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Car dealers have learned now more than ever how to react quickly and stay resilient when faced with challenges. However, reactivity can only get you so far, especially as short-term adjustments are transforming into long-term trends. Today on Inside Automotive, we discuss some of these trends, specifically in the advertising and marketing space, with Bob George, Assistant Vice President of Product Management at Dealer.com.

One of the most important things car dealers will have to consider, is creating a holistic online car buying experience. Rather than relying on retailing or automation tools only, car dealers and salespeople need to be engaged with consumers throughout the entire purchase. In fact, there are over 60 automotive digital retailing platforms available right now, many of which only offer the checkout experience. Where does that leave the shopping experience?

That future also includes first-party data solutions. In order to provide personalized car shopping experiences, it is important to work with a provider that can help you make meaningful sense of your data. Marketing is also undergoing a transformation driven by the protection of consumer data. When done right, digital marketing and advertising, become conversational marketing. It’s not about pushing the same message to consumers time and time again. It’s all about meeting consumers exactly where they are in the car buying process, and creating sequences they can follow to complete every step.

“Market to people not to pixels,” says George. “Because if you think about it, this is the criticality of getting consumers to engage in personalized ways, where they actually tell you who they are.”

For more information, visit Dealer.com and stop by the Dealer.com booth #2328W at the upcoming 2022 NADA Show.

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Today on Kain & Co., host David Kain, President of Kain Automotive, sits down with Brian Toole, Director of Carpathic, to take a deep dive into managing first-party data at the dealership level. In this episode, we’ll find out how car dealers can best clean, manage, and utilize their first-party data.

Toole has been in the car business since 1999 when he landed a position with Seattle-based automotive digital marketing firm, The Cobalt Group. He was also an internet consultant for Autotrader in the early 2000s, when digital marketing was still very young. For the last several years, Toole has been focusing on helping car dealers utilize their first-party data.

It’s an area that many car dealers still struggle with, but if managed properly, can become a huge asset. Toole recommends for car dealers start by cleaning their data. Vin verification is one of the first things to check for when cleaning this data. It should then be run through a National Change of address (NCOA) to make sure that past customers are still serviceable in your area. There are also services that will merge multiple records for a single customer. Once the data is cleaned up and compressed into a single customer view, append your records.

The core value of clean first-party data is the ability to talk to your clients intelligently about their circumstances. You need to know your customers, says Toole. Clean data makes this much easier. It also enables your marketing campaigns to be more efficient and personalized. Clean data allows for deeper personalization of the customer experience while optimizing marketing spend. Stay tuned to Kain & Co. for more information about first-party data.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Kain & Co.? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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CDK Global recently launched CDK CarSource, an online wholesale marketplace that connects car dealers to used vehicle inventories across the country. Today on Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome back Fred Fordin, Vice President of DMS for CDK Global, to learn more about CDK CarSource and the solution it provides dealers today.

Two years ago, when COVID-19 hit U.S. shores, CDK Global began examining the wholesale space. With low new vehicle inventory, CDK wanted to create a platform that would help car dealers and provide extended value post-pandemic. CDK CarSource empowers its network of over 10,000 DMS dealers, to build their used car departments into potent profit centers.

There are a number of resources out there that car dealers use to wholesale their inventories. Supply chain challenges forced car dealers to focus on wholesale out of necessity. CDK Global aims to turn this necessity into better opportunities for their dealer partners. How? By offering these three features:

Inventory becomes available online the moment a deal transacts
Lower the cost to transact deals for these vehicles
Automate data entry for your DMS

“When you put those three things together,” says Fordin. “There’s no reason a dealer should not be transacting their wholesale vehicles on CDK CarSource.”

For more information, visit CDKGlobal.com and stop by the CDK Global booth #2901W at the upcoming 2022 NADA Show.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Fred Fordin? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Serra Automotive ranks among the top 10 privately-held retail automotive groups in the nation; with 51 dealerships and representing 63 franchises. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome the President of Serra Automotive, Joe Serra, to walk us through what business looks like for his group, and what his perspective is on the current state of automotive retail.

Like many car dealers, Serra Automotive is experiencing strong profitability despite a low inventory supply. Over the past 23 months, having a lower day supply on average has benefited the business however, Serra is not as optimistic when thinking about the long-term effects. Three or four years from now, Serra believes manufacturers won’t have the discipline to keep day supply low. For Serra, a 30-day supply seems to be the sweet spot. Only time will tell it that type of management plan sustains itself beyond the next 12 months.

In terms of pre-owned inventory, Serra Automotive is working diligently with consumers to negotiate trades. They are using all avenues available to them to acquire used vehicles. In fact, used vehicle inventory levels across the group were higher compared to a year ago. This is particularly important considering the average price of new vehicles is a staggering $46,000.

In regards to preparing for an EV future, Serra says it doesn’t matter what consumers want right now. From his perspective, the government and societal pressures are driving the transition. It’s a concern for Serra. He explains, automotive retailers have to provide value to the manufacturers. If they don’t bring value to manufacturers, there’s a big issue.

“We sometimes are our own worst enemy,” says Serra. “But, you know what, we’re going to figure it out. I love automotive retail. I love all my car dealer friends. We’re going to figure it out, and be there long term.”

Did you enjoy this podcast with Joe Serra? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Today on Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome Chris Walsh, the brand new President of the Reynolds and Reynolds Company, and we’re also joined by Dave Bates, the Chief Customer Ambassador for Reynolds and Reynolds as well. In this segment, the pair discuss customer success, industry relations, and the development of the Reynolds Retail Management System.

Learn more about Reynolds and Reynolds by visiting their booth #3721W at the upcoming NADA Show 2022!

Did you enjoy this podcast with Chris Walsh and Dave Bates? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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For the past 52 years, the American International Automobile Dealers Association has been representing dealerships that sell international nameplate brands. Now that we’re in the first quarter of 2022 we want to know how the Association is representing dealerships today and what’s on their agenda for the year ahead. We’re pleased to welcome Cody Lusk, AIADA President and CEO.

From Lusk’s perspective, the biggest thing affecting car dealers today, outside of inventory shortages, is the transition to the electric vehicle future. The news coming out of Washington D.C. on the matter, is not focused on the consequences that car dealers will face. While this transition won’t happen overnight, car dealers have to start preparing now.

Lusk adds that car dealers seem to be excited about the transition, and the OEMs have made bold commitments to an EV future. The AIADA is hard at work ensuring that car dealers are part of the conversation and have a seat at the table.

This is one of the many items on the agenda for AIADA. The organization will also be inducting its new Chairman on the heels of the NADA Show, this upcoming March 13 at AIADA’s 52nd Annual Meeting & Luncheon. John Connelly, dealer principal of Acura Columbus will be taking over the role and Mike Maroone will be receiving the lifetime achievement award.

To learn about the AIADA and what they work to accomplish, visit www.aiada.org/news.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Cody Lusk? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Yesterday, AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE: AN) released the results of its most profitable quarter in its history. Revenues came out to $6.6 billion, an increase of 14% year-over-year. Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) came in at $5.76, a staggering increase of 137% from Q4 2021. Although new vehicle revenue declined, used vehicle revenue soared with an increase of 55% to more than make up for it. Gross profits for both new and used vehicles were up substantially as well.

On this special edition of Inside Automotive, anchor Jim Fitzpatrick sits down with the new CEO of AutoNation, Mike Manley, who took the helm from industry veteran Mike Jackson last November. Manley is no stranger to the automotive retail industry. He previously served as the CEO of FCA, and the Leader of North American Operations for Stellantis after the FCA-PSA merger was finalized. Today, The pair discuss AutoNation’s fourth-quarter results in more detail. Manley also shares his agenda items for 2022 and his perspective on current market conditions.

Related: Mike Jackson talks about AutoNation’s record-breaking Q3 and how AN sources used carsDid you enjoy this podcast with Mike Jackson? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this episode of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

2021 was a record-breaking year for M&A deal values, exceeding expectations at an unmatched $5.9 trillion dollars, according to Bain & Company.

In a white-hot market, valuation multiples hit an all-time high of 15.4 times enterprise value-to-EBITDA. Tech assets, in particular, decoupled from the broader M&A market, with multiples at 25 times.

The environment for deal-making remains fundamentally attractive, and a well-balanced mix of market signals suggests the strategic M&A market will continue to be robust well into 2022.

Shift5Next up, Shift5 announced a $50 million dollar Series B round. The company attempts to defend systems critical to transportation networks.

Shift5’s latest round of funding lands just a few months after its $20 million dollar Series A raise, buoyed by several million-dollar deals last year during which the company doubled its headcount. The Series B round was led by Insight Partners.

Transportation networks rely on operational technology systems, like on-board components, which are critical to the functioning of trains, aircraft and even military equipment like tanks, but are becoming more prone to cyberattacks because these once-isolated systems are increasingly added to internet-facing networks.

While attacks on OT networks are rare, OT system failures can lead to millions of dollars in losses, downtime or even create safety risks when things go wrong. The U.S. government’s cybersecurity agency CISA has warned of a growing threat to critical infrastructure.

But OT systems are often unique to their application, and stripping out components from a tank, for example, to test for security vulnerabilities is not practical, nor are tanks readily easy to acquire.

Shift5 tries to solve this by giving transportation companies and leaders visibility into their OT networks, which helps to reduce their overall attack surface. This visibility aims to help detect threats and defend systems from internet-based attacks.

MotorqNext up, Motorq, the leading connected car API company, has raised $40 million dollars in its Series B round of funding. The round was also led by Insight Partners, with participation from existing investors including Story Ventures, FM Capital, Monta Vista Capital and Avanta Ventures.

Funding will be used to grow the product development and engineering teams, increase collaboration with the automotive OEMs, establish sales and business development in Europe and Japan and enhance the core Motorq platform for new markets, including insurance, automotive rental, and dealer services.

Motorq’s cloud-based system ingests and monitors embedded data from a vehicle’s onboard computers, runs advanced analytics and machine learning models, contextualizes the insights with other information sets and delivers those insights to customers via APIs and other infrastructure tools.

Motorq is the leading integration platform for global OEMs. With relationships with the top 10 global automotive leaders covering 21 brands, Motorq can quickly and securely connect to and provision information from more than 51 million vehicles, a number that is increasing each day. It also has partnerships with 8 of the 10 largest fleet management companies.

EpirusAnd for the final deal of the week, Epirus, a company that sells “directed-energy” weapons that can take down drones, raised a $200 million dollar Series C funding round to further develop its defense systems.

The new funding gives Epirus a post-deal valuation of $1.35 billion dollars, and takes its total capital raised to $287 million dollars since it launched in 2018.

Rowe Price led the round and was joined by investors 8VC, Bedrock, Broom Ventures, EPIQ Capital Group, Gaingels, General Dynamics Land Systems, I Squared Capital, Thomas & Moore Strategic Ventures, Parkwood Digital Ventures, Piedmont Capital, Red Cell Partners and StepStone Group.

Epirus’ technology has found traction in an era when drone warfare has become increasingly pervasive. Epirus develops microwave energy-powered weapons, like its Leonidas product, that can detect and zap drones out of the air.

It has already won contracts from the U.S. Air Force, DARPA and the Army Applications Laboratory. In January, Epirus partnered with General Dynamics Land Systems, one of its investors, to integrate the Leonidas with Stryker armored vehicles used by the U.S. Army.

Companies To WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry Intel Report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, we have two companies to watch: RLP and Visionary Machines.

RLP (Rapid Liquid Print)Our first Company to watch this week is RLP or Rapid Liquid Print.

RLP is developing a new class of 3D printers that can produce large-scale, high-resolution, soft and stretchable products in minutes with the highest quality industrial materials.

RLP is working with researchers and industry-leading companies around the world on applications including medical devices, footwear, home goods, furniture, aviation, and automotive components.

Check out RLP, at www.rapidliquidprint.co

Visionary MachinesOur second company to watch this week is Visionary Machines.

Visionary Machines has created a revolution in 3D sensing using camera arrays, delivering better than human vision for machines — with unparalleled depth, color, motion, and trajectory.

Visionary Machines’ vision is to enable machines to see — so they can navigate, measure distances, perceive objects and intelligently interact with the world around them

Check out Visionary Machines at www.visionarymachines.com.

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Well, the show must go on, and this week Mike Stanton, the CEO of NADA reiterated that the NADA Conference is still on in Las Vegas in mid-March. I’m looking forward to seeing a number of you out there.

Just ahead of NADA, my new book will be out, titled The Future of Automotive Retail. In the book, I overview the various themes that are most likely to impact auto dealerships’ businesses over the next 5 to 10 years, and I attempt to provide some practical advice on how to prepare to weather upcoming disruptive forces.

For all of you who tune in to the Friday Five, I’d be thrilled to send you an advance copy of the book, just click here.

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People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

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So that’s your weekly Friday Five, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in the automotive technology space over the past week.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who is trying to decide whether and when they should raise money or sell their business, I’d love to speak with you.

Thank You For Tuning into CBT News for this week’s Friday Five, and we’ll see you next week!

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of The Friday 5 Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Today on Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome back the no.1 certified Honda and Acura dealer globally, Brian Benstock, Partner GM and Vice President of Paragon Honda and Acura. Benstock sits down with Jim Fitzpatrick to discuss how his stores are performing today and what their goals are for the future.

In light of robust profitability throughout the franchised dealer network, many stores have decided to reduce their marketing and advertising budgets. However, customers are searching for cars now more than ever, and they are willing to travel further outside of their radius to find them. From his perspective, car dealerships need to make sure that can be easily found online. They need to prepare for the long-term. Advertising takes time to ramp up and it’s important to stay engaged for when new vehicle inventory returns.

“You know my partner, Paul Singer said to me many years ago, ‘the seeds of failure are planted in the soil of success,'” explains Benstock. “When you’re drunk on the profitability that you have now, you take your eye off the ball.”

The likes of Tesla, Carvana, and Vroom are knocking at the door. There is also an explosion of Chinese companies entering the electrification sector. Apple as well in claiming its territory in the automotive industry. There are the things that keep Benstock up at night. He says dealers should not underestimate Apple CEO, Tim Cook. He has taken the company into the stratosphere and will continue to do so by getting involved in the transportation industry.

“Change creates opportunities,” says Benstock. “Remember, entrepreneurs are in business for one reason, to solve problems.”

Did you enjoy this podcast with Brian Benstock? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Sonic Automotive, one of the auto industry’s top performers, had an incredible 2021. The expansion of its pre-owned brand EchoPark Automotive, the acquisition of RFJ Auto Partners, and record net incomes are a reflection of this. The Fortune 500 company based in Charlotte, North Carolina is reporting record fourth-quarter revenues of $3.2 billion, up 13.8% year-over-year.

Today on Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome back Jeff Dyke, President of Sonic Automotive, to share his insight and perspective on 2021 earnings and where the company is headed in this new year.

Fourth-quarter highlights:

Record Q4 income from continuing operations before taxes of $122.1 million, up 35.1% year-over-year
Record Q4 net income from continuing operations of $96.3 million ($2.25 per diluted share)
All-time record quarterly total F&I gross profit per retail unit of $2,415, up 18.9% year-over-year
Record Q4 EchoPark revenues of $579.2 million, up 49.7% year-over-year

Business is great from Dyke’s perspective. While inventories are tight for both new and pre-owned cars, margins are at all-time highs. He would like inventory will come back a little more, but not all the way to pre-COVID levels. Right now, Sonic Automotive has an eleven-day supply average of new vehicles. They are hoping that number grows to 20 or 25, but no more than 30 days. That will keep margins in line and encourage more consumers to pay MSRP, says Dyke.

In fact, Dyke prefers to reduce price negotiations with customers by using one-price selling models. He believes MSRP is the fairest price for the vehicle, and by reducing negotiations, the industry can transform the car buying culture from ‘lowest price’ to ‘best experience.’

The company certainly practices what it preaches. EchoPark Automotive now has the highest scores on Reputation.com in the industry among all pre-owned car dealers.

“We’ve having a great time and working hard and I think that pays off,” says Dyke.

In terms of inventory shortages and market adjustments, Dyke says that Sonic Automotive strategizes for the long term. The business is moving forward, full-steam ahead, and no decisions are being made based on short-term events.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Jeff Dyke? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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In this episode of the Dealer Advantage series, Lori Wittman, SVP Dealer Software Solutions, Cox Automotive re-visits three best practices car dealers implemented last year that are still crucial in 2022.

The three areas we’ll be looking at today are:

Data continuity and integrations: Car dealers like Linda Crossman of Byers Auto Group begin collecting data on the consumer from the very first touchpoint. That data is then readily available for every department across the dealership in an integrated, seamless way. They don’t have to rely on third-party data collection.

Guy Mitrano, Director of Digital Operations for Subaru of New England also explains that car dealers can use their first-party data to personalize marketing campaigns and stimulate consumer engagement on any channel.

Related: How to thrive in a digitally accelerated landscape

Workflow efficiency: Cole Frankman, Chief Operating Officer at Frankman Motor Company says digital retailing tools that are nicely integrated together and can be managed from one dashboard, have made all the difference.

Mitrano agrees. Digital retailing tools, traditional TV ads, and connected TV make it easier for car dealers to place targeted, measurable digital campaigns. It’s important to make sure retailers have a highly visible online presence, so it’s easy for customers to find your car dealership.

This extends to the fixed-ops department as well. Crossman says customers really appreciate receiving photos and videos of the work in progress from service technicians and advisors. These images can be sent via text message or email, and customers can respond in real-time if they approve the repair or have any questions.

Related: Beyond the Lead: Executing a complete retail strategy

Digital retailing: Once Frankman decided to go all-in on digital retailing, he started to see more engagement. More customers are using the digital retailing platform to shop, rather than visiting in person or calling for an appointment. Conversions continue to go up as well.

Mitrano adds, that digital retailing allows retailers to really own their business and control their experience by leveraging the best technology available.

Related: Dealer Forward: Personalizing Engagement – Everywhere

For more information, check out Cox Automotive’s Thrivers eBook here.

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Dealers across the country have ushered in new goals and intentions for their operations in this new year. Carter Myers Automotive has continued to evolve and expand across Virginia since 1902 and this year seems to be no different.

On today’s show we’re pleased to welcome Liza Borches, Carter Myers Automotive President and CEO, to give us some insight into Carter Myers agenda in this new year and we’ll also follow up on their deep dive into the customer experience.

Last November, Carter Myers acquired Miller Auto Group, adding four stores across Virginia and West Virginia. One of these stores is also the first Toyota franchise for CMA. Borches believes that, in order for her dealership group to remain competitive, it needs to keep expanding. Aggressive industry consolidation from groups like Lithia could soon make small operations antiquated.

CMA has also been keenly aware of the price mark-ups happening in the industry. Some vehicles have been adjusted $10,000 or even $15,000 above MSRP. Borches says she understands both sides of the debate. However, she and the CMA team have made a commitment to not mark up their vehicles. Borches explains that she is focused on building long-term relationships with customers, rather than taking advantage of short-term profitability. She adds that if OEMs start to become distrustful of their franchise dealers, then they might pursue direct-to-customer sales more seriously.

In fact, relationship-building is a vital component of the CMA culture and overall customer experience. Engaging and informative messaging with customers along with offering pre-ordering services and fixed-ops agility is the recipe for success at one of the country’s top dealer groups.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Liza Borches? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Throughout the hustle and bustle of leading an organization, oftentimes the fundamentals of leadership can take a back seat or in some cases, become completely forgotten. Today’s guests are saying that it’s perfectly ok to get back to the basics.

Today on Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome the co-authors of “Simple Truths of Leadership: 52 Ways to be a Servant Leader and Build Trust”, Ken Blanchard and Randy Conley. Blanchard is one of the world’s most influential leadership experts, author of over 65 books, and is the co-founder of the Ken Blanchard Companies. Conley is an Inc. Magazine top 100 leadership speaker, author, and the trust practice leader for the Ken Blanchard Companies. Randy’s award-winning blog, Leading with Trust, has influenced over 4 million viewers.

Blanchard and Conley are both big proponents of servant leadership. There are two parts to servant leadership. The first is vision, or the direction, values, and goals, of your organization. This is the responsibility that all leaders have. The second, is realizing your job is to work for your people. Help them win, help them live according to the vision and values shared throughout the organization. If you’re a great servant leader, you build trust. In “Simple Truths of Leadership: 52 Ways to be a Servant Leader and Build Trust,” Blanchard and Conley have written 26 simple truths on servant leadership and 26 on trust.

Our approach to leadership is to get people focused on the simple truths, says Conley. Leadership is a very complex field, and we tend to overcomplicate it. One of his favorite simple truths from the book is building trust is a skill that can be learned and developed. Research shows that there are four core elements of trust: ability, believability, care, and dependability. If leaders engage in behaviors that align with those four elements, they’ll build trust. It’s not easy, but it is simple and straightforward.

To learn more about leadership from Ken Blanchard and Randy Conley, be sure to watch our entire interview above.

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Simple Truths of Leadership: 52 Ways to Be a Servant Leader and Build Trust

How are you ensuring that your car dealership is providing remarkable customer service? Today on Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome back Aaron Bickart, Executive Vice President and General Manager of OfferLogix, to talk to us about how accuracy and transparency in customer payments, play a role in providing remarkable customer service. The OfferLogix team has worked with 75% of the top 100 car dealers and 18 auto manufacturers in the U.S. and globally, to come up with solutions to this very issue.

There’s a lot of conversation in the auto industry around the importance of providing a seamless customer experience. Payment calculations are a tremendous part of that effort. In fact, 94% of Americans walk out of a new car franchise with a lease or finance payment. Car dealers need partners who can provide access to this information in real-time and in a dynamic way for their consumers.

Related: Where is digital retailing headed in 2022 and how can car dealers prepare? – Aaron Bickart | EVP at OfferLogix

When vendors integrate OfferLogix into their tech stack, they will no longer have to manually maintain calculations within the organizations. OfferLogix’s unique, patented API can come up with penny-perfect payments for any given vehicle. OfferLogix uses data from lenders, OEMs, trade-in values, FICO scores, and compliance regulations to do the heavy lifting for you.

Organizations that try to maintain this themselves, leave lots of room for mistakes. Why not outsource this task to a company that specializes in the area and provide the best customer experience possible? CRMs, digital retailing platforms, and desking companies that have integrated with OfferLogix, have seen higher engagement, better customer experiences, and can move more efficiently overall. Enable your dealer partners to close more deals with penny-perfect payments and higher grosses.

To learn more about OfferLogix, visit offerlogix.com, or schedule a meeting with the team at the upcoming NADA Show.

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Dale Pollak grew up a dealership kid in Indiana and worked alongside his father Les, to learn the car business. Dale ran his own line of successful stores for years until he followed his interest in computer science and eventually founded inventory management software juggernaut, vAuto. vAuto, now part of Cox Automotive, has been at the forefront of innovation for nearly two decades. Dale has written prolifically about the dynamics of the car business.

The biggest problem for car dealers these days is not selling cars, it’s acquiring cars and that’s something Pollak and Cox automotive have been keenly aware of for the past 18 months. It’s also the inspiration behind vAuto’s new Global Acquisition System, an industry-first, omnichannel sourcing platform.

The shortage of vehicles at auction, combined with the shortage of new vehicle inventory and trades, is forcing car dealers to source vehicles using new, untraditional channels. Pollak says car dealers are paying more attention to grounded leases. They’re also buying used vehicles from other dealers using new startup digital auctions.

These new channels are relatively unfamiliar and the methods car dealers are using, are all over the board and have varying degrees of success. This presented a great opportunity to create a system that will help car dealers be more effective and more efficient when sourcing cars. Using Cox Automotive’s abundance of data, Director of Innovation Chris Stutzman spent months tediously mapping thousands of fields that represent channels of acquisition.

The supply shortage could be with the auto industry long-term. One of the important lessons that dealers have learned sourcing cars in these alternate channels, is that they can acquire vehicles with better terms than through traditional models. So, the opportunities that the Global Acquisition System presents are numerous. Be one of the first to see the new Global Acquisition System in action at the upcoming NADA Show in Las Vegas.

Additionally, Pollak is releasing a brand new book titled, “Whole Truth: A Fresh Money-Making Method to Wholesale, the Most Misunderstood Side of Your Business” available this May. After writing for years about the retail industry, Pollak became fascinated by the wholesale market. This book takes a deep dive into the fundamental dynamics that impede dealers’ success and what auto retail professionals can do to navigate the market.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Dale Pollak? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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This Black History Month, we are celebrating the diversity that exists within our industry while also recognizing the disparities and the need to be more inclusive. We’re pleased to welcome Lawrence Vaughn, Dealer Principal of Wise Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram, to share his story, his recommendations for car dealers, and how business is today at his store in Ohio.

Vaughn has been in the automotive for 16 years and spent the last four trying to buy his own dealership. Back when he was the general manager of a Dodge store in Mississippi, Vaughn applied to the Stellantis Dealer Diversity program. He was accepted, and after putting the financing in place, closed on Wise CDJR in the Fall of 2021.

Vaughn had to put up a significant amount of capital to make this purchase, and he believes that access to funds is one of the biggest barriers facing aspiring minority car dealers. There are not many banks out there willing to lend to brand new car dealers either.

“The monopoly that starts to happen, is that you have qualified candidates, but they’re qualified as far as the manufacturer can see, but they don’t have the support when it comes to borrowing power,” says Vaughn.

Today, Vaughn’s car dealership is facing many of the same challenges car dealers across the countries are facing. Low new car supply, strict used car management, and lingering effects of COVID-19 have put the auto market into a precarious position.

“The used car game is, is more like chess,” explains Vaughn. “You have to be three moves ahead. And the best way to explain that market is, you’re going to pay a little bit more for a car.”

The fixed-ops department has been a strong source of business for Vaughn as well. Consumers are holding onto their cars for longer than usual. Pre-owned cars are also valued higher right now as we all know. Cars with 50,000 miles have not depreciated at the expected rate. Vaughn says it seems like every 10 to 15 years the industry goes through something completely unexpected. However, car dealers continue to adjust and continue to be profitable.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Lawrence Vaughn? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to another edition of Inside Automotive. Today, anchor Jim Fitzpatrick is joined by Ken Hill, Managing Director of 700Credit, and Pete MacInnis CEO of eLEND Solutions. The group discusses the recent partnership between 700Credit and eLEND Solutions which helps auto dealerships prevent identity theft and consumer fraud.

Roughly 18 months ago, 700Credit was holding a webinar with synthetic consumer fraud experts from each credit bureau. They highlighted how important it is for car dealers to start verifying driver’s licenses, as the first line of defense against identity theft. From there, 700Credit and eLEND Solutions partnered up to expand eLEND’s existing ID Drive product and integrate it with 700Credit’s instant pre-screen solution.

Related: New dealer study from eLend Solutions reveals key insights into digital retailing

ID Drive is a driver’s license authentication product, backed by forensic documentation, that simply scans a license and can verify its legitimacy. ID Drive has over 20 security features that include things like instant prequalifications and instant customer pre-screens, as well as consumer fraud prevention. ID Drive is fully integrated with dealer CRMs and 700Credit’s application processing and reporting.

700Credit’s integration with Drive ID can also instantly show car dealers the buying power of a specific customer. It eliminates redundancy in credit applications by auto-populating information from scanning the driver’s license. Essentially, ID Drive brings all credit data together for managers to analyze instantaneously.

However, synthetic identity fraud has gotten so good that car dealers often fall victim to it still. The partnership between eLEND Solutions and 700Credit aims to stop consumer fraud in its tracks and help car dealers build a front-line defense against it, while gaining credit insights at the top of the sales funnel.

You can learn more about ID Drive and the 700Credit integrated products by visiting their website here.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Pete MacInnis & Ken Hill? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us

at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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2022 U.S. auto sales kicked things off with a SAAR (seasonally adjusted annual rate) of 15.2, the highest monthly SAAR reported since June of 2021. On this edition of Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome back Tyson Jominy, Vice President of Data and Analytics at J.D. Power, to break down the positive highlights as well as the challenges still causing stress for the auto industry.

January auto sales results appear on the surface to be very strong. However, Jominy points out that January is typically a small month in the auto industry. Right now, many car dealers are operating on a, one car in, one car out system, which lends itself really well to smaller months. In total, January auto sales ended below 1.0 million for the first time since 2013.

Vehicle inventory hasn’t reached over one million units at retailers since June, and January ended at 830,000 retail units on the ground versus 2.7 million in January of 2020. This extensive decrease has created a sticky situation for both OEMs and car dealers, as we all know. Despite, record profitability, automotive retail professionals understand consumer demand and the potential that more inventory can bring right now. It’s becoming a competitive race between manufacturers to see who can resolve this crisis first.

Related: How past and current auto retail trends are shaping the outlook for 2022 – Jonathan Smoke | Cox Automotive

Moving on to transaction prices, January set a monthly record at around $44,300. This is over $10,000 more than the average price in January 2020. Typically, average prices drop around 3%-4% in January. Not this year, says Jominy. This January, prices only dropped 1.5% from December. Consumers are still willing to pay these prices as well. Luxury vehicle sales had the best January on record. The mix of the industry is up nearly a full point versus January 2020. EV-maker Tesla appears to be benefitting the most from this with other manufacturers coming in behind.

With these high transaction prices, subprime buyers are only 5.4%, nearly cut in half from two years ago. Lots of consumers of extending their financing terms. Negative equity came in at only 15% of sales and average trade equity soars to $9500. Lease type of sales was down 19% and finance sales have risen 11%.

For more great industry insights, be sure to watch the complete interview with Tyson Jominy above.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Tyson Jominy? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this episode of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

Well, the show must go on, and this week Mike Stanton, the CEO of NADA reiterated that the NADA Conference is still on in Las Vegas in mid-March. I’m looking forward to seeing a number of you out there.

Just ahead of NADA, my new book will be out, titled The Future of Automotive Retail. In the book, I overview the various themes that are most likely to impact auto dealerships’ businesses over the next 5 to 10 years, and I attempt to provide some practical advice on how to prepare to weather upcoming disruptive forces.

For all of you who tune in to the Friday Five, I’d be thrilled to send you an advance copy of the book, just click here.

Cars.comWell, we have more news in the vehicle sourcing and inventory space, after just last week hearing that CDK Global announced their new B2B wholesale vehicle platform for dealers, called CarSource.

This week, Cars.com announced that they have agreed to buy Accu-Trade, Galves Market Data, and MADE Logistics for $65 million dollars in cash.

The deal is expected to close in about 30 days and it will pay an earn-out of up to $63 million dollars based on performance.

The purchase gives CARS the technology needed to enter the digital wholesale transaction game.

Dealers will be able to use the CARS platform to buy and sell inventory at scale through both a dealer-to-dealer network and a consumer-to-dealer network. They will also be able to tap into instant guaranteed offer solutions throughout the CARS properties, including the Cars.com marketplace and on websites built by Dealer Inspire.

Congratulations goes out to Bob Hollenshead, Jeff Zamora and the whole Accu-Trade team for this successful outcome. Nice work, guys!

Cox Automotive MobilityNext up, Cox Automotive Mobility and Dickinson Fleet Services, announced the acquisition of Mobicare, the Jacksonville-based full-service, 24/7 commercial fleet and truck maintenance provider.

The acquisition serves to expand and strengthen the geographic reach of Cox Automotive Mobility Fleet Services’ and Dickinson Fleet Services’ preventative scheduled maintenance, branch-based maintenance and 24/7 emergency mobile service in Jacksonville, Orlando, Tampa and other Central Florida areas.

JacobsNext up, Jacobs has acquired StreetLight Data, a pioneer of mobility analytics who uses its vast data and machine learning resources to shed light on mobility, enabling users to solve complex transportation problems.

StreetLight applies proprietary processing technology to location data from millions of mobile devices, connected vehicles, IoT sensors and geospatial databases to measure multimodal travel patterns – and makes them available via its online Software as a Service solution called StreetLight InSight. Designed for smart cities and the transportation industry, the on-demand software provides industry-targeted analytic tools to support critical infrastructure planning, investment and policy decisions.

Dealer Safeguard SolutionsAnd finally, Credit Bureau Connection, a leading provider of credit report and compliance solutions to automotive dealers, lenders, and other end markets, announced today that it has acquired Dealer Safeguard Solutions, a SaaS provider of compliance and workflow solutions for the automotive retail industry.

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Credit Bureau Connection is backed by the The CapStreet Group, a Houston-based lower middle market private equity firm.

Companies To WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry Intel Report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, we have two companies to watch: Voltaiq and 1Komma5.

VoltaiqOur first Company to watch this week is Voltaiq.

For top automakers, consumer electronics and energy storage companies, Voltaiq’s battery analytics platform ensures the safety of new products and accelerates the transformational shift in how we use our devices, power our vehicles and balance the electric grid.

Voltaiq is now partnering with leading finance organizations, providing the battery intelligence to unlock capital and accelerate the global transformation to an electrified economy.

Check out Voltaiq, at www.Voltaiq.com

1Komma5Our second company to watch this week is 1Komma5.

1KOMMA5 was founded in the summer of 2021 with the aim of enabling people in Germany and Europe to lead a CO2-free life.

1KOMMA5° participates in the fields of photovoltaics, electricity storage, charging infrastructure and heat pumps to enable high-quality advice and installation for customers.

In addition, 1KOMMA5 is working on the networking and control of decentralized energy generation systems, and connecting them via a centralized IOT system.

Check out 1Komma5 at www.1komma5grad.com.

——————-

People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

——————-

So that’s your weekly Friday Five, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in the automotive technology space over the past week.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who is trying to decide whether and when they should raise money or sell their business, I’d love to speak with you.

Thank You For Tuning into CBT News for this week’s Friday Five, and we’ll see you next week!

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of The Friday 5 Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice is joined by Lucky Lopez, Youtuber and Owner of Automotive Life.

Lopez started his automotive journey in 2000 when he opened up his first repair shop. Originally, Lopez trined with Ferrari Manhattan to work on exotic cars. He transitioned into vehicle brokerage and eventually became an independent car dealer. Lopez is also behind the popular Youtube channel called Automotive Life.

Recently, Lopez released a video on Automotive Life titled, Used Car Market Bubble Popped !!! which, as of Feb. 10, has amassed over 225,000 views. In the video, Lopez addresses volatility in the used car market. Car dealers are speculating that the upcoming tax season is going to be very strong, however, banks are hesitant and waiting to see how things unfold.

Related: Prepping your used vehicle inventory to embrace tax season

Lopez says now, this is trickling up to the Federal government level. The Fed is poised to raise and combined with high rates of repossession, banks have decided to be much more cautious. From the perspective of a franchise store, Lopez says those dealers are waiting for tier-one customers to come in. As repos start piling up in the subprime, a lot of banks will focus on mid prime and prime customers. Lopez believes that this will change the lending dynamic across the board.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Used Cars Weekly? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Many of us experience setbacks and get knocked down from time to time, whether it be rejection in business or a global pandemic. As life and the pandemic continue it’s important to understand that you can get back up and succeed in today’s environment.

On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome back ‘The Master of Disaster’ aka Dr. Randall Bell, socio-economist, CEO of Landmark Research Group, and author of many books including his latest titled Post-Traumatic Thriving: The Art, Science and Stories of Resilience.

The idea of the book, Bell says, is to lay out the three stages of trauma. There’s the dive stage where you get knocked down and the survive stage, where you get back on your feet. However, a certain segment of the population, not only goes from dive to survive, but also to thrive.

Whether it be COVID or the death of a loved one or disease, a death, a divorce, drug addiction, the process is remarkably similar. Trauma knocks us all down and throws us out of balance, but if it’s lingering on, then it’s time to take some action and address it. When people emerge from the other side of trauma, there are often more empathetic. Experiencing hardship can raise our awareness and productivity if we take the right steps.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Dr. Randall Bell? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Post-Traumatic Thriving: The Art, Science, & Stories of Resilience

On this edition of Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome back John Ellis, Inventory Strategist for Cox Automotive. As a Strategist for Cox Automotive, John has the ability to see the market from many angles and has used that lens to supply guidance to clients during the last 22 months of the pandemic. Today, he discusses current market conditions, the upcoming tax season, and the outlook for 2022.

Related: How past and current auto retail trends are shaping the outlook for 2022 – Jonathan Smoke | Cox Automotive

Right now, Ellis says market conditions are mirroring 2021 and there are some behaviors that auto dealers cannot repeat this year. For example, let’s look at market day supply. The day-supply of inventory on auto dealers’ lots right now is very high, explains Ellis. He is predicting a sales bounce-back in Spring due to a tremendous tax season. So, auto dealers can take advantage of the soft market today and flip some of their older, high-mileage inventory to prepare for the upcoming season.

There are some indicators that the retail demand will pick up soon. The overall U.S. economy is robust. Unemployment rates are below 4%, wages are up, and disposable income is up, which suggests pent-up demand is waiting to unleash.

When it does unleash, how likely are consumers going to continue tolerating these high retail prices? Cox Automotive data reveals that, compared to 2019, consumers with good, valuable trades, are getting the best deals right now in 2022. There is better equity for the consumer even with higher dealer profits. The key is transparency through the entire car-buying process.

The pent-up demand in the automotive space, combined with the availability of credit in the market, and strong savings accounts, means that consumers have the funds the purchase vehicles. Although, many of them are waiting to see how much their tax refund will be, before making a purchase. Refunds may be a little lighter overall, but the market is still very favorable and bursting with money.

Did you enjoy this podcast with John Ellis? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Google Analytics is critical for auto dealers to measure the effectiveness of their marketing strategies. It can also track where consumers go on your website and what tools they use. On the latest episode of Auto Marketing Now, host Brian Pasch, founder of PCG Companies and BPE Enterprises, discusses features of the new Google Analytics 4 iteration, and how car dealers can utilize the platform’s functions for better website engagement.

Now that digital retailing tools are on dealer websites, it’s more important than ever to know how consumers are coming into the website and when they drop off. The new version of Google Analytics 4 is an event, or action, based system that provides insights into how customers navigate your website and bridges the gap between user and device.

This allows dealer groups to develop a much more strategic plan for how they market their stores. Data-driven decisions will produce the best outcomes. However, Pasch is concerned that website platform providers and builders in the automotive space are not talking enough about Google Analytics 4. What does this migration mean for car dealers?

Related: What can the auto industry do about incoming OEM digital retailing programs?

Google Analytics 4 is free to use and available for your website at any time, but the scripts that digital retailing and chat tools use, all have to be updated. Pasch recommends getting in touch with your website provider, and the providers of your various other tools, and ask when they will start supporting Google Analytics 4. Ask your website company to set up a Google Analytics 4 view in your account so you can get acquainted with the platform.

As your website continues to grow into a full-retail experience, the tools you have will need to be completely transparent with Google Analytics 4. Ask your website provider to send actions into GA4. This will offer you better tracking and visibility down the line.

“We need to prepare. It’s not going to happen overnight,” says Pasch. “But I would say by the end of this year, you have a clean GA4 instance up and running on your website with all of your tools contributing to that data stream. So that you can be testing the new reporting and the new insights that GA4 has.”

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Auto Marketing Now? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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2021 reaffirmed that the strength of the local car dealer is the winning model. Now, in 2022, it’s time for car dealers to take control of their data, their customer experience, and their customers.

On this edition of Inside Automotive, Jim Fitzpatrick sits down with Brian Benstock, Partner GM and Vice President of Paragon Honda and Acura. We’re also joined by Alex Vetter, President and CEO of Cars.com.

Data is critical, adds Benstock. Better data awareness will lead to better decisions and outcomes for car dealers. Benstock’s challenge for Vetter now is to find out how car dealers can go transactional on Cars.com. Vetter says that when Benstock approached him eight months ago about this need, the Cars.com team was working on closing its acquisition of CreditIQ, to move customers further down the funnel. Cars.com then began moving customers down to Benstock and the dealership with full credit approvals through his specific lenders. Cars.com’s aim, is to give power back to the car dealers by means of innovative technology.

Related: CARS acquires CreditIQ Automotive Fintech Platform, enabling instant financing for consumers, dealers and lenders

Cars.com data has also revealed that consumers are widening their search radiuses more than ever before. Record profitability brought on by supply does not mean it’s time to withdraw your marketing spend. The best way to get margin, says Benstock, is to have ten people who want one car. Car dealers need to optimize putting their inventory in places where they can be found and avoid gimmicky race-to-the-bottoms.

They also need to optimize their inventory acquisition and management. In addition to CreditIQ, Cars.com is launching an integration to help car dealers acquire more inventory directly from the public. Consumers often have a car to sell when they look to buy a new one. While there are other services doing similar things, Cars.com emphasizes the importance of the local dealer. Instead of being an intermediary between consumers and dealers, Cars.com builds its technology around being a conduit for smooth processes and transactions. Benstock agrees with this idea. He says he wants to limit the amount intermediaries and simplify the tech stack for his team.

In fact, there are many third-party aggregators that withhold customer data to generate leads and possibly raise rates. Cars.com is a platform that enables your data to stand on its own merit and generate value on behalf of the participants.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Brian Benstock and Alex Vetter? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to another edition of Inside Automotive with Jim Fitzpatrick who is joined by Sean Gardner, instructor and sales trainer with the Joe Verde Group. For over 35 years JVG has been a leading training organization for car dealers, managers, and salespeople around the world. Today, Gardner shares his top techniques for closing more deals every month.

Related: 5 ways to deliver at least one vehicle per day, each day of the month – Sean Gardner, Joe Verde Group

There are many cases where customers come into the showroom and tell the sales staff, I only have 15 minutes. Whether they actually have more time or not, car dealers have to help customers in the best ways they can no matter the circumstances. In fact, there are instances where the car shopping experience is so good, that shopper will extend their personal time limit to an hour or even longer.

You have two choices with this customer:

Immediately set up a future time to meet
Slow yourself down and ask the right questions to make them feel at ease.

Clearly, number two is the better option here. Start out by asking the customers whether or not they have visited the car dealership before. Follow that up by asking customers where they heard about the store. These are the transitional statements that build rapport with customers.

Building those relationships with customers up can have lasting impressions on the overall business as well. 80% of success in negotiations comes from your setup. The best way to get customers to stretch their budgets is by being enthusiastic and getting them excited about the vehicle.

Objections will happen, however, the way you handle them could make or break the deal. Two simple words that will help you put more deals together are ‘How close’, or How close can you come to the number I’m giving you?

Car dealers and salespeople have to ask the right questions that will help customers take another step further in buying the vehicle.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Sean Gardner? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Over the last few years, the F&I department has undergone significant digital changes and continues to impact customer experience in big ways. Today on Inside Automotive, we’re taking a look at the positive impact digital workflow has had on F&I with Emil Banga, AVP of Product at Dealertrack, part of the Cox Automotive family of brands.

As consumer behavior started to change and trend more to online, Dealertrack began adapting its technology to meet consumer expectations. This began moving all car dealer clients to the upgraded uniFI Dealtertrack platform.

According to the 2021 Cox Automotive Car Buyer Journey, 70% of consumers prefer to shop online versus going into a car dealership. Additionally, buyers are spending around 12.5 hours researching and shopping for a vehicle in 2021. Consumers are relying on third-party websites to do this research, however, they need a seamless experience from website to store.

Related: Top 3 practices for easier and more effective auto lending – Andy Mayers | Dealertrack

So far, Banga says car dealers have done a great job adapting. Overall satisfaction with the car dealership experience remained very high at 66%. Furthermore, Cox Automotive found that 80% of consumers who applied online for credit, were highly satisfied with their experience versus only 70% of consumers who applied in-store.

Banga adds that while F&I managers may be concerned that digital technologies might hurt grosses and experience, it’s the exact opposite. Car dealers and consumers are saving time and working deals with more information than before.

From the Dealertack perspective, says Banga, they have honed in on digital contracting and remote signing capabilities. They are critical to improving dealer workflow and the consumer experience. It encompasses convenience, efficiency, and accuracy altogether.

Stop by the Dealertrack booth#2541W in Cox Village at the upcoming NADA Show to learn more!

Did you enjoy this podcast with Emil Banga? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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No matter what business you are in, retaining and growing your customer base must be a priority in your business plan and operational culture. On the latest episode of Service Drive, host Don Reed, CEO of DealerPRO Training, discusses the importance of retaining your existing customers.

Keeping your customers coming back sounds simple enough, yet many car dealers continue to struggle in this area. So, why is it that some car dealers are growing their customer base while other dealers see a decline? To answer this question, car dealers have to find out the following:

Who has the most face-to-face contact with your service customers?
Who spends the most time on the phone speaking to your service customers?
Who do your customers need to trust regarding maintenance and repairs?
Who does the car dealer or GM need to trust to ensure the highest possible quality?

Related: How to establish S.M.A.R.T. goals and go from an average dealer to a top performer

For most car dealers. This person is the service advisor. They are interacting with an average of 300 or more customers a month. They are representing your store and your franchise every single day. They create your service customers’ first, and last impressions of the dealership.

From Reed’s perspective, most car dealers spend more time and capital training their sales teams, than they do their service teams. It all starts with training. This eight-step process can help your fixed-ops department deliver customers and high quality of service.

Properly meet and greet the customer
Qualify the customers’ wants and needs
Select the appropriate product or service
Give a featured presentation of benefits
Ask for approval
Overcome objections
Present a vehicle health check
Conduct active delivery of the vehicle

Understand that the process above is not a one-time event. It is an ongoing process that must be repeated over and over again. It is a pillar of trust for customers that will lead to effective communication and keep them coming back.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Service Drive? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this episode of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

Well, the show must go on, and this week Mike Stanton, the CEO of NADA reiterated that the NADA Conference is still on in Las Vegas in mid-March. I’m looking forward to seeing a number of you out there.

Just ahead of NADA, my new book will be out, titled The Future of Automotive Retail. In the book, I overview the various themes that are most likely to impact auto dealerships’ businesses over the next 5 to 10 years, and I attempt to provide some practical advice on how to prepare to weather upcoming disruptive forces.

For all of you who tune in to the Friday Five, I’d be thrilled to send you an advance copy of the book, just click here.

CDK GlobalThis week, the industry has a new B2B wholesale vehicle platform for dealers, powered by CDK Global.

CDK, the largest of the DMS providers, introduced what they’re calling CDK CarSource, an online wholesale marketplace that connects dealers to used vehicle inventories nationwide through a seamless integration with CDK Drive, the industry’s leading dealership management system used at more than 9,100 retail locations.

The new solution is an added benefit to dealers using CDK Drive that creates opportunities for time and money savings. It enables automated inventory listings to the marketplace from a large, trusted network of actively governed and screened sellers nationwide.

It also allows all dealers—including those using other dealer management systems—to search or bid on vehicles at no cost and offers the most competitive wholesale transaction fees – along with discounts for CDK customers.

It’ll be interesting to see how much adoption this solution gets from dealers, and how big industry players like KAR Global, Manheim and ACV react to the news.

CruiseSelf-driving tech firm Cruise said SoftBank’s Vision Fund has agreed to invest an additional $1.35 billion dollars into the company through a second tranche as Cruise works to launch its commercial ride-hailing service in San Francisco.

In 2018, SoftBank Vision Fund invested $900 million dollars in the General Motors-backed self-driving firm and committed to investing another $1.35 billion dollars when Cruise vehicles were ready for commercial deployment – at the time scheduled for 2019.

SoleraAnd finally, Solera, the leading global provider of integrated vehicle lifecycle and fleet management software-as-a-service, data, and services, has signed an agreement to acquire Spireon, one of North America’s largest device-independent telematics and connected vehicle intelligence companies, from Greenbriar Equity Group.

Solera is currently owned by Vista Equity, and made the news last year when they announced the acquisition of DealerSocket.

Solera’s strategic acquisition of Spireon will further strengthen its position as the leading provider of AI-powered software, services, and data assets to four critical pillars of the vehicle lifecycle, those being: Vehicle Claims, Vehicle Repair, Vehicle Solutions, and Fleet Solutions.

Spireon currently serves over 13,000 customers in the automotive, fleet, trailer and asset sectors with nearly 4 million connected devices that generate over 900 billion discrete data points on its cloud-native IoT platform each year.

Spireon delivers powerful insights to help customers in these sectors track, manage and protect their most valuable assets.

Companies To WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry Intel Report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

KnowSmokeOur first Company to watch this week is KnowSmoke.

Knowsmoke helps car shoppers measure whether a car has been smoked in.

Their thirdhand smoke test kit is simple, easy to use, and provides results in minutes.

Before buying a used car, verify it’s smoke-free with KnowSmoke.

Check out KnowSmoke, at www.knowsmoke.com.

LectriumOur second company to watch this week is Lectrium.

Lectrium handles your EV charger installation, quickly, safely and with the lowest prices anywhere.

Book your EV charger installation today.

Lectrium provides a fully managed service that combines high-quality design, materials, and installation into a single, stress-free charger installation experience.

Check out Lectrium at www.Lectrium.io.

——————-

People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

——————-

So that’s your weekly Friday Five, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in the automotive technology space over the past week.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who is trying to decide whether and when they should raise money or sell their business, I’d love to speak with you.

Thank You For Tuning into CBT News for this week’s Friday Five, and we’ll see you next week!

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of The Friday 5 Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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While you’re here, don’t forget to subscribe to our email newsletter for all the latest auto industry news from CBT News.

On the heels of an unpredictable, yet robust and profitable year for many, car dealers are starting to incorporate unique strategies to close more deals. Whether you’re a manager or salesperson, our next guest will share skillful ways to build better customer relationships and close more often.

On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Matt Easton, sales trainer, consultant, and Founder of Easton University. Matt has gained popularity and quite a following on the social platform, TikTok as he shares his daily tips to becoming a top sales consultant.

Customers have access to more information than ever before right on their phones. They also have more choices than ever before. It’s crucial to really listen to your customer and be empathetic when helping them make a decision. Ask yourself, how do I communicate effectively? How does my team communicate effectively? The world has changed, and consumers are more demanding, says Easton. They want more authenticity and transparency from the companies they’re doing business with.

It’s about being skillful. Be skillful with the questions that you ask customers, and how you ask them. Be purposeful in your conversations with clients. If you have a limited inventory supply, putting pressure on customers to buy vehicles as soon as they become available is not an effective strategy. Explain to customers why there is an inventory shortage. Let them know that you are the perfect car dealer to help them source a vehicle if it is not readily available.

Customers have long memories and once inventory returns, they will remember if they were treated poorly by your store. They will eventually buy more products in the future and they might think twice about your store if they had a bad experience. they’re gonna be buying more products in the future, but they might not choose you if, if they remember how that on negative, that, that actual sale went. Close more deals with an empathetic and transparent approach.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Matt Easton Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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In some ways, the automotive industry saw some of the most amazing growth and profitability over the last two years. While this is an exciting time for car sales, savvy car dealers have started to pick up on the negative effects. On the latest episode of Mind Your Own Business, host Jonathan Dawson, founder of Sellchology Sales Training, discusses the pitfalls of complacency culture.

Dawson has started to notice some troubling discourse on social media from General Managers and other automotive retail professionals. He says the posts he sees are troubling and he is concerned about how dealership employees are treating customers.

For example, a sales manager’s post on Dawson’s feed recently lambasted a customer for not agreeing to place a hold deposit on a vehicle. That sentiment, by itself, is not that concerning. However, the thread below the post was filled with comments like “screw ’em”, “sell it out from under them”, and “I hope you rub it in their faces.”

This is a wake-up call to car dealers that some of their employees truly might not care about the customer. Here is a manager, in writing, on a public platform declaring that he doesn’t care about his customers.

Dawson wonders, if this mindset has become the norm, what are the long-term ramifications? What happens if you are not Minding Your Own Business? If you are a car dealer, you need to be actively paying attention to what’s going on in these online forums.

Dawson believes, some dealer groups, unknowingly, have a negative culture brewing that might be undermining your reputation. Some dealers have spent decades building up the value of customer relationships. This insidious attitude displayed on social media can tear all of that down.

Dawson understands that scarcity is your biggest closing tool right now, but does that means that your salespeople have to lose their empathy?

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Mind Your Own Business? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice discusses the increase in inventory.

Many car dealers experienced a slow down in January which is traditional for the season. However, going into February and March, car dealers are in limbo wondering if they should hold tight or move aggressively. Car dealers certainly don’t want to be shorthanded with inventory come the Summer and Fall months.

New car listings on Autotrader and Cars.com are up roughly 15% over the last two quarters. Used car listings are up as well, by 11%. Availability is out there, says Rice. He cautions car dealers, who wish for more inventory, to be careful. Two things car dealers should prepare for:

Related: Prepping your used vehicle inventory to embrace tax season

As inventory increases, you’ll have to be more disciplined with used car management. Pay attention to your aging buckets and bleed through over the next 30 – 45 days.
What if demand keeps increasing alongside inventory and exceeds the availability? Then precision used car management will be crucial to maximize gross.

Figure out how your lot is moving regardless of outside factors. Watch how your inventory is flowing. Take control of what you can. In terms of shopper activity, watch your leads and make sure to do follow-ups.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Used Cars Weekly? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date or catch up on all of our podcasts on demand.

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Welcome to another episode of Founder Focus, a CBT original series that dives into the inside stories behind some of the automotive industry’s most impressive entrepreneurial journeys. Join us for intimate conversations with innovative entrepreneurs and the great companies they have built. Today, host Steve Greenfield, founder of Automotive Ventures, sits down with serial entrepreneur Hugh Hathcock, owner of Velocity Automotive. Hathcock also founded Fresh Beginnings in the 1980s, and then created a company called ELEAD1ONE, now known as elead, which was acquired by CDK Global in one of the largest auto tech exits ever.

It all began when Hugh’s specialty advertising company was puzzling over how to help his car dealer clients boost their customer satisfaction scores. He then developed the concept of sending fresh, soft, and moist chocolate cookies from a nearby bakery to engage customers and prospects. The cookies would also be accompanied by a survey-type comment card that clients could fill out. This was the start of Fresh Beginnings. Over time, the strength of Hathcock’s relationships with dealers became key to the evolution of the company. After Fresh Beginnings branched out into call center services, Hathcock then recognized a new opportunity to develop CRM technology for auto dealers in the 1990s, and ELEAD1ONE was born.

Back then, Hathcock says, he didn’t realize how big the CRM would eventually become. He started the system for his own business needs. 20 years later, Hathcock decided to sell ELEAD1ONE to CDK Global. He says it was one of the hardest decisions of his life. Hathcock, self-admittedly, was obsessed with his company. However, CDK’s offer came at a good time, and the deal closed for a staggering sum.

Instead of stepping back from the industry for a quiet life of retirement, Hathcock returned to market with a brand new venture aimed at solving fixed-ops and digital retailing process failures. Velocity Automotive offers car dealers a suite of products available on one intuitive platform that addresses vehicle reconditioning, digital retailing, document management, and much more.

