​When you get a room full of 100 plus Dealer Principals together, the topic of discussion doesn’t usually fall to things like choosing specific SEO keywords. The conversations center more on high-level thinking and strategic thought processes that fuel these entrepreneurs to take their business to the next level.

That was the very motivation behind DrivingSales hosting the first ever Most Valuable Insight competition. In the spirit of progress and thought leadership, we challenged the thought leaders in our industry to present an insight that directly impacts the way dealer principals and general managers operate their business.  Taking the conversations to the highest level, auto industry professionals were invited to share their thoughts and insights to the attending dealership executives to foster inspiration, progression, and celebration of a better automotive retail industry. Of course, all submissions had to be thoroughly backed with arduous research and empirical support.

After finalists were selected by a group of dealers, the dealer principals in attendance at the 2013 DrivingSales Presidents Club event in NYC were presented with four outstanding contributions to the automotive industry:

• “Capitalizing on Changes in Online Shopping Behaviors,” presented by Scott Pechstein at Autobytel Inc.
• “Do You Know Today’s Customer? New Findings Show Difference between Prices of Vehicles Shopped vs. Actual Prices Paid,” presented by Scott Hernalsteen at AutoTrader.com
• “Mobile: your key to winning shoppers when they’re ready to buy,” presented by Jack Simmons at Cars.com
• “Are You Aiming at the Right Target?” presented by Chris Reed at Cobalt

The presentations were data-driven, actionable, and relevant to the high caliber audience in attendance.  A dealer judging panel on stage and off evaluated the insights on relevancy, originality, empirical support, and implementation, and after the closest dealer feedback in DrivingSales contest history, one insight stood strong as the most valuable.

Congratulations to Chris Reed and the Cobalt team for providing the 2013 Most Valuable Insight to the automotive industry. Reed’s insight, based on an eight month Cobalt study of consumer engagement with online vehicle information including metrics such as VDPs (Vehicle Detail Pages) and Time-on-VDP revealed that vehicle engagement are the single best predictor of future sales, materially superior to other metrics commonly used by dealership marketing staff such as visits and lead submissions. Vehicle engagement metrics provide insight into the effectiveness of a dealers off-line as well as online marketing and can be predictive of the timing of a sale down to the VIN level.  Reed also shared the pitfalls of relying on any single metric, including VDP views, to evaluate marketing performance and the predictive power gained by evaluating the pattern of consumer interaction with content on dealer websites and online advertising in general. 

As the winner of the Most Valuable Insight competition, Reed will have the opportunity to present the Cobalt data in much greater detail at the 2013 DrivingSales Executive Summit in October in Las Vegas.

Congratulations again to all of the finalists for providing thought-provoking data and action items to propel the automotive retail industry forward. 

The dealers in the DrivingSales community have made their voices heard.  By rating and reviewing their vendor partners through our Vendor Ratings platform, they’ve made known which vendors in the industry have met and exceeded the needs of their dealership customers.  In recognition of these service providers who are leading the way in innovation, performance and customer service, DrivingSales today presented the Dealer Satisfaction Awards to the top companies in each of 15 categories at the fourth annual DrivingSales Dealer Satisfaction Awards Breakfast at the Peabody Orlando Hotel.

Thousands of dealers spoke up in not only recognizing the excellence of their vendors, but more importantly, helping their dealer peers make the informed vendor decisions that can ensure growth, profits, and greater dealer satisfaction throughout 2013.

