jon.berna said:

I think you also have make sure it's apples to apples in what you are calling cost. Since many have bundles with other products that don't generate VDPs.

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Part of my cost per VDP theory was that I would be able to add on/upgrade packages without seeing an increase in cost per VDP. If they wanted me to add cost, my return should be an increase in VDPs, therefore keeping the cost per VDP at the same level or lower. This played out for me in a couple of instances where increasing packages actually lowered my cost per VDP BUT increased VDPs per unit without a measurable increase in Leads. I don't know of many products options today that wouldn't be tied to a VDP or CTA that would stem from a VDP.

Jim Lease said:

Dan - Here is a screenshot of your survey results from 2020 for a number of dealers subscribing to Cargurus.

View attachment 9347

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Please send me my own Doc link lol

Dan - Here is a screenshot of your survey results from 2020 for a number of dealers subscribing to Cargurus.

Hey Dan, we still tracking VDPs for 3rd parties, with a benchmark of <50 cents cost per VDP. Our benchmark for 3rd party cost per lead leads (forms, calls, messages from third party site) is <$50.00 Post pandemic, not all 3rd parties recovered, some lost 20-30% of their traffic it would seem, requiring dealers to cancel for 6 months, then come back in at a lower rate. Here is a link to a sample of our reporting:
Analytics Express from Generations Digital

I kinda still stand by the video above from 2018 that cost per vdp is a reflection of your stocking, merchandising within each provider. When you compare across I think it tells you how good of a deal you have with each of them as a baseline. I think you also have make sure it's apples to apples in what you are calling cost. Since many have bundles with other products that don't generate VDPs.

If you ultimately want to reduce the overall cost per vdp then that's going to take some effective deal making. Sounds to me like you actually need to know if you have good deals, not how to measure value, as you have too many ways to do that.

Reviving this relic thread but I'm in the process of whittling down a 3rd Party Classified at the moment. AutoTrader, Cars.com, CarGurus, CarFax, TrueCar, Edmunds, Oh my. We seem to have amassed all of them again while I was helping with the operations side of our business. I'm jumping back into marketing and we seem to of added everything under the sun. Admittedly, CarFax is safe because the ROI is legit for us and Edmunds will escape the ax because we are grandfathered into a ridiculously low subscription. TrueCar we only have at two locations and they have much better account support this time so they're probably not going anywhere either (plus we're flat rate and not per sold with them). That puts Cars.com, AutoTrader, and CarGurus on the clock. I'm running a 90 day comparison for Leads to Sold and I'm compiling referral data and events but how much weight do I put on VDP in 2025? I can't find the older forum post (pre 2014) but I swear that I added a Google sheet at some point that all could report their cost per VDP. $0.45 per, $0.75 per, etc and I'd use that as a comparison between vendors. I'll run those today and post the results for our markets.

Do you still count VDP views or cost per VDP when comparing 3rd Party Classifieds?

Feldie77 said:

Hey all,

How do you obtain a list of what dealer plates you have at your dealership. I'm new and I need to know what plates I am suppose to have so I can verify what's missing. How do I get a list of plates issued to my dealership by the dmv. I'm in New York btw.

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Call the New York State DMV phone number and provide them your dealer number.
In Ohio, we have a login where we can see all the plates, renew registrations, and order new plates.

Is TikTok going to make it past Sunday?

Alex Snyder said:

I'm staying away from these EV companies

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Watch Gasoline. If it spikes, EV demand will follow.

I just bought PoleStar today at $1.20 a share, adding it to my Rivian $RIVN buy

SpinCarShow said:

our software and platform is the best...

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bobjones said:

looks like a fit for what I'm needing. What's the cost?

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SpinCarShow said:

3 different price points depending on...

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BillKVMotorCo said:

How well do the humans doing the ordering do at considering these very good points in their ordering decisions?

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I fully agree! I guess it was more of a question to you. If this solution was to be created, what data do you think should be factored in to the recs?

and yes, it hurts my head thinking about this too.

BillKVMotorCo said:

I asked both my OEM reps (GM and Toyota). They both said no.

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In a perfect scenario, what data should we include for creating a new car stocking strategy. This is the tough part in my opinion.

Is the past 12 months of sales an indicator of what will sell in the future? Maybe, maybe not.
What about VDP counts on your website? maybe, maybe not.
What about past XXX amount of days of market sales in your area?
What about search demand from classified sites?
What about taking into account over or under supply of a model / trim, etc. in a market to either chase volume or fill a supply gap?

Am I overthinking it? Maybe, maybe not.. haha

BillKVMotorCo said:

On the flip side, here is an AI innovation request: Let me plug in my last 6-12 months of sales and order my units for me according to sales volume. TIA

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I wonder how much of this goes into GM's Recommended orders. I'd like to think it takes into account some of this, but then again they are the OEM..

BillKVMotorCo said:

If you could figure out a way to order dealers some used cars you would be rich, Joe

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I build exotic algos for stock trading, its all math based pattern hunting. Should be doable.

Setup: Create a dealer's data lake of 1st party sales history, 3rd party local demand and supply data. Have UCM create a no-go list of YMMs he'd never buy. Build an algo that can dynamically create a 'inventory demand' sheet.

