Revhead Ramblings: F1 is Dying and We Need to Save It

F1 is suffering a pretty serious identity crisis and has been for a number of years. Viewing numbers are decreasing and action needs to be taken.

There are many issues that need addressing, for example the lack of overtaking, the lack of competition outside the top three teams and the obsession with costs. It won’t be a quick fix, but it’s one that’s genuinely worth doing because F1 can be fantastic.

I’m too young to remember them, but I’ve watched the greats go wheel to wheel in videos and the racing has you on the edge of your seat. That’s something we lack today.

Practice Sessions

It seems F1 races are mostly won via a computer. Extremely generous practice sessions give teams hours to fine tune their cars to the conditions and work out the limits of their cars before any serious racing begins.

While this is great for teams, it’s incredibly boring for spectators. One of the best races this season was the US Grand Prix, why you ask? Because teams only had 60 minutes of dry practice time!

By greatly reducing practice time or eliminating it all together, it would not only save teams money by shortening the race weekend, it would also add some much-needed unpredictability to the races again!

You could even give out practice time depending on your performances throughout the season, giving teams lower in the rankings a greater chance to press the big boys who normally take a clean sweep.

Punish Drivers for Running Off

Not in the form of point deductions, but by removing some of the low risk run off areas around turns. Look at Monaco, if you run off in a corner, you’re more than likely in a wall and that creates exciting racing!

It makes drivers work harder and reduces their ability to abuse the track limits. Obviously, you can’t remove run off areas completely, safety cars would be a permanent feature with all the debris on track, but by making corners a more high-risk area, you’ll have viewers on the edge of their seats!

Tyres

Tyres are a big sticking point, teams are far too focused on preserving the life of their rubber in a bid to avoid pit stops. This creates boring tactics and reduces overtaking as they sit back to avoid putting more heat through their wheels. If we wanted to watch tyre saving strategies, we’d move to the endurance series!

It’d be interesting to see the introduction of more tyre suppliers too. Having battles between the top tyre companies would not only make for better racing on track but would also greatly benefit our road cars!

Ending the Pursuit of Downforce

Spectators agree, drivers agree, and pundits agree. Downforce doesn’t make for entertaining racing! Hamilton recently said in an interview “We are all capable of racing much closer so there needs to be changes to enable us to do that and we don’t seem to be making those changes. If you give us five seconds more downforce it will be exactly the same just five seconds faster, but they won’t listen to what I say on that or what us drivers say on that, they’ll make something else happen.

“They’ll probably give us more downforce and the tyres won’t be any better and you’ll see the exact same race next year.”

There’s Still Hope

It’s a shame that more people aren’t celebrating Hamilton’s win, he’s without question one of the greatest sportsmen this country has produced, and he doesn’t get the recognition he deserves. Hopefully in the years to come we’ll see some changes, and with them a new wave of fans!

Why Lead Management Should Be Dealers’ Number 1 Priority!

Generating leads can be expensive business. What’s worse is that not managing them effectively could prove critical to the overall performance of a dealership. To truly maximise lead generation, dealerships need full visibility of all enquiry methods. Not only does it give power to dealers to understand which advertising is the most cost effective but full visibility provides the best opportunity to action enquiries quickly and effectively.

With Brexit now looming large on the horizon and penciled in for March 29th, 2019 without any extension period for further negotiation currently agreed, it’s time dealerships started preparing themselves for the climate of post Brexit Britain.

 Nobody really knows what’s going to happen, many have made predictions but it’s far from an exact science and the future is filled with way too many unknowns for anybody to accurately hazard a guess at the likely outcomes for the automotive industry.

Focus on What You Can Affect

Uncertainty doesn’t mean that dealerships should be unprepared though. Quite the opposite in fact. Dealers should work to define a foolproof lead management strategy to capitalise on all sales opportunities and plug their leaky leads buckets up completely, after all the best way to safeguard a business during a period of unpredictability is to be shrewd and make the most of all enquiries received.

Ensuring that an effective CRM system is in place, is a fantastic way of making sure that all leads are accounted for, logged and followed-up in the correct manner. Dealers shouldn’t underestimate the power of aggregating prospect and lead data into one central location for easy management, and the difference it can make to maintaining a steady flow of sales.

