Thanks so much for the question, and I would encourage you to always challenge ideas and approaches. I don’t think that anyone should accuse vAuto of driving down prices, because vAuto makes absolutely no recommendations as to where dealers should price. vAuto only reports to dealers the marketplace as seen by consumers on the internet. It is the dealer’s sole decision without guidance from vAuto as to where to price vehicles.

Now, if you mean that providing dealers with such tools does in fact give them the ability to see the competition and price lower, that’s a different question. You should not, however, be angry with vAuto, because if it wasn’t us, it would be somebody else. vAuto however, provides not just software, but also philosophy and methodology as to how to operate competitively, responsibly and profitably. If you and others read any of my books, Velocity: From the Front Line to the Bottom Line; and Velocity 2.0: Paint, Pixels and Profitability, you will see how much we emphasize that capturing customers is not a game of pricing the lowest. Having a competitive price is important, but it’s not about having the lowest price. Rather, it is about creating and maintaining certain conditions of your inventory like market day’s supply, cost to market and price to market along with certain conditions of on-line merchandising. When and only if all of the these factors exist in proper form and balance, can a dealer expect to achieve Velocity success.

Personally, as a dealer’s son, dealership owner and industry software provider, I owe everything to dealers. No one is more uncomfortable than I am when dealers use low price alone as the means to achieve success. I work tirelessly with dealers, both vAuto and non-vAuto clients to help them understand the means to be more successful. This is my passion and who I am. Please let me know your thoughts.

Thank you,

Dale

I
work with a 3rd Party vendor to dealerships and we have had a long relationship with
VAuto, and it’s been a pleasure. I have had a thought stuck in my head over the
years and I am really anxious to hear what your rebuttal would be…so here it
is; Years ago, dealers would tell their potential customers that they would
beat the competition’s offer by 10% in order to earn their business, it seems like
they’re now trying to beat the competition by 10% without even having a
customer. I believe this is due to market pricing tools and strategies like VAuto
that supply the dealer with the target pricing based on what others have
advertised. I understand the need to be priced right in the market, but isn’t
this in fact lowering the market artificially?

Thanks so much for the advice. I’ll work hard to do a better job.

Dale

Thanks for the question. First, let me say that I don’t think that an 80 car dealership is small. In fact, it’s probably the size of a typical vAuto client. The real question however is how many of the 80 you’re selling each month. With much effort using the Velocity Method of Management, you should be selling 80 – 100 per month. We have many independent dealerships performing at this rate. If you’re committed to learn and implement the Velocity strategy, the vAuto software and its associated costs will definitely more than pay for itself. If however you’re inclined to be a bit more casual and laid back in your approach, then the lower priced Red Wagon system would probably be a better choice. The Red Wagon solution is only mobile, and it does not have the vAuto Performance Management relationship component. Essentially it gives a dealer access to knowledge and understanding about their marketplace, but does not promote any specific performance objectives. If you’d like to know more, please feel free to call me, and again, thank you for your interest in vAuto.

Dale

Thanks for your question. Red Wagon is a mobile application that we developed for small, independent and wholesale dealers. It provides the essential tools for pricing, appraising and stocking, but it is only available on a mobile platform (i.e. iPhone and Android). It’s really slick and seems to meet the needs of a small operation. Let me know if you’d like to see a demo.

Thanks,

Dale

Wow, congratulations. Your success is phenomenal. I think that the fact that you assumed the position of UCM and found the Velocity Method of Management about the same time, speaks volumes about your success. In other words, there is very little about used car management that you had to unlearn and let loose of. Your story serves as an inspiration to both me and others. Keep up the great work and please forgive me for not yet visiting. I’ll ask my assistant, Susan to reach out to you and see if we can’t find a time that works. Thanks, and again, congratulations.

Dale