Much of the eastern seaboard is expecting (or already experiencing) massive power outages and flooding as Hurricane Sandy makes landfall. We at ActivEngage think this is a good time to talk about what to do when your Internet network goes down. As a live chat provider, it is essential that our Internet connection to our dealership clients remains stable at all times. But in the rare occasion that our ISP flips the wrong switch, or inclement weather causes an Internet outage, we have a backup plan to ensure that our customers stay satisfied. When your website is down, what will you do for online car shoppers?

Here are a few tips:

• Have a backup “Site Down” page ready.

Seen that one before? Nothing frustrates your customers like the unexplained, boilerplate error page. Let’s face it: Your site WILL go down at some point – so be prepared for it by offering shoppers a personalized, branded explanation for the downtime. You can follow this guide to making your own “service unavailable” page.

• Communicate with visitors.

You might not have control over a third party’s service failure, but web visitors won’t know or care. Don’t wait for your shoppers to discover that something went wrong on their own. Communicate in as many ways as possible to prepare your incoming traffic for the downtime. If your website is down, hop on your Facebook and Twitter accounts and offer an apology or explanation to your community of fans.

• Laugh it off.

Your website is down, but these things happen to every business. You might bemoan lost revenue or unsatisfied consumers, but in the end, there isn’t much you can do about it. Try and stay positive about the Internet outage, and keep a light-hearted tone when making the situation better later.

Everyone at ActivEngage is thinking of our friends in the Northeast as the biggest storm system in recent history sweeps through New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and about a dozen other states. Stay safe!

Follow ActivEngage’s blog for daily marketing updates for auto dealers!

The most trusted name in live chat brings the top ten blogs and auto news stories right to you! We monitor industry trends, current events, and the auto dealer community every week to bring you the top ten blogs and automotive stories from around the globe. In this weekly edition – Einstein belongs to the world, Google visits the Grand Canyon, and the fastest highway in America opens!

The Hierarchy Of Social Media Pages And Profiles

Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Google+ – will someone please order all these social networks by importance so I know how to manage my time? Fortunately, that’s exactly what J.D. Rucker did.

Google Visits The Grand Canyon – And Changes The World

Google takes its Maps program one step into the future – and plans to illuminate the entire world with its Street Level initiative. If Google’s Trekker camera can survive the journey into the Grand Canyon, the team says it can go anywhere.

NYPD Officer Planned To Slow Cook Women

A man that was sworn to protect the citizens of NYC had devious plans with a cohort to kidnap and eat women.

At 85 MPH, The Fastest Highway In The U.S. Opens

A 40-mile tollway opened between San Antonio, TX, and Austin – and the speed-limit is the highest in America at 85 MPH. Riding this Autobahn isn’t cheap – the tollway is $6 one way, and there have already been reports of fatal crashes and rollovers.

Mitsubishi Boss Calls French Minister A Retard

Here’s why: as reported by the French newspaper La Provence by way of The Telegraph:

“This mental case, this retard, increases ecological taxes, reduces the speed motorists can go on Paris’ ring road and ruins the life of motorists from all social origins all suffer as a result of him. He is stupid and understands nothing, you can quote me on that.”

The Digital Lot

Keith Shetterly’s newest eBook is available in November and he writes, “I’ve been learning, helping dealers, and writing about this situation for many years now, and, to dealers and to my peers in automotive retail, this is my compilation–dedicated to you!–of all that I have learned and know about successfully running..the Digital Lot!”

Man In China Sues Wife Over Ugly Baby
A man in China sues his now estranged wife for $120k because she gave birth to an ugly baby—and WON!

GM Lawsuit Over Einstein Image Is Dismissed
Great news everyone! Since Einstein has been dead now for over 60 years, his image is now public property! How will you celebrate this news?

East Coast Keeps A Watchful Eye On Hurricane Sandy

Current forecasts show the Category 2 Hurricane Sandy heading directly for New York City. As the Big Apple prepares for high winds and possible flooding, we at ActivEngage hope that the weather predictions are wrong (as they so often are).

Customer Loyalty Begins In The Service Drive

Positive service reviews and social posts can create a line in your service drive and keep your bays full. Fix a blown tire the morning of a vacation, or provide a last minute oil change at closing time, and you’ve gained a fan for life. The need to deliver exceptional service isn’t just aspirational, it’s essential to your bottom line.
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Did we miss anything important? Like our top ten blogs this week? Leave us a comment below! Or if you really can’t wait for your automotive fix, follow @activengage on Twitter for daily updates on auto industry news!