Without an effective strategy for generating, managing and converting leads, dealerships could be missing out on a lot of business and in what could be a challenging year for the industry, it’s essential that dealers don’t leave any cash on the table.

Define Your Processes

A dealership’s lead management process should be comprehensive, incorporating stages prompting the relevant staff members to act from first contact to the point of sale, or the point at which the lead is conclusively not worth pursuing any longer.

Communication is key within the lead process, both from a dealership’s point of view and the customer’s. Systems should alert staff to activity going on in the dealership and also keep the customer informed, timely actions and responses are vital to maintaining a successful sales process. This in turn will increase dealer’s performance with regards to stock turn, product sales and customer satisfaction. To this end, Click Dealer believes that software can be pro-active when it comes to lead management rather than just reactive.

Tracking Is Everything

Tracking can provide invaluable business insights. As soon as an enquiry is made, it should be logged in a CRM system, spreadsheet or database dedicated to lead tracking, along with the date of arrival and the lead source. With the technical advancements that we have at our fingertips today there is no reason why this process can’t be automated, saving dealers time and missed opportunities.

This doesn’t just help dealers see where leads are coming from, but also how valuable each source is, how many leads have converted into sales, how much customers have spent and gives added visibility on all-important sales margins.

Efficiency Can Separate Dealers from Their Competition

One major issue that dealers face is that more and more enquiries are now coming through after hours. While some customers will understand that dealerships cannot be on hand to answer calls and emails 24/7, others will not be as patient.

To combat this, setting up an automatic message which informs enquirers that they’ll be contacted as soon as the dealership re-opens for business is a great idea. Dealers can then make responding to the previous night’s queries a priority for the day ahead.

With potentially challenging times ahead, it’s more important now than ever before that your technology partners can support the overall management of performance, from staff KPI’s to overall business efficiency. Task management and understanding the bigger picture of overall dealership performance is essential for those who want to thrive in 2019 and beyond.

For more information on Click Dealer’s lead management capabilities and to find out if we can be a performance partner for your dealership, get in touch today via [email protected] or 01782 478220!

Social Media Pitfalls and Tips for Car Dealers

Whether you are new to social media marketing or you simply want some ideas about how to improve, this article shares the common pitfalls and some helpful tips.

Social media is an incredibly useful tool, allowing you to reach your customers when they are away from your dealership. Here are some simple things you can do to make the most of this opportunity.

Pitfall: Not Committing

When you introduce social media to your business, you will begin to realise just how time-consuming effective management of it can be. Many are enthusiastic to start off with, but start to neglect it, getting distracted by other tasks.

Tip: Put a Slot in Your Diary

If you are truly serious about making your social media marketing a success, you must be prepared to dedicate time to it. To avoid neglecting it, it is a good idea to have a dedicated slot when you’ll sit down and come up with ideas for posts and engage with other social media users.

This should be done in addition to constantly checking to see if there have been comments or direct messages left by customers, which should be responded to instantly.

Pitfall: Being Reactive

A common mistake that businesses make with a company social media account is treating it like a personal account and posting only when the mood takes them or when they are responding to something. This is a reactive approach, whereas in our experience, a more effective approach is a proactive one.

Tip: Be Proactive

You should create a clear strategy which tells you how often you should post and stick to it. Having to come up with ideas for posts can be a challenge, but people will follow you for your content, so do some research and find out what’s happening in the industry, see what other people are talking about, create your own videos and take photos around your business, don’t just wait for inspiration to strike, go and find it!

Pitfall: Neglecting Comments

Whether it is praise, a criticism, or just an opinion on something you’ve posted, comments should not be neglected. It is much easier to ignore a dissatisfied customer when they are online rather than in front of you, but the situation should be handled in exactly the same way as if they were at your dealership.

Tip: Respond as You Would in Person

Comments on social media should always be responded to in a timely and professional manner, after all, the comment will be public and if it is ignored, other potential customers may be deterred. If their problem is dealt with well, the customer may return to your dealership in the future and others will be reassured by how you’ve handled the situation.

Pitfall: Being Boring

Just because it is a business social media account, don’t feel like you need to be overly reserved and don’t just copy what other companies are doing. The main benefit of social media is that it gives you the opportunity to show people your company’s personal side.

