Anyone here work in a dealership?
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Anyone here work in a dealership?
Been lurking here for awhile and decided to sign up today. 
For the dealers in the US, how were your sales on September through October? At the moment, we're using autotrader.com and though we have a decent ROI, it's not satisfying my boss.
Anyone know a better source for getting leads online? I'm open to suggestions. Thanks in advance.
For the dealers in the US, how were your sales on September through October? At the moment, we're using autotrader.com and though we have a decent ROI, it's not satisfying my boss.
Anyone know a better source for getting leads online? I'm open to suggestions. Thanks in advance.
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From: Here
Excerpt: AutoNation, which owns more than 250 new-vehicle franchises in 15 states, said it had about $9 million in higher interest expenses during the quarter between buying back shares and higher inventory levels. Cost of sales rose nearly 15 percent to $2.73 billion, and its selling, general and administrative expenses grew 7.3 percent in the quarter to $402.9 million.
Revenue rose to $3.3 billion from $2.89 billion a year ago and sold 99,025 new and used vehicles during the quarter. Analysts expected revenue of $3.21 billion.
Source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/articl...ffb9e78b8b74b50
Google & automotive press releases from car manufacturers...
Revenue rose to $3.3 billion from $2.89 billion a year ago and sold 99,025 new and used vehicles during the quarter. Analysts expected revenue of $3.21 billion.
Source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/articl...ffb9e78b8b74b50
Google & automotive press releases from car manufacturers...
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lol yeah i know a shit ton because i work at the corporate offices of an automotive group that owns 50+ around the US
I work on the internet lead reporting for all of them monthly, in addition to graphics and SEO/SEM. in fact I need to get back to the reports now lol
dunno how much info im allowed to share though, but its not that hard to find sites to use. dealix bring in a lot of leads consistently as well as GAA and KBB. other than that it is our actual dealer sites and a bunch of other ones that all add up
I work on the internet lead reporting for all of them monthly, in addition to graphics and SEO/SEM. in fact I need to get back to the reports now lol
dunno how much info im allowed to share though, but its not that hard to find sites to use. dealix bring in a lot of leads consistently as well as GAA and KBB. other than that it is our actual dealer sites and a bunch of other ones that all add up
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When I had a dealer license and sold cars part time on the side, nothing beat Craigslist for leads. Probably about 80% of my cars sold through Craigslist. Even when the buyer came through somewhere else, I had other CL leads lined up.
Ebay was second, but the cars rarely sold through the auction itself. What it did was advertise the car and get me leads on the side.
Autotrader was dead last. No cars sold, barely any phone calls at all. And by far the most expensive. They've done a horrible job of adapting to modern times.
Of course, YMMV. I was an independent dealer selling lower end transportation and entry-level luxury cars to Joe Citizen. My marketing and demographics was much different than the typical franchise dealer.
Ebay was second, but the cars rarely sold through the auction itself. What it did was advertise the car and get me leads on the side.
Autotrader was dead last. No cars sold, barely any phone calls at all. And by far the most expensive. They've done a horrible job of adapting to modern times.
Of course, YMMV. I was an independent dealer selling lower end transportation and entry-level luxury cars to Joe Citizen. My marketing and demographics was much different than the typical franchise dealer.
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From: Napa
I think Autotrader does a good job if you are looking for a specific car with specific options. It's easier than the others to narrow it down. I found exactly what I was looking for on Autotrader, a used Rav4 at a dealership. Trying to find a 4 wheel drive with a V6 was not easy, plus the other options I wanted.
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Originally Posted by X4DLuvOfSpeedX,Nov 4 2010, 09:07 AM
When I had a dealer license and sold cars part time on the side, nothing beat Craigslist for leads. Probably about 80% of my cars sold through Craigslist. Even when the buyer came through somewhere else, I had other CL leads lined up.
Ebay was second, but the cars rarely sold through the auction itself. What it did was advertise the car and get me leads on the side.
Autotrader was dead last. No cars sold, barely any phone calls at all. And by far the most expensive. They've done a horrible job of adapting to modern times.
Of course, YMMV. I was an independent dealer selling lower end transportation and entry-level luxury cars to Joe Citizen. My marketing and demographics was much different than the typical franchise dealer.
Ebay was second, but the cars rarely sold through the auction itself. What it did was advertise the car and get me leads on the side.
Autotrader was dead last. No cars sold, barely any phone calls at all. And by far the most expensive. They've done a horrible job of adapting to modern times.
Of course, YMMV. I was an independent dealer selling lower end transportation and entry-level luxury cars to Joe Citizen. My marketing and demographics was much different than the typical franchise dealer.
Ebay is not really working for the ones that have auctions. Hardly any leads compared to most other sources, and maybe 2 cars sold tops over the course of a month.
as you said, different marketing schemes here, but still good insight.
As I mentioned earlier, the biggest lead generators (just in terms of sheer volume) for our dealers have been dealix, GAA, KBB, and black book online.
does your dealership use dealer.com to host its site?
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Originally Posted by X4DLuvOfSpeedX,Nov 4 2010, 09:07 AM
When I had a dealer license and sold cars part time on the side, nothing beat Craigslist for leads. Probably about 80% of my cars sold through Craigslist. Even when the buyer came through somewhere else, I had other CL leads lined up.
Ebay was second, but the cars rarely sold through the auction itself. What it did was advertise the car and get me leads on the side.
Autotrader was dead last. No cars sold, barely any phone calls at all. And by far the most expensive. They've done a horrible job of adapting to modern times.
Of course, YMMV. I was an independent dealer selling lower end transportation and entry-level luxury cars to Joe Citizen. My marketing and demographics was much different than the typical franchise dealer.
Ebay was second, but the cars rarely sold through the auction itself. What it did was advertise the car and get me leads on the side.
Autotrader was dead last. No cars sold, barely any phone calls at all. And by far the most expensive. They've done a horrible job of adapting to modern times.
Of course, YMMV. I was an independent dealer selling lower end transportation and entry-level luxury cars to Joe Citizen. My marketing and demographics was much different than the typical franchise dealer.
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Originally Posted by ShawnM,Nov 4 2010, 12:10 PM
As I mentioned earlier, the biggest lead generators (just in terms of sheer volume) for our dealers have been dealix, GAA, KBB, and black book online.
does your dealership use dealer.com to host its site?
does your dealership use dealer.com to host its site?