Marketing has long been the follower.  The second thought.  The supplement to the game plan.  But with “Big Data” sweeping through the automotive industry, marketing is finally taking its place on the main stage.

It is no secret to anyone that Big Data is changing everything.  With data, we now know almost everything about our customers, from what, when, and where they are searching on the web to their mobile search behavior, to their ‘likes’ and much, much more.  But how we use this data can make or break us.  If completely ignored or even used incorrectly, this data can drown retailers, leaving them on the wrong side of the tidal wave.

That’s why the DrivingSales Executive Summit is stoked to announce a special keynote presentation by Professor Zettelmeyer. This Northwestern University Professor of Marketing and author of a groundbreaking study on the impact of the Internet on automotive retailing will illustrate how ‘Big Data’ is turning organizational marketing into the leader, not the follower. He'll demonstrate how marketing can and should be used, and made actionable, across departments as a genuine ROI imperative.

A leading expert on marketing and the impact of the symbiosis of data and technology on business, Florian Zettelmeyer is the J. L. and Helen Kellogg Professor of Marketing at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and was named the 2011 L.G. Lavengood Outstanding Professor of the Year. Prior to his appointment at Kellogg he was an Associate Professor of Marketing and chair of the marketing group at the Haas School of Business, University of California at Berkeley.

Professor Zettelmeyer’s keynote titled Is Marketing Dead? How Big Data is Changing the Future of Marketing examines the way that ‘Big Data’ is driving (or should be) a sea change in marketing practices extending across all organizational functions -- and the positive impact this can, and should, have on automotive retailing.

This is just another information-packed agenda item that DSES plans on delivering to its decision-making attendees, and one you definitely won’t want to miss. If you haven’t booked your hotel room yet, be sure to do that as well as there are only a dozen or so rooms left and they won’t last long.

Be sure to reserve your seat today by registering at www.drivingsalesexecutivesummit.com/registration before tickets are sold out. 

Marketing has long been the follower.  The second thought.  The supplement to the game plan.  But with “Big Data” sweeping through the automotive industry, marketing is finally taking its place on the main stage.

It is no secret to anyone that Big Data is changing everything.  With data, we now know almost everything about our customers, from what, when, and where they are searching on the web to their mobile search behavior, to their ‘likes’ and much, much more.  But how we use this data can make or break us.  If completely ignored or even used incorrectly, this data can drown retailers, leaving them on the wrong side of the tidal wave.

That’s why the DrivingSales Executive Summit is stoked to announce a special keynote presentation by Professor Zettelmeyer. This Northwestern University Professor of Marketing and author of a groundbreaking study on the impact of the Internet on automotive retailing will illustrate how ‘Big Data’ is turning organizational marketing into the leader, not the follower. He'll demonstrate how marketing can and should be used, and made actionable, across departments as a genuine ROI imperative.

A leading expert on marketing and the impact of the symbiosis of data and technology on business, Florian Zettelmeyer is the J. L. and Helen Kellogg Professor of Marketing at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and was named the 2011 L.G. Lavengood Outstanding Professor of the Year. Prior to his appointment at Kellogg he was an Associate Professor of Marketing and chair of the marketing group at the Haas School of Business, University of California at Berkeley.

Professor Zettelmeyer’s keynote titled Is Marketing Dead? How Big Data is Changing the Future of Marketing examines the way that ‘Big Data’ is driving (or should be) a sea change in marketing practices extending across all organizational functions -- and the positive impact this can, and should, have on automotive retailing.

This is just another information-packed agenda item that DSES plans on delivering to its decision-making attendees, and one you definitely won’t want to miss. If you haven’t booked your hotel room yet, be sure to do that as well as there are only a dozen or so rooms left and they won’t last long.

Be sure to reserve your seat today by registering at www.drivingsalesexecutivesummit.com/registration before tickets are sold out. 

There are tons of automotive conferences in our industry.  Every time we turn around, another has popped onto the scene and you can only hope that it’s located somewhere that you’d actually like to travel to.  This difficult this is trying to decide which one to attend.  As conferences grow, they have the ability to lose their purpose and focus on increasing registration numbers instead of how to provide more value to their attendees.