Tip: Be Creative

Your social media page is your chance to show people what makes you special, and you can do this by coming up with unique content that gives an insight into the people behind the business and your values. If your content is relatable and compelling, customers will want to buy from you, and this is what makes social media marketing so powerful.

If you would like advice about social media marketing or to find out about Click Dealer’s social media packages, leave a comment below, or get in touch via [email protected] or 01782 478220!

One in Four Car Dealers Believe Used Margins Have Improved Despite Higher Wholesale Prices

With high levels of demand for used cars introducing more competition amongst dealers and wholesale price rises, there have been concerns about this having a negative on profit margins.

However, recent data from Next Gear Capital and Cox Automotive suggests that this is not the case.

NextGear Capital’s Report

In their latest sentiment survey, NextGear Capital and Cox Automotive found that 1 in 4 car dealers think that used car margins in 2018 have improved since last year.

According to their data, there had been a steady decrease in the age of funded vehicles to around 6 and a half years. This reduction has caused a 4.1 per cent annual rise in the sale price achieved on dealer forecourts, and over the same period, the average holding days also dropped by one to 59 days.

Liam Quegan, Managing Director of NextGear Capital, commented: ‘’The dive in the new vehicle registrations has translated into a surge of retail buyers entering the used market. At the same time the wholesale sector is experiencing a dearth of ex-manufacturer, fleet and lease stock. This is driving competition amongst dealers as they fight to maintain a strong pace of stock turn and satisfy demand’.’

More Dealers Look to Complementary Funding Options

‘’For many dealers, this necessity to strike fast when the right vehicle becomes available is placing an acute pressure on cash flow and as a result, we’re witnessing increasing numbers looking towards complementary funding options, including Stocking Plan, to boost their buyer power,” Quegan added.

‘’The number of units we’re funding is increasing month on month plus we’re experiencing a significant spike in the volume of credit limit extension requests. These are indicators of a buoyant market with buyers wanting the ability to flex their purchasing options in order to meet the demands of the market’’

To find out how Click Dealer can help your dealership make the most of the remainder of 2018, get in touch today by emailing us at [email protected], calling us on 01782 478220 or sending us a message via our contact page!

Top Tips for Preparing Your Dealership for the Winter Ahead

The final two months of Q4 are notoriously quiet for dealerships and forecasts promising it will be the coldest winter in ten years are unlikely to encourage people to leave their homes to go car shopping.

It has been a positive year for used car sales so far, but the remainder of 2018 could prove difficult for dealers, so it is best to make sure that you are prepared.

Stock Suitable Vehicles

If you have any coupes and convertibles left over from the scorching summer that boosted demand for these types of vehicles, it’s time to get rid of dead weight.

If you have space to be able to store Summer stock until the New Year it may be a tactical move to keep them until the sun comes back out, but if you can’t afford to have them taking up even a well-hidden forecourt spot, cut the price and make way for more profitable stock. If one good thing comes from a bitter, snowy winter it’ll be increased interest in SUVs and other four-wheel drive vehicles.

Be on High Alert for Auction Opportunities

Opportunities have arisen for obtaining quality stock as fleet and rental companies commonly defleet at this time of year.

Digital auctions now allow attendees to see vehicles in explicit detail, making this an increasingly viable option. Not having to make constant trips to physical auctions means you will save money on fuel and time which could be better spent actually selling cars. Savings like these as minor as they may seem could make all the difference in the upcoming weeks.

Embrace the Festivities!

With Halloween and Bonfire Night over, Christmas preparations are officially under way. This holiday creates a lot of competition between retailers, but don’t shy away from it, embrace it!

If you haven’t already, sit down and devise a strategy to tackle the period head on, whether it involves a Winter sale, seasonal advertising or website decoration, a special Christmas giveaway or increased social media activity. There are lots of great ideas online about how to generate engagement via social media during the festive season.

It is hard to predict exactly how trends will develop for the remainder of the year, but the safest advice to heed is to be vigilant on the forecourt. Take note of the purchasing patterns occurring at your dealership, and make sure your Christmas strategies are flexible enough for you to be able to adapt to any changes in consumer demand.

