Webinar on Tuesday, December 4^th, at 2 p.m. EST provides a crash course on the rules of compliant customer communications, including education on state and federal regulations

Daytona Beach, FL –November 28th, 2012 – DMEautomotive (DMEa), the science-inspired, results-based automotive marketing leader, announces its upcoming webinar hosted with WardsAuto on Tuesday, December 4^th at 2 p.m. EST. This free event addresses the critical issues of compliance, including recent FCC rule changes, and provides additional important information and best practices for compliant customer communications.

Guided by Mike Martinez, CMO at DMEautomotive and Eric Sloan, Vice President of Compliance for DMEautomotive, Best Practices for Compliant Marketing is designed to empower dealers to maintain proactive customer communications in an environment where rapidly changing technology means that both businesses and regulatory authorities are in a race to keep up with how consumers like, and do not like, to communicate and be communicated with.

Key topics to be covered include:

• Education on state and federal regulations, and how they directly impact customer communications.
• Tips on creating effective communication in accordance with current law.
• Best practices in managing opt-ins and acquiring prior express written consent.
• Q&A session with compliance and business law expert - DMEautomotive’s Vice President of Compliance.

“The legal landscape for advertising communications is constantly changing -- and quickly. With businesses settling nearly $100 million in claims under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act in 2012 alone, dealerships could be just one communication away from an expensive class-action lawsuit and bankruptcy,” said Sloan.  “This seminar is a wake-up call to dealers not to wait until it’s too late.  Attendees should leave this webinar with a better understanding of the information they need - and the best practices for – compliant communications in a rapidly evolving technology, regulatory and litigation environment.”

For more information, or to register for the DMEautomotive/WardsAuto Best Practices for Compliant Marketing webinar, click here.

About DMEautomotive

DMEautomotive (DMEa) is the industry leader in science-based, results-driven automotive marketing, and provides turnkey marketing to the largest and most innovative automotive organizations, from automobile dealerships to many of the largest aftermarket companies in the U.S. DMEa's uniquely panoramic view of the complete automotive sales and service market, combined with its cutting-edge, science-based marketing programs, increases customer yield, conversion and retention.

DMEa does not take marketing performance on faith, and each product and service is measured by a simple, precise scientific approach: Is it true? Prove it. Will it work? Test it. Does it generate results? Show it! Supported by DMEa’s proprietary, cloud-based Red Rocket Technology Platform, the DMEa product suite includes science-based, data-driven, multi-channel customer acquisition and retention marketing programs; best-in-class campaign reporting; data management and analytics; auto-focused Customer Interaction Center solutions, and complete on-site mail and email fulfillment services. Headquartered in Daytona Beach, Florida, DMEa also has major operations in Jacksonville, Fla.

About WardsAuto
WardsAuto is a world-leading provider of auto industry news, data and analysis, having served the industry's information needs for more than 80 years. WardsAuto Dealer Business  is a monthly magazine serving automotive dealers.  WardsAuto.com is an online subscription service delivering virtually all the industry news, data and analysis compiled by WardsAuto, the world’s leader in automotive industry information. A Southfield, MI - based division of Penton Media, Inc., WardsAuto also publishes the manufacturing-focused monthly magazine WardsAuto World, and offers a wealth of other automotive information services including reference annuals, online databases, and customized data reports.

Contact:

DMEa Media Relations:
Melanie Webber, mWEBB Communications, 424-603-4340, melanie@mwebbcom.com 
Angela Jacobson, mWEBB Communications, 714-454-8776, angela@mwebbcom.com 

Dealers decide the best dealership vendors of the year at DrivingSales.com, helping their peers choose and spend wisely in 2013

Salt Lake City, UT – November 27, 2012 – Eligible and verified reviews and ratings that determine the 2012 DrivingSales Dealer Satisfaction Awards will close on December 31st, DrivingSales announced today. The Company encourages dealers who have not yet rated their vendors at DrivingSales Vendor Ratings to do so before the year closes. DrivingSales Vendor Ratings represent the auto industry’s only system that enables dealerships to assess their technology providers in a neutral and verified framework. Widely followed by the industry, Vendor Ratings help dealers make the best vendor spending choices for their businesses - adding up to billions of investment dollar decisions each year - and form the basis of the annual Dealer Satisfaction Awards presented in over 13 vendor categories. This year’s Dealer Satisfaction Awards will be presented in Orlando in February at the 2013 NADA Convention and Expo. Ratings are anonymous, but verified: only auto dealership personnel may submit ratings and reviews at www.drivingsales.com/ratings.