The DrivingSales Executive Summit has always been dealer-driven and laser focused on fueling Dealership Operators with cutting edge strategies and peer-to-peer collaboration.  But what started out as an invitation-only event has now grown to the point where the fire marshal had to reprimand us for an over-capacity room in 2011.  The demand for this premier automotive conference has forced us to allow for an additional number of registrations, and we’re excited and eager to be able to provide an educational destination for progressive dealers to be inspired and to network with the industry’s most successful innovators.

The question then becomes how do we maintain the intimate networking and attention to dealers that a 100-person conference provides, but still listen to our awesome community and makes space for all those who are eager to come?  We think we’ve figured just the ticket.  For the first time at DSES, is providing private meeting space so dealer attendees can further facilitate peer-sharing, discussion, and implementation of the summit’s best-practices information.  

The private meeting rooms provide a productive opportunity for dealers with coinciding interests to meet before the summit to map out their game plan for getting the best of what DSES has to offer -- or, after the event, to discuss takeaways from the conference and formulate their plans for execution upon returning to the dealership.

Hearing from speakers like Billy Beane discussing how he transformed the Oakland A’s and baseball as a whole to execute a data driven strategy, as well as seeing digital icons Facebook and Google on-stage together – DSES promises to be the premier automotive conference that you won’t want to miss, and providing extra meeting time for dealers to prepare for or digest the actionable items they’ll learn throughout the three day event will surely add to the intimacy and collaboration dealers need to retain full value out of this jam-packed agenda.

Be sure to register while the early bird rate is still active and there are seats left. The meeting rooms are available on a first come, first served basis at no extra charge* so contact Larry Schlagheck (larry@drivingsales.com) for more details. Dealer groups, state and dealer associations, as well as OEM and vendor dealer groups are eligible to reserve meeting space.

PS – Stay tuned for DSES news as it develops on Twitter with @drivingsales and on the DrivingSales Facebook page. Participate in the conversation with the #DSES hashtag as preparations continue throughout the year.

See you in October for the most profit-building automotive event of the season at the Bellagio in Las Vegas October 21^st-23^rd!

*A minimum of 20 dealers must attend in order to qualify for free meeting space. Companies or dealer groups hosting the meeting will be required to buy a bulk group of tickets, at a discount rate. All dealers attending the meetings must be registered for DSES. Additional items such as A/V equipment, food, and drink are not included.

You can find the official release under the Recent New section at www.drivingsalesexecutivesummit.com.

There are tons of automotive conferences in our industry.  Every time we turn around, another has popped onto the scene and you can only hope that it’s located somewhere that you’d actually like to travel to.  This difficult this is trying to decide which one to attend.  As conferences grow, they have the ability to lose their purpose and focus on increasing registration numbers instead of how to provide more value to their attendees.

The DrivingSales Executive Summit has always been dealer-driven and laser focused on fueling Dealership Operators with cutting edge strategies and peer-to-peer collaboration.  But what started out as an invitation-only event has now grown to the point where the fire marshal had to reprimand us for an over-capacity room in 2011.  The demand for this premier automotive conference has forced us to allow for an additional number of registrations, and we’re excited and eager to be able to provide an educational destination for progressive dealers to be inspired and to network with the industry’s most successful innovators.

The question then becomes how do we maintain the intimate networking and attention to dealers that a 100-person conference provides, but still listen to our awesome community and makes space for all those who are eager to come?  We think we’ve figured just the ticket.  For the first time at DSES, is providing private meeting space so dealer attendees can further facilitate peer-sharing, discussion, and implementation of the summit’s best-practices information.  

The private meeting rooms provide a productive opportunity for dealers with coinciding interests to meet before the summit to map out their game plan for getting the best of what DSES has to offer -- or, after the event, to discuss takeaways from the conference and formulate their plans for execution upon returning to the dealership.

Hearing from speakers like Billy Beane discussing how he transformed the Oakland A’s and baseball as a whole to execute a data driven strategy, as well as seeing digital icons Facebook and Google on-stage together – DSES promises to be the premier automotive conference that you won’t want to miss, and providing extra meeting time for dealers to prepare for or digest the actionable items they’ll learn throughout the three day event will surely add to the intimacy and collaboration dealers need to retain full value out of this jam-packed agenda.