To find out how Click Dealer can help your dealership make the winter months profitable, get in touch today by emailing us at [email protected], calling us on 01782 478220 or sending us a message via our contact page!

 

Revhead Ramblings: Enjoy Your Cheap Performance Car While You Can

If you open a new tab now, open up Auto Trader and search for a sports car, you’ll be met by countless different options at drastically different price points.

Enjoy them while you can, because the affordable sports car is a dying breed. Emissions regulations are making these cars increasingly harder to produce at a price point that keeps us happy; it seems that the Toyota GT-86 is a sign of things to come.

Pesky Regulators

Not that the Toyota is a bad car by any means, it doesn’t need endless power, it instead lives by the mantra ‘slow car fast’. Of course, no one needs sub six second 0-60 times or blisteringly fast Nürburgring laps, but that doesn’t mean we don’t want it! The biggest issue for this type of car are the regulators, they don’t care about fun, they’re there to protect the little penguins on their rapidly shrinking ice block.

While they may not be out to get rid of affordable performance cars, the problem comes when manufacturers simply can’t make a fast, low-emission car that caters to a more modest budget.

Aston’s Trick

Can you remember when Aston Martin sold a rebadged Toyota IQ? It wasn’t to make a bold move on the compact market, the car was simply there to lower their average CO2 production across their range. These stricter rules won’t have too much of an effect on our marquee performance brands, the regulators are kind enough to offer different bands for emissions depending on your yearly output of cars.

So, for companies like Ford or BMW who produce a vast number of cars per year, they have to work even harder to keep their average CO2 production under a certain level to avoid huge fines and further sanctions.

Times Are Changing

Previously, if any of the big car makers wanted to make a fast, relatively affordable car, they’d generally just stick a big engine in it. Suddenly, that method comes with a huge list of issues, it’s hard enough to get your regular range of vehicles down to the 95g/km average without sending a group of enthusiastic engineers off to install a fire-breathing motor into something, thus pulling the average up again.

Not only would these kinds of cars have to cover their own development costs, but they’d have to sell in great volumes or at a much higher price, to cover the extra engineering costs of making the rest of the range less pollutive.

Electrification

You may then point out that this is where part electrification can come in. But looking at cars out there with mild hybrid systems, they’re not cheap. Add in the additional costs of the other performance bits and you’ve no longer got an affordable performance car. A slower car would solve all of these problems but is that really where we want to go? I care about those polar bears as much as the next person but if it means sacrificing fast cars then they need a new home!

We’re Already Too Late

If your next plan after reading this was to pick up your pitchfork and attack those regulators don’t bother. The change is upon us, the GT-86 and BRZ have a mild engine, the Alpine A110 weighs less than my phone and is out of reach for most and the Honda NSX has three electric motors to keep up with the competition. These regulations have created some interesting cars, that doesn’t always translate to fun unfortunately.

How Mobile Business Apps Can Improve Efficiencies

It is hard to believe that just ten years ago, the vast majority of people in the UK did not own a smartphone, when today, they are with us wherever we go and when we are without them, it is as if we’ve lost a limb!

According to a recent report by Ofcom, entitled: “A Decade of Digital Dependency,” in 2008, just 17% of the population used smartphones, in comparison to 78% this year. The data revealed that around 40% of adults check their mobile phone as soon as they wake up and just before going to sleep and they have now become the device that people say they would miss the most, above TVs and PCs.

It is true, smartphones dominate our lives, but are you making the most of yours? There is a wealth of mobile business apps available today, and you may be surprised at how effective they are at saving you time and increasing your productivity. Mobile business apps come in a variety of shapes and sizes but here are a few general ways in which they can improve operational efficiencies.

Store Lots of Information in One Portable Device

Storing data in a physical form could leave you with several hefty filing cabinets, which take ages to find anything in. In this day and age, there is no need for you be wasting valuable time trawling through paper documents.

Even using a desktop PC to input and obtain information means that employees will have to be at a desk. With a smartphone and the right app, data capture and retrieval can be done anywhere, which can drastically speed up administrative processes.

Reduce Overheads

For any business, it is beneficial to be constantly on the lookout for ways to save money. A major advantage of embracing digital methods is that they reduce the need to use expensive machines like printers and copiers, as mobile business apps allow you to transfer data between devices paper free. This will save you money on ink, toner and maintenance, and you’ll even be doing the environment a favour!