The 2012 DrivingSales Dealer Satisfaction Award Recipients are (listed by category):

Call Management

CAR-Research XRM – Highest Rated

CallSource – Top Rated

Chat Products

Contact At Once! – Highest Rated

Dealer e Process – Top Rated

CarChat24 – Top Rated

CRM - Fixed Ops

CIMA Systems – Highest Rated

Dealer e Process – Top Rated

CRM - Sales Department

Dominion Dealer Solutions – Highest Rated

CAR-Research XRM – Top Rated

DealerSocket – Top Rated

DMS

Auto/Mate Dealership Systems – Highest Rated

ILM

Dominion Dealer Solutions – Highest Rated

CAR-Research XRM – Top Rated

Inventory Pricing

vAuto – Highest Rated

Mobile Sites

Dealer e Process – Highest Rated

New Car Leads

Dealix – Highest Rated

Owner Marketing

J&L Marketing, Inc – Highest Rated

CIMA Systems – Top Rated

OneCommand – Top Rated

Reputation Management

eXtéresAUTO – Highest Rated

DealerRater.com – Top Rated

SEM - PPC

Dealer e Process – Highest Rated

Local Search Group – Top Rated

POTRATZ – Top Rated

SEO

eXtéresAUTO – Highest Rated

Dealer e Process – Top Rated

PCG Digital Marketing – Top Rated

Used Car Advertising

Dealix – Highest Rated

Websites

Dealer e Process – Highest Rated

DealerOn – Top Rated

Dominion Dealer Solutions – Top Rated

Full award results are available online at dealersatisfactionawards.com, as well as showcased in the Q1 2013 issue of the DrivingSales Dealership Innovation Guide.

Congratulations again to all of the recipients of the Dealer Satisfaction Awards and to the thousands of dealers who recognize the importance of providing honest, real-time feedback on their vendors to keep our industry moving forward.

Do you have a piece of highly relevant and insightful information to share, but haven’t found the appropriate outlet through which to share it? Or maybe you haven’t been able to reach the audience for which your information is intended? Well, if you want to take your thought leadership to the next level and get in front of the real decision-makers in the industry – Dealer Principals and GMs – then we’ve got just the place for you.

At this year’s DrivingSales Presidents Club, we’ll be hosting the Most Valuable Insight Competition.  Created in the spirit of progress and industry thought leadership, we invite you to take the conversation to the highest level and share your thoughts and insights with the most progressive dealership executives in the country.

The Most Valuable Insight Competition encourages automotive professionals to illuminate a topic and define a stance that will impact dealership executives and organizations at the top.

If you have some groundbreaking information that you think every Dealership Operator ought to know, we invite you to submit your application to be considered for the competition, which take place during at the 2013 DrivingSales Presidents Club, held in New York, April 21-22.  Sales Pitches will not be accepted.

All automotive professionals are encouraged to apply, but only a few will have the chance to compete for the opportunity to claim the Most Valuable Insight by presenting their presentations to a panel of judges and the attendees of the DrivingSales Presidents Club.

There is NO CHARGE to apply, but the competition will be fiercely competitive. Selected finalists will present their Most Valuable Insight onstage at the Presidents Club in front of a room filled with Dealer Principles and General Managers.  The winner will also have the opportunity to present an expanded version of the Insight at DSES 2013.

Do you have what it takes? Apply now.  Applications will close on February 21, 2013.

Learn more about the contests, rules, and things to be prepared with on the DrivingSales Presidents Club Website.

About the Presidents Club:

The DrivingSales Presidents Club is an intimate, private event for Dealer Principals and General Managers to gather and study the trends regarding the three most important assets in operating a dealership: your capital, your brand, and your people. Seth Godin, known as one of the top branding experts in the world, a best-selling author and successful entrepreneur, will be spending time with the dealers discussing how to make your dealerships brand a powerful asset that stands out in your market. In addition to Seth, the Club will be bringing in an economist to shed light on some macroeconomic trends that are placing pressure on stores and how to navigate them, new and unreleased research regarding automotive retailing, and leadership practices in today’s progressive dealerships. The event is designed to be ultra intimate, giving the dealers ample face time with the experts in attendance and to facilitate a high level of networking. 

At the request of many dealers in the industry, we’re proud to announce that DrivingSales will host an automotive Presidents Club event for the top CEOs and General Managers in the industry.  The meeting will be held at the Waldorf Astoria in New York, April 21-22, 2013.

