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Uncle Joe's Make Over Diary

@JoePistell - THANK YOU for the kind words and shout out. It sure means a lot.

We've known each other for many years now, all due to DealerRefresh. The friends and connections I have made, so many of us have made here has been priceless and one the best things that has come out of DealerRefresh. This year marked the 10 year anniversary. Ten years ago I signed-up for Typepad and said to myself, I'm going to start blogging...about our industry on technology, marketing trends and the evolution of the dealership. The rest was history. Well, not exactly. :)

Another thanks to you Joe for all your participation through-out the years. You're insight and wisdom has kept many of us on our toes (twisting a few personalities here and there) and has help to cultivate and distinguish the difference between the Refresh community and the others that have cropped up over the last 10 years. And thanks for starting (and keeping up with) this priceless "Uncles Joe's Make Over Diary" thread back in March of 2011. An amazing thread full of so, SO MUCH. I encourage anyone and everyone to start back on page one and read all the way through.

Thanks Joe!
 
A smart phone user update:

IBM Watson's Black Friday Sales Report -2015-
http://www-01.ibm.com/software/marketing-solutions/benchmark-reports/black-friday-report-2015.pdf

Desktop: % of Sales: 64%
Desktop 2015 vs. 2014: -12%

Mobile: % of Sales: 36%
Desktop 2015 vs. 2014: +30%​


Yup, "Mobile is eating the world", but, this is interesting...

Mobile: % of Site Traffic: 58%
-vs-
Desktop: % of Site Traffic: 43%​

Desktop traffic to sales ratio gives us insight into the shoppers intent.

upload_2015-11-30_7-41-48.png


HTH
Joe
 
Looking for a cool last minute Christmas gift Idea.. Under $40?

Hate arriving to a dark house? This gift will "Automatically turn on the light(s) before you arrive home"


Buy this Belkin wifi outlet switch for $40.
upload_2015-12-18_15-23-25.png
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Belkin-WeMo-Switch-F7C027fc/203536127

The home owner can turn this outlet on and off via it's app... or... use IFTTT.com to control this outlet. Use IFTTT to throw a geo fence around the home (no charge). Drive into the geo, light goes on... out, light goes off
https://ifttt.com/p/wemo/shared


HTH
Joe
p.s. its $70 on Amazon
 
@Bill Simmons tweet just came across:
“The FTC opens the hood on automobile distribution.”
http://www.autonews.com/article/20160105/RETAIL/160109946/ftc-seeks-comment-on-state-auto-retailing-laws

“Are consumers benefitting from the current distribution system for automobiles or are changes needed?” wrote the FTC’s Tara Isa Koslov, from the Office of Policy Planning, and James Frost, from the Bureau of Competition, in a notice titled “The FTC opens the hood on automobile distribution.”

“It has been many years since the FTC took a deep dive into the business dynamics and regulatory framework of this industry. The time has come for us to kick the tires again in this critical sector of the U.S. economy,” they wrote


Warning, this is not another nuisance, this is a significant threat to the dealer franchise industry.

This moves us from Defcon 5 to Defcon 4.
upload_2016-1-6_11-7-12.png
 
haha
Joe I was literally just combing through your "diary" and stealing ideas when I saw that you are with dealer.com... We just signed up our three stores with you guys so... (crumbles notebook paper and throws in trash...)

John,

I'd really like to hear what ideas you found interesting and why.



p.s. I'm Senior Director of Innovation here at Dealer. I spent 10 yrs as a marketing director inside dealerships. I had a multi-million dollar ad budget and a crew of 12. My team helped sell 6,000 cars a year. My Dealer Principal was brilliant. He gave me lots of freedom, but, 2/3rds of my pay was on deliveries (not on traffic, leads, etc). So, my pay was aligned with his, I obsessed on YEILD (not on fluffy ideas).​
 
Joe just some random tidbits like credit app accessibility, thoughts on live chat etc. Dealer.com is currently working on our new sites and I am looking forward to the change. Our conversion rate was dismal with our previous provider and with already healthy traffic I expect that the new sites will provide a noticeable boost in production. We will see! Plus some of your posts are just plain funny!
 
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Do you work for a HIPPO* that doesn't listen well?

upload_2016-2-22_9-17-29.png

Gifted HIPPOs are rare!
Gifted HIPPOs are demanding & make you work late!
Gifted HIPPOs biz is always growing AND changing.


Idiot HIPPOs are far more common.
Idiot HIPPOs are demanding & make you work late!
but...
Idiot HIPPOs biz is stuck in the mud
and...
Idiot HIPPOs blames shortfalls on everyone around them.



*Highest Paid Person's Opinion


p.s. thnx to Mark at http://www.fanaticsmedia.com/ for the concept.
 
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