Here’s another sneak preview of our upcoming site and what these car reviews will look like live. I am biased but I think these reviews are damn pretty… and USEFUL! As the designer/programmer working on making this thing work, I’ve already been tuned to check out a number of models that I’ve never even considered looking at before.

What do you think? We would love to get some feedback on this and of course, your car reviews.

We’re hoping that you’ll find quick peer car reviews at least somewhat helpful as you shop online for cars.   That’s why we’re adding them to our site when we launch the redesign very soon.  What will be even cooler is that  you’ll be able to connect with these peers on Facebook, Twitter and our own community section to continue the discussion as you decide if the car is right for you.  Before we can make this Car Shopping Utopia a reality we need to collect these quick car reviews from YOU.  If you have a second please submit your quick car review here.

Thanks a ton!  We really appreciate your time.  If you car to share your thoughts on professional vs peer car reviews we’d love to hear what you have to say in the comments…

Called the “Consumer Assistance Recycle and Save Act of 2009″, or more commonly, “Cash for Clunkers,” the $1 billion program will provide a voucher of up to $4,500 (effectively just knocking that much off the price tag — dealers will get electronic payments from the feds) to help offset the cost of new car purchases or leases over the next five months. The cars that you’re limited to must cost no more than $45,000. So that means I can’t trade in my old 1998 Dodge Caravan (MPG rating of 18) for a 2009 Lotus Elise (MPG rating of 26) because the MSRP is too high ($47,500). However, that awesome new 208HP 2009 Mini Cooper S John Cooper Works (MSRP of $29,200) would not only get me the basic $3,500, but it’s combined cycle of 28 MPG (10 more than my current car) will get me an additional $1,000 for a total of $4,500 off the price of the car! Not a bad deal, in my humble opinion. This rebate also works with other rebates from the manufacturer or hybrid car rebates offered from the Federal Government.

So what is going to happen to all these old cars now that they are off the road? Most will have their engines taken out and destroyed (to ensure these “high polution” drivetrains stay off the road). However, miscellaneous parts like doors, bumpers and other non-drivetrain parts will still be around to make sure those cars that are running can be repairs and made roadworthy.

The House bill would go into effect within 30 days of enactment but it is not retroactive for new purchases made earlier this year. For a more complete description of all the applicable situations, see the chart below:

Passenger Car		Light-Duty Truck		Large Light-Duty Truck (6,000-8,500 lbs.)		Work Truck (8,500-15,000 lbs.)
Minimum fuel economy for new vehicle		22 mpg (EPA combined)		18 mpg (EPA combined)		15 mpg (EPA combined)		Not applicable
$3,500 voucher		Mileage improvement of at least 4 mpg.		Mileage improvement of at least 2 mpg.		Mileage improvement of at least 1 mpg or trade-in of a work truck.		Trade-in must be at least pre-2002.
$4,500 voucher		Mileage improvement of at least 10 mpg.		Mileage improvement of at least 5 mpg.		Mileage improvement of at least 2 mpg.		NA
Source: House Committee on Energy and Commerce

Here at EasyAutoSales we are always brainstorming ways to improve our services to help car dealers more effectively sell cars.  While we will never stop coming up with ideas on our own, whatever we come up with pales in comparison to YOUR collective feedback.  Because of this undeniable truth we have created a Car Dealer Online Marketing survey using Survey Monkey.  It will take you 5 minutes or less to cruise through, and will really help us learn how we can help you sell cars better online.  Once we get enough responses we will compile the data and post our findings on this blog.

Please click the following link to take our Car Dealer Online Marketing Survey http://bit.ly/sidY5

We really appreciate your time!

1. It has come to our attention that SPAM and fraudulent listings are becoming a problem on the system. While we have been taking action previously from user reported listings, we will soon be able to actively remove fraudulent listings shortly after they appear even if the users don’t catch it first. Car shoppers are still recommended to report any questionable postings to us for review by flagging the users or vehicles.
2. We are also excited to be working on version 3 of our new web design! Our goal at EasyAutoSales has always been to help dealers showcase their vehicles in the best light possible. Like the earlier versions, we will provide support for unlimited, large photos and video in version 3. In addition to photos and descriptions, we have put a lot of effort into making sure the information flow on the new design makes sense. Our goal with the new design is to help educate casual shoppers and give them more information to make quicker choices. We hope this will mean more phone and email leads for the dealers.

   We should be launching the new version of the website by the end of June and we will look forward to your feedback once it’s available.

Finally, we are excited to be working on some new premium services for this website that will help dealers sell cars faster online. If your dealership currently advertise on Craigslist, we invite you to take our short 2 minute survey to let us know how we can help. Even if you don’t use Craigslist, we would love to know why.

Click Here to take survey!

Thanks!

What do you guys think? We welcome all comments below.

“We think we can redistribute any vehicles that any dealer wants us to,” spokeswoman Kathy Graham said. “Dealers are not going to be stuck with cars. We have dealerships that want the vehicles.”