Related: Dealers are raving about this latest digital retailing tool developed by Velocity Automotive

From his perspective, Hathcock says most successful business owners are more often born entrepreneurs, not made into them. In his case, he quickly figured out that college wasn’t a necessity to become an entrepreneur. While he’s a big believer in college education, he knew right off the bat that he wanted to be his own boss, and didn’t want to pursue the college path. Hathcock adds that he learned the business from hands-on experience and with help from mentors like Royce Reynolds, founder of Crown Automotive, and Luther Coggin, founder of Coggin Automotive Group. Sonic Automotive’s Jeff Dyke was also an important figure throughout Hathcock’s career.

Hathcock’s advice to other entrepreneurs and startup founders is to think 10 to 20 times bigger than you are right now. Accept the risk and be prepared for obstacles and challenges in your path. Learn from your mistakes and work hard not to repeat them.

As for his five-year plan, Hathcock says he not sure yet. He is still passionate about the car business and passionate about growing Velocity Automotive. However, with some exciting developments in his personal life, he looks forward to stepping back and mentoring the next generation.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Founder Focus? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date or catch up on all of our podcasts on demand.

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Today on Kain & Co., host David Kain, President of Kain Automotive, sits down with Gary Bang, Vice President and Dealer Partner for Ferman Auto Group’s motorcycle division. Bang currently oversees four Harley-Davidson stores with a fifth store under construction.

Over the years, Bang has been devoted to developing positive dealership culture at every one of his stores. Harley-Davidsons are not simply transportation vehicles, they represent a lifestyle and culture that is entirely their own. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Bang says more customers, who were traditional car owners in the past, became interested in the freedom that motorcycle ownership offers.

It was crucial for Bang and his employees to create a positive dealership culture to serve both their repeat customers and new clientele. In fact, all of his Harley-Davidson stores have a Golden Book that details the shared vision for positive culture.

Related: The importance of creating a positive team environment at your dealership

These books are used in the car dealerships at Ferman as well. The book is a practical guide for things like addressing guests appropriately, making sure they have a good time, and generating the most profit possible.

A big lesson that auto dealers can learn from Bang’s approach to positive dealership culture, is to celebrate transactions with the customer. Purchasing a new vehicle should be an exciting event. Sharing that enthusiasm with the guest creates an experience that can’t be forgotten.

Recordings of these celebrations are also posted to Ferman’s social media accounts as well. Collectively, the stores’ YouTube channel has garnered 15 million views and over 1 million hours of video viewed since 2009. Bang realized that if he were to pay for this level of engagement, it would cost the division roughly $220,00 per year. Bang adds that his stores utilize event marketing frequently as well. These events not only bring guests in, but keep them coming back over and over again.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Kain & Co.? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Car shoppers today don’t evaluate parts of the journey, they evaluate the sum of the journey, and how frictionless their path to the transaction is. On this edition of Inside Automotive, we further discuss how to create exceptional customer journeys with Brian Benstock, Partner GM and Vice President of Paragon Honda and Acura. We’re also joined by David Boice, Co-Founder and CEO at Team Velocity.

From Benstock’s perspective, too many vendors in the industry focus on their little part of the ecosystem, and their solutions tend to be stacked on top of one another. This means that car dealers don’t have eyes on the entire customer journey. To combat this, Benstock wanted a single source of customer data that could be managed on one platform for maximum efficiency. Just because car dealers are experiencing record profitability, does not mean that they always will. There are nuances to selling, adds Boice.

“One of the things that we work on very hard with the Apollo platform and, and at Paragon is making sure that we’re selling cars to people that are going to generate the highest gross profit,” says Boice. “Not on the first transaction, but on multiple.”

In order for car dealers to achieve building positive customer journeys, they should turn their attentions to the five following areas:

Wake up from the profitability coma: The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining, says Benstock. Some car dealers are getting very comfortable with their high profitability. You might even be thinking to yourself— My dealership is already performing at a high level, do I really have to make changes now? The answer is yes. Both Benstock and Boice agree that now is the time to invest in what the future looks like. Customers are moving towards end-to-end online transactions.
Seamless transactions both online and in-store: Today’s customer wants options. Between Omicron concerns and low new vehicle inventory, car dealers need to meet consumers wherever they pick up (or leave off) in the car buying process.
Customized scalability: Personalize your content marketing strategy at scale. Car dealers shouldn’t rely on generic content that fits everybody. More customers with diverse backgrounds are searching for inventory now than ever before. While you can’t scale individual content or messaging, you can segment your audiences and customize your advertising on a tier-based system.
Re-tool your advertising strategy and budget: Huge car dealers like CarMax have doubled down on their advertising budgets because they see an opportunity in the market which is almost entirely online. Evaluate your messaging to promote online car buying and private-party acquisitions.
Service pickup and delivery: Service is an $800 billion industry and yet, car dealers only have 20% of the market share. Make it easier for customers to do business with you. Demonstrate the convenience of service pickup and delivery. Over the past four years, Paragon has completed 150,000 pick and deliveries for service alone, which has yielded $53 million in gross profit and fostered customer loyalty.

To learn more about Team Velocity and its customer experience platform, Apollo, click here.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Brian Benstock and David Boice? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date or catch up on all of our podcasts on demand.

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Before the competition and inventory ramps back up, now is the time to make sure your house is in order. Joining us now to talk about what she’s seeing in terms of salespeople and what she’s recommending for her clients is Jennifer Suzuki, President of e-Dealer Solutions and acclaimed sales trainer.

Suzuki focuses on strengthening sales teams' mentality and processes. She also works with managers to embrace new ways of leading teams, coaching, and training on digital selling skills.

From her perspective, progressive dealers are looking for ways to stay competitive. They're looking at this time to sharpen their strategies, even when times are good. These dealers don't want their teams to get complacent and stop developing their skills sets.

Related: Is your dealership team addicted to current sales compensation?

People that got into the industry in the last 24 months might be thinking that this is an easy industry and it will always be easy. However, Suzuki believes, like many, that within the course of the next year or 18 months, inventory levels will be back to pre-COVID levels. Now is the time to ask yourselves - what have we done to ensure that can thrive during the inventory shortages? Suzuki adds, that smart dealers have leveraged a lot of technology into the sales process.

"It's more of the way that we represent ourselves to consumers and how we provide a more seamless, effortless car buying experience," says Suzuki. "And be able to leverage that in the conversations because customers don't know what we all bring to the table."

Jennifer Suzuki has 25 years of experience in the automotive industry including dealership sales training, NADA Show speaker, guest instructor at the NADA Academy, and State Association initiatives. In 2002, Suzuki founded e-Dealer Solutions, a training solutions company that focuses on improving dealership processes from sales to management.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Jennifer Suzuki? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Buyers today want to shop with the brands and the people they trust. Cox Automotive has done a lot of work around lead quality and consumer buying signals. Here to discuss how data can be leveraged to build customer connections, is Robert Dimson, Senior Director of Client Marketing for Cox Automotive.

At a time when inventory is at its lowest, not all sales are the same. Leads might be coming in at a fast pace, but how can car dealers identify the right ones to spend their time and energy on? Many car dealers still believe that a higher volume of leads equals more sales, however, data shows us that is not always the case. Not all leads carry the same value or quality, says Dimson. Car dealers have to develop a process in their CRM that prioritizes leads. That is what Dimson and Cox Automotive are helping to do.

Related: How past and current auto retail trends are shaping the outlook for 2022

It is also crucial to have a diversified, digital advertising strategy that can lead to positive disruption in the marketplace. Dimson recommends that car dealers take a closer look at how they reach and engage with active shoppers. In such dynamic times, to qualify leads, dealers need strategic insight to close deals at a faster rate.

In order to validate return on investment and analyze their inventory investments, car dealers are using tools like Market Extension Essential and nVision. These digital marketing analytics tools capture predictive insights for real-time shopper engagement. These insights can be accessed through a single user-friendly dashboard. Market Extension also allows car dealers to list vehicles outside of their market which opens up a whole world of possibilities. To cap this off, car dealers can utilize a digital retailing platform like Accelerate My Deal to meet consumers further down the funnel in whatever markets they want.

So, how does this all translate into digital marketing opportunities for 2022? Here are Dimson’s recommendations:

Quality of your market audience is key. Look for partners who can help you build audiences in real-time.
Activate the data you already have. Consider a first-data partner.
Create long-term customers. Develop a strategy that measures the changes in consumer behavior.

It’s really about relationships and building trust and connection with consumers. Cox Automotive is doubling down on first-party data and leveraging insights and buying signals across all of its brands. They are constantly monitoring where consumers are in their shopping journeys. Who better than, to help car dealers identify those quality leads?

Did you enjoy this podcast with Robert Dimson? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date or catch up on all of our podcasts on demand.

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Trends come and trends go, so what should your team be focused on for continued success in this new year? On today’s edition of Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome back Guy Schueller, Industry Director of Automotive for Twitter, to lend us his insight into what car dealers should concentrate on today.

After many debuts and reveals at CES 2021, there seems to be a special momentum for EVs right now. In fact, Schueller says the conversation on Twitter about EVs is huge. Obviously, Tesla has a major presence on the Twitter platform, but in the last few years, Schueller says other OEMs like Ford and GM have been jumping into the conversation.

“The cool thing about Twitter, with EVs specifically, is that our audience, the consumers on our platform, want EVs”, says Schueller. “75% of them said they would buy an EV as their next purchase.”

Schueller believes the auto industry is at a tipping point. Reason one is the investment at the OEM level to actually produce EVs and push them out to the marketplace. The other critical piece to the puzzle is education. Car dealers and auto marketers have to convince consumers that EVs are interesting. Twitter is a great platform for this.

Related: How car dealers can best showcase their value on Twitter

Another interesting dialogue happening on Twitter is about the ongoing chip shortage. The impacts from the shortage are being felt by consumers. Twitter recently conducted a survey to see how this shortage is impacting the buying process. 92% of consumers surveyed were still able to find the car they wanted. This means that consumers are still willing to pay a bit more and search for the right car. Car dealers that play the long game will win. There is a short-term opportunity right now for profitability, but there is also a change on the horizon. Don’t lose sight of the lifetime value of a customer.

Forward-thinking car dealers focus on building trust and transparency for every part of the car buying process. When a consumer trusts that the car dealer will give them a fair price and help them service that product over time, that is consumer lifetime value for the automotive industry. Consumers are more interested in ordering a product than they ever have been before. That is a positive thing for the auto industry, according to Schueller.

“Let’s not make it into a negative by clouding the existing purchase process right now,” says Schuller, “Because that it will have long term impact on the dealers especially, and, and they need to build the trust and their value prop.”

Did you enjoy this podcast with Guy Schueller Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this episode of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

Well, the show must go on, and this week Mike Stanton, the CEO of NADA reiterated that the NADA Conference is still on in Las Vegas in mid-March. I’m looking forward to seeing a number of you out there.

Just ahead of NADA, my new book will be out, titled The Future of Automotive Retail. In the book, I overview the various themes that are most likely to impact auto dealerships’ businesses over the next 5 to 10 years, and I attempt to provide some practical advice on how to prepare to weather upcoming disruptive forces.

For all of you who tune in to the Friday Five, I’d be thrilled to send you an advance copy of the book, just click here.

Factorial EnergyIn electric battery news this week, Factorial Energy raised $200 million dollars to help fund further development and commercialization of its advanced solid-state battery for EVs.

Automakers Stellantis and Mercedes-Benz led the round for three-year-old Factorial Energy.

Factorial is one of several U.S. battery start-ups attempting to commercialize solid-state technology, which promises to reduce the risk of battery fires and extend driving range. Most of these batteries use a solid-state electrolyte in place of liquid solutions that are potentially more flammable.

AddionicsIn further battery technology news this week, Addionics has raised $27 Million dollars in funding to scale up the development of next-generation batteries with Smart 3D Electrodes. The funding round was led by Deep Insight, and included both Catalyst Fund and Delek Motors.

Additional investors include Novelis, Magna International, JX Nippon Mining & Metals, Union Tech Ventures, 8090 Partners, GITV, Talcar, Bridges Israel impact investment fund, and Doral Energy Tech Ventures. Existing investors that participated in the round include Next Gear Ventures and Vasuki Global Tech Fund.

Addionics claims that its chemistry-agnostic technology unlocks improvements across all key battery characteristics, meeting rising global demand for low-cost, high-performance energy storage solutions.

Smart 3D Electrodes improve the cost and performance of batteries with any chemistry – existing or emerging.

May MobilityAnd finally, in autonomous vehicle news this week, May Mobility, a self-driving shuttle startup backed by the venture arms of Toyota and BMW, raised $83 million dollars in its largest funding round to date.

The Series C funding round was led by Mirai Creation Fund, which is part of SPARX Group. New investors included insurance company Tokio Marine, and Toyota Tsusho Corporation, Toyota’s trading arm.

May Mobility has raised $166 million dollars in total and says it has provided more than 300,000 revenue-generating rides.

The U.S.-based company operates 25 vehicles in nine cities including Arlington, Texas, and Hiroshima, Japan.

Over the next two years, May Mobilty will use the money to advance its self-driving software to the point that it can remove human safety drivers from shuttles and replace them with remote supervisors who can monitor several vehicles at once.

Increasing the ratio of robotic cars to humans will allow May to become profitable.

May sells its low-speed shuttle services to cities and businesses, rather than pursuing a robotaxi model pursued by more deep-pocketed peers like Waymo and Cruise.

Companies To Watch!Every week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry Intel Report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, we have three companies to watch: ChargeLab, Kindred Motorworks, and Bcomp.

ChargeLabChargeLab has built an operating system for EV chargers. They connect charging infrastructure anywhere you find electric vehicles.

ChargeLab gives building managers, installers, and EV charger manufacturers all the tools they need to deploy smart EV infrastructure.

Whether you’re installing 1 charger or 1,000 — ChargeLab is the best platform to connect and control your EV chargers.

Check out ChargeLab, at ChargeLab.co.

Kindred MotorworksKindred Motorworks is a provider of motor work services intended to modernize vintage cars.

The company’s services provide new features such as disc brakes and Bluetooth sound systems, without impacting the car’s classic designs, enabling customers to experience new modern cars made out of vintage vehicles.

Check out Kindred Motorworks at www.KindredMotorworks.com.

BcompBcomp’s unique approach is to apply the latest composites knowledge to natural fibers – their proprietary reinforcement solution powerRibs and their ampliTex technical fabrics have ongoing development projects with global automotive OEMs as well as within commercial aerospace.

Their solutions enable exceptional weight- and plastic reduction while improving crash behavior and enabling novel design opportunities.

Check out Bcomp at www.Bcomp.ch.

——————-

People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

——————-

So that’s your weekly Friday Five, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in the automotive technology space over the past week.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who is trying to decide whether and when they should raise money or sell their business, I’d love to speak with you.

Thank You For Tuning into CBT News for this week’s Friday Five, and we’ll see you next week!

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of The Friday 5? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date or catch up on all of our podcasts on demand.

While you’re here, don’t forget to subscribe to our email newsletter for all the latest auto industry news from CBT News.

In the final quarter of 2021, Group 1 Automotive closed a deal to acquire nearly all of Prime Automotive’s assets. As we ushered in a new year and former executives and employees have now moved on, we’re checking in with the former CEO of Prime Automotive Group, now known as Ira Motor Group, Todd Skelton. Today, we get his perspective on the sale, the impact, and we’ll also get into the current state of automotive from his perspective.

Skelton began his tenure with Prime Automotive Group in January of 2020, only a few weeks before the start of COVID-19. He knew coming into the position that Prime had some obstacles to overcome. In fact, three days on the job, Mercedes-Benz handed termination notices to four of Prime’s franchised dealers. After some tense negotiations, Skelton convinced Mercedes to rescind the notices. A little over a year later, David Gentile, the CEO of GBP Capital, Prime Automotive’s holding company, was criminally indicted by the SEC on fraud charges. However, through all of the headlines, Skelton says they were able to triple the value of the company in roughly two years. This, of course, laid the groundwork for Group 1 to step in and purchase all 27 stores in a single transaction.

“The key was to keep the stores running, to keep all this nonsense away from them and not lie to them,” says Skelton. “But, to tell them, look- it’s going to be okay, we’re gonna get through this. You guys need to keep performing.”

The auto industry is always changing and industry consolidation shows no signs of slowing down. However, Skelton doesn’t believe consolidation will make smaller dealers obsolete. He doesn’t foresee consolidation beyond 5%, despite groups like Lithia buying up stores left and right.

As for Skelton, he is getting ready to make waves in the big truck business. Through private equity, Ascendants Trucking aims to do consolidation on 18-wheelers. Right now, the company is scaling in New England with plans to move its headquarters down to Delray Beach, FL.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice is joined by John Anderson, Chief Operating Officer for Lotpop.

The pair begin their conversation by discussing some of the hot topics that emerged during a recent 20 group that Anderson attended. One of the biggest challenges that used car departments currently face, is that lesser price point inventory has gone away from the market. Higher-priced inventory is sitting, shopper counts are down, and fresh inventory is bleeding through. Bleed-through meaning that more vehicles between 0 – 30 days old are now aging into 31 – 60 days old. (See Jasen’s video on bucket management here)These aging vehicles continue to be a problem for dealers.

Private-party acquisition is a strategy that many used car managers are having success with. It takes a lot of leg-work, but dealers who commit to it see their average investments go down, while their grosses and sell rates climb. This segues into dealership activity levels or, how many calls, texts, and emails you are getting from customers. The more dealers dive into their internal processes, fix what is broken, and drill down on improvements, the more their activity levels will rise. Another thing to consider, says Anderson, when working with a high activity lead, decrease the amount of time between contact points.

Related: Increase your used vehicle inventory by working with private sellers

The service and reconditioning departments play integral roles here as well. Due to the shortage of automotive technicians, and an increase in service demand, recently acquired used vehicles are not being merchandised fast enough. So, how do car dealers hire more automotive technicians? Some dealers are now advertising open positions on stickers, seriously. Technicians will leave these stickers on the oil filter of the car, and if that customer were to go to Jiffy Lube or Pep Boys for service, those technicians will see the signing bonus offer. This is just one of the many ways car dealers continue to think outside the box.

Other car dealers have started doing appraisals in the service lane. There are many ways to do this. One dealer told Anderson that, after service is complete, they leave a hanging tag with an offer. These fixed-ops strategies combined with private-party acquisition, and strong used inventory bucket management, will position dealers for success throughout this year.

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The pandemic profoundly impacted and changed the way many of us conduct business. It forced some to innovate and others to shift online. While we are still dealing with the pandemic, marketing has been top of mind for many of you as more consumers head online.

Today on Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome in an expert that has the answers to today’s marketing questions and challenges, Guy Kawasaki. Guy is a Silicon Valley Venture Capitalist, Chief Evangelist of Canva, and author of fifteen books beginning in 1987 with The Macintosh Way. His latest book is titled Wise Guy: Lessons from a Life.

Reflecting back on the past two or so years, Kawasaki says this time was a period of great catalytic change in business. It forced businesses that were hesitant or resistant to becoming digital, to make that jump. Unfortunately, the pandemic also caused a lot of pain and suffering, and can’t be overlooked.

“I don’t think we’re ever going to go back to everybody comes to the office for 40 to 60 hours a week, everybody’s commuting,” says Kawasaki. “At the least, we’re going to be a hybrid, but I doubt that we’ll ever go back to where we were.”

With less face-to-face networking, and fewer opportunities to meet like-minded peers, virtual events and meetings have helped fill that gap. Now, we can gather safely and attend any occasion at our convenience.

Digital engagement also extends to branded social media accounts. From Kawasaki’s perspective, social media equals marketing. Before, marketing was kept separated from social media, which was viewed more as an experiment. Today, both are intertwined with one another. Information is fast and it’s free, but it’s a completely different sell now, especially because the feedback and the transparency of feedback are much greater. One of the most important social media marketing and advertising paradigms that you can embrace is empathizing with the customer in light of the pandemic. Work backward from what the customer experiences.

For example, on Kawasaki’s podcast, Remarkable People, guest Martin Lindstrom, told Kawasaki a great story about working with a pharmaceuticals client. Management wanted to get closer to the customer and understand what the customer is going through. What Lindstrom did, was take the executives into a room and made them all breathe through straws. Some of them had a very difficult time and got angry. So Lindstrom said Well, you want to understand what your customer is going through. Your customers who have asthma, this is what their life is like. They’re breathing through a straw all day long. That’s what their life is like. That’s empathy.

Case in point, Kawasaki recently purchased the Hyundai IONIQ 5 electric SUV which came with a two-year Electrify America use. However, the first time Kawasaki tried to use a charging station, three of the four stations were not operational and the remaining station would not work after 45 minutes of trying. He had to spend another 30 minutes with EVgo for a solution. While the auto industry is teeming with progress and innovation, Kawasaki urges viewers not to forget the customer experience during this digital transition.

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The Macintosh Way

Wise Guy: Lessons from a Life

On the latest episode of Auto Marketing Now, host Brian Pasch, founder of PCG Companies and BPE Enterprises, discusses website design and the impact that low inventory has on the shopper experience.

Recently, on behalf of another customer, Pasch began shopping around for a specific vehicle made by Audi. He got in touch with a few Audi dealers in his close network and ended up having a confusing experience throughout the process. He found that automotive website companies, seem to be removing vehicle models and trim packages that are out of stock, from dealers’ websites by default. This means, that when a customer comes to your website and narrows down their search to a model that may not be in stock, they won’t see anything!

But what happens if a consumer is open to ordering a vehicle, or already wants to order a vehicle? They won’t be able to access any information about it on your website. More importantly, is there no way a customer can order a car through your website? As Brian did more research, he found that this problem isn’t isolated to Audi; this problem is across every website platform used at scale. There are some smaller platforms that do a better job, but most franchised dealers don’t use those platforms.

You might be saying to yourself- well, if an item is out of stock, shouldn’t the website take it off? Sure, maybe for clothing retailers or take-out restaurants, but that’s not how the car business works. You want your customers to be able to search out of stock options so they can order them from you. Just because you don’t have an Audi Q5 hybrid right now, doesn’t mean customers won’t order one from you and wait. What was even more astonishing was that none of the dealer websites Pasch visited provided a brief explanation as to why that model was out of stock.

Website providers need to rethink their inventory management strategy and at least explain to consumers why certain vehicles are not showing up in search results. A banner with a simple message like: These vehicles are in high demand and low supply. If you don’t see the color or configuration you want, please call our vehicle acquisition department. Don’t forget to add your phone number to this banner as well.

Without any sort of messaging, you are assuming that every customer knows what is going on in the automotive market. Take a critical look at your website experience right now. Make sure you can see every model in the search tool and make sure to test the search experience for vehicles that you know, are not in stock. Work with your website provider to fix this experience.

If you have a problem with your website provider fixing your inventory display, email brian@brianpasch.com and you may possibly qualify for a fast-track program to get your website updated.

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The past two years have been filled with challenges and uncertainty for many automotive retail professionals. Now, as we’re in the first quarter of 2022, what can the industry expect for the year ahead? Joining us today on Inside Automotive is Cox Automotive’s Chief Economist, Jonathan Smoke, who takes an in-depth look at retail trends in 2021 and shares his predictions for the future.

High prices and low supply due to the ongoing chip shortage, as well as the pandemic, continue to go hand-in-hand. The lack of supply was so extreme in 2021, that when paired with overwhelming consumer demand, created a peak last Spring. Q1 and Q2 of 2021 also had two rounds of stimulus payments and tax season. Smoke thinks it might be the most unprecedented consecutive quarters the industry will ever see. While sales progressively slowed down, pricing power remained. However, had inventory been on par with 2019 levels, Smoke has no doubt that 2021 would have been a record-breaking year for new car sales volume.

In fact, Smoke expects that the industry will continue to see high demand linger into this year. There is pent-up demand across the market. 2021 was a strong year for virtually every part of the industry, says Smoke. There was a record volume of total retail sales, up 9% year-over-year. Car dealers would have sold even more vehicles, especially new ones, had it not been for supply constraints. These constraints also gave car dealers pricing power and boosted margins across the entire business from F&I to fixed ops. 2021 will be hard to beat, but there are some circumstances from last year that are lingering into this one, adds Smoke.

In terms of overall 2021 performance, domestic manufacturers began to lose share. Toyota beat out GM for the first time in total U.S. sales.

Related: Toyota tops General Motors for 2021 total sales in U.S.

In fact, many Asian brands, as a whole, gained share dramatically. Hyundai and Kia, for example, out-performed throughout 2021, and seemed to navigate better than Japanese brands towards the end of the year. However, towards the end of the year, domestic brands began to rise and Ford Motor Company had its best Q4 in history. As it stands, the domestic brands are actually in better shape than foreign brands as we settle into 2022. We can’t forget about Tesla, which was the largest share gainer year-over-year.

Additionally, the used-vehicle department became essential to car dealers’ bottom lines. Best-in-class dealers have focused on used cars for many years, says Smoke, 2021 rewarded them handsomely for it. What stands out, in particular, were the strategies used car managers and dealers had to adopt, in order to acquire used vehicle inventory.

While it’s always good to see where we’ve been, most of us are now thinking about where we are going. While we’ve seen a slow start to January so far, Smoke says don’t be fooled. All of the fundamentals for the year ahead look very positive. Economic growth, lower unemployment, and favorable credit all lead to demand. In fact, the threat of potentially higher rates may create a sense of urgency for consumers. All signs point to robust demand and record-setting volume for retail sales and gradually grow as the year progresses.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Jonathan Smoke? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to another episode of Founder Focus, a CBT original series that dives into the inside stories behind some of the automotive industry’s most impressive entrepreneurial journeys. Join us for intimate conversations with innovative entrepreneurs and the great companies they have built. Today, host Steve Greenfield, founder of Automotive Ventures, is joined by Michael Bor, Founder and CEO of CarLotz, one of the nation’s largest consignment-to-retail used car marketplace.

Prior to CarLotz, Bor was a mergers and acquisitions investment banker at Harris Williamson company. He also held positions at Lehman Brothers, Price Waterhouse Coopers, and was appointed by the Governor of Virginia to serve on the Virginia Motor Vehicle Dealer Board. Unhappy with his work-life balance in the banking world, Bor and fellow founders Aaron Montgomery and Will Boland wanted to create an omnichannel platform for used cars that sells vehicles both online and via a growing network of U.S. “hubs.” Bor said a big contributor to their success was having a motivated mindset led by out-of-the-box thinkers who challenged one another and pushed each other to new heights.

Related: What motivates this tech entrepreneur’s passion for innovation?

Today, CarLotz has 22 hubs and went public in late 2020 via a SPAC deal with Acamar Partners Acquisition Corp. Now in a position to give back to the community, Bor has a strong philosophy regarding charitable and non-profit work. In fact, Bor sits on the board of the Sheltering Arms Institute and on the Finance Committee of the World Pediatric Project.

This is just one of the reasons why entrepreneurship is a hugely rewarding path. It can also be a roller coaster ride. Bor recalls some hardships over the last 11 years, but he has had many triumphs as well.

“You’re always kind of looking for that next peak, and we’ve had many peaks. Just having the experience now, knowing that as you ride down the hill, there’s another hill that you’ll be riding up soon. So, it’s been quite a journey.”

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Founder Focus? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Straight Talk, host David Lewis, President of David Lewis & Associates, discusses how car dealers can re-engage with customers who left the dealership without making a purchase. Some consumers feel the pressure to shop around for price, and if you simply wait for them to come back, you might be waiting a long time. However, being proactive with video presentations can motivate guests to return for a second look and earn your dealership more business.

Related: Is your dealership using video messaging to drive car sales? Stephanie Singletary, Covideo

Considering that many car shoppers have been conditioned by friends and family not to buy the first vehicle they see, an excellent experience alone is not always enough to keep customers interested. One way to be proactive with customers like these is to create a quick video walkaround presentation of the vehicle that they were considering. It’s a great way for customers to look back at the vehicle that caught their attention. Consider sending these presentations through video messages or YouTube links.

Since most customers will buy a vehicle within three days of their search, so don’t procrastinate with your videos. Try to send them as soon as you can. This is also an opportunity to introduce yourself and your dealership on a more personal level. Don’t sound desperate. Be friendly, informative, and get them to like you.

This is a level of professionalism and commitment not often seen from salespeople. This alone will help you stand out in a competitive marketplace.

You can simply use your cell phone to create videos. Briefly rehearse your video message to ensure that you do a thorough job. Once it is uploaded to a platform like YouTube, digital connectivity makes it easy to distribute, saving time and energy. If this still sounds complicated to you, be assured that there are many tutorials online that can help you simplify the process. Be mindful of your verbiage as well. This can go a long way to ease the customer’s defensive posture. Be proactive in making the customer feel good about doing business with you.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Straight Talk? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this episode of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

General MotorsTo start off today’s show, General Motors has announced the latest of a series of business model innovations, which include BrightDrop and OnStar Insurance, as the automaker announced the launch of CarBravo, an e-commerce platform to aggregate its dealers’ 400,000 GM and non-GM used vehicles, and compete against CarGurus, Cars.com, and Carvana for consumer eyeballs.

GM already has begun dealer enrollment in the program and plans to launch the platform this spring.

When a global automaker launches an omnichannel used-car sales platform, as General Motors plans to do with CarBravo, it undoubtedly requires a fair bit of back-end infrastructure.

R, which provides digital merchandising services to the auto industry, announced that it will be a part of that CarBravo infrastructure.

Joining us today on the Friday 5 is Devin Daly, who is going to help us understand the role that SpinCar is playing in helping GM dealers access the new CarBravo site.

Shell Startup ShowdownIn other news this week, Automotive Ventures announced their collaboration with Shell on the Shell Startup Showdown.

The showdown will award grants to top early-stage automotive technology startups that are innovating in the areas of mobility, customer experience, net-zero emissions and new energies.

The competition, which aims to recognize and reward automotive technology companies that best align with Shell’s goal to power progress through more and cleaner energy solutions, launches on February 15 and finishes with a Demo Day to Shell Lubricants executives on March 29.

Automotive Ventures and Shell Lubricants will jointly select five startup finalists to meet periodically over six weeks with mentors from both Shell’s leadership team and Automotive Ventures to strengthen their business pitch before Demo Day.

A winner and runner-up will be selected by Shell Lubricants executives on Demo Day to receive $35,000 and $15,000 grants, respectively.

CanopyFord and ADT are preparing to invest $100 million dollars in a joint venture launching in early 2023 that will protect both cargo and valuables stored in both commercial and private vehicles, first with aftermarket accessories and later with systems integrated into new vehicles.

The new JV, called Canopy, will combine ADT’s professional security monitoring and Ford’s video camera technology to protect Ford vehicles and, eventually, those of other automakers.

The first Canopy products will be sold to dealerships, major retailers and online. Ford Pro will be an important launch partner delivering these solutions to commercial and government customers of all sizes.

Companies To WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry Intel Report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, we have three companies to watch: Cerebrum, VinAI, and CarDana.

Cerebrum

Cerebrum is the world’s first intelligent tire solution utilizing revolutionary, patented sensor technology mounted directly to the tire. Cerebrum sensors provide advanced tire pressure & temperature data to the vehicle as well as tread depth, alignment and performance data to the operator through the convenient mobile application.

Check out Cerebrum, at www.cerebrum-sensor.com.

VinAI

VinAI is focused on transforming AI research into impactful products and services that solve real-world problems.

VinAI brings together 200 research scientists and AI engineers to focus on Machine Learning, Computer Vision, and Natural Language Processing.

Their research addresses fundamental problems in these areas and enables impactful applications.

Check out VinAI at www.VinAi.io.

CarDana

CarDana brings a technology-driven solution to charities and causes supported by charitable vehicle donations.

CarDana democratizes the charitable vehicle donation industry and brings higher net returns by reducing inefficiencies, saving costs, and bringing needed transparency to the entire donation experience.

Check out CarDana. at www.CarDana.co.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

——————-

People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of The Friday 5? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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How do you get more people in the service drive to utilize your BDC and increase profits? Is there a solution in today’s climate? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome back David Lewis, President of David Lewis and Associates and the host of CBT’s Straight Talk, to discuss the service BDC and what he’s recommending for car dealers today.

A lot of car dealerships have done away with their service BDCs, says Lewis. Many have tried to run BDCs on their own, but not with much success. It’s not that they aren’t knowledgeable or don’t have expertise. They are simply using a retail mentality on a customer that doesn’t want a retail product. People call the dealership for information and to engage with its employees. They want to feel comfortable coming into the sales or service environment.

Related: David Lewis shares best practices to generate sales in the service lane

Data shows that 95% of all customers who need car service come in after calling first to make an appointment. On the surface, those calls are easy to manage. Where things start to get more complex is when customers start to ask more detailed questions.

You have to keep these calls away from the service advisor. You also have to move away from quoting prices. The way you drive customers into the dealership is to give them alternatives. Ask the customer why they think they need this service. Once you gather that information, suggest alternatives. Ask them if they could come by the dealership to have the service department take a quick look. If it is a simple fix, make the adjustment for the customer. If it is a more elaborate repair, provide a written estimate and let the customer make the choice.

Let’s go a step further. Service managers might be asking, what do I charge them for a diagnosis in this situation? Lewis says you charge them nothing. You know you can sell the service, the goal here is to get the customer to the dealership. From Lewis’s perspective, 99% of these calls can be handled by the service BDC.

Now is the time to get your fixed ops department in order and functioning properly to not only have a successful 2022 but also a strong 2023.

Lewis will be discussing this and much more at the upcoming NADA Show in Las Vegas. His workshop, Understanding the Service Customer, will be held on Thursday, March 10, from 01:00 pm to 02:00 pm. During this workshop, attendees will hear all about the customer. What their expectations are. What they are looking for. How to service them. How to bring them into the dealership, and many other pressing issues.

Did you enjoy this podcast with David Lewis? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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How prepared are you for success in this first quarter of 2022? Typically a new year means car dealers are armed with new goals and resolutions, but could there be something you’re missing? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome David Kain, President of Kain Automotive and host of Kain & Co., to tell us what preparations should look like for a successful year and how the retail automotive industry is changing online.

While the auto industry’s supply constraints linger on, Kain says car dealers can’t just watch from the sidelines. They have to make the necessary internal adjustments and have a pioneer mindset. Evaluate how your salespeople and BDC representatives work with the customers. Make sure their communications are solution-driven.

When teaching BDC or internet sales team members how to respond to a lead, do a two-minute drill. Take a look at the history of this guest, have they shopped with you before? Are they a duplicate opportunity? Have they been loyal to your service department? Have they purchased a vehicle or multiple vehicles from you before? Once you have established those answers, then you can choose your approach.

Related: Why and how to implement the messaging-first dealer concept

One strategy that Kain believes dealers need to focus on is called messaging-first. The typical car dealership website is all about gathering information so that a BDC rep can then follow up later. However, if the rep can immediately live message the guest on the website instead of filling out a form, then the conversation can get started right away. You want to make sure that the employees at the car dealership are the ones doing the engagement. Once the engagement starts, focus on building a relationship with that customer, preferably by phone.

Kain will be covering all this and more in great detail during the upcoming Kain Automotive Clients and Friends Workshop this April 19 through 21. This year, attendees will be treated to Kentucky horse racing and a bourbon distillery tour. Additionally, the Presidio Group will lead a Sharktank-like pitch competition. Register here today!

Did you enjoy this podcast with David Kain? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Today on Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome the no.1 certified Honda and Acura dealer globally, Brian Benstock, Partner GM and Vice President of Paragon Honda and Acura. He is joined alongside Chip Perry, former CEO of TrueCar, now President and CEO of A2Z Sync, a software, implementation, and training solutions company for car dealers. Benstock and Perry sit down with anchor Jim Fitzpatrick to discuss how the customer experience is changing and what car dealers really need to focus on to meet consumers’ demands.

Like many car dealers pre-COVID, Paragon was dealing with margin compression and shrinking gross profits. They were looking to cut costs on the average transaction while maintaining a high degree of customer satisfaction. To combat these challenges, Benstock enlisted the help of A2Z Sync to break down the customer experience and innovate the overall retail process. In order to compete with disruptors like Vroom and Carvana, car dealers need to have buying experiences that rival the likes of Amazon and Apple, not just other dealers. Perry adds that it’s crucial to understand how customers perceive car dealers, and do deep explorations of their pain points. The disruptors are here and they have convinced Wall Street, that they are the future.

After stepping back and re-tooling the processes, Benstock became more interested in the single point of contact sale, pioneered by Perry and A2Z Sync. Like every new process, it had to be tested. So Paragon put two stores up against each other and found that the store operating with the single point of contact sale concept, had saved 17% on comp and increased growth by 16%. Over time, Paragon has rolled out this strategy at multiple dealerships.

“What Brian did was enable his frontline salespeople,” says Perry. “To handle the entire transaction seamlessly from beginning to end. The F&I people in the store have adopted new roles. They’re supportive team leaders as opposed to deal spinners and paper processors.”

Benstock adds that this method can increase your capacity. Instead of having three F&I people, or four, everybody becomes an F&I person. They can handle any transaction from start to finish, including online, right from the command center.

Related: A2Z Sync’s Chip Perry explains the power of a one-person sales model

As a technology company, A2Z Sync puts teams in place and addresses all of the moving parts that operate the existing auto retail system. Auto industry professionals need to have a similar mindset to protect, invest, and build toward the future. Benstock and Perry believe innovation is not only about how to get today’s leads, it’s also about competing in the long-term with big-box retailers.

A2Z Sync is looking for innovative, progressive car dealers like Benstock to bring into their fold. Nelson Group Automotive, The Price Simms Auto Group, and Carter Myers Automotive are also working closely with the company to strategize for the future. Every car dealer is different, so A2Z has a tech platform that has sequential steps that a deal follows. A big component of this sequence is training, which develops every step of the sale. However, the culture and skill level can vary at dealerships so all of the training and implementation is customized. A2Z also coaches how to do one-on-ones between teams, and team leads. All of which, is essential to keep the disruptors at bay.

To learn more about accelerating auto retail, visit A2Z Sync here.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Brian Benstock and Chip Perry? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Today on Inside Automotive, we welcome Andy Mayers, Lender Solution Strategist at Dealertrack, part of Cox Automotive’s family of automotive brands, to help us understand how lenders are approaching digital transitions in the auto industry. Currently, more than 85% of new car purchases and 54% of used car purchases require some form of lending, so it’s critical that car dealers and lenders know how to work together, especially as we transition more and more to digital processes.

Dealertrack has found that auto lenders are trying to adapt and move toward automated and digital-focused strategies. In 2021, many vehicle transactions moved online and moved up the funnel outside of the dealership. So, auto lenders are now trying to figure out how to support and fuel the auto finance economy in this digital age. They’re aiming to eliminate the back and forth that goes on between a traditional F&I manager, the buyer, and an underwriter. Automations can be leveraged to reduce this time and energy spent.

Related: Dealertrack DMS’s Michael Panozzo on how to best empower your accounting department

Mayers says there are a few best practices he recommends to achieve this. The first is providing alternative deal structures. For the online experience, you want to be able to provide a consumer or the dealer, multiple decision responses. When they’re shopping for a car, the consumer might not know exactly how much money they want to put down on a vehicle. They might change their mind, so try to get multiple approval options all at once in preparation. Let the consumer know the flexible options they have. Customers also want to sign contracts remotely, so lenders need to be able to support digital contracting and e-signatures. Lastly, give the consumer the ability to send information to a lender for validation in advance.

These practices all but eliminate the need for face-to-face interaction, if that is what the customer desires. Once the contract is correct, ensure the documents that are associated with it like aftermarket products, agreements, and insurance co-signer notices are all captured and properly prepared. Digital contracting ensures that the consumer is informed exactly where to sign. Combined with the ability to validate the information, lenders can have confidence that the contract package they receive is actually a contract.

To learn more, visit Dealertrack here.

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Welcome to another edition of Inside Automotive with Jim Fitzpatrick. Our guest today is Pete MacInnis, CEO of eLEND Solutions, who is here to talk about the findings in a new dealer study titled: In the Post Pandemic New Normal, Where Does Digital Retailing End?

The report reveals positive progress in the adoption of digital retailing by U.S. auto dealers, as well as ongoing challenges as the industry moves into the new post-pandemic normal. Let’s take a deep dive into the study results.

One of the study highlights confirms that the pandemic accelerated the adoption of digital path-to-purchase capabilities for car dealers. In fact, 84% of car dealers surveyed say they have continued their digital retailing strategies into our new, somewhat post-pandemic world. Of the dealers who have, and continue to utilize digital retailing capabilities, 40% say they plan to continue accelerating their digital retailing strategies now set in place. 22% are maintaining their current digital capabilities and 12% are just starting out with their digital transformation. 8% however, are not interested in digital retailing adoption.

When it comes to digital retailing processes and tools, there is a certain degree of buy-in that needs to take place. 53% percent of dealers surveyed now look at digital retailing more like a deal generation tool rather than a lead generation tool. That perception would have taken a lot longer to realize had it not been for the pandemic. There is now a cultural change in how dealers perceive their processes.

Moving forward, MacInnis says some of the challenges dealers face with digital retailing are moving seamlessly across the sales and finance silos and bridging experience gaps for consumers. The key to the transition is about leadership and staffing. Leverage your technology to enable process changes and train your employees. All of these elements need to come together to give consumers the best online car buying experience.

With all the digital capabilities dealers have MacInnis says, “The pain of not changing is greater than the pin of changing in their processes.”

As we settle into 2022, MacInnis recommends for dealers to become deal generation focused. Provide consumers the opportunity to engage interactively in a secure environment. Allow consumers to complete as much of the deal online as they want. Leverage the digital finance component as soon as possible. Figure out a way to give consumers accurate payments early on in the deal without jeopardizing your profitability.

More on this study from eLEND Solutions can be found here.

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Welcome to another edition of Inside Automotive with Jim Fitzpatrick. Car dealerships tackled some major headwinds in 2021 as supply chain shortages put the brakes on new car production. Car dealers have since turned their focus toward used cars and building up inventory in a highly competitive climate. Here to discuss how dealers can gain a competitive edge are Hugh Hathcock, Owner of Velocity Automotive and Jack Hodge, President of James Hodge Auto Group.

At his dealer group, Hodge says the past two years have been all about pivoting. With the current inventory challenges, vehicle acquisition is more difficult and there is an overwhelming rush to market. In light of these challenges, Velocity Automotive’s division of digital retail window stickers has been a game-changer for his dealerships, says Hodge. For example, if a Ford store receives a Nissan trade-in from a consumer, the appraiser might have to rely too much on guesswork if they are not familiar with what equipment is on the vehicle. Having the original window sticker digital attached to every VIN, saves car dealers time, energy, and money.

Related: The advantage of digital window stickers for used car inventory acquisition

The same can be said for auction situations. If the used car buyer is not privy to all of the information available for any given vehicle, then they could potentially lose thousands, Hodge explains. One of Hodge’s stores was previously doing about 85% new car sales and 15% used cars. Now, those numbers have flipped. This store now does 95% used car business. Hodge says, that the tools offered by Velocity Automotive have allowed his group to be more nimble and to serve customers better.

Hathcock adds that while the tools available can certainly do a lot. The most successful car dealers also invest in their operational infrastructure and ultimately use the tools to facilitate and improve internal processes. Having all of the necessary information your dealership needs on one intuitive dashboard was Velocity Automotive’s intention from the start.

“All of this integration separates Velocity Engage from our competitors because it’s faster, it’s easier, and people like that,” says Hathcock. “That’s what a good technology should do, make their job easier.”

Reconditioning is also a crucial component car dealers have to consider when optimizing their used car departments. Hodge attests that without proper accountability and a seamless communication channel, the reconditioning timeline and easily go awry. Hathcock adds that given the current state of the industry, car dealers can’t afford to miss any opportunities. Recon Velocity can help dealers track and adjust their levels of urgency to become much stronger.

The best part? Car dealers do not have to commit to any long-term contracts with Velocity platforms. Hathcock explains that car dealers like to go month-to-month, and that’s the way his company has done things from the start.

To learn more about Velocity Automotive, be sure to visit VelocityAutomotiveSolutions.com.

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What should your car dealership be doing in this new year to ensure profitability in the F&I department? On this episode of F&I Today, anchor Jim Fitzpatrick speaks with Jason Gannon, President of F&I Guys, to discuss what F&I offices look like today and his recommendations for maximum productivity in 2022.

One challenge that car dealers and their F&I managers have to contend with, is the sizeable uptick in digital retailing solutions. Digital retailing presents many opportunities for car dealers, but the F&I component is a crucial piece of the puzzle. While traditionalists might be more hesitant to use digital retailing, Gannon says the data shows that over the last few years, vehicle service contract penetration and PVRs are up across the board. F&I integration into your digital retailing strategy is vital.

Another challenge facing F&I departments and dealerships as a whole is labor shortages and employee turnover. From Gannon’s perspective, car dealerships today struggle with understanding the Millennial generation and how those employees want to be managed and incentivized. Younger generations value quality of life over monetary gain. Car dealers need to change their scheduling to adapt to this trend.

Related: Data analytics in F&I – Remember, humans are behind the numbers

Additionally, rather than recruiting F&I managers or running job ads, promote internally. Show your employees that there is a path of advancement they can work for. Training is also an area that the F&I office can struggle in. However, if you promote F&I managers internally, they can then be properly trained from the bottom-up, and not develop any bad habits.

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We’ve seen tremendous changes as well as innovation in the automotive industry throughout the past year, so what’s in store for 2022? Today on Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome Aaron Bickart, Executive Vice President and General Manager of OfferLogix, who walk us through his forecast for the year and discusses the continuing shifts in digital retailing.

Amidst the chip shortage and supply chain gridlock, car dealers have been experiencing record profitability selling vehicles at MSPR or even above. So, Bickart wonders if car dealers truly want inventory to come back. OEMs are making more money as well. From his perspective, Bickart says that OEMs probably enjoy giving out fewer incentives and rebates. With this additional money, OEMs can invest back into their electrification and alternative battery initiatives. Used car dealer groups are benefitting as well, as are customers who are getting top-value for trade-ins. Bickart foresees that the inventory crisis won’t fix itself until the third or fourth quarter at least. So, car dealers need to start advertising the fixed-ops department specifically and have all of their needs for the service department met.

Also, in 2021, the auto industry continued to see major shifts in the digital retailing and fintech spaces. Bickart says that this trend is not going away. It is vitally important for car dealers to provide real, accurate lease and finance calculations to be competitive. Bickart predicts that transactions will become even more personalized and unique to each customer.

Related: OfferLogix EVP Aaron Bickart on the importance of offering a seamless car buying experience

With one of the country’s most sophisticated APIs, OfferLogix is working on a 360° approach to facilitate this personalization and provide penny perfect payments and F&I calculations. OfferLogix does not collect consumer data, nor does offer its products directly to dealers. Instead, OfferLogix utilizes the data from the client partner to provide these calculations. This includes vehicle valuations, credit scores, and more all housed in one solution and relayed to the client in real-time.

If you’re not providing penny perfect payments across all advertising mediums, all the way don’t to the digital retailing platform, then you have to start. If your advertised payments begin to fluctuate and change, then the consumer might distrust your dealership, no matter how big or small the discrepancy.

To learn more about OfferLogix, visit offerlogix.com.

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Nobody can deny the power of social media in our society. However, many car dealers are still not taking advantage of advertising opportunities on social media platforms, especially Facebook. On the latest edition of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes asks, are you really evaluating your social media advertising properly, or are you just scratching your head? Today, Frank takes a closer look at what car dealers are getting right, and wrong, about social media.

Related: How this Wis. dealership is leveraging 8M+ views on TikTok to sell more cars

Frank has identified two main problems that car dealers and outside vendors often create in regards to social media.

Content: Many car dealers still put out social media content that looks outdated, and not effectively optimized. Frank adds that there is often nothing social about dealership social media pages. Where is the value for the user? Post content that embodies the trust, education, and transparency consumers expect today.
Success measurement: Over the past decade, the focus for social media has been placed on transactional lead generation. However, name recognition, top-of-mind awareness, and brand equity all need attention as well. Is a fresh lead worth more than a referral? Frank doesn’t think so. Use the following three measurements to track overall success:
Reach: How many individual people actually saw your ad?
Frequency: How many times did those people see your ad?
Leads: Leads are important, however, measuring the success of a campaign by leads alone is bad practice.

The bottom line is nothing else has the incredible potential of reach like social media. So, make sure you are reaching your full potential today.

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As auto dealerships continue to navigate the challenges of a prolonged new vehicle inventory shortage and disruptions within the supply chain, many now face mounting pressure to find or better leverage new revenue streams. One such solution lies in accelerating the trade-in reconditioning process, getting vehicles onto the pre-owned sales lot faster. Here to guide us through this process of reducing time-on-task is iRecon Senior Business Development Director and Founder, Mike Boyd.

These are certainly challenging times for dealerships hoping to maintain consistent profitability. Boyd stresses that expediting the reconditioning process is one bottom-line contributor that isn’t being addressed as much as it should be. Traditionally, car dealers will wait for a vehicle to be fully reconditioned before it is merchandised, however, service drives are experiencing mounting workloads and a shortage of technicians. Data shows that 80+% of trade-ins vehicles are being delayed because of the backlog. Limited new vehicle inventory adds extra pressure to the dealership’s used car operations. Reducing time-on-task in the reconditioning department will be crucial for car dealers at this point in time.

Related: Best practices in reconditioning and ways to save costs

The COVID-19 pandemic is also a huge piece of this equation, says Boyd. Service customers who had previously been avoiding the dealership, have returned in droves. In fact, according to Cox Automotive data, dealership service departments are running at 90+% of where they were in 2019. The data also reveals that customers are putting more into service and repair if they can’t find the new vehicle they want. This means, the average RO spend has gone up as well as the average service technician workload. Additionally, 49+% of dealerships are taking 8 to 16 days to get trade-in ready for retail sales.

Reducing time-on-task in the reconditioning department, can provide car dealers with some relief from all of these pressures affecting both sales and service. Firstly, management must prioritize identifying the work that needs to be completed on each trade-in and purchase. A cohesive schedule must also be established and monitored with your own internal technicians and your outside contracted vendors. They have to perform this work efficiently and be held accountable. Utilize all of the data gathered from the workflow and make adjustments and necessary. As a part of vAuto, iRecon has the tools and solutions to help car dealers master these strategies.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Mike Boyd? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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The question sounds so simple—are you happy? Many business leaders and professionals miss out on growth and development opportunities by not taking their own happiness into account. To discuss this further, we recently sat down with speaker Tia Graham, Founder of Arrive at Happy and author of “Be A Happy Leader: Stop Feeling Overwhelmed, Thrive Personally, and Achieve Killer Business Results.” Graham has worked with global companies like Four Seasons and her leadership expertise has been featured on CNN, Forbes, and The Los Angeles Times to name a few.

Sometimes it’s difficult to remain happy. Especially in light of the external circumstances around COVID-19 and the subsequent challenges we have been dealing with over the last couple of years. Tia Graham has devoted her career to studying the science behind happiness, but before she started her own business, she spent 14 years leading sales and marketing teams in the luxury hotel industry. Graham says she has always loved leading people and is also very passionate about growing businesses and driving revenue.

Related: Leadership expert Mike Robbins on staying focused and ramping up for a prosperous 2022

Graham started her company, Arrive at Happy, after having her second daughter and began researching positive psychology. Graham has multiple certifications in positive psychology, which is the science of happiness, neuroscience, leadership. She is also a certified Chief Happiness Officer for Happiness at Work. Happy employees make happy customers, and Graham strives to help fellow business leaders create really happy cultures for their employees and customers.

The science of happiness can support leaders by giving them proven research-based strategies and tools to increase their wellbeing, says Graham. These tools improve leaders’ personal lives, working lives, and create positive environments where their people can flourish. Graham adds that the science of happiness is proven and its research is coming from Ivy League schools. It shows that when leaders are happier, and when people are happier, they become more creative. They will sell more and they are more productive. In fact, happiness and wellbeing can drastically affect the bottom lines of the business.

It is vital for happy leaders to first take care of their own wellbeing so that they have enough to give to their teams. It will absolutely pay off for the business and it’s the right thing to do as you work with all different types of humans. One area leaders can give more attention to, is providing ongoing positive feedback. This is one way to try to experience happiness is to give everyone consistent, authentic, positive feedback. Create a culture of psychological safety as well. Psychological safety is where everyone feels comfortable speaking their mind, and giving feedback to the leader. A huge motivator for employees is progress and meaningful work. So, another way to increase people’s happiness is to let them know why their work really matters and how it’s helping society.

These strategies, and much more, are discussed in Graham’s latest book, “Be A Happy Leader: Stop Feeling Overwhelmed, Thrive Personally, and Achieve Killer Business Results, out tomorrow! Be a Happy Leader inspires readers to prioritize their happiness and create lasting career success by following its 8-step methodology. The biggest takeaways, says Graham, are inspiration and motivation. She wants readers to know that a lot of their happiness and their well-being at work, and in life, is based on their daily choices. That’s what the science of happiness shows. It’s not just your genetics. It’s not just what’s going on in your life. It’s based on choices. And there are so many choices you can make every single day to increase your wellbeing, which will make you more successful at work.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Tia Graham? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Be a Happy Leader: Stop Feeling Overwhelmed, Thrive Personally, and Achieve Killer Business Results

Welcome to this episode of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

Car Capital TechnologiesTo start off today’s segment, Automotive Ventures portfolio company Car Capital Technologies, has closed a $150 million, three-year secured credit facility and a $6.125 million equity investment from funds managed by affiliates of Fortress Investment Group.

This milestone transaction provides car capital with the debt needed to continue to expand their rapidly growing business, fund more dealers, and increase the number of underserved consumers who want to purchase a vehicle.

Through their proprietary, fully digital platform, Dealer Electronic Auto Loan System (or DEALS), Car Capital allows their dealer partners to instantly approve 100% of their customers, regardless of credit history. With DEALS, dealers have the ability to make 24/7 approval decisions based on the economics of each unique car and consumer. And dealer partners get back-end profit based on performance, not a minimum portfolio size.

ALD Automotive and LeasePlanALD Automotive and LeasePlan, two of the world’s largest fleet leasing companies, announced they will combine forces to create a leading global mobility player that would further the digital transformation of the industry.

ALD will acquire 100% of LeasePlan from TDR Capital in a deal valued at €4.9 billion.

The combined companies would create an entity with 3.6 million cars under management. The agreement is expected to close by the end of 2022.