“DrivingSales was founded to make sure that dealerships are at the beginning, not the end, of the information ‘food chain’, and Vendor Ratings is one of the most important mechanisms in our industry for doing just that,” said DrivingSales Founder and CEO Jared Hamilton. “We provide a completely neutral platform and verification, and dealers do the rest, anonymously rating and reviewing their vendors to make sure their peers have the honest, real-time, real-world info they need to make smart decisions. The Dealer Satisfaction Awards are a logical extension of this, highlighting the vendors whose innovation and integrity are raising the level of our industry. We ask that those dealers who have not yet made their voice heard on their service providers go to www.drivingsales.com/ratings and share their insights with their peers.”

The DrivingSales Vendor Ratings system enables dealers to rate and review their vendors in a comprehensive, real-time vendor directory comprising over two dozen categories including CRM, New Car Leads, Used Car Advertising, Accessories Sales, Chat Products, Websites, SEO, Social Media Solutions, and many more. To date, over 7,000 verified ratings have been submitted on over 800 vendors.

Every single rating is accurate, trustworthy and verified as coming from an actual dealership employee. The ratings provide dealerships with information from actual customers who have hands-on experience using vendor products / solutions in their stores. Each reviewer must answer three questions to complete their rating: How many stars does the solution deserve? Would you recommend the solution to a friend? Why would or wouldn't you recommend the solution? In each product category the vendor solutions are ranked in real time as each new verified dealer rating is submitted. The verified ratings and reviews, along with the job title of the reviewer, are posted live to DrivingSales.com for all to reference.

The Dealer Satisfaction Awards are based on cumulative ratings at DrivingSales.com, as of December 31st, 2012. All those who submit a vendor rating are required to provide valid contact information so that DrivingSales can verify that the reviewers are actual dealership employees; however, the identity of the survey-takers remains anonymous to the public. Winners are announced, and trophies are presented to each award recipient at a special ceremony to be held in February at The Peabody Hotel Orlando during NADA 2013. For more information about the DrivingSales Dealership Satisfaction Awards, please visit: http://dealersatisfactionawards.com/.

Award winners will also be showcased in the Q1 2013 issue of the DrivingSales Dealership Innovation Guide which, in addition to being distributed at the NADA Convention and Expo, is delivered to every new car dealership nationwide, as well as to the top 100 used car dealerships. For more information on the Dealership Innovation Guide, please visit: http://drivingsalesinnovationguide.com/.

To participate in the DrivingSales Vendor Ratings survey, please visit: http://www.drivingsales.com/ratings. Only U.S. new or used car dealership personnel are eligible, and all contact information will be verified.


About DrivingSales
Founded in 2008 and dedicated to the dealer community, DrivingSales is a business intelligence and performance improvement company that delivers unbiased*, profit-building information to make automobile dealers more successful through three distinct channels: DrivingSales Data, DrivingSales University and DrivingSales Media. DrivingSales Data houses the largest database of cross-vendor, dealership performance data in the North American auto industry and provides dealerships with the most statistically accurate performance benchmarks and metrics for their marketing and technology investments. DrivingSales University is a fully interactive online university that offers advanced profit-building strategies to automotive professionals through hundreds of classes taught by world-leading experts. DrivingSales Media connects dealers to peers and information through its global media assets, including DrivingSales.com, the world’s largest automotive social network; The Dealership Innovation Guide, an industry leading quarterly publication; DrivingSales Executive Summit, the top automotive conference for progressive dealers, and DrivingSalesTV, Web TV covering everything car-dealer related. Approximately one in every three dealerships in the United States has a registered member in the DrivingSales community. 

*Vendor Neutral Policy: Dedicated solely to making dealerships more profitable, while also providing benefit to automakers and the industry as a whole, DrivingSales adheres to a strict vendor neutral policy through each of its channels. This means the company only provides unbiased information, not ‘pay-to-play’ follow up services -- and never accepts payment in exchange for media coverage or lets potential advertisers dictate messaging or create bias in any of its channels.