Better Communication

Another huge benefit of mobile business apps is instant updates. Good communication within a business helps to make sure that everything functions smoothly and enables employees to deliver a better standard of service. The ability to exchange real-time information and see what everyone is working on can have a very positive impact in this area.

For more information about how Click Dealer’s technology can help to improve your dealership’s efficiencies, get in touch today by emailing us at [email protected], calling us on 01782 478220 or sending us a message via our contact page!

The Road Less Travelled: An Account of Click Dealer’s Bangers for Ben 2018 Journey

By the Click Dealer Bangers for Ben Squadron

The Journey started for the now legendary Click Dealer Squadron ‘Spitfire One’ and ‘Blues Brothers One’ back in June 2018.

Click attended its first expo event, CDX in Manchester, and chose Ben as it’s charity partner. As part of our display, attendees were encouraged to cycle a bike to raise money for Ben, win a holiday and create the power to propel our Tesla on a theoretical trip around Europe! The physical challenge was a hit, creating great awareness for a more than deserving cause.

 

While supporting this great charity, we learned about the Bangers for Ben rally and were keen to get involved. Once the team at Ben explained the premise, we jumped at the chance to join in, signing up for two places without a moment’s hesitation! We quickly laid out plans upon return to our Shelton based office, carefully organising everything from our cars to outfits! Naturally, our hat was full of hopeful applicants, all itching to help out such a worthy cause.

A European road trip is the stuff of dreams, however when it comes to car choices people are heavily divided. If you want to fully take advantage of the pristine asphalt and jaw dropping views, a sporty roadster is the only way to go. Director and Head of Web Ollie saw no other option and set out to find his stead… Thankfully one of our excellent customers, Stockport Car Supermarket, had the perfect car in stock. To this day he maintains he struck £750 deal for that car, Andy from the AA was less than convinced…

Jake and I agreed a sports car would be incredible fun on those tight undulating mountain roads, but for the majority of our trip we’d be tackling mile after mile of tedious motorways. Therefore, the only option for us was something comfortable!

To that end, we stumbled upon a gorgeous silver Y reg 3-Series and instantly fell in love. While it may not be the last word in speed, we were confident our German stallion would take us the distance and in far greater comfort than Ollie and Joe would experience!

Following the acquisition of our cars, we had to decide on our theme and apply them accordingly. Being as suave as we are, a Blues Brothers theme was by far the best option. Armed with a spray can and an impressive imagination, Jake set to work on our soon to be beloved Beemer with a set of spray cans; and a few cans for himself too!

From the work he presented me with, I have a sneaking suspision Jake could well be behind the elusive Banksy markings across our great country. To accompany our factory fresh paint job, a series of stickers were chosen to complete the look. A few choice extras were added and with that our car was complete!

For our pristine MX-5, Ollie’s shaky hands just couldn’t be trusted. Instead, armed with his begging face and Daddy’s phonebook, he turned to M&M designs to bring his design to life! Having already decorated our Tesla for the CDX expo, we knew just how talented these guys are; even after seeing their previous work though we never expected it to turn out as well as it did however…

Paying homage to those who made this trip during the Second World War, we thought it was fitting to decorate the MX-5 in Spitfire attire; it was designed in Stoke after all! The final results were amazing and drew a huge amount of attention as we crossed the continent!

So, the day was finally upon us to leave old Blighty, and all of the Clickers left their busy working days to give the two cars a good old fashioned send off.

We were away on our trip down to the overnight hotel before we would head to Brooklands and the famous banked race track.

Upon arrival at the hotel, we decided it was only right to start as we meant to carry on and cracked open a few cold ones to accompany our microwave dinner! This wouldn’t be a dry trip if we had anything to do with it.

Then it was off to bed to get a good night’s rest in preparation for the trip of a lifetime, trying not to let the nagging worry of whether our bangers would actually make the entire 1,400-mile epic trip keep us awake.

Day One

We couldn’t have hoped for a better start! A wall of traffic is never a friendly sight, that is unless your car is filled with more snacks than a fully stocked Sainsburys!

The Mazda car was still raring to go with Lt Ollie Moxham outlining the mission plan.