ALD is a global mobility solutions provider of full-service leasing and fleet management services across 43 countries. Its client base includes large corporations, small and mid-size enterprises (SMEs), professionals, and private individuals.

TuroPeer-to-peer car-sharing startup Turo has released its filing to become a publicly-traded company in the U.S., a process the company began confidentially in August.

Turo, which was founded in 2010 and has been compared to Airbnb for cars, allows private car owners to rent out their vehicles through the startup’s website or app. The company boasts 85,000 active hosts and 160,000 active vehicle listings in over 7,500 cities as of September 30, 2021.

Car owners get the chance to offset ownership costs, and users get the benefit of affordable short-term rentals at a time when rental car prices are increasing due to pandemic-induced supply chain issues. Challenges in the traditional car rental industry have certainly allowed Turo to gain some market share, despite steep competition, but that popularity has come with a cost at times, a reading of the risk factors portion of the S1 shows.

StoreDotStoreDot, the pioneer of extreme fast-charging battery technology for electric vehicles, has announced the first close of its Series D funding round of up to $80 million dollars, the majority of which have already been secured.

The lead investor is the fast-growing flagship Vietnamese electric vehicle manufacturer, VinFast, which plans to scale up manufacturing and deploy StoreDot’s extreme fast charging in future EV architectures.

Participants in the round include BP Ventures and Golden Energy Global Investment.

The funds will be used to complete StoreDot’s research and development for its silicon-dominant extreme fast charge battery cells for electric vehicles and continue its progress on extreme energy density cells based on solid-state technology for future deployment.

This funding also enables the company to ramp up its California-based R&D center and commence scale-up operations in key global locations, in readiness for full mass production of cells in 2024.

HeyChargeIn further EV news this week, BMW i Ventures announced a lead investment in HeyCharge, the German start-up democratizing access to electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in apartment complexes, office buildings, and other infrastructure locations. HeyCharge was in Y Combinator’s summer 2021 batch of start-ups.

Traditionally, EV chargers require an app or RFID card and a proper internet connection to begin activation. Yet most underground garages currently do not have an internet access point, or the ability to install such boxes.

With 56% of Germany and 46% of Europe living in apartment buildings, and 37% of renters in the U.S., this is an obvious next step for the expansion of EV charging stations, but the current reliance on internet connectivity is holding scalability back. That’s why HeyCharge has made its mission to help get a cheap, commercial, scalable solution to this section of the population.

ZubieA multi-million-dollar investment from decathlon capital partners will support the industry leadership of Zubie, as it expands its fleet-management platform and launches new service capabilities.

Details of the multi-million-dollar funding package were not disclosed.

Zubie provides an innovative connected-car platform as well as GPS tracking and fleet management software. The company’s rental connect product, the first fleet-management solution dedicated to serving the rental-car industry, provides real-time fuel and odometer readings, which significantly speeds up the check-in and check-out process for rental operators. Zubie also recently released Location Link, designed to assist in vehicle recovery efforts.

AptivIn the connected car space this week, automotive technology supplier Aptiv has agreed to buy software firm Wind River from private equity firm TPG for $4.3 billion in cash as it seeks to capitalize on a surge in spending by automakers to digitalize their cars.

The all-cash deal will expand Aptiv’s footprint in an area that is fast becoming the next battleground for automakers, which are spending billions of dollars to enable over-the-air updates and add smartphone-like features.

Once owned by Intel, Wind River develops software and cloud systems for several industries such as automotive, aerospace, defense, industrial, medical, and telecommunications. Last year it generated revenue of about $400 million.

Magna InternationalIn autonomous news this week, Magna International has acquired the technology, IP, and assets of Optimus Ride, a startup that was trying to commercialize electric autonomous shuttles. As part of the deal, Magna has hired more than 120 employees of Optimus Ride.

The financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Magna aims to leverage the tech and expertise from Optimus Ride to beef up its efforts in advanced driver assistance systems — technology that is in high demand.

Magna has been keen to build out its ADAS offerings; last year the company tried to acquire Swedish automotive tech company Veoneer but was outbid by Qualcomm.

ThrotlWheel Pros, a designer, manufacturer, and distributor of proprietary branded aftermarket vehicle enhancements for light trucks, SUVs, passenger cars, and ATVs backed by Clearlake Capital Group, has acquired Throtl, an aftermarket eCommerce platform for automotive and off-roading enthusiasts.

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Throtl is a digital destination for automotive and off-roading enthusiasts. By using its connections with automotive influencers and access to a virtual library of digital content, Throtl has created a community gathering spot and home that enables automotive and off-roading enthusiasts. Throtl also empowers the buying power and convenience for its followers by offering a suite of aftermarket performance product offerings through their online Throtl marketplace.

BoltIn international news this week, Estonian competitor to Uber, Bolt, announced a fresh financing round of €628 million at a valuation of €7.4 billion, after raising €600 million last August.

The round, led by Sequoia Capital and Fidelity Investments, with participation from Whale Rock Capital Management, Owl Rock Capital, D1, G Squared, Tekne, Ghisallo, and others, brings the total raised by the nine-year-old startup to €1.8 billion.

Bolt, founded in 2013, has become arguably Europe’s first super-app.

Bolt’s top-line numbers are impressive: since October 2020 the company has grown from having a presence in 200 cities to over 400 across Europe and Africa; from 2,000 employees to over 3,000; from 50 million passengers to 100 million globally; and from a valuation of around €2 billion to €7.6 billion today.

CarsomeIn further international news this week, Carsome, which operates a southeast Asian used-car online marketplace, has raised almost $300 million dollars led by Temasek and Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund.

65 equity partners and Seatown Holdings International — both backed by Temasek — and the Qatar Investment Authority are among investors that participated in the round.

Malaysia’s most valuable technology startup is planning an IPO in the U.S. Later this year.

Founded in 2015, the company has expanded into Indonesia, Thailand, and Singapore. The company works with more than 8,000 dealers and handles more than 100,000 transactions per year.

Companies to WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry intel report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday 5 to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, we have two companies to watch: Awake Mobility and EyeGage.

Awake Mobility

Our first company to watch this week is Awake Mobility.

Awake Mobility provides vehicle insights for buses and analyzes the health status of your fleet. They eliminate information asymmetry between departments and reveal the current as well as future vehicle status to enable data-driven maintenance decisions.

Awake Mobility’s dashboard and mobile app are used by the workshop, control center, drivers, and management, who all receive tailored insights to optimize their daily operations.

Check out awake mobility at www.AwakeMobility.de.

EyeGage

Our second company to watch this week is EyeGage.

EyeGage is revolutionizing access to drug screening technology via intelligent mobile eye scans.

Substance abuse costs the U.S. $600 billion dollars annually, and 70% of substance abusers are employed full time. EyeGage allows companies to stay ahead of accidents, which saves time, money, and lives, while reducing the negative impacts of substance abuse on families and communities.

Check out EyeGage at www.EyeGage.com.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

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People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

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Dealer Associations across the country are hitting the ground running in this new year. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Brian Maas, President of the California New Car Dealers Association, or CNCDA, to give us an update on his Association and we’ll learn a little bit about a ballot initiative they’re working on, in the state.

Maas starts things off by giving us a pulse on how car dealers in his state are feeling in the first month of 2022. While supply shortages continue to put the squeeze on OEMs, car dealers are seeing record profitability. Certainly, dealers don’t want to see this profitability go away too soon, but Maas says what dealers do want, is an increased sense of normalcy. Dealers are used to offering a wide selection of products and have often spent years cultivating brand awareness. However, current retailing conditions have dealerships re-tooling their playbooks.

New vehicle affordability is also a growing concern. The average price for a new car topped $45,000 last fall and recently, Detroit automakers have announced pricey EV pickups for choice customers. Maas says prices this high can potentially alienate an entire generation of car buyers from purchasing a new vehicle or transitioning to an EV.

The association is also monitoring any changes in direct sales initiatives from manufacturers. Currently, direct sales from OEMs are allowed in California as long as these sales do not directly compete with franchised dealers. The franchise dealer system has been effective for over 100 years, says Maas. Car dealers thrive on competition with one another. Eliminating competition could reduce dealerships down to simple warehouses and delivery centers.

As for the CNCDA’s top 2022 priorities, one of the first things on the list is proposing a ballot initiative to re-work California’s Private Attorneys General Act. This act gives employees the ability to file lawsuits against their employers for Labor Code violations on behalf of themselves and the State of California. While employees have every right to the wages and benefits they are owed, often this process is abused and ends up being costly for everyone involved. CNCDA along with other industry associations hope this ballot initiative makes it onto the upcoming state election in November.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, discusses how you can position your used vehicle inventory for the upcoming tax season.

Last week, Rice explored some economic conditions that paint a picture of what tax season might look like this year. In this episode, it’s all about positioning yourself in the best way possible. According to Rice, retail vehicle volume, on average, started tapering off around last November. By December, car dealers had to make a lot of difficult decisions regarding how they manage their inventory bucket. Now, in January, Rice still sees car dealerships keep their fresh inventory moving.

Related: Will the upcoming tax season make or break used car sales?

Typically, you want to increase the number of cars you are selling fresh because gross profits are lucrative. So, disciplined car dealers are selling more of their inventory fresh, yet, they see volume go down. The good cars move fast, and the bad ones are starting to stick around longer. This can lead to an aging problem come February.

At one dealership, in a two-week period, Rice says 75% of the used vehicle inventory was 0-30 days old, and the fresh inventory was positioned well. 21% of the inventory was 31-60 days old, which is, ideally, where used car managers should aim. You want to sell at least 5%, or more, than what each bucket currently has in it to prevent bleed through. In order to do this, your middle bucket (31-60 days old) should stay below 25%.

On the other hand, another car dealership only had 49% of its used car inventory fall between the 0-30 day age mark during the same period. 35% of vehicles were between 31-60 days old, and 15% were 61+ days old. These numbers indicate to Rice that this dealership might have an aging problem. If you are positioned like this car dealer, then you will need to sell 40% of your middle bucket (31-60 days), and try to bring the overall percentage down to 20. Obviously, the more vehicles you have between 31-60 days old, the less gross profit.

It’s crucial to get a robust inventory management process in place, so you can prepare for sales during the upcoming tax season. Between these two dealerships, the first will see greater opportunities for gross in March and April, while the other will have to make tougher decisions regarding inventory.

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If you’re looking for ways to keep yourself and your team motivated for success in this new year, then now may be the time to set the tone. It’s not too late. Today on Inside Automotive, we’re joined by Alan Weiss, business coach, speaker, and New York Times best-selling author, to help us kickstart the year with his recommendations for success.

In order to start off 2022 strong, Weiss says we have to look at disruption and volatility as tools to use on the offensive. If we create a positive disruption in the marketplace, then we can own that marketplace. There will always be obstacles and challenges in the road, however, an ‘offensive’ mindset can be the determining factor for business owners.

Weiss says there are four key things business leaders need to focus on in today’s climate in order to leverage disruption. First, the customer is not always right. Listen to your best customers. Listen to the customers who give you referrals, who don’t complain, who don’t return things, and who make high purchases. Don’t listen to the customers who are returning things and always complaining. Second, you have to have happy employees to have happy customers. Take care of them. Third, you can’t dominate a marketplace by being careful, by being cautious, by being an ostrich. You dominate a marketplace by making waves. Lastly, energy and enthusiasm are infectious. If you really want to stimulate your employees, you have to be positive. You have to be happy. You have to be enthusiastic.

With this in mind, Weiss adds that it is a great time to open up a business if you are in a strong position to do so. You have to understand marketing. You have to understand value. You have to understand how to get repeat customers.

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Artificial Intelligence, or AI, is changing the way many in the industry navigate retail automotive, and dealers are seeing the benefits. According to a recently released study from CDK Global, approximately 68% of dealerships believe the adoption of artificial intelligence has had a positive impact on their businesses.

On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Peter Kahn, Senior Director of Market Research at CDK Global, to walk us through the study, and how dealers are feeling today about AI today.

CDK Global recently released the findings from its What Automotive Dealers Think About Artificial Intelligence survey that investigated the use of artificial intelligence tools in automotive retail today and the perceived benefits it will provide dealerships in the future. By doing this survey, CDK Global aimed to find out how emerging AI technology could be used for productivity enhancement in the automotive retail space. A little more than 250 automotive professionals were sampled throughout the country, with the average dealer owning three to five stores. As far as volume goes, these dealers sell on average 250 to 300 cars every month.

Related: AI in auto retail: How advanced tech benefits business

The study revealed that 59% of car dealers surveyed struggle with employee staffing and skill shortages. Finding new customers is important but employee burnout can have negative effects as well. Additionally, 75% of dealers surveyed are familiar with the concept of AI and 68% are already using some form of AI. An additional 35% of dealers are planning to implement AI in one to three years. Two-thirds of the dealers that are using AI today also say that they are seeing benefits from the technology.

From his perspective, Kahn says it looks like AI is being utilized mostly to manage incoming leads and find new customers. However, AI can be used very effectively in the fixed-ops department, especially during staffing shortages. Predictive service is an innovative tool with untapped potential that can improve trust and transparency with the customer, and get repairs done faster. Having the correct diagnosis quickly and communicating to the customer in a seamless way can lock in a feeling of confidence.

For the car dealers that are considering adopting AI, Kahn says why wait? Now is the time to look seriously at AI, and ask how can I use this technology to address operational pain points?

Learn more about CDK Global here.

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On the latest episode of Auto Marketing Now, host Brian Pasch, founder of PCG Companies and BPE Enterprises, discusses prepping your local marketing strategy and digital processes to handle electric vehicle sales that are coming down the pipeline. Nowadays, the future of the auto industry seems to be fixated on battery-electric cars. Prepare your dealership website now to discuss or feature information about your brand’s upcoming EV models.

Google rewards first to market and first quality to market content. Many car dealerships have little to no content on their websites regarding EVs or EV retailing. We know these vehicles are coming. What are you writing about them on your website? You have the knowledge to talk authoritatively about these models, says Pasch. Ease some of the concerns consumers have about these vehicles.

Related: Will the automotive retail industry ever really go ‘back to normal?’

Now is the time to write about electric vehicles. For example, over the next few years, the search frequency of EV charging will only continue to grow. Claim the Google My Business listings for any charging stations you have on your lot. This is an opportunity to post and market your EV charging station. When people search for a station, they will find your listings, promotions, and information.

Even if you have nothing to sell right this moment, Pasch says this is a reminder that first quality to market content is rewarded by good placement in Google search. For data companies like Edmunds, they know that the organic traffic that comes to their website is from the articles they write about the vehicles. So, write content that answers common questions consumers have about owning an EV retailing.

This is an important time to step back and realize that EV retailing is in the near future for dealers. Dealership websites that have content on the EVs they are going to sell and service, as well as Google My Business listings, will be better prepared for success.

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Car dealers are making more gross profit than ever and managers are taking home paychecks bigger than they have ever seen before. However, on the latest edition of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes asks, are your salespeople and BDC reps being paid what they ought to be? Does your pay match today?

In the automotive industry, car dealers are experiencing record profitability. However, Frank has been approached by many salespeople and BDC representatives who are wondering what about me? It appears that there are many car dealerships that, years ago, adjusted pay plans to include huge bonuses for volume, shared profits from F&I, qualifiers for CSI, and eliminated conditions on front-end gross. Lopes says that made all the sense in the world until mid-2021.

Related: Are you earning the sale or just benefiting from the law of supply?

Front-end grosses sky-rocketed while volume for most dealerships decreased. Now, we’re facing a new challenge where car dealers and managers who generally only earn from net profit are making more money than ever before. Salespeople and BDC representatives are attuned to this.

It’s time to re-introduce pay plans that add back in an element of commission on gross profit. The inventory challenges have affected every dealership in the country. If you have your pay plans set up on volume only, even star salespeople will not be able to hit the levels they need to and earn the money they were, pre-inventory challenges.

Then, there’s the BDC. Pay of volume of appointments set, appointments that show, and even a little from the vehicles sold. With marketing spend pulling back and leads decreasing, how do dealers expect the lowest-paid personnel to manage? These are the questions dealers need to take into consideration in 2022.

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Although the new year has just begun, could we be on the other side of the pandemic? For over 35 years Joe Verde Group has been a lead trainer for dealers, managers, and salespeople around the world. Sean Gardner, instructor and sales trainer with the Joe Verde Group joins us today to share his perspective on the year ahead and three ways car dealers can have a strong start to 2022.

Related: 5 ways to deliver at least one vehicle per day, each day of the month – Sean Gardner, Joe Verde Group

Have a positive attitude: Everything starts with an enthusiastic can-do attitude. If car dealers and salespeople want to further increase revenues this year, they have dial-up the belief and confidence in their own abilities. This is the key to selling more cars in 2022. There has to be a true belief that you can turn every digital opportunity into an appointment that results in a sale.
Set improvement goals: Self-improvement can help self-belief and confidence in a big way. Preparation builds confidence. A lot of salespeople out there might set goals but not necessarily improvement goals. Dealership personnel needs to come into work every day with a plan on how to get the most out of each day.
Learn how to handle price: In order to remain profitable while enduring these market conditions, dealers have to handle price like a pro. It’s time to sell more cars and really put your best foot forward.

The biggest difference between a salesperson making $60,000 and another making $300,000 is their attitude, work ethic, and ability and skills at handling price. As long as dealers pay attention to and address these three things, the immediate difference will be astounding.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Sean Gardner? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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2021 was a robust and profitable year for many dealers and OEMs despite the industry’s shortages. But as automakers continue to scale back on rebates and incentives for consumers in this new year, how profitable does that leave the dealer? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Rusty West, President and CEO of Market Scan Information Systems, to talk to us about rebates and incentives in the automotive industry today.

Market Scan® data set

West begins by discussing the steady, linear decline in rebate offerings that are out there from the different manufacturers. The volume, or the dollar amount that is available for the rebates, is almost parallel to the inventory levels. So, as inventory has gone down, the rebate levels have gone down as well. Interestingly, the only segment that went up last quarter was the eco-vehicles.

"A few years from now," says West. "We're going to look back and we're going to see this whole era as maybe being the best educational example of the dynamics of the laws of supply and demand."Vehicles are scarce and there is a lot of consumer demand. Car dealers are making more money and the manufacturers have to spend less in order to sell the vehicles. However, as inventory increases, West is cautiously optimistic that rebates and incentives will as well.

Related: Market Scan’s Rusty West on how car dealers can differentiate themselves from other online retailers

In today's current climate, Market Scan believes it is very important to look at the auto industry through the eyes of the consumer. To influence consumer behavior, automotive retail professionals need to know what they see and what they think. A $100 per month higher payment for a vehicle that is comparable to a competitor's right down the street will not get consumers to engage. Relying on historical data is a flawed approach in West's opinion. That data only shows what has happened, not what can happen.

There's a lot of highly funded lending institutions out there that are very aggressive on certain vehicles and market segments. So, if an OEM tries to figure out what its rebates and incentives spending will be, it will miss the mark by only looking at the captive lender. Always think about what the consumer will see.

If OEMs can find a new way of calculating rebates and incentives, Market Scan predicts that overall dealer profitability will increase. While Market Scan is not sure when, the company is predicting an exponential increase in the complexities of rebates and incentives, especially on the conquest sale. If manufactures can really get this right, they will be able to compete with a bunch of different vehicles for the right price. Then the dealership will be in a more competitive position and earn more conquest business.

Rebates and incentives can mean a difference in monthly payments for customers by $75 or even $100 per month, especially on a $300 or $400 per month vehicle. That is the determining factor of whether or not the consumer will go through with the transaction. This is just one of many circumstances that highlight the importance of having up-to-date predictive data at a car dealer's fingertips.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Rusty West? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to another episode of Founder Focus, a CBT original series that dives into the inside stories behind some of the automotive industry’s most impressive entrepreneurial journeys. Join us for intimate conversations with innovative entrepreneurs and the great companies they have built. Today, host Steve Greenfield, founder of Automotive Ventures, is joined by the co-founder and CEO of Otonomo, Ben Volkow, who oversees strategy and vision for the company, Ben has extensive entrepreneurial experience and a successful track record, having founded three additional ventures.

Related: This auto retail expert shares why it’s important to be a student of the business

Volkow is a trained engineer and has always had an affinity for computers. Working in the technical world has its advantages, but Volkow says his day-to-day currently is very different. In the early days of his career, Volkow was working with the cloud, communications, networking, and security, all of which are used today at Otonomo in the automotive space. With the automotive market becoming a software market, Volkow believes he can contribute with his previous experience.

Volkow’s latest company, Otonomo, is a leader in connected car data that is driving mobility. The inspiration behind the business came from a request from one of Germany’s top OEMs. This OEM decided to contract Volkow to build a vehicle date platform that could compete with others on the market.

“There is always another mountain to climb,” says Volkow. “You need more revenues, you need more people, you need more OEMs. So I try and enjoy the small things, good recruitment, good analyst coverage, a nice funding round, an important contract with the customer, partnership.”

Early last year, Otonomo agreed to go public by merging with special purpose acquisition company Software Acquisition Group Inc. II with a valuation of $1.4 billion. While Volkow admits that the merge wasn’t perfect, it did present a lot of new opportunities. Funding and long-lasting infrastructure will enable growth and the methodology at Software Acquisition Group, aligned with Otonomo’s vision.

From Volkow’s perspective as an entrepreneur, less is more. Challenges and obstacles don’t just go ahead. Even ‘small’ problems need to be addressed head-on or they will fester and often pop back up at inconvenient times. Volkow also recommends that entrepreneurs build their businesses to scale. Using shortcuts to run fast to the market is risky. Scale will come with success. Think big from day one.

To hear more from Ben Volkow and Steve Greenfield, be sure to watch the entire episode of Founder Focus above.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Founder Focus? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, discusses what the upcoming tax season likely has in store for the used car market in 2022.

Google Trends reveals that used cars, as a search term, is at its lowest level in five years. Combined with an increasingly low two-weeks sales volume average, even active car dealers are struggling with volume right now. Rice adds that car dealers need to pay attention to the rise in auto defaults as well.

COVID stimulus packages are also starting to fade away, and the IRS is dealing with a mounting backlog of paperwork. Average used vehicles prices also hit a new all-time high of $29,000 and while vehicle supply is starting to come back, dealers will still have to source more cars from consumers.

Related: It’s a used-car desert—how to get creative and boost inventory

Decide for yourselves whether or not you think this year will have a strong tax season. For used car operations, Rice says keep it lean and clean. Be careful of overstocking and monitor inflation. Look at your last two-week sales cycle and make your determination based on trends.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Used Cars Weekly? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this episode of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

Well, it’s a brand new year, and we’ve got a bunch of new auto tech deals to announce. So, let’s get right into this week’s deals.

XLerate GroupTo start off today’s segment, XLerate Group, a leading, nationwide vehicle auction land remarketing company owned by Brightstar Capital Partners, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire America's Auto Auction, another leading vehicle auction provider.

The strategic combination of XLerate and America’s will create one of the nation's premier providers of vehicle auctions and related financing to enable the remarketing of vehicles, delivering critical services and liquidity to the vehicle ecosystem.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

National Auto CareIn F&I news this week, National Auto Care has acquired ADS Management Group. Deal terms were not disclosed.

The agency provides dealership development and finance & insurance products and services to automobile dealerships throughout the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast regions of the U.S.

Voyant PhotonicsIn autonomous technology this week, Voyant Photonics has raised a $15.4 million dollar A round to bring its smaller, cheaper, more easily manufactured, yet still highly capable lidar to production.

The round was led by UP.Partners, with participation from LDV Capital and Contour Ventures.

Voyant's goal is to shrink lidar down from sandwich to fingernail size using silicon photonics. The real challenge faced by nearly every lidar company is getting the price down. Between a strong laser, capable receptor and a mechanical or optical means of directing the beam, it just isn’t easy making something cheap enough that, like an LED or touchscreen, you can easily put several of them in a vehicle that costs less than $30,000.

The way Voyant does it, it’s cheap — possible to get under a hundred bucks with scale. All the optics, beam handling and sensing is right there on the microchip.

KneronIn further AV news this week, AI chipmaking startup Kneron closed a new round of $25 million dollars in funding with LITE-ON Technology, a Taiwanese optoelectronic pioneer, as a strategic investor. Other investors included Alltek Technology, PalPilot International, Sand Hill Angels and Gaingels.

AI chips, which are semiconductors designed to accelerate machine learning, have many applications including autonomous driving vehicles.

Eve Air MobilityIn the Vertical Take-Off and Landing or VTOL space this week, Eve Air Mobility has entered into a definitive business combination agreement with SPAC Zanite Acquisition Corp.

Upon closing of the transaction, Eve Holding will be listed on the NYSE under the new ticker symbol EVEX.

Embraer will remain a majority stockholder with an approximately 82% equity stake in Eve Holding following the closing of the business combination.

The strategic alignment with Embraer provides Eve with significant cost and execution advantages relative to other industry participants.

eLeapPowerIn the electrification space this week, eLeapPower, a technology innovator revolutionizing electric vehicles with its Smart Inverter System, has raised $21 million Canadian dollars in Series A funding. The round was led by a consortium of pension funds and BDC Capital's Cleantech Practice.

eLeapPower's initial contract is with a global automotive manufacturer headquartered in China that will use eLeapPower's smart inverter technology to drive its best-selling line of fully electric commercial fleet vehicles.

eLeapPower's suite of powertrain technologies significantly reduces electric vehicle charging time, and allows for bidirectional charging, as well as charging directly from renewable energy sources like wind and solar.

Cling SystemsIn further electrification news this week, Cling Systems aims to revolutionize the recycling industry and has secured $2.3 million dollars from a number of global investors, led by Trucks Venture Capital and First Venture.

When batteries reach their so-called end-of-life, they end up in a fragmented system of car dismantlers and automobile workshops. Logistics can account for almost 50% of the entire recycling costs. Hence, the challenge in the circular system is mainly concerned with collection and sorting - how each battery should be reused, remanufactured or recycled in order to best utilize the raw material.

Cling Systems has studied the battery industry for several years and is now investing heavily in solving the complex and global problem of a B2B marketplace. Through efficient matching of supply and demand for used batteries, Cling enables a closed-loop while maintaining a competitive market. Today, the marketplace is aimed at car assemblers in the Nordic region and remanufacturers across Europe.

Hive TechnologiesHive Technologies, the company unlocking the full carbon benefit of electric vehicles (EVs), announced $30 million dollars in new funding.

The investment accelerates the company’s vision to ensure that future generations benefit from cleaner air quality by expanding affordable access to EVs and renewable energy-based charging infrastructure. This combination is critical to expedite EVs’ full carbon reduction potential.

Hive’s unique model reduces the Return on Invested Carbon Dioxide of EVs to one year, down from approximately seven on average with today’s utilization. To achieve this vital carbon benefit, Hive taps a convergence of proven technologies including high range EVs, IOT, iSun, Inc’s modular solar charging capabilities, and energy storage.

Planet42In international news this week, Planet42, a South Africa-based car subscription company that buys used cars from dealerships and rents to customers via a subscription model, has raised $30 million dollars in equity and debt.

The investment is a prequel to a larger Series A round next year. It comprises $6 million equity and $24 million in debt financing.

Naspers Limited, through its early-stage investment vehicle, Naspers Foundry, led the equity round with $3.4 million. Existing investors include Change Ventures, the lead investor from Planet42’s seed round, as well as Startup Wise Guys.

Metro Africa XpressIn further international news this week, Nigerian mobility tech startup Metro Africa Xpress is planning to enter more markets across Africa as it races toward formalizing the continent’s transportation sector after securing $31 million dollars in Series B funding.

The latest funding round was co-led by global private equity platform Lightrock, which is making its first investment in the African mobility space and UAE-based international venture capital firm Global Ventures. Others that also took part in the round are existing investors Novastar Ventures and PROPARCO.

The startup will use the funding to enter Ghana and Egypt by the end of the first quarter of 2022, and other additional markets in Francophone, East and Southern Africa by the close of the same year. The funds will also be used to extend vehicle financing credit to over 100,000 drivers in the next two years.

Companies To WatchSo with that, Let’s Transition To Our Companies To Watch!

Every week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry Intel Report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, we have three companies to watch: WeaveGrid, Smartcar.com, Motion Intelligence.

WeaveGridWeaveGrid works with utilities and electric vehicle owners to enable and accelerate the electrification of transportation.

Using machine learning, optimization, and predictive analytics, their software solution solves several EV-grid integration challenges for utilities in a systems-oriented manner; helps integrate renewable energy resources on the grid; and saves utility customers money on their bills.

WeaveGrid’s vision is to drive the rapid decarbonization of the transportation and electric networks by intelligently connecting EVs to the grid.

Check out WeaveGrid at www.weavegrid.com.

SmartCarSmartCar empowers developers to build the future of mobility. Their API allows web and mobile apps to locate and unlock cars using simple HTTP requests.

The Smartcar platform is compatible across car brands. It works without aftermarket hardware like OBD dongles.

SmartCar’s customers have built apps for peer-to-peer car sharing, mobile car washes, and fleet management.

Check out SmartCar at www.smartcar.com.

Motion IntelligenceMotion Intelligence has created a technology platform capable of precisely locating and identifying mobile devices inside any vehicle using equipment that already exists in cars.

This industry-leading platform enables mobile operators, vehicle manufacturers, service providers, and application developers to customize the interaction with each device based on where it is located in the vehicle.

The Motion Intelligence service can prevent distracted driving while simultaneously allowing targeted interactions with passengers, based on their location within the vehicle, for entertainment, climate control, navigation, and more. The identification of each device (including wearables) ensures safety while also fueling innovation for vehicle services, mobile engagement, and autonomous driving.

Check out MotionIntelligence at www.MotionIntelligence.com.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

——————-

People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

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How are your marketing dollars being spent in this new year? With so much transformation happening in and around retail automotive, it may be tough trying to figure out where your focus should lie. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Bob Lanham, Head of Automotive Retail for Meta, formerly Facebook, to share his recommendations.

Lanham begins by discussing something that he believes the industry is getting more serious about. Measurement. The auto industry has to unify what media is being measured and how it is being measured. Why are there such wide gaps in measured results between dealers? Lanham says part of the problem is that there is no unified digital setup for the dealer body.

Related: Expect strong new and used car sales in 2022 due to ‘pent-up consumer demand’

In terms of today’s current climate, Lanham says that there will likely be some pent-up consumer demand in 2022 and hopefully an increase in new car supply. Instead of dialing back marketing spend, prepare for that demand by staying engaged with the consumer, and utimately set yourself apart from the competition. If your marketing is not present, chances are consumers won’t remember you.

Lanham goes on to discuss the importance of asking your marketing agency or department tougher questions. Hold them accountable and collaborate with them frequently. Let’s get smarter, says Lanham. Despite record profitability at the dealer level, now is the perfect time for dealers to prepare for an influx of vehicles. Dealers who are prepared for the future will come out on top.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Bob Lanham? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome back the Founder and Managing Director of Kerrigan Advisors, Erin Kerrigan, to walk us through the latest results from the recently released Q3 2021 Blue Sky Report®. Jim and Erin take a close look at the current buy-sell market, how it compares to previous years, and key findings from The Kerrigan Dealer Survey.

After surveying 800 car dealers, Kerrigan found that 61% of them expect an increase in the value of their dealership or dealership group in the next 12 months which is more than double than 2020. Kerrigan thinks that this is largely due to the significant rise in earnings. In fact, 79% of the dealers who participated in the survey also expect their earnings to rise in 2022, especially coming off of five consecutive quarters of record earnings.

“Most people in the industry agree we’re probably not going to stay at these very elevated earnings levels forever,” says Kerrigan. “However, few believe now that we’re going to return to the pre-pandemic lows that we were in before, of course, we experienced this unforeseen global issue.”

Related: NADA Chairman Paul Walser on inventory shortages and what to expect at the 2022 NADA Show

This theory can also be seen at work in the data. Average earnings pre-pandemic were around 2.5% as an industry net to sale. Average earnings today are now north of 5%. This is also the first time average revenue per employee top $1 million. This all indicates that car dealerships are running in a much more efficient manner. Dealers are not inclined to return to pre-pandemic levels of productivity. That will sustain some of the improved earnings, which also have tremendous gross profit margins. However, few believe those margins will eventually come down, but not to pre-pandemic levels either.

According to the Q3 2021 Blue Sky Report®, the buy-sell market was up 20% in terms of transactions closing. When the full tally for 2021 comes in, Kerrigan expects to see about 350 transactions completed, representing over 600 franchises. This is quite a significant increase over a very active 2020, and it doesn’t appear to be slowing down any time soon. Kerrigan also expects a bump in transactions for Q4 of 2021 as many dealers were looking to close out before the end of the year, and avoid any potential change in tax code.

Valuations have also become trickier to measure. Now, they are often calculated to be an average of the past three years. However, once the record earnings are factored in and with added reassurance from the OEMs regarding supply, valuations are trending higher.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Erin Kerrigan? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com

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On the latest episode of Auto Marketing Now, host Brian Pasch tackles the latest updates in OEM digital retailing programs and the mandates that are likely coming down the pipeline for some manufacturers.

In the Summer of 2021, Brian Pasch Enterprises published a research report called Comparing Stellantis E-Shop to Competing Digital Retailing Solutions.

In this report, BPE focused on evaluating the quality of the Stellantis E-Shop which turned out to be inferior to other competitors in the industry. Problems arose when the OEM wanted its dealer network to use the E-Shop exclusively. Since the release of this report, the Stellantis E-Shop has made some improvements, but, according to Pasch, it is still not a leader in any competitive benchmark.

In the Stellantis model, when a consumer is interested in finding an affordable new vehicle, the customer is taken off of the dealer’s website and transported to a national OEM digital retailing program. This model is also used by Nissan with its Nissan@Home platform.

There are additional caveats to this model that will also negatively affect dealers like taking away co-op dollars previously allocated for these types of solutions. More importantly, dealers are in a bind and fear retribution.

So what can car dealers do? Will they have to have 10 OEM digital retailing program for the 10 brands they sell? What is a better framework? Pasch believes that OEMs need to invest in data links and homegrown solutions that bridge the gap between digital retailing operations. The automotive industry needs to find the right balance Instead of OEM mandates will fail if car dealers are not united on this issue.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Auto Marketing Now? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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How are your marketing dollars being spent in this new year? With so much transformation happening in and around retail automotive, it may be tough trying to figure out where your focus should lie. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Bob Lanham, Head of Automotive Retail for Meta, formerly Facebook, to share his recommendations.

Lanham begins by discussing something that he believes the industry is getting more serious about. Measurement. The auto industry has to unify what media is being measured and how it is being measured. Why are there such wide gaps in measured results between dealers? Lanham says part of the problem is that there is no unified digital setup for the dealer body.

Related: Expect strong new and used car sales in 2022 due to ‘pent-up consumer demand’

In terms of today’s current climate, Lanham says that there will likely be some pent-up consumer demand in 2022 and hopefully an increase in new car supply. Instead of dialing back marketing spend, prepare for that demand by staying engaged with the consumer, and utimately set yourself apart from the competition. If your marketing is not present, chances are consumers won’t remember you.

Lanham goes on to discuss the importance of asking your marketing agency or department tougher questions. Hold them accountable and collaborate with them frequently. Let’s get smarter, says Lanham. Despite record profitability at the dealer level, now is the perfect time for dealers to prepare for an influx of vehicles. Dealers who are prepared for the future will come out on top.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Bob Lanham? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to another edition of Inside Automotive with Jim Fitzpatrick. Used-vehicle inventory has reached its lowest point in almost 10 years, and analysts predict that this problem isn’t going away in 2022. So, how can dealers acquire used inventory and how can they do it fast? Here to discuss this issue and more are Hugh Hathcock and Kalah McCoy, Owner and Executive Vice President of Velocity Automotive, respectively.

Right now, Velocity Automotive has the largest and fastest-growing division of digital retail window stickers which are comprehensive and accurate profiles of each vehicle that comes through the lot. For one flat rate, dealers can automatically generate stickers that are not only an excellent selling point for the customer but also an excellent appraisal tool when acquiring trade-ins.

Nowadays, used car buyers can’t always see a vehicle in person if they are managing multiple online auctions. In or to make quick decisions, it is crucial to have the most accurate information. Having access to window stickers on the same screen, which are also integrated into any inventory management system or CRM is time-saving. One-click on the VIN, and the information is all there. No other platform has the same coverage on these kinds of models and vehicles that Velocity Automotive has.

“This is something every dealer needs,” says Hathcock. “All dealers understand the window sticker and what the value is and the ROI.”

Related: Create an online concierge experience for your customers

Window stickers are not only a useful tool for the consumer, but they can also improve a dealership’s entire acquisition process. The used car manager can increase the accuracy of their appraisals with ease. Once the used car is acquired, it then heads to reconditioning. Despite lower inventory levels for used vehicles, consumer demand is still through the roof and every extra day a vehicle sits in reconditioning is potentially a missed opportunity.

“We have such high demand that an extra two or three days you know, means the customer is going somewhere else because they are ready to buy a car right now, says McCoy.

In the three years that ReconVelocity has been available, every single dealership that has implemented the system has reduced its recon time. Without a metrics-based platform, dealers and recon directors are making an educated guess about the recon timeline. With ReconVelocity, the guesswork can end because the system tracks every phase of the recon process and hold team members accountable for their work.

Velocity Automotive is now offering to bundle its suite of software including VelocityEngage digital portfolios, Window Stickers, and ReconVelocity. To learn more about Velocity Automotive, be sure to visit VelocityAutomotiveSolutions.com.

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On the latest episode of Mind Your Own Business, host Jonathan Dawson, founder of Sellchology Sales Training, discusses the importance of providing your car dealership team with clear and fair leadership in 2022.

Dawson begins by describing a recent circumstance he came across while on a dealership visit. He was meeting with the General Manager to discuss operations and process changes for 2022 when all of the sudden a sales employee passes by and the manager makes a comment that he is planning to terminate that employee. Dawson then asked the manager why?

According to the manager, the employee knew the job they were supposed to be doing, and they knew the pressing tasks, but they just simply were not doing the job. Dawson says this situation presented a unique opportunity. So he had both the manager and the employee participate in an exercise where they evaluate the employee’s position. He asked them each to write down the top 10 tasks, processes, and operations that are most important to the specific role.

Turns out, the manager and the employee had very different lists. The employee was doing the tasks that they believed were the most important. These tasks, however, didn’t match the manager. It wasn’t that the employee was willfully ignoring objectives or processes, they simply believed their role encompassed different things.

This exercise highlights the importance of clarity in communication. So before you make the decision to terminate an employee, try this exercise and then evaluate. Ask yourself, Are they really not doing the job? Or has there been conflict and confusion around process changes and tasks adjustments?

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Mind Your Own Business? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest edition of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes asks the question, are you prepared for ‘Golden Week?’

The holiday season is commonly referred to as the most wonderful time of the year. But, in the car business, our most wonderful time of the year is the week between Christmas and New Year. The week Lopes refers to as Golden Week. He says dealerships always strike gold during this active week.

Traditionally, the combination of year-end incentives and a hike in consumer demand blend together to produce a result that in Lopes’s opinion, can only be described as golden. Dealers across the country will sell more cars during Golden Week than they did the entire month of the year. What will Golden Week look like this year?

Related: How to establish S.M.A.R.T. goals and go from an average dealer to a top performer

Lopes says Golden Week will be golden in 2021. But, the amount of gold you strike is going to be completely dependent on how you mine for that goal. A huge part of that includes preparation.

The top three proven time-tested tips to get the most out of Golden Week is first, you need to have an offer. Next, you should focus on what you do have. Lopes says if we only stop focusing on what we don’t have, and start focusing on what we do have, we will be able to sell more vehicles and make more money. Lastly, avoid burnout. Stress to your staff about the basics of getting enough sleep, avoiding negativity, and eating right. Put metrics in place for each individual salesperson to hit their own personal goals.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Straight to the Point? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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The holiday season can be jam-packed with sales and added stress and right now, many of you may be in the thick of it. On today’s show, we’re speaking to a leadership expert to find out what you can do to stay focused and ramp up for a prosperous new year. We’re pleased to welcome back Mike Robbins, speaker, coach, author.

Robbins says it’s important to acknowledge what has been a challenging year for businesses. He says it’s not how you start but how you finish. It’s important to stay focused and finish strong while at the same time, most of us have been on an emotional rollercoaster, that looks like it’s going to continue. And hopefully next year, we can reflect on some of the lessons learned from this year.

If you think about the economic reality right now, compared to March 2020, it’s pretty remarkable to see how strong we are says Robbins. People are more exhausted and it’s important to take care of your people. He says because it’s the right thing to do and secondly, employees have options and opportunities to go other places.

Related: CultureWise’s David Friedman on the critical behaviors that build employee trust

Robbins says there are two reasons why people work. They work for money and appreciation and purpose. Does your team feel valued and have a sense of purpose? He says it’s important to have a personal connection with each member of your team.

A growth mindset is when people believe they can develop through dedication and hard work. Look at everything that comes your way, like it’s an opportunity to grow and learn. When you’re going through something challenging, Robbins says there is a tendency to ask, why is this happening to me? But if you change the word to, to the word for, that’s a very different question, why is this happening for me?

One of the challenges Robbins believes we’re going to have is figuring out to integrate this on the other side of Covid. It’s important for businesses to continue being as creative as possible in how they engage with their team and customers. He says to remember to take care of yourself, so you will be able to take care of your team.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Mike Robbins? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this episode of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

Well, it’s been an interesting year. We experienced record highs in the stock market, record levels of investment and M&A, a record number of IPOs fueled by the special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC phenomenon, and the highest company valuations on record, including both software companies as well as the valuations of physical dealer locations, which also experienced the largest numbers of deals done in any calendar year.

With that, I want to take the opportunity to highlight the top 10 largest and/or most important AutoTech deals of the year. At least the top 10 from my perspective.

RivianLet’s start off at number one with a segment that generated the largest IPO of the year, with EV automaker Rivan delivering an eye-popping IPO value of $78 billion dollars at launch, which quickly ran up to more than $100 billion dollars in value its first day, outstripping any other OEM’s value, other than Toyota and Tesla.

Also this year, we saw a number of other EV automakers take the opportunity to go public, including Lucid and REE.

B2B AuctionsSecond up this year was a lot of action in the B2B auction category.

We had ACV Auctions’ successful IPO, as it climbed 25% in its trading debut after its investors raised $414 million in an IPO priced above a marketed range, providing a total market value to the company of $4.8 billion dollars.

ACV then got bonus points this year for their acquisition of MAX Digital, a pioneer in automotive data and merchandising products and best known for its flagship inventory management system platform FirstLook.

That transaction was valued at $60M.

In August, KAR Global announced they were acquiring CARWAVE for $450 million dollars.

With the back-to-back acquisitions of first BackLotCars for $425 million dollars and then CARWAVE, KAR Global signaled to the market that they’re “all-in” on online sales, and willing to take on ACV in the digital realm.

Finally, in the physical auction space we saw two significant transactions involving XLerate Group.

First up, we saw Xlerate sell to Private Equity group Brightstar Capital Partners for an undisclosed amount.

Then, in December, Xlerate announced the acquisition of America’s Auto Auction group.

Terms of that transaction were not disclosed.

After the combination, XLerate and America’s will have a total of 39 auction sites across 19 states, as well as growing digital and mobile auction businesses and related financing.

Online Used Car RetailersIn our third slot this year, globally, we saw an incredible interest in online used car retailers.

This year saw a multi-billion dollar IPO of Europe’s Auto1 Group and the UK’s Cazoo. Closer to home, we saw Canada’s Clutch raise multiple rounds of funding, including multiple rounds, including a $100m CAD Series B from D1 Capital Partners

And we saw Latin America’s Kavak raise $485 million dollars at a $4 billion dollar valuation.

TekionIn our fourth slot this year, we saw a monster funding round in the dealership software space as Tekion, a cloud-based automotive software provider, more than tripled its valuation to $3.5 billion dollars after raising $250 million dollars from investors including Durable Capital Partners and Alkeon Capital Management.

Hyundai Motor Company and existing investors Advent International and Index Ventures also participated in the round.

Tekion plans to add larger automotive vehicles such as RVs and boats to its platform. It is set to expand both domestically and internationally, beginning with France by the second quarter of 2022, followed by the U.K. and Germany.

Tekion is taking on big industry players Reynolds & Reynolds and CDK Global in the Dealer Management System category, which generates about $2.0 billion dollars per year.

Tekion’s approach is to modernize the approach to enterprise software for both OEMs and dealerships, which has caught the attention of big-name investors and propelled them to a very high valuation.

Damage DetectionComing in at number five on our list, the damage detection space was red-hot this year.

At the very beginning of the year, Cox Automotive announced they were acquiring Fyusion for an undisclosed price

Just a couple of months later, KAR Global led a $15 million dollar investment into damage detention company Ravin.ai.

Later in the year we saw UVEYE raise a $60 million dollar Series C round led by CarMax.

And then finally, Tractable raised a $60 million dollar Series D from Insight Partners and Georgian Partners at an over $1 billion dollar valuation.

Accurately representing a vehicle’s cosmetic and mechanical condition is key to enabling online B2B vehicle transactions. In addition, companies like Tracatable have made a tremendous amount of progress integrating their solution into the insurance industry to diagnose the severity of damage after the vehicle is in an accident.

InsuranceIn our 6sixth slot this year, and continuing in the insurance space, we have CCC Intelligent Solutions’ IPO at about $7 billion dollars.

CCC has announced plans for important new solutions that will support the property and casualty insurance economy’s ongoing digital transformation and vision to achieve straight through processing.

CCC plans to fully digitize the estimating process for a portion of repairable claims. Their new solution is designed to employ advanced AI, insurer-driven rules and CCC’s vast network connections and is expected to help customers realize automated estimating in mere minutes and elevate the customer experience.

They additionally have plans to incorporate advanced AI into its collision repair platform to apply machine learning to pre-populate estimates based on photos of vehicle damage and configurations by repair facilities to accelerate the repair process.

AEyeAt number seven, we have AEye, a lidar startup that developed its technology for use in autonomous vehicles as well as to support advanced driver assistance systems in passenger cars,which IPO’d earlier this year through a merger with CF Finance Acquisition Corp. III valuing the company at about $2 billion dollars

AEye is one of several lidar companies that have expanded its focus beyond autonomous vehicles. AEye’s pitch is that the company’s lidar technology along with its partnerships with Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers like Continental makes it well-positioned to scale and to be adopted by major automakers. AEye’s lidar sensor scans the surroundings and then, with help from its perception software, identifies and focuses on relevant objects.

Consumer Vehicle InsuranceAt number eight, we have the consumer vehicle insurance space, which was on fire this year with a number of significant deals.

First up, DealerPolicy, the automotive insurance marketplace, announced its $110 million dollar Series C investment led by Goldman Sachs after raising $30 million in February of this year. The company’s pre-money valuation was $450 million dollars.

On average, DealerPolicy saves consumers $64 per month on automotive insurance. Automotive dealerships report on average 44% higher gross margins in their F&I departments because of increased customer budgets from their insurance savings.

The news comes on the back of sales-channel strategic alliances with JM&A Group and Darwin Automotive, which should greatly accelerate growth.

Second in the insurance space, CDK Global announced that they would acquire Salty. Deal terms were not disclosed.

Salty provides a convenient, mobile-first solution that helps consumers secure the insurance they need for their vehicle seamlessly without leaving the car-buying experience.

Historically, many dealerships set up their own in-house insurance agency, with mixed results.

Salty, and competitor DealerPolicy have figured out a different way to enable dealers to introduce vehicle insurance into the car buying process.

Consumers can cross-shop insurance providers, save on their monthly premiums, which can then be rolled into either a more expensive vehicle or allow the dealer to attach more F&I products to the deal.

The consumer wins and the dealer wins.

And finally in the insurance space, Lemonade is bolstering its nascent auto-insurance business by acquiring pay-per-mile insurer Metromile in its first acquisition.

The deal values Metromile, which went public via a merger with a blank-check company earlier this year, at roughly $500 million.

SoftBank Group-backed Lemonade, which went public last year, recently debuted an auto-insurance product called Lemonade Car, currently being sold in Illinois with plans to roll out the offering in other states. Buying Metromile helps Lemonade build up that business while giving it auto-claims data and a team that’s worked in the business for a decade.

Investors did not fare well with Metromile. Metromile is being sold for a fraction of its $1.3 billion equity value in an earlier merger with a SPAC.

OtonomoComing in at number nine, Otonomo, the cloud-based software startup that helps companies capture and monetize connected car data, headed to the public market with a SPAC IPO. The Israeli-based startup agreed to merge with special purpose acquisition company Software Acquisition Group II with a valuation of $1.4 billion dollars.

Otonomo launched in 2015 with a cloud-based software platform that can capture and anonymize vehicle data, which can then be used to create apps to provide services such as electric vehicle management, mapping, subscription-based services, parking, usage-based insurance, traffic management, media and emergency services. The company’s platform is used by 16 vehicle manufacturers, fleets and more than 100 service providers.

Today, the company said the platform ingests more than 4 billion data points per day from over 40 million global connected vehicles.

CarMaxComing in at number ten, CarMax acquired the remainder of Edmunds, up from their previous $50 million minority stake.

The total enterprise value of the transaction was reported to be $404 million dollars; Edmunds had revenue of $140 million dollars in 2020.

CarMax, the largest used-vehicle retailer in the U.S., worked with Edmunds to develop an online instant-offer tool for sellers of used autos.

CarMax will leverage Edmunds’ strong traffic (with 16m visits per month) to reduce cost of acquisition; CarMax spends $191m per year on marketing vs. Carvana at $286m – referring to 2020 numbers.

Bonus: Digital RetailingAnd finally, I’m going to cheat and insert a bonus category, because this is my show, and it was the year of big exits in the Digital Retailing space, as the big strategic players made their bets.

Examples included Prodigy selling to Upstart for $100 milion dollars, Gubagoo selling to Reynolds & Reynolds for an undisclosed amount, Roadster selling to CDK for $360 million dollars, and Darwin selling to JD Power for an undisclosed amount.

The Digital Retailing landscape has become competitive, with many stand-alone solutions; large players like Cox and Cars.com made their bets long ago.

The whole segment was buoyed through COVID: every dealer needed a solution to sell vehicles online; and the “Carvana Effect” has also provided dealers a sense of urgency to get in the game.

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So, there you have it. That’s your annual wrap-up version of the Friday Five. I hope you appreciated the recap of the year’s biggest and most important AutoTech deals, at least from my perspective.

Thank You For Tuning into CBT News for the year recap Friday Five, and we’ll see you in the New Year!

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

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People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of The Friday 5? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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A dealership in Milwaukee is gaining popularity and quite a following on the social platform, TikTok. Audi Milwaukee, as they are also known on the platform, can be seen showing their inventory with many appearances from “The Boss” AJ Harb, General Manager of Audi Milwaukee.

With the new year approaching and budgets at the top of mind for many of you, could TikTok be an opportunity for vehicle sales? On today’s show, we’re joined by AJ Harb, Audi Milwaukee’s General Manager and we’re also joined by Matt Abramczyk, Social Media Manager to tell us more about their dealership’s marketing videos on TikTok.

Harb says it’s been difficult with the inventory shortage. A lot of cars are on backorder and a lot of customers are waiting on their vehicles. He does say, some customers settle for cars on the lot because they understand the shortage and what’s been happening in the industry.

Abramczyk says after a few videos, he saw the importance of posting on social media as well as TikTok. He says since then, he’s been posting consistently. One of their videos has over 8 million views. It was a video of Abramczyk unwrapping a vehicle, and he believes it was the satisfaction that people got, from the plastic that made it take off.

I didn’t think it was going to get this far says, Harb. He says he realizes there’s a lot of young generation that will end up sharing the video with family or friends. Those family and friends end up being your customers and in the coming years, the younger generation will be your customers. He says they’ve sold many vehicles from their videos and gotten a lot of recognition. Harb says TikTok has provided a great outlook without a lot of costs, so it was smart to go to that area.

Related: Digital retailing inspired by the next generation

Harb says to trust the younger generation that works for you. They bring ideas to the table that he says didn’t exist when he started. It’s time to have an open mind. He also says Abramczyk does a great job of targeting different generations to follow them on TikTok.

One of the platforms, they’re looking to use is Youtube. They plan to post tutorials and videos, that consumers will still be able to use five years from now.

Did you enjoy this podcast with AJ Harb and Matt Abramczyk? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, discusses why the first half of the month is typically challenging for car dealers and why it doesn't have to be that way.

Typically a lot of dealerships will sell one and a half to two times more cars in the second half of the month than the first, which is normal for the industry. When it comes to stocking used cars, Rice thinks that stocking patterns can cause challenges at the beginning of the month.

When it comes to stocking habits, become more of a reactionary. A lot of inventory tools won't tell you to buy something until you sell something. If you start to have a strong second half of the month, Rice says you're going to start dwindling down your inventory levels.

Related: Sell on experience vs. brand, to beat inventory shortage

The first half of the month, Rice says you could be running 20% or 30% of light inventory. He says you should treat the 5th or 8th of the month no differently than the 29th or 30th. The dealers that are consistent with that and their sales habits and follow-up processes are doing an effective job.

Rice says you should be ramping up stocking around the 10th to the 20th of the month, so you can replenish the cars that are leaving the second half of the month, as the month ends. He also says to be aware of the trade-ins. Going into January, get into the habit of making sure you're prepared for the whole month when it comes to stocking levels.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Used Cars Weekly? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Today on Kain & Co., host David Kain, President of Kain Automotive, sits down with Jose Lazo, Sales Manager of South Dade Toyota, along with Boris Lopez, General Manager of South Dade Kia, to discuss what business looks like for them today.

Lopez says one of their greatest accomplishments, is creating an opportunity that allows them to work together and be happy doing what they love. Lazo adds that he’s happy to be a part of the family.

Related: Best practices for hiring at your car dealership

The biggest thing I’ve gotten out of working with South Dade Kia and South Dade Toyota is having a culture of respect and trust says, Lazo. As far as creativity, he says he likes how Lopez and the team allow him to express himself. They are always learning new technologies and they aren’t afraid of trying new things. The best asset to the company is its people says Lopez.

The car business is the best business there is says, Lazo. He says the way he tries to draw people in is, through building relationships. We aren’t just selling cars but helping people make decisions. There’s no more grinding and working yourselves to the bone. Lazo believes the industry is changing and the type of people they’re recruiting is changing. But, they are also looking towards the future and looking at what kind of employee they want on the team.

Lopez says they are focusing on training salespeople to create the right engagement. They want to maximize these tools and take care of the customer in the way they prefer. There’s always an opportunity says, Lopez.

