With all of the recent epiphanies that thought leaders in ours and other industries that businesses should be spending time and effort cultivating relationships, spending money and basically treating customers right, I thought it time to re-visit this whole “customer loyalty” phenomenon. Customers don’t really care about car dealers, do they? I mean, dealers are ranked below Congress in surveys about trustworthiness. They don’t like coming to dealerships for ANY reason much less to buy a car. In fact, companies are popping up out of the woodwork with the sole benefit of making it possible for people to buy cars WITHOUT going to dealerships.

We know through many articles and trends that customer loyalty is dead. The Gen Y and Millennial generations could care less who they do business with. Sure, they’ll show up for that $19.95 oil change special but is it because they’re loyal? No! It’s because it’s a deal. And believe me when I say that they will eagerly go to another dealership the next time they need their vehicle serviced that offers a coupon or special when you don’t have one at that time.

People need to buy – and service – cars and regardless of whether you’re a franchised, independent or buy here, pay here lot, dealers are all they have. It’s way too much work for consumers to obtain financing, process paperwork and facilitate a private party sales transaction. In addition, most of these are “as-is” transactions so they’re essentially throwing the dice hoping they aren’t getting a lemon.

As for service, there’s a Jiffy Lube or other independent auto service center promising convenient, fast and friendly oil changes upon demand. Sure, maybe they’re using generic parts that might not fit perfectly but are serviceable. Who cares? They’re cheaper, right? Who needs certified technicians, nice waiting areas or free coffee? They’d rather go buy a $12 Triple, Venti, Half Sweet, Non-Fat, Caramel Macchiato than drink the Keurig produced coffee dealers provide for them.

As a business, dealerships have been wildly successful acquiring new customers for the past decades. It’s easy. Sure, maybe it’s gotten more expensive over the years but what’s $640 per customer when dealers can high gross them on the huge profit margins manufacturers give them to work with.

And rewards? Really? Dealers are seriously expected – yes, expected – to give away free stuff to customers who happen to give them money? Get serious.

The bottom line is that dealers sell and service cars. Dealers have this industry so tightly wrapped up and in control that even Elon Musk with all his money, influence and consumer backing can’t even manage to convince many states to let him sell his cars direct to consumers. The new companies promising excellent customer experiences and complete online transactions account for such a small percentage of sales that they’re inconsequential. Consumers HAVE to buy their cars from a dealership and they certainly have a monopoly on warranty and recall work, too.

So let’s all just calm down and sit back while OEMs take used car inventories online and auction prices skyrocket (goodbye used car grosses), the NHTSA opens up recall work to independents (see you later recall revenue), the CFPB begins to regulate consumer financing (so long F&I reserve), new car front end margins shrink (you didn’t have these anyways) and complete online buying experiences become the preferred car purchasing experience…

Wait a minute. Who needs loyal customers? Dealers do. 

According to Business Insider, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced today that Facebook is working on - finally - implementing a feature users have been clamoring for for years - the “dislike” button. In the interview, Zuckerberg explained that “what [people] really want is the ability to express empathy. Not every moment is a good moment” and that the addition of the dislike button was to allow users “an option to express feelings other than ‘liking.’”
 

While his sentiment - and goals - are good, I believe that Facebook is about to open a big giant can of whoop-ass. This action could easily become the equivalent of opening Pandora’s box - or Face-mageddon.
 

Let me explain.
 

I get it. Someone posts about a death in the family, an illness, an injury or just a bad life experience. We’ve all seen those and hesitate to interact using the “like” button ‘cause who wants to “like” someone’s tragedy? Facebook’s thought-process probably followed the lines of “if we give users a way to interact with those types of posts in a way that shows empathy (as Zuckerberg said) then.. well.. people will interact with more posts… which gives us more data. Don’t think for a moment that every article you share, post you like, comment you make or status you interact with in ANY WAY isn’t translated into Facebook’s mysterious algorithm that determines what is shown to you in your news feeds. In addition, I’m fairly certain it is also integrated into your Facebook user profile data… permanently.
 

Here are a few scenarios in which a dislike button is bad.
 

Right now, Facebook can only tell what type of content you interact with. It doesn’t know your personal feelings about that content unless you comment in a positive or negative way. There is already software designed to automatically identify positive vs negative sentiment. With the introduction of a “dislike” button, Facebook will now be able to better understand not only that you interacted with the post but also how you FELT about it.
 

Why is this important?
 

Let’s look at things that people post on Facebook… sports, religion, politics, guns… all things that could be very polarizing or controversial topics. We’ve all seen posts turn into bitter arguments. Heck, one of the most popular memes has got to be this one:
 

We love us some drama. Don’t deny it. Facebook is like one huge reality show except the actors are actually people you know.
 