When we arrived at Brooklands, we met up with the other Bangers for Ben drivers and we were impressed with how good all the cars looked. It was a sight to be seen with everybody in fancy dress and good spirits and it made us excited for the journey ahead.

We even saw Sgt Poody Non-Stop show his strength against the poor little Robin, lifting it up single handily!

Following the meet, we all departed for the White Cliffs, both cars made it with no problems, albeit at different times! This wasn’t the first time our convoy would be broken…

We were more than happy to pose with the slightly bemused holiday makers as they began their journey to warmer climates. I’d also like to take the time to highlight one of our fallen comrades. The Mini pictured was unfortunately wounded and subsequently died from its injuries; cause of death? A broken drive shaft…

The boat over to France gave us a nice break from what had already been a busy day of driving. The Blues Brothers team was in good spirts and even had time to take part in the flash mob. Watch out for Jake’s swift exit to the back of the group!

As Blues Brothers One and Spitfire One were separated, we took to social media to communicate, and upon landing, we received an update from the Spitfire squadron on their progress in to France…

As the Blues Brothers car entered the final stages of the journey (after getting lost somewhere along the way) we sent out this urgent message to our comrades, requesting support.

As you can see from the tweets, the gang were loving the Bangers for Ben trip so far, with both cars still going strong and arriving in Reims, France before the last banger.

Day Two

After managing to get ourselves out of bed, we headed to the former F1 circuit in Reims.

From the former race circuit, it was on to ‏Stuttgart for the next leg of the journey, but disaster struck! Blues Brothers One had an engine coolant problem, leaving us sidelined until the AA came to our rescue. It was the last thing the Click squadron needed, but do you think it dampened our spirits? Well, maybe for a little while!

But, it was back to business in no time and we made light of the situation by making this epic video while waiting for the legendary AA team to arrive.

Meanwhile, Spitfire One was proving to be a massive hit at the German service station, gathering a crowd. There was also plenty of attention for the two pilots. They may have played it down, but we all know they loved every minute of it!

After the lads had beaten off their adoring fans, we departed once again, with Spitfire One in the lead going at a snail’s pace, earning the pilot the nickname, Sgt Plodmore!

The Blues Brothers then decided that it was time to have some fun again with a spot of carpool karaoke! Before you ask, unfortunately we won’t be giving up the day job!

Day Three

The plan for day three was to head to Belgium through the epic roads of the Black Forest via the infamous Nürburgring. We were certainly looking forward to this stage of the journey as the views and roads are said to be the best in the whole of Europe. Plus, there was the bonus of seeing the famous track that so many F1 champions have raced on over the years. As the below video shows, we did not hang around, tearing up the road to the fast and furious sound track!

Disaster struck however, the Green Hell was out of action due to a thick layer of fog covering the ground and imparing our vision. In a bid to cheer ourselves up, we utilised our rear drive setup and produced some lovely doughnuts on the gravel car park!

With our smiles firmly reinstated, we set about finding lunch in the nearby village of Baden-Baden. We found some ingredients and crafted a great lunch. While we were indeed satisfied with our meal, the same couldn’t be said for the local’s opinion of our picnic spot!

After arriving in Bruges, the boys gathered the gang (Motorcheck, FSA and Autotrader) for one last European night out.Day 4

As you can imagine, it was a slow start for the Click squadron after the late night before, making ours the last cars out of the overnight hotel. It was going to be a very tight deadline for both cars to reach the ferry.

In a cruel twist of fate, we were split up once again as the French Customs Officers decided it was our car that should be pulled for an examination. This subsequently led to us missing our ferry home!

After waiting for what felt like an eternity, made all the more strenuous by fighting to keep the hungry police dog from devouring our remaining snacks, we were finally released. Blues Brothers One were resigned to the fact that Rockingham, our original destination was out of the question. Thankfully Spitfire One filled half of Click Dealer’s spaces for the track driving.

After the Rockingham event it, was on to the Hilton Hotel in Northampton for the gala dinner. You would never have guessed it, but the Click squadron actually turned up on time for once and don’t we scrub up well considering the four days we’d just had?

It was a great evening, and after the bar closed, the party continued in the Nag’s Head. With free beer and bar snacks, the Click squadron had to pop over to the back of the car park for a tipple. Sgt Poody even brought a date along!