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As 2021 comes to a close, many of you may be wondering what we can expect as an industry and where we are headed. On today’s show Brian Finkelmeyer, Senior Director of New Vehicle Solutions at Cox Automotive, joins us to discuss inventory, EV makers, and we’ll also get his predictions for 2022.

2021 has just been a remarkable year for car dealers and OEMs says Finkelmeyer. He thinks this has been the buy product of this complete shift in the industry. Before the pandemic, there was about four new vehicle inventory for every one buyer. Today, it’s four buyers for every one vehicle inventory.

Related: 3 myths dealers need to know about inventory shortages

Finkelmeyer thinks we’re going to continue to see these record profits, for the foreseeable future. As well as the microchip shortage, being with us for the next 18 to 24 months. Even as OEMs are able to increase their production, there’s an endless demand for fleet companies that are hungry for inventory. It’s going to take us time to where we can start building more units each month than what the consumers are absorbing.

Used car values are through the roof. Before the pandemic, nearly 10% to 11% of the final transaction price was incentives. Today, that number is down around 4%. Car companies may not be producing as many cars as they like, which has saved a lot of money for incentives. Finkelmeyer believes dealers and OEMs are thinking this probably isn’t a bad way to market.

Finkelmeyer says one of the most interesting things that’s happening in the industry is seeing an enormous amount of buy-sell activity with big dealer groups, such as Larry H.Miller, Park Place, and Suburban Automotive Group. There are billions of dollars being spent on public auto groups, buying these private auto groups. He says it’s going to be fascinating over the next five years to see how this all plays out.

Dealers have adopted digital retailing. He says it’s going to be interesting to see, to what extent do consumers gravitate to that approach. Consumers are doing part of the transactions online but when do consumers get to do their full transaction online?

97% of America is still driving internal combustion engines. This year, there are five new entrances in the lower size crossover segment, which is the biggest segment of EV players. There’s Toyota, Hyundai, Kia, Subaru, and Nissan, are all bringing out vehicles that are fully electric.

For 2022, Finkelmeyer believes we’re going to see more of the same thing. Cox Automotive is projecting a 15 million total (13.1 million retail) SAAR for 2022. He also believes we see a constrained inventory environment and sky-high grosses.

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While auto dealerships are constantly looking for new ways to become more profitable, they rarely focus on the potential—and all too often underutilized contributions of their accounting teams. Traditionally, management has either been too busy to be bothered or reluctant to make changes to a department they trust is working effectively.

Today’s guest says that missing training opportunities or recognizing objections to accounting progress can lead to easily avoidable problems. He says that profitability and profit retention go hand-in-hand with an empowered and efficient accounting department. To tell us more, we welcome Michael Panozzo, Senior Manager of Performance Management, Dealertrack DMS.

Change is scary says, Panozzo. We all consider the change to result in the desired outcome. It’s difficult to embrace the process of change. He says empowering our people and helping them realize their true potential, is the key to moving them forward and improving the dealership process. It also improves their job satisfaction overall.

Panozzo says the reason why management or leadership may not begin this process is because they are busy. The second factor is, they get the job done. He says, so it’s difficult to make the decision to change. Finally, they push back on new technology. Panozzo asks the question, what are we doing as leaders in the dealership to bring in tools that will make their work more fulfilling? If leadership takes these factors into account and finds ways to solve them, we take a giant leap to improve operations.

Related: Why management training can make or break your car dealership – David Lewis

Virtually like any other business, the past 18 months have put a lot of stress on dealerships. In response, many dealerships have added tools and processes that have improved communication across departments. Panozzo says now is the time to focus on the team that provides critical information and insights to the decision-making.

The accounting office is their navigation center for our dealership says, Panozzo. It allows them to see where they’re going in the future. It also helps them understand where they’re at currently or where they have been in the past. He says when they have a better understanding of their roles and how they play an integral part in a dealership’s success on so many levels, it becomes empowering.

Panozzo says the first thing he looks at is inclusion. Include accounting offices in initiatives, contests and other dealer events. He says their staff has valuable insight along with great experience and expertise. He says to also emphasize ongoing training for the accounting department. This is an outstanding opportunity for us to include our accounting offices in the initiatives that we have going forward and set the goals and objects in 2022, says Panozzo.

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As we’ve seen throughout much of the year, the buy-sell market is hot and dealership profits are through the roof. Haig Partners recently released their Q3 2021 Haig Report which details today’s buy-sell automotive landscape. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Alan Haig, President and Founder of Haig Partners to go further in-depth on their findings.

It has been an incredible time to be an auto dealer says, Haig. Since the beginning of the pandemic in March of 2020, the market has had a steady rebound. They have blown through all previous records, regarding dealership profits. Haig says it’s coming from every department. New and used vehicle margins have exploded because there’s a lack of supply. Fixed operations have also rebounded to pre-pandemic levels.

It’s been another explosive quarter in terms of deal volume. Haig says they are on track for 575 dealerships to trade hands. For public companies, they estimate $8 billion dollars they will spend on acquiring dealerships in 2021. Prior to the pandemic, they were spending between 700 million and $1 billion. A few transits that drove that were income taxes spiking and competitive upsurge with companies trying to grow and Lithia has been leading the public companies for several years. Now everyone has jumped back in. It’s not just the public companies, but private companies are looking to grow as well.

Haig says we’re going to see battles for auto dealers in the future. He says right now conditions are going to be as good as they get. Dealership profits haven’t peaked and current conditions are unbelievably positive.

Haig believes dealers enjoy having a direct relationship with consumers. They consider the car buyer, their customer not the OEMs customer. He also thinks they are concerned with what could happen if they become a sales distribution point and not a retailer. Haig says there’s a risk of dealers losing significant profits.

Related: Attracting customers with no car deals in sight

The conditions we have right now in auto retail are going to remain for the next few years and this will be great for dealers say, Haig. He does believe, we will continue to see a loss in market share to other new entrances. Many luxury dealerships have been overtaken by Tesla. Telsa’s the number one luxury brand in California. It does remain to be seen if that takeover will happen in any other state.

Haig says they’ve come up with a formula to take two years of pre-pandemic earnings, add in the last 12 months, averaging those three years to get a valuation for a dealership. He says the market is moving faster than they expected. Their formula is likely going to be readjusted for Q4. It’s a moving target and it has to do with the dealer’s confidence says, Haig. It’s going to be an incredible year for dealers next year and they see buyers having confidence in that, which helps dealerships’ values remain strong or increase.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Alan Haig? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Earlier this week, CBT News was on-site at the 2021 (NAMAD) National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers Convention in Miami Beach, Florida. In this interview, anchor Jim Fitzpatrick sat down with Heather Wilkinson, Assistant Vice President at JM&A Group.

The pair discuss important ways F&I products should be integrated into the digital retailing process, and how the pandemic has shaped consumer buying habits.

Stay tuned for more coverage of the 2021 NAMAD Convention!

Did you enjoy this podcast with Heather Wilkinson? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Despite vehicle price increases, 30 and 60-day delinquency rates are low, according to Experian’s Q3 State of the Automotive Finance Market report. So, what could this mean as we approach the new year? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome back Melinda Zabritski, Senior Director of Automotive Financial Solutions for Experian to take a closer look at the report and some other key findings.

Zabritski says they saw a continuation of many trends, such as a reduction in subprime. This is a trend that has been ongoing. Inventory has had such an impact on the industry, with the biggest impact they have seen this quarter. This has also caused increases in monthly payments for both new and used vehicles. Zabritski says one of the findings that surprised her was the year-over-year increase. For used vehicles, the year-over-year was up 20%, and loan amounts to over $26,000.

Related: Automotive industry trends and headlines from the past year

Another thing that’s been really interesting, this year especially is, the current value of used cars is higher today than they were when the vehicles were brand new, says Zabritski. She says it’s putting them in a better equity position.

Credit scores are starting to stabilize. They are still in the mid 700s, for average new credit scores, upper 600 for used. Zabritski says, she did see the loan-to-value come down, especially for used cars. She says this was the first they have seen loan to value of used cars, lower than they were on new. On new vehicles, the loan to value increased, slightly.

For new vehicles, 60% of the market is SUVs, and for the used vehicles, the 2018 model is dominant. Zabritski says it’s a lot of trucks and a lot of SUVs. Hybrids are looking more like your typical gas-typed flex vehicle. She thinks that’s due to a greater availability, as we have more options, allowing prices to go down.

Zabritski says their volumes are down some for both new and used vehicles. She believes we’ll have a lot of pent-up demand going into 2022 and hope it levels out. We may see those special and new end-of-the-year deals.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Melinda Zabritski? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Much has taken place throughout the past year in retail automotive; from record acquisitions to the continued ‘chip-demic’. Throughout it all, dealers have remained profitable. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Kevin Tynan, Bloomberg Intelligence’s Senior Automotive Analyst, who stays up to date on all things automotive. He gives us his perspective on the past year.

When people ask Tynan when will things get back to ‘normal’, he says, it won’t be back to normal. There’s no date that says there are enough chips. He says this is a time where it’s most dynamic, and how lasting some of the 2021 stories will be.

Related: Expect strong new and used car sales in 2022 due to ‘pent-up consumer demand’

A lot of consumers like where they pay MSRP and the no-haggling model. Tynan thinks taking some of the complexity, or the worst parts of the process out, can actually stick. When you look at it from the manufacturer or dealer perspective, it’s a better way for them to do business. He also says ideally, those two parties’ influences, the industry.

Disruption forced the processes to improve says Tynan. As a retail dealership, it’s figuring out how much of that are you going to implement in your own system. He says there’s room for different ways of doing things but processes have to get better.

Tynan believes there is still a lot of upside potential in the industry. Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis were in the 80-day supply range, and that became difficult for their dealerships. October and November months were above sticker price. When those USA brands go from an 80-day supply to a disciplined 50-day supply, you’ll see pricing power change.

When automakers have enough chips, Tynan believes that will be the shift of the controlling of the output. Even when they do produce enough chips, he doesn’t believe we’ll be going back to 2019, where you produce and sell the vehicle the next day. Tynan hopes we get a more rational valuation from companies in 2022 and beyond.

With Tesla going into its ninth year, Tynan wonders why is EV inventory so low? He thinks it’s because automakers in the industry don’t want it to be. He thinks large legacy automakers are looking at battery electric vehicles and believing they’ll never out beat Tesla. He says, but some automakers may lean towards hydrogen-powered vehicles while keeping a percentage in EVs.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Kevin Tynan? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this episode of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

360ConvergeTo start off today’s segment, 360Converge, a provider of communication workflow automation in automotive, announced the acquisition of Valuinsight, an inventory analysis platform that can enable automated equity mining for inventory acquisition.

The addition of Valuinsight to the existing 360Converge communication platform will increase dealerships’ texting and emailing capabilities, while decreasing the labor needed to effectively monetize the store’s existing customer base.

Harley-DavidsonThis week in SPAC news, Harley-Davidson is taking its electric motorcycle division LiveWire public through a merger with a blank check company sponsored by executives of AEA Investors and Bridges Fund Management.

The agreement with special purpose acquisition company, AEA-Bridges Impact Corp, will preserve much of Harley-Davidson’s ownership while giving LiveWire access to the capital that the public markets can provide and fold in Taiwanese motorcycle and sport vehicle manufacturer KYMCO as a key partner. The deal is expected to close in the second half of 2022.

The combined company is expected to have an enterprise value of about $1.77 billion dollars and post-money equity value of about $2.31 billion dollars at closing.

NuvocargoNuvocargo, a logistics startup out to help simplify the challenges of cross-border trade, has raised $20.5 million dollars in a round led by Tiger Global Management.

The round valued the new york-based startup at $180 million dollars, more than double the $70 million dollars it was valued at when it raised $12 million dollars in April. The additional funding brings Nuvocargo’s total raised to date to $37.8 million dollars.

The startup claims to pair its technology with a “team of experts” to integrate end-to-end movement of cargo in “a single platform.” specifically, it offers an all-in-one service that rolls freight forwarding, customs brokerage, cargo insurance, and even trade financing into one UI-friendly software and app. The company claims it gives its customers more visibility and better data to understand their supply chain.

AMPLY PowerBP took its first major step into electrification in the U.S. with the acquisition of AMPLY Power, an EV charging and energy management provider for fleets that operate trucks, transit and school buses, vans, and light-duty vehicles.

Financial details of the agreement are not being disclosed.

Founded in 2018, AMPLY Power aims to make EV adoption easy for fleets. The California-based firm has two offers for fleet operators: fully financed charging-as-a-service and customer-financed software-as-a-service.

AMPLY Power’s Omega Charge Management System software provides real-time monitoring of EV charging operations and preventative maintenance for both vehicles and chargers.

BumperIn international news this week, Bumper, a UK-based auto fintech startup, raised $12 million dollars in series A funding.

The round was led by Autotech Ventures, with participation from Jaguar Land Rover’s Fund Inmotion Ventures, and a group of prominent angel investors.

The company intends to use the funds to roll out its car repair financing platform across Germany, with plans to launch in Spain and the Netherlands in the next three months.

Founded in 2013, Bumper (formerly named Auto Service Finance) provides an interest-free digital payment platform for vehicle repairs and services, enabling owners to spread their costs. It also delivers an installment financing solution using proprietary AI-enabled technology to facilitate real-time lending decisions.

Bumper works with 2,500 franchised dealers, over 700 garages, and major car brands across the UK and the Republic of Ireland.

CarmaAnd finally, Australia’s Carma raised a $20 million dollar seed round from Tiger Global Management. Carma has been operating in stealth for the past nine months and said the funding enabled the company to recruit an executive team, develop its website, and establish its first inspection and reconditioning facility in Sydney.

Increasingly, consumers want a contactless, frictionless way to not only search for and buy a used car, but also have it delivered to their doors — a service companies like Carma are offering in their native markets around the world.

Carma will begin another round of fundraising soon to support its accelerated expansion plans in 2022.

Companies to WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry intel report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday 5 to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, we have two companies to watch: Rhombus Energy Solutions and EV Passport.

Rhombus Energy SolutionsRhombus Energy Solutions develops intelligent, power conversion, and energy management systems for energy storage, microgrids, vehicle charging, and test equipment applications.

Rhombus offers standalone products, power conversion modules, semi-custom configurations, as well as contracted product development services and high-power certification testing.

Rhombus also offers vectorstat cloud-based, multi-system communicator and monitoring for power systems with remote, real-time management.

Founded by some of the best engineers in the industry, Rhombus is led by a powerhouse team with a unique mix of industry experience and deep subject matter expertise.

Check out Rhombus Energy Solutions at www.RhombusEnergySolutions.com

EV PassportEV Passport is the EV charging hardware and software platform for purpose-driven organizations.

Brands committed to sustainability rely on EV Passport to provide their customers with the most seamless payment experience to charge any electric vehicle without requiring a separate app, account or a top-up balance.

EV Passport is the only platform that enhances customer engagement for these companies by providing custom branded hardware with API-powered software that easily integrates with their existing applications and services.

Check out EV Passport at www.EvPassport.com.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

——————-

People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of The Friday 5? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Earlier this week, CBT News was on-site at the 2021 (NAMAD) National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers Convention in Miami Beach, Florida. In this interview, anchor Jim Fitzpatrick sits down with Faris Syed, Founder and President of automotive M&A firm, SAR Partners. As well as, Kirk Otis, Managing Director of Merger Partners, Inc.

The group discusses current car dealership valuations, succession in legacy dealerships, private equity, and much more.

Stay tuned for more coverage of the 2021 NAMAD Convention!

Did you enjoy this podcast interview with Faris Syed and Kirk Otis? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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We all want to keep and retain top talent in our organizations, but are we also doing the work required to attract that top talent? To be attractive to many employees, experts say fostering a company culture of inclusiveness is key. And that’s exactly what Diana Kennedy, General Manager of Volvo Cars Marin, is doing.

Kennedy co-founded Price Simms Women’s Circle, a networking and resource group for women in the group, and she joins us now to discuss the group and to give us her perspective on what else can be done as an industry.

At 20-years-old Kennedy joined Price Simms with the goal of getting to the highest level she possibly could. It’s been eleven years since she’s joined the company and it took her about six and a half years to get to the general manager position.

Kennedy and two of her colleagues shared an appreciation for the automotive industry and how it has changed their lives. She says oddly enough, none of them had women mentors, and with their good fortune, they felt the need to pay it forward. Their mission is to educate on opportunities, and inspire personal development through mentorship, discussion and experiences within the community to better serve the lives of women throughout Price Simms.

Related: Sales Manager Erikka Wells discusses the need for more diversity efforts in the auto industry

Overall Price Simms is 22% male to female ratio versus the industry at 17.9%. In mid-level management, they’re at 19% versus the industry at 18%. Senior-level management is at 27% versus the industry at 17%. We know we can grow amongst these numbers and continue to close the gap says, Kennedy. She says the biggest resource they provide is the network that they have. It’s about the power in connections.

A study said the reason for a female to male disparity was due to an unattractive work environment, lack of work-life balance, and lack of flexible schedules. Kennedy believes we have control of all those issues, including perception. She says the most important thing is to not treat women differently. Allowing women to have an equal opportunity at any position, Kennedy encourages everyone to be a part of someone’s story.

It’s important that we all work together says, Kennedy. She says it’s going to take all of us to make a difference and an impact. It’s also about creating a work environment that’s safe and inclusive and breaking those traditions. Kennedy says to think outside the box, and ask yourself, how can we make our industry more attractive?

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Diversity in Automotive? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, continues the conversation about private acquisitions with Tom Gregg of (VAN) Vehicle Acquisition Network.

Gregg says dealers need to have the strategy for in-house. It’s important to have somebody dedicated to the strategy of buying cars from consumers. Adding responsibility to a used-car manager isn’t the area to start. This could be someone who sold cars that you want to repurpose as a buyer. The next most important thing is it’s very different from selling cars says, Gregg. Consumers feel like they can get more from the public than a dealer. He says the success rate of buying cars than selling cars is a lot different.

Vehicles on the internet can leave the market in as little as 2 to 3 days or they could stay online for more than 30 days. Gregg says that’s why it’s important to be quick to the punch. Selling cars isn’t easy. He says often who is the best buyer is someone with a positive attitude. They have a good work ethic and they follow up with the customer.

Related: General Manager Danny Zaslavsky discusses buying inventory from private sellers

After you get a department built, Gregg says to document the process. When you have a documented process, you can look for the issues and make changes and improvements. Then you’re engaging directly with consumers on those platforms. Fifty-seven percent of listings for sale by owners come from Facebook Marketplace. The buyer will need to set up an account to use for communicating with the consumer. You’re able to ease into a more natural communication style. It’s also important to add photos, friends, and posts to make it look like a regular account.

Gregg says a lot of their larger groups have a centralized buying team that will communicate with consumers and then places their vehicles at stores that makes the most sense. He says it is challenging to buy vehicles from consumers. One of the issues is the appraisal approach that dealers have. He says dealers struggle the most with consumers during the process or the offers are too conservative.

Gregg recommends you buy everything. If the car doesn’t fit your retail strategy, as long as you buy the car and can make some profit off it, buy it. In the end you’re helping someone in your community.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Used Cars Weekly? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Throughout the past year, we’ve seen The Presidio Group facilitate a number of large industry transactions. Their latest acquisition isn’t a company, but rather, a familiar face. After spending over 37 years with Toyota followed by executive roles with Chrysler, Cerberus Capital, and Renault/Nissan, Jim Press has now been named Strategic Advisor for The Presidio Group.

Press, along with The Presidio Group’s CEO and Founder, Brodie Cobb, join us now to discuss Press’s new role and today’s automotive landscape.

Dealers are known for one thing and that’s adapting to change and taking advantage of whatever the situation is says Press. The demand for vehicles is high and the economy is good. The lack of inventory supports better grosses and better sales. Press says this isn’t going to last forever and dealers need to start preparing for the future.

Customers continue to take more of a primary position in the model. The use of a digital dealership process has been accelerated through this and made better transaction opportunities, including F&I. Press says it’s a change in the way we are doing business.

The profitability of the dealerships today is very high, record levels say Cobb. There is interest in the marketplace to understand what’s on the other side of this and what that means for the dealer and their profitability, sustainability, and valuation. He says, when you’re making this kind of money, it’s hard to let it go. Earnings are normalizing says, Cobb.

Press says, dealers have always been his path to success. He says in this new position he wants to give back and help dealers through this transformative period. A lot of dealers are trying to see what their options are. Press believes he could help support The Presidio Group as an investment bank to have dealer opportunities where they can find the solution for each of them.

Press says, if you’re a stand-alone store, your days are not numbered in this industry. It depends on the competition, the size of the market, and the vitality of the market. The individual dealer is the connection to the community. He says dealers will adapt and move where the consumers are. Cobb continues saying dealers are good at taking care of customers. He also says the larger the group, the more capital they have. The size does give you advantages today and tomorrow.

Covid forced a lot of dealers to realize, online car shopping is the future. Press says he is not so sure, they won over customers in every aspect. Cobb says there are different ways to market and sell that will be done around a dealership environment. Press echoes Cobb’s thoughts and says he’s been impressed with the next generation. A lot of dealers have been their own successors. The young people to me are going to be the solution of the future says, Press.

Related: Digital retailing inspired by the next generation

Cobb says you should have a succession plan, that is at least a decade long. If you don’t have a plan for a decade, it’s time to get out of the business.

Did you enjoy this podcast interview with Brodie Cobb and Jim Press? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Earlier this week, CBT News was on-site at the 2021 (NAMAD) National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers Convention in Miami Beach, Florida. In this interview, Jim sits down with Jasmine Parros, Dealer Transition Manager of A2Z Sync.

Parros says A2Z Sync helps build a higher client appreciation for the sale with higher retention. As a dealership, you’ll have your staff coming back to you while retaining more employees.

When you move to a one person’s sales process, it saves you time says Parros. When you get to the point of presenting the finance menu, you won’t have just five minutes to understand what the customer’s needs are. You can be way more successful with the F&I side.

Parros says, normally there is a J curve and that usually depends on where the dealership stands, especially if they are not a one-person sale’s process. There are a few growing pains that happen but ultimately the success comes after. A2Z Sync gives hands-on training to make everyone successful.

There are already forward-thinking dealerships that see this as the way everything is going to be going says Parros. She says now that they are attaching the DR to what their in-store tool already does, they are seeing a lot of success. Covid sped the process up. You still need a finance manager, loan officer, and management. But, a one sale’s person process only means that the customer is interacting with one person.

Stay tuned for more coverage of the 2021 NAMAD Convention!

Did you enjoy this podcast interview with Jasmine Parros? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Today on Kain & Co., host David Kain, President of Kain Automotive, sits down with Steve Stoll, President, and Principal of The Stoll Group. The pair discusses automotive recruiting.

It’s like ABR, always be recruiting, says Stoll. Stoll says he’s proactive and not reactive. How many times do we wait until we have a need? Stoll believes you should always be recruiting because you’re only as strong as your weakest link. it’s one thing to attract the top talent but another to retain that talent. The cost of retention is a lot more expensive. No one cares how much you know until they know how much you care says Stoll.

Stoll believes a lot of recruiters that call themselves recruiters, aren’t. Ninety-eight to 99% of the best people are typically already working. The Stoll Group helps identify ‘first-round draft pick type of talent’. Those people will usually take a call to see if there might be a better opportunity, short or long term. Stoll says we need to go where the best talent or prospects are.

A dealership should have a ‘champion’. Stoll says this is someone whose sole job is to recruit and anticipate future needs. You must create a sense of urgency. He says if you’re not excited and passionate, how can you expect prospective candidates to have that? He also says recruiters do need to make themselves available after hours and on weekends.

Related: Why your car dealership should consider recruiting veterans – Ross Dickman, COO of Hire Heroes USA

You can have anything you want in your life if you ask yourself these 3 questions, says Stoll. What do you want? How much does it cost? And are you willing to pay the price? A lot of dealerships want to hire talent, but they are stuck in their own ways. It’s about people and relationships.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Kain & Co.? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Earlier this week, CBT News was on-site at the 2021 (NAMAD) National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers Convention in Miami Beach, Florida. In this interview, Jim sits down with Erikka Tiffani Wells, Sales and Training Manager of Volkswagen of Marion. The pair discusses how black women and minorities are driving the change in the automotive industry.

Wells says they are selling through their pipeline, with only having 9 cars on the lot. They have presales on about 30% of their orders. She says consumers are adapting and changing. The pandemic forced everyone to change how they shop, whether it’s online or getting a delivery straight to the door.

This convention is so important says Wells. Less than 7% of dealerships are owned by black women. Wells says having an organization like NAMAD that supports minorities, black women and understands the challenges with buy-outs or money, is needed. To be able to meet people that look like me has been absolutely phenomenal says Wells.

Wells says in order to get more minorities and black women into the industry, you must have two things: flexibility and empathy. Flexibility allows women to come in a flexible work schedule and salary. Wells believes a lot of women wouldn’t be scared to leave their ‘safe’ job to get into the business. Dealers need to see the potential in women and minorities and create a career path that sets them up for success.

Stay tuned for more coverage of the 2021 NAMAD Convention!

Did you enjoy this podcast with Erikka Tiffani Wells? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Recently, CBT News was on-site at the 2021 (NAMAD) National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers Convention. In this interview, Jim sits down with the President of NAMAD, Damon Lester. The pair discusses diversity in the automotive industry.

The horrific death of George Floyd shocked the world. Lester says this caused corporate America, individually and collectively, to make a change. He says one of the questions they continue to ask was, how do we hold these companies accountable? Lester stated that Attorney Ben Crump shed some light that the “fight will continue”. The goal of equality has to stay at the forefront not just for the people of color but for everyone.

There are 18,000 dealerships, 265 have black dealers, 580 plus have Hispanic dealers, and 260 have Asian American dealers. Ninety-four percent of all dealerships purchased are owned by non-minorities. Lester says there has to be a need, a want, and a plan. With NAMAD, 99% of the organization dealerships are first-generation. He says we need to have people continually take a chance.

Historically, Lester says the challenge has been having the access to capital, to be able to operate and get stores, when they become available.

Stay tuned for more coverage of the 2021 NAMAD Convention!

Did you enjoy this podcast with Damon Lester? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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From supply shortages to digital retailing, to an EV revolution, our industry is in the midst of a transformation. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Jamaal McCoy, General Manager of Findlay Toyota Prescott, to discuss what business looks like today for his stores in Arizona.

This has forced us to focus on the fundamentals again says McCoy.

A lot of times when you go through a downturn, you get good at things you let slip. He says they focus on their processes, with follow-up and prospecting, product knowledge, and walkarounds. McCoy says they don’t have a lot of cars, but they are selling everything that comes in, with a single digital inventory. They have focused on used cars from the beginning which allows them to maintain a level of consistency.

McCoy says they’ve been able to source cars through their service department, and street purchases. There are also other sources such as auctions. He says you must have buy-in across the whole team when attempting to source through the service department. He says the team looks at the inventory coming in, and offers a buy-bid for the customer vehicle.

When the pandemic hit, we took the focus off selling cars, and put the focus on our people, says McCoy. He says they ask, how do we make the individual in front of us a better person? What are their goals, dreams, and aspirations? They found that the investment in their people has turned into more profits, car sales, better relationships with the staff and customers. McCoy says they make sure they take care of their customers.

Related: Digital retailing inspired by the next generation

McCoy says they were already ahead in the digital retailing space. He says to sell the number of cars, they wanted to sell, they had to embrace that from the beginning. They also advertised that they shipped vehicles anywhere in the states.

I don’t have any concerns for 2022 says McCoy. He says the last few years, force them to get good at the fundamentals and focus on activity. McCoy says they know as soon as they have a vehicle in the pipeline, they’re going to sell it. He says they’ve created a team culture where it’s not about the individual, it’s about the team. McCoy says that attracted people from other stores that want to work for them. We have fun at work, and we do things to keep our team together says McCoy.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Jamaal McCoy? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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For years, car dealership employees believed and were taught that customers were the ‘enemy.’ On the latest edition of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes debunks that school of thought and discusses what the real adversary in the dealership is.

When it comes to sales, many automotive retail professionals think of customers with an us vs. them mentality. In reality, the enemy is the customers’ perceptions of how car dealers operate. The dealership can be a strange place for a customer, especially newer car buyers. They often expect dealers to match the stereotypes in movies, television, and popular culture. These stereotypes can create anxiety and discomfort in customers.

So, how do you battle this discomfort? Lopes says it’s time to change your battle plan. It’s time to make them feel welcome, and express to customers that helping them make the right decision is the ultimate goal.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Straight to the Point? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Straight Talk, host David Lewis, President of David Lewis & Associates, discusses the rules that are applied to every structured process, which are the four rules to sales success.

Every salesperson know personal charisma can go a long way in getting customers to buy.. However, there are certain principles that tend to produce a consistent sales structure that is dependable in most circumstances. Lewis says he’s seen the value of what he calls ‘The 4 Rules of Sales’.

Rule number one is never ask a question that can result in a lie. Lewis says, so many car salespeople have been taught over the years that buyers are liars. He says, how could we serve our customers to the best of our ability, if we thought all our customers were liars? Lewis believes that customers lie because of the questions you ask them. Questions you should asking are, what is your budget? Do you have a trade-in? If so, how much do you believe it’s worth?

The second rule is, never ask a question that will produce an answer you don’t want to hear. There are questions that will always turn things into the wrong direction. One of them is, are you plan on buying a car today? It’s hard to recover from that question or recover any confidence. Put yourself in the customers shoes and figure out what questions to avoid.

Rule number three is, never ask a question or make a statement that will make the customer more defensive. Lewis recommends you don’t use, user-trial closes, if you truly want to connect with your customer on a level that inspires them to want to work with you.

Related: Why car dealers need to focus on increasing customer loyalty today

Lastly, rule number four is, always try to catch the customer pleasantly off guard. Lewis says, there’s so many negative opinions about our business that it’s almost impossible to erase all of it. You can’t make everyone like us, but you certainly can make them like you. Do your best to be unique and different from what the customer expects. Research has shown that car shoppers who enjoy the salesperson their dealing with usually become buyers from that same person. Treat your customers like friends, and they’ll become one.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Straight Talk? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Disruptions happen, whether it be in our businesses or personal lives, and it is easy to feel overwhelmed in these instances. But how you manage these disruptions can make the difference in whether you thrive or take a deep dive. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome ‘The Master of Disaster’ to help us better thrive after our own disasters, Dr. Randall Bell, socio-economist, CEO of Landmark Research Group, author of Me We Do Be: The Four Cornerstones of Success, speaker and star of the TV miniseries: Distressed Real Estate.

It’s important to take big information and explain it succinctly says Bell. When you get knocked down, what’s your game plan for getting back up? He says the ‘me’, it’s about our mindsets and attitudes. There are things we can do to adjust our attitudes and put them in the right way. Bell wants people facing a positive uphill going forward. ‘We”, is about having connections with the right people. ‘Do’ is getting the work done. Bell explains it as taking care of our health, money, and products and services. ‘Be’ is becoming. What I notice is that people that thrive in the aftermath of being knocked down have a sense of accomplishment and legacy they want to establish and says Bells.

Related: Tim Storey, acclaimed author and life coach, on how to overcome negative thinking and renew your mindset

Simple things like making your bed in the morning or having inspiration around you, can have measurable differences in your life. One of the biggest mistakes people make, after a setback is giving up hope. Bell says don’t feel bad when you get knocked down but don’t get there stuck there. He says before you leave someone behind in a bad place, you should try and help them. If they don’t take the help, move on.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Dr. Randall Bell? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this episode of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

The year is definitely ending strong for M&A and investment across the AutoTech and Mobility spaces, so let’s get right into this week’s deals.

NuBrakesTo start off today’s segment, in-driveway brake repair company NuBrakes has raised a $9 million dollar Series A round led by Canvas Ventures, with participation from Contrary Capital, Bling Capital, Automotive Ventures, and Capital Factory.

NuBrakes sends mobile technicians direct to people’s homes and to fleet operators as well, with superior work that’s “up to 30% more affordable than brick and mortar auto shops.”

NuBrakes operates in nine markets across Texas, Georgia, Florida and Tennessee, and will use the funding to expand nationwide, more than double its team, and offer a wider array of auto repair services. It will also expand its services for mobile fleet operators and offer a “predictive telematics platform” that automates the auto repair process.

NuBrakes has raised a total of $12 million dollars to date. One of the fastest-growing auto tech companies in the U.S., it boasts triple-digit growth rates and 8 figures in annualized revenue.

Discount TireThis week, Discount Tire, a leading independent retailer of tires and wheels, announced that they are acquiring Tire Rack, a leading independent tire tester and consumer-direct source for tires, wheels and performance accessories.

The acquisition is a significant investment in Discount Tire’s commitment to provide the most Inviting, Easy, and Safe omnichannel, B2B, and fleet customer experiences in the world.

The transaction is expected to close December 31st.

CandelaThis is our third week in a row with an electric boat deal.

Two weeks ago we reported that General Motors bought a 25% stake in Pure Watercraft, valuing the electric boat startup at $600 million dollars.

Last week, we reported that Arc Boat Company raised a $30 million dollar round led by Eclipse Ventures. Arc Boat Company, a startup that launched 10 months ago has the goal to eventually electrify all mobility on the water, but is starting with a limited-edition $300,000 dollar boat.

This week, we have news that Candela, who makes an electric hydrofoil which glides above the sea on fins for a smoother, more efficient ride, has raised $24 million dollars. The round will accelerate production of its existing small craft and a larger commercial one, in pursuit of cleaner and generally more future-proof waters. The $24 million round was led by EQT Ventures.

LG Energy SolutionIn battery related news this week, LG Energy Solution plans to raise as much as $10.8 billion dollars in what would be South Korea’s biggest-ever initial public offering, defying concerns over fires involving its batteries that led to a mass recall of Chevy Bolt EVs.

Retail and institutional investors can subscribe on Jan. 18th and 19th, according to the IPO prospectus, which said 20 percent will be allotted to employees. Trading will begin on Jan. 27th.

The offering could give LG Energy a market value of $59 billion dollars.

IntelIntel Corporation plans to list shares of its Mobileye self-driving car business by the middle of next year, letting the chipmaker capitalize on its investment in a burgeoning industry.

Intel will remain the majority owner after the transaction, which involves an initial public offering of newly issued Mobileye stock. The move could generate billions for Intel at a time when it’s trying to revitalize its main business.

Mobileye has been a particular bright spot. The business, acquired by Intel in 2017 for about $15 billion dollars, has consistently grown faster than its parent — and it serves a still-nascent industry. Intel has projected that the market for automotive silicone will reach $115 billion dollars by the end of the decade.

The auto industry’s shift to electric vehicles and more autonomous cars is creating a huge appetite for electronics. Mobileye makes chips and software that work with sensors to let vehicles handle more driving functions, with the ultimate goal of replacing humans in the role altogether.

BMW i VenturesBMW i Ventures announced a lead investment in the seed financing round of Rapid Liquid Print which brings the benefits of 3D printing to elastomers with a revolutionary gel-printing technology that uses industry-standard materials, such as soft rubber, silicone and foams, to produce soft, flexible products without retooling or post-processing. Also participating in the round is MassMutual through the MM Catalyst Fund.

The RLP team has perfected a new printing process where a liquid object is “drawn” in 3D within a gel suspension. The object cures while printing and then is ready for use with minimal post-processing. RLP produces large-scale objects from high-grade materials such as rubber, foams, and plastics in a matter of minutes.

Traditional 3D printing is restricted by slow speeds, limited build volumes, and poor material quality, which makes it unreliable as a mainstream manufacturing process. RLP changes the game for creating large-scale, elastomeric, airtight, and high-quality products in minutes.

Volvo CarsNews this week that Volvo Cars has invested $2 million dollars in the startup Spectralics, the developer of a new type of thin optics film that could be used to turn a vehicle’s entire windshield into an augmented reality display screen.

One of Spectralics’ core technologies is a multi-layered thin combiner, a new kind of thin optics film applicable to see-through surfaces of all shapes and sizes.

The film could be integrated into a vehicle’s windshield or windows, allowing the display of overlay imagery on the glass.

The technology has the potential to allow the creation of a wide field of view ‘heads-up display’ on the windshield, with objects superimposed on the real-world background to give a sense of distance. Volvo said the feature would provide “a safe and immersive experience” for drivers and passengers.

Serve RoboticsServe Robotics, the autonomous sidewalk delivery company that spun out from Uber-owned Postmates in March, has closed an expanded seed round at $13 million dollars. The company will use the funds to accelerate its expansion plans into new customer segments and geographic areas, which will require them to build more sidewalk robots to fuel that growth.

Uber participated in the round as a strategic investor, alongside Delivery Hero-backed DX Ventures, 7-Eleven’s corporate venture arm 7-Ventures and Wavemaker Partners’ food automation-focused venture studio Wavemaker Labs.

Serve Robotics has been delivering to Postmates customers in multiple Los Angeles neighborhoods since 2018, when the startup was still “Postmates X”, the robotics division of the delivery platform. It started a commercial service in 2020 and its robots have completed tens of thousands of contactless deliveries from over 100 merchants in LA and San Francisco. In November, Serve said it would be offering its on-demand robotic delivery service to Uber Eats customers in LA early next year.

CarwowIn international news this week, UK-based all-things-auto platform Carwow has secured $55 million dollars provided by Hercules Capital, in the form of venture debt funding.

Carwow is backed by other investors including Balderton Capital, Accel, Vitruvian Partners, Episode1, and Daimler.

The company reports that the majority of the capital will be used to further develop the technology powering their “sell your car” product, ramp up international expansion plans, and acquire more users.

To date, Carwow, across all its offerings, has raised just over $150 million dollars.

StratioStratio, the world’s leading real-time predictive fleet maintenance platform, announced a $12 million dollar Series A funding round to further accelerate its growth.

The investment was led by Forestay Capital, the Deep Tech and SaaS Venture Capital arm of Waypoint Capital, with participation from existing investor Crane Venture Partners.

Stratio’s AI-based predictive fleet maintenance prevents hundreds of thousands of breakdowns from happening every day, thus saving millions of people from the hassle of public transportation delays, postponed deliveries, or late arrival of essential goods.

By harnessing the power of data and using augmented intelligence, Stratio provides real-time actionable insights through a scalable platform that collects, analyzes, and explains when the next vehicle breakdown will happen. Its fully explainable AI system allows fleet managers and operators to easily understand the reasons behind each potential breakdown, thus moving away from a reactive maintenance approach that leads to vehicle downtime, lost revenue, unhappy customers, and a damaged reputation.

VolkswagenAnd finally, in what could be a huge deal next year, Volkswagen is exploring a possible IPO of its luxury brand Porsche as a way to fund its costly shift towards software and electric vehicles.

Speculation about a Porsche listing, which could be a record-breaking IPO, has surfaced over the year, but no decision has been made due to a complex stakeholder set-up.

Reports about a possible listing of the unit have included estimates of a standalone Porsche valuation of between $51 billion dollars and $101 billion dollars.

Companies To WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry Intel Report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, we have two companies to watch: Autofleet and Upstream Automotive.

Autofleet

Autofleet is the operator of a vehicle as a service platform created to provide an elastic supply of vehicles serving any source of demand.

The company’s platform helps car rentals maximize their revenues and margins, increasing fleet utilization through aggregating demand, controlling supply and optimizing rides, enabling fleet managers to supply their underutilized vehicles as an on-demand service to any source of demand including ride-hailing companies.

Check out Autofleet at www.Autofleet.io

Upstream Security

Upstream Security is a developer of a cloud-based automotive cybersecurity platform intended to protect the technologies and applications of connected and autonomous vehicles.

The company’s platform provides big data and machine learning which utilizes several layers of security gateway and analytics engine, enabling customers to get real-time visibility on security, privacy, and fraud alerts.

Check out Upstream Automotive at www.upstream.auto

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

——————-

People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of The Friday 5? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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$7.5 billion of the $1 trillion infrastructure bill signed by President Biden will provide funding for EV charging stations around the nation. As the auto industry continues to move toward EVs, you may be asking how you’ll be impacted. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Trent Mell, President and CEO of Electra Battery Materials, formerly known as First Cobalt, to take a look at the infrastructure bill.

Fundamentally, the infrastructure bill is trying to reduce the range anxiety. Mell says we must do better. We can’t be parking our cars for an hour and a half on the highway because we want to drive 300 to 400 miles down the road. He says batteries are getting better and there’s some work for the charging infrastructure that needs to be done but overall, he believes it’s going to help sell more cars.

Mell says their role is to sell the material that goes into the battery. There’s a real sense of urgency. EV sales worldwide are growing around 26% to 30% per year and in the U.S. EV sales are more than double, year to date. He says never underestimate the U.S consumer because things can happen fast. Mel asks, why would you buy a gas engine vehicle, when you see the future before your eyes?

You’ll be more than happy to take the inconvenience, but that inconvenience is being offset by bigger battery packs and longer ranges says Mell. One of the technological advancements, is the battery packs, which allow more material to be packed in. There’s also higher nickel density, which gives you more change. He says, they’re also getting smarter with charging cable, so they won’t overheat. Mell believes we’re in the early stage of what may be a permanent shift.

Mell says to make EVs sustainable there’s a need to have a valuable supply chain. There’s a big hunt globally for nickel. He believes the solution is getting a social compact in this country to open our minds to mining. It’s hard to permit mining in the U.S. He says the sorting of the supply chain on the raw material side, is going to be important for the cost of the vehicle.

Related: EV adoption hindered by poor range, insufficient charging infrastructure

It’s an industrial revolution. Mell says there are so many things changing right before our eyes, even if it takes 5 or 8 years, it’s still history being made. It feels to me, we might need fewer dealers says, Mell.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Trent Mell? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, chat with Danny Zaslavsky of VinCue and General Manager of County Hill Motors about private party acquisitions.

Zaslavsky says when you call their store or walk-in, the first thing they ask is are you here to buy a car or sell a car? In the buying process, customers are referred to a buying agent. He says the step they needed to learn was scaling internally with processes and people and then utilizing or creating technology, so they had a greater reach.

Zaslavsky says we get opportunities to buy cars from the public that we normally wouldn't get at the auction. The first thing you should do is, make buying cars part of your message. Then, give that consumer a place to go and start the process. He says, he never had less than a 5-star review, when he buys someone's car.

What are all the ways we can buy from the public, Zaslavsky asks? The first way is inbound, which is people coming to you. The second way is third party, where leads come from partner sources. The next one is outbound, which is listed for sale by another site. There are other outlets, such as service drive, lease conversion, or private party to trade conversion. He says being able to manage all that in one acquisition management system is where scalability becomes reality. That's the benefit of having a solution.

Related: Increase your used vehicle inventory by working with private sellers

Consumers generally won't sell to a dealer because they believe they won't get 'enough' for their car. Zaslavsky says that's not the truth anymore. He says they work to give meaningful offers to consumers and solve their problems.

One of Zaslavsky's goals for 2022 is to do more wholesale. He says, if you have the opportunity to do business with the public and buy their car, please do it. If we as a dealer body don't come together and take this seriously, those cars will get absorbed by online retailers. This is our way to lead our industry into the future.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Used Cars Weekly? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Today on Kain & Co., host David Kain, President of Kain Automotive, sits down with Peter Leto, CEO of Foundation Direct and formerly, Google’s Head of Automotive Retail for eleven years. The pair discuss the guidance that car dealers need, in order to thrive during these challenging times and beyond.

Coming off of a global pandemic and immediately into a semiconductor chip shortage, Leto says it is now imperative for car dealers to market at the speed of the customer. The challenge is that consumer demand has never been higher, and auto retail professionals are having to be more creative in order to address customers’ needs.

In 2020, less than 10% of car dealers were actively advertising used cars. While third-party lead aggregators certainly have their place in the market, Leto and his colleagues at Google always wondered why more dealers were not showing their inventory themselves. As dealers get engaged more with used car search, they will start seeing the fruits of their labor, says Leto.

To give your dealership a best-in-class marketing strategy, Leto recommends asking three crucial questions.

Are we marketing across profit centers?
Are the partners running media and paid search correctly?
What would be the results if paid search was set up correctly?

For 2022, Leto thinks the industry is going to have a push for dealerships to divest in paid search and invest more into OTT advertising. However, from his perspective, while paid search might not be the flashiest form of advertising, it will be the most impactful for the business.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Kain & Co.? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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We are seeing a growing number of companies, industry-wide, creating or redefining a more diverse and inclusive workplace. One of those companies is KAR Global. Today we’re learning what the company has implemented and we’ll also gain some insight on best practices that you may be able to adopt as well. We’re pleased to welcome Kristen Lampkin, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Program Manager for KAR Global.

Prior to Lampkin coming into the organization, KAR Global was already establishing employee resource groups. They saw the need to expand those programs, in the importance of diversity. Lampkin says they spend a lot of time trying to understand best practices.

Two key things KAR Global is focused on are education and awareness. They’re doing things such as fireside chats, discussing microaggressions and pronouns, and have even launched an ally campaign, recently. Lampkin says, these are some ways to show they are committed to providing a safe working environment, for their employees.

One thing vital to success is executive buy-in and education awareness. Lampkin says to move the needle in executive buy-in, you need to have support at all levels of the organization. In terms of educational awareness, define what DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) means for your employees. It’s all about creating a culture of belonging and understanding your unconscious bias.

Related: How brands can best engage with consumers through diversity marketing

Equity is about making sure everyone has the same number of resources says, Lampkin. She says they have training that they conduct annually that has a DEI component in it. They saw a need for ongoing training and the ability to share different resources.

KAR Global’s number one goal is to create a culture of belonging. They want their employees to be able to show up as themselves, every day. Lampkin says it’s not just the automotive industry that needs to make changes, it’s every industry. Research has shown DEI efforts increase productivity within the company and provide better service for the customers you serve. Lampkin says it helps them be more responsive and anticipate customer needs.

Did you enjoy this podcast Mike Michalowicz? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Are you struggling to effectively market your business? If so, Mike Michalowicz, serial entrepreneur, leader of two new multi-million-dollar ventures, and author, recommends asking yourself three critical questions which can be found in his latest book titled, Get Different: Marketing that Can’t Be Ignored. Mike joins us now to reveal what these questions are and how you can best market yourself to stand out amongst your competition.

How do you compete with the competition, Michalowicz says he asks that important question to small and large businesses? Usually, the feedback is, we are better, and we aren’t doing anything about it. If you are better than the competition, you are more likely to respond faster, care more, and there’s a responsibility to get noticed. He says that was the inception of his latest book.

Related: Using better marketing to attract better talent

When it comes to marketing, sometimes it doesn’t take more money, but innovative thinking. Michalowicz thinks marketing plans fail because people fail to plan and usually go with the best practice to their industry. But, if everyone is marketing in a certain way to your prospects, it’s white noise to them. Replicating what’s working is unlikely to work says Michalowicz. If you simply do something different, you at least have a shot of getting noticed.

The first question you should ask yourself about your marketing is, is my marketing different? Do something as inconsistent as your competition. The second question is, is my marketing attractive? The last question is, what is the direct? This means, what do you want the prospect to do with this information? It needs to be a safe next step.

Best practices usually become habituated. Consumers tune out almost 99.99% of all traditional forms of advertising. Michalowicz says you must avoid the best practices because that has become ignorable to the consumer. “Does D.A.D. approve”, is a great way to adjust your marketing. D.A.D stands for different, attract, and direct. He says, if it doesn’t have one of those elements, the marketing is crippled.

The best sample of any community is roughly 10%. The smallest data set that gives you a good direction of the market is 100 people. Sampling from existing customers will skew your data. It will help your market to that group better, but it won’t necessarily work on new customers. Sampling from ‘strangers’ will help give you a better picture of how well your marketing is working.

Michalowicz recommends you talk and strategize with business owners from different industries. Also, see what gets your attention in other industries. He asks the question, where does my target community congregate? Then target there. Michalowicz says your business is important. Marketing is the ultimate act of kindness.

Did you enjoy this podcast Mike Michalowicz? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Get Different: Marketing That Can't Be Ignored!

On the latest edition of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes asks, are car dealership professionals addicted to higher compensation thanks to supply and demand? Are we all addicted to being paid more than we actually earn?

Lopes says this is a stone-cold fact. Automotive retail professionals today are intoxicated by higher compensation and records profits. According to Lopes, salespeople who are used to earning $3,000 each month, are now earning closer to $10,000 despite doing the same volume. While Lopes will be the first to say that higher compensation is not necessarily a bad thing, it can cause some negative side effects given the current state of industry inventory.

Compensations have been driven higher due to supply and demand constraints, not because of performance. Lopes says this can lead to entitlement and complacency.

However, if leveraged correctly, this ‘addiction’ has the potential to propel automotive retail professionals to new heights. In Lopes’ opinion, dealership employees won’t want to go back to the way things were. This is a wake-up call.

Specifically for dealers and managers, it’s time to take your addiction and turn it into drive, motivation, and determination to generate even more profits. Improve your facilities, capabilities, and accessibilities for customers. Reinvest profits back into training for your employees and coaching for your managers. Now is the time to make sure that this higher level of income sticks around for the long haul.

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Today on Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome John Ellis, Inventory Strategist for Cox Automotive. As an inventory strategist, John has a bird’s-eye view of not only the data but what’s actually happening on the ground with the dealerships he works with every day.

Ellis says the overall theme of advice this year is transforming and thinking differently. The market is changing so much that if we don’t think about operations, consumers, and the retail side of the business, we’ll miss easy wins.

Dealers should be thinking differently about acquisitions. There’s a problem with the supply chain of constraints of the market with both new and used inventory. Ellis says dealers must also think about their disposal strategy. In the past, wholesalers were thought of as just a lost but that isn’t the case anymore. He also says, you must think about ways to communicate and message your sales staff and talking to the consumer. It’s about educating them with data and insights.

Ellis says transforming the business will allow dealers to be prepared to take full advantage of those tailwinds through tax season. He says to be prepared for the headwinds that may come around June or July of 2022. In their large dealer group side, they’re having to think about changing their inventory mix. Dealers may have to buy a vehicle that’s less desirable, than the ones they’re used to filling their inventory with and spending more money on getting their front line ready. Ellis says it’s worth the investment if it’s the right vehicle.

Related: Wholesale prices expected to climb even higher after setting September record

We can’t expect the success that we had in the last 20 months to continue in the next 20 months says Ellis. He recommends dealers to set themselves up to take advantage of the tailwinds that we’re going to see. Ellis also projects interest rates going up. Dealers need to pivot in midyear to also be successful in the second half of the year, by getting back to the fundamentals.

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On the latest episode of Mind Your Own Business, host Jonathan Dawson, founder of Sellchology Sales Training, discusses “acres of diamonds.” The concept of acres of diamonds is the idea that everything you need, is often right below the surface in your own backyard.

Many of the challenges or growth opportunities you are faced with are usually beneath the surface. Dawson encourages you to think about the areas of the dealership that need to grow, and think about how that expansion can be made possible? These areas could be systems, processes, or creative resources. Ask yourself, what are some areas you can improve in? Afterwards, take those items to your team. Give them the opportunity to weigh in on the issue. There are so many opportunities to enhance your dealership.

Related: Available training opportunities for fixed ops managers

It’s likely that the answer to your question or the solution to your problem is already among your staff. It can be in that specific person or someone they know. Dawson recommends you ask your team, what are some of your current interests and hobbies, areas of discipline, or passions that may add value to the team? Start thinking about ways to allow the resources within your dealership to be utilized for the advantage of your people.

These values bring an outlet to the person who has a gift. The gift is then shared and those who receive it can improve and grow. Each employee is a ‘diamond in your own backyard.’ Dawson encourages you to think about the areas you would love for someone to bring in as a gift. Then, ask your team who has the gift that could provide the answer to your problem. This isn’t about profit or sales, but about finding those diamonds in your own backyard.

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On today’s show we’re diving into today’s headlines, from inventory to the latest COVID variant, omicron. What does all of this mean and how could you be impacted? We’re pleased to welcome back Tom Maoli, President and CEO of Celebrity Motor Cars and host of Go Big or Go Home on iHeartRadio.

It’s an exciting time to be a car dealer says Maoli. He says they’re making more money than they ever did. Profits are up, overhead is down, and interest rates are down. Maoli says the concern that he has is what’s the impact of fixed ops down the road? It’s going to be an interesting time.

Maoli says it’s not only an interesting time on the sales side but also on the repair side as well. With inventory shortages, customers are now trying to get everything fixed on their vehicles. The pent-up demand is insane, it’s unbelievable says Maoli.

Related: Hertz places largest fleet order of Tesla EVs to date

Almost every automaker is coming out with an electric vehicle. Maoli believes Toyota is one of the smartest companies in the world. He says they aren’t betting on electric vehicles, the way everyone is. Maoli also says, no one has tested the secondary market of a used electric vehicle. The batteries are usually more expensive than the car. There are a lot of unknowns in the marketplace and consumers aren’t just yet sold on them.

Maoli doesn’t believe it’s going to get back to normal until 2023. When you look at the manufacturers, they have record profits. He says it due to the same reason dealers are making money. There are fewer manufacturing costs, interests and they’re making more per vehicle. Only time will tell.

For 2022, Maoli does believe we’re going to get some production. The industry is going to continue to boom. He believes dealers are going to make big profits, with electric vehicles showing up in the showrooms. He says the next two years is going to be crazy in the automotive business.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Tom Maoli? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this episode of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

The year is definitely ending strong for M&A and investment across the auto tech and mobility spaces, so let’s get right into this week’s deals.

Arc Boat CompanyThis is our second week in a row with an electric boat deal.

Last week we reported that General Motors bought a 25% stake in Pure Watercraft, valuing the electric boat startup at $600 million dollars.

This week, Arc Boat Company, which is not even a year old, but has attracted investment from top VC firm Andreessen Horowitz, entertainment industry big wigs and now a $30 million dollar raise led by Eclipse Ventures. Existing investors — Andreessen Horowitz, Lowercarbon Capital and Abstract Ventures also joined.

Arc Boat Company, a startup that launched 10 months ago with the goal to eventually electrify all mobility on the water, is starting with a limited-edition $300,000 dollar boat.

Arc has plans that expand beyond building and selling a couple of dozen high-priced boats. But at least in the near term, Arc is focused on delivering the Arc One.

IonityIn the EV infrastructure space this week, Ionity, an electric vehicle fast-charging charging network provider whose owners include Daimler and Volkswagen, has raised a €700 million Euros (or $783 million dollars) investment from BlackRock Global.

Founded in 2017, Ionity was launched as a joint venture between a coalition of major automakers that includes Hyundai, Ford, and BMW.