DrivingSales Media Relations: 

Melanie Webber (melanie@mwebbcom.com), mWEBB Communications, 424.603.4340
Angela Jacobson (angela@mwebbcom.com), mWEBB Communications, 714.454.8776

SureSale technology expands dealer autonomy in the sourcing, certification, and marketing of certified vehicles

Venice, CA – November 27, 2012 – SureSale^TM, the certified pre-owned (CPO) marketing program that is changing the way used vehicles are bought and sold, today announced the launch of its new mobile and online platforms designed to increase dealer autonomy in the sourcing, certification, and marketing of certified vehicles. The technology platforms include new functionality that enables dealers to purchase quality used inventory from private sellers, a mobile certification app, and an expanded online marketplace that includes free dealer microsites with additional listing syndication to top automotive marketplaces.

SureSale launched earlier this year to expand the range of vehicles eligible for certification on dealer lots, online marketplaces, and remarketing channels to 15 years old and 150K miles. Participating SureSale dealerships report a turn rate that is over 60% faster than that of the average used vehicle and an additional 23% or $2,300 per-vehicle sales premium on average.*

“These technology platforms create a turn-key certified marketing solution for dealers and an innovative way to acquire quality used inventory – all while providing a powerful cost- and time-saving way to generate used car leads,” said Jeffrey Schwartz, president and CEO of SureSale. “Plus, our new ‘on demand’ certification means dealers can market SureSale Eligible vehicles and then ultimately certify based on a consumer’s request.  This is a win for consumers, who have a new channel to search for certified vehicles, and for dealers, who have access to a new universe of consumers.”

SureSale’s new certified platform features include:

• ACQUIRE: buyer program for dealers

• Ability for participating dealers to purchase SureSale Eligible vehicles from private sellers sourced online from the SureSale Marketplace
• Dealers can remarket these vehicles as SureSale Certified upon additional inspection 

• INSPECT: mobile certification app

• Allows qualified dealers to expedite the SureSale inspection process via a mobile inspection of vehicles
• SureSale ensures the standardization and validity of inspection requirements through proprietary technology and training 

• MARKET: expanded SureSale marketplace

• Provides free turn-key dealership and SureSale branded microsites with additional listing syndication to top automotive marketplaces
• Promotes SureSale Eligible vehicles for on-demand certification based on consumer request

SureSale provides dealers who don’t have access to manufacturer CPO programs the opportunity to differentiate their dealership by selling certified inventory; and for those with access, a certified business model that complements their existing manufacturer CPO program by extending the range of vehicles they can sell as certified. SureSale’s online marketplace provides dealerships with one-click publishing of all their SureSale branded inventory (both ‘Eligible’ and Certified) on their SureSale microsite as well as across Suresale.com and online classified sites.

SureSale dealer benefits also include no monthly fees or long term contract commitments; an easy ‘one-click’ vehicle certification platform; best-in-class limited warranties, buy-back guarantees and vehicle service contracts; and certified vehicle inspections -- all of which generate greater customer and financial institution confidence, quicker inventory turn rates and more profit opportunity for the dealership.

*Based on analysis of SureSale vehicles'  sale price + addl. VSC revenue averages (all SureSale vehicles 5 yrs and older sold March-May) compared to averages on similar vehicles (Y/M/M) from KBB suggested values (average of wholesale + 'as-is' + retail pricing). 

About SureSale
SureSale is a leading provider of online vehicle certification and selling platforms.  Dedicated to bringing a new transparency and trust to the used car marketplace, the Company enables sellers to sell with new confidence and buyers to buy with a new peace of mind. The Company's team of technology experts and automotive veterans develop solutions that take advantage of the best of the information-empowered digital marketplace. The SureSale^TM platform provides used-car buyers with unmatched certification on a far wider variety of used vehicles than has ever been offered before, while providing used-car sellers with a 'one-click' certification process for their vehicles.  SureSale is based in Venice, California.

Media Contact

mWEBB Communications for SureSale

Melanie Webber, 424.603.4340, melanie@mwebbcom.com

Crystal Hartwell, 714.987.1016, crystal@mwebbcom.com

A New Year means a slew of new possibilities and a promise of something better than last year. If you are ready to make 2013 the year you become the superstar of your dealership, then Jennifer Suzuki will show you how!

