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NADA 2008 Review

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#21
Nice review Jeff and I'm still sorry we didn't get to meet up in San Fran. I have to agree with you that the convention layout in San Francisco is less than ideal.

Alex is correct in stating that many vendors are as lost as the dealers they're trying to do business with. After sacrificing nearly 8 years of my life to Reynolds and Reynolds I of course had to go by their booth to see if anyone I know still works there. I did see many old friends but, everyone seemed lethargic, uninspired or generally deflated. I don't know how their web division is going to survive. They're losing clients in big numbers at a rapid pace and there's nothing new to their product. I attended Ralph Paglia's ADM reception and he told me that ADP is eating Reynolds lunch on the DMS side as well.

My flip-flop vendor award goes to Dealer.com. It's almost as if they themselves don't remember that they started building websites with heavy flash (I am glad they've turned this corner though). I'm also amused by Total Control Dominator. If a dealer really wants total control of their SEM efforts they simply need to spend some time learning Google AdWords then Yahoo and MSN. That's total control!

NADA 2008 left me wondering what the next big thing is going to be. Right now it's more of the same or variations of what already exists.

All the best,

Shaun
 
#22
Interesting little teaser there, Mr. Edward Brown!!! You certainly piqued my interest...at least enough to do a quick search for some more information.

Since you are reluctant to spill the beans here on DealerRefresh, I will take it upon myself:

The Dealerflow solution is targeted at the nation’s 21,000 new car and light truck dealerships. Addressing some of the industry’s most problematic areas, Dealerflow says it will help dealers reduce turnover, increase worker and team productivity and better manage multiple dealership locations. Dealerflow says these improvements will translate into enhanced customer satisfaction, higher profitability and a more loyal workforce. “Dealerflow will fundamentally change the way dealer companies are managed,” said Brown. “We see it becoming the lifeblood of getting things done at well-run dealerships.”

Dealerflow’s product is being designed to model both single store dealerships or multi-dealership groups. The software will include multiple forms of communication, including instant messaging, mobile text messaging and email. In addition, the software will include its own content management system. “Each department will have their own blog,” he says. “The way that we’re doing syndication of posts is such that you can go to any point in the organization and indicate which groups the post is for.” It will also include applications for human resources administration.

Well, maybe that doesn't exactly spill the beans!!! Apparently Mr. Brown is a little skittish when it comes to describing his concept.

You can read more by clicking my name or this link :

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www.insideindianabusiness.com
 
#25
Was there a DealerRefresh.com Meetup 2008? How did that go?

I read all the posts and wanted to comment on a few:

Alex - my wish is that we as an industry get together to establish communication standards for websites to talk to CRMs. The benefit of doing so would be to leverage real-time web activity. i.e. major buying signals all over the place. Easier said then done, but I'm using the Law of Attraction here. You have to put it out there.

Joe - I think your best website providers will be small shops of 1 - 3 people who approach the task like a fine art and fine science.

Shaun - You are correct, SEM is easy to learn, and doing so does give the ISM complete control. One issue I have with SEM providers is that they pad their numbers too much. A year ago, I sat in a presentation where they offered x amount a clicks for $1.50 a piece. The rep did not like it when threw down on the table a spreadsheet showing that I'm getting them for $0.58 cents a click.

The next big thing will be Mobile Marketing IMO. GPS and the phone is merging right now. Garmin just came out with a phone. Position-based marketing will be amazing. Until then, it'll just be new features on what we already have.
 
#27
Show was slower this time around than in previous years... both in terms of dealer attendance and vendor mega-marketing campaigns. It was the first time in years that I didn't almost get hit by one of thost massive BZResults Billboards-on-Wheels.
 
#28
Corey, after being a test pilot dealer for eBay local for several months the results were disappointing. I have also spoken with many dealers that were having the same results. I can't speak for the other dealers but I performing all the "best practices" according to eBay.

There seems to be a disconnect with the traditional eBay motors and the new eBay motors/local. Maybe it's just me but even when talking with some eBay reps, they too give me a feeling that they have been disappointed with the response. This might be a good subject for a post.
 
#29
@Jeff:
Any luck on the V-Auto interview?

@ Wayne:
How long does it take to track and tweek your pay to click to hit the .58 Mark? Could the time be better utilized perfecting the Autotrader process? Just some thoughts, I have been intrigued by pay per click, just curious of the R.O.I. money wise and time wise?
 

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