Be sure to register while the early bird rate is still active and there are seats left. The meeting rooms are available on a first come, first served basis at no extra charge* so contact Larry Schlagheck (larry@drivingsales.com) for more details. Dealer groups, state and dealer associations, as well as OEM and vendor dealer groups are eligible to reserve meeting space.

PS – Stay tuned for DSES news as it develops on Twitter with @drivingsales and on the DrivingSales Facebook page. Participate in the conversation with the #DSES hashtag as preparations continue throughout the year.

See you in October for the most profit-building automotive event of the season at the Bellagio in Las Vegas October 21^st-23^rd!

*A minimum of 20 dealers must attend in order to qualify for free meeting space. Companies or dealer groups hosting the meeting will be required to buy a bulk group of tickets, at a discount rate. All dealers attending the meetings must be registered for DSES. Additional items such as A/V equipment, food, and drink are not included.

You can find the official release under the Recent New section at www.drivingsalesexecutivesummit.com.

Summer is in full force these days – the weather is hot, the BBQ is on, and people are out and about.  Hopefully that means they’re making their way to your lots looking for new summer rides or family vehicles to take the kids to soccer games.  While you’re keeping busy with your summer customers, we’ve put together this week’s Top 5 Trending posts – the most shared and most engaging posts from last week.  Be sure to check them out!

Facebook and Google On-Stage Together #DSES 2012! – Lindsey Auguste

http://www.drivingsales.com/blogs/LindseyAuguste/2012/06/18/facebook-and-google-onstage-together-dses-2012

Wi-Fi Tracking and Why You Need to Know About It – Russ Chandler

http://www.drivingsales.com/blogs/TricksforTrade/2012/06/19/wifi-tracking-and-why-you-need-to-know-about-it

Time To Change Group Portal Websites To Avoid Google SEO Penalties – Brian Pasch

http://www.drivingsales.com/blogs/paschconsulting/2012/06/22/time-to-change-group-portal-websites-to-avoid-google-seo-penalties

Cars.com Reviews Coming to Google+ Local – Russ Chandler

http://www.drivingsales.com/blogs/TricksforTrade/2012/06/22/carscom-reviews-coming-to-google-local-

Be a Beastie Boy – Joe Webb

http://www.drivingsales.com/blogs/joewebb/2012/06/18/be-a-beastie-boy

Summer is in full force these days – the weather is hot, the BBQ is on, and people are out and about.  Hopefully that means they’re making their way to your lots looking for new summer rides or family vehicles to take the kids to soccer games.  While you’re keeping busy with your summer customers, we’ve put together this week’s Top 5 Trending posts – the most shared and most engaging posts from last week.  Be sure to check them out!

Facebook and Google On-Stage Together #DSES 2012! – Lindsey Auguste

http://www.drivingsales.com/blogs/LindseyAuguste/2012/06/18/facebook-and-google-onstage-together-dses-2012

Wi-Fi Tracking and Why You Need to Know About It – Russ Chandler

http://www.drivingsales.com/blogs/TricksforTrade/2012/06/19/wifi-tracking-and-why-you-need-to-know-about-it

Time To Change Group Portal Websites To Avoid Google SEO Penalties – Brian Pasch

http://www.drivingsales.com/blogs/paschconsulting/2012/06/22/time-to-change-group-portal-websites-to-avoid-google-seo-penalties

Cars.com Reviews Coming to Google+ Local – Russ Chandler

http://www.drivingsales.com/blogs/TricksforTrade/2012/06/22/carscom-reviews-coming-to-google-local-

Be a Beastie Boy – Joe Webb

http://www.drivingsales.com/blogs/joewebb/2012/06/18/be-a-beastie-boy

Imagine:  A beautiful upscale ballroom, darkened except for a spotlight on stage where the world-renowned Gary Vaynerchuck finished giving quite possibly the most power-packed social business operational advice that dealers have ever heard, and dealers responding with a clamorous standing ovation. 

Those who walked out of that Bellagio ballroom at last year’s DrivingSales Executive Summit in October left the room feeling energized, empowered, and thinking, “How are they ever going to top that?”

DrivingSales has long been working on doing just that.  As a dealer-driven event, the dealer community has had a heavy hand in our preparations and is inspiring a world-class event unlike any other.  As always, dealers suggest and ultimately select the cutting-edge topics to be discussed, with absolutely no influence from vendor sponsors.  What was that?  No vendor influence on content, no pay-to-play.  Of course, we can’t spill all of the content beans just yet, but what kind of person would I be if I didn’t share a few of the details?