Register Now!

With the goal of profitability in mind, this fast-paced 1 hour webinar is perfect for all Sales Consultants and BDC Representatives and will highlight:

• Goal Setting – learn how to map out consistent 20+ cars a month
• Time Management – take away a model that will help you focus and plan ahead
• CRM Organization – learn precise ways to save at least 1.5 hours in a workday so you can make more calls
• Training Tools – incorporate 3 key aspects to increase a strong mindset and lasting career
• Social Image – learn ways to grow your own leads and close more prospects

You owe it to yourself to see how you can make more money in 2013!

PRESENTER: Jennifer Suzuki is the Founder & President of e-Dealer Solutions, Inc., an award-winning training company focused on improving salespeople’s phone skills, emails, and operating processes. Her 17 years of experience encompasses a wide gamut of valuable auto industry know-how, such as: selling vehicles, training & installing DMS systems, retailing internet leads, and managing an internet sales division comprised of 28 dealerships. She has a tremendous reputation for delivering significant success to dealerships looking for effective processes, profitable ideas & a sound direction for the 21st century auto dealer. Jennifer’s passion and expertise are evident in her career as she is well known for conducting sales training seminars for numerous manufacturers, dealerships, 20 groups and state associations. An active writer and blogger she can be reached at Jennifer@EDealerSolution.com.

Dealertrack Launches New Brand Identity

New Identity Designed to Showcase Dealertrack’s Comprehensive Suite of Integrated Technology Solutions for the Automotive Retail Industry

Lake Success, N.Y., November 26, 2012 - - Dealertrack Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: TRAK), formerly DealerTrack Holdings, Inc., today unveiled a new brand identity and updated corporate website designed to represent the company’s position as a leading driver of innovation and progress across the automotive retail industry. Beginning this week, the company and its solutions will be positioned around a single new brand - Dealertrack Technologies.

After embarking on a multi-year initiative to integrate select software and services from more than 20 acquisitions with its core set of organically developed solutions, Dealertrack has taken steps to brand and represent its solutions in a clear and unified way through its website and marketing efforts. The new brand will reinforce consistency and unity across Dealertrack’s comprehensive suite of web-enabled solutions for automotive dealers, lenders, OEMs and third- party retailers.

“Our customers have told us that they’re looking to streamline their technology partner relationships,” said Mark O’Neil, chairman and chief executive officer, Dealertrack Technologies.  “This new identity simplifies our brand presentation as the one company, one team, one end-to-end solution partner who can help automotive retailers increase efficiency and profitability by integrating data across various workflows, while enhancing the car buying experience for consumers.”

Dealertrack Technologies’ Canadian subsidiary will also be adopting a similar corporate brand identity beginning next month.  In addition, the company will continue to be listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market under the ticker symbol “TRAK.”

About Dealertrack Technologies (www.dealertrack.com)

Dealertrack Technologies’ intuitive and high-value web-based software solutions and services enhance efficiency and profitability for all major segments of the automotive retail industry, including dealers, lenders, OEMs, third-party retailers, agents and aftermarket providers. In addition to the industry’s largest online credit application network, connecting more than 19,000 dealers with more than 1,200 lenders, Dealertrack Technologies delivers the industry’s most comprehensive solution set for automotive retailers, including Dealer Management System (DMS), Inventory, Sales and F&I, Interactive and Registration and Titling  solutions. For more information visit  www.dealertrack.com.

OneCommand Announces New Solution for Auto Dealers to Reach Untapped Potential New Buyers

Mason, OH – November 15, 2012 – OneCommand (www.onecommand.com), the leading marketing automation platform for auto dealers, announces the launch of its new solution that allows dealers to reach potential new car buyers.  The new OneCommand product, DriveWay Envy^TM, will use targeted marketing, database analytics, and social influence to increase prospect response.  

DriveWay Envy^TM is OneCommand’s proprietary approach for targeting new car buyers.  This revolutionary solution taps into consumer’s natural purchasing behavior by leveraging “social influence”.  The solution utilizes targeted direct mail and mobile technologies to deliver a strategic message to qualified prospects.  

