Short and Sweet Message from Finishline Ford

Dale/Robert-I firmly believe that a strategic alliance between the two greatest "game changers" in the used car biz is on the horizon. After spending two days last week sitting next to Bill Pearson and after sharing drinks and dinner with him at NADA and the 20 group meeting I concur with Dale 100% as to why Bill is so successful. I know two other guys who are in the same work ethic class as Pearson and they go by the names of Pollak and Hollenshead and when they get together it will be "Katie bar the door". It is my priviledge to consider both of your friends.

Dale,

Bill Krause from Polar Chevrolet invited me to attend a twenty group meeting this week in Dallas. They are a great group of dealers, all use vAuto and swear by your product. The results are clear, vAuto really works. Bill Pearson from Finish Line Ford was also there and I had the pleasure of meeting him. His numbers are spectacular and he attributes his success, in large part, to vAuto. I can clearly see why, but he also has something that is very rare in our world. This is a hard working guy and is not caught up in what worked in the past. I have been in the wholesale business for over thirty years and I have seen hundreds of "flash in the pan" solutions and braggers come and go. Some last longer than others but they all have a finite lifespan. Some make you scratch your head and ask yourself how could that be working. In the case of Bill Pearson, I attribute his succsess to a guy that uses all resoures available, with common sense, but most important, he is a hard working, dedicated guy. It is a inspiring to know our industry is still revealing guys like Bill with incredible spirit. Hats off to vAuto...and Bill Pearson.

Roert Hollenshead

Bob,

I just woke up, checked my email and saw this post.

Wow, what a privilege to have you reading and writing on my blog. I talk about you and your trade-in market every day around the country. I was somewhere this week and mentioned your name and a dealer said, “Hollenshead…he’s the #1 wholesaler in the country, when he says he’s going to do something, get out of the way, he’s going to do it.” As all of us in the industry know that’s probably the finest compliment for a car guy. I would like to share just a few thoughts with you and the other readers.

First, before I comment on Mark Rikess’ and Bill Kraus’ 20 group, I just want to let you know how impressed I am with your new trade-in market and buy-book technology. I’ve seen many products/services that are right, but too early. Sometimes being too early is exactly like being wrong. Your new trade-in market is the right idea at the right time, and it’s going to change the way that cars are bought and sold. I think it’s imperative that every dealer take a look at what you’re doing and consider the implications for themselves and the future of our business. I look forward to learning more about it and helping dealers understand and use it.

A couple thoughts about this 20 group. Mark Rikess is a brilliant guy who had the right idea back in the 1980’s, but unfortunately too early. The size and success of that group today suggests that the time is now right for one price or limited negotiation selling. While I would like to take some credit for the success of these dealers, in reality I have to attribute my success to them.

It was about 5 years ago, when Bill Kraus and Mark Rikess invited me to address this group at a meeting in Philadelphia. Ironically I was a co-presenter with Chip Perry. Up until that point, I had never met Chip. It was pretty funny because Chip ended up running the software for me as I presented. How cool was that to have an industry icon like Chip driving the software for me, a neophyte. Well suffice it to say, after spending the better part of a day with this group, I understood that I had found a deep well of knowledge and inspiration that ultimately became the Velocity Method of Management and the underpinnings of the vAuto software. I often say that I didn’t create this stuff, but rather learned it from the most successful dealers in the country, and these are the guys. I continue to work closely with each and every one of these dealers, and today I’m proud to say that they are not only my teachers but also my friends. How lucky am I to have crossed their paths?

Now, just a few words on Bill Pearson. This guy truly is the real deal. The real deal as far as a human being, you couldn’t find another more loyal and committed friend. As a dealer, I completely agree he exemplifies the best of the best. With Bill, there’s no ego or pretense of importance. In fact, when I picture Bill in my mind’s eye with the limited vision that I have, I picture a hard working, blue collar guy with the most solid American values of work ethic and pride. He is definitely a gem in the industry, one that everyone should aspire to be like.

Sorry for a little bit of a gushy response, but you happen to touch on a few subjects that I’m passionate about. Bob, I hope you’ll continue to read and contribute to the blog.

Thanks again, I’m looking forward to spending more time with you.

Dale

Is that from all sites tracked by vAuto? What sites is he using to get that many SPRs? How many units are currently in his inventory?

We are trying to grow our used business and that informaiton will help me judge how we are doing.

Thank you,

Chad VanNess
Vaughn Automotive

Chad,

I’m not sure of all of the sites that Finishline Ford uses, but I know that they definitely use AutoTrader and Cars.com. I'm positive that the 1.7 million SRPs that he's tracking for is just on AutoTrader since he normally gets around 1.5 million. I'm not sure how many cars Bill has in stock at the moment, but it's a bunch. Keep in mind that they turn about once a month. Bill Pearson is a machine, he's probably one of the smartest and hardest working guys that you'll find in the business today. Thanks for your question.
Dale

That is great with just autotrader.com. I am trying to use Finishline Ford as a bench mark. If they have 1.7m SRPs and 400 units each vehicle is generating 4250 SPRs per unit. We are at about 3900 SPRs per unit. So we have some work to do.

Can you find out how many units they have been in stocking this month?

Chad

Chad,

I'm not at liberty to divulge too much information with respect to any client, however I think that you are in the ballpark of their unit count. Please keep in mind, however, that there are five factors that drive SRPs. They are as follows:

Screen real estate (the package that your purchase)
Number of units in stock
Price to market percentage
Demand index of inventory
Number of Active Shoppers on that site in your market

Note that the first 4 of these 5 factors are controlled by you, the dealer. Pearson max's each one of these out, and that's why he does so well. I've written about these factors in my new book, Velocity 2.0: Paint, Pixels and Profitability. Hope this helps.

Thanks,
Dale

Thank you for the information. I am half way through the book and am gaining great insight into the used vehicle business.

Chad

Thank you Chad. I appreciate the feedback.