Anyone with a computer and 5 minutes of spare time has probably sat down to play with the Google Maps “Street View” application before. You’ve probably zoomed way into your own backyard, trying to catch a glimpse of yourself from a satellite. Maybe you’ve checked out your dealership from an aerial view, or looked up your old house to see if the new tenants have ruined everything. At ActivEngage, we can use Google Maps to instantly pinpoint a shopper’s location – and even look at the car they plan to trade in – in amazing, vivid detail.

Through Street View, you can travel like a pedestrian from your computer. You can take a few steps at a time up the road, and survey neighborhoods through the footage of Google’s high-definition cameras. But just showing us the populated, residential parts of America isn’t enough for the search engine company. Google is taking their cameras on an expedition to the beautiful, Internet-uncharted parts of the world, starting with the Grand Canyon.

Product Manager Ryan Falor writes that if the Google Trekker system can traverse the steep trails of the Grand Canyon, it can go anywhere. Wearing a 40-pound camera with 18 different lenses, Falor and the Google Team are mapping the ridges and valleys of the famed Canyon for later use by armchair travelers. This is the first step towards making a virtual walkthrough of the entire planet available on the Web.

Why is Google doing this? They aren’t stupid – they respect the gripping, compelling power of images on the web. They know that Internet users experience the world around them through images – and they want to build an image-based site that enshrines the world itself. You too, can be part of a visual revolution – by giving your inventory page life. Add colorful photos of your vehicles or panoramic shots of your lot. The customer eye will be drawn to it.

For more information on the power behind sharing images, subscribe to ActivEngage updates – we’re releasing an auto dealer’s guide to social images next month!

CBS Sunday Morning aired a news package over the weekend that highlights the prevalence of plagiarism in the digital world. With just a few quick mouse clicks, we can highlight, copy, and paste another’s work and claim it as our own. While it may be completely innocuous – or even unintentional – plagiarism is an intellectual offense that can discredit you and your organization. This is a warning to all you content creators out there to avoid plagiarism – write in your own words!

Here are some tips to avoid unintentional plagiarism:

• Give credit where credit is due.
• 
  If you’re citing data from another site or borrowing a phrase from another blog, credit the original author and link back to the source. Make sure that you are crediting the right author and delineate their words by using quotation marks. You can also cite your source using footnotes or endnotes at the bottom of your page.

• Say something new.

It’s totally fine to base your content off of an idea that already exists. We wouldn’t be able to write if we didn’t do this. But make the effort to say something other than what’s already out there. Expand upon the ideas of your source material by writing something personal and original.

• Encourage intellectual integrity.

Michael Strong, author of the best-selling book The Habit of Thought, says that intellectual integrity is the act of seeking out ideas that might be contradictory to your own. If you find contradictory evidence, you might need to reexamine your own beliefs. Keep your mind open to new ideas – and you might not have to plagiarize existing ones.

So think for yourself – don’t copy the work of others. Don’t forget to subscribe to the ActivEngage blog for daily updates on marketing, entertainment, and the automotive world!

The most trusted name in live chat brings the top ten blogs and auto news stories right to you! We monitor industry trends, current events, and the auto dealer community every week to bring you the top ten blogs and automotive stories from around the globe. In this weekly edition – a Ken doll comes to life, Newsweek announces the end of its print edition, and we release the Ultimate Social Media eBook!

10. Real Life Ken Doll 
In lieu of working out, this walking Ken doll elected to have 90 plastic surgeries.

9. Disney’s First Latina Princess
Disney finally debuted their first Latina Princess which drew some criticism from some Hispanics. One Latina tweeted, “Is it me, or does Disney’s first Latina princess look… white?” Others say that all Hispanics come in different colors, shapes, and sizes.

8. Twitter Blocks Neo-Nazi Group
Twitter said late Wednesday it has blocked a German group’s account to users in that country at the request of police — the first time the company has implemented its targeted censorship policy.

7. TomTom Publishes List of Most Congested Cities
Since 2007, Dutch manufacturer of automotive navigation systems TomTom has initiated a program to better understand the traffic flow of more than 80 major cities in all continents to improve its guidance systems.

6. Newsweek To End Print Edition In 2013
Newsweek announced that it would be ending its long reign as one of America’s most notable weekly publications. This move to a digital format seems to signify the end of the print age.

5. The Ultimate Social Media eBook For Auto Dealers
Finally, a comprehensive social media guide for auto dealers. Our very own Ketty Colom  invested a lot of time in researching the best practices that converts a dealership’s facebook fans into profitable leads and customers. Download your free copy today!

4. Google Accidentally Leaks Q3 Financial Information
Google’s earnings were mistakenly published months in advance – and they showed that the Internet company was far below expected revenues. As a result of panicked investors, Google’s stock plummeted on Thursday.

3. 10 Spooky Cyber Attacks of 2012
Halloween is just around the corner and the team at cybercrime prevention company ThreatMetrixhas put together an infographic detailing the top 10 spookiest cyberattacks of the year so far.