Since Chrysler plants have recently stopped production due to the bankruptcy filing, dealers still want and need new cars. As of the end of last month, there were over 44,000 cars. We currently have no estimates left, but this does show a light at the end of the tunnel for dealers looking to unload their extra inventory as well as consumers who are looking for a great deal and want to buy a Chrysler car during this lull in their operations while they go through bankruptcy court.

Brad and David Hensley Jr of Cars Etc.

For our next car dealer interview David Hensley Jr of Cars Etc. Inc. in Knoxville, TN shares some great information on his dealership’s marketing budget, online dealer reviews, and more.

If you would like to take part in our dealer interview series please email me at will(at)easyautosales.com or twitter us at @easyautosales.com.

1. David, tell us a little bit about Cars Etc. , and your own career in the auto industry?

Cars Etc…Inc. was started in May of 1983, by James Hensley, Jr. since then, we have grown from a front row consisting of 4 vehicles and 2 employees; James and his brother, David,Sr. to over 200 units currently in stock and 10 full time employees, majority of which are family.  Two of whom are Brad and David, Jr. who aspire to make this a 2nd generation business and we both have for the most part spent our entire lives learning this business, be it washing cars or developing advertising campaigns. This dealership is all we have ever know and all we ever want to do.

2. How has Cars Etc. been specifically affected by the current economic situation?

Cars Etc was not immune to the recession, we had to deal with the rapid decline of current inventory value, which led to some interesting outcomes. The first was that we had to take some significant loses on a few of those vehicles in order to restock our dealership with vehicles at the corrected market price. The second result of this downturn which has actually been a big positive is the fact that we had to readjust some bad spending habits which has made us a leaner and better business overall and ultimately allowed us to offer even better deals to our customers.

3. What expenses have you cut from your daily operation?  What new programs have you added to your daily operation?

We have not had to cut our daily operations however we have had to make sure that all hands are on deck willing and able to come in earlier and stay late, if needed. We have started offering shipping to our customers within a specific radius if that is what it takes to get the deal closed. We have been very blessed in that we have a group of employees that understand the harder they work individually, the better the company does overall which will ultimately result in a better standard of living for everyone, basic “Game Theory”.

4. Has your attitude towards the marketing budget changed?  Has it shifted more and more online?

Personally, being from the Y Generation, our attitude has always been that we should be online advertising however the boomers that started this company, had a hard time believing someone would actually buy a car without touching it. So, like all good sons, we canceled our print advertising all together 3 years ago shifted that part of our budget to online outlets and it has resulted in some of the best years our business has ever experienced all while dealing with one of the worst recession of all time.

5. What are your thoughts on online reputation management? Are online reviews of dealers the next IT thing?

We are excited to see individuals having the opportunity to voice there opinion of dealerships through these online outlets. However, with that said we work tirelessly to maintain a high level of customer satisfaction and see this as an opportunity to gain market share from those shady folks that do not deserve to be in our industry in the first place. An yes we believe that it is prudent that someone should monitor those sites to be sure to maintain a sound reputation online.

Cars Etc. Dealership in Knoxville, TN

6. What are your thoughts on the future of dealerships as many people start shifting their shopping patterns towards online research and browse?  What can dealers do to adapt?

Based on what we have seen and heard over the past couple years for the most part, almost all car shoppers are online researching already, so if dealerships have not already adjusted their ways of operating, then one has to think they are gonna have some very difficult days ahead of them. We would suggest finding out where your potential customers are researching the most and try to get involved in that medium be it your local newspaper or some place online, just go to them!

Thanks David!  You can also follow Cars Etc on Twitter @carsetcinc.  If you have any more questions for David feel free to leave them in the comments.  Hopefully we can keep the interview going.  Again, if you’d like to be interviewed for our blog please email me at will(at)easyautosales.com or twitter us @easyautosales.

]]> http://blog.easyautosales.com/david-hensley-interview-cars-etc-knoxville-tn/feed/ 0 http://blog.easyautosales.com/david-hensley-interview-cars-etc-knoxville-tn/ http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/EasyAutoSales/~3/9COz5xCraRU/ http://blog.easyautosales.com/ed-ogrady-interview-classic-chevrolet/#comments Fri, 05 Jun 2009 16:04:17 +0000 Will http://blog.easyautosales.com/?p=443 To continue our dealer interview series we’ve had the pleasure of interviewing Ed O’Grady of  the Classic Chevrolet dealership in Amherst, MA.  Ed shares with us his experiences selling cars in the current economy. If you would like to be included in our Car Dealer Interview series, please drop me an email at will(at)easyautosales.com or twitter [...]]]>

Ed O'Grady Car Dealer of Classic Chevrolet

To continue our dealer interview series we’ve had the pleasure of interviewing Ed O’Grady of  the Classic Chevrolet dealership in Amherst, MA.  Ed shares with us his experiences selling cars in the current economy.

If you would like to be included in our Car Dealer Interview series, please drop me an email at will(at)easyautosales.com or twitter us @easyautosales.