Execute: WIth the 'inventory demand' sheet, go find matches. Have the bot canvas presale auction listings looking for matches... Publish the matches to a watch list page for the UCM, allow UCM to set alert criteria (i.e. set thresholds for the bot to auto-buy w/o UCM's oversight), hand off all high value VINs to UCM live personally.

I'm sure someone's building this.

Claude's bot*.
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BillKVMotorCo said:

here is an AI innovation request: Let me plug in my last 6-12 months of sales and order my units for me according to sales volume.

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new or used?

I think a simple background would make for a better outcome, but this shows the power.

reminds me of something i did at my old group...13 years ago

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Update: Use AI to use dealer's VDP photo to create video

Jaw Dropping Quality.

AutoMagic Labs mission, trying to stay at the tip of the spear.

wait till they IPO JD Power. Data is AI's Plutonium. IMO, MarketCheck gets swallowed up prior to IPO (they want NeoVIN).

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Is NeoVIN an amalgamation of data sources (feeds and scraped data) to return enhanced VIN decoded data? I see on the docs of their website they partner with other VIN providers, but I don't see how their NeoVIN is different from their Enhanced VIN. Interesting data source for sure, though. Being able to get highlighted features along with specific cab length, etc. in one shot is really nice. Their pricing is confusing, though.

BillKVMotorCo said:

Bringing this subject back up. What do you guys think about allowing AI to do sold follow-up on orphaned customers?

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Bucking Frilliant! hmmmm….

Kirksville Rollout, Phase 1: SELL THE OLD DOGS 1st.
• 19 Used VINs over 60 days old

Result? 18 Sold total
• 50% SOLD 5.8 days after we added VDP boost. (9 VINs, avg age 89 Days)
• 25% SOLD days after we added VDP boost. (5 VINs, avg age 99 Days)

Really Old Dogs (over 90 days)
• 100% SOLD 12.5 days after we added VDP boost. (7 VINs, avg age 111 Days)

Summary: 18 of 19 Sold total
• 95% SOLD 15 days after we added VDP boost. (18 VINs, avg age 89 Days)

Cost $475

BillKVMotorCo said:

Look at that thing! How could you not want to buy it?

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DISC? Yup.
(Does It Sell Cars)

I need a name for this. "VDP Boost"?

They should re-word a lot of that to be more customer friendly, but generally speaking what they wrote is spot on. We've done plenty of virtual deals / out of state deliveries for 10+ years now. My thoughts below.

• Sales Hours - this is just dumb
• Same day delivery can be done if customer lives within a reasonable distance, but also depends on the financing source (financed vs waiting on check to clear, or wire to hit)
• Their payment requirements are best practice to avoid being scammed or burned, otherwise it's only a matter of time.
• Having buyers sign docs with a notary partner that goes to the customer's location is another way to avoid fraud, but it's also not as customer friendly.
• If the customer is looking at a new Chevrolet, the rebates ARE dictated by the customer's residential zip code, so the rebates and rates specific to the out of state customer may changes depending on if it's in a different geographical region than the dealership.
• Tax implications: You can easily provide exact taxes and fees - plenty of partners for this, so this isn't true.
• Registration req's: this is a good process, because it prevents fraud, and the insurance verification is there to protect the dealership (from accidents) before the title is flipped into the customer's name.
• Requirement of Dealership handling of title and registration: this is by far the easiest way to avoid messing up out of state titling and registration (since we generally use an out of state titling agency that are experts). Plus it's oftentimes located in your lender agreements that you handle these items as well.
• Emissions: This is legit.
• 3rd Party Shipping: dumb that the dealership doesn't handle it, although it can be very frustrating
• 60 day completion seems like they are err'ing on the side of caution, although some states DMV's / BMV's often take longer (not always a dealership issue!

Bomin Out of State Rules

Bomin Chevy Fla.

• Sales hours for out-of-state transactions are strictly Monday-Friday, 9:00-3:00, with no vehicle holds during inquiry period.
• Same-day delivery is rarely possible due to required documentation.
• Payment requirements are specific: cash, approved personal/business checks under $50,000, wire transfers, or US debit cards only. No drafts, letters of credit, cashier's checks, or funds on hold are accepted.
• Buyers must sign all documents in person with a Notary partner in their home state due to identity verification requirements.
• Vehicle pricing may differ from advertised rates as Chevrolet incentives vary by region, specifically differing from Miami-Ft Lauderdale rates.
• Tax implications vary by state - non-reciprocal states require 6% Florida tax plus home state tax. Some states cannot provide exact local/city/county fees upfront.
• Registration requirements include state/VIN specific insurance, state driver's licenses, and matching addresses on all documentation. Processing time can extend up to 60 days.
• New vehicle purchases and financed pre-owned vehicles require dealership handling of title and registration for lender and Chevrolet compliance.
• State-specific emission requirements may restrict certain vehicle sales. Home state vehicle/emissions inspection may be required before title/registration.
• Third-party shipping companies can be recommended, but dealership does not handle shipping directly.
• Dealership targets 60-day registration completion, contingent upon receiving all required documentation and state-specific requirements.

Uncle Joe stock pick: $REKR @2.28 per share.

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