Back to that list. Let’s go with the easy one first… sports. Are you a fan of (insert team name here)? If not, every time your friends post something positive about that team, you may feel inclined to hit that “dislike” button. Not only will this probably annoy your friends (especially if the “dislikes” outweigh the “likes”) but now Facebook knows that you more than likely do not like (inserted team). How will your friends know that you disliked their post? Well, you can already view the people that “like” your posts so I would guess it’s safe to assume that you’ll also be able to view the people that “dislike” it as well.
 

You see where I’m going? Religion. Politics. Gun Control. Gay Marriage. Kim Davis. Abortion. Hunting. Confederate Flags. Prayer in schools. Civil rights. Whomever’s Lives Matter (this week), Legalized drugs, Immigration Policies… this list could continue but I think you get my point.
 

Not only does a “dislike” button offer the option of inserting a passive-aggressive “vote”, if you will, on the subject matter rather than chiming in but it can also provide valuable data about YOU to Facebook. Instead of being forced to actually GIVE your opinion on a controversial topic, now you’ll simply be able to click a button and subtly share that opinion. I can’t wait to see friend’s calling other friends out in comments such as “Hey [friend], why’d you dislike this? You suck!” etc.
 

What about (God forbid!) someone “dislikes” something your BUSINESS (i.e. Facebook page) posts?
 

It’s really a pretty genius move on Facebook’s part. It’s users have been asking for this forever… so now they’re giving it you them… and they can collect more data, keep you on Facebook longer and provide you with more content you like. Once it figures out you don’t like [insert team name, political figure, movement, etc here], it simple won’t show you that content any longer. Facebook will become a happy place full of Skittles, unicorns, puppies and motivational quotes… unless, that is, you don’t like Skittles, unicorns, puppies and motivational quotes. You know all of those “I’m going to flood Facebook with cartoon pictures to drown out all of the negativity” posts? Well, now you won’t have to anymore ‘cause Facebook will be your personal screener. Sort of like that poor guy who gets to taste all of the king’s food before the king eats it to check to see if it’s poisoned.
 

Perhaps advertisers will soon be able to start targeting “People who don’t like Donald Trump” or “People against gay marriage.” Even scarier is how ELSE could Facebook monetize this data. Can you imagine a world in which employers, insurance companies, government agencies, etc. could access this information? I can. And no, I’m not a paranoid conspiracy theorist. What I am, however, is a realist. Facebook is a public company that needs to find ways to monetize itself. It does that mainly through Facebook ads at the moment. That being said, we all know that data is money… and we certainly give it data. Lots of it.
 

Now they’ll be able to combine CONTEXT with ACTIONS and that’s a slippery slope into creating a more perfect data profile of a user which, of course, allows them to, at the very least, open up new ways for advertisers to better target their audiences. You better believe that Facebook will - and already is - keeping track of everything you do on it’s site. I’m sure that buried someplace in some Terms of Service document, by using Facebook, you’ve given them ownership of the data they collect about you. Now they’ll just get better insight (cough.. data) into your thoughts and beliefs as well.
 

Like one friend of mine said when I posted the article this blog refers to in the beginning, “ Oh, it’s about to get fun again.”
 

Yes, it is.

According to Business Insider, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced today that Facebook is working on - finally - implementing a feature users have been clamoring for for years - the “dislike” button. In the interview, Zuckerberg explained that “what [people] really want is the ability to express empathy. Not every moment is a good moment” and that the addition of the dislike button was to allow users “an option to express feelings other than ‘liking.’”
 

While his sentiment - and goals - are good, I believe that Facebook is about to open a big giant can of whoop-ass. This action could easily become the equivalent of opening Pandora’s box - or Face-mageddon.
 

Let me explain.
 

I get it. Someone posts about a death in the family, an illness, an injury or just a bad life experience. We’ve all seen those and hesitate to interact using the “like” button ‘cause who wants to “like” someone’s tragedy? Facebook’s thought-process probably followed the lines of “if we give users a way to interact with those types of posts in a way that shows empathy (as Zuckerberg said) then.. well.. people will interact with more posts… which gives us more data. Don’t think for a moment that every article you share, post you like, comment you make or status you interact with in ANY WAY isn’t translated into Facebook’s mysterious algorithm that determines what is shown to you in your news feeds. In addition, I’m fairly certain it is also integrated into your Facebook user profile data… permanently.
 

Here are a few scenarios in which a dislike button is bad.
 