The investment will allow Ionity to increase the number of charging points to 7,000 by 2025 — a more than a four-fold increase from the 1,500 that are installed today.

The new charging stations will be situated on highways and other major roads as well as near major cities. Six to 12 charging points will be at each location. The firm is also planning on adding more charging points to existing sites with high demand.

Ionity’s planned expansion includes owning and operating full-service stations for drivers to “recharge” while charging their vehicles. These stations, a concept it’s calling “Oasis,” are similar to roadside rest stops today.

BlackRock’s participation in this round is a sign that institutional investors are increasingly interested in decarbonization technologies.

actnanoactnano, a global leader in surface protection technologies for automotive and consumer electronics, announced the close of an oversubscribed $21.75 million dollar Series B financing led by BMW i Ventures.

Additional new investors include HELLA Ventures and TDK Ventures. All Series A investors, including Emerald Technology Ventures, GC Ventures America, Henkel Tech Ventures, Ireon Ventures and Material Impact, also participated in the round.

actnano specializes in water and environmental resistant nanocoating technologies.

The company’s innovative surface protection solutions are trusted by global automotive and consumer electronics OEMs and Tier-1 suppliers.

actnano’s nanoGUARD technologies are currently protecting electronics on over 2 million production vehicles, including 80% of EVs in North America, as well as many of the world’s leading consumer devices.

actnano will use the new funds to expand its global sales and technical teams, as well as ramp up production to meet the significant increase in demand for their product.

MotorwayIn international news this week, U.K.-based Motorway raised a $190 million dollar Series C funding round led by Index Ventures and ICONIQ Growth. Existing investors Latitude Ventures, Unbound, and BMW i Ventures also participated in the round. The startup is now claiming a valuation of over $1 billion dollars.

On Motorway, consumers can sell their car via a smartphone app that also uses computer vision to assess the state of the car. The cars are then bid on by professional car dealers in a daily online auction, with the car collected for free by the winning dealer within 24 hours. Given it’s also a “contactless” process, dealers and car owners increasingly seeking to buy and sell cars online.

Motorway says it now has a network of 4,000 professional car dealers using the platform and claims it has booked a 300% uplift in third-quarter sales to $411 million dollars compared with $105 million dollars last year. Some 100,000 used cars have been sold on Motorway since launch, with over 8,000 cars currently being sold a month, with over $2 billion dollars in projected completed sales over the next year.

Companies To WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry intel report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, we have two companies to watch: AutoCorp Technologies and TailHand.

AutoCorp Technologies

First up, we have AutoCorp Technologies.

Autocorp Technologies is a fintech company specializing in solutions for the automotive industry. By offering a suite of digital retailing products primarily focused on credit and financial services, Autocorp delivers dealer solutions to increase volume and profitability.

Their AVA Trade product is an interactive trade tool powered by Kelly Blue Book that allows your online shoppers to value their current vehicle in seconds. Seamlessly integrated with AVA Credit, turning online visitors to fresh trade-in & credit leads for your dealership.

Their AVA Credit product, powered by Equifax, provides dealers with consumer credit range, recent inquiries and auto tradeline information through soft-pull technology with no impact to the customer’s score.

Check out AutoCorp Technologies at Autocorp.ai.

TailHand

Our second company to watch this week is TailHand.

I had a chance to catch up with TailHand at this year’s SEMA conference, atwhich they won the 2021 Best New Truck Product of the Year by the SEMA Truck & Off-Road Alliance.

TailHand Transforms your tailgate into a reliable and highly versatile mobile workstation, so you can do more with confidence and precision. TailHand provides pickup truck users a stable and reliable way to work directly from their tailgate while improving their productivity and safety.

If you have a pickup truck with a tailgate, take a look at TailHand. It’s a very innovative product that is sure to catch on.

Check out TailHand at TailHand.com

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

——————-

People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

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On today’s edition of Inside Automotive, Ryan Kerrigan, Managing Director of Kerrigan Advisors, gives an update on the market and breaks down some of the industry’s recent headlines. Earnings are just off the charts, says Kerrigan. Quarter over quarter, the Kerrigan Index is up over 64% in aggregate for auto retailers. AutoNation and Lithia doubled earnings over Q3 in the prior year. Kerrigan says that Mike Manley and the new leadership at AutoNation are probably more focused on acquisitions and growth.

Year to date, the Kerrigan Index is up 43%, which is double the S&P 500. They were also up 2.5% in October. Over the first three quarters of 2021, the average dealerships have $3 million on the P&L statement. The average dealership is expected to annualize $4 million on the P&L statement. To say we haven’t seen this before is an understatement says, Kerrigan. 2020, set the old record of a $1.2 million average in the first nine months. This year, a new record was set of a $3 million average in the first nine months of the year.

Kerrigan says they are seeing interest across the board. Hyundai, Kia, and Ford have positive news. He says Ford leadership seems to be in sync and dealers have more confidence in what’s going on. Kerrigan also says they have released some great products, such as the Bronco and Ranger. Hyundai and Kia products are translating nicely into market shares and consumer acceptance. Kerrigan says they’ve seen more interest in Kia and Hyundai dealers expanding their footprint.

Morgan Stanley is projecting the direct-to-consumer SAAR from now until 2030 growing at 30 to 31% a year. By contrast, Morgan Stanley is also projecting the franchise dealers’ SAAR, from now until 2030, will decrease by about 2.5%. Kerrigan says the franchise dealer body is going to fight for an increasingly smaller pie.

In 2021, year to date Tesla has sold more new cars than Mercedes- Benz. Kerrigan says, clearly there is a supply issue. The market capital hasn’t moved much in the last decade, but now there’s a lot of energy around EVs.

Related: As more Americans choose EVs, price and range continue to hold back the market, according to new Cox Automotive study

Kerrigan believes 2022 is going to be a continuation of what we’re seeing today. He says, the first half of 2022, expect to see strong profitability with limited inventory. Eventually, we may trend back to normal. Kerrigan suggests at that point, dealers need to make decisions to deal with normalized margins and a lot more inventory. He says it is possible to see peak evaluations on dealerships. Also, if you don’t want to be in the business three to five years from now, Kerrigan says, think about selling now. Lastly, if you are in a suboptimal situation, now might be the time to sell and get out of the situation.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, discusses how dealerships can work with private sellers to onboard inventory in the current market.

Consumers sell almost as many used cars every year as automotive dealers. They’re typically 40 million used car sales out there in the auto industry, and 38 million are also done by private sellers. With the internet, it’s getting more and more popular for people to sell their vehicles online.

Rice says if you haven’t already started buying private acquisitions. There’s now an opportunity for consumers to know what their car is worth. Rice encourages dealers, as they reach out to sellers, to buy their cars or give them the opportunity to sell their cars. Rice says dealers have to let the customer know, that they can bring the vehicle to the dealership. If your customer is having issues with financing, the dealership can help with that, too.

Related: What is the future of car sales according to Kelley Blue Book?

Give the customer the opportunity to come to the dealership, with a safe place to do the transaction and possibly sell them a warranty they may be interested in. A multi-layer approach will benefit the dealership in the long run. Rice also says to start leasing, to get things going. If you can get better at leasing now, you’ll have more vehicles coming back to you in the near future.

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On the latest episode of Kain and Co., host David Kain, president of Kain Automotive, explains how to make plans for digital marketing strategy as you head into a new quarter and the new year. 2020 and 2021 have presented many challenges for everyone to have to work through. Kain says to look at the fundamentals and KPIs when it comes to your marketing, processes, and tactics.

Kain says for you to cover the expenses of the operations, you need to be able to get your money back. There’s a lot of elements in making your marketing come along. He says if you spend a dollar, you should be making five dollars back to cover the cost.

Take a look at the overall leads expenditure. Those must come back into the gross, that you’re looking at. Kain says, look at the cost, gross, and close rate. Sometimes, you just need to cut to the chase.

When the marketing companies come to you, Kain says, you should turn your spreadsheet around and show them how you are growing them. He says you got to generate the very best possible opportunity for the lowest possible cost. 100% of your opportunities will come from your marketing but your results are going to come from your process and tactics.

The number one process metric Kain says he looks at is the engagement rate. A lot of times people are just stopping the clock and aren’t helping the guest. Your engagement rate needs to be around 70 to 80%. If you’re doing a great job with your communication tools, including emails and messaging, you’re going to have a high engagement rate.

Related: Automotive marketing tips to reach every generation of car buyer

You then want to have a high appointment rate. The appointment can be at their house, work, or dealership. The confirmation process must be in there because that’s how you get the appointment show rate. Once they show, then you have a high close rate. Those are the key performing indicators of success.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Kain & Co.? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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It’s clear that the microchip shortage issue will continue to impact the industry well into 2022, and possibly even into 2023. As OEMs and dealers adjust and prepare accordingly, it’s important for them to really understand the consumer’s mindset. On today’s show we’re pleased to welcome Kevin LeSage, Director of Digital Marketing of Autotrader to discuss how you can successfully navigate and adjust in the industry today.

Data shows that 35% of in market shoppers are willing to pay over MSRP. LeSage this isn’t just isolated to the automotive industry. The supply chain is impacting many other industries. Out of those 35%, thirteen percent are willing to pay a premium. He also says a lot of shoppers are delaying the purchase process altogether. Forty-eight percent of those in market car shoppers are likely to wait because of the chip shortage. Others say they are willing to delay the decision over the next 6 months or more.

Related: How to sell better than your online-only competition

It’s important to understand your audience, LeSage says. Dealers should use data to understand who’s in market and who is not. He says dealers aren’t taking advantage of focusing the message of merchandising strategy for at home services. This includes vehicle walkarounds or at home test drives. Americans will always pay for convenience. LeSage says, dealers are seeing more consumers coming in to order directly from manufacturers.

Know where to “fish” says LeSage. Next, tap into your CRM data. Lastly, make sure you’re doubling down in service and repair. That’s a foundational part in a dealer’s business, regardless of chip shortage or inventory issues. He says to also make sure you have a private acquisition strategy in place.

Soon for the auto industry, LeSage says he forecast, that things may get worse before they see an improvement. He says they aren’t seeing the light at the end of the tunnel anytime soon. Cox Automotive is forecasting mild supply improvements in Q4, and continuing improvements in 2022, but no return to normal until 2023, or if ever.

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Cybersecurity has been a concern for many car dealers after an increased number of malware and ransomware attacks, however, many automotive retailers are now looking more seriously into security measures and precautions to protect their systems. CDK Global recently released their inaugural State Of Cybersecurity In The Dealership and Joe Bell, Vice President of IT Solutions and Global Network Architecture, joins us now to discuss the report’s findings and give his recommendation on ways to further protect against these cyberattacks.

With the number of cyberattacks seen across various landscapes and industries, Bell says CDK Global wanted to better understand how car dealers are contemplating their investments and risks mitigations going into the next year.

Bell says people are very much aware of cyberattacks, but people are not taking enough precautions to protect themselves. For the automotive industry, there is an escalation of cyberattacks in the dealer market. Regardless of your commercial size, every car dealer needs to have a plan in place.

CDK Global has created a three-tier preventive, responsive, and employee-facing plan. The preventive plan is to make sure your dealership has the proper risk mitigations in effect, as well as making sure you provide training for associates and have backups in place. After you have your preventive plan ready, the second tier is the protection mechanism. If cyberattacks get through, car dealers will have the third pillar which is response. Having a comprehensive understanding of all three pillars is critical for dealers.

The pandemic has changed the way business is conducted in the automotive market. Bell says because of that, cybersecurity measures need to modernized with the way we’re doing business in the marketplace.

To find out more, please visit CDK’s State of Cybersecurity in the Dealership | CDK Global.

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On the latest edition of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes asks the question, are automotive professionals really earning the higher salaries they have?

Many auto professionals are getting paid more than ever before. Lopes says the reality of the situation is that most people, while they’re getting paid more, aren’t necessarily earning it.

In 2021, due to the pandemic and ongoing chip shortage, front-end grosses have been higher than ever before. Lopes says you won’t find anyone happier about this than him. However, he’s not impressed by folks simply benefitting from supply and demand.

Related: Salaries in America have risen in the past year. How does that affect auto retail?

Lopes then poses the question, what are you doing to get better at your craft, skill, or business? He says, most salespeople haven’t done a thing. That keeps the business vulnerable to whatever the market determines your gross and net numbers will be.

Instead of looking at your pay stubs, and asking what are going to buy with this money?, Lopes says, ask yourself, how much of this can I pour back into my business to make it stronger and last longer? Lopes encourages everyone to et straight with themselves and ask those tough questions.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Straight to the Point? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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In the first quarter of 2021, automotive dealers dealt with several looming challenges, but as Paul Walser became Chairman of NADA he revealed his top priorities aimed at improving the franchise system. We now stand in the final quarter of 2021 and want to take a look at the past year of retail automotive from Paul’s lens. He joins us now to discuss the current state of retail automotive, where NADA stands on the priorities today, and we’ll also get into the NADA show happening in March.

Related: NADA Show Committee Chairman Scott Dube discusses plans for 2022 event in Vegas

I wake up every morning with a new surprise, says Walser. This state of the industry is anything other than predictable. Most dealers that Walser spoke with are doing well when it comes to inventory shortages and profitability. He does believe dealers have backed off on their marketing efforts. Walser says, traditionally, they are a high-ticketed item with low margins. He doesn’t believe dealers should go back on having too much inventory.

Walser says consumers are tuned into the shortages, so they come in with an expectation that they’re not going to get the same level of discounting that may traditionally have gotten. I do believe the worst is behind us says Walser. It’s not going to be an overnight situation because he believes we are behind. It may take up to several months to get back to what people consider normal.

Walser says there’s a big win when it comes to OEMs relationships. He believes it’s due to everyone being in the current situation together. Walser says he’s proud of what NADA has done in connecting two associations. The weekly meetings between both associations discuss electrifications, direct sales, data sharing, cybersecurity, and customer service.

NADA has been involved with the Chrysler Minority Dealers Association providing training and opportunities for advancement. Walser says, there’s a big surprise on the horizon for diversity and inclusion. Although he can’t announce it yet, Walser says they are working with a national organization on initiatives that will be game-changers.

Walser believes one of their pressing issues, is solving the LIFO issue. More than 50% of dealers use the LIFO method of accounting. NADA is requesting temporary relief from The Treasury Department for dealers to return to normal times.

This is going to be the best convention we ever had says, Walser. There are some new and fun initiatives. This is going to be the show of all shows.

For more information visit: www.nada.org

Did you enjoy this podcast with Paul Walser? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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How are you increasing your sales and bottom line going into the new year? If you haven’t considered personalization and accessories as a source, you may be missing out on many customers.

Insignia Group offers a vehicle personalization system that may provide you with the growth you are looking for. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome James Brooks, Chief Product Officer at Insignia Group, to walk us through their solutions and how you can increase your bottom line.

For the past 20 years, Insignia Groups has worked actively with accessory distributors through General Motors and they are currently branching out to more brands. Their core pendency is building normalized data sets because everything lives on the accuracy of data. As customers are shopping for vehicle customization, they can visualize what those parts may look like on their vehicle.

Brooks says not always, will the data include the required set of parts. He says most dealers are focused on their CSI scores. Nothing is going to make a customer more disappointed than being quoted one price and given another. Brooks says they try to get the backbone of the data as strong as they can, to avoid those “gotchas”, whenever dealers are trying to close the sale at the dealership.

Related: Digital marketing is crucial to automotive parts and accessories

When it is a top-down mandate, those are the users they see in their software and services that really shine says Brooks. He says if you’re really going to see success, it’s going to have to come from the top. As they have discovered the best practices over the years, they are trying to build those into the tools. Brooks believes it will become intuitive and simple as possible.

An important part in continuing the customer experience is making sure they have a positive experience their first trip back to the dealership. Brook says if you offer accessories and offer the customer the ability to customize the vehicle to their lifestyle, they’ll take more ownership of it. Often what they purchase in the F&I office will increase because now they have more to protect.

During the pandemic lockdown, Brooks realized the in-showroom sale was not going to be as necessary as it always has been. There are some cultural changes that have happened, that Brooks believes we aren’t coming back from. He says the future of vehicle personalization is moving more towards digital retailing. Unlike traditional models, now it’s a required stop on the path.

Did you enjoy this podcast with James Brooks? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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The new year is approaching, yet many car dealers are still dealing with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Today on Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome back David Kain, President of Kain Automotive and host of CBT’s Kain & Co., to discuss what dealers need to focus on as the industry gears up for 2022.

In 2022, Kain says dealers need to focus on the loyalty of their current customers. Whether it’s good or bad advice, a lot of dealers have curved their marketing budgets. Kain says, if he was over a dealership, he would want to make sure the customers who helped him succeed, know that he cares. At the top of the list, market to your loyal customers.

Kain says when he’s flushed with inventory, he’s always going to give you the best possible deal. MSRP is what’s suggested based on market conditions when the vehicle was designed, built, and delivered to you. He says during the toughest time, customers will remember how fair dealers were to them. It boils down to what your business conditions are and whether you can teach your team to have that conversation.

Most dealers were trained to think, “if they don’t buy today, they won’t buy tomorrow”. Kain says, but they will buy, and you want to give them all the elements to make the right decision for the purchase. He says, we’re starting to see for the first time ever, customers crossing over to modern and digital retailing. Salespeople on the floor are starting to respect the digital process.

Related: Can’t close the sale? It’s a search problem

Kain believes 2022 will be an interesting year for BDC. There’s a lot to be said for skillsets. He also says they teach dealers how to grow their business and digital is the path to do that. Kain says it’s important to grow your own brand.

Did you enjoy this podcast with David Kain? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this episode of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

Last week we were out in Las Vegas for used car week and the NAVIcon Conference. It was great to see everyone face to face, and we had a number of great speakers and relevant content for the industry.

We also had six outstanding companies pitch for the right to win the NAVIcon Cup.

I’m thrilled to announce that Mike Hanna and TrueSpot were the winners of this year’s navicon cup!

Congratulations to Mike and the TrueSpot team!

With that, let’s get right into this week’s deals.

SamsaraIn IPO news this week, Samsara, the pioneer of the connected operations cloud, filed an S-1 for an IPO. Samsara intends to list its class a common stock on the new york stock exchange under the symbol “Iot.”

Samsara allows businesses that depend on physical operations to harness Internet of Things, or IoT data to develop actionable business insights and improve their operations.

The software provides safety, video-based coaching, dispatch productivity, and logistics efficiency by instrumenting vehicles and other assets with video and telematics. Atop these sensors, samsara software executes workflows, provides drivers with apps, monitors equipment, and provides managers and executives visibility into operations.

Monarch TractorBack in March of this year, autonomous tractor maker Monarch Tractor announced a $20 million Series A round. Now, just eight months later, the company is tripling the round, with a $61 million Series B round. This latest raise is led by sustainable food fund Astanor Ventures, with participation from CNH Industrial, At One Ventures, and Trimble Ventures.

Monarch Tractor says the funding will go toward scaling manufacturing and sales for its self-titled electric tractor. The system was introduced this year, with a pilot at a local vineyard. That was one of 15 initial pilots, ahead of a planned delivery of production units in Q4 of this year.

Monarch is clearly striking while the iron is hot on the funding front, as the pandemic has accelerated labor shortages on farms across the U.S., and many farm owners have been looking toward automated and robotic solutions.

Eatron TechnologiesEatron Technologies, which makes intelligent automotive software, has raised an $11 million Series A funding round led by the U.K.’s MMC Ventures. Also participating is Aster Capital and Vietnamese carmaker Vinfast. Eatron has previously collaborated with Vinfast on its range of electric cars. The startup also has a strategic partnership with the Hirschvogel Automotive Group, which invested $1.5 million dollars.

An electric vehicle’s software needs to continually optimize performance, efficiency, and safety of the EV it’s running. But many automakers don’t enable their software to be accessed by third parties, for others to help improve it. The more that embedded automotive software is decoupled from the underlying electronic hardware, the more optimization can take place, and the more efficient vehicles can become. That has important implications for things like battery range and performance overall.

Eatron’s technology enables OEMs and tier-1 suppliers to decouple automotive software from its hardware for the purposes of battery management, intelligent motion control, and advanced driver assistance. This has the effect of increasing supplier choice for oems and reducing cost, risks, and time to market.

General MotorsGeneral Motors bought a 25% stake in Pure Watercraft, valuing the electric boat startup at $600 million dollars.

GM is offering $150 million dollars in a combination of cash and payment-in-kind, which includes access to the automaker’s components and assistance with manufacturing, in exchange for the stake.

Founded in 2011, Seattle-based Pure Watercraft makes electric motors for boats powered by lithium-ion batteries and uses a plug-and-play design mechanism that allows for any boat hull to use its motors.

ExperianExperian has acquired us-based insurance aggregator Gabi for $320 million dollars.

The acquisition will allow Experian’s to grow its presence in the insurance marketplace.

Founded in 2016, Gabi is a mobile-first insurance shopper from San Francisco. It raised $39 million dollars across four financing rounds and is backed by insurance carriers northwestern mutual future ventures, CMFG Ventures, and Securian Financial Ventures. It works with over 40 regional and national home and auto insurance carriers throughout the U.S, including Nationwide, Travelers, Progressive Insurance, Safeco Insurance, Encompass Health, and Kemper.

Helm.aiHelm.ai, a startup creating software for autonomous vehicles, has raised $26 million dollars in Series B financing led by Amplo, JMPartners, Base Capital Funding, and Freeman Group with participation from ACVC, One Way Ventures, Binnacle partners, and Individual Investors.

Self-driving technologies have captured the attention of investors during the pandemic, particularly as strains on the supply chain — exacerbated by a driver shortage — make apparent the usefulness of automated delivery trucks. For example, earlier this year, self-driving software startup embark announced plans to go public in a deal that would value the company at more than $5 billion dollars. For its part, Alphabet’s Waymo, which is developing both driverless delivery trucks and taxis, closed a $2.5 billion dollar funding round in June ahead of an expansion to San Francisco.

Helm, which is based in Menlo Park, California, was founded in November 2016.

Nexar Inc.Nexar Inc., a company best-known for its line of smart dashcams, has raised $53 million dollars in a Series D financing round led by Gumra capital. The funds will be used, in part, to scale its “digital twin” service built off crowdsourced dashcam footage for automotive OEMs and cities.

The round also saw participation from State Farm Ventures, Catalyst Fund, Banca Generali, Valor Ventures, and previous investors Atreides Management, Corner Ventures, Regah Ventures, and Aleph.

Nexar’s first foray into more fully pursuing that project was with “live map” that it launched back in 2019. The service provides real-time street footage and uses computer vision to mark construction, street signs, and other features for users. Since that time, Nexar has introduced more layers and features to the service.

The company, which was founded in 2015, now captures 150 million miles of imagery each month.

The recent funds will be used to increase the availability of the data platform across more locations and improve the “digital twin” product such that information is updated within seconds of a dashcam detecting a new feature, like a pothole. The regional transportation commission of southern Nevada is already using Nexar’s CityStream platform to reduce traffic from work zones, for example.

Features could also help cities after natural disasters in identifying which roads are accessible, or which roads have been plowed in the winter, Shir said.

Nexar’s data could also be used to train ai models used in autonomous vehicle systems, by identifying edge cases, collisions, and uncommon road features.

Preact technologiesPreact technologies, an Oregon-based developer of intelligent sensing technology designed to bridge the gap between collision avoidance and active safety, announced $13 million dollar Series A funding led by state Farm Ventures. Additional participation in this round included Elev8. VC, Gotham Green Partners, Traylor Capital and Stargazer Ventures.

By leveraging proven technology, and rethinking near-field sensing, Preact Technologies is targeting “the last 100 feet” to predict crashes and prepare a vehicle for an imminent collision, deploying airbags and other safety devices before the crash happens. In an urban environment, being able to detect collisions milliseconds before they happen could help reduce the majority of severe injuries and fatalities from car crashes.

Preact’s patent-pending “TrueSense” sensors complement or may even replace many of the short-range sensors like radar, ultrasound, and cameras, estimated to be a $30 billion dollar per year market, and enable pre-crash safety systems while enhancing existing use cases such as park assist and self-parking. TrueSense sensors can help lower the cost and complexity of advanced driver assistance systems and enable many new use cases that have proven challenging in the past.

On the heels of this funding round, preact was awarded a $1 million dollar prize from Luminate for its TrueSense technology and will be establishing a manufacturing base in new york state.

Luminate is the world’s largest venture capital accelerator for optics, photonics, and imaging technology.

Companies to WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry intel report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Fetch

First up, we have Fetch, which is available at Fetchtruck.com.

Fetch focuses on making truck rental easy. Fetch is a marketplace for self-service truck rental. With just your phone, you can reserve, unlock and drive a Fetch truck or van.

Fetch users can rent hourly or daily; miles are free, and you can unlock the vehicle with your phone.

Complete your renter profile and get instantly approved. No lines or sales upsells.

Check-in and unlock your truck, straight from your phone with your Fetch account.

Trucks and vans are available for any job, any time.

Fetch is a better way to rent a truck without the hassle.

Find vehicles available near you or list your vehicle for rent at Fetchtruck.Com.

Fastree3d

Fastree3d develops fast 3D cameras. Their technology enables safer driving and autonomous navigation by continuously monitoring the surrounding space, avoiding collisions by measuring the distance to objects with high confidence. Fastree3d’s flash lidar technology will be provided to selected partners in the form of a hardware development kit.

Fastree3d imagers are flash lidars based on direct time of flight technology. The distance to objects is determined by measuring the time taken for a light pulse to travel from the imager to the object and back again.

The onboard illumination module generates light pulses that illuminate the entire scene at once, like in conventional photography, without the need for any scanning/rotational optics.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

——————-

People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Kevin Tynan? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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From pivoting to digital retail to inventory and chip shortages, the pandemic played a key role in what retail automotive looks like today. On this edition of Inside Automotive, we’re joined by Bloomberg Intelligence’s Senior Automotive Analyst, Kevin Tynan, to get his take on where the auto industry stands.

When you look at transaction prices overall, relative to MSRP, historically the average has been discounted by 6.5%. This means, a customer could walk into the dealership, and knock around $2,500 off the price and they would have a deal. As inventory got thinner due to supply chain constraints, prices start to sneak up closer to MSRP pricing. Tynan says the premium over sticker is about $140 across the board.

Transaction prices today are at a record high. This has caused discounts to be zero or even negative. The average in the U.S. is trending towards $45,000 plus. Tynan says there are no more cars pulling down your average transaction price but also selling them profitably.

Related: As incentives drop and prices rise, how can dealers convert shoppers to buyers?

Tynan believes the reason why pricing is firm, is because it eliminates the need for oversupply. He also says, if the manufacturer supply balance is tight, and margins are good, he believes the same will happen at the dealership level. If there is discipline, Tynan thinks that the influence and the size of manufacturing, through the retail channel, is what determines the future. It’s not necessarily the pull of the consumer.

Tynan elaborates that the higher costs have been rationalized in a way greater than the 08′ recession. For the manufacturers, the worst possible thing they can do is cut production. A lot of those costs are out of the system. Tynan says processes have to be leaner and more efficient. Manufacturers are car dealers alike will have to learn to do more with less.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Kevin Tynan? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Recently, at the 2021 Automotive Analytics & Attribution Summit in Palm Beach, anchor Jim Fitzpatrick caught up with Atul Patel, Co-Founder and CEO of customer data platform, Orbee. In this segment, Jim and Atul discuss data management, real-time customer engagement, and marketing automation.

Stay tuned for more coverage of AAAS2021 to hear more about the latest innovations in modern retailing from the auto industry’s top professionals.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Atul Patel? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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As we all know, the EV revolution is here and happening. EV sales continue to climb as the automotive industry moves towards a more digital and environmentally friendly future. Companies like Charge Enterprises are meeting the demands of many by connecting people with EV charging.

Mark LaNeve, former GM, Ford, and Volvo Executive, who has spent decades leading the industry, and is now leading Charge Enterprises, as President. He joins us now to discuss his new role and we’ll also get his thoughts on today’s automotive landscape.

In June of this year, LaNeve was named President of Charge Enterprises, and he admits that there is still a lot of work to be done to create comprehensive EV charging infrastructure. In 2021 alone, 640,000 EVs have been sold, the majority by Tesla. Data reveals that this number is likely to increase to 25 million by 2030, with almost 100% adoption by 2035.

This means that there will be a huge need for EV charging infrastructure, especially in residential areas. As EV prices drop and more options become available, a reliable charging system must be in place for the public. Hotels, office parks, and restaurants will also need DC (direct current) fast charging units. Ideally, units that can charge 150-200 in roughly 15 minutes.

Additionally, President Biden’s trillion-dollar infrastructure bill allocates funds for the EV sector as well, creating huge growth opportunity in a big sector. LaNeve is confident that his client base will only keep growing and EV charging infrastructure will be much more common in years to come.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Mark LaNeve? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Last week, CBT News anchors Jim and Bridget Fitzpatrick were on-site at the 2021 Automotive Analytics & Attribution Summit, to explore the latest trends and strategies in modern retailing.

In this segment, Jim sits down with Chip Perry, President and CEO of A2Z Sync, to discuss how car dealers can simplify the sales process, and eliminate inefficiencies.

Stay tuned for more coverage of AAAS2021!

Did you enjoy this podcast with Chip Perry? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest edition of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes discusses why it’s time for automotive professionals to reclaim front-end gross.

For years, automotive professionals have been working hard and putting in their time, only to get paid, less than what they deserve. He says back in the day, selling vehicles was a profession, not just a job.

Sometime in the late eighties, factories started overproducing vehicles and pressured car dealers to stock more inventory. This crushed margins and eventually crushed front-end growth. Lopes says until recently, most car dealers were selling vehicles at a loss. Sometimes that loss was well into the thousands of dollars.

Now, almost thirty years later, front-end grosses are no longer a myth. The dramatic increase in demand, paired with the lowest supply we have seen in years, has brought back the justified front-end gross. Which is great, according to Lopes.

Related: Salaries in America have risen in the past year. How does that affect auto retail?

Lopes then poses the question, how many of you automotive professionals are earning your money, as opposed to, how many of you are simply now, getting paid more? He also asks, how many of you have gotten better at sales? Who knows what you may have to handle in 2022. Be careful of the curveballs ahead.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Straight to the Point? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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We often talk about dealer profitability, digital retailing, sales training, and other subjects related to what’s currently happening in the auto industry. However, today we take a step back or forward, depending on how you look at it, to talk about the future of the auto industry five to ten years from now. Here to share his perspective is Bob Lanham, Head of Automotive Retail for Meta, formerly known as Facebook.

Meta comes from the Greek word “beyond.” Lanham believes it was chosen to symbolize the focus of moving forward. He says it’s not replacing the name of Facebook or Instagram app. Starting this quarter, they will be operating under two business units. This is ultimately the next generation of what the internet and social media are going to look like say, Lanham.

Lanham says business is still going strong. One of the trends that he has noticed is dealers understanding the impact social media can have on a brand’s perception and value. The second trend is communication. Having better communication with your customers is crucial, and every sale starts with a conversation.

Messaging is continuing to grow as well. When the COVID pandemic hit, messages went up 70%. The trend has only grown as we return to ‘normal.’ The last trend Lanham sees is measurement. If dealers don’t measure their KPIs correctly, a lot of money can be wasted.

Research has said, those who advertise through downturns, are top of mind when you get out of it. Lanham says if you can change your mindset to optimization versus just spending more, dealers will see a much better return.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Bob Lanham? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Recently, at the 2021 Automotive Analytics & Attribution Summit in Palm Beach, anchor Jim Fitzpatrick caught up with Eric Brown, Co-founder and CEO of inSearchX, an Open Dialog Advertising (ODA) platform called AskOtto, that focuses on continuous engagement marketing.

Stay tuned for more coverage of AAAS2021 to hear more about the latest innovations in modern retailing from the auto industry’s top professionals.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Eric Brown? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Early last week, CBT News was on-site at the 2021 Automotive Analytics & Attribution Summit, to explore the latest innovations in modern retailing from the auto industry’s top professionals.

In this segment, anchor Jim Fitzpatrick interviews Rusty West, President, and CEO of Market Scan. The pair discuss the importance of controlling the narrative of purchase from start to finish; starting with accurate payments across all touchpoints.

Stay tuned for more coverage of AAAS2021!

Did you enjoy this podcast with Rusty West? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Last month we talked about the importance of employee trust in CEOs. David Friedman, Founder, and CEO of CultureWise and Author of his latest book, Culture by Design: How to Build a High-Performing Culture Even in the New Remote Work Environment joins us again today to continue the discussion on company culture.

There are a number of behaviors important to building any great organization. One of the behaviors that are the foundation of building trust is being transparent. Friedman says if we hide information, we start asking questions such as, what’s really going on here? If you share information, you build trust.

Related: How to build trust and cultivate a strong relationship with your customer

Friedman says, when he wants his employees to actually do the things that will lead to success, he tells them how well the company is or isn’t doing. When the company is doing successful, he says it likely leads employees to continue doing those things that will lead them and the company to more success.

When trust has been broken, we’re fighting an uphill battle, says Friedman. In order to rebuild trust, you make and honor commitments. Do what you say you’re going to do when you say you’re going to do it. He says to either rebuild trust in a broken relationship or build trust in a new relationship.

Friedman believes the same things are important to people in a remote environment, then when people weren’t remote. The challenge is when you’re in a remote environment, you have to be intentional about it. He says, you now have to schedule time, to make sure you’re not just doing business but asking about the employee, personally. Even writing a hand note can go a long way says, Friedman.

Did you enjoy this podcast with David Friedman? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Culture by Design: How to Build a High-Performing Culture, Even in the New Remote Work Environment (Fundamentals Series)

As we move through the final quarter of the year, you may be asking yourself what can you do to remain successful, despite the industry’s inventory and chip shortages? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome back Charlie Chesbrough, Senior Economist and Senior Director of Industry Insights at Cox Automotive to walk us through his recommendations and predictions for Q4 and beyond.

The biggest positive takeaway is, it looks like the worse of this is behind us, says Chesbrough. It’s not to say the good times are here, but they are starting to see in their own numbers, that supply is starting to tick up, just a little. Recovery is going to be different for each manufacturer because everyone is in a different situation.

Chesbrough says it may be a different industry that emerges from this. It may be a much leaner sales environment. It may be a new market that emerges in a post-Covid world, where they aren’t big inventories or big incentives.

Some of the Detroit 3 appears to have a little more supply than they had before, so their numbers did a little bit better. There is still strong consumer interest, with a supply constraint market. Chesbrough says there are still low-interest rates and strong economic growth. Inflation is also a concern, but he thinks, eventually everyone will get used to it.

Related: Nearly one-third of car shoppers are checking out EVs

Chesbrough believes dealers and OEMs have learned that they can make profits in a lean inventory environment. This experiment was forced on the industry, and they seem to be making the best of it. He expects the industry to close out with slow sales with slight improvements. Chesbrough also thinks we’re going to be in for some surprising numbers from some of the European manufacturers.

Some manufacturers are starting to show they’re on the rebound, Ford in particular. It puts them in a positive situation to possibly gain some market share that they have given up earlier this year.

Chesbrough recommends being open about inflation to your customers. He does believe inflation opens up the door for new opportunities for new vehicle buyers and selling to them.

Chesbrough also says they’re going to be a lot of new EVs coming to the market, and with gas prices rising, it may help sell to customers on how to cut down costs and save some money. With the support of more charging stations, President Biden has spoken about, Chesbrough believes we may have the ingredient to get EVs selling over the years to come.

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Recently, at the 2021 Automotive Analytics & Attribution Summit in Palm Beach, anchor Jim Fitzpatrick caught up with Aaron Bickart, EVP and GM at OfferLogix, a platform that allows vendors to provide penny-perfect payments to their dealers. In this segment, Jim and Aaron discuss some of the current disconnects in the online car buying journey, and how they should be addressed.

Stay tuned for more coverage of AAAS2021 to hear more about the latest innovations in modern retailing from the auto industry’s top professionals.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Aaron Bickart? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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At the start of the week, CBT News was on-site at the 2021 Automotive Analytics & Attribution Summit, to explore the latest innovations in modern retailing from the auto industry’s top professionals.

In this segment, Jim sits down with the Co-founder and SVP, Sales at CarNow, Tim Cox, and Michael Seeman SVP, OEM Relations, also at CarNow. The group discusses CarNow’s recent partnership efforts with F&I leader J.D. Power. They also talk about the importance of bridging the gaps between point solutions to offer a complete in-store and online car buying platform.

Stay tuned for more coverage of AAAS2021!

Did you enjoy this podcast with Tim Cox and Michael Seeman? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this episode of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

We’re out here in Las Vegas for Used Car Week and the NAVIcon Conference. It’s been a great week, with a ton of great speakers and relevant content for the industry, and we had six outstanding companies pitch for the right to win the NAVIcon Cup.

We’ll have more news on the NAVIcon Cup winner on next week’s Friday 5.

With that, let’s get right into this week’s deals.

Embark TrucksIn IPO news this week Autonomous trucking firm Embark Trucks began trading on the Nasdaq exchange after completing its merger with a special-purpose acquisition company Northern Genesis Acquisition Corp II.

The company, which is trading under the ticker symbol “EMBK,” is valued at $5 billion dollars and raised more than $600 million dollars in proceeds from the sale.

Embark’s stock fell 12% on the first day of trading.

GettIn SPAC news this week, Gett is merging with a special-purpose acquisition company in a deal that would take the corporate-transportation platform public with a roughly $1.1 billion dollar valuation.

Started more than a decade ago as a ride-hailing competitor to Uber Technologies LLC and Lyft, Gett now focuses on streamlining a company’s ride-hailing, taxi and limousine booking options around the world into one platform. It says doing so saves customers time and money. Gett now joins with companies such as Lyft and Indian ride-hailing operator Ola to offer many different services.

London-based Gett is combining with SPAC Rosecliff Acquisition Corp. I.

Gett is marketing itself as a practical solution for global companies to transport workers rapidly, particularly with many still working from home at least part-time during the coronavirus pandemic. The company now works with roughly a quarter of Fortune 500 companies, including Apple and The Coca-Cola Company.

CarketaCarketa, the Utah-based developer of SaaS applications for the automotive industry, announced it closed a $6M Series Seed Financing led by Origin Ventures and Crosslink Capital with additional funding from Hack VC, Lancaster Ventures, and I2BF Global Ventures.

Carketa, founded in 2019, is focused on redefining the used car selling experience. Their mission is to help independent and franchise automotive dealers optimize every aspect of their dealerships by selling more vehicles in less time, for more profit.

Carketa co-founder Jason L Berry also owns Action Auto, one of Utah’s fastest-growing independent car dealerships. Carketa was initially formed to improve the reconditioning process to simply sell more cars per month.

Carketa is revolutionizing dealers’ current processes while tightly coupled with the Carketa Condition Report, a 200+ point inspection system detailing a vehicle’s current condition.

FirstElement FuelFirstElement Fuel, which began as a California start-up with a vision to establish a hydrogen refueling network and has grown to be the world’s largest hydrogen retailer, closed a $105 Million Series D funding round.

The capital comes in from Air Water Inc., MUFG, Nikkiso Clean Energy & Industrial Gases, and Japan Infrastructure Initiate as FirstElement Fuel is actively executing on its plan to build out its California Hydrogen Network from 31 True Zero Stations to 80 stations by 2024. At least 12 of the 80 stations will be capable of refueling heavy-duty trucks in addition to light-duty cars.

FirstElement has received over $125 Million in public funding from the California Energy Commission, the South Coast AQMD, and the Bay Area AQMD.

InspirationIn the EV infrastructure space this week, Inspiration wants to help commercial fleets go electric, and it has already started by financing electric mobility company Revel’s ride-hail fleet of blue Teslas. The startup, which finances electric vehicles and has plans to build, own and operate the corresponding charging infrastructure, came out of stealth on Wednesday with an initial $200 million in capital commitment.

The funding comes from ArcLight Capital Partners, a venture fund that invests in energy infrastructure. The funding is a platform company investment, one that allows Inspiration to use that money to invest in infrastructure assets, like vehicles and charging solutions, as well as for general corporate purposes.

The company, which has been operating in stealth mode since the end of Q1 this year, is in discussions with several other investors to raise more money needed to continue financing vehicles and other infrastructure-related assets, like energy systems like solar that power charging infrastructures, energy storage systems and real estate.

TriEyeIn Autonomous Vehicle technology this week, Israeli startup TriEye has raised $74 million to commercialize a type of sensing technology that can be used to help autonomous and driver assistance systems to see better in adverse conditions.

This latest round of funding was led by M&G Investments and Varana Capital, with the participation of Samsung Ventures, Tawazun SDME SDF, Deep Insight, Allied Group, and Discount Capital as well as existing investors Intel Capital, Porsche Ventures, and Grove Ventures. The round brings TriEye’s total funding to $96 million.

The technology uses short-wave infrared (or SWIR), which refers to a wavelength range that is outside the visible spectrum. While SWIR sensing is not new, it has mostly been restricted to the aerospace and defense industries due to its high cost. TriEye says it has made engineering breakthroughs that have driven down the cost enough to compete with regular cameras that can be found in a mobile phone or vehicle today, and to outperform other types of sensors on the market.

SWIR brings an additional layer of information to existing vision systems by letting people see “beyond the visible.”

Kodiak RoboticsKodiak Robotics, the self-driving trucking company, has raised $125 million in an oversubscribed Series B fundraising round for a total of $165 million raised to date.

The round includes investments from SIP Global Partners, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Battery Ventures, CRV, Muirwoods Ventures, Harpoon Ventures, StepStone Group, Gopher Asset Management, Walleye Capital, Aliya Capital Partners, and others. Recent investments previously announced include Bridgestone Americas and BMW i Ventures.

Kodiak is building the industry’s most advanced technology stack purpose-built specifically for long-haul trucks. The company will use the Series B funds over the next 12 months to double employee headcount by adding at least 85 new people to the team, expand autonomous service capabilities from coast-to-coast, and add a minimum of 15 new trucks for a total of at least 25 autonomous vehicles.

Mitra Future TechnologiesIn Battery Technology this week, Social Capital is leading a $20 million funding round for Mitra Future Technologies, a Silicon Valley company aiming to more efficiently make the components needed for rechargeable batteries.

The startup hopes to use machine learning to address the challenge of producing electric-vehicle battery components outside China.

The $20 million investment is the first significant fundraising round, or Series A, for the startup, which goes by Mitra Chem. The company didn’t disclose its valuation. Other investors include Taiwanese billionaire Richard Tsai and climate-focused Earthshot Ventures.

Founded earlier this year, Mitra Chem is focused on producing vital lithium-ion battery parts such as cathodes in North America. The company initially plans to work on producing a cathode—the side of a battery that absorbs electrons when it is generating power—that uses more of the metal iron and less of scarce, pricey materials nickel and cobalt. Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk and others in the industry have touted iron-based batteries as the future because they say they are cheaper and safer.

Mitra Chem joins other startups in aiming to whittle away at China’s dominance in the battery industry. The concentration of battery production in China due to the country’s low costs and chemical-industry expertise is a concern for U.S. policy makers and executives aiming to accelerate domestic electric-vehicle production.

ClutchIn international news this week, Clutch, Canada’s first online car retailing platform, has raised CAD $100 million Series B equity financing to provide Canadians with an unparalleled, online experience for buying pre-owned cars.

This most recent financing round is led by D1 Capital Partners with participation from Flight Deck Capital, Canaan Partners, Upper90, Real Ventures, GFC, BrandProject LP, and FJ Labs.

Since 2016, Clutch has been focused on delivering the best customer experience for car buying in Canada. Its fully-vertically integrated business model ensures that each car undergoes a rigorous 210-point inspection and is reconditioned to the highest standard by its team of in-house mechanics.

Clutch saves customers hours of time by avoiding endless trips to the dealership or uncomfortable meetings with strangers in parking lots. The seamless end-to-end online process provides customers with detailed, high-resolution 360° photos of each vehicle, a free instant CarFax report and access to a wide range of financing options without having to leave the comfort of your home.

Finally, Clutch offers complete peace of mind with a 10-day money back guarantee so customers can be sure the car fits in the routine of their everyday lives.

Tevva Electric TruckFinally, British electric truck startup Tevva Electric Trucks has raised $57 million dollars in its latest funding round to ramp up production at its new London plant and deliver its first vehicles to customers by the end of 2022.

Tevva has now raised more than $90 million dollars.

The British truck maker will have two zero-emission 7.5 tonne models available for customers – a battery-electric model with a range of 160 miles, and an electric truck with a small reserve hydrogen fuel cell to boost its range to 310 miles if needed.

The backup hydrogen fuel cell would provide customers with greater flexibility in the event any of their trucks need to travel further.

As hydrogen fuelling infrastructure is still in its infancy, Tevva can provide the fuel as a service to customers.

The company expected most customers would opt for the reserve hydrogen fuel cell because they were wary of the limited range of a pure electric model.

So with that, Let’s Transition To Our Companies To Watch!

Companies To WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry intel report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, we have two companies to watch: Block Harbor Cybersecurity and Light.co

Block Harbor Cybersecurity

First up, we have Block Harbor Cybersecurity.

Established in 2014 in the wake of highly publicized automotive exploits, Block Harbor was founded on the basis that the automotive industry’s biggest need would be services to support vehicle cybersecurity.

Block Harbor Cybersecurity is an expert at detailing and executing complicated projects with tight deadlines, especially as it pertains to securing cyber-physical systems.

Their area of focus is automating repeated tasks in vehicle cybersecurity engineering to ensure vehicles are secure and stay secure.

Block Harbor leverages the experience we’ve gained over the years to build great solutions in automotive cybersecurity to keep mobility safe.

Light.co

Our second company to watch this week is Light.co

Light is a depth-sensing and perception technology company focused on providing automobiles with the ability to see better than humans.

Light’s Clarity product is a camera-based perception platform that sees every 3D structure in the road from 10cm to 1,000m, no matter what it is — measuring depth with more than 3x the range and 20x the detail-per-second of best-in-class systems available today.

Light provides dependable near and long-range depth information required for machines to make proactive decisions as their environment changes.

Light is designed to accommodate a range of customer needs — including functional, cost, and design. They also leverage industry standard hardware and existing supply chains.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

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People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

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More and more, car buyers expect a flexible, streamlined experience, whether that’s a mostly in-store purchase, a fully online process, or in most cases, a combination of both. Dealerships have made tremendous strides and continue to look for insight and guidance as they shift toward a more digital marketplace. On today’s show, we’re joined by Kevin Filan, Vice President of Marketing for Cox Automotive, to discuss dealers meeting today’s consumer demands.

There’s a lot that’s been happening in the digital space and it’s kind of the birthplace of Cox Automotive says, Filan. In retail, their position today is to help any dealership be successful, with any consumer, on any deal, from anywhere. Filan says it’s helpful to think of digital retailing as a spectrum. You have to have consistency and understand where the consumer is in the process at all times.

Filan says part of the reason why it has been so difficult to quantify that transition to online car buying is that there are so many purchase paths. This isn’t just about software and tools but about the process, the people, and understanding how to measure success.

Current Cox Automotive research found that 81% of consumers want to be able to do at least part of the car buying process online. Secondly, they see satisfaction with the car buying process has increased with digitization. In 2019, satisfaction with the car buying process was at 60%. During the pandemic, in 2021, satisfaction with the car buying process went up to 72%.

Related: Where to focus the online journey for pickup truck buyers

Dealers may look and say, they aren’t as impressed as they would hope to be on the number of transactions that are happening digitally. Filan says this is where the growth is going to come from. He says the dealers with a VinSolutions CRM are five times more likely to get a lead submission from a car shopper. Closing rates on those leads are 46% higher and dealers are seeing 24% more gross profits.

The time is now for the automotive industry to understand what will happen with e-commerce. Filan says to make sure the building blocks of digital retailing are well understood, so you’re ready for the rapid growth you will see in e-commerce in the years to come.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Kevin Filan? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Earlier this week, CBT News anchors Jim and Bridget Fitzpatrick were on-site at the 2021 Automotive Analytics & Attribution Summit, to explore the latest trends and strategies in modern retailing.

In this segment, Jim sits down with Gary Marcotte, Senior Vice President of customer engagement innovation at Outsell. The pair discuss Marcotte’s presentation which heavily focused on the importance of the customer lifecycle for car dealerships.

Stay tuned for more coverage of AAAS2021!

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On the latest episode of Kain and Co., host David Kain, president of Kain Automotive, talks about employee development and communication skills.

Often times when you walk into a dealership, your communication skills are centered around that one-to-one in-person focus. Building trust with the customer is essential. Kain says, when you are a communicator, you have to be able to carry that forward.

Dress like a professional. Be attentive and create body language that’s leaning towards the customer. Kain says you want to be polite and caring. Be an active listener. Let the guest know you’re paying attention to their needs. Kain says to ask, what’s got you in the market? 72% of people had a life-changing event that causes them to get into the car business.

When you finally get a guest on the phone, take the time to build trust with the customer. Those who use an outline for the call set appointments at twice the rate of those that don’t. Kain says no matter how effective you are, sometimes a customer can throw you off. The right words and communication skills make a big difference.

Related: WSJ best-selling author Alex Goldfayn explains the power and profitability of phone calls

Be sure to use messaging and prepare to have a good dialogue with the guest. When you combine the phone call, text message, and email, it allows you to co-navigate with the guest. Don’t overlook using email. It helps you give more details to the customers. Video also makes a huge difference. Consider how important is to communicate effectively says Kain. You have to communicate over the long term as well.

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For those who are unfamiliar, RecovR is a two-in-one lot management and theft recovery solution by Kudelski IoT, a leading global IoT technology provider and unit of the Kudelski Group. With a proven team of more than 100 experienced professionals, Recover benefits from the Kudelski Group’s 70 years of innovation. RecovR has no upfront costs, enables dealerships to sell cars faster, and offers car buyers a valuable purchase add-on that captures incremental F&I revenue. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Hardy Schmidbauer, Senior Vice President at Kudelski IoT and General Manager at RecovR.

With RecovR comes new technology and a disruptive business model, which Schmidbauer believes sets them apart from their competitors. From the consumer perspective, they provide multiple different technologies to find your vehicle quickly, should it be tampered with. They’re also using different networks to ensure you have a good connection with your device and the application.

At the dealership level, each vehicle that has one of the RecovR’s devices can be located in real-time. Schmidbauer says it gives owners and GMs peace of mind to immediately be able to pull up their inventory and know exactly where everything is.

Additionally, RecovR devices can be sold to consumers in the F&I office as a theft recovery solution. Schmidbauer says he sees consumers using the product frequently. He adds that it’s an easy product to sell in F&I that consumers like and are willing to pay for. Some dealerships that are transitioning to online sales even utilize RecovR’s location services to possibly allow consumers after-hours access to a vehicle.

For more information visit, Recovr.biz.

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In the third quarter, as record sales and consumer spending declined, we talked to Tyson Jominy, Vice President of Data and Analytics at J.D. Power to get his insight on why this was happening and the impact it could have on the industry as a whole. Today, we chat with Jominy to find out if data has improved here in the final quarter and where things stand today.

Transaction prices were one of the strengths of October results. At J.D. Power, they saw transaction prices reach $44,000. That’s an increase of 20% from October 2020 and 28% from October 2019. Jominy says they did give some back in sales.

Vehicle grosses are reaching over $3,000, as opposed to $300 per unit, back in 2019. Jominy says these transaction prices are doing well for automakers and dealers. He says, now we’re at the point where sales are hurting one group more than the other. It’s the automakers getting hurt more than the dealers because sales are down.

Incentives are way down and are averaging about 4% of MSRP. The total dollars consumers are spending is down 3 months in a row. That’s hurting the automakers more than the dealers. Automakers are starting to see revenue, come down because of the sales volume pressure. Jominy says they’re seeing recession-era sales volume but overall high demand. Even seven straight months of record transaction prices can’t offset the current sales pace, which is back to 2011 levels.

Related: As incentives drop and prices rise, how can dealers convert shoppers to buyers?

Inventory can’t hurt us anymore, says Jominy. It’s about production and whatever we produce is what we’re going to sell. He says the auto industry is ultimately about building and selling cars.

Plug-in and hybrid cars are up over 5% in October 2021, that’s up over 2% from October 2020. Jominy says we’re seeing about 60 to 70% gain in sales in these vehicles, in one year alone. What’s driving the industry change is Model Y, Mach-E, and Volkswagen ID.4. This is the first time EV SUVs are being sold.

In the future, Jominy says we will see an industry very much like it is now. Which are tight inventory, high transaction prices, and vehicles turning as fast as they arrive. Currently, 50% of vehicles are turning within a week of arriving at the dealership. Over 4.5 million consumers have been out of the market for the last two years. He says there’s a lot of potentials for dealer profits to be very high throughout 2022.

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On the latest episode of Auto Marketing Now, host Brian Pasch, Founder of PCG Companies, sits down with CEO of A2Z Sync, Chip Perry to discuss the massive movement and investments into software companies that help reimagine automotive retail.

Perry says A2Z is helping dealers holistically transform the customer buying experience in the sales process into a customer-pleasing encounter. One of the biggest problems still sits at the transition from online to in-store. Over 90% of car purchases are still happening at the dealership.

Related: Digital retailing is STILL not plug-and-play

The reason why the industry has struggled with modernization is that it hasn’t fundamentally changed and improved with the use of digital technology says, Perry. Another reason is dealers are quite profitable today. Also, the lack of technology enables a unified, simple streamlined experience. Perry also believes it’s the complexity of the transaction. Lastly, the fourth hurdle is the culture, behavior, and habit patterns that many dealers have established throughout the years.

Only 20% of car buyers say they very much liked the most important part of the experience. There are probably 100 or fewer dealerships in America that are true one-person selling operations. Those that are showing this burning desire to improve customer experience.

Perry says their online tool enables very quickly, perfectly matching payments from the engine that produces the in-store deal structure and finance application and menu that gets inserted in the DMS. They wanted the salesperson to easily see what the customer did. They created a summary of the customer’s online activities that enables them to see exactly what cars they’re on and cars that were viewed.

The in-store experience will remain the dominant mode, of retail and automotive for years to come says, Perry. He does believe over time, the industry will perfect the online way to get to true Amazon-style, hands-free eCommerce. Scaling up to help this industry evolve as quickly as possible is the biggest most exciting opportunity we have in front of us says Perry.

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2021 has been a record year for mergers and acquisitions in retail automotive. We’ve seen quite a bit of activity, so what does this mean for the year ahead? And where do mom-and-pop stores stand? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome 20-year automotive industry veteran and President and CEO of Dave Cantin Group, Dave Cantin, to gives us his insight into acquisitions today.