The Presidents Club is a private meeting for Dealer Principals and industry Presidents to gather and study the trends regarding the three most important assets in operating a dealership:

• Your capital
• Your brand
• Your people

Seth Godin, known as one of the top branding experts in the world, a best-selling author and successful entrepreneur, will be spending time with the dealers discussing how to make your dealerships brand a powerful asset that stands out in your market.

In addition to Seth we will be bringing in an economist to shed light on some macroeconomic trends that are placing pressure on stores and how to navigate them.  We will be studying new and unreleased research regarding automotive retailing, and we will discuss leadership practices in today’s progressive dealerships.

The event is designed to be ultra intimate, giving the dealers ample face time with the experts in attendance and to facilitate a high level of networking. 

We invite the Dealer Principals and General Managers of the DrivingSales community to attend.  There are less than 80 seats remaining, so we recommend you RSVP as quickly as possible.

Club FAQ

When and where is the event?
The event will be held April 21-22 at the Waldorf Astoria New York.

Who should attend?
The meeting is for Dealer Principles, General Managers, and their guests.  Dealership managers such as Marketing Managers, Sales Managers, etc. are welcome as guests of their Dealer Principal and GM.

Will I meet Seth Godin?
Yes, the event will have few attendees, and Seth has agreed to stay after to sign books and mingle with the Dealers in attendance.

What topics will be covered?
The meeting will focus on the three most important assets in running a dealership: your capital, your brand and your people.

What is the attire?
Business Casual

When I first got onto Twitter, I did it for work.  I work for a social media company in the automotive industry (obviously) and I had to have a presence there if I was ever going to meet the most progressive digital people out there.  It was a huge resource for me in terms of learning about the industry in general and getting to know others.  Such a great foot in the door. 

Of course, the techniques I used to interact on Twitter were largely learned from the exposure from those I followed: Tweet links, retweet other links, always #FF, and don’t share anything unless it’s remotely related to your job. Oh, and reply to someone if you can somehow pound your chest to demonstrate how cool/smart/[insert prideful word of choice here] you are.

Ugh.  Please don’t make me.  Twitter quickly became a necessary evil that I forced myself into for the sake of work. In fact, I could hardly follow or interact with any of my outside-of-work friends because after connecting, they would quickly unfollow me – they didn’t care about the awesomely progressive digital information I was sharing for car dealers.

Flash forward to 6 months ago, when I started to reconnect with a group of girls I used to coach playing soccer, who are now all sophomores in college.  Their interactions, although oftentimes comical in content, are a breath of fresh air! They showed me how real people are communicating with Twitter.  They’re practically mass text messaging multiple people at one time.  It’s sharing just the status messages from Facebook or AIM.  You know, what Twitter was made for when people would put up an away message on AOL that said, “off to the gym, then lunch with Kate, and homework.”  It was a brief (say, 140-character) description of what you were up to or into.

Cue light bulb overhead. That’s how people are really using Twitter.  People aren’t on it just to show how cool or expert they are, although for a business account, a version of that might be more important.  People are using Twitter to engage, as should we. If you’re managing a business account, we should all take a page out of their book. Maybe it’s the generation difference, or maybe it’s the use of Twitter for reasons other than business; either way, these are the people that you’ll be selling cars to next, and they’re telling you the kinds of interactions you’ll want to have with them.  JD Rucker outlines some awesome tips in this vein to optimize your business twitter account for engagement.

If you’re managing your own personal account, figure it out! Nobody wants to see link after link after link of information.  Yes, oftentimes it’s good content, but to share links because you’re supposed to or because you want people to think you’re smart has gotten old.  Take a page from Scott Stratten’s keynote at DSES – 75% of his tweets are replies, and he’s one of the most prominent figures in the Twitter world. Engaging in conversation make people more likely to hear you when you do share links or CTA specific information.

Use Twitter the way it was intended – to communicate with others, not just to them.  It’s so much better that way.

Facebook today announced a new feature that could have tremendous impact on dealers. Its called "Nearby" and its on the iOS and Android Apps.  