Right now, Facebook can only tell what type of content you interact with. It doesn’t know your personal feelings about that content unless you comment in a positive or negative way. There is already software designed to automatically identify positive vs negative sentiment. With the introduction of a “dislike” button, Facebook will now be able to better understand not only that you interacted with the post but also how you FELT about it.
 

Why is this important?
 

Let’s look at things that people post on Facebook… sports, religion, politics, guns… all things that could be very polarizing or controversial topics. We’ve all seen posts turn into bitter arguments. Heck, one of the most popular memes has got to be this one:
 

We love us some drama. Don’t deny it. Facebook is like one huge reality show except the actors are actually people you know.
 

Back to that list. Let’s go with the easy one first… sports. Are you a fan of (insert team name here)? If not, every time your friends post something positive about that team, you may feel inclined to hit that “dislike” button. Not only will this probably annoy your friends (especially if the “dislikes” outweigh the “likes”) but now Facebook knows that you more than likely do not like (inserted team). How will your friends know that you disliked their post? Well, you can already view the people that “like” your posts so I would guess it’s safe to assume that you’ll also be able to view the people that “dislike” it as well.
 

You see where I’m going? Religion. Politics. Gun Control. Gay Marriage. Kim Davis. Abortion. Hunting. Confederate Flags. Prayer in schools. Civil rights. Whomever’s Lives Matter (this week), Legalized drugs, Immigration Policies… this list could continue but I think you get my point.
 

Not only does a “dislike” button offer the option of inserting a passive-aggressive “vote”, if you will, on the subject matter rather than chiming in but it can also provide valuable data about YOU to Facebook. Instead of being forced to actually GIVE your opinion on a controversial topic, now you’ll simply be able to click a button and subtly share that opinion. I can’t wait to see friend’s calling other friends out in comments such as “Hey [friend], why’d you dislike this? You suck!” etc.
 

What about (God forbid!) someone “dislikes” something your BUSINESS (i.e. Facebook page) posts?
 

It’s really a pretty genius move on Facebook’s part. It’s users have been asking for this forever… so now they’re giving it you them… and they can collect more data, keep you on Facebook longer and provide you with more content you like. Once it figures out you don’t like [insert team name, political figure, movement, etc here], it simple won’t show you that content any longer. Facebook will become a happy place full of Skittles, unicorns, puppies and motivational quotes… unless, that is, you don’t like Skittles, unicorns, puppies and motivational quotes. You know all of those “I’m going to flood Facebook with cartoon pictures to drown out all of the negativity” posts? Well, now you won’t have to anymore ‘cause Facebook will be your personal screener. Sort of like that poor guy who gets to taste all of the king’s food before the king eats it to check to see if it’s poisoned.
 

Perhaps advertisers will soon be able to start targeting “People who don’t like Donald Trump” or “People against gay marriage.” Even scarier is how ELSE could Facebook monetize this data. Can you imagine a world in which employers, insurance companies, government agencies, etc. could access this information? I can. And no, I’m not a paranoid conspiracy theorist. What I am, however, is a realist. Facebook is a public company that needs to find ways to monetize itself. It does that mainly through Facebook ads at the moment. That being said, we all know that data is money… and we certainly give it data. Lots of it.
 

Now they’ll be able to combine CONTEXT with ACTIONS and that’s a slippery slope into creating a more perfect data profile of a user which, of course, allows them to, at the very least, open up new ways for advertisers to better target their audiences. You better believe that Facebook will - and already is - keeping track of everything you do on it’s site. I’m sure that buried someplace in some Terms of Service document, by using Facebook, you’ve given them ownership of the data they collect about you. Now they’ll just get better insight (cough.. data) into your thoughts and beliefs as well.
 

Like one friend of mine said when I posted the article this blog refers to in the beginning, “ Oh, it’s about to get fun again.”
 

Yes, it is.

While the public is constantly barraged with negativity pertaining to car dealers, there are many instances that go ignored or are simply passed over. Let’s face it… the media (and a lot of websites/industry blogs) are typically more focused on perpetuating the stereotype of dealers as the “bad guys.” There are entire companies that have built their business model on this very premise. Anyone in the auto industry knows that you simply cannot do business that way and survive, yet stories and blog articles surface constantly about some random car dealer screwing a customer, refusing to fulfill promises, or taking advantage. Well, I’m here to tell you a story that might just make you like car dealers a little more.
 

Part of my responsibilities with DealerKnows Consulting involves monitoring and assessing the performance of ISMs at dealerships. This service compliments DealerKnows’ services by providing ongoing and consistent supervision, assisting management in staying aware of BDC agent/ISM performance, as well as giving the DealerKnows team a way to, not only gauge progress, but identify training needs. Keep in mind that while I may be in dealership CRM’s daily, the leads I grade are selected at random.
 