The DriveWay Envy^TM solution delivers a professional mail piece to each qualified prospect that is customized to provide relevant and personalized information.  The piece provides the dealership a channel to collect consumer information, as well as enticing offers to engage the consumer quickly, and provide the dealer with a qualified stream of prospects.

OneCommand’s core delivery product is the Customer Marketing & Loyalty Automation Platform^TM    and is comprised of five components:  Voice, Email, Text, Direct Mail and Social Content.  Further expertise is applied through the use of its proprietary AutoIntelligence^TM.    AutoIntelligence^TM is the methodology of OneCommand’s proven data management and best practices, which give dealerships an edge.

“DriveWay Envy^TM is the next step in providing a targeted Direct Mail solution that surpasses our competitors and is optimized to deliver each dealer real results,” states Jeff Hart, President and CEO at OneCommand.  He continues, “OneCommand is committed to delivering solutions that are the future of one-to-one direct marketing, ultimately delivering data driven media solutions that help our dealers better communicate with their customers.”

The future of auto marketing is the delivery of personalized messaging based on the consumer’s needs.  OneCommand believes that DriveWay Envy^TM is the future of targeted Direct Mail.  With limited marketing budgets, auto dealers need to reach interested, qualified prospects with lifestyle specific, personalized messaging.  DriveWay Envy^TM is designed to cater to this need and deliver results.

About OneCommand:

OneCommand is the leading provider of marketing automation which is designed to drive customer loyalty in the auto industry.   For over a decade, OneCommand’s proven platform of voice, email, mobile/text, direct mail and social communications have been delivering results that are targeted, turnkey, and trigger-based.  Every day, OneCommand sends over 1,000,000 personalized messages on behalf of over 4,000 clients throughout North America.  

Go Virtual / izmocars solution provides Nissan dealers in Mexico with stable and progressive website technology while supporting Nissan Mexicana's brand values and lead generation efforts

San Francisco, CA and Mexico City, Mexico -- November 14, 2012 -- izmocars (http://www.izmocars.com), the world's leader in interactive media content for the automotive industry, today announced that Nissan Mexicana has selected Go Virtual and izmocars’ international dealer website platform to provide dealer websites for all Nissan dealers in Mexico. Nissan Mexicana is the leading new car sales brand in Mexico.

The izmocars offerings, supported and implemented by Go Virtual, will provide Nissan Mexicana with world class websites for its dealerships, as well as progressive digital services that represent a new level of digital functionality in the auto retailing marketplace in Mexico. These new services enable dealers and OEMs to measure the effectiveness of digital efforts on a layered perspective: dealer level, dealer group level, region level and country level. Go Virtual is the exclusive retailer of izmocars solutions for Mexico.

“We are very excited by this innovative project which sets a precedent in the Mexican automotive industry by meeting the rapid digital shift in car buyer behavior with the right technology for the digital customer,” said Juan Berner, Go Virtual’s founding partner. “The standardization of the websites of all Nissan dealers in Mexico with izmocars’ solutions should not only drive dominance in first page search results, but more high quality customer leads.”

The Go Virtual / izmocars solution provides Nissan dealers in Mexico with stable and progressive website technology, while supporting Nissan Mexicana’s brand values and lead generation efforts. The new dealership websites provide users with access to an appealing virtual showroom where OEM content lives within the dealer website. Specials can be published by the dealer for local execution or by Nissan Mexicana as an opt-out delivery for the entire dealer network. The content management tool offers endless possibilities to dealers to feed their websites with multi-format content always supporting brand identity standards.

“We are proud to have been selected by Nissan Mexicana, the leading automotive brand in Mexico for the past three years, and look forward to working with Go Virtual to provide Nissan dealerships in Mexico with a better, more effective digital way to reach consumers and to measure the results of their digital marketing efforts,” said izmocars Vice President Sidney Haider.

Dealers also have access to other optional izmocars solutions including: Live chat, izmo Sales Velocity, izmoDirect, among others. Go Virtual also offers automotive digital marketing services such as Search Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Digital Coaching, Lead Management Consulting, and more.

