario will better enableyou to close more deals more profitablywhile gaining a higher level of customersatisfaction. And your customer will drivehome in a car that meets his needs whilefeeling good about the value for the pricethat was paid. Everyone wins.

Pat Ryan Jr. is the co-founder and chiefexecutive officer of First Look byINCISENT Technologies.


Internet Sales, Sura (continued from P-DD12)


Internet Sales, Ryan (continued from P-DD13)


lot traffic, etc. Nothing better to do? Nostrategy or plan or most importantly lead-ership? And, no one greeted me much lesssaid, “Boo”. Wow, here I am the only non-employee human being on the entire lotand I am ignored? I also called each ofthese stores before visiting and performeda mystery call to see how they handled thebig money phone inquiry. On a scale ofone to 10, 10 being the best call perform-ance, they all scored two to four. Same oldthing, “Sure, we got one, come on downand ask for me”. I would have eliminatedall of these stores from my potential “deal-ership buy from list” due to poor callperformances. All of the GSMs or GMshowever told me they were doing good.Help me define what the word goodmeans because I am still struggling withtheir comments. Unfortunately, these arethe guys who will never deliver their deal-ership to the promise land of “doing great”because they simply do not get the bigpicture required to see the little pictures.Just another car dealership. How manyhave you sold today, Jimmy? Where hasthe leadership gone to anyway? Did theynever get it or just stop trying? Give me

one week in those stores with the owner’sblessing and I could set the stage for great-ness and then watch the difference. We,not the economy are our greatest enemy.It is time for a little corporate process lead-ership training in this business. Survival ofthe fittest means those who recognize theyneed to know how to become the fittest.Bust through those old school paradigmanchors and refresh your store to becomegreat and bring newness to the way youdo business.

Lastly, as the leader, you must developthe discipline to stay the course.Whatever you audit not only needs to bedone on a consistent basis but also over along period of time. If you picked animportant activity (follow up, Internet,floor up, owner base, etc), this commit-ment should be easy. People need andwant the stability that this type of inspec-tion brings. Remember, the best days in asuccessful dealership are like the movieGroundhog Day: predictable and repeat-able. Your ability to sustain what you startis the essence of inspection. I have puttogether a responsibilities list for variouspositions in the dealership as it relates to

CRM/BDC processes. If you wish toreceive a copy, e-mail me and I will get itout to you. Bam.

Chuck Barker’s experience ranges from anexecutive with a Fortune 200 computer cor-poration to the automobile business. He hasheld positions as business development man-ager, sales manager, acting GM, ADPexecutive regional manager specializing inCRM and his own current company, ImpactMarketing & Consulting Group, LLC,located in Virginia. His firm delivers CRMprocess strategies, 21st century CRM salestraining, CRM e-business deployment andCRM management leadership workshops.More information can be located at his website: www.impactgroupcrm.com.

me down the “DMS design theoryyellow brick road” let me share withyou the most important aspect of thiswhole discussion. The real events thatcreate the differences between DMSstake place after the shrink-wrap comesoff the database software package. Forexample; ACS’s implementation of“Visual Fox Pro” is very different fromAdam Systems implementation of“Visual Fox Pro”. This is why, when Iam performing a CompuSelect servicefor a dealer or dealer group consideringan alternative DMS I pay particular tothis issue. The thing is CompuSelectdoes not so much choose the system“for you” as much as it provides the keyinformation that allow and your staff tomatch expectation with the DMSprovider’s reality. The twenty plus alter-native dealership management systemsprovide solutions that run the gamut ofdatabase design. It is extremely impor-tant that their strengths and weaknessare fully illuminated before makingyour decision.

For example Arkona’s does notprovide advanced reporting. But, their

database design allows for use of“expert” reporting tools to do the jobfor you. They have certified a nice list ofcompanies who’s reporting and analysistools work seamlessly with their data-base. These are well known andrespected names such as ChrystalReports, Sequel and Star Query. I reallyadmire the ACS approach. Not onlydoes their database design allow forconnectivity to the report program ofyour choice they have also made theinformation voyage from database toexcel as seamless as it gets. Anotherfavorite, AutoMate has a spreadsheetbuilt-in with functionality such asproviding a pivot table wizard that theystart for you well into the pivot tableprocess making it easier for the “non-Excelpert” to use.

OK, I feel like this only scratches thesurface, but it is a good scratch. I hope Ihave piqued your interest a bit and haveinspired you to “look under the hood” ofthe DMS you are using or investigating.Also, please take another look at ADPand Reynolds’ reporting tools that havejust been recently introduced, especially

the drill-down functionality. Once youget past the familiar look and feel I thinkyou will be surprised at the advances theyhave made.

