You go to the same dry cleaners week after week. The prices are competitive, the service is good, and it’s convenient. But, are you loyal? Is being satisfied equal to being committed? Do you refer friends? Would you switch if a new store opened in a more convenient location? The answers are most likely no, no, no, and ... Read More »

When the existing online social networking juggernaut implements an advanced search tool for its users, what better place is there for automotive players to comprehensively know the consumer and meet them where they are?
Recently, Facebook announced their newly developed search functionality which serves filterable ... Read More »

The need to build one’s Web site for search engine optimization (SEO) has become a critical component to the marketing of almost any Web site.  This posting provides advice on how dealers can improve their Web sites to make them more likely to show up on search engines.  Even if you can’t implement all ... Read More »

While Michael Vick was in the slammer mending his ego, he was also consulting with future Hall of Fame coach and moral leader Tony Dungy.  Mr. Dungy has been known throughout the league for fostering the good in all his players, focusing on character first and teaching the game second.  So what does this have to ... Read More »

In 1964, David Mayer and Herbert M. Greenberg released a study that began to change selling, or at least who was hired to do it. Their work had taken 7 years and the empirical results were amazing. They concluded that there were two overriding attributes to good sales people. They must have empathy and ego. Empathy, in the ... Read More »

The automotive Internet has developed into a complex web of relationships, with companies supplying content, inventory, and leads to one another. In order to inform our readers, I mapped some of this dynamic as a flow chart (shown below). Please note that not every automotive Internet company and relationship is ... Read More »

Each fall J.D. Power and Associates hosts an Automotive Internet Roundtable that brings together industry experts and thought leaders to discuss how the Internet can be better leveraged to market and sell more cars. During the 2007 Roundtable event, lots of folks were asking why aren’t dealers social networking. Two ... Read More »

The J.D. Power and Associates Manufacturer Web Site Evaluation Study (MWES) has consistently shown that higher overall usefulness of an OEM Web site is closely related to an increased likelihood of shoppers to test drive a vehicle.  But can branding efforts on the Web site also drive traffic to dealerships?
To ... Read More »

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) has become a core part of the web strategy for almost every major company and automotive manufacturers are no exception.  I recently did a field test to see how well the U.S. brand sites for OEMs perform on Google and Bing.  Google is an obvious choice given its dominance of the ... Read More »