“More than half of all Nissan Mexicana dealerships are already using the izmocars website platform, and dealership satisfaction ratings and feedback have been extremely strong, exceeding first year expectations,” continued Berner. “Now, with izmocars websites as their exclusive platform, we anticipate those results will expand across all Nissan dealerships in Mexico. With 25% of the automotive market in Mexico, Nissan Mexicana continues to be a digital trailblazer, setting a new digital standard for the auto industry marketplace.”

Go Virtual is Mexico’s first, specialized automotive industry B2B company with a service orientation offering that combines decades of automotive dealership know-how with a strong digital marketing background. Through the izmocars solutions, Go Virtual offers world class technology with local understanding. Short run territory: Mexico. Long run scope: Latin America.

Today, more than 115 Nissan Mexicana dealership sites are online. The implementation of websites for 150 Nissan dealers in Mexico is part of the first stage of the project, with the goal of having more than 200 Nissan Mexicana dealer websites online by Q2 2013.

About izmocars
izmocars is a leading provider of Automotive Business Solutions including: Website and Online Marketing Solutions, Enterprise-level Automotive CRM, iConsult - Sales Performance Coaching and AddOnAuto - an In-Store Accessories Sales Solution.

izmocars is also the world's leader in Interactive Media Content for the automotive industry. Founded in 2002, izmocars services some of the most successful eDealers in the country.

izmocars is based in San Francisco, with offices in Long Beach, CA and Brussels in Europe.

About Go Virtual
Go Virtual is a result-driven, fully integrated automotive business solutions company. Founded in Mexico City in 2010, Go Virtual is dedicated to be a business partner for dealers and OEMs to positively alter the way to connect with consumers.

Contact
mWEBB Communications for izmocars, Melanie Webber, +1-949-307-1723, melanie@mwebbcom.com, or Angela Jacobson, +1-714-454-8776, angela@mwebbcom.com

For Go Virtual, Juan Berner, (5255) 50005878, juan.berner@govirtual.com.mx

Tell Us What Makes You Thankful; In Turn, Naked Lime Will Make a Donation to Local Food Banks

KETTERING, Ohio – Nov. 13, 2012 – Throughout November, Naked Lime Marketing is encouraging the spirit of Thanksgiving by asking people to publicly share what makes them thankful and, as a result, help others in need. For each person who shares what he is or she is thankful for this year on the Naked Lime Facebook page, or for any new “Likes” on the page, Naked Lime will donate $1 to local food banks in two locations in which the agency has major operations: Dayton, Ohio, and Houston, Texas.

“Across the country, automotive dealerships continually give back to their communities by donating to local causes,” said Trey Hiers, who oversees marketing at Naked Lime. “In doing the heavy lifting of running dealers’ marketing and advertising campaigns, we have been impressed by the generosity of the dealers we serve – everything from their sponsoring a local high school marching band to fundraising for nonprofit organizations. That generosity has inspired us to get involved and give back. We hope you’ll also be inspired and take a moment to tell us what makes you thankful. In turn, we’ll pass on that gratitude through a donation to others in need.”

Please share what you’re thankful for on the Naked Lime Facebook page (http://facebook.com/nkdlime) and help spread the word to others to do the same. 

About Naked Lime Marketing

Naked Lime’s Naked Truth: Deliver fresh and innovative full-service marketing, advertising, and web solutions and services that help automotive dealers turn the heads of consumers and inspire consumer loyalty at every point in the retail process. Connect with Naked Lime Marketing on the Web: http://nakedlime.com, Facebook: http://facebook.com/nkdlime, or Twitter: http://twitter.com/nkdlime.

###

Largest aftermarket accessory supplier partners with AddOnAuto Digital Dealer Supplier Network to help dealers market and sell Car Toys Accessories; AOA proven to generate an average of $500 per copy for dealerships

San Francisco, CA -- November 12, 2012 -- Car Toys, the largest independent consumer electronics specialty retailer in the U.S., has selected izmocars’(http://www.izmocars.com) innovative accessories sales solution, AddOnAuto (AOA) Digital Dealer Supplier Network, as its digital accessories sales system for their dealer clients. izmocars and Car Toys (http://www.cartoys.com/commercial/) are also teaming up to promote a joint web catalog program using the AOA platform which will offer dealer, OEM, and Car Toys products on one digital catalog. AOA generates, on average, $500 per copy for dealerships using the system.

