Featured Articles - August 2008

• - 3 ratings

  Keep Educating Yourself  - Must Read

  

  Peter Salinas

  Are you sitting in your office right now thinking things are pretty good? Sales are okay, bills are getting paid and there’s a tidy sum left over after you send your check to the IRS. You are like most retailers out there. There’s really not a tremendous difference from one dealership to the next. There are, however, many dealers who have begun examining what they are doing, scrutinizing their financials and begun training themselves and their employees. They have realized that if things are bad, they can get much better. If things are good, they can be great.

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• - 2 ratings

  Southern Trust Finds New Finance Partners, Secures Relationship with Experian Automotive  - Must Read

  

  Peter Salinas

  When Rick Potts, dealer principal of Southern Trust Auto Outlets, in Port Charlotte, Fla., discontinued his relationship with American Suzuki Motorcars Corp., late last year, he had already decided on how his return to being an independent dealer would work. He would be the “new car alternative” store that had proved so successful for him in the past.

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• - 4 ratings

  Two New Subprime Finance Firms Enter Marketplace  - Must Read

  

  Peter Salinas

  Two new finance companies have entered the special finance marketplace at a time when several major players in the space have either exited completely or have significantly tightened their funding criteria.

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• - 3 ratings

  Uptick in BHPH Sales Creates Need for New Tools  - Must Read

  

  Bob Selby

  The past eight months has been an interesting time in South Florida. As housing values have declined, foreclosures skyrocketed and the subprime meltdown in the auto finance markets slashed new and high-end used car sales, consumers have turned to the buy here-pay here dealer for their transportation needs.

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• - 3 ratings

  Who is Training The Trainer?  - Must Read

  

  Butch Moore

  Sometimes I think I am the luckiest person on earth. I have the great privilege of traveling all over this beautiful country working with dealers to help them learn and prosper in our business. Being a moderator of Twenty Groups is a passion, and I have the utmost respect for all our clients. They take the time away from their businesses to train on how to be more profitable. Back at their stores they are the leaders, trainers and decision makers. They have chosen to train themselves — train the trainer. As a result they will be as prepared as they can be for the challenges in front of them, and be able to call upon their fellow group members and their moderator when they don’t have the answers.

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• - 2 ratings

  Overcome Your Objections And Get Your Butt to a Meeting!  - Must Read

  

  Peter Salinas

  I’m constantly walking a fine line. On the one side I’m always trying to get as much information to you that helps you make more money. On the other side, I must be careful when interviewing dealers about their ideas, processes and procedures. The last thing I want for them is to get smacked in the head by a idea they shared with everyone nationally, which an immediate competitor used against them locally.

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• - 3 ratings

  So You Want to Play Tough, Do You?  - Must Read

  

  Robert E Lee

  There is one good thing that comes from challenging times: When the going gets tough, the tough get going. Well then, that leaves two types of people, the tough guy and the procrastinator guy.

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  Trick or Treat or Learn and Earn  - Must Read

  

  George Dans

  If you fail to train, then you train to fail, and with the way the volatile market is headed going to a trade show and joining a Twenty Group are probably the best ideas or strategies you can employ to grow your sales. Business normally heads in two directions, one is that most dealers spend more time working in their business instead of on their business. Which do you more of? Twenty groups are great for working on your business not in your business and the two go hand in hand. When coming to a trade show, most people think that, hey this is a great time to get away, have some fun, throw some money around, meet old friends and make new friends.

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• - 3 ratings

  Group Mentality  - Must Read

  

  Emily Beck

  I live in Washington D.C. — the land of power, pride, and personality. I have a friend who refers to Washington, D.C. as “Hollywood for ugly people.” After all, if the egos walking around this city had moderately good looks, they would have gone to claim their fame and fortune in Hollywood, and not Washington. It doesn’t take too many strolls down Pennsylvania Avenue on a warm summer night (especially during summer intern season) to know that this city has its share of folks who are at risk of being very out of touch.

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• - 2 ratings

  ACH Collector Moves BHPH Dealers to Front of Line for Payments  - Must Read

  

  Industry Releases

  Automotive retailers and special finance firms across the U.S. have discovered what a powerful business tool ACH Collector is for both sales and collections.