Today, I came across a lead from Team Chevrolet, a DealerKnows Consulting client located in Salisbury, NC. The lead follow-up process started off in the same way that most others do.
 

This one, however, had a twist.
 

The BDC agent, Holly Wedge, was able to contact the customer on day three after performing all of the processes up to that point. On that call, the customer indicated that he would like to come in, but did not know when. Day five rolls around and she continues to follow the scheduled process, calling the customer again and attempting to set an appointment. During that call, however, the customer seemed to be a bit “off” to her. She noted in the CRM (VinSolutions) “he did not sound good. He was short of breath. I told him I was going to let him go so he could call his doctor.” Out of concern, she called again a few minutes later to check on him and got his voicemail. At that point, fearing that the customer was in danger, she decided to call 911. The emergency dispatch indicated they would send someone to check on the individual. A short while later, the responders called her back and informed her that the customer was OK, but that they needed to take him to the hospital. A few days passed and the BDC agent decided to call the customer to see how he was doing. The customer told her that he was feeling much better and thanked her deeply for helping him. He informed her that once he was finished with his appointment at the VA, he would call her and come in.
 

One of the core elements in the DealerKnows’ process is sending a personal value proposition. They instruct dealers to put a face with a name and reinforce the fact that they are dealing with a real person… someone attempting to be an advocate in their vehicle search. It’s far too common for consumers to get barraged by multiple dealers when submitting inquiries. These can become overwhelming and, all too often, are very similar and contain messages that boil down to:
 

“We have the best price.”


Yet dealers wonder why consumers seem to be focused on “best price”. It’s because that’s what they’re selling. Sure, consumers don’t want to be gouged. They want a fair price and a good buying experience. Many times, however, all they have are templated emails from anonymous dealership employees. With no value propositions, there is little else for consumers to go by when deciding on from whom to purchase. By attempting to personalize your people to your customer, though, it’s possible a more fulfilling relationship can be created without price being a chief concern. At the very least, it allows the dealership (and salesperson) to differentiate themselves and be memorable to the online shopper.
 

This BDC agent didn’t have to call 911. She could’ve easily moved on to the next To-Do list task and went about her day. But she didn’t. Her empathetic and prompt response could very easily have saved a Salisbury resident’s life. Regardless of the individual’s need for medical assistance, the fact remains that she cared. She made an unrequested effort to assist another human being that could be in need. She was a true advocate.
 

Car dealerships get a bad reputation in the media all of the time. Perhaps these news outlets should consider the fact that there are real people who do care about customers, opposed to perpetuating negative stereotypes. Car dealers today are not the car dealers from the movies. They are upstanding businesses that give back to their communities, employ their neighbors, and serve their clients. Dealerships know that if they treat customers poorly, they won’t survive. Are there exceptions? Yes. In today’s hyper-connected world, however, these “exceptions” are just that. Exceptions.
 

This lone BDC agent likely secured a loyal customer with the very simple act of being human and helping someone in need. This customer’s friends and family have probably already heard this story. They’ve probably shared it with their friends. Once this customer recovers and continues his car shopping, it doesn’t take a leap of faith to recognize where he’ll be doing business: Team Chevrolet. Moreover, it could be surmised that one selfless act of caring creates much more than a loyal customer, but a brand advocate. The butterfly effect from her actions could prove to be worth more than any marketing message or discount.
 

Be your customers’ advocate. Show them you care and they will never leave. Believe that.

While the public is constantly barraged with negativity pertaining to car dealers, there are many instances that go ignored or are simply passed over. Let’s face it… the media (and a lot of websites/industry blogs) are typically more focused on perpetuating the stereotype of dealers as the “bad guys.” There are entire companies that have built their business model on this very premise. Anyone in the auto industry knows that you simply cannot do business that way and survive, yet stories and blog articles surface constantly about some random car dealer screwing a customer, refusing to fulfill promises, or taking advantage. Well, I’m here to tell you a story that might just make you like car dealers a little more.
 

Part of my responsibilities with DealerKnows Consulting involves monitoring and assessing the performance of ISMs at dealerships. This service compliments DealerKnows’ services by providing ongoing and consistent supervision, assisting management in staying aware of BDC agent/ISM performance, as well as giving the DealerKnows team a way to, not only gauge progress, but identify training needs. Keep in mind that while I may be in dealership CRM’s daily, the leads I grade are selected at random.
 

