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'Mad Men' pep talk and the power of automakers and their ad agencies

Posted 11:34 am U.S. ET, May 23
blogs Jamie LaReau is a staff reporter for Automotive News.
 
DETROIT -- "Every agency on Madison Avenue is defined by the moment they got their car. When we land Jaguar, the world will know we have arrived."
That’s the pep talk Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce’s Don Draper gives his staff during the May 20 episode of AMC’s "Mad Men."
It’s rare to find ...
     Continue reading "'Mad Men' pep talk and the power of automakers and their ad agencies" » May 23, 2012 11:34 am U.S. ET
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Prime customers are in the mood to shop again

Posted 12:01 am U.S. ET, May 23
Seeing customers with lousy credit apply for auto loans is nothing new.
But when more folks with prime credit scores return to the auto market and seek loans with vigor, that's something to talk about.
According to Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas, the Morgan Stanley U.S. Credit Quality index rose more than 7 ...
     Continue reading "Prime customers are in the mood to shop again" » May 23, 2012 12:01 am U.S. ET
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The case for tire plans doesn’t add up

Posted 12:01 am U.S. ET, May 9
A small nail or screw seems so harmless until it’s wedged into your car’s tire.
That’s what happened to me last week. I managed to limp to a nearby tire shop and coughed up $130 for a new tire.
The experience upset me and disrupted my life, but it also gave me pause to consider whether I shoul ...
     Continue reading "The case for tire plans doesn’t add up" » May 9, 2012 12:01 am U.S. ET
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Time for old automakers to make a progressive move with a female CEO

Posted 12:48 pm U.S. ET, May 8
"The time has come."
Barbra Streisand made that statement at the 2010 Academy Awards before announcing that Kathryn Bigelow had won the Oscar for best director.
Bigelow was the first woman to win the best director award, and I was very moved watching history.
I hope to have ...
     Continue reading "Time for old automakers to make a progressive move with a female CEO" » May 8, 2012 12:48 pm U.S. ET
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Get ready to pitch more cash-strapped buyers

Posted 12:01 am U.S. ET, May 2
If I were a finance and insurance manager, I'd mentally prepare to pitch products to more customers with a low credit rating and low income.
Not that there won't be more high-end folk, too.
But based on what some large retail groups were saying last week, two trends are on the horizon:
...
     Continue reading "Get ready to pitch more cash-strapped buyers" » May 2, 2012 12:01 am U.S. ET
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Why a trade-in might become an offer I can't refuse

Posted 3:36 pm U.S. ET, April 30
DETROIT -- When it comes to trade-ins, make me an offer I can’t refuse.
I believe there’s a sweet spot for consumers to sell their cars.
They should keep the cars long enough to have equity in them, but not so long that they have to make pricey repairs to keep the cars running.
...
     Continue reading "Why a trade-in might become an offer I can't refuse " » Apr 30, 2012 3:36 pm U.S. ET
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How military personnel can pose a credit challenge

Posted 12:01 am U.S. ET, April 25
Some military personnel suffer dings to their credit rating when they serve overseas.
And that means some finance and insurance managers must spend a lot of time and effort finding lenders to finance them. It might even mean sacrificing some profit in the process, dealers say.
But the solutions to the problem a ...
     Continue reading "How military personnel can pose a credit challenge" » Apr 25, 2012 12:01 am U.S. ET
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Forget working 9 to 5 if you do F&I

Posted 12:01 am U.S. ET, April 18
Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg recently revealed she leaves work at 5:30 p.m. every day.
Now that is a perfectly reasonable hour to head home, in my opinion.
But Sandberg admitted in news reports that she struggled to be comfortable with how others might perceive her departure time.
...
     Continue reading "Forget working 9 to 5 if you do F&I" » Apr 18, 2012 12:01 am U.S. ET
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Military veterans are just like any other customer, or are they?