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• - 4 ratings

  Investments in Traning Supercedes Cost Cutting  - Must Read

  

  Shane Born

  “There is nothing training cannot do. Nothing is above its reach. It can turn bad morals to good; it can destroy bad principles and recreate good ones; it can lift men to angelship.”

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• - 3 ratings

  Lease Here-Pay Here: The Next Great Evolution - Part 3  - Must Read

  

  Randall McCathren

  (In Part 1 (DBJ June 2008) Mr. McCathren discussed the benefits and challenges of Lease-Here-Pay-Here (LHPH) programs. In Part 2 (DBJ July 2008) he discussed the steps to implement a successful program. Part 3 covers LHPH profitability and residual value risk.)

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• - 3 ratings

  NAAA Auctions Provide Solid Foundation for Online Platforms  - Must Read

  

  Industry Releases

  The National Auto Auction Association is working closely with its affiliated online wholesale vehicle platform partners to showcase their unrivaled inventory selection, security and reliability, while reminding users of their close ties with its physical auctions and all of the brick-and-mortar services they have offered for more than 60 years.

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• - 2 ratings

  Dealers Gear Up for Industry’s Premier Automotive Retail Event of the Year

  

  Peter Salinas

  Given the current state of the automotive retail industry, there are clearly more questions than ever being asked about capital markets, special finance, the buy here-pay here business model and the overall economy.

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• - 2 ratings

  Make Sure What You Have Learned is Relevant, Repeatable

  

  Cathy Nuccio

  It was a very cold April day more than 11 years ago that I joined a well-known Fortune 500 company. Having spent most of my career in operations and general management my role was to lead the charge on developing processes for “continuous improvement” for customer service and call centers.

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• - 5 ratings

  The Importance of Continuing Education in Adjusting to Rapid Change

  

  Chuck Bonanno

  Judging by the current economic conditions, the wild political season we are in and the unprecedented shifts in our industry, if there’s one constant in the universe it’s change. We need to recognize change and search for the opportunities that lie within. We can choose to fight change, but it is inevitable and actually necessary. We must adapt to changes every day and provide an environment where change is not feared but accepted and embraced in our dealerships.

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• - 2 ratings

  Why Write it Down?

  

  Thomas Hudson

  We urge dealers to create written policies and procedures for their sales and financing operations. Why? Because at least some policies and procedures are required to be in writing, written procedures can impose needed discipline, written policies and procedures are better that ones made up on the spur of the moment, people are people, memories are fallible and dealers get sued.

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• - 4 ratings

  Seven Keys to Building A Rock-Solid Character

  

  Dave Anderson

  When evaluating leaders, we should choose character over competence. After all, you can change someone’s competence level through training, but you cannot change their character. It is even more important for leaders to have a rock solid character than it is for followers because leaders impact more people than followers. This fact raises the stakes considerably. Following are seven keys to build a rock-solid character. Start by looking in the mirror and personally fine-tuning these areas in your own life. Then use these points as a template to help others improve this essential aspect of their leadership.

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• - 2 ratings

  Classic Car Market Takes Dive Along with Economy

  

  Peter Salinas

  Just about 30 months ago, flush with cash from the equity in their homes, relatively low fuel prices and the nostalgic urge to relive their past, Baby Boomers all over the U.S. were snapping up classic and muscle cars like they were Mickey Mantle rookie cards.

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• - 2 ratings

  Do What You Do Best!

  

  Martin Less

  The economic news seems to be getting worse. What started out as a credit crisis in the mortgage market has now affected the overall economy. What a shame, but it’s not surprising. The average finance company and BHPH dealer did more underwriting due diligence on a $7,000 sales finance contract than the banks and mortgage companies did for a $250,000 mortgage. Go figure. As a result, we are all living in a new environment with a slowing economy and rising prices. Our customers are having more trouble paying their bills, including their car payments. It is my opinion that we will be living with this new environment for quite a while, so we need to adjust our sights accordingly.

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• - 4 ratings

  Selling Service Contracts It Starts with Attitude

  

  Wayne Herring Jr.

  I was reading the National Independent Automobile Dealers Association’s (NIADA’s) “2008 Used Car Industry Report” the other day. The sales figures I reviewed showed that in 2007, vehicle service contracts (VSC) were sold to 7.1 percent of the 5-7-year-old used car buyers by franchised dealers and to 4.7 percent by independent dealers. My company deals largely with independent dealers, so I will focus on that figure.

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