Show me the CARFAX….at the auction.

Time and time again we’ve seen hoards of dealers crawling the auction lanes on their cell phones to get a vehicle history report check on cars. Not only does it take 2 people to accomplish this (1 at the auction and 1 back at the office), but more importantly it puts your dealership at a disadvantage not being fully informed of a cars history prior to bidding without a VHR.

AutoRevo and CARFAX are here to change just that. To highlight the situation I’ve compared Old School vs. New School. Check it out.

Old School:

You’re a dealer standing at the auction in a lane looking over a car 5 minutes before it runs. You make some frantic and stressful calls back to the office (not to mention they didn’t answer the first 2 times you called) providing a VIN to your partner on the other end of the phone. By the end of the call you have repeated the VIN 3 times just to find out this car does not have a clean CARFAX record. Now you have numerous other cars to go through the same drill with.

New School:

You’re relaxed standing at the auction in a lane looking over multiple cars 5 minutes before they run. You have taken pictures of their VIN, decoded them, and run CARFAXs on each. The full history of this car is now known before you bid and in fact you know this car is a One Owner.

The stress of the auction is enough to work with. Make your life easier by running a CARFAX easily prior to bidding.

For more information on AutoRevo Mobile visit http://www.AutoRevo.com/mobile or call 888.311.7386.

To learn more about CARFAX Unlimited accounts visit http://www.carfaxonline.com/

Request a Demo Today!

In case you didn’t get our October Newsletter today, here are a few of the highlights:

• • Targeted Vehicle Descriptions – create different descriptions for website, eBay, craigslist, and classifieds
• • Inventory Intelligence Reporting – if you haven’t checked it out yet, call your AutoRevo Dealer Consultant for a walkthrough – these reports will change the way you do business!
• • other exciting enhancements:
  • • Search vehicles by body style
  • • Optional website MPG display
  • • Craigslist one-click renew
  • • Several new classified exports
• • eBay motors Listing Enhancements update has been delayed until April
• • most popular recent blog posts:
  • • Best Sick Call Ever
  • • Dealer Profile – American Auto Brokers
  • • Get Rid of Lot Services
  • • Filming a Vehicle Video

If you didn’t get it in your inbox and you’d like to view the full newsletter, please click here.

Request a Demo Today!

As most of our readers already know, we’re a big family here at AutoRevo – and while we’re really sorry that Randall (one of the sales guys) is feeling a little bit under the weather, we can’t help but post a recording of the message he left for me Monday morning when he called in sick. It’s quite possibly the best “sick call” ever made. Check it out:

Hope you get better soon, buddy – we love ya…

Request a Demo Today!

Jeremy Hendrix, the newest member of our Support Team, just got back from an amazing trip to Africa. He took a team of 8 to the remote village of Nkombe in Uganda for two weeks at the end of July. The trip was through an organization called Salvation Safari Ministries, who sends short-term mission teams to remote areas of the world to evangelize and plant churches. Usually, since the trips are spent camping in “the bush”, they only take men – but this was the first year that the trip was co-ed, which was crucial for the purpose of this trip. Their objective was to finish construction of a new church and to focus on ministering to women and children.

He came back with some amazing stories and pictures – here’s a slideshow of his trip, put together by his wife:

Request a Demo Today!

We took a quick trip down to San Antonio, Texas, yesterday to film a little Dealer Profile video for one of our really successful dealers (www.trucksintexas.com).  We got some amazing footage, so make sure you check back soon to see the finished product once we get it edited.

Luckily, we took Erik the Intern with us
to help carry all the camera equipment
and lights and cables and microphones…

And even though he was just along for the ride, and didn’t have to carry any of the stuff, our National Sales Director still got so wiped out that he slept all the way home…

Request a Demo Today!

The Senate approved the “Cash for Clunkers” program yesterday, so now the bill goes to the President for his final approval… This is exciting news for all the dealers out there, as it is expected to produce a huge influx of business. If you’re a participating dealer, here’s a list of important preparations to make that will help maximize your potential sales from the “Cash for Clunkers” program:

1) Prepare your website - Potential buyers are already hitting the Internet to find out more information about the program.  You should create a custom page on your site to help educate potential buyers about the program… explain the qualifications and the difference between the $3,500 vouchers and the $4,500 vouchers.  Not only will your site benefit from featuring fresh content, you’re more likely to snag a few extra visitors who are looking for information on the program. Most consumers out there don’t even know what vehicles will qualify, so providing that simple information can result in significant increases in web traffic.

2) Prepare your staff - You’re bound to get a lot of calls from potential buyers who want to know more about the program.  You’ll also have a lot of in-person questions to answer, and you want to be sure that your staff is fully up to speed on all of the program details.  Don’t lose any sales because your employees can’t answer a potential buyer’s questions!