The M&A market is busier than ever says, Cantin. Everyone was expecting it to slow down in Q4. There’s more new activity arising in the industry today than probably 8 months ago. Cantin says no one expected to hear acquisitions like we’re hearing today. This is the beginning of something big.

Related: Dealership M&A activity reaching feverish pace in third quarter

Cantin says, today, you’re either a buyer or seller. Most dealers don’t have a succession plan. He says it’s the right time. He says you can’t base a valuation, strictly on profitability. Some of these opportunities that are becoming available for acquisition, weren’t considered six months or a year ago to be sold. Opportunity drives price more than profitability. He says they’re seeing more opportunity than ever before.

A group that has one up to five stores, Cantin calls them a great tuck-in opportunity for a larger, private, or public platform. It’s about the cost of being able to sell the car. He says the mom-and-pop stores have been making historical profits in the last 18 months. It’s an incredible time to get out, Cantin believes.

Cantin says the automotive industry is filled with the most philanthropic dealers there are. The owners and entrepreneurs in this industry know how to give back, not just in the community but to their employees as well.

In three to five years, Cantin believes you’re going to drive up to your local car dealership, then you’re going to build your car on a kiosk, pay for it, and then it will be delivered directly to your home. It’s the evolution of the automotive industry. He thinks everything is happening for the right reasons at the right time and it’s going to be a good outcome for everyone involved.

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A daycare employee turned sales manager…not a story you hear every day, but that is the reality for Erikka Tiffani Wells. After working her through the automotive industry which began with a bad alternator, Erikka Tiffani Wells now stands as Sales Manager of the Volkswagen of Marion, Co-Founder and Vice President of WOCAN, the Women of Color Automotive Network, a motivational speaker, and recently named to Automotive News’ 40 under 40 list.

Erikka Tiffani joins us today to lend us her perspective on recruitment today through the continued pandemic and we’ll also get into the need for continued diversity efforts in our industry.

The power of social media is a big deal. Wells said Ashlee Church slid into her DMs (direct message) and asked Wells to consider a position in Illinois. At first, Wells said no. But with Church’s persistence and understanding of Wells’s needs, allowed her to move and create success the automotive industry desperately need.

Related: How much value does social media marketing bring to car dealerships?

WOCAN just hit its one-year anniversary back in August. Wells says to showcase and highlight other women within the automotive industry is an honor. Representation matters. She says, these women’s stories deserve to be told. Wells also says, in order to fix the diversity problem, leaders should lean on diversity and inclusion groups.

People hire people who they’re comfortable with says Wells. She says until you hire managers that are women of color, how can you bring other women in? There’s a lot of talent, that may not look like you. Wells believes if you’re not open to that and you’re not looking beyond your small circle of influence, then you’re missing out.

Wells says she’s looking forward to the future. She says it’s been a gut check for everyone, but their best and brightest days are still ahead. With the ongoing chip crisis and low inventory, Wells says they have gotten creative. They’ve changed their pay plan and taught their salespeople different skillsets. She says we have a unique opportunity during this pandemic to be empathetic of what’s really going on. She also says to gain a better understanding of your employees and create a change that you’re going to be able to continue all the way through.

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In case you missed it, Cars.com has acquired fintech company Credit IQ. The $30 million deal is welcome news for many dealers as a seamless car-buying transaction is at the top of many consumers’ lists. On today’s show, we’re joined by Bill Liatsis, Credit IQ’s Co-Founder and CEO, and Joe Chura, Co-Founder, and CEO of Dealer Inspire.

Related: CARS acquires CreditIQ Automotive Fintech Platform, enabling instant financing for consumers, dealers and lenders

Chura says the acquisition came to play because they were trying to figure out, how could they make the consumer and dealer experience as efficient as possible? Credit IQ had great relationships with a lending network. Credit IQ also allows the dealer to do everything online without touching anything regarding their profits.

Liatsis says they’ve been very focused on the dealer to have those options and choices. He says they’re able to give them new features to help accelerate the process and add new efficiencies into the experience. He says, there they have champions of the dealer.

Buying a car is complex and the transaction is complex says, Chura. You’re arguably buying an asset versus a product. He says one of the benefits to the Credit IQ transaction, is not only the technology on the lending side, but they have the ability to provide the backend products and pricing for those as well.

Liatsis says they have an incredible opportunity that’s in front of them. They can get things rolled out through the core properties but the technology has been built to provide the right connection points to make sure they can do a lot more than just in the shop. He says they’re doing some things that haven’t been seen elsewhere and they look forward to making sure the industry sees those in the near future.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Bill Liatsis and Joe Chura? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Mind Your Own Business, host Jonathan Dawson, founder of Sellchology Sales Training, discusses getting your mind focused on what is controllable.

Dawson poses the question, what’s changed within your control, or what have you changed? Train yourself by making a list of activities, behaviors, and disciplines that you and your team can focus on that are within your control to change. Start focusing on what is controllable.

Related: 8 unique ways to provide a better customer experience than your competition

Make a list of things you can control. Ask your team, what are they doing right now that allows you to adapt to the changing marketplace? Have each team member identify something they either could do or are doing. Then put it on a master list. You will then see a list of opportunities to focus on.

Dawson also says to guard your own mind. Focus on things and see them clearly. He says if you’re going to lead people, you need to be able to see things clearly as they are, without seeing them worse than they are.

When leaders begin to get discouraged, they have influence over an entire organization and can pull the entire organization in the wrong direction. Don’t just see things as they are, but as they could be or should be.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Mind Your Own Business? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Early this year we spoke to the President of Ziegler SuperSystems, Jim Ziegler, aka the Alpha Dawg, to get his perspective on the industry’s evolution. Since that time we’ve seen further innovation in digital retailing and sales techniques in response to the industry-wide shortages. Ziegler joins us today to give us an update on the industry and where we may be headed in 2022.

Every time things have changed, like it or not, we are in the Amazon generation says Ziegler. People are looking for instant gratification. He says we have to reach the customer at zero moments, while they’re still on the website. F&I has traditionally been an afterthought. Most customers are making a decision based on payments and finances, not on the price of the car. Ziegler says if customers don’t get the information they need on the website, they move on, and they don’t “be back”. He says we’re going to have to give customers a finance payment, while they’re still on the website and that’s digital retailing.

Related: Digital retailing is STILL not plug-and-play

Ziegler says he’s a believer in digital retailing. In the market, he says, be better than anybody else. Consumers aren’t the ones pulling the trigger online. He says it might be a small percentage of consumers wanting to do the entire transaction online, but it’s still a growing percentage. Ziegler also says to look at the reviews online because they all aren’t good.

You should be marketing, Ziegler says, but he asks, what are you advertising? We still have to motivate consumers to physically come to the dealership. There are many ways to advertise. Ziegler says people don’t know how to sell cars. The biggest thing to advertise is inventory. When inventory comes back to lets, you want to be ready to sell.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of the Friday 5? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this episode of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

Well, I am back from SEMA last week in Las Vegas, and it was my first time at the show. For anyone who loves cars, it really is the mecca of customized cars and aftermarket parts and accessories. You honestly wouldn’t believe some of the crazy cars out there. I highly recommend it to anyone who loves automobiles.

With that, let’s get right into this week’s deals. First up this week, let’s start with two IPOs that hit the market

RivianThe greatly anticipated IPO of EV manufacturer Rivian finally IPO’d this week at over $70 billion dollars in market cap, making it the largest IPO of this year, and one of the largest IPOs of all time.

Rivian was really put on the map back in 2019 when Amazon ordered 100,000 electric delivery trucks. Recently, Amazon disclosed that they own 20% in Rivian. Other early investors in Rivian included Cox Automotive.

Despite some other EV automakers that have suffered some massive flameouts over the last year, Tesla’s market capitalization peaking at more than $1.0 Trillion dollars has helped buoy Rivian’s debut.

E AutomotiveIn other IPO news, E Automotive, parent of EBlock and EDealer, went public over the past week on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

Due to demand, the company said it priced the IPO to bring in gross proceeds of $135.7 million dollars, up from an initial target of $125 million dollars. E Automotive is backed by Canadian merchant bank Intercap.

It’s nice to see that strategic acquisitions in the AutoTech space continue.

Cars.com & CreditIQThis week, Cars.com announced that they will acquire CreditIQ, an automotive fintech platform that provides instant online loan screening and approvals to facilitate online car buying.

Consideration for the transaction will be $30 million dollars in cash at closing, with the potential for up to an additional $50 million dollars in performance-based cash consideration to be earned over the next three years. The transaction is expected to close this month.

Cars.com explained their rationale for the acquisition: Dealers gain access to CreditIQ’s advanced digital financing technology, which facilitates the completion of the finance process online across the CARS platform via Dealer Inspire’s 5,200 websites, its digital retailing platform “Online Shopper,” and the Cars.com marketplace. Dealers benefit from improved efficiency, increased profit Per Vehicle, greater lead conversion, and deeper attribution data and insights.

In addition, the technology offers automated lender decisions from dealers’ preferred lender networks.

Lemonade & MetromilePublicly traded Insurance technology company Lemonade is acquiring Metromile, the data science company focused on auto insurance. Lemonade will acquire Metromile in an all-stock transaction that implies a fully diluted equity value of approximately $500 million dollars, or just over $200 million dollars net of cash.

While Lemonade has been at the forefront of using big data and AI in home and pet insurance, Metromile has been trailblazing a parallel path for car insurance.

Metromile’s car-mounted device took over 400 million road trips in recent years, covering billions of miles and sending real-time data back to the Metromile cloud. This is cross-referenced against actual claims data, yielding precise predictions for losses per mile driven. These algorithms hold the promise of accelerating traction for the automotive product called “Lemonade Car”.

TREDTRED, the online peer-to-peer car marketplace, announced a $25 million dollar Series B funding round to expand its products, locations, partnerships, and team of engineers. This funding round comes from new and existing investors including Genesis Capital Management, Westlake Financial, and CMFG Ventures.

TRED aims to make the buying and selling process simpler and faster for consumers. Its services include car buying and selling, auto financing, vehicle protection, vehicle value reports, fraud protection with TRED Escrow, and Guaranteed Asset Protection insurance.

TRED’s consumers can schedule test drives, engage with sellers to ask questions, pay online with financing from TRED, and pick up the car or have it delivered, all without ever setting foot in a car dealership or DMV.

BMW i VenturesBMW i Ventures, the venture capital unit of the BMW Group, announced a strategic investment in Upstream Security, which aims to accelerate the development of innovative automotive cybersecurity technologies and promote strategic connected vehicle cybersecurity projects.

Upstream provides a data management platform purpose-built for connected vehicles, delivering unparalleled automotive cybersecurity and advanced data-driven applications. The platform utilizes connected vehicle data to secure vehicles already on the road against known and unknown cyber-attacks and helps OEMs to unlock the value of automotive data.

Spartan RadarSpartan Radar closed a $15 million dollar series A round this week. The round was led by Prime Movers Lab, and it quickly follows a $10 million seed round secured in August.

Spartan Radar claim their radar systems, emerging from the aerospace and defense industries, make substantial advances in resolution, allowing for lidar-like levels of obstacle detection for driver-assist systems and self-driving vehicles.

The company’s chief product, “Biomemetic Radar”, parallels the manner in which humans perceive and process information. It can lead to a lower rate of false-positive detections.

And finally, some international news this week to share.

MomentaIn the wake of a $300 million dollar investment from General Motors in September, Momenta, an autonomous driving solution provider from China, announced an additional $500 million dollars added to its Series C round. The new injection brings the total of the startup’s Series C to over $1 billion dollars.

Momenta adapts what it calls a “two-legged strategy” of supplying advanced driver assistance systems to auto OEMs like GM and Tier 1 suppliers like Bosch, while conducting R&D on truly unmanned vehicles, that is, Level 4 driving.

The startup has assembled a list of heavyweight strategic investors, including China’s state-owned SAIC Motor, GM, Toyota Motor Corporation, Mercedes-Benz USA, and Bosch. Singapore’s sovereign fund Temasek and Jack Ma’s YunFeng Capital are among its institutional investors.

So with that, Let’s Transition To Our Companies To Watch!

Companies To WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry intel report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, we have two companies to watch: Cognomotiv and RoadBotics.

CognomotivFirst up, we have Cognomotiv, an early-stage company innovating in the vehicle data space.

Cognomotiv provides real-time data services to the automotive and transportation industries to enable the safety, security and proper functioning of modern and next-generation vehicles throughout their lifecycle. Using advanced data science and machine cognition, Cognomotiv continuously monitors vehicles as they operate—instantly detecting system faults and failures to increase vehicle safety, reliability and performance.

Through customizable management dashboards, Cognomotiv’s customers can view health and performance metrics of individual vehicles or entire fleets during operation.

Founded by experts in embedded, automotive and security technologies, Cognomotiv combines in-vehicle diagnostics with cybersecurity and backend system analytics to provide dynamic certification for all transport systems.

With its light Edge-AI footprint and powerful cognition engine, only Cognomotiv delivers critical runtime intelligence from the ECU to the cloud paired with outcomes-based recommendations to offer automotive companies a clear path to continuous improvement.

By gaining holistic intelligence of their products in the field, Cognomotiv customers can accelerate time-to-market of new offerings, reduce risks and lower costs of vehicle operation, and increase revenue.

Cognomotive is definitely a company to keep an eye on in the vehicle data software space.

RoadBoticsOur second company to watch this week is RoadBotics, which provides software that integrates geographic information system, or GIS, mapping into one single software application to make it easier and faster for users.

RoadBotics transforms your visual infrastructure data into meaningful maps using artificial intelligence.

Their “AgileMapper” product empowers you to quickly and easily review inventory assets and note their condition, efficiently monitor the progress of multiple projects, and clearly communicate with your team.

Their “RoadWay” product has enabled 250 governments worldwide to objectively assess and manage their road networks.

RoadBotics will continue to be a company to watch in the vehicle and infrastructure mapping segment.

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So that’s your weekly Friday Five, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in the automotive technology space over the past week.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who is trying to decide whether and when they should raise money or sell their business, I’d love to speak with you.

I hope to see you out in Las Vegas next week at the NAVIcon investor conference, right in the middle of Used Car Week. I will be up on stage engaging in a number of conversations with strategic acquirers, VCs and entrepreneurs. And after lunch, six companies will pitch off for the chance to win the NAVIcon Cup.

Thank You For Tuning into CBT News for this week’s Friday Five, and we’ll see you next week in Las Vegas!

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of the Friday 5? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to another episode of Founder Focus, a CBT original series that focuses on the journeys of some amazing automotive founders. Today, host Steve Greenfield is joined by Kelly Price, founder, and CEO of NAE/NWAN. The company grew into a national leader in providing auto RV and Powersports dealerships with finance and insurance products and solutions. Today, Greenfield peels back the layers to know what motivates Price, what she thinks about innovation, and how she built her place in the auto industry.

Price says she was always a student of her business. She wanted to know everything about it. She learned it was also about how you treated your customers. Price ended up in finance by asking to write a process model to be able to teach people how to get into finance. She studied contracts and claims, so as she was selling it to a customer, she understood it on the backside.

When building her business, Price realized relationships are that important. The biggest aha moment was also realizing that there is such a great value to an agent representing dealers and the products that they have. They turned their focus to making sure they were providing the best service possible to not only the dealer but also the agent and making sure they kept the relationship alive.

Related: 10 things that can harm your relationships with customers

I like to work and I just allow God to put things in front of me of what I’m supposed to be doing, says Price. Price and her team opened up Changing Lives Foundation. They put the foundation in place, for in the event you are in catastrophic need, you have someplace to turn to. They continue to make a difference in many people’s lives.

Price says don’t lose your purpose and be prepared for the long haul journey. Remember to pay attention to the details. Price believes people have to be first. She says the biggest mistake she’s ever made, was not taking care of herself. Price thinks it would have made her a better leader and coach of the people she managed if she was calmer. It really makes a huge difference.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Founder Focus? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, discusses a few statistics and best practices to position your inventory to go into the months of January and February with a strong inventory.

Wholesale is at a record high. In the month of October, this is the first time wholesale has gone up, where traditionally it goes down in the fall season. Make sure you’re aware of Cox Automotive’s, 13-month rolling used vehicle SAAR. Used-vehicle sales were down 13% this year. Retail sales have also been downward.

Related: Wholesale prices expected to climb even higher after setting September record

OEMs, lease returns, and lanes are not running as many cars as they typically would. Rice says if dealers’ retail sales start to slow down, the shopper activity will slow down. He asks the question, where are these cars moving to? Rice says be prepared to go into January and February.

Rice says to make sure you’re positioning your inventory for photos. Also, check the dash shots, and position your cars going into these slower and colder months. Rice says to keep an eye on your local shopper activity.

Anything you’re buying is going to be in that 30 to 40-day old in December. Position cars to sell.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Used Cars Weekly? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Kain and Co., host David Kain, president of Kain Automotive, sits down with the Platform Director of Jackie Cooper Imports in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Chris Martinez.

Currently, Jackie Cooper has five franchise locations, and just completed their biggest month to date, selling 690 vehicles. Despite the inventory shortages and challenges they’ve experienced, Martinez says the group continues to break records and they’ve been blessed.

Related: Leadership styles that get results

Martinez says one of the most important things is trying to keep the same people in the market. He says sometimes it’s not that easy, when people may have bad habits, been there numerous years, and don’t like change. Martinez took it as a challenge to support the employees there and do all that he could to get better and help himself in the process of growing. They still continue to stay constant.

In order to win people over, you talk to them like human beings says, Martinez. He didn’t come in with a demanding approach, but rather an open mind. As a result of making small adjustments, Martinez felt he gained the employees’ respect. Being in the 20 Group, Martinez says, opens your eyes to the blind spots you’re not currently looking at as well. The old adage is true, you don’t know what you don’t know.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Kain & Co.? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Hoffman Auto Group, based in Connecticut, is celebrating 100 years in the business this year. From a single Ford store in 1921, the family-owned business has grown to consist of ten dealerships and nine brands. But after 100 years, you have to ask..what’s next and what’s the secret? On today’s edition of Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome Bradley Hoffman, Co-Chairman of Hoffman Auto Group, to discuss what business looks like for Hoffman Auto Group today.

Its interesting times in the automobile business says, Hoffman. When it comes to growth, he says it’s hard to know what that will look like in twenty to forty years. There are plans to continue the business but they have no intentions to sell. It’s about the community and the people who have worked at the dealership that keep things going.

Hoffman says they had plans years ago to take on the approach of digital retailing. He says the problem was chain management and getting everyone to operate that way. Then the pandemic came and forced the chain management to transition. Hoffman says it helped their company a lot. Ten years from now, he does believe 100% of the people will operate this way.

We are already in the game when it comes to EVs says, Hoffman. As a leader, he says he embraces it. They are about to launch a major EV campaign, based on all the brands. He says he wants to let the public know that they’re leaders in the business. They’re not waiting for someone to tell them they have to sell electric cars, because they’re doing it now.

Related: Nearly one-third of car shoppers are checking out EVs

Hoffman says their day supply is zero. They are a chain where individual dealerships may carry nine to eleven vehicles. He says production is starting to ramp up a little bit. He does believe dealers have become better operators on merchandising, marketing and, how they sell their products.

Hoffman does worry about, the threat of a direct sell model and franchise landscapes. Hoffman says if a dealer group does a good job with retention on older vehicles, they’ll be widely successful.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Bradley Hoffman? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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This upcoming Veteran’s Day, November 11, we want to celebrate, honor, and also highlight an organization that is helping America’s heroes daily. Hire Heroes USA is a non-profit organization that helps thousands of veterans and their spouses find employment.

We’re pleased to welcome Chief Operating Officer of Hire Heroes USA, Ross Dickman, to discuss the importance and benefit of recruiting veterans and their spouses today.

Hire Heroes USA is an employment service charity focused on veterans and military spouses and was founded almost 16 years ago. Chairman and Founder John Bardis met with a particular soldier and the soldier’s number one fear was finding a job after service. Since then, they have placed over 60,000 veterans and military spouses into wonderful careers and are inspired to get the next 60,000 hired.

Related: How this auto industry veteran is inspiring young people to explore the car business

Dickman says discipline, accountability, and teamwork are a few of the leadership skills men and women leave the service with. He says you’re getting someone who’s inspired by the direction and purpose of the organization and adheres to strong cultural values. They have an owners’ mindset while exercising creativity.

We believe veterans are a great opportunity to enhance your workforce says Dickman. They can come from your community and bring diverse skillsets. They’ve gone through challenging experiences but they are fully committed and capable to lead.

Dickman says they work with a lot of organizations that recognize the cultural value that a veteran will bring and their skillsets. He says they tell their clients, no one will hire you just because you’re a veteran, they want to hire the person best fit for the job. But, if you can use your veteran skills to be the best person for the job, that’s great for any business owner.

If you would like to be a client of Hire Heroes USA or an employer looking to hire, click here.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Ross Dickman? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Straight Talk, host David Lewis, President of David Lewis & Associates, tells you how you can get your point across and get the customer’s permission to do something that would normally be out of bounds.

Lewis shares how to respond to a stupid or out-of-line objection by the customer with this one question, “can I make a sarcastic comment?” You may have had opportunities, where you wish you could say what was really on your mind.

In nearly every case, a customer will agree and then you can make a response suited for the kind of offer the customer has made. This lightens the atmosphere and gives you an opportunity to tell the customer what you really think of their offer.

Related: How to handle and overcome car sales objections with today’s buyers

At first, this might seem like a ridiculous thing to do and a bit risky to the deal. Lewis says there are times where you need to speak your mind. This allows you to do that and keep things professional on both sides of the desk. He says people appreciate it when you’re honest and open and you’re trying to do your best to be professional during a business negotiation.

If you’ve been showing the customer respect in the way you have handled your sales presentation, they should show you respect in return. Lewis believes this gives you the opportunity to snap things back to reality and get things back on track.

When push comes to shove, people can’t just be dealt with and you can let them go, knowing you did your best to put together a reasonable offer and they just couldn’t see it.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Straight Talk? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Have you purchased equipment for your service team that isn’t being used? Or maybe it just isn’t being used as often as it should be? You’re not alone. Dealers often run into this problem, but there are protocols you can implement to get the highest return on your investment.

Joining us now to give us his recommendations is Don Reed, CEO of DealerPRO Training, one of the nation’s top fixed-ops training platforms for dealers and host of CBT’s show, Service Drive.

Related: Tools the service department should supply for techs

One of the big things dealers need to focus on is accountability says Reed. We have to hold our management team and those employees working for that manager accountable for their performance and compliance with whatever the new company policy is.

The real key is management. They need to pay attention to what’s going on in the service drive and/or service department says Reed. They also need to be tracking the performance of the people supposed to be using the equipment. He says the advisors and technicians need to be properly trained.

Reed says what they have found is that every dealership has the capacity to produce hours but doesn’t know how to do it. They have an acronym COE, condition of employment. It’s not an option says Reed.

It’s our job as automotive service professionals to make sure we properly train the customer on how to maintain that vehicle properly. Reed finds that customers are appreciative of a good service advisor. He says that every time they see a dealership’s sales and repair order go up, their CSI normally goes up with it.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Don Reed? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to a special edition of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies. This week, Steve is reporting on-site from the 2021 SEMA Conference, the annual trade show where you can see thousands of product innovations from 1,300 new and iconic exhibitors and experience the latest product and custom vehicle trends.

The SEMA Show at the Las Vegas Convention Center is presented in conjunction with the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Week. As part of this event, SEMA and other automotive aftermarket trade groups make up one of the single largest events on the Las Vegas calendar. This show is not open to the public. Registration as media, manufacturer, buyer, or exhibitor is required.

Pre-pandemic, the SEMA Show in Las Vegas drew about 60,000 attendees. The displays are segmented into 12 sections, and a New Products Showcase features nearly 2,000 newly introduced parts, tools, and components. It’s a great place to get exposed to early-stage innovative companies across the automotive landscape. In addition, the SEMA Show provides attendees with educational seminars, product demonstrations, special events, and networking opportunities.

The first SEMA Show was held in 1967 in the basement of the Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, before moving to the new Anaheim Stadium in 1974.

With more than 1,300 exhibiting companies and 51,000 buyers confirmed to date, this year’s SEMA Show—marks the first full-facility event to take place at the Las Vegas Convention Center since the pandemic.

To help visitors stay on top of trends and opportunities, this year’s SEMA Show includes a dedicated “SEMA Electrified” area, where new innovations and cutting-edge technology took center stage.

This is definitely a key show in the auto industry and is a great place to find early-stage companies who are innovating across the automotive landscape.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Alex Goldfayn? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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When you become the leader of an organization, start a business, or take on any kind of entrepreneurial path, oftentimes you are also met with fear and doubt along the way. On today’s show we’re pleased to welcome Alex Goldfayn, keynote sales speaker, CEO of The Revenue Growth Consultancy, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author, to explain entrepreneurial mindset issues facing many today and what you can do to overcome them.

If a million people think about a business to start, the number that actually does it is in the three or four figures says Goldfayn. The biggest difference is, instead of getting paid every two weeks, you’re only getting paid when you sell. He says an entrepreneurial mindset has to be a hunting mindset.

Goldfayn says more than anything else, fear is what holds us back. Fear is the strongest emotion and it over empowers anything that stands in its way. It plows over good intentions you might have. He says fear is the reason why we don’t do the things we know we should do. It’s also the reason we avoid these uncomfortable actions. Fear leads to procrastination. Procrastination is death to a business. Goldfayn also says entrepreneurship demands action.

One thing you can do is focus on things you have done well. Goldfayn says to write a positive self-talk script. Another technique is to try something once. The first action gives you an outcome, energy, and motivation that can lead you to the next action.

If a person rejects you or says no, what happens is the person or prospect saw that you put in the effort. Secondly, they heard your voice and the name of your company. Lastly, they know they can purchase the product from you. Goldfayn says, don’t think of a ‘no’ in your phone call as a failure or a loss. Sometimes, it’s about timing and the customer will remember you when they need your product or service.

Related: The key to overcoming fear and rejection as a salesperson in the car dealership

The single most effective tool to grow your sales is to pick up the phone and make proactive calls. The phone is also the most avoided tool because you hear the rejection personally. Goldfayn says, make 3 calls a day and then follow up. Anything that you’re avoiding because of fear, do it first thing in the morning.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, discusses stocking strategies for the current market.

There are pros and cons to being specific with the make, model, and brand of your inventory. Being too specific could burn out the market. There are so many buyers for your market, and you could’ve possibly diluted them out.

Rice says stocking strategies based on historical data could possibly hurt you in this shortage market. A lot of customers are settling for what they can get their hands on. Look for segment buyers and payment buyers in your market. Customers are likely to be more budget loyal than brand loyal. Dealers need to figure out what budget cars move on their lot. Once you get to certain makes and models, specifics of that could change.

Related: Americans spend nearly $5k per year on car payments. Here’s why it matters.

It’s also important to know your market and their needs. Take advantage of ‘one-off’ cars, but realize your potential is limited. Upselling to ‘one-off’ buyers is limited. Rice says dealers need to be looking long term, not just short term. Longevity at your dealership is that customer three years down the road, coming back. Don’t just go buy rental rockets, like Rogues or Altimas. Price to your local market and buyers.

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On the latest episode of Kain and Co., host David Kain, president of Kain Automotive, shares the language that works well when it comes to working with less inventory you have on the ground.

In today’s age, Kain says they’re seeing a lot of guests that are shopping near and far looking for the right vehicle they hope to purchase. It’s also a challenge when you receive a lead and you don’t have the inventory that is available for the guest. The key is to recognize that you’re not going to sell someone a vehicle you don’t have but you want to sell them something. You need to respond strategically when responding to guests in this particular situation.

Kain says you want to find out what drew the customer interest in the vehicle they’re shopping for. He says the first question you would ask is was it the price, color, or features you’re looking to have? That helps you figure out what they were shopping for. Whether it’s a new or used vehicle, customers are shopping at multiple dealerships. This also affords you the opportunity to learn from the customer, whether they were specifically in that vehicle or perhaps open to something else.

If you don’t have it in your local inventory, then double-check to see if you have it in your central inventory. Central inventory is vehicles in transit, online ordering, or locating a vehicle. When you give a guest an optimistic outlook that shows them you have a solution, which affords a better future for both of you.

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For over 35 years Joe Verde Group has been a lead trainer for dealers, managers, and salespeople around the world. Each month here on CBT News, Sean Gardner, Instructor and Sales Trainer with the Joe Verde Group joins us to give us insight on training and what you can do to maintain your competitive edge in the marketplace.

Moving forward dealers need to focus on how to reach improvement goals says Gardner. You can order vehicles. At dealer groups, there are a lot of cross-selling opportunities. He believes selling two to four extra cars is doable.

Related: The difference between a ‘deal killer’ and a ‘deal pauser’ when handling client objections

The result dealers want only represents 25% of the success of goal setting. 75% of the success of goal setting is the plan. Gardner says it takes discipline to follow the plan. He asks the question, what tools are you going to use to go from selling 8 cars to 20? That is where training comes into play. Salespeople need to focus on giving better demonstrations and presentations on the vehicles they do have in stock.

94% of all realistic goals that are written down and reviewed daily are achieved says, Joe Verde. It’s not just about the plan and daily routine but skills that are developed to do a better job with the customers you already have. Gardner says salespeople need to learn specific skills and strategies on how to handle current price objections.

Gardner says they teach a technique about rephrasing price objections. The technique makes things easier to handle to give salespeople more ways to go. He says to make it about the experience, not the price.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Sean Gardner? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Auto Marketing Now, host Brian Pasch, Founder of PCG Companies, highlights a few experiences to share ways in which your dealership can improve and discover some things you were probably never aware of.

When it comes to potential spam calls, Pasch recommends dealerships check your BDC outbound calls to make sure they are not being flagged as spam calls. Test as many carriers as possible. Make sure that the call to their phone is coming through clearly. Also, make sure the number that is being assigned to your outbound calls from the BDC is a clean phone number.

The second recommendation is to have Google My Business listings for sales, service, and parts at your dealership. Each listing should have 10 categories. There’s a free chrome extension tool, titled GMBspy. When you use GMBspy, you can go to any dealer’s GMB listing, and it will show you all the business categories. Out of 11 stores, Pasch visited on his road trip, not one had their Google My Business correct.

Related: Why optimizing Google My Business can lead to high quality traffic

The last recommendation is to simplify your digital customer experience to make it easy for the customer to navigate. He says some dealerships either have too many buttons or the buttons are not prioritized. More is not better. Pasch says take a moment to look at your website through a consumer’s eyes. Each button when clicked is being sent to Google Analytics, so you can see how many times people are clicking on each button and how many times they generate a true sales opportunity.

To learn more about cutting-edge and innovating automotive marketing strategies, consider attending the upcoming Automotive Analytics and Attribution Summit this November. Click here to read the details.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Lissette Gole? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Despite the industry’s inventory and chip uncertainty, retail automotive has continued to shift and evolve online. Today’s successful dealerships are offering the entire vehicle purchase process through your mobile device. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome back Lissette Gole who is the Head of Automotive Retail at Google. Her nearly 20-year career has been dedicated to the automotive industry, so on today’s show, she’ll take us through today’s top trends and ways you can improve your online retailing.

Gole says she recognizes today that a lot of consumers want to have an omnichannel or hybrid experience. She sees a lot of shoppers move fully online, with expectations constantly changing. Gole says instead of moving into the why start looking at the how.

In 2018, 1% of vehicles were sold completely through online retailing. In 2020, that number increased to 10%. Search trends have increased over the last 18 months, with a peak in April, and have since remained higher and steady than any year prior. Gole says the first thing you can do is look at your keywords and campaign strategies. Those need to evolve with customer increased interest.

Related: 3 key elements car dealers need to focus on for digital retailing

Online retailing is broken into three key areas: media, user experience, and data and technology. Gole recommends auditing your mobile website. Access your mobile site’s load time. Data shows if your website is loading for more than 4 seconds, you’re losing 40% of your shoppers. She says, it’s not an easy process, but it’s worth it in the end.

There is still a role for the salesperson says, Gole. Customers still want to be able to pick up the phone and get reassurance. While these transactions are happening online, she says we still need that concierge service.

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The 2021 Cox Automotive Service Industry Study revealed positive news for dealership service centers, but is money still being left on the table? On today’s Power Lunch we’re pleased to welcome Tracy Fred, Vice President of Operations for Xtime, to take us through their latest study and what you can do to improve your consumer experience today.

The study included more than 2500 consumers in the U.S. from ages 18 to 75 that have had at least one service visit in the past 12 months. The study revealed, despite challenging market conditions, dealership service centers remained resilient with a market share up 1% from 2018 to 34% in 2021. Fred says there’s still another 66% of the service market up for grabs, translating to $214 billion in potential revenue.

While consumers prefer dealerships, the top barriers for returning to the dealership are cost and location. When consumers do visit the dealership service department, nearly 1 in 4 says, their dealership visit takes longer than expected. Dealerships’ top frustrations were parts delays from manufacturers and hiring technicians. Fifty-seven percent of dealerships say their service department is not fully staffed. Eighty percent of dealerships say they expect the labor shortage to continue. Fred says, while there is a shortage, there is a focus on investing in this particular area of the business.

Related: Embrace technology in the service department for faster turnaround times

Nearly, all top-performing dealers agreed that improving the consumer experience is an important focus, moving forward. Fred says they found that service departments that offered digital tools to their consumers, generally have a positive outlook. Nine in ten vehicle owners who scheduled a service appointment online were highly satisfied. She says dealerships need to make sure they promote these tools and the conveniences they enable for consumers at every opportunity.

Did you enjoy this podcast Power Lunch with Tracy Fred? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Do you have a winning strategy going into the new year to generate more revenue? If not, the Automotive Analytics & Attribution Summit (AAAS) is where you should be November 14-16th in Palm Beach, Florida. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Brian Pasch, Founder of PCG Companies, and host of CBT’s show, Auto Marketing Now, to discuss how dealers are measuring performance now, and what YOU can expect at AAAS.

It’s no time to rest on your laurels, even if you have record profitability, says Pasch. Dealers need to get a new playbook to be successful for next year. There are interesting differences between dealers and dealer groups. Some have a tight process on when a lead comes in and how they follow that down to a sale. Pasch says good operators look at those sale opportunities to make sure they turn into sales.

This year, Pasch says they plan to tackle five pain points that dealers have. The big breakthrough was that they realize they were sending Google the wrong signals to optimize sales campaigns for new and used cars. At the conference Pasch says, he’s not going to restate the problem but show dealers how to fix their advertising. One of the other big breakthroughs is looking at the website as a living ecosystem with active shoppers.

Related: Everything you need to know about the recent Google Ads updates

Digital retailing is a “thing” but few are transactional, meaning everything is done 100% online says Pasch. He says you’re going to hear dealers say it’s not the technology but the staffing model. They’re also going to be discussing, rentals, acquisitions, and breakthroughs in technology.

To learn more about cutting-edge and innovating automotive marketing strategies, consider attending the upcoming Automotive Analytics & Attribution Summit this November. Click here to read the details.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Brian Pasch? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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The U.S. is often referred to as a ‘melting pot’, which gives brands the ability to reach wide audiences right here. Yet many miss the mark by not engaging with consumers accurately through diversity marketing. Today on Diversity in Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome Dr. Debbie Qaqish, Partner and Chief Strategy Officer of The Pedowitz Group, to guide us through how brands can best engage with consumers through diversity marketing.

Diversity marketing is about inclusion, being real and authentic. The days of this fake, plastic, corporate America messaging to people is gone says Qaqish. What people want now is authenticity and diversity marketing is a great way to achieve that. She says we have to also make sure we’re being inclusive.

You need to have a diverse workforce. Studies have shown that companies with diversity outperform those who don’t. If you have inclusion across different races, you have an even higher market valuation. Qaqish says that’s what consumers expect nowadays.

It’s about getting diversity into the C-suites. The higher you go into organizations, the less diversification. Qaqish says it’s really a shame because diversity pays. Everything people want to know about you, your company, and what you do is all online. It starts at the top says Qaqish.

Brands need to do more, says Qaqish. It begins with your messaging. People need to know that they’re dealing with an organization that cares. When evaluating your marketing, Qaqish says the first thing you should do is to have an organization that understands PR and helps enable programs in the company that includes diversity. It’s about making a connection, and that’s always a great first step says Qaqish.

Related: A Win For Everyone: How to Promote Diversity at Your Dealership

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Diversity in Automotive? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Are you striving to hit the next level as a salesperson? Our next guest has made quite a name for himself as his sales numbers and volume are virtually unheard of. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Frank Crinite, Sales Consultant with Piazza Honda of Springfield, to discuss what the market looks like beyond the shortages.

Related: How the emotional state of consumers impacts their buying decisions

People want to hear what you actually can do for them says Crinite. He lays out a plan for everyone and matches up a car with a customer for an opportunity. He says nowadays customers are looking for you to solve a problem. It’s better to make an educated decision versus an emotional decision.

Crinite says everything is about service to your customer right now. This is not the time to be doing just a money grab. He says right now is the single greatest time in history, if you have a model vehicle to trade in for cash value to take advantage of the current inventory coming in. Crinite also says, it’s not the sticker price, it’s about the current market value. When the market does pull back, customers will be ready to take advantage of those market trends.

This is not a month-to-month business says Crinite. He says he tries to serve as many people as he possibly can. Customer service is preached in this business but it’s lacking in actually serving the customer. Dealers need to take that transactional sale and cultivate it into a relationship.

For more information visit: Thepinnaclesociety.com

Did you enjoy this podcast with Frank Crinite? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

SpiffyFirst up this week, Spiffy, the on-demand car-servicing startup, has raised $22 million dollars in a Series B round, led by Tribeca Venture Partners, and included several industry partners, such as the investment arms of both Goodyear and Shell.

Local investors bull city venture partners also invested in the company.

Founded in 2014 by former Channel Advisor CEO Scot Wingo, Spiffy initially focused on providing mobile car washes to customers.

OEConnectionOEConnection, the North American automotive industry’s largest technology provider for OEM distribution networks, has acquired Verifacts Automotive.

Details of the transaction were not disclosed.

OEConnection’s business has a heavy focus on OEM parts. The company serves more than 135,000 repairers and 30,000 dealerships worldwide, as well as 37 automotive brands.

Verifacts Automotive provides collision repair process consulting services across North America. The company helps collision repair facilities achieve OEM certifications, and provides assurance to OEMs that their repair facilities are being followed in their certified networks.

The CapStreet GroupThe CapStreet Group has completed the majority recapitalization of Credit Bureau Connection, in partnership with the founder and other shareholders.

Credit Bureau Connection offers credit report and compliance solutions to the automotive and general consumer finance industries across the united states.

The company optimizes and automates the consumer finance qualification process through a fast, easy-to-use, and secure software platform accessible to end-users directly, or via standard API protocols made available to its extensive network of software affiliate partners.

AirGarageAirGarage has closed a $12.5 million dollar Series A round led by Andreessen Horowitz, with participation from existing investors Floodgate, Founders Fund, and Abstract Ventures.

AirGarage works with parking real estate owners and offers a full-stack software and management service for their lot or garage. That means handling everything from installing signage to collecting payments and even providing parking enforcement.

AirGarage already has more than 200 locations across 30 states under its management.

The company’s undergone a number of pivots since its founding in 2017. The original instantiation of AirGarage was to create a platform for people to rent out their driveways to college students who were paying exorbitant fees for on-campus parking.

Claim GeniusClaim Genius, a global insurtech provider of AI-based claims solutions for the automotive industry, closed a $6 million dollar Series A3 funding round, following its earlier funding of $7.8 million dollars; now totaling $14.8 million dollars to date.

The latest round is backed by investors including Malaysia-based Financial Link group and Siri InfoSolutions.

Claim Genius continues to grow its services globally with live customers in four countries. Its AI computer vision technology is sought after throughout the global automotive industry ecosystem, such as insurance companies, repair facilities, recycling, salvage, towing, and leasing companies in North America and internationally.

DellferDellfer, an automotive and IoT cybersecurity software company, announced an $8 million dollar Series A investment from mobility supplier Denso and specialist cybersecurity private equity firm Option3.

The three companies noted that the automotive industry and other IoT environments increasingly require cybersecurity solutions to protect potential vulnerabilities.

With a specialty in cybersecurity for the automotive industry, Dellfer delivers a holistic solution providing high-level visibility and granular, actionable insights to thwart intrusions in automobiles.

Today’s new cars contain up to 100 electronic control units and 100 to 150 million lines of software code.

Global cybercrimes are estimated to reach $6 trillion dollars by the end of 2021 and continue to grow 15% annually, reaching $10 trillion dollars by 2025.

AutoManagerBeekman Investment Partners has completed an investment in dealership DMS company AutoManager to recapitalize the company.

Details of the transaction were not disclosed.

California-based AutoManager was founded in 1987 and is a provider of DMS and website builder tools to independent auto dealers in North America, providing a range of software modules used for managing dealerships such as inventory management, finance, and insurance, buy here pay here, CRM, and accounting, as well as website and digital marketing solutions.

Tactile-MobilityIn international news this week, Israeli startup Tactile-Mobility announced a $27 million dollar Series C raise which it will use to further develop its virtual sensors, expand its product offerings and bolster its cloud platform.

The funding round, which brings Tactile-Mobility’s total funding to $47 million dollars, was led by Delek Motors, with strategic investment from Goodyear Ventures and Porsche Ventures and support from Union Group, and the group ventures.

Tactile-Mobility uses existing vehicle sensor data to enable cars to “feel” the road in a way that generates insights about both the vehicle and the road via its cloud platform.

Mapping the roads by measuring tire grip enables tactile to map things like potholes, cracks in the road, slipperiness, snowfall, and more. The insights can be gathered in real-time and downloaded to other vehicles roaming in a specific area, which might give drivers a heads-up to poor road conditions and improve safety. Analytics can also be shared via a report for third parties like mapping companies, road authorities, or fleet managers to identify areas of distress on the road.

FlixMobilityAnd finally, FlixMobility, the $3 billion German transportation startup that has doubled down on long-distance buses and slowly and quietly gobbled up transit lines and operations across Europe, announced it is acquiring Greyhound Lines, the iconic U.S. bus network.

Flix said the deal — which includes a vehicle fleet, trademarks, and related assets and liabilities — has an enterprise value of $46 million dollars.

The deal signifies a huge move for Flix to double down not just on bus transport, but the U.S. market, where it was already active but with a significantly smaller profile.

FlixBus, as the service is known, is today active in more than 2,500 destinations in 36 countries outside the U.S., working across 400,000 daily connections.

Greyhound Lines is actually nearly as big: it covers 2,400 destinations in North America, with almost 16 million passengers annually.

Company to WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry intel report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday 5 to share some of those companies each week with you.

Auto IntegrateToday, our company to watch is Auto Integrate, an innovative company that plays in the fleet maintenance space.

Auto Integrate is a fleet maintenance authorization tool that lets businesses and suppliers securely manage their maintenance authorization transactions. The system allows for faster submissions, reviews, approvals, and payments of all maintenance transactions.

Developed specifically for the North American fleet management service industry, auto integrate is a cloud-based vehicle maintenance software that helps streamline transactional workflows.

The Auto Integrate platform also covers critical stages in the typical life cycle of a fleet vehicle, including vehicle service; truck authorization and vehicle acquisition; maintenance authorization; and downtime management.

Once work has been completed, the electronic audit of authority allows for a smooth billing process, reducing the risk of duplicate orders and minimizing time spent chasing outstanding requests.

Built to work with a fleet’s entire vehicle portfolio, Auto Integrate has serviced more than 25.7 million transactions.

Auto Integrate has an extensive vendor network, with over 76,000 shops enrolled. They also service over 5.1 million vehicles.

Auto Integrate is a company to keep an eye on in the fleet management software space.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

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People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of The Friday 5? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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For over 30 years, David Lewis and Associates has been taking dealership sales and service to the next level. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome David Lewis, President, and CEO of David Lewis and Associates, and the host of CBT’s show, Straight Talk, to guide us through selling more customer pay revenue.

It boils down to one thing, we don’t sell more customer pay revenue because we don’t make great presentations and demonstrations in our service lanes, says Lewis. Dealers got so into the process and procedures they forgot how to sell to customers. 99 out of 100 times, service advisors talks over the customer.

Related: How Brooke.ai fills in the gaps when managing service appointments

Lewis calls it ‘show and tell’. He says he would never sell a car, without showing the customer the car. He also says the customer has the right to say no to you, but they have to have the best information. Advisors should learn how to make videos, that show customers what needs to be done. Create the value. He says it’s something so simple that we make it so hard.

Train people how to make appointments appropriately says, Lewis. There should never be a waiter first thing in the morning. At bigger dealerships, Lewis says they take about 2 service advisors and make them selling advisors. The other advisors are then processing advisors.

Lewis will be speaking at the 2022 NADA Show. His session will be about educating attendees on how it is to be a customer. For more information, click here.

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Virtually everyone in the automotive industry has been talking about the chip and inventory shortage and its impact. But not much talk has surrounded relief. What happens when the industry returns to normal supply?

On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Guy Schueller, Industry Director of Automotive for Twitter to address the chip shortage conversation and share insight on how car dealers can work to build their brands on Twitter in order to showcase their value.

Consumers are now identifying microchips as a reason they can’t get a car. Schueller says they’ve seen 137% growth in the last 6 months around the conversation of microchips. Each social platform has a unique strength. He thinks it important for car dealers to know, who’s managing their digital presence, to understand the strength of each platform. The good news is the auto conversation has not slowed down but it’s healthy and it continues to grow.

While the conversations are being held, Schueller says they are starting to see more negative sentiment related to the auto shopping experience. It’s important for car dealers to not pull back right now. Schueller’s biggest concern is that brands and car dealers have to learn how to play the long game.

If you have an account on Twitter, follow @TwitterBusiness. Schueller says that is the place they are always talking about brands, car dealers, and small businesses that can get involved on the platform. He also says to check out professional profiles. You’re able to set up an ad account and do commerce within the platform. If consumers are going to be holding on to their vehicles longer, how are dealerships talking to customers about service and keeping them loyal? Being relevant is critical.

Related: How much value does social media marketing bring to car dealerships?

Schueller says the EV conversation on Twitter is very healthy. He says they typically have a forward-looking audience. They’re the first adopters of a lot of things. Schueller says they may be the first to come into your dealership and ask, where are your EVs? Car dealers need to recognize what their dealership is evolving into. The dealer will play a key role in helping consumers decide through the online purchase process about what they’re going to do.

When it comes to Twitter, it’s about the power of conversation. Are you being discussed? Are you active? Twitter is a great platform to shift consumer perception. Schueller says you need to invest in your brand. He says the cheapest and easiest thing you can do, is to keep the customers you already have.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Guy Schueller? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Auto Marketing Now, host Brian Pasch, Founder of PCG Companies, talks about the growing trend of OEMs building national sales websites for new cars and the impact it will have on dealer groups.

The public automotive groups have been having a banner year, especially since the turnaround post-Covid. Many of the national chains are gobbling up smaller stores at a record pace. They’ve also been implementing their scalable leadership style and sales process.

Today, technology, data, and a clear management process is a way to increase profitability at dealerships. Pasch poses the question, what will dealer websites look like if more OEMs demand national-level features? Dealer marketing campaigns that would drive traffic to their website for new cars, would lose the click attribution. Pasch says you would lose to what’s happening on the third-party digital retailing sites owned by the OEMs. Your websites would then have a divided experience.

Pasch is calling on dealers to push back and have a more reasonable conversation with their OEM partners. An advantage of a subdomain is that dealers can see click actions between their main website and the subdomain. Pasch says dealers need to understand that the larger dealer groups are trying to create a brand experience.

Related: How increased website engagement and high quality leads go hand in hand – Jordan Morrison of Pureinfluencer

Pasch says now is the time for dealer groups to unite. If every OEM is going to require new car purchase transactions and calculations on a national site, then the face of retail changes forever.

To learn more about cutting-edge and innovating automotive marketing strategies, consider attending the upcoming Automotive Analytics and Attribution Summit this November. Click here to read the details.

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What does the incredible year of buy/sell activity we’ve seen mean for the OEMs? On today’s show, we’re joined by Erin Kerrigan, Founder and Managing Director of Kerrigan Advisors to walk us through what’s happening in the buy-sell market today.

They expected 2021 to be the year of the megadeal and Kerrigan thinks 2022 will continue that trend. The Larry H. Miller transaction with Asbury valued at $3.2 billion is a new record. She says what’s interesting about that deal is how strong the evaluation it is. It’s the sense of confidence that the industry will be able to continue at this level of profitability. Kerrigan finds that dealership groups with strong brands are valued at a higher level than those that don’t have either a regional presence with a brand or a dominant brand.

Related: Dealership M&A activity reaching feverish pace in third quarter

Kerrigan says the number one reason you are seeing so many megadeals is because the stock market is at an all-time high. The Kerrigan Index surpassed the 1,000 mark in March and kept going. Also, interest rates and the debt markets are minimal.

Over 50% of the industry is in some form of transition. The auto industry has defied the odds as it relates to family businesses being passed down. Kerrigan says businesses are trying to figure out if they want to transition into electrification and digital retailing. She says they’re seeing those family discussions come to a head where families are finally deciding, it may be the time to sell. Currently, dealerships have on average, a return on equity, 50% plus. The more they can grow revenue, the more valuable dealerships will be.

The inventory shortage doesn’t have any effect on current valuations. Kerrigan says if anything, it’s improving valuations because dealerships are making so much money. She says the biggest challenge buyers have today is upon what earnings do I value a dealership? Most deals that are getting done, are the ones buyers averaging the current earnings and pre-pandemic earnings.

Kerrigan predicts they are going to be well over 350 transactions and even as high as 1,000 franchises trade hands in 2021. The buy/sell approval process is becoming a much bigger issue because it could possibly be a tax code change in 2022. She says they’re also seeing OEMs exercising their right of refusal in states, where they have that right to do so. Kerrigan says they do that because they want to pick who their dealers are. She says they’re keeping a very close watch on that.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Erin Kerrigan? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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As organizations continue efforts for more diverse and inclusive cultures, the LGBTQ+ community is asking for much more than a rainbow logo during Pride month. On today’s show, we’re checking in with Hyundai Motor America to learn about their commitment to diversity and inclusion. We’re pleased to welcome Erik Thomas, Senior Group Manager of Experiential Marketing Sponsorship & Multicultural Marketing for Hyundai Motor America.

Hyundai has taken a leadership role, by looking internally says Thomas. They wanted to know, what were their opportunities, their weaknesses were, and how to get better. Consecutively for the last five years, Hyundai received 100% for the Corporate Equality Index with the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.

Thomas says they have an inclusive environment that’s reflected at the top levels. He says it’s part of the regular conversation and the ideas and contributions are in every decision that they make. Thomas says it matters because when someone new enters into the industry, they may see themselves the way they couldn’t five or even ten years ago.

Earlier this year, Hyundai announced its African American Marketing Agency of Record culture brands. Thomas says he’s in the final stages of a new Hispanic Agency of Record, where they haven’t had one for more than a decade. He says it’s about recognition, and communicating to the buyer base, in a respectful way.

Related: Chief Enthusiasm Officer Kenya Rutland on how to build diversity and inclusion in your dealership

There are so many opportunities to contribute and do the right thing says Thomas. Hyundai’s strategy is to give voice to the LGBTQ+ community and promote that voice. They’ve partnered with GLAAD Media Awards, sponsorships with Outfest LA and NewFest Film Festival, and Outfest Fusion. Thomas says we have to make sure we’re putting dollars to support those who support us. It matters very much.

Hyundai has the highest percentage of minority dealers. There’s still much work to do says Thomas. He says Hyundai is committed to that. Thomas is proud that they’re leading the industry but most importantly he’s proud of the leadership continuing that fight.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Diversity in Automotive? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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It has been an incredibly active year of acquisitions in retail automotive. The latest news coming from Morgan Auto Group of Tampa, Florida. The Group, ranked number 11 of the top 150 dealership groups in the U.S., purchased Reeves Import Motorcars, adding a few new luxury brands to their already extensive portfolio.

Joining us now to discuss the Group’s latest acquisition and what it means overall is Brett Morgan, CEO of Morgan Automotive Group.

Morgan Automotive Group has been in single-digit day supply on new car sales for several months. Some of the inventory and supply chain issues could possibly last well into 2023. Morgan says it’s kind of “it is, what it is” ordeal. He hopes that we’ve seen the worse of it. They managed to keep their used car day supply at about a 35-day clip.

They have their Morgan Buys Cars initiative and that has brought them supplemental cars outside the pipeline. Morgan believes we’re too dependent on auction purchases. There are about 4 or 5 ways they’re acquiring cars, with trying to do more direct to consumer.

Resetting in this new normal, Morgan says, we need to focus on the customers in our back yard first and provide a better experience. He says in Florida, a lot of dealerships didn’t have the digital or virtual showroom pivot as other dealerships did. He believes his dealership is prepared to go to an all-digital experience, if necessary.

We pride ourselves on building relationships, says Morgan. Reeves Import Motorcars celebrated their 50th Anniversary this year. Morgan wasn’t sure why, “this time”, was the right time but believes it was a little bit of Covid’s influence. This acquisition doubles their number of luxury rooftops. He says they knew this was a ‘prize asset’, and one they were willing to overpay for.

Related: Dealership M&A activity reaching feverish pace in third quarter

Their first meeting out of Covid lockdown, Morgan says they realized they had a real opportunity on the turnover side. They struggled with entry-level sales and assistant service manager positions. He says leadership sat down to figure out how to change the culture from the bottom up and not just the top down. Morgan says they’re having to learn how to do more with a little less. He says this is a journey, not a destination. It’s something you have to look at and talk about every day.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Brett Morgan? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Service Drive, host Don Reed discusses the enemy called average. This comes from one of Reed’s favorite books by John Mason, titled An Enemy Called Average. The purpose of the book is to get you from where you are currently to where you dream to be.

John Mason says, “break the chains of mediocrity, then live the life that you dream of.” This can apply to your personal or professional life. Reed says, many in the auto industry measure themselves in terms of, how the average dealer is performing. Average is a reference point. The worst of the best, or the best of the worst.

Related: Why it’s important to build a personal brand in the automotive industry

To go from an average dealer to a top dealer starts with commitment. Reed asks the question, are you committed to change? After commitment, establish S.M.A.R.T. goals. S.M.A.R.T stands for specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-based. Long-term success is a journey, not a destination. Do not allow yourself to become complacent, because you will then gravitate back towards mediocrity.

