U.S. auto sales forecast to hit 5-year high in June

Analysts see SAAR below 14M for 2nd straight month

DETROIT (Reuters) -- The deteriorating European markets have led auto industry executives to worry about possible contagion spreading across the Atlantic, but June new-car sales in the United States are expected to hit a five-year peak for that…

20% of American Car Buyers Have Bought a Brand of Car That a Friend Has Followed on Facebook 

18% of US consumers - including 23% under 35 - have bought a brand because their friends like or follow the brand on a social network, per findings from an …

Question #1: What if we had no departments in the dealership?  What if we had only areas of responsibility but all managers were paid on total store profits?  Do you think we would have greater communication and cooperation between what are now separate profit centers?…

AutoCon 2012 Provides Diversity and Women’s Issues Workshops

The AutoCon 2012 Planning Committee is pleased to announce our partnership with Jody DeVere, CEO of AskPatty.com to create a powerful set of workshops…

Check out this blog by Jenn Mayer as she tells why you as a dealership should be using Google+ and how to use it!

Previously, Google Places was always on the “SEO checklist” for dealerships and other…

I created a video that gives a brief overview of the Google Cars program, officially called the Google Commercial Unit For Cars (CUFC). A few more details on the program are now available but dealers still have a number of questions left unanswered.

Take a minute to watch the video and see my comments at the bottom of this page.…

Before I decide to make a purchase on any big ticket item,  I search the company’s name in Google and see the rating  the business received. I also read a couple of the customer reviews. I, like most shoppers, am turned off by bad reviews. Shoppers are using the Web now, more than ever to research and review companies.

Which rating service should dealerships pay most attention to? Google and here’s why:

I googled a local dealership here in Orlando, and the first…

AskPatty.com and the Certified Female Friendly® program are sponsoring the first ever Diversity Women's Issues track at a large automotive industry event during the 2012 AutoConnections Conference & Expo September 5- 8th at the Aria Hotel in Las Vegas.



Diversity…

This isn't going to be a long rant because I do most of my ranting in the video below, but it all definitely needs to be said. Taking an image that someone else took from one of the various picture-sharing sites on the internet and then slapping your watermark on it is a very poor practice. It's dishonest. It's a potential hit to your reputation. It's a little creepy.

One thing I do not mention in the video is that it reduces the chances that someone else will share the image from…

As we all know, Google made a HUGE shift on May 30th, when they moved all Google Places pages to Google+ Local.  We are 1 month since the announcement and shift, and I wanted to share some of my experiences and observations so far. 

Google is very…

I came across an article recently on LinkedIn called, "Selling Your Age As A Benefit. How Do You Make Your Most Effective Case During A Job Search?". (Blush) I have yet to read the article.  But a…

Another prediction that I wrote about has come true.  Change is in the air again at Google.  Paid Search just took a big step forward or backwards, depending on how you think.  It's called "Google Commercial Unit For…

I’ve noticed recently that there are many,many articles out there entitled something like “21 Point Checklist For Good SEO” or “Ten things you need to change after the Panda/Penguin updates” etc. This is nice and all but honestly put all of that extraneous stuff aside, if there is ONE thing you need to know about …

Today, more than ever, online reviews can make or break your month selling vehicles.  We can search for online reputation management companies and we will get hundreds if not thousands of opinions on how to manipulate the system of posting positive reviews.  Many of these companies state that they have a secret to help your dealership look like they are flawless.  This is done utilizing a lot of smoke and mirrors.

Studies by consumer behavior and search experts say that 7 out of 10…

After watching this 60 Minutes bit on The Age of Millennials, I thought to myself- oh great, apparently we are the doom of civilization. Being born in the 80’s lumped me into the Generation Y category, but I felt insulted when we were described as narcissistic praise-hounds that didn’t know how to cope with…

When dealing with your company’s SEO, you obviously want to rank highly for all relevant terms. For some companies though, it’s more important to rank well locally. A recent survey has revealed some of the most important factors when it comes to local ranking, and the results may surprise you.



Survey…

Years ago I had the honor to be introduced to a gentleman who would change my life. He was Robert Worthington, President of Royal Oldsmobile in Stone Mountain Georgia. Bob as many knew him (I always addressed him as Mr. Worthington) had a commanding way about him. He was proud of our industry and the success of his dealership.

His pride did not come from what he had done, but rather what his managers and employees had accomplished during their years with Royal Oldsmobile. You see Mr.…