Jim Skeans is the president of Jim SkeansConsulting Group LLC and has been in theautomobile business for more than 25 years.Jim is a former senior consultant for aninternational automotive consulting groupand has served in all of the traditional deal-ership management and staff positions aswell as director position with a largenational dealership group.

If you wish to discuss this article withother dealers, or with the author,please go to the “Discussion Forums”at www.DigitalDealer-magazine.comand enter the “BDC/CRM” forum or e-mail him at [email protected].

BDC/CRM, Barker (continued from P-DD26)

If you wish to discuss this article withother dealers, or with the author,please go to the “Discussion Forums”at www.DigitalDealer-magazine.comand enter the “DMS” forum or e-mail him at [email protected].

DMS, Skeans (continued from P-DD29)


Advertiser ......................pg #

ActivEngage ......................11

AutoListener......................27

Auto Point ..........................3

AutoTrader.com ..................2

AutoUSA............................36

BZ Results/ADP ....................5

cars.com ............................35

DealerPeak (Widestorm) ....6

DealerUps ..........................25

Homenet..............................7

IMN Loyalty Driver..............9

Sandi Jerome Consulting..19

tation of the sender prior to opening themessage.

E-mail receivers use four specificcomponents to measure the reputationof the sender. These include number ofcomplaints, number of bounces,number of messages sent, and the size ofthe messages (see Figure 1, page DD14).

If your reputation reaches a specificthreshold, e-mail receivers will begin toblock messages from you. The thresh-olds are usually based on an algorithmof reputation measurement device permessage component over time, and, assuch, the reputation might becomputed using an algorithm ofbounces from a particular sender IPaddress per hour or complaints frommessages containing a certain link perminute (see Figure 2, page DD14).

It is important to keep in mind thateach e-mail receiver has different rulesfor determining reputation so thethreshold for blocking messages willdiffer amongst them.

E-mail receivers score reputation ontwo areas of the e-mail itself, the enve-lope and the body of the message. Theenvelope contains the message’s headerand the source server’s IP address, hostname, ‘from’ address field, ‘reply to’address field, etc. The body of themessage contains the e-mail text,images, and links to external web sitesin either plain text or HTML format.Both the envelope and body mustwarrant the attention of e-mailmarketers, as each part needs to betransparent to the extent that no tracesof the ESP appear in either area.

Peter Martin is the CEO of Cactus SkyCommunications, Inc., one of the premiere-mail marketing agencies in the country.He is considered an e-Marketing expertand regularly speaks and trains for NADAand NIADA on both e-Marketing andspecial finance marketing. He is also thefounder of AskPatty.com, a popular auto-motive advice site and is the foremostauthority on how to sell cars to women.

message or video. As the economychanges, so should the way you dobusiness. You need to be able to updatee-mail templates and come up withnew buying motives for the customersto get interested enough to respond. Itshould be a habit to tweak the processonce a month, even if it includeschanging a sentence in an e-mailtemplate. After all, change is a beautifulthing and it does not keep you boring.

There is a lot more downtime in theshowrooms right now, which meansthat a follow-up process should start tohave more phone calls scheduled andthese calls need to have a purpose. Ifyou are a manager and business is slow,get on the phone and do some followup to help drum up business. You willgain more appreciation from your staffby working together and your voicecan be instrumental in getting acustomer in the showroom. When Iwas an Internet director, my processesincluded a phone call from a manageron a certain day and, believe me;customers were impressed and came into buy cars. If you do not hide behindthe desk and get active, you will havemore energy and excitement, morebusiness, and almost no turnover inyour department.

In a nutshell, it is important to havethe right people employed at the dealer-ship who will be responsible formarketing the dealership to the onlinecommunity and maintaining the onlinereputation of the dealership. In addi-tion, it is important to update follow-upprocesses in order to make the Internetsale process more effective. Practicethese three important routines andwatch your results grow.

Stan Sher is currently working on consult-ing dealerships on best Internet salespractices with his company, DealerInternet Sales Solutions (DISS). He is alsoan account manager for RedNumbat, apricing software that generates a pricequote in seconds.

deliverability issues, there are manythings that the sender must do toprotect the reputation of his or hercompany. E-mail marketers must makethe investment in their own deliverabil-ity by understanding and properlymanaging their reputation in order tohave the best deliverability possible..

The components of a good reputationE-mail reputation is not determined

by one single thing; it is the sum ofmany data points gathered over time.While various methods for reputationscoring are used today, the “reportspam” mechanism has given e-mailreceivers the greatest amount of data bywhich to gauge the sender’s reputation.The same foundation of “user-gener-ated content” that fuels Web 2.0 siteslike MySpace, Flickr, and Digg.comhelps e-mail users determine the repu-


Internet Sales, Martin (continued from P-DD14)

Internet Sales, Sher (continued from P-DD16)