Reed says every department in your dealership must be a profit center, for the dealer who wants to thrive and not just survive. Aftermarket service providers get about 75% of the U.S. parts and service business. Reed says it’s time to start taking it back.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Service Drive? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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An Enemy Called Average (Updated and Expanded)

As leaders and business owners, many of us think about the importance of building trust with our customers, but is employee trust being overlooked? According to new research brought to us by Forbes, over half of the American workers feel they have no one to turn to with a workplace issue. This can be detrimental. So where do organizations start? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome David Friedman, Founder, and CEO of CultureWise and author of his latest book, Culture by Design: How to Build a High-Performing Culture Even in the New Remote Work Environment. Friedman joins us to discuss critical behaviors that build employee trust in CEOs.

A lot of employees got used to working from home and a number of them prefer continuing that. It works in both ways, says Friedman. From an employer standpoint, they now can call upon a workforce that can almost be anywhere in the world. But from a retention standpoint, employers are also competing to hold down their team members, from other networks of employers.

Friedman says culture is about the norms of behavior that’s become accepted in the group. He says everyone now, no matter the size of the company, has to be a lot more purposeful, intentional, or systematic while creating a culture they want. There’s no greater element in the success of any organization than creating employee trust in a workplace. Transparency is one of the biggest elements of employee trust.

Related: How to build trust and cultivate a strong relationship with your customer

We fear vulnerability leads to loss, but actually, it leads to a better relationship. Friedman says when there is bad news, employees want to be told the truth and they want to be treated fairly. Honor your commitments and do what you say you’re going to do.

Another behavior that has a significant impact on trust is practicing blameless problem-solving. Friedman says it creates defensiveness and stifles innovation. The three elements to the behavior are to fix the problem first. It doesn’t matter who’s fault it was. The second element is to diagnose what caused the problem and discuss what you’ve learned, without blame. The third element is to incorporate what you’ve just learned into a process improvement to stop the problem from repeating itself.

Did you enjoy this podcast with David Friedman? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Culture by Design: How to Build a High-Performing Culture, Even in the New Remote Work Environment (Fundamentals Series)

Welcome to another edition of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

OneAuction ViewWell, we have a winner in our AutoTech’s Got Talent contest.

Amazingly, OneAuction View was able to hang on to the number one slot from week one all the way through the 10 weeks of the contest. As a result, Automotive Ventures has offered to make a $100k dollar investment into the company.

On the show today we have One Auction View’s founder, Skye Haulman who’s joining us from out in California.

Congratulations to Skye and the team at OneAuctionView!

E-AutomotiveNext up, the wholesale B2B auction space, E-Automotive, which is the company behind the EBlock digital wholesale marketplace and the EDealer digital retail products, has filed for a proposed IPO in Canada.

E-Automotive has applied to list the common shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

Toronto-based E Inc.’s mission is to optimize the online vehicle buying, selling, and management experience for automotive dealers and consumers. E Inc. has a digital platform that provides automotive dealerships with access to an online wholesale auction marketplace where they can purchase or sell vehicles to other dealers, as well as access innovative software solutions to support dealers’ digital retailing and inventory management.

IN 2020, E Inc. reported $30.3 million in revenues, $13.8 million in gross profit, $6.4 million in operating loss and $6.7 million in net loss.

For the six months ended June 30, E Inc. reported $37.2 million in revenues, $18.4 million in gross profit, $5.2 million in operating loss and $6.8 million in net loss.

E Inc. has over 600 employees as of June 30th.

This last year has seen a public listing for ACV Auctions, an acquisition of CarWave and BackLot Cars by KAR Global, and other activity in the B2B marketplace space.

A public EBlock is going to add additional funding to what has already been a white-hot space.

GOGO, a car subscription startup, announced a $41 million round of financing led by SYNTERRA CAPITAL MANAGEMENT. This funding will enable the company to grow its fleet substantially and expand service nationally.

Distinct from traditional auto lease and finance, GO’s model offers subscribers a simple and affordable alternative. GO is now live in four states, including Pennsylvania, Florida, New Jersey and Delaware, with plans to announce additional markets later this year.

Through the service, customers in available markets can order their car online in around 4 minutes and save up to 25% per month. There’s no down payment, and the entire process is handled virtually. In most cases, cars are even delivered to the customer’s home at no charge.

GO claims to bo the first company to offer a car subscription service geared specifically toward daily drivers, unlike previous car subscriptions that focused on swapping vehicles and short-term use.

SureThe insurance space has been white hot this year, and this week Sure, a Santa Monica-based insurtech startup that embeds insurance software into everything from car-buying to renters insurance, has raised $100 million in a Series C funding round.

The funding gives the insurtech an enterprise valuation of more than $550 million as it eyes expansion into several overseas markets including South America, Europe, Africa and Asia, according to Slavin.

Sure has reportedly been working with Tesla over the past year. The EV firm provides buyers of its cars the option of purchasing insurance on Sure’s software platform, which is embedded into Tesla’s online car-buying experience.

Our Next EnergyIn the battery technology space this week, Our Next Energy, a Michigan-based energy storage solutions company, has closed a $25 million Series A capital raise led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures. The round was also joined by Assembly Ventures, BMW i Ventures, Flex and Volta Energy Technologies.

Our Next Energy has demonstrated technologies that can double the range of electric vehicles, a key to increasing adoption. In addition to improving range, ONE is focused on lowering cost with cobalt-free chemistries that don’t pose a thermal runaway risk.

Companies To WatchColomb AI

First Up This Week Is Colomb AI.

The battery technology space has been very hot as more OEMs announce ambitious plans to increase the number of EV sales.

Coulomb’s proven analytics software for electric vehicles and batteries can increase your bottom line, reduce battery-related failures, and extend EVs’ lifetime use.

Coulomb offers Battery Analytics, EV Fleet Analytics and EV Feasibly Assessments.

Colomb AI will be a company to watch in the battery technology space.

Interplai

Our Second Company To Watch This Week is Interplai.

Interplai is creating the world’s most efficient last-mile delivery solution using smart collaborative robots and software.

The last mile of delivery is over 53% of the total transport cost for goods.

Interplai’s goal is to significantly reduce this cost by using a multi-faceted approach to increase delivery efficiency.

We’ll keep an eye on Interplai in the autonomous vehicle space to move cargo.

——————-

So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

——————-

People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of The Friday 5? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Proactive Dealer Solutions emerged as the BDC experts and pioneered the BDC concept, which has evolved into not just BDC but better customer experiences for the entire dealership. Today PDS continues to train and implement processes for better customer experience and modern retailing, while also developing SaaS services that further this cause.

Proactive Dealer Solutions has developed and launched Brooke.ai and Lawson Owen, CEO of Proactive Dealer Solutions, joins the show to discuss the product and why this might be the next best thing for your service drive.

Brooke.ai is a digital voice assistant, specific to service. 75% of calls to a dealership can be handled without a human. Owen says they’re able to shorten the interaction with the customer. Brooke.ai can handle any volume of calls at any point in time. The average service drive loses 30% of its calls.

Owen says they are seeing the vast majority of people don’t mind dealing with the technology. Less than 10% of customers ask for a representative when waiting. With the integration of the scheduling tool and the DMS, Brooke.ai is able to shorten the engagement call for the customer.

Owen recommends dealers start with after-hours and overflow. They’re able to set it up to where if your call failure rate goes over 10%, then Brooke.ai steps in. Owen says you have control over what you want Brooke.ai to do. The market is almost demanding us to get better says, Owen. The expectation of the consumer is greater now more than ever been. Is your dealership prepared to handle that volume of business? Owen says some stores, regrettably aren’t.

For more information visit: Brooke.ai.

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After the nation’s civil unrest last summer, you may have noticed many companies making the decision to evaluate and adopt a more diverse and inclusive workplace. Well, KJR Consulting has been behind the strategy for many large companies like Coca-Cola and Asbury Automotive Group. On this episode of Diversity in Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome the Principal and Chief Enthusiasm Officer at KJR Consulting, Kenya Rutland, to discuss training, coaching, and the importance of diversity and inclusion in our industry.

It’s certainly been a sense of awakening at an individual, leadership, and organizational level says Rutland. One of the great things, Rutland says that his team does is, they pause and listen. You want people to engage in the discussion as opposed to disengaging.

Related: Asbury Auto’s Jed Milstein and Dan Clara discuss new diversity and inclusion initiative

Rutland says, they are co-creators and they like to design with you. The conversation surrounding diversity and inclusion looks different depending on where you are in the country and the world. He says that gives them the opportunity to get more diversity and perspective brought into the discussion.

We don’t get better if we don’t have conflict around ideas, perspectives, values or beliefs says, Rutland. Many may sell cars the same way but those organizations that are going to make the client experience better are going to get returning customers. He says this requires you to think about the buyer. There are many ways that we can bring new ideas to get this influx of talent and great thinking. Rutland believes that’s what’s going to be something that helps us dramatically in this space.

The first thing companies can do is a simple survey. Rutland says this helps get a perspective of what’s going on within your company. You can then validate those questions through focus groups. When staff sees leadership vulnerability, it allows them to share exactly how they feel. Rutland encourages people to not listen from a deficit mindset.

Rutland says it’s not just about diversity but you should also be practicing inclusion, which is the goal of getting people to feel valued, respected, and heard. He says the other important part is equity and sharing that power. It’s not just about doing the right thing, but it’s a monetary decision as well.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Diversity In Automotive? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On this special edition of CBT News, Jim Fitzpatrick sits down with Mike Jackson, CEO of AutoNation to discuss the company’s six straight record-breaking quarters and his proudest moments at the helm of AutoNation.

This past September, AutoNation announced that former FCA CEO Mike Manley will be joining the country’s number one dealer group as Director and CEO, upon Jackson’s official retirement on November 1. Jackson has held the CEO role for more than two decades, aside from two short instances where Carl Liebert (March 2019—July 2019) and Cheryl Miller (July 2019—April 2020) occupied the position.

Jackson has achieved numerous awards during his time at AutoNation including, CEO of the Year by CEO Magazine in 2006, the National Retail Leadership Award by the Detroit Free Press, and was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in 2018, just to name a few.

Related: AutoNation’s Marc Cannon and Nick Schnelle discuss the Drive Pink Campaign’s fight against breast cancer

In its third-quarter 2021 earnings call, AutoNation ended up with quarterly earnings of $5.12 per share, outpacing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.35 per share. This is up $2.74 per share at this time in 2020. AutoNation shares have increased about 67.6% since the beginning of 2021 versus the S&P 500’s gain of 20.8%. AutoNation also reported revenues of $6.38 billion for the quarter, compared to year-ago revenues of $5.4 billion.

AutoNation is also in the middle of a strong push to grow its AutoNation USA used vehicle stores, of which now there are eight. However, the brand is targeting to have over 130 locations by 2026. The nation’s top dealer group is also working on its digital retailing offerings and solutions.

To learn more about AutoNation from outgoing CEO Mike Jackson, be sure to watch the complete interview above.

The team at CBT News wishes Mike Jackson the very best in retirement.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Mike Jackson? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, discusses current market trends going into Q4.

Rice says it’s going to get tricky, moving forward. Going into December, most markets have dropped 30 to 40% in shopper engagement, where people have gone online searching for used cars. Used car listings have stayed the same across the board. As shopper engagement slows down and inventory levels stay the same, the market is going to be crunched.

Related: Sell on experience vs. brand, to beat inventory shortage

Profit margins are going to be shrinking again, says Rice. The upcoming tax season for next year might be limited. Consumers are likely not going to get a big tax return in the upcoming season. Rice says don’t just look at your current inventory and sale rates, but remember to keep your inventory moving. Everything car dealers currently buy will be aged in December, going into January.

A lot of dealerships are running thin on their used vehicles. Rice says he’s seeing bulks of inventory being bought, with hopes of the retailers being able to hold on and have that inventory. He says you need to learn how to acquire cars from a private seller.

New car inventory is starting to trickle up. Rice says to focus on private party acquisitions because you can’t be too reliant on trade-ins and auctions. Also, middle bucket management, which comes to the 31 to 60 day selling period, to prevent bleed-through. He says you need to be selling 5% or more than what inventory is sitting there. These next two to four months are what’s going to make or break your store going into 2022.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Used Cars Weekly? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Kain and Co., host David Kain, president of Kain Automotive, talks about the strategy your dealership desperately needs, which is a loyalty marketing program. It’s one that will afford you the opportunity to retain the guest that has trusted your dealership and team for both sales and service over the years and wants to continue to do business with you.

Loyalty starts at the delivery. Kain says at the delivery, you want to plant the seed of the next sale. The point of sale is the point of re-sale. If you do a great job with a guest, and build a relationship, you want to make sure they honor that by referring people to you. The average car customer remembers their salesperson for about 24 hours. As a salesperson, it’s your responsibility to build on the relationship that you started with. This can be more easily achieved with a loyalty marketing program.

The Seiner Original, created by Jerry Seiner proclaims that the vehicle is sold new, maintained at the original dealership then reacquired through trade. Kain says you’re able to offer a higher trade value to the guest if they maintain loyalty.

Related: How much value does social media marketing bring to car dealerships?

Another strategy Kain utilizes is ‘the update‘. Anytime a customer comes in for car maintenance, you can provide an update should the customer prefer it. The entire team will need to buy in into these programs. Require your team to take care of themselves and give them the tools to communicate. 78% of salespeople who use social media will outsell their peers. Kain says to remove the doubt, be great, and work towards that loyalty throughout the ownership cycle.

Email David@kainautomotive.com to request the Digital Success Guide.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Kain & Co.? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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I’ll Be Back: How to Get Customers to Come Back Again & Again is out now! In the latest book from Shep Hyken, he discusses 10 loyalty killers that can terminate your relationship with your customers. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome back customer service and experience expert, New York Times and Wall Street Journal best-selling author, Shep Hyken to discuss his book and what you can do to ensure your customers come back.

Hyken refers to the ‘killers’ as terminators in the book. He also referenced them as loyalty killers. The first terminator is apathy. 70% of customers that leave a business to go elsewhere are due to apathy, or an employee didn’t seem to care about the customer. The second terminator is rudeness. The next two are no response and poor response time. Some companies take four to six days, to respond to a customer inquiry. Often times the problem has been festering for quite a while, and no customer wants to wait.

Related: Why car dealers need to focus on increasing customer loyalty today

The next terminator is, you made them wait too long. Hyken says some of the best companies have figured out what to do. Give customers options. He also says, before consumers do business with you, they already have doubts based on your response. Another terminator is, you make the customer repeat the same story, over again. Hyken says you should always do a second follow-up.

He says when a customer has a bad experience, invite them back and offer an incentive. When you have issues or problems, Hyken says you first need to acknowledge and apologize. Then after discussing the resolution, fix it, own it, and act with urgency.

To get your copy of “I’ll Be Back”, visit IllBeBackBook.com or find it on Amazon.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Shep Hyken? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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I'll Be Back

Industry experts are predicting continued inventory shortages well into 2022 and according to IHS Markit data, brand loyalty for new vehicle customers has dropped as a result of these shortages. automotiveMastermind has introduced new product expansions to help dealers combat these ongoing challenges.

We’re joined now by Aaron Baldwin, Vice President of Product for automotiveMastermind, to learn more about how they are helping dealers think creatively and build loyalty.

IHS Markit data has revealed that brand loyalty among auto consumers dropped to a six-year low this past June; down 53% in March to 51% in June. Light vehicle production is also forecasted to be cut by 6.2% in 2021 and another 9.3% in 2022. In light of this, automotiveMastermind has been changing its marketing strategy to help dealers focus on building their pipelines by looking at preserving inbound inventory.

Baldwin says dealers should consider campaigns that educate consumers on the inventory challenges dealers are currently facing and help them make better decisions on their car purchases.

automotiveMastermind is focused on being the best in loyalty and owner-based marketing for its dealer partners. They understand which consumers are most likely to actually trade-in or sell a vehicle and help dealers preserve inventory.

With light vehicle production forecasted to be cut by a considerable amount, Baldwin says dealers have to find those key customers that maintain their loyalty not only to the brand but to the dealership as well. Baldwin adds that right now is the time when dealers need to focus on protecting those loyal customers.

Just in the last two months, dealers who have focused on vehicle acquisitions, pre-ordering, and service have increased from 38% to over 50% in October. In the last quarter, automotiveMastermind has helped dealers acquire over 1,200 vehicles from these campaigns. Baldwin says there's an opportunity for dealers to buy great inventory from their local markets.

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Many dealers have dialed back their marketing efforts as we continue to deal with shortages and high profits in the industry. On today’s show, we’re discussing OEM ad associations and what they mean for the future. We’re pleased to welcome Peter Cooper, President, and CEO of Lexus of Lehigh Valley.

Cooper says they had good availability of products, but that changed quickly. Due to the ongoing chip shortage and countries shutting down supply chains. He says their availability dropped from 40% to 60%. Instead of customers waiting for vehicles, they’re deciding to hold off completely.

Dealers are taking advantage of the consumers, based on the marketplace says Cooper. He doesn’t think it builds for a long-term, sustainable relationship. He also thinks it’s a lose-lose and short-sighted situation.

Cooper says they’re based on Neilsen and T.V. ratings to define their market. He believes they’ve become product advertisements. With no incentives or deals, they advertise products for the manufacturers. Cooper believes product advertisement, is the manufacturer’s responsibility and it’s their job to support it. If the ad associations, can’t see their data, it’s ineffective and they’re just throwing money away.

Related: Car dealership advertising ideas to drive success despite the pandemic

In order to get more market shares, Cooper believes you need to be more customer-centric in a business process than you do in advertising dollars. He says there’s a huge difference between marketing dollars and advertising dollars. Spending money to be customer-centric is marketing, throwing ads out there that’s advertising.

When it comes to EVs, Cooper asks the question, where is the carbon footprint for the energy it’s going to take to charge the EVs? He says it’s not going to work, because no one talks about the carbon footprint. Cooper also says we have not done a good job in building relationships with government officials. He says OEMs haven’t done a great job educating the dealers about the importance and necessity of these relationships. You have to build a relationship on a multitude of issues, to get the attention you deserve for the relationships.

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On the latest episode of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes sits down with Client Success Director of AutoFi, Michelle Taylor. Lopes gets straight to the point and asks Taylor, what part of digital retailing should you be focused on and how do you make money off it? And, is it just a passing fad?

Digital retailing is the current buzz phrase of the automotive industry. Taylor says what dealers should focus on is true leadership buy-in. The general manager should be putting action plans together, so on day one, the team is set up for success.

Related: VAS’s Hugh Hathcock and dealer principal Troy Duhon discuss the power of transparent and seamless digital retailing

Customers have spoken. Taylor has seen customers 24 hours, transacting online. She believes if dealers don’t adapt, they’ll more likely be selling their dealership to a group or more consumer-centric dealership. In order to adapt, leadership needs to be bought into a true partner that’s going to help them, serve up what the secret sauce of success looks like.

Online and offline buy-in needs to be bridged together. The dealers that don’t have website clarity, and don’t have a process from a smooth transition online to offline, Taylor says they won’t be successful with digital retail. The only one-size-fits-all attribute is that you want to be consumer-centric.

She says, from a process perspective, we can adapt to our dealers’ partners’ process, which hinders a customer experience. You should have a digital retailing platform that powers every entry point or adapt to how your customers want to start and end their car buying process.

The best three habits Taylor says dealers should be exercising are leadership buy-in, end-to-end solutions or website clarity, and connecting the dots from online to offline.

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At the dealership level and more importantly online, consumers want to get to the bottom line and want their payments to be exact. This is where OfferLogix steps in. Their technology calculates and provides price transparency. On today’s show, we’re discussing the importance of a seamless experience. We’re pleased to welcome back Aaron Bickart, Executive Vice President and General Manager of OfferLogix.

OfferLogix provides penny perfect payments, through a financial calculation with a single quality API. No one rounds up payments anymore. Consumers are looking at it as, how much can I buy or lease this vehicle for, with x amount of money down? Consumers are now more educated. Bickart says we need to make sure we provide consumers with exact payments, exact incentives, and money factors.

Reviews are everything for dealerships today, as well as the customer experience. Dealers not only want to sell a new or used vehicle but they also want to get them back for service. Anytime there is a 1 star or 3.7 average rating on Google, it’s not good for the dealership.

Related: Why soliciting reviews is a solid business plan for dealerships

Bickart says their solution allows the vendor to use multiple banks to figure out the lowest payments. The OEM doesn’t always have the lowest payment. He says a lot of times desk managers don’t know of all the different incentives, banks, or rates. Bickart says their solution allows that gives you the best customer experience with the lowest payment possible and the best backend for the dealership.

Bickart says OfferLogix API is one of the fastest APIs in the industry. They’re the only company based in the U.S. and Canada. They also integrate with all the DMVs for tax titles and licenses to help with state tax fees. Bickart says they are improving on things, every day.

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Consumers today have more options than ever before leading to many of you dealing with client objections nearly every day. But, how you respond could make the difference in eventually coming back from that objection and closing the deal. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Jeff Shore, sales trainer, keynote speaker, author, and founder of Shore Consulting, to learn what he recommends for dealing with client objections.

Shore says the difference between the ideal and the actual is where you will see the objections from the customer. Customers need your confidence. Shore believes we take client objections personally. It’s important to understand that people don’t reject the person but they’re rejecting a concept. If you don’t train your mind out of that, then you’ll never be able to help your customer the way they need it.

The biggest mistake salespeople make, is trying to solve things too early, says Shore. One of the best attributes of great salespeople is that they have strong short-term problem-solving skills. The problem is, salespeople get so caught up in trying to solve the problem, they don’t attempt to understand the problem. Shore says to not only figure out the issues but how important they are.

Related: Dealing with objections for service repairs

As a sales professional, it’s important to understand the difference between a deal killer and a deal pauser. A deal killer means there’s nothing that you can do. Usually, if the customer knows what the situation is and they’re still there, chances are it’s a deal pauser. Shore says don’t lose sleep over a customer who wouldn’t buy in the first place.

Customers enjoy the process, buy quicker and spend more when they’re having fun. Shore says that’s brought about by the salesperson, much more than anything else in the process. 85% of the purchase comes from the emotional core. How you make someone feel, is critical to the buying process. When making a sales presentation, make it to both parties. Shore calls it the double close, and it’s a great way to be able to affirm and respect both parties at the same time.

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On the latest episode of Straight Talk, host David Lewis, President of David Lewis & Associates, talks about the seven most effective words, when closing a car deal.

Lewis says he’s probably heard and seen every method out there, to get a customer to say ‘yes’ to you and buy a new vehicle. Selling a car can be a demanding process. With some customers, you might have to work through a wall of defensiveness just to get them to open up so you can do your sales presentation and try to get them to like you enough to deal with you as their salesperson.

As for what sales process to use, the more time and effort you find out what works for you, the better off you’ll be. Avoid using pressure tactics. Ask the right questions and get your customers to like you. When it comes to closing a deal Lewis says, to make it simple for you and your customer. He says if you made a good presentation, and you’ve done a great job and getting a customer to like you, the close should be easy.

The best way to do that is to use the seven most effective words to close the sale. Those seven words are, “would you like to buy the car”?

It’s that simple. There are no gimmicks, just ask for the sale.

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On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Jessica Caldwell, Edmunds‘ Executive Director of Industry Insights, to give us an update on automotive industry sales and inventory insights.

Caldwell says it’s definitely been a challenge out there. Inventory is down 79% from what would be considered a “normal period” at this time of year. On aggregate, sales are up from where they were in 2020, for this period. But sequentially, sales are falling each quarter. It comes down to inventory, says Caldwell.

Pricing is at record highs for both new and used vehicles. Everyone is used to major discounts from MSRP, but Caldwell says that’s just not happening. Used transactions from a retail perspective, are over $28,000. Things are just getting more expensive says Caldwell.

A survey conducted by Edmunds revealed that only 18% of consumers say they overpaid for their latest car purchase over the last three months. Nine percent of consumers say they got a good deal for their latest car purchase over the last three months. Caldwell says dealers want a lifetime relationship with their customers. Consumers are understanding vehicles are costing more and they aren’t able to get the deal.

Related: New vehicle average price soars to more than $45,000 in September

Caldwell says they’re seeing more people look at different brands, different segments, and colors. Dealers are looking to see what they can put consumers into because customers are willing to switch and compromise.

December is when Caldwell believes more cars will be available. Dealers need to gear up for when those cars are available and make the purchases happen at that point. Caldwell says we will be feeling the effects for quite some time for things to come back to normal if they ever do.

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Don’t miss the opportunity for your organization to offer a service that is proactive as opposed to reactive. What’s the difference you may ask? Well on today’s show Joseph Michelli, CEO of The Michelli Experience and New York Times best-selling author of his latest book, Stronger through Adversity, joins us to discuss this and the importance of having proactive service.

According to a recent study by Gartner, 87% of every interaction we have with a brand after-sales is reactive. To be proactive, Michelli says it means to: alert, avert or avoid. Alerting is allowing the company to alert you to its awareness of your problem before you have to contact their customer service.

Related: How reducing friction in the customer experience benefits car dealers

Michelli asks where can you alert your customer to things that are coming up? Also, how can you avoid your customers taking extra steps with you, that you know are going to happen? He also says, ultimately, you don’t want to have customers call in. There should be things consumers don’t have to even think about because your business is anticipating their needs. Start building these solutions before they have to alert you or avert some other problem.

The first step to take when going from reactive to proactive service is, starting with customer complaints. Michelli says one of the greatest gifts with customer input is it enables us to look at those trends that we need to get in front of. The other step is, anticipating future needs.

It’s essential to listen to your customer in ways, you may have not, said Michelli. It’s a massive number of questions that we have to constantly change every day, in the way we respond to the people who trust us to serve them. He says trust is at a premium because we need transparency to make decisions as consumers.

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Stronger Through Adversity: World-Class Leaders Share Pandemic-Tested Lessons on Thriving During the Toughest Challenges

What does the industry look like five years from now beyond the shortages and high profits we’re experiencing now? On today’s show we’re pleased to welcome Cory Mosley, Founder of Mosley Strategy Group and award-winning business growth strategist and coach, to discuss trends, profitability, and his recommendations for dealers today.

A lot of dealerships have been using this time, not to create profitability but to reevaluate some things they have allowed to slide by, previously. The question is, what are some things dealerships are leaving behind or skipping out on? Even with something that may seem small, consumers are paying attention.

Related: CMA’s Liza Borches explains the value of a top-notch customer experience

Memories are long for people. Mosley believes there will be some punishment to be laid out in the next lease or trade cycle in the future. It’s not much about what you’re doing but how you’re going about doing it. Mosley says you should be overservicing the customer.

Mosley believes there are consumers who are ordering vehicles but don’t want to necessarily do it. He says the key is, are the logistics of the manufacturer set up to do that? Consumers aren’t signing up to wait five to six months for a vehicle, intentionally. He says with so many options, ordering vehicles, doesn’t seem like it’s going to change.

Salespeople shouldn’t look at the packages, as to how can I make more money for myself, because it only feeds into the issues people have with trying to stay at a location or remain loyal to an organization.

Mosley’s biggest concern to the industry is consolidation. He thinks it almost demotivates small dealers to want to compete or make bigger investments. He asks, is there such a thing as having too much power with the manufacturer? He’s interested to see how things will look 5 years from.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Cory Mosley? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

RoboTireFirst up this week, RoboTire has raised a $7.5 million dollar Series A round led by The Reinalt-Thomas Corporation, the major tire retail brand behind Discount Tire and America’s Best Tire, LLC. In addition to Automotive Ventures, other investors included Detroit Venture Partners and 640 Oxford Ventures.

RoboTire’s underlying technology is capable of changing a set of tires in less than 15 minutes.

Congratulations to Victor Darolfi, Will Mapes and the entire RoboTire team.

VroomNext up Vroom has reached a deal to purchase United Auto Credit Corporation for $300 million dollars in cash, subject to adjustment depending on the closing book value of United Auto Credit.

The acquisition would further push Vroom into building captive financing capabilities. Additionally, integrating United Auto Credit’s non-prime lending capabilities can help allow consumers from additional credit tiers to purchase on the Vroom platform.

United Auto Credit will be added to the existing lineup of auto finance options on the Vroom platform. Meanwhile, both companies will work on integrating United Auto Credit’s services and build Vroom’s captive finance operation.

When the deal closes, United Auto Credit will continue to operate under its current name and will become an indirect wholly-owned Vroom subsidiary. The deal is expected to close late this quarter or early in the first quarter of 2022.

TenstreetTenstreet, a provider of driver recruiting software and workflow solutions for the trucking industry, completed a majority investment from Providence Equity Partners.

Existing investor Spectrum Equity and Tenstreet Co-founder and CEO Tim Crawford will maintain significant minority stakes.

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Founded in 2006, Tenstreet modernized recruiting in the trucking industry through its suite of recruiting applications that allow trucking carriers and private fleets to widen their applicant funnel, increase the speed of hiring, ensure compliance with trucking regulations and improve the application experience for drivers. Tenstreet maintains a comprehensive network of over 5 million drivers and processes 17 million job applications per year for its 3,700 fleet customers.

Rendered.AIRendered.AI has raised a $6 million seed round led by Space Capital, with participation from Tectonic Ventures, Congruent Ventures, UNION Labs and Uncorrelated Ventures.

The availability of data can paralyze a company and its effort to bring software-centric products and services to market. To solve this issue, two-year-old data startup Rendered.ai is generating synthetic data for the satellite, medical, robotics and automotive industries.

Synthetic data is manufactured rather than gathered from the real world.

ZūmZūm, the leader in modern student transportation, announced $130 million dollars in Series D funding led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2, with participation from existing investors including Sequoia Capital and BMW iVentures.

Zum’s comprehensive service is designed to transport students safely, reliably, and sustainably with increased visibility and personalized care. The company will use the new capital to further its mission to reimagine student transportation by strategically expanding its service across new markets and districts while adding new electric vehicles to its platform as it delivers on its 100% EVs by 2025 commitment.

TruckLabsTruckLabs, a technology company helping transform the trucking industry, has raised a $15 million dollar Series A round to fund the continued growth of its product suite that empowers fleets to improve their operational performance by boosting fuel efficiency, increasing driver engagement, and reducing carbon emissions.

The oversubscribed funding round was co-led by returning investors Calibrate Ventures, Autotech Ventures, and Uncork Capital.

To date, TruckLabs has raised $24 million dollars total in venture capital funding.

TruckLabs designs and builds technology for the long-haul trucking industry. Its flagship product, TruckWings, is an aerodynamic device that can be quickly installed to close the gap between cab and trailer on large trucks to save fuel. TruckWings are widely deployed across the trucking industry, currently operating on carrier fleets that average more than 3.5 million miles per week. TruckLabs also offers a software platform for trucker engagement and performance measurement.

OttoOtto, a fintech startup that aims to allow people to tap into their vehicle’s equity for access to credit, has raised $4.5 million dollars in a seed round of funding.

The Dallas-based company is building a mobile platform that will essentially let people borrow against their vehicles at the same interest rate as standard credit cards. But unlike other cards, Otto will not charge fees or overdraft charges, and will not require applicants to supply their FICO credit scores. Users will be able remotely verify and collateralize their cars through Otto’s mobile platform, which is set to launch in early 2022.

Uncommon Capital led the startup’s seed financing, which included participation from Pelion Venture Partners, 1930 Capital, Bloom VP and Spacecadet Ventures. Other investors include Mark Cuban.

Mobile FleetcareCox Automotive’s Dickinson Fleet Services announced the acquisition of Mobile Fleetcare, the San Francisco Bay Area’s leading provider of fleet maintenance. The acquisition serves to expand and strengthen the geographic reach of DFS in the Northern California region. With the acquisition, Dickinson Fleet Services will look to further expand its mobile offering for medium and heavy-duty trucks and trailers into other markets in Northern California, including Sacramento, San Jose and Fresno.

Mobile Fleetcare marks Dickinson’s twelfth acquisition since 2017. Under the ownership of Cox Automotive, DFS continues to pursue additional acquisition targets across North America.

AlgoDrivenIn international news this week, Australia-based AlgoDriven has raised $2 million dollars in funding from Global Ventures, Automotive Ventures, Spartech Ventures, OTF Wadi, Driven Capital Partners, and DTEC Ventures.

Founded in 2017 by Glenn Harwood and Jaron Crossland, AlgoDriven allows car dealers, classifieds, banks, and insurance firms to identify and price used cars. Its tools help value assets for loans, insurance policies, price vehicle subscriptions, and leases.

AlgoDriven’s main product is EvalExpert, a mobile and web-based platform that allows car dealers to carry out a data-driven appraisal of used cars either online or in person. The product that Harwood and Jaron had initially developed for themselves is now used by more than 600 car showrooms in 13 countries.

CazooThe owner of cinch, a competitor to Cazoo, has bought a business that it said will make it become Europe’s largest online used car marketplace.

Constellation Automotive Group, also behind webuyanycar.com, has acquired Amsterdam-headquartered CarNext.com, which is forecast to sell around 250,000 vehicles via its websites in 2021.

The tie-up will create a digital giant that sells more than 2.5 million cars a year.

It marks the latest expansion plan by Constellation, whose majority shareholder is TDR Capital.

Tata MotorsTPG’s Rise Climate Fund and Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund ADQ have agreed to make a $1 billion dollar investment into an electric vehicle division of India’s Tata Motors, at a valuation of $9.1 billion dollars.

TPG and ADQ will hold an 11% to 15% stake in the EV unit, which will be newly incorporated. The new company will focus on dedicated battery electric vehicle platforms, the development of charging infrastructure, and more.

After the new funding was announced, Tata Motors said it plans to invest $2 billion dollars in the division and release 10 EV models over the next five years—in an effort to reach the Indian government’s goal of having electric vehicles represent 30% of the country’s car sales by 2030.

GoTo Global MobilityIsraeli shared multimodal mobility operator GoTo Global Mobility has acquired German shared electric scooter company Emmy Sharing. The strategic deal will help GoTo Global, which offers customers access to shared cars, vans, mopeds, scooters and bikes, reach its goal of expanding to every major European city by 2025.

GoTo Global did not share the financial terms of the deal.

Acquiring emmy sharing, which has a fleet of over 3,000 shared electric step-through scooters across Berlin, Hamburg and Munich, gives GoTo a direct path to the German market. The company’s current footprint includes Spain, Malta and Israel.

TembiciTembici, a Brazilian micro-mobility technology startup, announced an $80 million dollar funding round led by Crescera Capital, which is also joining the startup‘s board. The Series C was also backed by Pipo and Endeavor Catalyst.

The new investors join existing investors Redpoint eventures, IFC – International Finance Corporation, Valor and Igah Ventures.

The expansion strategy includes adding 10,000 new bikes to the fleet by the end of next year and starting operations in new cities, starting with Brasília, where Tembici will debut in October with 500 bikes and 70 stations.

The startup currently runs 16,000 bikes in Brazil, Argentina, and Chile; 1,000 of them are electric, the so-called e-bikes, which mainly serve professionals who work for delivery apps in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo cities. From this new fleet, 5,000 will be e-bikes.

WayveWayve, a U.K.-based self-driving startup that is notable for its use of deep learning and cameras rather than more-costly lidar and other sensors to guide vehicles, is gearing up for its next stage of development with a strategic backer in its pocket. Ocado Group — the online grocer that also powers online grocery systems for other retailers like Kroger in the U.S. — announced that it is investing $13.6 million dollars in the startup.

The deal will give Ocado early access to London-based Wayve’s technology, which will be used in a trial in which Wayve’s hardware and software will be fitted on to Ocado vans and trialed for a year in real-world scenarios involving traffic congestion, making awkward turns on small residential streets and navigating complicated, non-grid street layouts.

CarDekhoCarDekho, an Indian search and e-commerce platform for new and used cars, has become the latest startup in the world’s second-largest market to reach unicorn status.

The 14-year-old startup said on Wednesday it has raised $250 million — $200 million in equity and $50 million in debt — in its Series E financing round. The round, which valued the Jaipur-headquartered firm at $1.2 billion, was led by LeapFrog Investments.

Canyon Partners, LLC, Mirae Asset Global Investments,Franklin Templeton, Harbor Spring Capital LLC as well as existing investors Sequoia Capital India and Sunley House Capital Ltd also participated in what CarDekho has described as its pre-IPO round.

Companies To WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry intel report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, we have two companies in the tire technology space to watch, which include Autority & Everrati

AutorityFirst Up This Week Is Autority, based in Equador and focused on the car ownership experience.

Owning a car can be an amazing experience, but maintaining it can be a hassle. Owners are overwhelmed with the number of services that need to kept up: insurance, parking, tolls, fines, maintenance, tires, registration, gas, and others.

Autority has built an App that centralizes services and benefits related to a vehicle.

They’ve built a network of AAA carshops where users have access to free perks and discounts, integrated parking lots to allow drivers to enter and exit cashless, provide users with alerts on fines they’ve received, inform users on their use of tolls…preventing them getting fined, they are able to display a user’s insurance information and benefits, leverage discounts on gas, and keep track of everything digitally — guaranteeing the user a better resale price for their car.

Everrati AutomotiveOur Second Company To Watch This Week is UK-based Everrati Automotive.

Everrati passionately redefines the most iconic classic cars and make them relevant to the world today.

Each car’s past is preserved by a meticulous, concours-standard restoration while simultaneously receiving a zero-emissions, full-electric powertrain that offers much improved levels of outright performance, refinement and of course sustainability.

Everrati is currently accepting deposits on their electric Porsche 911, electric series 2 Land Rover and electric Mercedes Pagoda models. They are already working on redefining other classic icons, ensuring the future for electric classic cars.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

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Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

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Dealers have had less inventory on their lots which has been a large concern for many. So where do we go from here as we head into a new year and what do dealer associations have to say about it? On today’s show, we are pleased to welcome Tim Jackson, President, and CEO of the Colorado Automobile Dealers Association, to walk us through how dealers are faring in his state right now.

We’re living in a new time in automotive says Jackson. He never thought it would be this type of issue with supply chain shortages, resulting in an inventory squeeze. Jackson says, there is a light at the end of the tunnel but we aren’t out of it yet.

Jackson says they experienced something that has never happened before with the Denver Auto Show. That is market demand but no product to fulfill it. Profitability is good for both automakers and auto dealers. At some point, Jackson says we need to get back to a middle ground, where a customer wants a car and the dealer can provide it. Until we get to that, there isn’t a perfect equation in the auto industry.

What we hear from dealers is that it’s causing frustration in the showroom, says Jackson. One of the issues was staffing. He says, there are more new cars unordered through the automakers today than at any time in history. Now you have consumers ordering vehicles. Then, dealers’ lots are empty and now collectively have 3 or 4 million cars unordered across the country. Those components combined may result in 6 to 7 million vehicles unordered, for the first time ever.

In Colorado, they are seeing a lot of people who are headstrong in the movement of electrification. Colorado now ranks as the 5th state in America on electrification. Jackson says it’s a lot faster with growth than what he expected. 2020 through 2021, battery-electric moved from 2.6% of the market to 4.1% of the market.

Related: Biden announces non-binding target for EVs by 2030

Jackson says they have a few items on their to-do lists. Their main focus is they want to get up to 50% on EVs. They’re continuing to push hard for electrification.

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Dealers have reported spending much less on marketing throughout the coronavirus pandemic due to great sales. Is this method sustainable or potentially damaging? This time last year we brought you experts to weigh in on marketing trends and they join us now to follow up on the discussion. We’ll also get into some changes you should consider to remain profitable.

We’re pleased to welcome Colin Carrasquillo, Digital Marketing Manager for Nielsen Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram and we’re also joined by John Fitzpatrick, CEO and Co-Founder of Force Marketing.

Cars come and go and we don’t have as much inventory as we would like says Carrasquillo. They do have a substantial amount of pre-owned inventory due to the pivots they’ve made given the market challenges. They’re doing what they can with what they have. Carrasquillo says the volume of units is a concern. He does see inventory being a challenge going into the second half of 2022. Dealers need to think back on how they successfully operated in the past and change the way they’re attracting a customer base.

Related: The unique challenges dealer groups are facing when comparing marketing reports

John says they remind their clients that demand has never been higher. He says it’s important to utilize marketing as a communication tool. It’s understanding a customer’s lifetime value and understanding it as a metric. He says it’s about coming together and figuring out what’s right for each dealer group.

Carrasquillo thinks what comes out at a great time of necessity is a lot of innovation. Dealers are more resilient than they have ever been. They identify inefficiencies from something that has turned their world upside down and learned how to adapt. He says they are spending less on marketing than they did pre-Covid. They have found better ways to target and identify their audience. The spending is more efficient and they’re getting the results they are looking for. John also says to drive personalization. Consumers want to be spoken to by the brands they choose to do business with.

Carrasquillo says for the months to come, expect the unexpected. He says it’s okay to be uncomfortable in this industry and space. Find the inefficiencies in what you’re doing on your marketing. Take this time as an opportunity to step back and reflect on why customers should be doing business with you.

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On the latest episode of Kain and Co., host David Kain, president of Kain Automotive, explains the best ways to create value for every lead that gets followed up with a phone call. According to Google, over 90% of people will not answer a call from a number they don’t recognize. So, what are the avenues to sell the value of the phone call?

Leave a voicemail: From Kain’s perspective, it is rude to leave a customer with a missed call but no voicemail. It is a polite way to convey interest in helping customers find what they need. It is also a tactical way to have a greater presence on the smartphone of the guest you are calling.
Look into ‘ringless’ voicemail technology: Guests will automatically see a voicemail notification come through. Once they listen to it, guests can elect to call back and be patched through directly to the dealership. This strategy really works in Kain’s opinion. However, this technology is not currently legal in every state, so be sure to conduct your own research beforehand.
Be sure to annunciate and include a hook when leaving a voicemail: Most guests nowadays will read voicemail transcripts on their smartphone rather than listening to the message. Set up the expectation that, as the BDC rep, you intend to call them again due to the importance of the inquiry.

Related: The benefits of using a phone call script for auto sales success

Be sure to request the guest’s phone number on your website form fills: Some potential car buyers will reach out to your dealership by emailing or contacting the store directly by message. Failing to secure the phone numbers of these guests is a missed opportunity. Let the guest know your availability to text, email, or engage in another way.
Set an auto-response to send when guests submit their information: Set up a simplistic auto-response to acknowledge the guest when they submit their info online. Make it informative, and make it brief. Be sure to gently encouragement a follow-up phone call with the guest.

Email David@KainAutomotive.com to request your copy of the Digital Success Guide.

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We continue to hear news of record pricing across the industry, so on today’s show, we’re learning where things stand today. We’re pleased to welcome Cox Automotive’s Chief Economist, Jonathan Smoke, to discuss third quarter auto sales and he’ll also give us a market outlook as we wrap up 2021.

Smoke says we haven’t reached the bottom of the inventory issues in the new vehicle market, yet. They’ve continued to see a slowing in new vehicle sales. Due to inventory challenges and the hurricane replacement demand, it’s created even more demand for used vehicles. There has been an upward trend in used vehicle prices. The key concern for dealers is that the average auction price for a vehicle is now higher than the average retail price. Smoke says demand stays strong.

The whole year’s performance has been about supply and it will continue to be that way says, Smoke. All of the Asian brands have gained quite a bit of share. They’ve outperformed because many of them started the year with more supply and had a broader range of vehicles. Smoke says they’re seeing brands like Toyota and Honda with hardly any supply left. They’re losing momentum at a time where we’re seeing some brands gaining momentum. He thinks Ford is one of the brands that have turned the corner and sees improvements in the coming months. Supply is going to dictate what happens this Fall.

Related: How long will used car values stay high? KBB’s Micah Tindor weighs in

Smoke believes it’s likely going to be the back half of next year before we see a balance between supply and demand. We have growing pent-up demand, with delayed leases, purchases, and fleet buyers anxious to get orders fulfilled. Production would need to be at 100% for several months before we see a substantial change in day supply.

Q4 isn’t starting well. Smoke predicts, October will be about the same as September. He has a feeling there will be more action due to change in situations. This Fall, it may be more about gross margins and not volumes. The incentives numbers in September were at a 20-years low.

The growth opportunity is in the used car market, especially for the Spring. Dealers need to be well-positioned within demand inventory. Spring 2022 won’t be quite as strong as Spring 2021, but Smoke thinks it will be incredibly strong for the dealers who have learned to navigate and deal with the supply constraints successfully.

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On the latest episode of Auto Marketing Now, host Brian Pasch talks about the unique challenges dealer groups face when trying to compile comparison marketing reports.

One of the biggest challenges is how do we roll up data across 10, 20 or 30 stores when there are different website platforms and marketing agencies involved? The key to the successful roll of reports in a fragmented marketing world is Google Tag Manager. Dealer group managers know that rarely there is uniformity. Based on OEM mandates, you may have two or three different retailing tools.

To get your data into data management platforms, the key is to set up a common Google Tag Manager framework that puts events into Google Analytics for each store. Then use those events to set up a unified set of goals for sales and service. Import that data into reporting tools. Pasch says this is an absolute must for dealer groups.

Many tools do not put events into Google Analytics that are connected to a session. Dealers should be looking to unify the reporting to see which digital retailing platforms are performing better. If you’re interested in setting up this framework, Pasch encourages you to attend the Automotive Analytics and Attribution Summit. It will be held November 14-16 in Palm Beach, Florida.

Related: The critical missing piece to your digital sales strategy

Google Analytics is not perfect. Pasch says to ramp up production on Google Tag Manager and get the training and partners you need. He says now more than ever dealer groups are growing through acquisitions and the faster you can roll up marketing data into meaningful reports will allow you to inspect what’s in place, pivot, and improve retail operational efficiency.

For more information on the Automotive Analytics and Attribution Summit, click here.

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The Digital Dealer Conference and Expo kicked off yesterday and if you’re attending, you’ll be hearing from some great experts like the President and CEO of Force Marketing, John Fitzpatrick. John joins us now to discuss his presentation, Customer Lifetime Value: What Is It and Why It’s the Only Metric That Matters, which will be held at 10:20 later this morning in St. Thomas B hall.

It’s the perfect timing for our topic, says John. When you look through the lens of marketing, how can you consider the customer lifetime value to the business? They are going to have an interactive session, where they are participating with the audience. John says they are trying to shift the mindset of the industry and making sure they are asking all the right questions.

John says they are seeing the privacy of data and the effectiveness of first-party data. Your ability to buy audiences that are ‘in market’ and the level of data marketers have is dwindling. John believes we will see a day where there’s going to be significant regulation in and around how we see data. This means that the first-party data that lives inside a dealer’s DMS will increase a hundred times in value. The service director has to be in the marketing conversation, inside that room in the dealership says John.

If in the process of you selling a customer a vehicle, you create an advocate, you just won says John. An advocate helps bring in more sales and they tell everyone in their circle, this business will treat you right. At Force Marketing, they know marketing is communication. If Force Marketing can help you communicate your message better, together, you both will win.

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The National Independent Automobile Dealers Association (NIADA) has a new President. During the Association’s 75th Annual Convention and Expo, Joe McCloskey, Owner of McCloskey Motors, was named President, succeeding Louis Tedeschi. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Joe McCloskey to discuss NIADA’s agenda as we wrap up the year and head into 2022, and we’ll also dive into a few challenges independent dealers are facing today.

We have a lot of plans, especially with our 75th-anniversary celebration says McCloskey. McCloskey is celebrating his 50th year in the automotive industry. He started out sweeping garage floors, then eventually started selling cars as a junior in high school in 1974. He knew after selling cars in high school, that is what he wanted to do for the rest of his life.

In addition to pricing issues, vehicles are selling for more than the book value, and it’s getting harder for vehicles to get financed. Dealers are having to pay more per vehicle and have to stock fewer vehicles due to credit limits. McCloskey says they are also facing labor shortages. They’re seeing the compression of profits.

The net profits for both retail and subprime dealers are at an all-time high. McCloskey says there is a lot of uncertainty because he’s not sure what tomorrow might bring. NIADA dealers are having to adjust to higher reconditioning expenses. They do anticipate that this will continue through next year due to the inventory shortages.

Related: How to shift marketing techniques during times of low vehicle inventory

The one thing about independent dealers, they all have different business models. McCloskey says NIADA wants to bring all those separate entities together under one umbrella and unify themselves. With 14,000 members McCloskey believes they have a great opportunity both on policy-making and legislative issues. They also have a few technology projects, they are looking to get finalized. NIADA has a 5-year strategic plan that they introduced in February 2020. McCloskey’s job is to make sure they are continuing with that strategy and executing on the promises that NIADA has made.

One of the biggest issues that concern McCloskey is government overreach. He believes with government overreach, they have unintended consequences on both independent dealers and the customers. NIADA is now forming alliances with other associations and organizations to make their voices louder and even stronger when it comes to government policies and legislative affairs.

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Welcome to another edition of Inside Automotive with Jim Fitzpatrick. Today, Jim is joined by Hugh Hathcock and Kalah McCoy, Owner and Executive Vice President of Velocity Automotive Solutions (VAS), respectively.

Customer trust and transparency are crucial elements for every car dealer to consider when selling vehicles digitally. In fact, the majority of consumers today expect a high level of transparency when making large purchases. In order to help car dealers earn that trust, VAS offers digital window stickers as part of the larger VelocityEngage portfolio. Window stickers are the number one tool that gets the most engagement from consumers.

Every time a car comes through your dealership’s inventory, a digital window sticker is generated automatically for consumers with no wait time. From the dealership perspective, McCoy says as customers bring in trade-ins, used car managers have more nuanced data to assess the value of these vehicles.

The readily available information that the digital window sticker provides can even assist dealerships with their finance companies. Due to the current prices of used cars, finance companies might be hesitant to extend larger auto loans without comprehensive knowledge of the specific vehicle. However, with digital window stickers, anyone can have access to a complete vehicle profile. Banks are far more likely to approve larger loans with this information on demand.

“What’s the number one thing dealers want and are thinking now? Acquire more used cars,” says Hathcock. “If a used car manager scans the VIN, up pops the window sticker. He knows everything about the car now. So, he can make a trade appraisal to that consumer that’s going to be the best one.”

McCoy adds that when dealers set their used vehicle prices with various tools, what is not being considered is the crucial element of consumer engagement. If a pricing tool is telling the dealer to lower the price of a vehicle based on the local market and past performance, but the vehicle is getting a high level of engagement, then the dealer might not want to drop the price. This is what digital window stickers and the VelocityEngage portfolio as a whole offer.

“[The portfolio] is great for used cars, there’s no doubt about it, but it’s really for all of your inventory,” explains McCoy. “There’s no reason you wouldn’t have it for every car, new and used.”

At the end of the day, car dealers can have the best digital retailing tools on the best websites, but if consumers can not find all the information they need in one convenient place, they won’t even start the transaction phase.

To learn more about Velocity Automotive Solutions, be sure to visit VelocityAutomotiveSolutions.com.

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On the latest episode of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes sits down with Senior Director of KBB Instant Cash Offer, Micah Tindor. Lopes gets straight to the point and asks Tindor, will used car values stay this high for long?

Used car values are through the roof. In some cases, customers are able to trade in a vehicle for a higher amount than the original purchase price. Tindor says if you look at the trending car sales versus the trend in new car allocations, it’s indicating that they’re going to stay high for a while.

The projection is that SAAR will be 13.1 million vehicles sold in 2021. Inventory is significantly constrained and prices are at an all-time high. If you take the number of vehicles stripped out of new production, that’s 2.7 million cars. That is about 20% of all inventory stripped out of production this year.

In the KBB report, 50% of consumers said they would consider waiting on a vehicle because of the shortages. 75% of consumers said they’re willing to drive outside their local area for a vehicle. 35% of consumers said they are willing to pay above MSRP on a vehicle. Tindor says, with those indicators, prices will stay hot and demand will stay high.

In order to acquire inventory quickly, Tindor says to start following non-traditional options. The next option is consumer acquisition. Lastly, buy from the auction. When going to auctions, and you ask what should I buy, your data should line up with your dealer strategy.

On average, used cars under $10,000 are selling within 30 days. $10,000 to $25,000 vehicles are selling within 34 to 38 days. Used cars in the $25,000 to $35,000 range are a little higher and are selling within 42 days. Used cars over $35,000 are selling within 48 days. Tindor says to buy cars that meet your go-to-market strategy but pay attention to vehicles in the low market day supply.

Younger customers are price shopping their used cars, aggressively. Tindor says the younger generation is price shopping four to seven sites, 30% of the time. Older generations are price shopping one to three sources, 70% of the time. If dealers don’t respond in a correct pricing bucket, consumers know they can go to someone else.

Consumers are taking advantage of selling their cars online. Tindor says the primary emotional need consumers had when selling a car was confidence. They’re more knowledgeable than they use to be. Tindor says you want to make sure that you engage them with your best foot forward from a pricing perspective and give them emotional peace of mind.

Related: How the emotional state of consumers impacts their buying decisions

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Each year the month of October is recognized as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. According to the CDC, breast cancer is the second most common cancer among women in the United States. For the past six years, AutoNation has stepped up, alongside cancer-fighting charities, and made the fight part of their culture with their Drive Pink campaign.

On today’s show, we’re discussing the importance of a campaign like this to AutoNation. We’re joined by AutoNation’s leadership Marc Cannon, Executive Vice President and Chief Customer Experience Officer at AutoNation, and Nick Schnelle, Market President of AutoNation’s DFW, Amarillo, and Waco markets.

Every single one of us knows someone who’s been touch by cancer. This dreaded disease is a big burden on healthcare and families. Cannon says we must do something about it. AutoNation is one of a handful of companies in the U.S. that offer free cancer insurance to all of its employees and their families. AutoNation is also making a huge difference with research. It gives me great pride says Cannon. If there is anything he feels that they have done above and beyond, it’s their efforts with cancer and making a difference in people’s lives.

Schnelle iterates that they have several different campaigns across the year. They are all focused on finding a cure for cancer. They are currently involved in a fundraiser for The American Cancer Society. They are supporting Hope Lodge, which is a residence for people who are undergoing cancer treatment. He says it’s amazing to watch the associates come together, the enthusiasm they have, and the excitement they have to compete against each other to do the best they can. Cannon says it’s not about the brand, it’s about what you can do to change people’s lives at the store for their customers.

Today, Cannon says they have an excess of seven million Drive Pink plates on cars. He says there are people who come into their stores and want to put them on their cars and they aren’t AutoNation customers. On ‘Drive Across America’ Day, AutoNation will have 153 stores, participate, where they will be stuffing bags and those bags will go to cancer patients. They plan to deliver over 10,000 bags to cancer patients across the U.S. It’s letting the patients know they are loved and they are here to help them.

