Could Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins in The Shawshank Redemption) actually have been a car dealer? Everyone is holding their breath right now. Get busy living instead of waiting!!  Waiting is the same as dying.  Waiting for customers to return? Waiting for the bailout?  Waiting for consumer confidence to go up? What is it going to take to have retailers wake up?

There are great resources out there: DealerRefresh, DrivingSales and Automotive Digital Marketing, AskPatty, Automotive Dealers Network and more!  These are people putting it all out there and on the line every day.  Their knowledge, reputation, ideas and networks.  Every consultant, contractor and adviser would rather get paid.  If we can't help dealers do a better job, there's not going to be any business to go around.

It is not a question of if dealers can afford to get help or not.  The more waiting, the faster the inevitable death. It is time to make the investment in your staff, future, process and profits.

Dealers, get an outside opinion about your:

1. Online presence (go online and get off of the traditional marketing see-saw)
2. Lead process
3. Accountability
4. Oversight/Management
5. Appointment setting
6. Delivery process
7. CRM/Follow-up…
…and then stick with it.  Paying for something and then not doing it is a guarantee for failure.

OEMs, it is past the time to make a change from the same companies/individuals you've been using for years with the same or incremental lift in results.  Don't have a true eCommerce platform in your ongoing education and dealer training?  Do it.  And not part of hours or days of other sales, financing or fixed-op classes or training.  Focus on the one and only thing that is going to bring in the overwhelming majority of your dealers' sale traffic.

In the end, Andy created a plan, executed on it and made it to that beach, working on his boat.  When are you going to make your plan work?  Get busy living or get busy dying!

Best practices: Professional Insight, Powerful Results