Car Pursuit announce new mobile web research and development blog to introduce research, technology, and mobile marketing case studies for the automotive retailers.Read post

Many dealers will tell you that the phone prospect is their most valuable source of new business; yet 1 in 4 sales calls go unanswered. And experts forecast a 25% increase in incoming calls to automotive dealerships within the next year. Register for this webinar to learn proven strategies to improve the way your inbound and outbound calls are managed.Read post

Find out what Star Trek, Chickens, and Brand Management have in common!Read post

You probably have noticed J.C. Penney's heartfelt apology taking over the airwaves afterposting a 13 billion decline in revenue while trying to attract young customers to their stores.  In this newadvertising campaign, the company admits it made mistakes and alienated many of its longtime customers. The voice-over in its most recent ad, "It's No Secret" states: “Some changes you liked, and some you didn't. But what matters with mistakes is what we learn. We learned a very simple thing, to listen to you."   What if YOU make a mistake?   Admit it--  Managers often look to protect themselves instead of helping the dealership move forward. None of these actions will win back your customers; the only way to get past a mistake is to apologize sincerely and swiftly.   Be empathetic--While there are many things outside your control, you can train your staff to practice empathy when the customer ...Read post

I’ve recently been reading a book called, To Sell is Human by Daniel H. Pink, and he writes about how although 1 in 9 Americans work in the sales industry, we are all involved in some kind of non-sales selling activity in our lives - such as, convincing, persuading, and moving others. This certainly applies to dealerships, because although some your employees are traditional salesmen, there are others, such as managers and owners, who need to realize the importance of selling in their own position, which will absolutely improve your business’ culture and customer experiences. In the second chapter, Pink mentions a small business called Brooklyn Brine, whose founder, Shamus Jones, after spending a lot of time away from his factory/storefront, knows that when he returns “his job is to influence employees--so they do their jobs with zeal and with skill.”   Why is it a necessary part of the job for Shamus to influence his employees?   The re...Read post

ALBANY, N.Y. – May 14th, 2013 – Auto/Mate Dealership Systems (http://www.automate.com) announced today that its AMPS Dealership Management System (DMS) is fully integrated with Xtime ServiceCRM, the leading cloud-based customer retention management (CRM) and scheduling platform for the automotive service industry. Dealers using AMPS can now take advantage of seamless, bi-directional data exchange with Xtime Service CRM to improve customer relationships in their service departments.   “Dealers have come to rely on their fixed ops departments for a significant portion of revenue, and making the service experience pleasant for customers is increasingly important to stay competitive,” said Mike Esposito, President and CEO of Auto/Mate Dealership Systems. “The integration benefits all of our customers who are currently using or would like to use Xtime.”   “Consumer expectations of what a dealership service experience should be have rea...Read post

We want to thank all of you who came out to the Digital Dealer Conference and ActivEngage’s After-Party last week. It was great to see old friends, meet others and put names to faces! We've compiled some highlights from the first two days of the event for you all to enjoy and to share with others what they missed if they were unable to attend here in Orlando, FL.   Highlights from the Digital Dealer Conference and Exposition Ralph Ebersole demonstrated how long 20 seconds really is for online shoppers. During his presentation Live Chat: Self Managed? Fully Managed? Hear it from the Experts, he turned around and started talking on his cell phone while the audience waited patiently for 20 seconds to go by. It felt like such a long pause! Dealer Takeaway: Online customers need to be responded to as quickly as possible in a chat, and the longer they wait for a response, the more impatient or upset they will become. You need people to chat for you who ...Read post

There's an old adage about people who are rude to their waiter or waitress are simply not nice people. Have you ever experienced that? I have and it's one of the most embarrassing things - for both people involved in the exchange. Read post