Today, I came across a lead from Team Chevrolet, a DealerKnows Consulting client located in Salisbury, NC. The lead follow-up process started off in the same way that most others do.
 

This one, however, had a twist.
 

The BDC agent, Holly Wedge, was able to contact the customer on day three after performing all of the processes up to that point. On that call, the customer indicated that he would like to come in, but did not know when. Day five rolls around and she continues to follow the scheduled process, calling the customer again and attempting to set an appointment. During that call, however, the customer seemed to be a bit “off” to her. She noted in the CRM (VinSolutions) “he did not sound good. He was short of breath. I told him I was going to let him go so he could call his doctor.” Out of concern, she called again a few minutes later to check on him and got his voicemail. At that point, fearing that the customer was in danger, she decided to call 911. The emergency dispatch indicated they would send someone to check on the individual. A short while later, the responders called her back and informed her that the customer was OK, but that they needed to take him to the hospital. A few days passed and the BDC agent decided to call the customer to see how he was doing. The customer told her that he was feeling much better and thanked her deeply for helping him. He informed her that once he was finished with his appointment at the VA, he would call her and come in.
 

One of the core elements in the DealerKnows’ process is sending a personal value proposition. They instruct dealers to put a face with a name and reinforce the fact that they are dealing with a real person… someone attempting to be an advocate in their vehicle search. It’s far too common for consumers to get barraged by multiple dealers when submitting inquiries. These can become overwhelming and, all too often, are very similar and contain messages that boil down to:
 

“We have the best price.”


Yet dealers wonder why consumers seem to be focused on “best price”. It’s because that’s what they’re selling. Sure, consumers don’t want to be gouged. They want a fair price and a good buying experience. Many times, however, all they have are templated emails from anonymous dealership employees. With no value propositions, there is little else for consumers to go by when deciding on from whom to purchase. By attempting to personalize your people to your customer, though, it’s possible a more fulfilling relationship can be created without price being a chief concern. At the very least, it allows the dealership (and salesperson) to differentiate themselves and be memorable to the online shopper.
 

This BDC agent didn’t have to call 911. She could’ve easily moved on to the next To-Do list task and went about her day. But she didn’t. Her empathetic and prompt response could very easily have saved a Salisbury resident’s life. Regardless of the individual’s need for medical assistance, the fact remains that she cared. She made an unrequested effort to assist another human being that could be in need. She was a true advocate.
 

Car dealerships get a bad reputation in the media all of the time. Perhaps these news outlets should consider the fact that there are real people who do care about customers, opposed to perpetuating negative stereotypes. Car dealers today are not the car dealers from the movies. They are upstanding businesses that give back to their communities, employ their neighbors, and serve their clients. Dealerships know that if they treat customers poorly, they won’t survive. Are there exceptions? Yes. In today’s hyper-connected world, however, these “exceptions” are just that. Exceptions.
 

This lone BDC agent likely secured a loyal customer with the very simple act of being human and helping someone in need. This customer’s friends and family have probably already heard this story. They’ve probably shared it with their friends. Once this customer recovers and continues his car shopping, it doesn’t take a leap of faith to recognize where he’ll be doing business: Team Chevrolet. Moreover, it could be surmised that one selfless act of caring creates much more than a loyal customer, but a brand advocate. The butterfly effect from her actions could prove to be worth more than any marketing message or discount.
 

Be your customers’ advocate. Show them you care and they will never leave. Believe that.

For the past 2 years, one of the items on my daily to-do list has been grading Internet leads for DealerKnows Consulting. This process involves assisting DealerKnows in monitoring the progress of their clients through monitoring the ISM’s lead handling within the CRM. This provides valuable insight into what exactly is happening with leads (i.e. is the store following the process installed through DealerKnows and, if not, what exactly is happening) and indicating where additional training is needed.

In one particular client ‘s CRM, I started noticing one of the employees tasked with responding to, and communicating with, Internet leads inputting questionable notes into the CRM. Keep in mind; he was not doing anything inappropriate in his communication with the customer but, at times, expressing his frustration and/or opinions of customers through notes in the CRM.

Notes like:

1. F$@k this bitch!
2. Screw this mooch!
3. What a stroke!
4. I hope this customer gets fired for being an a$$hole!

Now, I was in retail a long time. I understand his frustration. That being said, I mentioned to him and his manager that he shouldn’t be using derogatory terms in the CRM. First, this particular store works as a team (ie. the leads aren’t solely one person’s responsibility). Whoever is working when a call or email needs to be made handles it. In the past, this team was a bunch of guys. Recently, a female was added. I mentioned it again within the context of the fact that the notes bring negativity into the lead for the next person who looks at it. In addition, it could offend someone else looking at the lead within the CRM. Even a female member of DealerKnows chimed in that the notes offended her.
 

