Ryan,
I already think you're shooting yourself in the foot, leg, chest and head. Since you're on the TrueCar program, you should cancel all other third party leads and let Mr. Painter supply you with leads. Once they displace Cars.com on Yahoo, which will happen in a few days, you're leads should skyrocket. Since you're dealership will become less profitable, I would probably start looking to cut expenses while you're at it. Your eMarketing director position would be the first job I would look to eliminate. Why pay you and TrueCar to generate the same leads.
Sure your percentage of sales on TrueCar are probably small now, but give that some time. Like a Chia pet, give it nourishment and watch it grow. You think 50K a year is a lot, well wait until you're dealer is writing TrueCar a monthly check for 50K. That day is right around the corner.
Using TrueCar is for the weak and lazy. Sorry for the bluntness, but I am not one to remain silent when I see a problem. Real eMkareting Directors find a way to generate their own leads. You have a legend working right around the corner from you. I am not saying there isn't a place for AutoTrader and Cars.com because I believe there is. Brian Pasch wrote a great article about this recently and it's a good read. AutoTrade and Cars.com offer a lot more value to dealers than TrueCar. IMHO, you're axing the wrong players.
You're fueling a company that is going to drastically alter the automotive industry. TrueCar is like a drug dealer just starting out. They plan to expand their empire at your expense. They will leave a path of destruction as they grow.
I would love to have a conference call with your owners and shed some light on all this.
Get off the drug!
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