“We are excited to be working with Car Toys to help bring a larger slice of the $40 billion accessories marketplace to their dealer customers, and to help drive greater efficiencies and revenues for Car Toys,” said izmocars Vice President Sidney Haider. “As a leader in its industry, Car Toys is uniquely positioned to not only help dealers take advantage of the streamlining and process alignment that AOA’s supplier network generates but also, importantly, to facilitate, enhance and fulfill the accessories sales process for consumers. Now, consumers can choose from Car Toys’ broad selection of products and richly visualize them on their vehicles in that ‘sweet spot’ purchase moment when they are buying their vehicle.”

As part of the partnership, Car Toys (with locations in Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Dallas/Fort Worth and Houston and online at CarToys.com) will offer their dealer customers AOA’s configurator – an online tool that enables car buyers to ‘virtually’ add accessories to customize their specific vehicle from a catalog of thousands of parts and accessories options – and then turn that rich virtual experience into a reality. The AOA Digital Dealer Supplier Network will include a catalog of Car Toys products, with up-to-date pricing information, as well as providing car buyers with a comprehensive catalog of dealer and OEM accessories product and pricing information. This gives dealers a turnkey system to market and sell a vast database of accessories, easy access to product information from Car Toys, and the ability to offer accurate updated accessories content information to their customers.

In addition, because AOA is able to bring Car Toys and their dealer customers together on one digital platform, coordination of real-time parts updating, pricing, ordering and installation is greatly streamlined.

“As car sales continue to ramp up, having a stronger, more integrated presence for our products through the dealership vehicle sales process is critical to us, and providing that through an easy-to-use system that benefits our dealer clients from promotion to sale to fulfillment is a win/win,” said Sarah Ostby, Director of Commercial Business for Car Toys, Inc. “AOA’s digital dealer supplier network will enable our dealer clients to promote the right product, at the right time and in the right place in the purchase cycle, while allowing us to further our mission of providing the best quality products and programs in the industry, with the goal of making our clients’ jobs easier by helping them maximize productivity and profit. Plus, its web catalog will end the multiple headaches of inconsistent and labor intensive updating. And all with greater efficiencies and revenues across the board.”

AOA’s digital dealer supplier network is a first of its kind solution with a mission to bring the nation’s 17,000 franchise dealers and over 5,000 suppliers of accessories together all on one platform. The network has already resulted in dramatic increases in accessories sales and revenue for suppliers and auto dealerships across the country. One automotive restyling and accessories supplier reported a nearly 400% increase in dealership orders in just two months on the network1. Furthermore, a study conducted with a Toyota dealership demonstrated the efficiency and advantage of the network, which helped the dealership take accessories sales from $30K a month to over $130K a month(1). And, according to a recent AOA Auto Accessories Trend Report(2), dealerships using AOA closed over 50% of the customers who were presented with accessories, reaping an average gross profit of 49.3%.

AddOnAuto is currently the accessories sales solution ranked #1 by dealers at DrivingSales.com, and has produced significant results for hundreds of dealers across the country over the past 3 years.

(1) izmocars AOA Supplier Digital Network Case Study: http://www.izmocars.com/aoa-supplier-digital-network/rudy-luther.pdf
(2) AOA Auto Accessories 2012 Mid-Year Trend Report: http://www.izmocars.com/aoa-trend-report/2012-Midyear-Trend-Report.pdf

About izmocars
izmocars is a leading provider of Automotive Business Solutions including: Website and Online Marketing Solutions, Enterprise-level Automotive CRM, iConsult - Sales Performance Coaching and AddOnAuto - an In-Store Accessories Sales Solution.

izmocars is also the world's leader in Interactive Media Content for the automotive industry. Founded in 2002, izmocars services some of the most successful eDealers in the country.

izmocars is based in San Francisco, with offices in Long Beach, CA and Brussels in Europe.

About Car Toys Commercial Services
Car Toys Commercial Sales is a division of Car Toys, Inc - the largest independent consumer electronics specialty retailer in the United States. Through some (50) stores around the country and online at CarToys.com, we offer a full line of name brand car audio and video products, portable and in-dash navigation, state-of-the-art vehicle safety and security products, mobile satellite radio and TV, and a wide assortment of cutting-edge wireless phones and services from AT&T, Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile and Boost Mobile.