The real question, however, is not one of appropriateness but rather one of compliance and liability. I was curious as to whether there could be harassment or employment issues. In that spirit, I decided to contact an expert in automotive dealer compliance. I contacted the founder of Dealer Compliance Consultants, Jim Radogna, a longtime auto guy with over 15 years experience in just about every dealership management position, over 6 years experience in assisting dealerships with compliance as well as an avid writer and frequent speaker in the automotive industry.
 

His answer was simple:
 

“It doesn’t matter where offensive material resides. It can be comments in a CRM that others can view – on a computer screen, mobile device or hanging on a wall – if anyone sees it and is offended by it, it can create a hostile work environment and put the dealership at risk.

People often have such different perspectives on behaviors that it is easy to offend someone through ill-considered attempts at humor, teasing or sarcasm. Remember that only the impact, and not the intent, matters in determining if a reasonable person would consider the behavior to be harassment.”

I was in retail. I get it. Sometimes customers can be frustrating. Sometimes we (being salespeople, managers, etc.) express our frustrations verbally and, perhaps, everyone on the team (or within hearing distance) is okay with the language or sentiment.

The bottom line is that allowing or condoning this type of behavior only accomplishes two things:

1. It permanently etches that customer in a negative light for any future employees. Think about it… perhaps the employee who inserted the notes gets fired (not that anyone EVER gets fired or leaves dealerships) and a new employee is tasked with going through and/or following up with these leads. Do you think these notes will encourage them to follow up or discourage them? Would they be quicker to mark them “Lost” and move on? What happens if you want to do some data mining and try to resurrect some leads? Negativity is a virus. It spreads easily. Allowing anyone to cultivate negativity in your business is simply a recipe for failure – not only for them but also for all of your employees.

2. It creates liability for the dealership. Allowing anyone to continue with this behavior transfers liability to you and, as a manager, to the dealership. Those notes may seem harmless now but when a harassment or hostile workplace environment lawsuit is filed, it could get quite expensive. In addition, by allowing these types of notes, you could technically be cultivating a PERMANENT hostile workplace environment. If you fired the offending employee today and two years from now another employee comes across these notes (perhaps by getting a new lead from the same customer… not like that ever happens) and is offended, what then? What if that that customer eventually buys the car and your dealership uses your CRM for service and a service advisor, cashier or other employee is exposed to those notes?

Imagine this scenario: An employee writes something offensive in Sharpie on the wall in the bathroom. It doesn’t offend anyone and nobody cleans it off. Three years later, a new employee comes along, reads the note and is offended.

What then?

It makes no difference WHEN the notes were made or whether the person who wrote the note(s) works there any longer. It is still the dealership’s responsibility and it would still be held responsible (and liable) for the existence of the notes.

My advice is simple:

If you wouldn’t hang it on the wall in your office for anyone to see, don’t put it anywhere – and that includes inside your CRM.

For the past 2 years, one of the items on my daily to-do list has been grading Internet leads for DealerKnows Consulting. This process involves assisting DealerKnows in monitoring the progress of their clients through monitoring the ISM’s lead handling within the CRM. This provides valuable insight into what exactly is happening with leads (i.e. is the store following the process installed through DealerKnows and, if not, what exactly is happening) and indicating where additional training is needed.

In one particular client ‘s CRM, I started noticing one of the employees tasked with responding to, and communicating with, Internet leads inputting questionable notes into the CRM. Keep in mind; he was not doing anything inappropriate in his communication with the customer but, at times, expressing his frustration and/or opinions of customers through notes in the CRM.

Notes like:

1. F$@k this bitch!
2. Screw this mooch!
3. What a stroke!
4. I hope this customer gets fired for being an a$$hole!

Now, I was in retail a long time. I understand his frustration. That being said, I mentioned to him and his manager that he shouldn’t be using derogatory terms in the CRM. First, this particular store works as a team (ie. the leads aren’t solely one person’s responsibility). Whoever is working when a call or email needs to be made handles it. In the past, this team was a bunch of guys. Recently, a female was added. I mentioned it again within the context of the fact that the notes bring negativity into the lead for the next person who looks at it. In addition, it could offend someone else looking at the lead within the CRM. Even a female member of DealerKnows chimed in that the notes offended her.
 

The real question, however, is not one of appropriateness but rather one of compliance and liability. I was curious as to whether there could be harassment or employment issues. In that spirit, I decided to contact an expert in automotive dealer compliance. I contacted the founder of Dealer Compliance Consultants, Jim Radogna, a longtime auto guy with over 15 years experience in just about every dealership management position, over 6 years experience in assisting dealerships with compliance as well as an avid writer and frequent speaker in the automotive industry.
 