Now imagine:  A keynote from a sports world celebrity; an industry-first co-presentation from two of the largest and most influential digital companies in the world; the release of proprietary research from one of the leading marketing academics on the influence of the Internet on the auto industry, and a closing keynote from one of the world’s top 5 digital influencers, presented jointly with J.D. Power & Associates’ Automotive Marketing Roundtable.   And so much more.

More details will be coming your way ASAP, but in the meantime, DSES registration is now open!  The 2012 DrivingSales Executive Summit will be held at the Bellagio Las Vegas from Sunday, October 21^st through Tuesday, October 23^rd. Last year's summit was standing room only, and although DSES 2012 will allow for an expanded number of registrants, it is expected to sell out quickly.  Register now to take advantage of early bird registration through August 31^st, go to: http://drivingsalesexecutivesummit.com/features/standard-registration/ 

Imagine:  A beautiful upscale ballroom, darkened except for a spotlight on stage where the world-renowned Gary Vaynerchuck finished giving quite possibly the most power-packed social business operational advice that dealers have ever heard, and dealers responding with a clamorous standing ovation. 

Those who walked out of that Bellagio ballroom at last year’s DrivingSales Executive Summit in October left the room feeling energized, empowered, and thinking, “How are they ever going to top that?”

DrivingSales has long been working on doing just that.  As a dealer-driven event, the dealer community has had a heavy hand in our preparations and is inspiring a world-class event unlike any other.  As always, dealers suggest and ultimately select the cutting-edge topics to be discussed, with absolutely no influence from vendor sponsors.  What was that?  No vendor influence on content, no pay-to-play.  Of course, we can’t spill all of the content beans just yet, but what kind of person would I be if I didn’t share a few of the details?

Now imagine:  A keynote from a sports world celebrity; an industry-first co-presentation from two of the largest and most influential digital companies in the world; the release of proprietary research from one of the leading marketing academics on the influence of the Internet on the auto industry, and a closing keynote from one of the world’s top 5 digital influencers, presented jointly with J.D. Power & Associates’ Automotive Marketing Roundtable.   And so much more.

More details will be coming your way ASAP, but in the meantime, DSES registration is now open!  The 2012 DrivingSales Executive Summit will be held at the Bellagio Las Vegas from Sunday, October 21^st through Tuesday, October 23^rd. Last year's summit was standing room only, and although DSES 2012 will allow for an expanded number of registrants, it is expected to sell out quickly.  Register now to take advantage of early bird registration through August 31^st, go to: http://drivingsalesexecutivesummit.com/features/standard-registration/ 

There’s no doubt that the advent of the Internet has rushed in sweeping changes throughout the automotive industry.  But perhaps even more profound, as many people are pointing out, is the changing face of the customer.  There’s constant talk about the millennials and how they operate, how they shop, and how they interact, and quite frankly, how it “ain’t like it used to be.”  Well, I can’t speak to how customers used to be, but I do know what they look like today.  Keep these characteristics top of mind when trying to reach the younger, more Internet-oriented customer (like me!):

Customers are digital – Duh?  Yes, that’s my initial reaction even when I say it to myself, but what does that really mean?  Customers are on the Internet all the time.  They live here, shop here, hangout with friends here.  Shoot, I even work here.  If you’re not operating with a significant online presence, you’ve long missed the boat.  But there’s more.  As Gary Vaynerchuk mentioned in last year’s DSES keynote, we’re not looking at billboards.  It’s true.  That’s not to say that traditional media is ineffective.  It’s not.  It fully supplements the online presence, but you have to be online for it to supplement.  And try thinking about traditional media in new ways.  Put your radio ads on Pandora or format your TV commercials to be YouTube appropriate.  We’re just as easily susceptible to advertisements and marketing as the customer two decades ago – we’re just looking and listening in different places.  Find us.

Customers want transparency – It comes with the territory of being an Internet researcher.  People my age feel like they should be able to find all of the answers online – all of them.  If they can’t find your address, better luck next time.  If your search function is even hard to use, might as well kiss them good-bye.  Not to mention if you are purposely with holding information.  What’s the price?  Does that include doc fees?  Are there any rebates?  Not having the tangible details available online creates a chasm of distrust between you and a potential customer.  Be up front or be forgotten.