The feature is a discovery engine, allowing people to discover business around them that resonate with their social graph.  Imagine users looking for an oil change and viewing service stations nearby.  Will you be listed?  Will you be at the top of the list?  Will you have good reviews?  It marks a big step into a new market for Facebook that could have profound impact on dealers.

Whats new with "Nearby"?

People have long been able to check in to places with their Facebook app, accumulating an average of 250 million users per month checking in to places. Now, not only will people be able to check in with their Facebook account, but they can rate the business or choose to like the business’s Facebook page as well.  This will power a list of recommendations from your friends when you’re out looking for places to eat, a favorite retail spot, or even a local gas station. 

We know this is sending Foursquare and Yelp for a loop, but it has potential to really help, or hurt your dealership, too.  What should dealers so?

Get a page!

Now, more than ever, it’s time for your dealership to get and manage a Facebook page.  Yes, it’s true – there are still dealerships that don’t have one. If you do have one, is it optimized for mobile users to find you?  The fact is, Facebook is no longer just a social place to interact with potential customers – it’s a phonebook.  If you’re not on it, you’re not being found. 

And for those of you keeping up and already have a business page, it’s even more important to optimize it.  Fill out all your company information (for starters), update your images, and get to interacting 

Categorize yourself.

Think of all the reasons people might come to your dealership.  For a new car, of course, but what about after getting into an accident and they need to find a collision center?  Or, perhaps they just need an oil change.  Be certain you’re listed in the right categories, making sure your being found in all the right places.

Ask for a review!

This is where it really counts.  Just like you ask for reviews on Google, be sure to encourage your customers to check in and leave a review.  This is where the magic really happens, as the Facebook algorithm takes people’s recommendations into consideration when friends are looking for a spot.  You want to be sure you show up on top.

Bottom line – get to optimizing your Facebook page and ask your customers for reviews.  This brings a whole new meaning to SoLoMo (Social Local Mobile).

How do you see this impacting the industry? Do you think the feature will attract wide spread traction or will this be a bust?

The most important part of our job here at DrivingSales is making sure we’re serving our dealers in the best way possible and listening to our community.  We’ve had our ears to the ground, reached out to many of you, and frantically taken notes on how we your experience on DrivingSales.com can be better.  And now, after nearly 18 months of push and pull, we’re thrilled to announce the launch of the new and improved DrivingSales.com website.

From first notice, you’ll see that many things have changed:

Forums come first:  The conversations between automotive professionals are what push each community member to be better. It is the centerpiece of DrivingSales and the driving force of the community. It’s where people engage, interact, and find inspiration to build more profitable businesses.  This is why we’ve placed the forums front and center.  You can see which posts are new, how active the conversations are, and easily contribute your piece to the puzzle.

Celebrate the Individual:  Logging in to your DrivingSales.com account is going to change your world.  We’ve totally revamped the profile pages, allowing you to share more impactful and relevant information, and make better connections. And now, the information you see is the most relevant to you.  You’ll want to be sure to select your departments and topics of interest because that is what will shape the content you see in your feed.  Of course, you’ll always be able to find any of the information posted on DrivingSales.com by navigating through topic or individual blog pages, but now you won’t have to put up with those pesky posts that you could care less about.  If SEO is your thing, then let your feed be riddled with SEO. If you’re like me and not so inclined toward SEO, worry not.  It doesn’t have to be there if you don’t want it.

We’ve stepped up our game – it’s time for you to step up yours.  You’ll notice the new addition of achievements and the DScore.  Your engagement with the community online and your activity in the industry offline will begin to form your treasure chest of achievement badges and your ever-climbing DScore.  Fear not, loyal DrivingSales members, all activity will be retroactively included, making sure the years you’ve spent posting and commenting will live on forever.

There’s plenty of new zoozoos and whamwhams to dig into, so have at it!  Notifications have been dusted off, profiles have been upgraded, and there’s lots of great navigation to dive into.  But the one thing that hasn’t changed through all of this is our commitment to serving you, the dealer.  If you have any questions or feedback, leave them here or email me directly.   We’re excited to hear what you think! Tour the features of the new DrivingSales.com site by clicking here.