2. The Most Abused Statistic In Automotive Internet Marketing
According to J.D. Rucker’s latest blog post, “conversion rate” is a misleading statistic. Check out this illuminating blog post about how the best marketers actually have lower conversion rates.

1. Google And Youtube Make Algorithm Updates
Hubspot published some top marketing stories of the week, including a detailed overview of the search changes coming to Youtube and Google. Stay on top of these changes!
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Did we miss anything important? Like our top ten blogs this week? Leave us a comment below! Or if you really can’t wait for your automotive fix, follow @activengage on Twitter for daily updates on auto industry news!

30 seconds might seem like a very small amount of time to you – but how long is it, really? Try closing your eyes and counting to 30.

One…

Two…

Three…

In the time it took you to perform this exercise, Google added $30,000 to its revenues, 500 iPhones were sold, and beams of light circled the earth over 200 times. In today’s digital age, 30 seconds is an eternity – so don’t let that be the bar by which you measure your live chat pick-up times.

Pick-up time is the single most important metric for your chat service. It measures how long a web shopper has been waiting to speak with a chat representative – and your shoppers don’t have 30 seconds to spare. At ActivEngage, we’ve found that abandonment greatly increases after just 6 seconds of waiting for a chat request. Don’t let this happen! When time is of the essence, you need chat representatives that you trust to be there for your shoppers.

When a shopper is frustrated that no one is answering a chat request, he/she will often pass that frustration onto the dealership. Your customers might think that poor customer service online will translate into poor customer service in-store. It is more important than ever that you greet the ups on your virtual lot in a timely manner (or hire someone who can!).

We know that monitoring your website for shopper chats can be a very time-consuming enterprise. That’s why we offer our fully-managed service for our auto dealer partners. If you are managing your own chat, the ActivEngage software provides an extensive reporting suite that measures (among other things) the average waiting time for chat operators.

The potential cost of leaving your website chats up to chance is just too high. Pick a chat vendor that can start relationships with your online customers on the right foot – by attending to them in under 6 seconds. If you’re shopping around for a live chat solution for your dealership, we highly recommend that you check out this eBook, The Live Chat Buyer’s Guide.

According to this recently published study by J.D. Power, 59% of auto shoppers with smartphones access dealership websites from the dealership. But why would a car shopper go to your website when they’re already in your store? Consumers today are more wary than ever of car sharks – and now they have the tools to conduct product research right in their pocket. They’ll visit your website from your store in order to verify your inventory and prices, and to ensure that they’re not getting hustled.

But an infrequently updated website can create big trouble for dealers. What if a vehicle’s price has a cheaper price on your website than the one quoted by your sales rep? What if a vehicle is listed “available” on your website but was actually sold days ago? Dealerships walk a dangerous line by letting their websites remain inactive for too long – even the best in-store sales process  and customer service strategy can be ruined by an outdated inventory page.

Arianne Walker, Senior Director of Automotive Media and Marketing Solutions at J.D. Power, says that “this interplay between the dealership experience and digital information has become more intertwined with the availability of shopping content on mobile devices…Now that buyers can easily access information right from their pockets, it is essential that the dealer body is as well versed as the shoppers in order to provide consistent information both online and in the dealership.”

What does this mean for auto dealers? Keep your website consistent with your in-store sales process. A customer should receive a uniform message regardless of where he/she goes to shop. This trend of interconnected virtual/physical shopping is only going to rise. The J.D. Power study reports that digital automotive research continues to have the most impact on brand and model selection. Remember – your website can have more of an impact than price or your sales staff!

The most trusted name in live chat brings the top ten blogs and auto news stories right to you! We monitor industry trends, current events and the auto dealer community every week to bring you the top ten blogs and automotive stories from around the globe. In this weekly edition – Facebook hits a billion users, a presidential debate, and social media from 1985!

10. The Top Dogs of Klout

See the complete list of influencers in social media for the automotive industry by JD Rucker. I believe they are missing our own Ketty Colom who has a Klout score of 50….

9. Denim Style

Jay Leno wants everyone to know just how much he loves denim shirts.

8. Even in 1985, We Knew Facebook was Possible
Steve Case, the co-founder, former CEO and chairman of America Online, wrote an interesting blog on his role in social media. BONUS! There’s also a retro AOL ad included in this blog too!

7. Pranksters Glue iPhone 5 to the Floor

Watch what happens when you combine a super adhesive and an iPhone 5.

6. How Your Team Is Torn Apart by Five Words

What are the five deadliest words that a manager can hear? “That is not my job.” Find out how to counter this self-limiting belief in the workplace.

