It has been a gloomy atmosphere anywhere in the auto industry and while many are practically giving up, here is something that should wake up the sleeping retailers to put to good use the various car incentive schemes and make it work in their favor.

We are all aware of the celebrated “Cash for Clunkers” and sales tax deductions and while most car dealers barely know what it is all about, they can really be made towards the favor of car dealers if they study it closely.

“Salespeople who quickly identify prospects with clunkers and get them into the store position themselves to win more than their fair share of the deals.”

And for that, Cars.com offers a free webinar to explain these options. Much of the topic that will be covered include:

• Implement the CARS program at their store.
• Reach prospects with “clunkers” and bring them into the dealership.
• Build an effective online marketing strategy to reach in-market shoppers.
• Leverage government incentives within their processes to close new-car deals.

With nothing much to lose, this is something that car dealers should really check out. Perhaps a better explanation on what the new alternatives are today can help shed some light towards their business performance.

(Source) Press

Tags: auto industry, business performance, car dealers, car deals, car sales, effective online marketing, fair share, free webinar, gloomy atmosphere, government incentives, incentive schemes, leverage, new car, online marketing strategy, performance source, prospects, sales tax, sales tax deductions, salespeople, shoppers

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Facebook has become a great way to promote businesses and apparently Toyota of South Florida wants to check out what they can get if they try out the popular social networking site in relation to their business operations. Now, Toyota is offering its customers twenty-four hour accessibility through the use of social networks, Facebook and Twitter.

Toyota of South Florida is using social networks for more than just answering customers’ questions; they plan to use it as a way to build and foster ongoing relationships with its customers. Customers will be invited to join the member group through a Social Network Kiosk, found in the dealership show room. This move is a great way to build healthy interaction which can be later on used as a form of leverage in improvement and customer feedback and support.

“Social networks like Facebook and Twitter give us an opportunity to stay in contact with our customers beyond their automobile purchase. We want to see them enjoying their Toyotas on a day-to-day basis. Toyota of South Florida is always seeking new and improved ways to be accessible in ways that are convenient to our customers,” says Marc A. Kahn, President of Toyota of South Florida. “Social media is a natural choice for the new, tech-savvy generation of Toyota and Scion buyers.”

(Source) Press

Tags: accessibility, automobile purchase, business operations, customer feedback, facebook, interaction, leverage, member group, natural choice, network kiosk, relationships, Scion, social networking site, Toyota, toyotas, twitter, using social networks

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Due to continued poor sales, General Motors has boldly announced that it will be closing down 1,100 dealers late next year, a move that all the more puts the car industry into deeper turmoil. GM’s announcement is more bad economic news for dealers, communities and businesses still reeling from Chrysler’s similar nationwide dealer cuts a day earlier. Both automakers are scrambling to reorganize and stay alive in a severe recession that has devastated sales of cars and trucks.

While GM doesn’t own the dealers, its network is too big, causing dealers to compete with each other and giving shoppers too much leverage to talk down prices and hurt the company’s future sales.

“Too many dealers, in actuality, are a problem,” Mark LaNeve, GM’s vice president of North American sales and marketing, said in a conference call with reporters.

GM declined to reveal which dealers will be eliminated and left it up to franchise owners to report the decision to customers.

The cuts are part of a larger GM plan to drop 2,600, or nearly 42 percent of its 6,200 dealerships as the automaker tries to restructure outside of bankruptcy court and become profitable again. Thousands of jobs will likely be lost and governments will lose untold dollars in tax revenue as dealerships are forced to close.

(Source) Memphis Daily

Tags: actuality, automaker, automakers, bankruptcy court, car industry, Chrysler, conference call, economic news, future sales, General Motors, GM, governments, leverage, mark laneve, memphis, recession, sales and marketing, shoppers, turmoil, vice president

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