3) Prepare your inventory - Since the program will award vouchers based off of gas mileage, make sure you’ve got window stickers prominently displayed on all of your inventory with better gas mileage.  You might even want to order special window sticker stock to use for the 3-4 months that the program will run. Get your staff ready to showcase all of the available inventory to potential CFC buyers.

4) Prepare your strategy – The program is only slated to run for a few months, so you need to be able to hit the ground running.  You’ll want to be sure that you get the most out of the program, so it’s all about short term profitablilty – there’s no long term plan needed here – just prepare your staff and your inventory to ensure maximum effectiveness.

As always, comments are encouraged – if you’ve got any other ideas that will help maximize the results of the “Cash for Clunkers” program, let us know!

Request a Demo Today!

Press release hit today from the SBA.  Great news for some dealers!

SBA Will Offer Floor Plan Financing to Auto, RV, Other Dealerships Beginning July 1
KOKOMO, IND. – The U.S. Small Business Administration will offer government guaranteed loans to finance inventory for eligible auto, recreational vehicle, boat and other dealerships under a new pilot program announced today by SBA Administrator Karen Mills.
Dealer Floor Plan (DFP) financing will be available beginning July 1, according to Mills. She announced the new program during a visit to Kokomo, Ind., with Dr. Ed Montgomery, President Barack Obama’s Director of Recovery for Auto Communities and Workers.

“Countless small businesses, including dealerships, across the country are facing significant challenges as a result of the uncertainty in the auto industry,” Mills said. “Floor plan financing can offer some dealerships the opportunity to get through these tough economic times by allowing them to keep their inventory and cash flow intact, as well as save the jobs these small businesses provide.”

Mills and Montgomery discussed the new DFP pilot program, as well as other resources offered by SBA and the federal government to help small businesses in communities impacted by the troubles facing the auto industry.

“Small businesses are the engine of our economic growth,” Dr. Montgomery said. “We are committed to finding ways the federal government can cut through red tape and get resources to these companies quickly during these tough economic times. From supporting nearly $4 billion in lending to small businesses across the country since February to the Dealer Floor Plan financing announced today, the SBA is making the resources provided in the Recovery Act accessible and working to provided needed credit. The President is committed to continuing to work with federal officials to identify resources like these that make a real difference in the lives of our auto communities and workers.”

Floor plan financing is a line of credit that allows dealers to borrow against their inventory, and then repay that debt as they sell their inventory or borrow against the line of credit again to add new inventory.

Under the DFP pilot program, the SBA will provide loan guarantees for lines of credit through its 7(a) program. DFP loans will be made through SBA lenders only for titleable inventory, including autos, RVs, manufactured homes, boats and motorcycles. The pilot program will begin July 1 and will be available through Sept. 30, 2010, at which time the SBA will make the determination of whether or not to extend the program.

DFP loans will be available for a minimum of $500,000 up to the $2 million allowable under the 7(a) program. With a maximum repayment term of five years, the loans will come with a 75 percent government guarantee. Borrowers will also benefit from the temporary elimination of fees on 7(a) loans made possible by the America’s Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

During a roundtable discussion later in the afternoon with local small business owners Mills provided information on other SBA loan programs and benefits provided by the Recovery Act. Specifically, small business owners can take advantage of higher government guarantees on some 7(a) loans, as well as reduced fees on both 7(a) and 504 loans. The agency is also providing more tools to help small businesses compete for federal government contracts, along with technical assistance and counseling for business owners and entrepreneurs to help them deal with the economic challenges they face.

“We are committed to being the real partner small businesses need at this critical time,” Mills said. “Floor plan financing is just the latest tool in our toolbox to help small businesses in communities like Kokomo weather this recession and drive our nation’s economic recovery.”

Learn more here:
SBA Floor Plan Financing
FAQ
Fact Sheet
Press Release

Request a Demo Today!

National Vehicle Certification Program Group (NVCP) and CARFAX have teamed up to provide Independent Dealers a Certified pre-owned program!  Read the full story on AutoRemarketing.

Request a Demo Today!

Yes, we are always adding 3rd party sites we integrate with and we have 4 new ones this week.  If your dealership is using any of these please call or email us to get set up.

Izmocars.com
iSeeCars.com
CarFinder.com
Local-Cars.com

Check out how we integrate dealer websites with any automotive shopping site!

Request a Demo Today!

Sorry for the poor quality iPhone pictures, but we really weren’t prepared for a celebrity visit…

Lance Armstrong wheeled through our office this afternoon!

Request a Demo Today!