1. Ed, tell us a little bit about Classic Chevrolet?

Classic Chevrolet was formerly Paige’s Chevrolet. It was purchased from the Paige family in 2002. This dealership has been in Amherst, Ma since  1883 (horse and buggy) a small, customer friendly place with very long-term employees and a consistently high customer satisfaction index (CSI).

2. As a result of the recession, what expenses have you cut from your daily operation?  What new programs have you added to your daily operation?

The largest cuts we have made is in our New car floor plan. We have drastically reduced our New vehicle inventory. Some new programs we have added to our store revolves around the Internet. Blog pages, twitter, and other social media. We also use lots of on line free advertising such as Craigslist. We have been doing lots of FREE advertising to complement advertising we pay for.

3. In addition to cutting down on new car inventory, have you also made changes to your used car inventory such as offering cars under a certain price or age?

Yes we definitely have started to offer cars below $9,995. We have typically only offered very low mileage vehicles that are Certifiable.

4. How would you rate the performances of your twitter and blogging efforts? What are dealers missing if they don’t do these things?

Twitter has been a great way to announce certain specials and offer certain vehicles to a more targeted audience. We get greater views of our inventory through this media.If dealers don’t get involved now I think they are missing out on some additional opportunities!

5. Has your attitude towards the marketing budget changed?  Has it shifted more and more online?

Yes our marketing budget has shifted almost completely to online.We do have a car magazine that works well here that we also use. People have shifted to on line only to find a car and research the dealer, before they commit. People still purchase at the dealership, as opposed to online.

6. What are some of the biggest concerns you have when buying leads?

We don’t purchase leads at this store, however when I used to purchase them duplicates and phony info were always the concern. Actually how did the lead get generated? Was it some contest on line to win something? Or Did the customer request to be contacted!

7. Do dealers still pay flat fees for marketing their online presence?

We still pay some flat fees for online presence , however we utilize everything we pay for to the max!

8. What are your thoughts on online reputation management? Are online reviews of dealers the next IT thing?

An online reputation is crucial to your success. Reviews and comments online are very valuable.

9. What can dealers do to adapt as many people start shifting their shopping patterns towards online research and browse?

Media on your website.  Videos show the likeness of the dealership.  I think people are all ready doing this!

Thanks for your time Ed! Readers, if you have any more questions for Ed feel free to add it in the comments.  Hopefully we can keep the interview going.   You can also find Ed on Twitter @carsalepro

Classic Chevrolet Dealership in Amerherst, MA

Don't Let Your Dealer Go Up In Smoke! Protect Your Assets by Going Back to Basics!

Recent reports indicate that there could be as many as 2400 dealers closing due to the GM restructure. Chrysler themselves have said they plan to close around 789 themselves. With more than 100,000 people working for those dealerships, local communities around the country will be hurting due to the loss of employment. However, the demand for new and used cars are still there. The average person who has a car that’s getting old, got into an accident or plain just stopped working still needs to buy a car and with over 3000 dealerships around the country closing, that leaves smaller, independant dealers and big box dealers from other brands in the mix. So what are those dealers going to do to make sure they don’t fall prey to similar circumstances as GM and Chrysler dealers? Here’s a short list to make sure you’re maximizing what you do in this tough time:

1. Talent is plentiful right now. Make sure that you have the best sales staff you can get. Many of the dealers closing has a solid staff that knew what it takes to get someone into a car. Ask around and see if there are any mavericks looking to get out before the axe comes down. If you’re in a small town, perhaps hiring some of the soon-to-be laid-off staff will be a good gesture to those in your community. Ford, GM or Chrysler, we’re all in the same boat. Sometimes helping those less fortunate can be better for business than pushing out that next sale.

2. Make sure your own dealer finances are sustainable in these tough times. Cash is king, especially in a downturn like our current one. If you’re making your money selling used cars, play to that strength and make extra effort to move your used inventory. Look outside your immediate town and look to other parts of your state. A larger population is looking outside even their home states to get great deals on cars in the current economy. If parts and labor are your main source of income, make sure the local community knows that your dealer is the best place to have their cars worked on. Have an open house. Build relationships with your community. It’s hard to find someone to work on your car you can really trust. Sharing some conversation over a hot dog and soda can go a long way to consumer trust.

3. Technology is key! Why spend thousands of dollars on antiquated forms of automobile ads. Pay only for those sources that are bringing in money. EasyAutoSales knows exactly what you’re going through with some sources that charge you thousands of dollars just to be listed on their website. Being smart means only paying for what you need. Listings these days are all but free in most cases. Utilize pay-per-lead systems where available so you’re not throwing money out with no measurable results. Free and premium tools may not make you money (directly), but will save you time and allow you to spend more efforts elsewhere.

The picture at the top of this post is a rare McLaren F1 that recently caught fire and burnt up. It was later found that the car hadn’t been driven in almost 6 months. Cars, like businesses, need to be cared for every day. Even neglecting something for a few months can get your into a drastic posistion. Just like you drive your car every day, drive your business every day. There are a thousand things you can do to make your business more profitable and ensure you’re safe in these tough economic times. The above 3 are important though, albiet basic. Sometimes you need to get back to basics and streamline what you do to ensure you’ll be around.