Much is made of the latest technological advantages in displaying inventory on the Internet, obtaining leads, selling cars, and, for BHPH & LHPH dealers, collecting your money and tracking your customers. The important thing to remember is that the car business always has been and always will be about people. All the latest developments can help you enhance your reputation, provide greater visibility for you and your dealership and help
Today I want to discuss 5 things the software you use to operate your Buy Here – Pay Here dealership must do. Now, I could take the easy road and tell you it needs to list your vehicles, keep customer information, process sales, print paperwork and collect payments but you already know that. Instead, I want to talk about 5 things some DMS software programs will do that can make
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released two bulletins last week that may affect your Buy Here – Pay Here dealership and the way you collect your money. Debt collection is one of the most active areas at the CFPB right now. As of July 10, 2013, they are now accepting complaints from consumers regarding debt collection. They have also published a series of 5 letters that consumers are encouraged to
It’s all to do with the training: you can do a lot if you’re properly trained. Queen Elizabeth II Car dealers have been hearing that training their staffs is important for years now, including Buy Here – Pay Here dealers. As true as that has always been, it may never has been as important as it is today. Let’s take a look at three reasons that training your employees is
Buy Here – Pay Here operators across the country have been debating over the last few years whether to embrace the latest innovations in technology or to stick with the traditional way of operating their businesses. It has been almost 15 years since the first payment protection devices hit the market. Since then, new technologies that can be adapted to BHPH seem to appear almost weekly. There is GPS, auto
There is currently a post running on AutoDealerPeople.com titled, “What Vehicle are on Your Do Not Buy List?”. We all know that one of the most important questions in the purchase of any one vehicle for inventory is, will it “run the note?” Every dealer also knows that some vehicles experience more issues than others. Do you keep a Do Not Buy List for your BHPH dealership? If you don’t, you should!
As I said in the first part of this series here, properly designed promotions are more fun than advertising. Promotions should involve your employees, your customers, friends, family, neighbors, etc. All promotions should be done in a festive atmosphere. Plan the promotions so that as many customers as possible are included. Try to avoid promotions that have just one winner. It is very difficult to get people excited about one grand
I ran across an interesting article last week in Business Insider. It was about a survey released in December of last year concerning financial services done by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). The survey found that roughly 1 in every 12 US households, or some 17 million adult Americans, are “unbanked”. That means they lack a current checking or savings account. The survey also found that 1 in every 5
Collections are the most exciting activity at a Dealer Controlled Financing dealership. If your employees have properly worked the other processes at your dealership, then collections can be easy. The dealership can maintain a larger portfolio without increasing personnel expense. If your dealership is charging the highest interest rates allowed, extending contracts beyond the expected life of the vehicle, or treats customers like they are doing them a favor by
Do you want to improve your sales, increase collections and protect your dealership by enhancing compliance? Of course you do. The key to doing all of the above is being consistent. Sales Do you use a step-by-step sales process or do your sales people just kind of wing it with each customer? If you don’t have a step-by-step process, how do you know what is being said to your customers
