http://www.dalepollak.com Used Car Market - A Guide for Success Sat, 04 Feb 2012 22:59:08 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.3 http://www.dalepollak.com/2012/01/22/looktobook/ http://www.dalepollak.com/2012/01/22/looktobook/#comments Sun, 22 Jan 2012 22:49:37 +0000 dpollak http://www.dalepollak.com/?p=2563 I received the following email regarding look-to-book. My response is below. Could you tell me what the look to book % should be? Thanks Pam   Pam, There are many variables that can affect look-to-book. Some of these include the strength of your new car franchise, whether you require customers to make a firm commitment [...]]]> http://www.dalepollak.com/2012/01/22/looktobook/feed/ 1 http://www.dalepollak.com/2012/01/18/cars-pack-money/ http://www.dalepollak.com/2012/01/18/cars-pack-money/#comments Wed, 18 Jan 2012 19:09:43 +0000 dpollak http://www.dalepollak.com/?p=2554 Here’s an exchange that I recently had with a used car manager. Dale, My name is Josh. I am the used car manager at a Toyota store. At our store, we averaged 46 new and 30 used for 2011. We have had modest growth in used cars the last couple of years until last year [...]]]> http://www.dalepollak.com/2012/01/18/cars-pack-money/feed/ 0 http://www.dalepollak.com/2012/01/17/unknowns-car-retailing/ http://www.dalepollak.com/2012/01/17/unknowns-car-retailing/#comments Tue, 17 Jan 2012 18:32:45 +0000 dpollak http://www.dalepollak.com/?p=2545 I recently read a column in the New York Times that discussed the “known unknowns” of our current time. The writer, author Geoffrey Wheatcroft, defines the term as “things that were not at all inevitable, and were easily knowable, or indeed known, but which people chose to ‘unknow.’” He then describes how “known unknowns” were [...]]]> http://www.dalepollak.com/2012/01/17/unknowns-car-retailing/feed/ 6 http://www.dalepollak.com/2012/01/13/early-results-provision-system-powerful/ http://www.dalepollak.com/2012/01/13/early-results-provision-system-powerful/#comments Fri, 13 Jan 2012 14:39:24 +0000 dpollak http://www.dalepollak.com/?p=2538 Marc Ray of Grogan’s Town Chrysler Dodge Jeep in Ohio sent me an email this morning telling me that his AutoTrader Demand Index for December 2011 was 210.  The demand index is a measurement that shows how well a dealer’s inventory is aligned to what shoppers in their market are searching for on AutoTrader, relative [...]]]> http://www.dalepollak.com/2012/01/13/early-results-provision-system-powerful/feed/ 0 http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/11/11/provisionthe-future-vehicle-inventory-management-arrived/ http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/11/11/provisionthe-future-vehicle-inventory-management-arrived/#comments Fri, 11 Nov 2011 14:40:21 +0000 dpollak http://www.dalepollak.com/?p=2436 Today—11-11-11—is huge for me, vAuto and the automotive retailing industry. This day marks the official release of Provision from vAuto. This new inventory management engine is the fulfillment of a vision I’ve had for a number of years—one that kept pushing me to find a better way to blend technology and market intelligence to make [...]]]> http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/11/11/provisionthe-future-vehicle-inventory-management-arrived/feed/ 0 http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/10/04/inventory-market-values-fallen/ http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/10/04/inventory-market-values-fallen/#comments Tue, 04 Oct 2011 22:07:49 +0000 dpollak http://www.dalepollak.com/?p=2357 Here’s a great question from an outstanding Velocity dealer. Dale- Given the deflationary wholesale market that we’re probably going to see over the next couple of months what are your thoughts about holding onto vehicles longer/waiting to wholesale them until dealers tell their used car managers in late December/January to “go get me some used [...]]]> http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/10/04/inventory-market-values-fallen/feed/ 7 http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/09/23/tommy-gibbs-leadership-training-seminar/ http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/09/23/tommy-gibbs-leadership-training-seminar/#comments Fri, 23 Sep 2011 18:24:38 +0000 dpollak http://www.dalepollak.com/?p=2337   I have good news and bad news. The good news is I’m bringing my dynamic used car workshop to Chicago on Thursday, October 27, 2011, 7:30 AM until noon at The Westin Lombard Yorktown Center, Lombard, IL.  The bad news is the hotel only has a room that will accommodate 15 attendees. So, you [...]]]> http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/09/23/tommy-gibbs-leadership-training-seminar/feed/ 0 http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/09/21/wholesale-values-decliningbut-caution-remains/ http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/09/21/wholesale-values-decliningbut-caution-remains/#comments Wed, 21 Sep 2011 21:51:07 +0000 dpollak http://www.dalepollak.com/?p=2331 There’s been some wholesale pricing relief in recent days as values have dropped across several key vehicle segments. But I was struck by a couple trends within the broader, largely seasonal dynamic: Black Book notes a high number of downward price adjustments on vehicles in a single day—2,625 individual vehicle price adjustments that ranged as [...]]]> http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/09/21/wholesale-values-decliningbut-caution-remains/feed/ 2 http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/06/20/2248/ http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/06/20/2248/#comments Mon, 20 Jun 2011 20:42:20 +0000 dpollak http://www.dalepollak.com/?p=2248 I saw this free webinar offered by industry consultant Steve Nickelsen and think that it would be valuable for all Velocity dealers to view.  Steve is a very smart guy and understands the Velocity Method of Management as well as anyone. DealersEdge® Free Webinar Production Tune in to this Free Webinar Broadcast of  Steve Nickelsen [...]]]> http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/06/20/2248/feed/ 3 http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/05/26/velocity-seminar/ http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/05/26/velocity-seminar/#comments Thu, 26 May 2011 18:27:21 +0000 dpollak http://www.dalepollak.com/?p=2202 AutoTrader.com will be hosting a seminar in Portland Oregon on Wednesday, June 1, 2011 at the Sheraton Portland Airport Hotel.  Seminar presenters include Howard Polirer of AutoTrader, Dale Pollak of vAuto and Phil Sura of UnityWorks Media.  Learning objectives include: Define Free Agency and why this stocking strategy is critical for success in the current [...]]]> http://www.dalepollak.com/2011/05/26/velocity-seminar/feed/ 0