Customers want consistency – If you haven’t figured it out yet, we live online.  But that doesn’t mean that we don’t come out from behind our backlit computer screens.  When we do, though, we want out experience to reflect what we learned online.  When you give a price online, you sure as heck better match it in-store.  Do you market that your salespeople are friendly and don’t negotiate? That better run all the way through the process, down to the accessories department.  The experience you create online needs to match the experience in-store or the disconnect won’t sit right.  And we want it to sit as right as our worn-in, comfy computer chairs.

Customers WANT to like you – As I mentioned before, customers today aren’t all that different from customers two decades ago.  We want to have a relationship with our dealers as much as our parents did.   But instead of calling our friend on the phone to say how great you were, we want to share it on Facebook, Google, Twitter, and Yelp.  We WANT to be able to give you good reviews and we WANT to advocate for you and your store.  The need to create and sustain that relationship is equally important if not more so than the one you created with our parents because we can tell 130 friends at a time (on average).   We have to write bad reviews, but we get to write good ones.

Young customers may not be as passionate about cars as our parents were (although there are some die-hards, example: Hunter Swift) and we might prefer to hold a cell phone in our hand over a memo pad, but we’re still customers.  We want to buy a car at a good price from a dealer we trust.   How different is that?

There’s no doubt that the advent of the Internet has rushed in sweeping changes throughout the automotive industry.  But perhaps even more profound, as many people are pointing out, is the changing face of the customer.  There’s constant talk about the millennials and how they operate, how they shop, and how they interact, and quite frankly, how it “ain’t like it used to be.”  Well, I can’t speak to how customers used to be, but I do know what they look like today.  Keep these characteristics top of mind when trying to reach the younger, more Internet-oriented customer (like me!):

Customers are digital – Duh?  Yes, that’s my initial reaction even when I say it to myself, but what does that really mean?  Customers are on the Internet all the time.  They live here, shop here, hangout with friends here.  Shoot, I even work here.  If you’re not operating with a significant online presence, you’ve long missed the boat.  But there’s more.  As Gary Vaynerchuk mentioned in last year’s DSES keynote, we’re not looking at billboards.  It’s true.  That’s not to say that traditional media is ineffective.  It’s not.  It fully supplements the online presence, but you have to be online for it to supplement.  And try thinking about traditional media in new ways.  Put your radio ads on Pandora or format your TV commercials to be YouTube appropriate.  We’re just as easily susceptible to advertisements and marketing as the customer two decades ago – we’re just looking and listening in different places.  Find us.

Customers want transparency – It comes with the territory of being an Internet researcher.  People my age feel like they should be able to find all of the answers online – all of them.  If they can’t find your address, better luck next time.  If your search function is even hard to use, might as well kiss them good-bye.  Not to mention if you are purposely with holding information.  What’s the price?  Does that include doc fees?  Are there any rebates?  Not having the tangible details available online creates a chasm of distrust between you and a potential customer.  Be up front or be forgotten.

Customers want consistency – If you haven’t figured it out yet, we live online.  But that doesn’t mean that we don’t come out from behind our backlit computer screens.  When we do, though, we want out experience to reflect what we learned online.  When you give a price online, you sure as heck better match it in-store.  Do you market that your salespeople are friendly and don’t negotiate? That better run all the way through the process, down to the accessories department.  The experience you create online needs to match the experience in-store or the disconnect won’t sit right.  And we want it to sit as right as our worn-in, comfy computer chairs.

Customers WANT to like you – As I mentioned before, customers today aren’t all that different from customers two decades ago.  We want to have a relationship with our dealers as much as our parents did.   But instead of calling our friend on the phone to say how great you were, we want to share it on Facebook, Google, Twitter, and Yelp.  We WANT to be able to give you good reviews and we WANT to advocate for you and your store.  The need to create and sustain that relationship is equally important if not more so than the one you created with our parents because we can tell 130 friends at a time (on average).   We have to write bad reviews, but we get to write good ones.

Young customers may not be as passionate about cars as our parents were (although there are some die-hards, example: Hunter Swift) and we might prefer to hold a cell phone in our hand over a memo pad, but we’re still customers.  We want to buy a car at a good price from a dealer we trust.   How different is that?