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HERE’S A GUIDE FOR THE .COM MINEFIELD

THE INTERNET IS GROWING, OFFERING OPPORTUNITIES for those in the know, and creating confusion, all at the same time. To help you pick your way through the minefield of misinformation in the .com landscape, I humbly present some suggestions.1. LEADS GROW EXPONENTIALLY. One Internet sales rep can effectively handle 60 "quality leads" a month at most. Some simple math demonstrates the challenge. Let's

By Mark Rikess • Dec. 1, 1999

Those old fossils are cool but GM’s Smith looks to the future

In John F. Smith Jr.'s 38th floor office, a room with a view of the Detroit River and beyond, are two large fossil artifacts, a lizard and a fish from way back in time."They're from Brazil. I think they're cool," Mr. Smith says of the imprints in stone slabs, one mounted on a window ledge, the other on a stand next to his big desk.But it is mostly the future which Mr. Smith talks about, General Motors

By Steve Finlay • Dec. 1, 1999

Delphi’s passage to India perfects process

NEW DELHI - Some call New Delhi the Rome of India, while others argue it's more like Paris, but the abject poverty and lack of infrastructure throughout the region leave both comparisons wanting. For the hordes of drivers who rumble down the streets in unmitigated chaos each day, the one thing clearly shared with the European cities is the ubiquitous car horn.It's little wonder that the few traffic

By Barbara McClellan • Dec. 1, 1999

Alas, consolidators still unimpress Wall Street

Sales and earnings flying high. Stock prices grounded.That's the third-quarter and nine-month story from all of the major publicly owned dealer consolidators, whose "patriarch," H. Wayne Huizenga, continues to voice his bafflement at investor coolness.In an analyst conference call after his top-ranked megadealer network, AutoNation Inc., reported $15 billion in sales for January-September, Mr. Huizenga

By Maynard M. Gordon • Dec. 1, 1999

At Large with Dave Smith: Die on Same Day

Don Kossak and Al Trueman were longtime friends and associates in the automotive plastics world. Both served as officers of the Automotive Composites Alliance (ACA). Both died within hours of each other on Nov. 10.I knew them well. Don was vice president of new business/SMC development at Cambridge Industries Inc. and chairman of the ACA communications committee. He was 56, and died unexpectedly from

By WARD'S AUTO WORLD STAFF • Dec. 1, 1999

TO-DO LIST AIDS GENERAL MANAGERS

I often am asked for a to-do list for general managers. For our purpose here, let's assume the general manager is also the operator of a dealership. This is not an all-inclusive list, but an outline that will help you organize and bring some structure to your month.MEETINGS Departmental Financial Statement Analysis Monthly, the day after the financial statement is finalized and published, meet all

By Tony Noland • Nov. 1, 1999

Breaking Some Glass--How about a website in every garage?

WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, WV - Picture this: Every car or truck becomes a website connected with a smart card to an Internet server.Like your Social Security number, the vehicle's unique VIN (vehicle identification number) and an access card would be the keys to linking with the worldwide web.The advantages would be monumental: Information about where and when the vehicle was built, who produced which

By David C. Smith • Nov. 1, 1999

I NEVER SAW ONE OF THOSE IN DETROIT

I'VE SAID BEFORE THAT IT'S IMPORTANT FOR AUTO journalists based in the Motor City to leave the "Detroit Beltway" every now and then to see what's going on elsewhere in the automotive world.That point hit home when I spotted several dressed-up flashy Japanese cars on the streets of San Francisco.Driven by young Asians, these cool compacts sported eye-catching aftermarket extras such as wild spoilers,

By Steve Finlay • Nov. 1, 1999

NEW-CAR FRANCHISES HELP TO PUT CARMAX IN THE BLACK

Its 21 new-car franchises helped nail down CarMax's first net profits for two consecutive quarters.Yet CarMax President W. Austin Ligon says the Circuit City division will keep focusing on its core area over the past six years - used vehicles."New cars still account for less than 35% of CarMax Group sales," Mr. Ligon says. "But we do need more superstores in metro markets, because customers there

Nov. 1, 1999

Tough Choices--How Would You Choose the Car of the Century?

I'm sure it happens to you all the time. As soon as someone finds out you have anything to do with automobiles or the auto industry they ask you, "What's the best car?"It's almost impossible to answer them of course, without putting them through a battery of questions: In which price range? For what purpose? To carry how many people? With which features? And so on.Now a bunch of car nuts from The

By John McElroy • Nov. 1, 1999

INTERNET-PHOBIA - NOW THAT’S SCARY!

"I KNOW WE HAVE TO BECOME MORE AGGRESSIVE with our Internet strategy, but I just can't seem to get my management team to cooperate."Such is the lament I often hear when discussing my company's Internet training program with dealers. Like any good sales consultant, I have been trying to ascertain a strategy for overcoming that objection. There is no one simple answer.The issue of gaining management

By Mark Rikess • Nov. 1, 1999

Here’s what F&I managers should do

The F&I Department is one of the most important profit centers in any dealership. A business manager has responsibilities to the deal-ership as well as to the customer and must have a thorough understanding of these duties to achieve success.Control the Sale: The F&I manager's job is to secure each sale and ensure that every vehicle sold is delivered.The manager also protects the gross by arranging

