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Wednesday, April 8, 2009
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Issue 15
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VOLUME 3
ISSUE 15
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News and Industry Trends
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350+ dealers/GMs/ISMs/eCommerce Directors to converge on Las Vegas
Charging full-speed ahead and bucking the odds...the 6th Digital Dealer Conference & Exposition in Las Vegas April 19th-21st will host more than 350 dealership attendees and 50 exhibitors, as well as many allied industry attendees.
"Damn the torpedoes...full speed ahead!" was the approach of the Dealer Communications team in planning and promoting the event. "We chose not to participate in the recession," said Dealer Communications President Michael Roscoe. "We are increasing market share substantially and when this blows over, we will be in a most enviable market position," he added.
Roscoe advises dealers, GMs, ISMs and e-Commerce directors to take the same approach and attend the conference, which is themed, "How to Endure, Survive and even Thrive in Tumultuous Times".
When asked about dealers and managers who put their heads in the sand, Roscoe said, "A recession...is a terrible thing to waste. Sure, any unnecessary costs must be cut, and every necessary costs must be cut back...but if that's all you do, you're missing the boat."
Check out the conference Web site, look at the agenda, and if nothing else, you'll know what you won't be learning...and what your competitors will be doing to bury you.
6th Digital Dealer Conference & Exposition
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Toyota to revamp in U.S.
Toyota Motor Corp. is considering a major reorganization of its U.S. operations, bringing sales and manufacturing under one powerful executive, in an effort to keep closer tabs on its American business, which traditionally has been Toyota's biggest source of profit but is now losing money, The Detroit News reports. The Japanese automaker's top managers are expected to decide how to structure the U.S. operations this month, say people familiar with the situation. A decision would be formalized in June, at the same time that Toyota will anoint a new president in Japan, Akio Toyoda, the grandson of the company's founder. The prospect that Toyota may install an executive in the United States with over-arching powers appears likely now that the management in Japan has taken the unusual step of rehiring a former top executive with U.S. experience. Yoshimi Inaba, who retired abruptly in 2007, is returning to take a position with Toyota in the United States.
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Wholesale prices continue to rise in March
Wholesale used vehicle prices increased 0.6 percent in March from the previous month, Manheim reports. The company's Used Vehicle Value Index now stands at 106.1 for a year-over-year decline of 1.5 percent. With March showing the third consecutive monthly increase, seasonally adjusted wholesale values have risen 8.3 percent in 2009. "The strength in auction pricing has been the result of the reduced supply that is normally generated by trade-ins on new vehicle sales, the substitution effect from new to used vehicle purchases, a strong tax refund season, and some easing in the availability of retail financing," said Manheim chief economist Tom Webb.
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vAuto's Pollak urges dealers to adopt new tactics
Auto dealers will need to adopt new methodologies to manage and market their used-car inventories in order to remain profitable during the current economic crisis, according to author and used-car sales expert Dale Pollak. The chairman and founder of Chicago-based vAuto, Pollak and Rafi Hamid, vAuto’s senior director of digital marketing services, will be featured speakers at the 6th annual Digital Dealer Conference and Expo on Monday, April 20, at the Mirage Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
[FULL STORY]
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Black Book: Used market still strong
Black Book averaged more than 1,040 vehicle adjustments each day throughout last week, with the car side showing its strongest positive moves this year, Ricky Beggs, Black Book’s Vice President and Managing Editor, reports in his weekly video blog, Beggs on the Used Car Market. The greatest adjustment downward was $1000. The biggest increase was $800, but overall most of the adjustments were closer to the $100 and $200 range and many of those continue to still go up.
[FULL STORY]
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eBay Motors launches local classified ads for used cars
eBay Motors announced the launch of eBay Motors Local Classifieds for individual sellers. Designed to connect car buyers and sellers within a 100 mile radius of their local market, this new online classified listing option for eBay Motors is being offered free to sellers for a limited time.
[FULL STORY]
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Manheim in joint venture with vehicle exporter Akinvest
With an increasing number of American and international dealers purchasing used vehicles in the North American wholesale marketplace and shipping them overseas, Manheim has enhanced its ability to provide export services through a joint venture with Akinvest, Manheim Senior Vice President, International Operations Mike Langhorne announced today. Akinvest is the parent company of Freightmar International and ExportTrader.com.
[FULL STORY]
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Jay Dyer & Associates offers pre-owned department checklist
Consulting firm Jay Dyer & Associates announced the availability of a free white paper, titled “Assessing Your Dealership: A Pre-Owned Department Checklist.” It's intended to help dealers assess the performance of their pre-owned departments. The re[prt focuses on four key elements that can make or break a pre-owned department: people, processes, procedures and products. It encourages dealers to take a cold, hard look at their pre-owned departments and make adjustments accordingly before it is too late. To access it visit www.jaydyerassociates.com.
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The missing link for sourcing better used vehicle inventory
Reliable vehicle transportation
More Info on the Digital Dealer Conference
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NADAguides.com unveils new research tools
NADAguides.com said today it has completed the final development of its upgraded research tools. These exclusive tools allow consumers to do more Vehicle Comparisons, determine Total Cost of Ownership and to conduct the most Comprehensive Vehicle Search on the internet, according to the company, which says no other automotive Web site can provide the same kind of data rich content for consumers.
[FULL STORY]
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AAA says costs to own, operate vehicle remain constant
AAA's 2009 edition of "Your Driving Costs" shows the average cost of owning and operating a new car in the U.S. has remained relatively unchanged despite lower fuel costs. The average cost for a new sedan driven 15,000 miles per year is 54 cents per mile, only 0.1 cent less than reported in 2008.
[FULL STORY]
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In Dealer magazine
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How to hold a used car sales meeting
by Tim Deese
As you.jpg?i=040809120601) read this article, I am going to make a prediction on what you do with it. If you are a dealer, you will hand it to a GSM, GM or a sales manager and say, “You need to read this, and let’s do it.” You will never, ever follow up on this. Whoever gets it from you will read it and only half of them may contemplate it. I am guessing probably 10 percent or less across the board that read this will actually act on it. The most amazing thing is that of the 10 percent, whether it be domestic or import dealers in the country that do the absolute best job, do not have cash flow problems, inventories are in line, are profitable year to date, and never have headaches with used car inventories are the ones that do exactly this. Read more
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Dealer Pre-Owned
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We welcome your comments and suggestions regarding our eNewsletter and its content. Please email us with any feedback you want to share. If you have a tech questions or suggestion for topics we should cover in future issues, just drop us an email and we will check it out for you. Please include your contact information, including phone number in case we need to call you and get additional information on your suggestion or comment. Email us
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Copyright © 2009 Dealer Communications Inc.. All rights reserved.
Information in this newsletter is provided by both proprietary and public sources.Dealer Communications makes no claims as to the accuracy of information provided by third party providers.
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