CONTACT: mWEBB Communications for izmocars, Melanie Webber, +1-424-603-4340, melanie@mwebbcom.com, or Angela Jacobson, +1-714-454-8776, angela@mwebbcom.com

Waltham, Mass. –November 12, 2012 - DealerRater, the world’s premier car dealer review web site, is celebrating today its first decade in business. Founded in Waltham, Massachusetts by its current President Chip Grueter, the company has grown into the largest third-party review web site dedicated solely to automotive dealerships.  Whether it’s the DealerRater logo, Certified Dealer seal or its rich consumer review content, the DealerRater brand is now visible to more than 4 million consumers every month and growing.    And with more than 30 million impressions of the DealerRater brand served up to consumers every month, the strong influence of consumer reviews on purchasing decisions – and DealerRater’s central role in the online research process – is difficult to ignore.  In fact, over the past year nearly 7 million unique in-market car shoppers visited DealerRater to research car dealerships before purchasing or servicing an automobile.   

“DealerRater was launched in 2002 as a way for consumers to share their sales and service experiences at automotive dealerships with other website users.  The fact that we’re celebrating a decade in business is a wonderful accomplishment and I’m extremely grateful to our dealer clients, consumer users, partners and employees for the tremendous success we continue to experience. ” said Chip Grueter, DealerRater president.  “Our growth represents a strong validation of the importance of online third-party reviews in the automotive industry and the effectiveness of the online reputation management tools that we’ve developed exclusively for our Certified Dealers.  Ten years in and we’re still at the forefront of the consumer revolution and leading the way for car dealerships,” Grueter added.  

Just this past month, the company announced the launch of its mobile optimized web site, making it easier than ever for automotive consumers to research dealer reviews, rate their own car dealership experiences, and browse cars for sale using mobile browsers on iPhone, Blackberry and Android devices.   Currently more than 20% of DealerRater’s site traffic comes from a mobile device.

The DealerRater site receives an average of 870 new reviews per day, and on weekdays records a new review every 55 seconds.  With its unparalleled volume of dealer reviews now approaching 900,000, 25% of all franchised dealers in the U.S. have embraced DealerRater and its popular Certified Dealer Program as a critical component to their online reputation efforts.  By taking full advantage of the full suite of review-gathering and leveraging tools included in the Certified Dealer Program, Certified Dealers on average boast nearly 9 times the review count as non-certified dealers and also see a full 1-Star average overall rating lift compared to non-certified dealers.

Since introducing the Certified Dealer Program in 2008, DealerRater has continued to advance its online reputation management solutions for the dealer community.  Most recently, the company expanded its product set with the launch of 360Certified™ - the premium level of the Certified Dealer Program, which offers dealers a comprehensive online reputation management and social monitoring platform, including a proprietary 360 dashboard.

“DealerRater remains committed to offering the dealer community the most innovative products and services in the reputation management and social media arenas.   We are truly enthusiastic for the future and have a number of exciting initiatives planned, including the unveiling of the next generation of the DealerRater.com web site later this year, which will offer a refreshed design as well as many new features for both our dealer clients and consumer users,” Grueter added.

For more information, visit www.DealerRater.com or call 800-266-9455. 

About DealerRater:

DealerRater was founded in 2002 as the first car dealer review website worldwide.  DealerRater is the world’s #1 online resource for anyone seeking trusted third-party information on automobile dealerships.   DealerRater features nearly 41,000 U.S. and Canadian car dealers, 860,000 consumer reviews and more than 1 million cars for sale.  DealerRater attracts more than 9.5 million consumers every year who visit the site to search for car dealerships, read current reviews, write their own descriptive reviews, and find car deals – all for free.  In addition, DealerRater offers qualified car dealers a Certified Dealer Program as a reputation management tool to help them grow their online presence and achieve higher SEO rankings across the Web.  Today, nearly 4,600 dealers are members of the DealerRater® Certified Dealer Program.  DealerRater is proud to have been awarded the #137 position on the 2012 Inc. 500 list, an exclusive ranking of the fastest-growing private companies in the United States.  For more information, visit www.DealerRater.com or call 800-266-9455.