By George Jackson • Nov. 1, 1999

Mitsubishi tries to wake up its image

It was a rude awakening for Mitsubishi Motors Sales of America when its own survey results revealed that fully 56% of American consumers had no idea that Mitsubishi sold cars in America. This painful dawning drove Mitsubishi to whip up its youth-savvy "wake up and drive" ad campaign to accompany its lineup - especially its U.S. signature car, the 2000 Eclipse sports coupe, which got a slick new redesign,

By KATHERINE ZACHARY • Oct. 1, 1999

Lightening Up for the 21st Century

As the century draws to a close, it's remarkable to ponder the advances and evolution in all aspects of society.Influenza, which once claimed as many lives as both world wars, is not the public health threat it once was. Smallpox is on the brink of eradication. American women and minorities won the right to vote. Einstein gave us the theory of relativity. A man walked on the moon.Yet in the face of

By Drew Winter, Tom Murphy • Sept. 1, 1999

HALF-TIME Report

Sonic Automotive just acquired stores in two of the fastest-growing markets - southwest Florida and Las Vegas, NV.The acquisitions add impetus to Sonic's new status as the third-largest publicly owned dealership consolidator.But other consolidators have been busy, too, both at making new acquisitions and at making money in the first half of the year.Sonic's gross revenues of $1.3 billion in the first

By Maynard M. Gordon • Sept. 1, 1999

Like Riding on Air

The heavy duty truck market discovered in the late '80s what "air ride" could do for the comfort and controllability of all manner of trucks. "Air ride" of course, is a euphemism for air springs - replacing conventional coil and/or leaf springs with pneumatically operated "springs."Air spring installations penetrated deeply and quickly into the heavy-duty truck market, but Firestone Industrial Products

By Tim Keenan • Sept. 1, 1999

Europe Cools Off -- AC on 60% of new cars, a big jump

Not long ago, those who couldn't take the heat were advised to leave the kitchen. Today, the American response is to simply get air conditioning, in your car, home, office, even your tent, for swanky catered outdoor parties.While the U.S. generally takes some lifestyle cues from Europe, in the realm of air conditioning it's the Americans setting the pace. Some Europeans still resist the trend (and

By Tom Murphy • Sept. 1, 1999

Microsoft CarPoint seminars offer instruction and advice

Want to save tens of thousands of dollars a year in service reminder mailings in this age of the Internet?Simply collect e-mail addresses from customers at every point of contact, says Robert Knight, a trainer for Microsoft's CarPoint customer referral system.He estimates that some stores can save more than $80,000 per year in service reminder mailings if they are done via e-mail.He also advises that

By Tim Keenan • Sept. 1, 1999

Where the (Color) Rubber Meets the Road

There's a building in Greenville, SC, that doesn't have a name on it. How the mailman finds it is anyone's guess. The people who work there carry no business cards.What they do in this building is so secretive that in a prior life they must have been wartime spies willing to chomp arsenic pills in the event they were captured by the enemy.For now, the secret is safe. But its keeper, French tiremaker

By Tom Murphy • Sept. 1, 1999

Push Shouldn’t Come to Shove

Opportunities are meant to be seized upon, but not even David Jac-obson, author of Non-Confrontational Power Selling, could have guessed his part-time DJ job would lead to a career in auto sales.In fact, he was actually apprehensive about moving into auto sales. He had interviewed at a dealership and the sales manager there had completely turned him off to selling cars."He told me how people get burnt

By Stacey Lewis • Sept. 1, 1999

How to figure out what makes your sales people tick

To paraphrase the old saying, "a good salesperson is hard to find." That's why today's smart sales manager does everything he can to keep talented salespeople. But in what really works?The most important thing to realize is that all successful salespeople have one thing in common: they are all competitive, proactive, assertive, aggressive and play to win.They love the risk of commission and asking

By Mary Ruth Austin • Sept. 1, 1999

NAFTA Success Story--Sanluis Rassini will quadruple its brake sales

Sometimes, large investments pay off handsomely.In the past few years, Mexican supplier Sanluis Rassini has poured $320 million into three new plants in Piedras Negras near the U.S. border and in Mexico City, as well as in a technical center in Plymouth, MI. The investments nearly matched the company's 1998 sales, which totaled $381 million.Part of the strategy was to cultivate Rassini's recent foray

By Tom Murphy • Aug. 1, 1999

Customer satisfaction not all there is

While customer satisfaction is necessary to any success business, we are learning that satisfaction alone is not enough to build a loyal customer base.Since the 1980's customer satisfaction has been the watchword for business. Everyone was rushing around to find ways to make customers happy by meeting and exceeding their expectations.The theory was that if customers were satisfied, they would buy

By Steve Walker • Aug. 1, 1999

HOW TO MAXIMIZE VALUE WHEN SELLING

In today's thriving economy, corporate mergers and acquisitions are making headlines.Technology companies, manufacturers and financial institutions are all consolidating, creating entities with critical mass - and the automotive industry is no exception to this trend.Automotive dealerships are rapidly changing hands as aggressive buyers swallow up smaller entities in an effort to dominate a region

By Paul Escobosa • Aug. 1, 1999

Are you Red, Blue, Green or Yellow?

Management By Strengths (MBS) is a program specifically designed to help companies increase productivity, improve customer satisfaction and employee morale, and create better communication through an improved understanding of how to work together more efficiently.The skills learned in the MBS program on ASTN enhance team building throughout an organization.MBS starts by analyzing surveys and creating

By Mike Postlewait • Aug. 1, 1999