NADA 2013 Orlando Day 2 Update: A Good Man For Dealers, Gen Y In F&I

02.11.2013

At last year’s National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) meeting, I was among a lot of dealers who waited with bated breath for the group’s Mercer-led facilities study. The study did a good job of highlighting the problems with factory facility mandates but it’s next-step conclusions left me, and a lot of dealers, wondering if NADA [...]

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NADA 2013 Orlando Day 1 Update: A Busy Booth and Exciting News

02.10.2013

I think the National Automobile Dealers Association nailed it when they chose this year’s convention theme—“Experience the Momentum.” The industry’s momentum was palpable throughout the day on the convention exhibit floor. Dealers have got a better grip on their businesses and a brighter future than we’ve felt or seen in recent years. At the vAuto [...]

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3 Reasons “History” Fails As Foundation For Used Vehicle Inventory Strategy

02.04.2013

From time to time, I’m asked to explain why I don’t believe that a dealer’s history of used vehicle sales is a reliable guide to determine the cars to acquire and sell in the current market. I’ll often begin my explanation with an important caveat: I do not dismiss the value of history to provide [...]

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How effective are these third-party web sites?

01.30.2013

Recently a good friend and great Velocity dealer asked if I knew anything about the effectiveness of the following websites, and I responded that I did not, but we agreed to put the question to the Velocity community. Any insights would be appreciated. The BJ’s Auto Buying Program Cars For Sale Mojo Motors  

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A Buy/Sell Prediction: A Velocity-Focused Store Is Worth More

01.24.2013

There’s been a fair amount of industry press articles highlighting renewed interest among public and private dealer groups to acquire stores in the coming year. In this week’s Automotive News, the venerable CEO Roger Penske of Penske Automotive Group discusses his company’s interest in acquiring dealerships here and abroad. A week earlier, the publication highlighted [...]

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Webinar Alert: Turn Car-Buying Frustration Into Competitive Advantage

01.18.2013

Join vAuto’s Todd Kinzle and me at 2 p.m. (EST) on Friday, January 25, for a one-hour webinar that will help you ease the pain of purchasing the “right” auction vehicles for the “right” money in today’s competitive wholesale environment. Todd and I will share how dealers are reinventing their auction acquisition strategies by combining [...]

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3 Ways To Push Back When Velocity Principles Are At Risk

01.17.2013

I received a note from a Midwest velocity dealer who ran into unexpected trouble during a recent meeting with his dealership managers and majority partner: Dale: I had my annual forecast meeting last week with all my managers and our majority shareholder in the company. Keep in mind 2012 was a record year financially for [...]

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Three Take-Aways From CarMax’s Used Vehicle Playbook

01.09.2013

Just before Christmas, CarMax released results for its third quarter of fiscal year 2013. The company, like many velocity dealers, saw positive results in used vehicles—total unit sales were up 16 percent for the quarter compared to the prior year, an increase that included a 12 percent gain in same-store sales volumes. As I reviewed [...]

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The “Big” Man at vAuto Isn’t Quite So “Big” After All

01.08.2013

Today at the ATC Annual Sales Meeting, I had a chance to meet Shaquille O’Neal. You would never guess that I’m 6′ tall when you compare us side-by-side. Some Shaq Facts:  Height – 7’1″; Shoe Size:  23; Past Nicknames Include: The Real Deal

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What percent of your inventory is under 30 days of age?

01.07.2013

Below is an email from a Velocity dealer and my reply: Mr. Pollak, I have been a vAuto dealer for over a year and I love the product. Our grosses have improved and the vAuto market tool has helped me properly value trade-ins. My frustration has been our inability to prevent aged inventory. Since the [...]

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