Peter Lloyd

Company: Levi's Auto Sales

Peter Lloyd Blog
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Peter Lloyd

Levi's Auto Sales

Jun 6, 2018

Luxury Auto Dealers Must Realize That They Are The Real Product

Everywhere you look, in every corner of the world, luxury automobile sales are booming. It's not showing any signs of slowing down anytime soon, either. Industry analyst Technavio estimates that the global luxury cars market will continue to grow at a CAGR of 12% through 2022, making it one of the hottest automobile sales sectors in recent memory.

That growth means that luxury automobile dealers will find no shortage of willing buyers in the coming years. It doesn't mean, however, that those dealers won't have to work harder than ever to make sales. The reason that luxury automobile dealers have their work cut out for them is due in large part to a better-educated consumer class and a shift in the expectations of luxury buyers everywhere. To make the most of the current sales boom in the luxury automobile market, here's what dealers need to know.

Empowered Consumers

It should come as no surprise to any competent auto dealer that customers come through the doors today knowing quite a bit more about the vehicles they're considering than ever before. This trend mirrors a shift in most other luxury markets, where consumers now use the internet to learn every detail about the items they're looking to acquire. When arriving at a dealership, not only are they more aware of the technical specifications of the cars on the lot, but they're intimately familiar with things like dealer costs and markups, as well as which options are worth the price they'll pay. That level of consumer knowledge can be a challenge to dealers since it makes maintaining profit margins more difficult.

Turning Weakness to Strength

In the luxury market, though, an educated consumer can work to the dealer's benefit, if they handle it appropriately. The first thing to remember is that the average luxury goods buyer is far more interested in their overall experience than they are in saving every penny possible. To take advantage of this shift in attitude, the dealership itself must become the product. It's a good idea to begin with a no-negotiation policy, even if it means prices are a little higher than local competitors.

A no-negotiation policy will enable a potential customer to deal with a single point of contact at the dealership throughout their experience. Their representative will handle the entire sale, and can focus on speed and convenience, which are two things that luxury buyers value most. After all, for most affluent consumers, their time is their most valuable luxury item, and they'll appreciate a frictionless experience.

The Sale Is Just The Beginning

For a luxury dealership to thrive in the current hot market, they must also focus on the post-sale customer experience. Offering customer services like door-to-door pickup and drop off for appointments is a must, but that's only the beginning. In today's digitally-connected environment, it's also essential for luxury dealerships to maintain a robust online presence.

That includes developing a customized smartphone app that will allow busy customers to interact with the dealership on-demand, and from anywhere. Offering service in that manner allows customers to complete tasks like scheduling service appointments, checking historical data about their vehicle, and even arranging for in-home test drives when they're considering a new vehicle.

The Ultimate Luxury

It's no longer enough to offer the ultimate in driving experiences. Luxury purchasers today aren't interested in a hard sell or in how much of a discount you're willing to provide. They're looking for their buying experience to feel like a luxury in and of itself. Today, consumers define true luxury as an ability to get what they want in a way that respects the value of their time and promises an experience that's first-class from beginning to end.

Luxury dealerships that adjust their methods to accommodate this attitude will reap the benefits, not only through increased sales but also by building their brand into the undisputed go-to luxury dealership in their area. For dealers, that kind of sterling reputation is more than just a luxury, it's the key to lasting success.

Peter Lloyd

Levi's Auto Sales

Finance manager/Sales

844

No Comments

Peter Lloyd

Levi's Auto Sales

Apr 4, 2018

Why Car Dealerships Need to Take a Second Look at Cryptocurrency

Currency is not what it used to be. The web has changed things considerably. Currency took a major step forward with cryptocurrency, which car dealerships should embrace.

This type of money was introduced in 2009, and now millions of people own a chunk. The following are a few reasons why dealerships should accept this digital currency.

A Few Dealerships Have Taken the Leap

It should be noted that many retailers and small businesses are making steps to accept cryptocurrencies. Furthermore, there are also a number of car dealerships taking the leap, too. Some of the first dealerships to accept digital coins as payment are online car marketplaces, which makes sense because they sell online.

There are also some large automakers who are also accepting this form of payment such as Tesla. These companies trust helps solidify the value of digital coins. There is no telling how far this is going to go in the auto sales industry, but it is wise to jump in early rather than later.

Get an Edge Over Others

Cyrptocurrency is very new, and a lot of it is still a work progress. It provides optimal privacy, anonymity with each transaction, and it protects all users from nation-related problems that could fluctuate currency. There are definitely a number of benefits.

Jumping into this digital currency now helps you learn more about this currency before others. It gives your dealership and your sales people the opportunity to get familiar with all the cryptocurrency available at any given time, and it also gives you a chance to explore cryptocurrency wallets to keep your money safe. This also allows you to build an established procedure to accept and process cryptocurrencies, which is probably going to become more important as time moves on.

Transaction Fees are Significantly Reduced

Another reason car dealerships should consider accepting digital monies deals with transaction fees. Most car buyers use banks or credit unions. This means the dealership has to deal with the crippling transaction percentage fees linked to these types of monetary institutions. Some could end up charging a dealership between three to four percent per transaction.

Fees are deceased with digital monies because there is no middle man. The customer nor the dealership has to worry about banks or credit card companies. All dealerships need to do is find a transaction partner who specializes in cryptocurrencies. The good thing is that most of these digital transaction percentage fees fall around one percent though these companies do have a minimum transaction threshold that has to be surpassed by the dealership in order to receive discounts.

A Word of Caution

The benefits of accepting this new form of payment are obvious, but that does not mean you should not take a few precautionary steps. Dealerships are going to have to accept that there are a few responsibilities a dealership needs to assume before accepting cryptocurrency. For one, it is important that your accounting team create additional procedures to handle digital transactions since digital coin transactions are virtually anonymous.

This means there is no paper trail online to follow, so it is up to you to create that paper trail to protect yourself should something go wrong. You should also make sure to set an immovable return policy. Cryptocurrencies are quite new, so the market is fluctuating. Just make sure that any refund you have to issue is issued at the original rate.

Car dealerships should start looking into digital tokens or altcoins, even if you are opting to stay out of this emerging currency. There is no harm in learning more about it, and it may help prepare you for the future.

Peter Lloyd

Levi's Auto Sales

Finance manager/Sales

1625

2 Comments

Mark Nicholson

Absolute Results

Apr 4, 2018  

I'm going to go ahead and disagree on this one.

Does a dealership want to gamble?

Financial institutions don't fluctuate like markets.

While lots are interesting (thanks to the media) it just doesn't seem like a wise venture for a business where the product is $20,000+. Also, there probably aren't enough people out there that heavily invested in crypto that might use to buy a new vehicle. My 2 cents.

 

Kelly Kleinman

Dealership News

Apr 4, 2018  

It's bad enough that our current currency is no longer based on a gold standard let alone another currency based on ether. I'm with Mark on this one.

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