Posted 1:25 pm U.S. ET, April 12
Don't ask me if I've ever killed anybody.
Don't ask me my politics.
We don't all have post-traumatic stress disorder.
We're not all homeless or broke.
Those are a few of the "don'ts" that military vet ...
     Continue reading "Military veterans are just like any other customer, or are they?" » Apr 12, 2012 1:25 pm U.S. ET
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Paper still trumps tablets for F&I menus … for now

Posted 12:01 am U.S. ET, April 11
I still buy books, not Nooks.
So it didn’t surprise me when most folks on the Ethical F&I Managers Facebook page declared they prefer paper to iPads and tablets for their finance and insurance menus.
This was part of an informal survey that asked the F&I managers on that Facebook page to select wh ...
     Continue reading "Paper still trumps tablets for F&I menus … for now" » Apr 11, 2012 12:01 am U.S. ET
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Watch for more direct lending

Posted 12:01 am U.S. ET, April 4
I was struck recently by a subprime lender chief's fairly benign observation.
"We know the amount of Internet leads on the car purchasing side is a pretty big number and growing," Jim Landy, CEO of CarFinance Capital, told me. "It doesn't take a lot to think that would extend to financing."
If Landy's right and ...
     Continue reading "Watch for more direct lending" » Apr 4, 2012 12:01 am U.S. ET
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Hand-free or not, a distraction is a distraction

Posted 10:56 am U.S. ET, March 29
DETROIT -- I recently ignored my friends’ phone calls for 45 minutes.
I wasn’t trying to be rude, but I was driving.
Once I reached my destination, I answered them.
And guess what? We made our plans and I didn’t have to impede traffic -- or worse, kill mys ...
     Continue reading "Hand-free or not, a distraction is a distraction" » Mar 29, 2012 10:56 am U.S. ET
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The F&I door dilemma

Posted 12:01 am U.S. ET, March 28
Close the office door, or leave it open?
It sounds like an inconsequential question. And it sure seems nitpicky in the scheme of things.
But to good dealers, the devil is in the details. And it should be.
Many finance and insurance managers face the door dilemma each time t ...
     Continue reading "The F&I door dilemma" » Mar 28, 2012 12:01 am U.S. ET
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The mojo of car ownership is lost on millennials

Posted 8:00 pm U.S. ET, March 26
Take note: The next generation of car buyers, just isn’t that into it.
Nearly half of those aged 18 to 24 say they would choose Internet access over car ownership, according to The New York Times.
So manufacturers must research which designs, engineering and marketing resonate with today ...
     Continue reading "The mojo of car ownership is lost on millennials" » Mar 26, 2012 8:00 pm U.S. ET
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Colorado dealers' recruiting plight reflects that of many U.S. dealers

Posted 4:10 pm U.S. ET, March 20
Dealers in Colorado are hungry for hired help.
So hungry that for the first time, the Colorado Automobile Dealers Association will run a career fair at this year's Denver Auto Show.
The fair starts Wednesday and runs through Sunday. It'll occupy just 600 square feet of the 500,000 square feet of exhibit space, ...
     Continue reading "Colorado dealers' recruiting plight reflects that of many U.S. dealers" » Mar 20, 2012 4:10 pm U.S. ET
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Smith's Goldman Sachs diatribe could be any dealer's story

Posted 5:34 pm U.S. ET, March 14
The op-ed by Goldman Sachs' Greg Smith in The New York Times rattled me.
The overall message is important: Put a customer's needs before profits. Doing so builds trust and without trust the profits won't mean a hill of beans in any business.
Many dealers work hard to deliver impeccable customer service ...
     Continue reading "Smith's Goldman Sachs diatribe could be any dealer's story" » Mar 14, 2012 5:34 pm U.S. ET
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MyFord Touch flop shows that technology sometimes comes at a high price

Posted 3:46 pm U.S. ET, March 6
In fixing MyFord Touch, Ford Motor Co. reluctantly acknowledges that the system wasn't "playing in Peoria," so to speak.
Ford is issuing an upgrade to its MyFord Touch in-vehicle infotainment system.
The system uses a touch screen in lieu of buttons and knobs on traditional instrument panels. There are also ste ...
     Continue reading "MyFord Touch flop shows that technology sometimes comes at a high price" » Mar 6, 2012 3:46 pm U.S. ET
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Former GM exec LaNeve leaves the (car) door open for a return