Of course, nothing about the DrivingSales.com Update would be possible without a HUGE shout out to the team that made it possible.  Great work done by Steven Richard, Kevin Vance, Mark Leeds, and Brian Young, led by Eric Miltsch and Jared Hamilton.  Way to go, team!

Follow John on his adventure to finding a new website provider with DrivingSales Vendor Ratings -- The Unbiased Venue for Automotive Ratings and Reviews.  

Rate your solution providers or browse the categories.

If your dealership doesn’t have a free Google Enterprise account by now, signing up will cost you.

Yesterday, Google announced a change to their Google App for Businesses – no more free accounts.  Individuals can still access for free the suite, which includes products like Gmail and their cloud based storage, Google Drive, but companies, effective immediately, will have to purchase the premium version, “Google Apps for Businesses”, which still includes Gmail and Drive, but also includes phone support, a massive inbox, and 99.9% uptime guarantee with no scheduled downtime. 

What does this mean for dealers?

If you already have Google Apps for Business, have no fear!  This update will not affect existing customers.  Any company that got their suite of products prior to the recent announcement for free, will be grandfathered in with their original rate.  In other words, lucky you – you get all the Business benefits for free.

If you don’t have a Google account for your business yet, the only option you have is to purchase the premium version with all the goodies for $50 per user, per year.  It doesn’t matter if you’re a one point store with 12 employees or a 40-store dealer group with 12,000 employees; the cost structure is the same across the board.

How does this impact you?  Do you already use the Google suite of products under a free account?  Maybe you were never considering it in the first place.  I’m interested to hear how this announcement influences your thoughts and your next steps.

The Innovation Cup and Dealer Best Idea Awards are a highlight of the DSES each year, and this year’s finalists personified excellence with their forward-thinking, smart and practical ideas. Congratulations to the winners of the 2012 Innovation Cup and Dealer Best Idea Awards! The Innovation Cup Award was presented to cDemo’s Mi VIDEO for the most innovative dealership solution of the year, while the Development Team for the Walser Automotive Group, won the 2012 Dealer Best Idea Award for the most innovative auto dealership strategy. Both awards were presented at this year's sold-out DrivingSales Executive Summit.

All finalists presented their solutions and best idea strategies onstage at the 2012 DrivingSales Executive Summit, which had approximately 1,000 attendees. A panel of dealer judges asked questions of each presenter and scored each solution / strategy. The solution with the highest score was presented with the 2012 Innovation Cup Award. The strategy with the highest score won the 2012 Dealer Best Idea Award. Cash and prizes totaling $10,000 were awarded to the winner of the Dealer Best Idea Award and runners up. Walser Automotive Group’s development team, represented by Director of Marketing Alan Krutsch, took home the Dealer Best Idea Award, receiving the highest score for their strategy of adding an “I’ll Take It” button to all inventory, allowing customers to begin the purchase process online. First runner up was Matthew Smith, Marketing Manager, Darling’s, followed by Bryan Wilson, eCommerce Director, Ehrlich Group; Daniel Boismier, Internet Director, The Suburban Collection, and Wendy Lowen, Internet Manager, Park Chrysler Jeep. 

cDemo’s Mi VIDEO – a solution which captures real vehicle video walk-arounds by customers and uploads them to YouTube – received the highest score, winning the Innovation Cup Award. Finalists were: CallSource’s DealSaver with Mobile App; DMEautomotive’s DriverConnect Mobile App; HookLogic’s Lead2Show, and J&L Marketing bLinked®. 

DrivingSales is committed to nurturing and encouraging innovation in the industry, and we were proud to showcase cDemo’s Mi VIDEO and Walser Automotive Group’s ‘I’ll take it’ winning solution and strategy, along with a stellar group of finalists, in front of an audience of their peers. Congratulations to our winners and finalists!