The end to the Bangers for Ben rally 2018 was made official with the Blues Brothers car being taken off to BSA to be sold.

Thanks to all our fellow Bangers for Ben comrades for making it an extremely fun trip and to the dedicated event organisers for letting us take part! Bring on next year!

Used Car Values Gave Strong Performance in October

Automakers are battling to boost new car sales volumes; however, the used car market is still overshadowing the new. During October 2018, used car values gave a strong performance, which has given independent car dealers confidence for the remaining two months.

For many years, used car values have dropped by around 1.6 per cent nearer to the last few months of the year, but this October, values have dropped by just 0.6 per cent, indicating a strong market.

Cap HPI’s New Data

The latest data from Cap HPI reveals a strong performance for used car values during October, with values dropping only slightly. Experts at Cap HPI confirmed that this marks the strongest October recorded in nine years, including 2009, when the market was recovering from recession.

During the last five years, the typical movement in Black Book live throughout October was 1.6 per cent, while it was as low as 2.2 per cent, back in 2015.

Head of Current Valuations at Cap HPI, Derren Martin, said: ‘’When viewing October’s performance in the context that used car prices have been strong all year, these are unprecedented times for used car values.”

What This Means for the Remainder of the Year

‘’The last two months of the year are generally challenging from a demand point of view, and values can often slide away before recovering somewhat in January.’’

In the remaining two months over the previous five years, Cap HPI experts said that values dropped by roughly 2 per cent each month.

Automakers should expect a decrease in new car volumes well into 2019 due to WLTP, while it is also unlikely that the number of part-exchanges and fleet returns will largely increase during the rest of 2018.

‘’Taking these demand and supply dynamics into account, it is fair to assume that values will likely reduce but not to the extent that they have done in previous years.’’

To find out how Click Dealer technology can help your dealership provide a higher standard of customer service, get in touch today by emailing us at [email protected], calling us on 01782 478220 or sending us a message via our contact page!

How Dealers Can Improve the Digital Car Buying Experience

E-Commerce
Customer expectations are growing, and digital automotive landscapes are evolving to keep up with them, but car dealers themselves are generally slow to adopt new technologies, which impedes the development of modern, more efficient vehicle purchase processes.

Failure to integrate digital methods within the business is costing dealerships money. Enquiries are being neglected, pushing customers to look elsewhere, and opportunities for sales disappear with them. This is down to poor lead management, a problem that is so simple to fix with the right attitude.

Neglecting Email Enquiries

A recent report published by CarGurus revealed that half of online enquiries receive poor response rates from car dealers. Dealers were taking too long to reply, and many customers found that when they did get a response, it was from someone who was unable to help with the query.

Around a quarter of buyers choose email as their first method of contact with a car dealer, and if they are dissatisfied with the response, they are likely to be deterred, which may result in them looking elsewhere. This could potentially mean a high number of lost leads.

More importance needs to be placed on attending to enquiries and lead management, and if this is something that your dealership struggles with, it is worth considering new digital solutions.

Utilising New Technologies to Meet Customer Demands

As consumers, we have been spoilt by fast-reacting companies, who offer immediate responses and one-day delivery, and this has led car buyers to demand instant gratification. As customer expectations have risen, the industry is shaping itself to accommodate this.

Click Dealer’s online retailing platform, ClickEngage™ is just one example of new technology designed to help dealers meet the increasing demands of car buyers, offering instant responses to keep customers happy and doubling up as lead management software to make dealers’ lives easier. There are also live chat services, social media auto-response tools and various other digital solutions available.

Time to Evolve

Customer demands have changed, industry suppliers have adapted by offering new technologies, and now, the last piece of the puzzle is for car dealers to evolve. There is a need for dealers to recognise the changes that are occurring around them and take a proactive approach to lead management by implementing new digital technologies in their business.

This will make car purchases more efficient and less of a hassle for customers and, at the same time, easier and more profitable for dealers. Everybody wins! The question that remains is, is your dealership willing to evolve?

For more information about how ClickEngage™ can improve your lead management or to receive a free demo, email [email protected], call us on 01782 904 715 or alternatively, you can message us via our contact page.