His answer was simple:
 

“It doesn’t matter where offensive material resides. It can be comments in a CRM that others can view – on a computer screen, mobile device or hanging on a wall – if anyone sees it and is offended by it, it can create a hostile work environment and put the dealership at risk.

People often have such different perspectives on behaviors that it is easy to offend someone through ill-considered attempts at humor, teasing or sarcasm. Remember that only the impact, and not the intent, matters in determining if a reasonable person would consider the behavior to be harassment.”

I was in retail. I get it. Sometimes customers can be frustrating. Sometimes we (being salespeople, managers, etc.) express our frustrations verbally and, perhaps, everyone on the team (or within hearing distance) is okay with the language or sentiment.

The bottom line is that allowing or condoning this type of behavior only accomplishes two things:

1. It permanently etches that customer in a negative light for any future employees. Think about it… perhaps the employee who inserted the notes gets fired (not that anyone EVER gets fired or leaves dealerships) and a new employee is tasked with going through and/or following up with these leads. Do you think these notes will encourage them to follow up or discourage them? Would they be quicker to mark them “Lost” and move on? What happens if you want to do some data mining and try to resurrect some leads? Negativity is a virus. It spreads easily. Allowing anyone to cultivate negativity in your business is simply a recipe for failure – not only for them but also for all of your employees.

2. It creates liability for the dealership. Allowing anyone to continue with this behavior transfers liability to you and, as a manager, to the dealership. Those notes may seem harmless now but when a harassment or hostile workplace environment lawsuit is filed, it could get quite expensive. In addition, by allowing these types of notes, you could technically be cultivating a PERMANENT hostile workplace environment. If you fired the offending employee today and two years from now another employee comes across these notes (perhaps by getting a new lead from the same customer… not like that ever happens) and is offended, what then? What if that that customer eventually buys the car and your dealership uses your CRM for service and a service advisor, cashier or other employee is exposed to those notes?

Imagine this scenario: An employee writes something offensive in Sharpie on the wall in the bathroom. It doesn’t offend anyone and nobody cleans it off. Three years later, a new employee comes along, reads the note and is offended.

What then?

It makes no difference WHEN the notes were made or whether the person who wrote the note(s) works there any longer. It is still the dealership’s responsibility and it would still be held responsible (and liable) for the existence of the notes.

My advice is simple:

If you wouldn’t hang it on the wall in your office for anyone to see, don’t put it anywhere – and that includes inside your CRM.

I came across a recent article on ComputerWorld about GM's China R&D Division's reveal of a mobile app named DiDi Plate. In summary, here's how the app works:

1. While in your car, you use your mobile phone to take a picture of the license plate of the car in front of you.
2. After the plate is scanned, it gives you the ability to text the driver/owner of the vehicle.

Some potential uses that director of GM's China R&D Division, John Du, shares are:

1. "...a male driver uses Didi Plate to scan and then message a woman driving in front of him. He asks her for a date, which she quickly accepts."
2. "...a woman's car is blocked in a parking lot, so she scans the plate of the car that boxed her in and tells the driver to move the vehicle."
3. and, for bonus points, you can "Message people to tell them they're terrible drivers."

He even explained that they have "adapted the app to work with Google Glass. Just stare at the plate and it scans it and brings up the persons online profile." There are so many fails about this app and potentials for abuse I could go on forever but let's just cover the very basics here in the interest of brevity.

• Some genius at General Motors created an app that you use WHILE DRIVING to TAKE PICTURES and then TEXT MESSAGE people. Seriously?
• I'm sure every woman (or man) would completely welcome unsolicited text message propositions from complete strangers while driving around town. What happened to the old fashioned catcalls of yesteryear? You know the wolf whistles and "hey babe" that men yell to attractive women passing by. That worked fine, didn't it? This is the digital equivalent of that. It's like one of those dating services where all the attractive women get bombarded with messages from lonely men (or vice versa). So much for your cell phone battery life.
• Now, instead of just flipping off the idiot who cut you off or screaming obscenities at them that they may or may not hear, you'll be able to ensure that they understand exactly what you say by simply text messaging them. Maybe you can send a selfie of you flipping them off accompanied by some choice words. Of course, when you text message someone using this app it is a) obvious that you are in the vicinity and b) your phone number is displayed on their phone. Now all of those unstable drivers who cannot control their temper will have even more opportunity to participate in a little road rage. Anybody up for the Roadside Fight Club? (It's OK as long as you don't talk about it.)