5. KitchenAid’s Tweet Shows The Dangers Of Multiple Twitter Accounts

Things weren’t looking good for KitchenAid earlier this week. After a rogue offensive tweet was sent from the company’s account, the houseware manufacturer was embroiled in a social media crisis. Take a look at how KitchenAid responded.

4. Live Free or FLY!

What would you do if your presidential candidate didn’t win the election? Leave the country? JetBlue will fly you there for FREE! Just enter this contest and your preferred destination (mine was Costa Rica) and cross your fingers and hope to win! Wait…do you really want to win this free trip?

3. Presidential Debate Hits 32-Year Record In Gross Ratings

On Wednesday night, all major news networks aired the most widely-watched presidential debate in history, with an estimated 60 million viewers. Everyone was watching (except Jim Lehrer).

2. Dealership Has Customer Arrested For Getting Too Good Of A Deal
When a Virginia Chevy dealership drove off with an accidental discount of $6,000 off his new car, the dealership called him and asked him to return it. When he refused, the dealership reported the car stolen to the police. After spending the night in jail, the former customer is now suing for $2.2 million.

1. Facebook Tops One Billion Users
Facebook reaches a billion users, and how do they celebrate? With a chair.

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Did we miss anything important? Like our top ten blogs this week? Leave us a comment below! Or if you really can’t wait for your automotive fix, follow @activengage on Twitter for daily updates on auto industry news!

I’m not an expert on political policy. For most of last night’s presidential debate, I didn’t really have a clue about what the candidates were talking about. Dodd-Frank? Simpson-Bowles? Big-Bird? Does anyone really know what any of this means?. However, I thought that one sound bite in particular would catch the attention of all of us in the automotive sector. On the topic of government subsidies to green energy companies, Governor Romney said that President Obama “only picked the losers,” mentioning not only the infamous bankruptcies of alternate-energy companies Solyndra and Ener1, but also electric automakers Fisker and Tesla.

Clearly, some of the $90 billion in subsidies given by the U.S. government to manufacturers of lithium-ion batteries and solar panels have backfired. But it seems like the plug-in luxury carmakers at Tesla and Fisker are just getting started. Tesla Motors has already begun delivering on its promise of energy independence by delivering dozens, perhaps even hundreds, of its new 2012 Model S all-electric sport sedans to the list of more than 10,000 depositors who’ve put down up to $50,000 to reserve cars when they are available.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk posted a report on Wednesday about the health of his company and wrote that Tesla would begin to repay its U.S. Department of Energy loan earlier than expected. And while Fisker hasn’t ever published a profitable quarterly report, the company has just closed a new deal for $100 million of private financing. Under new CEO Tony Posawatz, Fisker has started developing their new mid-sized Atlantic sedan and exploring partnerships within our industry.

Many investors are finding tremendous potential and value in investing in electric cars – irrespective of political affiliation. How long do you think it will take for battery-powered cars to become the new standard on the road? Will every major OEM have their own variant of the Chevy Volt within the next decade? Are government subsidies on electric technology developers a worthy cause – or are these companies just losers?

“That is not my job.”

Your dealership, like any business, has a mission. It might be to sell the most cars in the region. Maybe you’re focused on retention through your service department or simply providing the best dealership shopping experience for your customers. Whatever your business goals are, you’re not going to achieve them all on your own. You need the help of team players on your staff to support the entire organization. But just a few toxic words can poison the whole process: “That’s not MY job.”

If you’ve heard this one before, it might be time to seriously examine your corporate culture. Running a business always has unexpected curves, and you occasionally need things done that are outside of any one member’s job description. Whether you’re working on a big project, promotion, or sales push, you’re going to need all hands on deck – but “that’s not my job” means that your team members are more focused on their individual performance than your store’s success as a whole.

How can you combat a culture of self-interest?

• Constant communication. If you’re an organizational leader, you must be highly visible to the rest of your team. Make the effort to meet with your other departmental heads so that you can promote a culture of unity. Use this opportunity to clarify your store’s goals, weaknesses, and strategy.

• Host team-building exercises. ActivEngage believes that happy and fulfilled staff members make the most productive team. Earlier this week, we gave our Customer Success Managers a chance to cut loose by playing laser tag. Nothing helps vent frustration and build teamwork like shooting at each other with toy guns. Try taking your staff on a retreat or out to lunch – getting to know your employees outside of work can build trust and loyalty in the office.

• Ensure fairness in the workplace.  “That’s not my job” usually translates to “I’m not getting paid enough for this” or “I have too much to do already.” Take a hands-on approach to measuring your team’s workload; keep track of the tasks you’ve assigned and try to make sure that no one is overburdened with an unfair share.

Don’t let bureaucracy and compartmentalization tear down the team dynamic that you desperately need. Make your team feel like they are a part of something greater than themselves. Eliminate “that’s not my job” from your store.