Posted 4:17 pm U.S. ET, March 1
DETROIT -- Saying “so long” doesn’t always mean goodbye.
Take Mark LaNeve.
LaNeve left General Motors in 2009 to join insurer Allstate Corp.
Now, I’m not going to tell you he’s coming back to the car business. But I will tell you he is not ruli ...
     Continue reading "Former GM exec LaNeve leaves the (car) door open for a return" » Mar 1, 2012 4:17 pm U.S. ET
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Dealers! Stop and think before you over-staff

Posted 3:34 pm U.S. ET, Feb. 16
Roger Penske is looking to hire a few good people -- but there’s an asterisk.
An anticipated sales spurt this year has Penske and many private independent dealers considering hiring. And as skilled service technicians retire faster than new ones enter the work force, hiring in that area makes sense.
But i ...
     Continue reading "Dealers! Stop and think before you over-staff" » Feb 16, 2012 3:34 pm U.S. ET
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Rising used-car prices shouldn't hurt F&I

Posted 7:27 am U.S. ET, Feb. 8
The cost of used cars will keep rising this year. But that doesn't mean customers won't have the funds to buy those pricey F&I products on the back end.
The National Automobile Dealers Association expects the used-car supply to remain tight, keeping prices up. In some vehicle segments, such as minivans and near-luxury vehicles, prices could increas ...
     Continue reading "Rising used-car prices shouldn't hurt F&I" » Feb 8, 2012 7:27 am U.S. ET
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What about low interest rates for high mpg?

Posted 5:47 pm U.S. ET, Feb. 5
LAS VEGAS -- Imagine if buying a vehicle that gets extremely good fuel economy meant getting a lower interest rate on a loan.
Lenders consider a lot of factors when granting consumers retail vehicle loans. But might lenders smile on buyers of highly fuel efficient vehicles, such as the Chevrolet Volt or Toyota Prius sedans?
...
     Continue reading "What about low interest rates for high mpg?" » Feb 5, 2012 5:47 pm U.S. ET
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A digital sales process might be the answer to shorter sales times

Posted 11:38 am U.S. ET, Feb. 4
LAS VEGAS -- Do you believe the auto industry can get the vehicle sales process completed within two hours?
That was the provocative question posed to a room full of lenders and dealers at the American Financial Services Association conference held in conjunction with the NADA convention in Las Vegas.
The room ...
     Continue reading "A digital sales process might be the answer to shorter sales times" » Feb 4, 2012 11:38 am U.S. ET
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Staffing to meet expected sales is pure speculation

Posted 12:22 pm U.S. ET, Feb. 3
When does a workload become so great, it's time to hire more people?
I posed that issue to a dealer I was chatting with about F&I business.
After a pause, dealer Ray Ciccolo explained that it's a hard question to answer.
The reason: sales are so unpredictable.
...
     Continue reading "Staffing to meet expected sales is pure speculation" » Feb 3, 2012 12:22 pm U.S. ET
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Using dogs to sell cars seems to be barking up the right tree

Posted 12:28 pm U.S. ET, Jan. 27
TV ads for some automakers are going to the dogs.
Subaru of America has launched three new spots as part of its "Dog Tested. Dog Approved." campaign.
And based on the social media reaction to the spots, tongues are wagging. The automaker started the campaign in February 2011.
...
     Continue reading "Using dogs to sell cars seems to be barking up the right tree" » Jan 27, 2012 12:28 pm U.S. ET
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Dealers should be opportunists in the year of clunkers

Posted 10:25 am U.S. ET, Jan. 20
My car is 4 years old, yet it’s practically a “spring chicken” on today’s roads.
In fact, the average age of light vehicles on U.S. roads is nearly 11 years, according to a study by automotive research firm Polk.
But these road antiques present a lot of opportunity to dealers beyond the ...
     Continue reading "Dealers should be opportunists in the year of clunkers" » Jan 20, 2012 10:25 am U.S. ET
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