This is the most boneheaded, stupidest, insane, irresponsible, crazy, dangerous (I have a lot more adjectives for this) app ever conceived by anyone much less an automotive manufacturer's R&D division. Yeah, it's only in China so that makes it OK, right? They have too many people anyways. Perhaps this is GM's way of contributing to world overpopulation. At least they gave it an appropriate name.. Didi. I don't know what that means in China but all I can think of when I hear this in context of this app is Carlos Menica's signature phrase:

I came across a recent article on ComputerWorld about GM's China R&D Division's reveal of a mobile app named DiDi Plate. In summary, here's how the app works:

1. While in your car, you use your mobile phone to take a picture of the license plate of the car in front of you.
2. After the plate is scanned, it gives you the ability to text the driver/owner of the vehicle.

Some potential uses that director of GM's China R&D Division, John Du, shares are:

1. "...a male driver uses Didi Plate to scan and then message a woman driving in front of him. He asks her for a date, which she quickly accepts."
2. "...a woman's car is blocked in a parking lot, so she scans the plate of the car that boxed her in and tells the driver to move the vehicle."
3. and, for bonus points, you can "Message people to tell them they're terrible drivers."

He even explained that they have "adapted the app to work with Google Glass. Just stare at the plate and it scans it and brings up the persons online profile." There are so many fails about this app and potentials for abuse I could go on forever but let's just cover the very basics here in the interest of brevity.

• Some genius at General Motors created an app that you use WHILE DRIVING to TAKE PICTURES and then TEXT MESSAGE people. Seriously?
• I'm sure every woman (or man) would completely welcome unsolicited text message propositions from complete strangers while driving around town. What happened to the old fashioned catcalls of yesteryear? You know the wolf whistles and "hey babe" that men yell to attractive women passing by. That worked fine, didn't it? This is the digital equivalent of that. It's like one of those dating services where all the attractive women get bombarded with messages from lonely men (or vice versa). So much for your cell phone battery life.
• Now, instead of just flipping off the idiot who cut you off or screaming obscenities at them that they may or may not hear, you'll be able to ensure that they understand exactly what you say by simply text messaging them. Maybe you can send a selfie of you flipping them off accompanied by some choice words. Of course, when you text message someone using this app it is a) obvious that you are in the vicinity and b) your phone number is displayed on their phone. Now all of those unstable drivers who cannot control their temper will have even more opportunity to participate in a little road rage. Anybody up for the Roadside Fight Club? (It's OK as long as you don't talk about it.)

This is the most boneheaded, stupidest, insane, irresponsible, crazy, dangerous (I have a lot more adjectives for this) app ever conceived by anyone much less an automotive manufacturer's R&D division. Yeah, it's only in China so that makes it OK, right? They have too many people anyways. Perhaps this is GM's way of contributing to world overpopulation. At least they gave it an appropriate name.. Didi. I don't know what that means in China but all I can think of when I hear this in context of this app is Carlos Menica's signature phrase:

Have y'all seen this article in Automotive News?

The $1.5 BILLION valuation just astounds me. Would TrueCar going public bring more transparency to their business model and/or validate their "change of heart"?

"TrueCar said to consider IPO for next year"

"NEW YORK (Bloomberg) -- TrueCar Inc. is considering selling shares in an initial public offering in the first half of 2014, two people with knowledge of the matter said.

The online auto-shopping service is working with Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. on the IPO, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the process is private. TrueCar, based in Santa Monica, Calif., may seek a market value of as much as $1.5 billion in the share sale, one person said.

Auto sales are on pace for their best year since 2007, and shares of some auto dealership groups have reached record highs this year. AutoNation Inc. is up 24 percent in 2013, after touching a record in September, while Penske Automotive Group Inc. is up nearly 42 percent through Friday.

TrueCar helps consumers buy cars with pricing information from more than 6,000 dealerships. It was started in 2005 by Scott Painter, who also founded CarsDirect.com Inc. and was an early adviser to electric-car maker Tesla Motors Inc. The company turned down an offer to be acquired for more than $1 billion, Painter, who is also CEO of the company, said in a Nov. 19 interview in Los Angeles.

The company currently has 325 employees and is profitable, Painter said. He declined to name the potential buyer or provide the company's expected revenue this year.

He also declined to comment on the possibility of an IPO, as did spokesmen for TrueCar, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan.

TrueCar raised $200 million in September 2011 to fund acquisitions, Painter said at the time. TrueCar's shareholders include Andell Holdings LLC, GSV Capital Corp., GRP Partners and USAA Capital Corp, according to the company's Web site."