Schnelle says the response from the community has been outstanding. He says he is very proud of the team. Cannon also adds, people all over want to help us, and he wants people to remember is that he made a difference with Drive Pink and it’s something he left behind that is making a difference in people’s lives. Cancer is something this country and the world needs to beat and battle out now.

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motormindz is expanding and recently added a familiar face! The automotive venture consultancy network named Jason Stein as President and Corporate Development Officer. Stein was previously a publisher of Automotive News and has now joined a team of 120 executive-level, subject matter experts.

On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Jason Stein, President and Corporate Development Officer of motormindz, and host of SiriusXM’s Cars & Culture with Jason Stein, to discuss his new role.

motormindz is coming up with solutions for the industry. It’s matching up the issues and problems that the industry is trying to grapple with, over the course of the next 5 to 10 years. Stein hopes to provide some of the solutions motormindz is already doing.

Related: How transparency helped this Indiana dealership increase its net profit by 1200%

Stein says his SiriusXM’s show is the passion around the culture of the automobile. It’s everything from a Pixar film to the enormous car collection that exists in places like the Peterson Automotive Museum. Stein sees the show as a blank canvas. He says, he has the opportunity to sketch out what he wants it to be. In a 45 minute interview, he gets the chance to delve into some personal details, business details, and the passion for cars. It’s been a blast says, Stein.

The smallest piece of the vehicle became the biggest problem says Stein. This forced dealers to be extremely creative. They’re going to have to be a lot more creative as we head now into Q4 and more than likely into next year. He says it’s also a sense of creativity in selling. Covid has produced the need for increased communication, increased creativity, and patience within the dealership.

When it comes to EVs, Stein says you’re going to have the product but will you have the consumer? Without heavy incentives, it’s proven that the market share doesn’t tick up much beyond 2 to 3%. He says he wouldn’t count out the internal combustion engine anytime soon.

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CDK Global recently held its first conference known as CDK Connect, an event filled with industry experts, breakout sessions, and so much more. Joining us now to give us a recap of the conference is Joe Tautges, Chief Operating Officer of CDK Global.

It was a chance for us to really tell our story of what we’ve been up to, says Tautges. Over the last three years, he says they figured out how to connect end to end and the workflow integration seamlessly for dealers.

Consumers’ expectations are changing a lot. They want a simple and convenient car buying process. From Tautges’s perspective, he says dealers need to pivot their business models to capitalize on that opportunity and to stay strong. He says that’s CDK’s opportunity to support them in that endeavor. Tautges says they think about, where is the industry headed, what do consumers want, and how does EVs play into that?

Related: Doing more with less

From Tautges’s point of view, data intelligence is also important. For both the OEMs and the dealers. Use it in a way that’s thoughtful and helpful to consumers. Consumers want to build trust with the dealer and with the brand their buying. They also want to feel well taken care of. Over 12,000 dealerships use CDK software and over 50% of cars sold go through their software. CDK is ready to bring the next generation of experiences to market.

Tautges has plans for the conference to become annual and looks to increase communication more frequently. In the next five to ten years things will change says, Tautges. The dealerships will change and the dealers will be at the heart of it. They are excited by the future, investments they’re going to continue to make it and partnering with them to make lasting success.

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On the latest episode of Mind Your Own Business, host Jonathan Dawson, founder of Sellchology, discusses the risk some dealers are putting their businesses in right now. The marketplace is going to shift and here are four psychological stages customers may experience.

The first phase is resistance to the price or market. There are customers who are resistant to the limitations of the marketplace. They don’t want to pay the price or compromise on the vehicle you’re offering them.

The second phase is the reluctance to the sale. They’re asking themselves, should I be doing this now?

The third phase is remorse over the purchase. They’re customers who are purchasing cars and are immediately feeling, buyer’s remorse. They buying their car out of reluctantly but also out of scarcity, urgency, and necessity.

The fourth phase, which is the most dangerous of them all, is retaliation. Dawson believes if you’re not fully prepared, and adding massive value, you’re going to have customers retaliate, the next time, they are in the market for a vehicle.

Dealers ask yourself, how are you adding value for your customer? The metric you should be measuring today is the customer experience. How many reviews and customer testimonials are you getting? Today, revenue and sales don’t matter. What matters is how happy was the customer at the end of the sale?

Related: How to get customers to come back for the first service

Dawson says to gather your team and map out the customer experience on a timeline and add value. Consider a gift basket or welcome basket for customers who visit your dealership. Give your customers a ‘first class’ experience. Now is the time to roll out the red carpet during the delivery. Out experience your competition, and create a raving fan today.

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Welcome to another episode of Founder Focus, a CBT original series that focuses on the journeys of some amazing automotive founders. Today, host Steve Greenfield is joined by serial entrepreneur Brice Englert, founder of TradePending, one of the most innovative software solutions in the auto tech landscape over the past decade. TradePending’s revolutionary trade-in tool SNAP quickly became the most rapidly adopted trade-in tool for auto dealerships in the U.S. Recently, TradePending announced the launch of SNAP+, the next iteration of SNAP.

Englert begins the conversation by discussing his journey into and through the automotive industry. Initially, he was a commissioned officer in the U.S. Air Force and created a software development program. He then had the opportunity to join Trader Publications and got a big break to join the merger and acquisitions team, and the rest, as they say, was history.

Englert felt that used vehicle acquisitions were positioned all wrong. Car dealers hadn’t realized the largest source of their used vehicle inventory is trade-ins. The largest market for cars is the ‘owned market’ says, Englert. The biggest opportunity was trying to position the consumer on why trading in their cars more frequently, could simplify the process.

“I didn’t start TradePending until I was 39,” says Englert. He feels that from the time he thought about a career, to the time he started TradePending, he was mitigating all the risks that could be thrown at him. Finally, he had a moment and realized, “he had to do this.” They were fortunate enough to have enough initial capital to hire great talent and focus on building a great product.

Related: Using better marketing to attract better talent

Englert says he’s always had something inside of him to be inquisitive. He believes most entrepreneurs are born with an edge. He says to just be curious, read books and talk to customers. He also says you do want to reach a level, where you want to get even more aggressive. You want to be a brand that’s well respected and looking to expand services organically and also through acquisitions.

When it comes to mentorship, Englert says, they were many people at different points of his journey. Although his peers weren’t his mentors, they challenged him. Good collaborations can help define your career. The best advice Englert ever received was, don’t undercapitalize. Figure out what’s going to allow you to make a few mistakes over the course of a few years and don’t be stingy. Ask yourself, what does the business need for myself and the business to be successful?

Five years from now, Englert hopes his team is gigantic and their data is being used in the shopping experience across the automotive industry.

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There are trends dealers must understand and adapt to thrive in today’s market. On today’s show, Facebook is giving us some insight into three trends to consider as we approach the final quarter of 2021 and enter 2022. We’re pleased to welcome Bob Lanham, Facebook’s Head of Automotive Retail.

As the automotive industry settles into the fourth quarter, car dealers are focused on closing out another crazy year while simultaneously prepare for 2022. From a marketing perspective, Lanham has isolated three trends that dealers should pay close attention to.

Privacy First MeasurementThe ad ecosystem is currently evolving to meet people’s expectations of their privacy, and online data measurements need to change because of it. It’s time to evolve your measurement process for a privacy-first future. This can be implemented by leveraging marketing mix modeling, an analytical approach that uses historic information to quantify market share.
A Full-Funnel Approach – Brand Marketing Drives Short-Term SalesLooking to drive more digital retailing sessions, phone calls, leads, and ultimately sales? Research showed that 94% of campaigns that ran Brand Advertising saw an increase in conversions while at the same time seeing up to an 11% increase in brand awareness.
Messaging Is The New Normal69% of people surveyed in the U.S. say that being able to message a business helps them feel more confident about the brand. Improve relationships with customers and prospects by implementing messaging today.

To learn more about these topics, please watch our interview above.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Bob Lanham? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

TekionFirst up this week is a huge deal in the dealer software space, as Tekion, a cloud-based automotive software provider, has more than tripled its valuation to $3.5 billion dollars after raising $250 million dollars from investors including Durable Capital Partners and Alkeon Capital Management.

Hyundai Motor Company and existing investors Advent International and Index Ventures also participated.

Tekion is taking on big industry players Reynolds & Reynolds and CDK Global in the Dealer Management System category.

Tekion plans to add larger automotive vehicles such as RVs and boats to its platform. It is set to expand both domestically and internationally, beginning with France by the second quarter of 2022, followed by the U.K. and Germany.

WarrCloudWarrCloud has closed its Series Seed investment. The round was led by FM Capital with additional investment from Automotive Ventures.

Details of the transaction were not disclosed.

This marks the first institutional investors fundraise for WarrCloud, which is the industry’s first and only technology platform for warranty processing.

Developed by automotive industry tech pioneers, WarrCloud automates the processes related to coding, submission, and dealer payment for OEM warranty submission. Franchise dealers rely heavily on their service business to drive profitability, and warranty is the fastest growing segment of the dealer’s service business.

Volvo CarsVolvo Cars announced their IPO plans, and an expected $25 billion valuation.

The company’s confidence seems to be growing that investors will give fair value to its well-articulated strategy to shift from gas-run cars to electric vehicles.

$25 billion would work out at almost 12 times earnings for the year through June. Most car stocks trade around the mid-single-digit mark when their profits aren’t depressed by a crisis. BMW Group, one of Volvo’s closest peers, is currently at five times trailing earnings.

The most obvious way in which Volvo is different is because of its part ownership of a dedicated EV brand, Polestar, which last week announced a merger with a U.S. SPAC at a $20 billion dollar valuation. Volvo will own just under half of Polestar, so a roughly $10 billion asset will sit on its balance sheet. Strip that out and its own operations’ potential valuation could be $15 billion, or a more normal seven times trailing earnings.

AutoLeapNine months after announcing a $5 million dollar seed round, Toronto auto repair software company AutoLeap is back with $18 million dollars in Series A funding, this time led by Bain Capital Ventures.

Joining Bain in the round is existing investor Threshold Ventures, which led the seed round, to give the company $23 million in total funding.

AutoLeap is bringing the auto repair shop into the 21st century by reducing the double- or triple-entry shop owners typically have to do through the digitization of their workflow — customer quoting, invoices and job estimates — and the processing of all of that in the backend accounting. It also provides a sales and marketing component via customer relationship management, scheduling via app, customer texting or emails and online reviews.

ArcBestArcBest, a leader in supply chain logistics, announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire MoLo Solutions, a Chicago-based truckload freight brokerage. With the acquisition, ArcBest will become a top 15 U.S. truckload broker with access to over 70,000 carrier partners.

Founded in 2017, MoLo has outpaced industry benchmarks by rapidly growing its customer base and revenue – recently ranking #1 in the Transportation & Logistics industry on the “2021 Inc. 5000 Fastest-Growing Private Companies in America”. MoLo revenue in 2020 equaled $274 million dollars, an increase of more than 100% over the previous year, and MoLo expects revenue of approximately $600 million dollars in 2021.

Phiar TechnologiesPhiar Technologies, a market leader in AI-powered Augmented Reality navigation for driving, announced the close of a new $12 million dollar Series A funding round. The new Series A fund was led by State Farm Ventures and includes new investors Cambridge Mobile Telematics, Telenav, and previous investors Norwest Venture Partners, The Venture Reality Fund / The VR Fund, and GFR Fund.

The funding will further accelerate Phiar’s business with OEMs and Tier-1 partners in the automotive industry.

Phiar is bringing perception and intelligence to automotive navigation. Through its advanced and lightweight Spatial-AI Engine and Mobility AR Engine, it enables vehicles to understand the environment better in real-time for intelligent navigation, smart parking, HD mapping, vision-based live road detections, traffic conditions and more. Phiar is utilizing modern automotive chipsets including Qualcomm Snapdragon, and is working closely with major automotive OEMs such as Nissan; global tier-1 suppliers including Panasonic Automotive and Bosch, leading maps and navigation vendors such as TomTom and HERE.

Cover WhaleThe vehicle insurance space has been hot lately, as we’ve seen Salty get acquired by CDK Global, and DealerPolicy raise $110 million dollars from Goldman Sachs. And just last week Just Insure, a pay-per-mile insurance technology company, raised $8 million in a funding round.

In the first of three insurance deals this week, Cover Whale, an Insurtech Managing General Agent focused on disrupting the commercial auto space, announced the completion of a $15.5 million fundraising led by investors Ambac Financial Group and TigerRisk Partners’ Applied Financial Technologies subsidiary.

Cover Whale was built on a foundation of technology, data, and machine learning analytics to transform the commercial auto segment and bring to market a forward-looking and continuous insurance model. The efficiency driven by Cover Whale’s technology platform reduces the need for the traditional resource-consuming underwriting process, allowing it to offer instantaneous quotes from multiple carrier partners.

The company’s proprietary platform also enables Cover Whale to leverage real time data in great volume. This, coupled with the ability to intervene and instantaneously correct negative driver behavior, will reduce loss ratios and therefore lower the overall cost of insurance.

VOOM InsuranceOur second deal in the insurance space this week as VOOM Insurance, creators of innovative insurance products for underserved mobility segments, announced $15 million dollars in funding to expand its usage-based insurance model to additional mobility verticals.

The funding round was co-led by JAL Ventures Fund and UP.Partners, with the participation of F2 Venture Capital, Arbor Ventures, Verizon Ventures, and ICON Continuity Fund and brings VOOM’s total funding to $22 million.

Already the category leader for drones with tens of thousands of policies, VOOM launched the world’s first Per-Mile insurance product for motorcycles in August and is expanding to offer usage-based insurance solutions for light aircraft, leisure vehicles and gig drivers.

VOOM identifies areas of mobility that are underserved by most insurers and rolls out insurance solutions that rely on new sources of data and actual customer usage. This allows the company to offer far fairer rates than traditional insurance companies whose risk models are built on data like homeownership, credit score and zip code.

VOOM’s dynamically-priced, usage-based insurance products are designed for high-risk, episodic-use mobility verticals, including drones, e-scooters, motorcycles, and light planes.

LOOPThree time’s a charm, and we have another insurance investment this week.

LOOP, the AI-powered car insurance company with a focus on more equitable insurance, announced it has closed a $21million dollar Series A financing, co-led by Foundry Group and 01A.

The round includes participation from existing investors in FREESTYLE VENTURES, Blue Fog, Uprising Ventures, Concrete Rose Capital, and joined by strategic new investment from New Voices Fund and Earn Your Leisure.

This comes just 9 months after the close of LOOP’s $3.25M Series Seed financing.

LOOP is the only auto product in the market today that has completely removed the use of demographics like credit score, occupation, and education in its underwriting; opting instead for measuring how users drive, paired with crash, weather, and traffic data. The result has been more equitable and competitive pricing for millennials, renters, and immigrants who are often burdened by student loans and consumer debt and are disadvantaged by legacy models. LOOP has received strong support, launching in Texas earlier this month to a waitlist of over 30,000.

LIDARIn the LIDAR news this week, Ouster will acquire Sense Photonics, a Silicon Valley upstart which has, like Ouster, focused on developing digital lidar.

Ouster will purchase Sense Photonics in exchange for 9.5 million shares of Ouster’s common stock. The shares rose 2.1 percent to close at $7.31 on Tuesday, a price that would value the deal at about $69 million dollars.

The acquisition, if completed, would bolster Ouster’s automotive offerings. The company would establish Ouster Automotive as a new division that intends to develop and promote lidar for mass-market consumer and commercial vehicles. Current Sense Phonotics CEO and former Ford Motor Co. executive Shauna McIntyre will lead the automotive division.

GeopipeGeopipe announced today that it has closed a $2.4M seed round led by Village Global, joined by Matrix Partners, the Amazon Alexa Fund, AME Cloud Ventures, and others.

Geopipe is creating the authoritative whole-Earth digital twin built by AI, bringing the unified Metaverse of reality to gaming, simulation, and beyond.

Geopipe will use this funding to roll out more of its cutting edge deep learning techniques to parse the world, doubling the level of detail in its digital twins and accelerating its coverage expansion.

Over the next 12 months, the company will expand deployments across key customer segments including gaming, simulation and AEC.

KyteOn-demand car service company Kyte announced a $30 million dollar Series A funding round led by Park West Asset Management and Sterling Road.

This latest round of funding for Kyte brings total capital raised to more than $40 million. The on-demand car service aims to put people in vehicles as long as they need them, giving them another option besides car rental services, peer-to-peer car sharing services, and traditional car leases.

Kyte’s on-demand cars are currently delivered by people and are available in Boston, Brooklyn, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington, D.C.

In addition to Park West Asset Management and Sterling Road, Kyte’s Series A round saw participation from new and existing investors, including DN Capital, Amplo, 1984 Ventures, FundersClub, Moving Capital, Rosecliff Ventures, Seraph Group, Unpopular Ventures, Urban Innovation Fund, and the founders of German transportation company FlixBus.

otonomootonomo, a vehicle data platform and marketplace, has acquired Neura, a leader in AI-powered Mobility Intelligence. Otonomo expects this acquisition to expedite Otonomo’s growth and to contribute positively to Otonomo’s revenue moving forward.

Deal terms were not disclosed.

Otonomo’s newly expanded mobility intelligence platform will leverage Neura’s advanced analytics powered by patented Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) technologies, and diverse multi-layered data.

VisionNav RoboticsIn international news this week, China’s automated guided industrial vehicle developer, VisionNav Robotics, has completed its C-round of financing with participants including ByteDance, Xiaomi Technology-backed Shunwei Capital, and other major ventures.

Founded in Shenzhen in 2016, VisionNav Robotics focuses on developing industrial vehicles via auto-grade autonomous driving technology, providing flexible crewless freight solutions. The company has received investments from Ivy Capital, Eastern Bell Capital, Lenovo Capital, Incubator Group, IDG Capital and a joint venture capital by Unicom and CICC.

WM MotorChinese electric vehicle brand WM Motor is close to raising about $500 million dollars in new funding, even as the firm faces a bumpy ride in its efforts to go public on Shanghai’s Nasdaq-style STAR Market.

WM Motor said that it expected to secure over $300 million dollars in a Series D1 round jointly led by Hong Kong’s telecom firm PCCW and conglomerate Shun Tak Holdings. Other investors, such as the US dollar investment arm of China’s GF Xinde Investment Management also participated in the deal.

BluSmartBP Ventures has made its first direct investment in India by injecting $13 million in integrated EV ride-hailing and charging company BluSmart. It led a $25 million Series A round that also saw support from Mayfield Fund, 9Unicorns and Survam Partners, alongside other existing investors.

To date, BP Ventures has invested almost $800 million in more than 60 companies across seven geographies.

BP Ventures was set up more than 10 years ago to identify and invest in private, high growth, game-changing technology companies, accelerating innovation across the entire energy spectrum.

Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL)China’s battery-making giant Contemporary Amperex Technology (better known as CATL) has made some big moves to shore up its lithium supply that is critical for electric car production. The firm has agreed to acquire Vancouver, Canada-based Millennial Lithium Corp. in an all-stock cash deal valued at $297 million US dollars.

The deal is set to secure the critical metal lithium for CATL, one of the world’s largest automotive battery makers. Millennial Lithium’s main exploration activity takes place in Argentina, which, along with Chile and Bolivia, forms the “lithium triangle” that holds most of the world’s lithium resources.

CATL struck a major partnership with Tesla earlier this year to supply lithium-ion batteries to the American EV maker from 2022 to 2025.

The Millennial investment is just one piece of CATL’s gigantic investment empire. A few weeks ago, news came that it had bought 8.5% in Australian lithium miner Pilbara Minerals Limited. It also holds an 8% stake in another Canadian lithium firm, Neo Lithium Corp.

SEEZDubai-based startup SEEZ has secured $5 million dollars in its latest funding round.

Founded in 2016, the automotive startup offers a platform for car listings, as well as artificial intelligence and data tools for car buyers. Using its platform, people can buy cars from official dealers and individual resellers.

Seez is growing faster than expected so more capital will help them accelerate growth as they continue their European expansion.

Companies To WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry intel report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, we have two companies in the tire technology space to watch, which include Pitstop and EnerJazz.

Pitstop

First Up This Week Is Toronto-based Pitstop, which provides

Cutting-edge AI and machine-learning technology that turns messy, real-world vehicle data into clean, actionable insights to make recall reductions, uptime increases and product improvements.

Pitstop leverages data from hundreds of thousands of vehicles to drive actionable insights to save money, improve innovation, and stay ahead of the curve.

Pitstop will be a company to keep an eye on in the connected vehicle space.

EnerJazz

Our Second Company To Watch This Week is India-based EnerJazz.

Enerjazz is building battery swapping network (like gasoline stations) for 2 million plus commercial electric vehicles in India.

Enerjazz received a competitive grant from the European Union, funding from YCombinator and was selected among 8 global innovative start-ups by Mercedes-Benz backed accelerator.

EnerJazz will definitely be a company to watch in the EV and Battery technology space.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

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People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

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On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Hugh Hathcock, Owner of Velocity Automotive Solutions and we’re also joined by Casey Coffey, Chief Operating Officer of Greenway Automotive.

The used car industry is a huge part of the Greenway platform. Coffey says ReconVelocity gives them the ability to move cars rapidly and have complete transparency for all the managers. One of the challenges, Coffey has had was running a large organization in a lot of different dealerships across the country. They wanted to be able to have visibility of what was going with their inventory at each store. How quickly you get inventory through the system is paramount to being able to be on top of the market and delivering the type of vehicle your customer wants on a timely basis.

Related: The critical missing piece to your digital sales strategy

Hathcock says ReconVelocity is a software where a lot of dealers are a little slower to act on it because it takes a lot of work. Hathcock says they were able to put 10 to 15 pilot stores in place with both products and let the GMs and salespeople experience what the product could do for them.

Having sticker prices is majorly important says Coffey. It’s important to understand all the different offerings each car may bring. He says if you don’t have the window sticker, and the ability to look at it, you may end up missing something. It could end up costing you a car deal.

Hathcock says nobody has done in this category, where the CRMs are pushing the platform and integrating it. He says it’s a huge deal. The integration has probably been one of their biggest advantages for dealers to see because it makes everything so easy. Coffey says, what they’re trying to do is make the whole deal simple. To the consumer, it’s all about time and being able to gather information in one spot. Not only does it educate the customer, but it educates the salespeople as well. It’s been a great tool for us says, Coffey.

For more information visit: velocityautomotivesolutions.com

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Sellchology, a term coined by sales trainer Jonathan Dawson, is the philosophy of selling through psychology. In today’s digital environment it is critical for sales teams and managers to understand this in order to be more effective in the market. That’s why each month, right here on CBT News, Jonathan walks us through strategies to better influence buying behavior on his show, Mind Your Own Business. Now, he joins us today to discuss how dealers can create more value for their customers.

When a consumer is buying a product or service at a premium price, it often breeds resistance to the price. If the customer goes through the experience and it’s not overwhelmed with value, it leads the customer to wonder if they made a mistake. Dawson says that reluctance leads to regret. Regret eventually leads to remorse. Remorse leads to resentment and resentment leads to retaliation. Retaliation can come in the form of a lack of great reviews.

Related: How car dealers can focus on customer retention amid inventory challenges

Dawson says you have to invest in the customer experience. He encourages dealers to add an out of market addendum. He doesn’t think it’s wise to have addendums that are universal across every buyer. It’s a misunderstanding of the future of the market. What added value are you offering to offset the customer’s thought that this is too high?

People will pay for extra effort. Dealers should look at the type of effort they are putting into leads. Don’t forget to add ease and efficiency. Consumers will also pay more to work with an expert. Make sure you’re educating the consumer on the marketplace. Provide an exclusive experience that feels special to the customer. Make sure your environment is welcoming.

Dawson is also opening up a training center for automotive in Atlanta. It will be designed to solve any problem within your dealership. They will offer service training, recruitment, and marketing training. He says they want to provide real solutions to dealers. The facility is set to open early next month.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Jonathan Dawson? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, discusses current market trends and what you can do right now on your lot to start making adjustments.

Dealers are starting to feel a slow down of used cars. Rice says the hard part is if you’re waiting to feel it, you’re probably 30 to 45 days behind. Dealers were making adjustments in September to prepare for a slower October. The traditional fall slump is happening right now.

High mileage and late model vehicles are feeling the worst of it. One of the reasons why is because values are high for consumers. They aren’t willing to pay top dollar for older used cars. If they have to pay more, they want something more dependable with lower miles. Also, new car buyers won’t transition to a high mileage car. If you’re finding that as a pattern on your car lot, start making adjustments now.

Another pattern is used trucks are starting to see a slowdown. Usually, around the end of summer, truck sales usually slump. Rice believes you get a strong Spring, at the beginning of Summer truck season, as businesses pick up and they need more trucks. The older and high mileage trucks are sticking the most.

Rice says to focus on figuring out the ‘cap’ of your floor. Next focus on the middle bucket, which is anything 31 to 60 days old. Increase the first 30 days sale rate. Rice says to try and get as much fresh inventory out, to offset any age cars that may be costing you gross profits. You also want to increase the odds of the car selling.

For the middle bucket, you don’t want to maintain more than 25% of your current inventory in that bucket. The reason is the need to eliminate the bleed through to the older buckets. 30% of your overall sales could be coming from that bucket. The more cars in the middle bucket, the less you’re making overall.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Used Cars Weekly? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Proactive Dealer Solutions emerged as one of the industry’s leading BDC solutions providers and has pioneered innovative BDC concepts, which have evolved into better customer experiences for the entire dealership. Today, Proactive Dealer Solutions has developed some robust technology solutions to enhance the customer experience and dealership profitability.

Last quarter, Proactive Dealer Solutions launched Brooke.ai, the very first digital voice assistant built specifically for automotive. Brooke.ai has the human-parody capability of answering, handling, and appointing inbound service calls and other common conversations. On today’s Power Lunch, we’re pleased to welcome Lawson Owen, and Jason Beckett, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer of Proactive Dealer Solutions, respectively.

Beckett starts by describing the big increase in purchasing and transactions through digital voice assistants. In 2020, the number totaled about $2 billion, with projections to increase to $164 billion in 2025. Transactions are the highest form of trust and Becket adds that they’re great indicators of consumers’ willingness to use this type of technology.

Digital voice assistance in the dealership is also necessary for the service drive, says Beckett. Fixed operations are already process-driven and are additionally, the largest lead source. 20-30% of calls coming into a service drive are lost or go unanswered. He says that even during the pandemic, the fail rate has been high. 68% of calls that aren’t answered go somewhere else. Owen adds that if dealerships just answer the phone and interact with the consumer, ROIs will go through the roof.

Beckett wants dealers to understand that it’s not about creating new leads but handling the leads you already have, and enhancing the customer experience. 75% of calls coming into a service drive are non-technical. Brooke.ai is not intended to eliminate staff. Rather, the goal is to improve inefficiencies, and bring consistency to customer interactions. Owen says it will allow the staff to focus on other things more important, like retention calls. He adds that the most important thing is to generate positivity from the customer during the transaction.

Brooke.ai is the first digital voice assistant that answers, handles, and appoints inbound service calls. This software is the best service scheduling coordinator at scale. Brooke.ai has the ability to understand and handle the unknown.

The most important KPI Beckett says they track, is a live agent request. It’s an indicator for dealers to know how willing consumers are to work with Brooke.ai. They have a 7% live agent request, meaning 93% of those customers are willing to work with a digital voice assistant to get appointments set. Owen says if you’re concern about your customers engaging in the Brooke.ai process, listen to some of the calls you have right now.

44% of calls for serving a vehicle are appointed on average. Brooke.ai will appoint 75% of calls. Beckett says, that Brooke.ai will also follow your dealership policies. It’s getting dealerships to look at how they’re structuring their service scheduling tool.

Owen says to earn the dealer’s trust, he recommends after-hours and overflow. He encourages everyone at the dealership to see what your call failure rate is in service, and that’s where Brooke.ai can fill that gap.

To learn more, visit ProactiveDealerSolutions.com.

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On the latest episode of Kain and Co., host David Kain, president of Kain Automotive, discusses the most critical piece in your digital sales strategy, which is your engagement process or strategy.

You want to measure the results of what your engagement read is. Engagement is a two-way dialogue. An effort is making a phone call, sending a text message, or sending an email. But, after those efforts, you didn’t necessarily engage. All of your efforts should focus on, what does it take to have a high engagement rate? Good measurements are on the first day, the first three days, and after 30 days.

Related: How increased website engagement and high quality leads go hand in hand – Jordan Morrison of Pureinfluencer

Kain says you have to accept the fact that guest probably isn’t at their peak of interest. The initial day is the greatest point of engagement from the customer. Over the first 30 days, we’re looking to engage at a level of 70% to 80%. Fifty percent of your engagement should take place in the first two to three days.

If you have a low engagement rate, here are few things to diagnose. First, what are the strategies you’re using? As quickly as you can, you want to reach out to the guest. The best way to have high engagement is to be the first dealership to respond. Seventy-eight percent of sales are made by the first person that engages with the customer. Kain says to try to come up with different strategies to have a high rate. When you are not engaging with the customer, you’re marketing to them.

Engagement rate is the key metric. Concentrate on that and everything else will fall in line.

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On the latest episode of Auto Marketing Now, host Brian Pasch talks about how your marketing can shift during times when inventory levels are low and why it’s uncertain when inventory levels will get back to normal.

It doesn’t look like until the end of Q2 2022 that inventory levels will start to get more normalized. There are also some signals that the future of automotive retail might look more like Europe, where consumers are ordering the vehicles and customizing them on demand. Pasch says it has been a few breakthroughs.

Related: Digital marketing methods for today’s car dealership

For most dealers, price is no longer a discussion or discounting. Many dealers are selling vehicles at MSRP. Dealers should be encouraging consumers to plan ahead and place an order for their next vehicle. Dealers should also start developing marketing messages that educate consumers, on what to do in times of inventory shortages. He also says to be careful with buyback campaigns.

Now is the time to talk about the customer service and experience at your dealership. Think about retooling your business says Pasch. Educate consumers on how you’re adapting to help them and your service process. This isn’t the time to stop marketing but the marketing messages have to be relevant to what consumers are going through. This is not the time to be silent.

Pasch encourages all dealers to retool their sales process. You have the least amount of people and you’re making the most amount of money, along with the least amount of distractions.

To learn more about cutting-edge and innovating automotive marketing strategies, consider attending the upcoming Automotive Analytics and Attribution Summit this November. Click here to read the details.

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What should dealers do to navigate through this inventory imbalance? On today’s show we’re pleased to welcome Randy Kobat, Vice President of Operations for Inventory Management Solutions at Cox Automotive, to give us a Q2 recap on the used car and wholesale market, sales, and pricing and we’ll also get his perspective on the market’s changes.

Q2 was a crazy time in our marketplace says Kobat. He says it was the first time in history that prices for wholesale went up and at the same time appraisal value of cars went up also. Depreciating assets is not something we had to manage in the past.

Related: What’s the reason behind fluctuating wholesale values?

According to NADA, in April 2021, dealers averaged $807 in net profit per used vehicle retailed. In May 2021, dealers averaged $993 in net profit per used vehicle retailed. There are no doubt dealers are making record profits. Kobat says, one thing that’s interesting is dealers that are leveraging technology from ProfitTime are doing even better. They are pricing vehicles based on investment value.

You make money when you buy the car, not when you sell the car. Kobat says they are trying to help their clients do a better job of value creation rather than valuation when they’re appraising cars. This allows them to match strategy to action and outcomes.

Kobat says when you’re hungry for inventory, it’s important to know how many cars did you capture and how many did you walk away from that may have been able to be purchased for a few hundred dollars.

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For 10 years TIME in partnership with Ally has recognized new car dealers across the country for their performance and community service. This year, second-generation dealer, Rick DeSilva Jr. was named TIME’s Dealer of the Year. After learning about Rick’s incredible commitment to service, to not only customers but also the community, it’s easy to see why he was chosen.

“I think it’s so important to step up when and where you’re needed,” says DeSilva Jr. As car dealers, you have plenty of opportunities to do that. In a lot of cases, car dealerships are still the last, small family-owned businesses in a community. To maintain family participation in the community and that personal connection, it’s extremely important. DeSilva Jr. says people still need access to making sure their cars are safe.

Related: Fostering community engagement with initiatives in safe driving basics

For a long time, DeSilva Jr. says they were ready for modern retailing. He says they didn’t have a traditional business development. Their salespeople took customers through the entire process, from beginning to end. While they were close, they weren’t able to deliver vehicles but were able to sell and take deposits for cars. When they opened back up, it was just a matter of scheduling.

DeSilva Jr. believes the biggest hold-up of EV adoption aside from the price is the range anxiety. People are just not comfortable with it, yet. He says we don’t have the infrastructure to support it. He does believe once the infrastructure catches up, it will be a little easier and prices will come down.

They’ve had supply and demand issues in the past but DeSilva Jr. says, this chip shortage is on a different level. He says it’s interesting to watch how each manufacturer has handled it, so differently. He says their allocations have been up and down but Subaru has done a phenomenal job of letting them know where they stand and what to expect going forward. He also says Genesis has an interesting opportunity to continue its production plan and build its market share.

DeSilva Jr. says they don’t do what they do for the recognition. You do it because it’s the right thing to do. For the balance of the year, he says, they’re going to be in it for the long haul. They always figure out a way to make it happen and he’s sure they’ll come out on the other end okay.

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On the latest episode of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes sits down with CEO of Fixed Ops Digital, Owen Moon. Lopes gets straight to the point and asks Moon, should dealers market their service department?

The service department has been the financial backbone of nearly every automobile dealership in America. Yet, when it comes to marketing, most dealers hardly ever consider it. Moon says, absolutely, dealers should market their service department. There’s no shortage of business. Our days are full and the industry is making more money than ever before. Moon thinks we need to focus our attention to online.

Moon says it comes down to, what kind of advertising are you doing? On the service side, it’s more about the foundation and education. It’s getting customers to understand what is needed to keep their vehicle running and in good shape. If you can show the customer pre-appointment what types of things they need, you’ll be able to add on different services.

Related: David Lewis shares best practices to generate sales in the service lane

If you’re looking to make the most money, Moon says to use late ownership services. It’s where you can find more revenue dollars. It’s a great way to not lose customers. Moon believes customers know it’s better to go to a dealership.The problem is, the industry has not done a good job of expanding the why service message. Moon says, 100% you have to be strategic. If you want to get into an environment where customers can find you, that’s when you need to invest in a strategy.

Always working with your email provider is a win says Moon. He also recommends paid media. Try doing branded social media campaigns, right around the dealership. It’s more about visibility and getting people in your service department to learn more about you and over time will bring them back.

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It is clear that consumers’ actions drive change. Consumers prefer to buy a vehicle from their couch, or at the very least, shop for a car online and complete it seamlessly in the dealership. One particular nuisance experienced by consumers stands out: customers don’t understand why the monthly payment they were quoted online is different when they get to the store. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Rusty West, President, and CEO of Market Scan, to talk to us about these challenges facing many in the automotive industry today.

The industry’s a mess right now, says West. The used car industry is as good as it has ever been because people can’t purchase new cars. He says one thing that has been fun to watch, is how rapidly the industry has evolved. It’s been necessary for a long time and the pandemic helped accelerate it. A lot of dealers are looking from the perspective of, there are a lot of opportunities here, how do I take advantage of it? It requires change.

Consumers are driving the change. The biggest disconnect is dealers’ terms and conditions under which they want to transact needs to be taken into consideration when payments are quoted upstream. A vehicle is the second most expensive purchase people will make, so you should treat it like that, says West. He says it’s not the dealership’s fault. It’s the disconnect between the companies, dealers are hiring to bring business and they aren’t communicating, the dealer’s payments, the dealer’s way.

Related: How salespeople can deliver engaging value-based sales presentations to online car shoppers, every time

Timing is important. West poses the question, how responsive are we? Dealerships are at an age, where consumers are shopping for cars online. When you’re giving information, make sure it’s quick and accurate. Dealers are still facing challenges today because they approach the market from the consumers’ view first. One thing that sets online retailers is that they control the narrative from the beginning. Their processes are usually more smooth.

By 2022, West says the used car market is going to be very hot. We don’t know when the chips are going to come and that’s what’s holding everything up. This is the calm before the storm, so take advantage of it. West encourages dealers to look at how consumers shop for items other than cars. The consumers that they’re trying to attract, want the same experience they want. Set a fair price that meets your needs, along with the other terms and conditions, that’s needed to transact and make sure your website and digital retailing company reflect that properly.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Rusty West? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Topping the list of issues facing many of you today is tight inventory. With no relief in sight, according to the experts we speak to, this could mean some serious long-term effects at the dealership level. On today’s edition of Inside Automotive, anchor Jim Fitzpatrick welcomes back Kevin Frye, Marketing Director for Jeff Wyler Automotive Family, to discuss inventory and other trends in the market worth noting.

First and foremost, a limited supply of new vehicles, almost 1 million fewer than anticipated, ultimately means fewer used cars when the next model year rolls around. Frye adds that while profit margins are favorable right now, he suspects that the industry will start to see more customers fail to meet the higher premiums.

Frye agrees with many analysts who say that the market is reaching a peak and used car pricing is starting to flatten. From the dealership perspective, Frye says he watches two particular KPIs. The first is total dealership website traffic and the second is total showroom visits. There are typically 120 touchpoints in any online car buying experience, however, almost of the journeys end at a dealership website. With that in mind, Frye can see the immediate demand for the cars that are selling.

In fact, Frye says the dealerships saw tremendous growth earlier in the year, but over the last two to three months, website traffic has declined. Showrooms visits follow this pattern as well. Right now there is still strong demand, but Frye believes the upward curve is over.

Frye thinks that the decline in digital sales may have more to do with low inventory. However, car buying using a hybrid, online to showroom model personalized to the customer will be seen even more in the future.

The digital retailing strategy is a tool dealers can use to win the battle to get customers to buy. Digital retailing answers three timeless questions: How much is the monthly payment? How much for my trade-in? Can I get pre-approved?

Did you enjoy this podcast with Kevin Frye? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Last summer’s civil unrest across the nation sparked outrage as well as change for many. Companies, like Asbury Automotive Group, started to examine and increase their diversity and inclusion efforts. The Group, alongside a consulting firm, created Asbury’s Diversity and Inclusion Initiative. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Jed Milstein, Chief Human Resources Officer at Asbury Automotive Group and we’re also joined by Dan Clara, Senior Vice President of Operations to discuss diversity and inclusion at Asbury and the creation of their initiative.

Milstein says it’s been an all-involved effort. It wasn’t only about the internal efforts but the community efforts as well. They wanted to focus on areas of their communities that were economically and socially disadvantaged. They knew they could make an impact and help raise a level of opportunity.

First, they started with education. You have to get your senior leaders to understand what an inclusive culture looks like. Milstein says all 150 of their top leaders started with a 2 1/2 hour workshop and then it was multiple steps from there. The culture of inclusion is having people understand how important their ideas and contributions are. Milstein says the important thing was to get back into each store location and create action plans. He says there’s a real value enhancement to do this if they do a great job. If we can attract the very best people with great ideas to the company, retain them and keep them, so much will prepare us better to get to that ultimate vision, says Milstein.

Related: Nissan exec. David Kershaw on boosting minority-owned car dealerships with development program

Clara believes the most valuable asset that we have are the ladies and gentlemen that are in the front lines, every single day. He says they’re only going to attract the best of the best. Therefore the level of service is going to improve, which will get them closer to being the guest eccentric automotive retailer.

In order to become more diverse, Clara says, they have to create an environment, where women are welcomed. The question to ask is, how do we accommodate the specific needs that they may have? That’s the number one key initiative Clara wants to change and evolve in the business to further enhance career opportunities and D&I initiatives.

Clara says what differentiates them, is they do everything because they care. It’s also the right thing to do. If you approach every day as such, you will hit those numbers.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Jed Milstein & Dan Clara? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Transforming your life beyond your own limits requires you to rethink, as we explored in the wildly successful book, The Big Leap. Since then the book’s author, Gay Hendricks, has released another best-seller that picks up on the work in The Big Leap, titled The Genius Zone. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome the President of The Hendricks Institute and New York Times best-selling author, Gay Hendricks. Gay has appeared on more than 500 radio and television shows, including Oprah, CNN, CNBC, 48 Hours, and others.

Hendricks defines genius as when you’re doing what you most love to do and doing something that also makes a contribution to other people at the same time. In his view, we all have the capability to do it.

The big thing that holds people back is what Hendricks calls the upper limit problem. The upper limit problem is our own limiting beliefs that keep us trapped inside a certain level of expression of ourselves. When you have the upper limit problem, which most people do, you become more successful and it awakens fears in you. You start asking yourself questions, such as, do I deserve to be successful? Hendricks says the book shows you how to lift out from under those upper limit problems and function more in your genius.

Related: The struggles that strengthen us; Why we should embrace, and not fear, challenges

Commitment is everything says Hendricks. No matter what field you’re in, you only get what you’re committed to getting. He says a lot of us go around trying to prove ourselves instead of focusing entirely on what we can do to make this moment better for ourselves and the people around us. Hendricks discovered that the real secret to happiness is learning how to focus on the things you have the power to change.

Fear is excitement without the breath, says Hendricks. He says there’s absolutely no fear that you can’t clear up. The next time you get scared, take a few easy deep breaths and watch what happens to that fear. The genius moment is when you find yourself stuck or not feeling good, ask yourself, what am I trying to control here that’s not within my power to control?

The key takeaways Hendricks wants everyone to know is your genius is within your power. Sometimes it’s just a breath away. He wants to you own that part of yourself and make a commitment to bring forth that genius more each day.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Gay Hendricks? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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The Big Leap: Conquer Your Hidden Fear and Take Life to the Next Level

The Genius Zone: The Breakthrough Process to End Negative Thinking and Live in True Creativity

With tight inventory and quotas to meet, how are sales teams managing? For Paragon Honda and Acura, having a plan with the future in mind is key. On today’s edition of Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome back Brian Benstock, Partner GM and Vice President of Paragon Honda and Paragon Acura to discuss sales as well as his first, in person, dealer meeting happening now.

It’s very different and so impactful says Benstock. Usually, the question at the meeting is, how’s business? then you get a variety of answers. Benstock says now the question is, can we look forward to retaining as things normalize?

Benstock thinks they are at a low point in inventory. Toyota and Honda announced a reduction in inventory for last month and October. There are going to have to get to the finish line with far and fewer cars. Benstock thinks as long as inventory stays the way automakers have described them, they’ll be okay.

Related: Calif. dealer David Long on the new strategies he’s adopted to create sustainable inventory

If we want to clean up the environment, don’t we want to clean up the entire environment, Benstock asks? He believes if vehicles are going to be sold on the roads of America, then they should be clean vehicles. If you’re going to subsidize electrification by $12,000 a car, it should be across the board or not at all. Benstock says he’s going to sell whatever it is, however it’s produced. He’s in the transportation business and that’s the mindset dealers need to have today. There are forces you can’t control. He doesn’t necessarily believe EV is the way to go, due to environmental concerns.

Benstock says his biggest concern is Apple Inc., producing cars. He says they have the capability to disrupt this industry like any other company. Apple is one of the world’s most profitable corporations. It’s only a question of time and it’s going to be interesting to see where this goes, says Benstock.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Brian Benstock? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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As the EV market heats up, Cox Automotive Mobility announced a new acquisition that will provide an EV battery service network for OEMs, dealers, and fleet providers. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Joe George, President of Cox Automotive Mobility to tell us more about the acquisition and the impact it could have.

We felt this was the right next step for us to help enable the fleets of the future, says George. Cox Automotive made investments in and around the electric space with a new patent algorithm that helps them calculate future battery health.

When it comes to Spiers New Technologies, George says they are the leader. He says as they looked at the space, all roads lead to Spiers. They are the four Rs of battery services: repair, remanufacturing, refurbishing, and recycling.

Related: Bloomberg’s Kevin Tynan on the future of electrification in the auto industry

George says fleets have figured out that the cost of operation is less expensive with an EV. One of the things Cox Automotive is focused on is helping the market understand the health and condition of an electric vehicle. They want to be able to provide a market-clearing price in the wholesale world, as well as educate consumers in the retail world. EVs are more about electrons in and electrons out versus the traditional odometer.

In the EV space, George says batteries have a much lower carbon footprint in operation. They’re more efficient power transfers. He says the potential downside is an average EV may have 3 to 10 individual battery cells, but afterward, where do the battery cells go? George also says they plan to create a closed-loop system.

Fleets are about the total cost of operation. For us as consumers, it’s about products. George says Cox Automotive is uniquely positioning the automotive industry to help. He believes they can help electrify the entire value chain.

“We have a big opportunity to do what’s best for the planet too,” says George.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Joe George? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Service departments are proving to be a significant source of inventory for many of you across the nation. Group 1 Automotive’s President of U.S. Operations, Daryl Kenningham, recently said, “In June, we sourced over 3,000 used vehicles from our service departments and through individual purchases.” This process begins with a great sale.

For over 30 years, David Lewis and Associates has been taking dealership sales and service to the next level. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome David Lewis, President, and CEO of David Lewis and Associates, and the host of CBT’s show, Straight Talk, to talk to us about selling cars to customers in service to generate inventory.

With the problem of inventory, which we know isn’t going away quickly, you have to evaluate who you’re selling your cars to. Lewis says it’s easier to sell a customer in service than it is to a customer that walks in off the street. 99% of the time if you want to be successful in selling cars out of your service lane two things have to happen. First, you have to be proactive. Secondly, you have to change your retail sales mentality.

Lewis says in your mind, you have to remove the fact that the customer in service is not going to buy a car today. He says you have to let the customer know that you have no intentions of selling them a car today. If you ask for the sale, you deflated and removed the reason why you got them on the lot in the first place.

Related: 11 key processes every service advisor should be trained to do

Get the customer interested first, give them information, and thinking about the option to purchase the vehicle. If you can make 4 or 5 presentations a day, you are going to sell cars. Lewis says the best part is you’re going to get a great trade because you have picked the vehicle and have helped the inventory situation.

We’ve been in an inventory shortage for about 14 to 16 months. Lewis says the salespeople that want to be car salespeople are sticking around and they’re still doing well. He says it’s going to be another great year in the car business.

Did you enjoy this podcast with David Lewis? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

AuctoFirst up this week is one of last month’s Companies to Watch, and one of our AutoTech’s Got Talent contestants — who has raised a round of funding.

Aucto, a startup marketplace for buying and selling used industrial assets, has raised $3.7 million dollars in startup funding from venture firm NFX along with Motivate Venture Capital and individual investor Jack Greco.

The company runs online auctions for portfolios of industrial assets, with a particular focus on manufacturing equipment. It markets its platform to government and private sellers looking to market to both domestic and international buyers.

Congratulations to Jamil Rahman and the Aucto team!

Renovo.autoToyota’s Woven Planet Holdings has acquired Renovo.auto, a U.S. software company it says will jump-start the Japanese company’s ambitions to make an operating system for the “programmable cars” of tomorrow.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Woven Planet’s upcoming automotive operating system, called Arene, is pitched as an open software platform that will allow for “programmable cars.” Woven hopes to offer it to other companies. Woven Planet says it will be as groundbreaking as Microsoft v- Windows and Apple iOS were for personal computers and smartphones, ushering in a new era for automobiles.

Renovo delivers a set of cutting-edge software tools that will shave months, if not years, off Woven Planet’s timeline for bringing the operating system to market. It now expects to bring the software platform to the market by 2025, he said.

Hayden AIHayden AI, a smart city solutions provider that developed the world’s first autonomous traffic management platform, announced $20 million dollars in Series A funding led by TYH Ventures with participation from previous investors Autotech Ventures, BootstrapLabs and Modern Venture Partners, bringing the company’s total funding to over $30 million dollars.

Hayden AI bridges the innovation gap in traffic management by combining artificial intelligence with mobile sensors that have the ability to see and reason in 3D.

The company partners with government agencies to deploy its spatially aware technologies and encourages community and stakeholder participation through its digital platform, converting a city’s fleet of public and private vehicles into a smart fleet of sensors capable of autonomous traffic enforcement. By fusing data from IoT sensors, the company’s platform generates a digital twin of the city’s main roads and curbsides in real time to simulate scenarios and generate insights that enhance traffic management, including parking and curbside management.

Just InsureThe vehicle insurance space has been hot lately, as we’ve seen Salty get acquired by CDK Global, and DealerPolicy raise $110 million dollars from Goldman Sachs.

This week, Just Insure, a pay-per-mile insurance technology company, raised $8 million in a funding round. Crosscut Ventures, ManchesterStory and Western Technology Investment co-led the investment, which brings its total raised to $15.3 million dollars since its January 2019 inception.

Just Insure uses telematics “to reward safe drivers and reduce insurer bias” by looking at factors such as how, when and where customers drive, rather than factors such as ZIP code or marital status as most traditional insurers do. Or put more simply, it charges customers only for miles driven and its rates vary based on driving behavior. This way, Just says it’s able to offer lower rates for “safer drivers,” and it claims to save its customers around 40% from their “previous auto insurance company.” For now, it’s only available in Arizona, although the company plans to expand to other markets such as Texas, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Georgia.

Advantage GPSAdvantage GPS announced the acquisition of Asset Tracking Technology, a distributor of GPS tracking devices for finance companies, buy-here, pay-here dealerships, fleet tracking and personal tracking devices.

Details of the deal were not disclosed.

Asset Tracking Technology has been a distributor for Advantage GPS serving vehicle finance clients throughout the Midwest.

The acquisition enables Advantage GPS to provide more direct, in-person service and support for Advantage clients in the Midwest.

CybellumLG Electronics is acquiring Cybellum, an Israeli automotive cybersecurity specialist that detects and assesses vulnerabilities in connected vehicle services and hardware by way of a “digital twin” approach.

Initially, it is taking a 64% stake in Cybellum for $140 million dollars, and it will contribute a further $20 million dollars in the form of a simple agreement for future equity (or SAFE) note, “upon conclusion of the trading process in the fourth quarter.” The remaining shares will then be acquired in the “near future”, which is also when the final valuation and investment will be confirmed.

As it stands now, if the valuation remains consistent, the deal in total will be worth about $240 million dollars.

LG has been building a profile as an investor in interesting automotive startups, but this is its first acquisition out of Israel, and points to the bigger company’s interest not just in hardware but in providing software solutions to the automotive industry.

Battery ResourcersIn the Battery Technology space this week, Battery Resourcers, a startup that’s developing a closed-loop approach to lithium-ion battery materials, has raised $70 million dollars in mid-round funding to scale its commercial operations across two continents.

This latest round saw participation from new investor Hitachi Ventures, as well as existing investors Orbia Ventures, Jaguar Land Rover’s InMotion Ventures, Doral Energy, At One Ventures, TDK Ventures and TRUMPF Ventures.

Battery Resourcers doesn’t just recycle batteries. It has also engineered a process to turn that recycled material back into critical battery materials — specifically, nickel-manganese-cobalt cathodes and purified graphite, a material used in anodes. It intends to sell those materials right back to the battery manufacturer.

MomentaIn International News This Week, General Motors invested $300 million in Chinese autonomous driving startup Momenta to develop self-driving technologies for future models in China, its first such tie-up in the world’s biggest car market.

Momenta is among the few companies that hold a permit for gathering high-definition maps in China, a key tool in autonomous driving technologies. It is working with automakers to develop mass-production vehicles with self-driving functions to gather real-time data.

Momenta is also backed by SAIC Motors, GM’s main Chinese partner, as well as Toyota and Daimler.

Black Sesame Technologies, a Chinese developer of artificial intelligence-based self-driving computing chips, says it is close to a valuation of nearly $2 billion dollars after raising “hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars” from investors, including Xiaomi’s industry investment fund.

Shanghai-based Black Sesame brought in the new capital through strategic investment and two Series C tranches of capital injection.

CargamosMexico City-based last-mile logistics platform Cargamos wants to own same-day delivery in Latin America. The company has announced a $7 million dollar raise in follow-on funding, bringing its total seed round to $11 million dollars, which it will use to create a nationwide distributed warehouse network so regional retailers can compete with giants like Amazon.

Investors in the seed round include VCs like NAZCA, FEMSA and Kayyak Ventures.

Cargamos intends to use the funding to build a large fulfillment facility in Mexico City. It also wants to expand its network of mini distribution centers which it calls points of delivery, also known as “pods,” where packages are sorted and sent out for final delivery. The company currently has about 50 pods, but wants to more than double that number in the next six months so that it can cover a service area around Mexico City of up to 75 additional cities.

Companies To Watch!Every week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry intel report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, we have two companies in the tire technology space to watch, which include Tyrata and RDTS Technologies.

TyrataFirst Up This Week Is Tyrata, which provides real-time, automated tire tread wear monitoring.

Tyrata helps fleets of vehicles Increase tire utilization and reduce tire spend; improve tire management efficiency without compromising safety; and collect, analyze, and report up-to-date tire status over the life of the tire.

Tyrata automates tread wear monitoring, using real-time data to reduce tire maintenance costs, improve maintenance scheduling, and increase vehicle uptime

Tyrata serves consumers, fleet management companies, and high-performance specialists who depend on the integrity of tires for safety, efficiency and profitability.

Tire service providers can remotely monitor their customers’ tire condition without human intervention.

Tyrata’s IntelliTread Drive-Over System is a low-cost, solid-state sensor system incorporated into a low-profile speed bump to monitor tire tread of vehicles in transit through a service lane or depot. The DOS can be set up in under three hours and has no moving parts or optics that demand ongoing maintenance. It uses commercial RFID tagging to track vehicles and correlates this data to uniquely track each tire that passes over the system.

RDTS TechnologiesOur Second Company To Watch This Week Is RDTS Technologies, or Run Dry Traction System.

Run Dry Traction System provides a world first cutting-edge active safety system technology to the transport industry, which is a first-of-its-kind technology that has the potential to reduce the number of accidents by 10% globally.

Wet weather conditions are responsible for 30% of road accidents, of which 70% happen due to wet weather conditions and remaining due to other weather conditions like snow, icy conditions and snow

Globally, road accidents claim 1.25 million lives every year. Even though the technology is continually evolving such as autonomous systems to eliminate human errors but still phenomena like aquaplaning severely compromise the traction and is responsible for about 10% of global accidents.

Globally, road accidents result in 50 million injuries. Decades of improvement in active and passive safety systems have made our cars safer and at the same time faster.

RDTS’s active safety system works by projecting a flat jet of compressed fluid in front of the tire to ensure an uncontaminated leading patch.

They provide an active safety system that fires a high-pressure jet during the first five seconds of braking when the traction is compromised due to surface contamination.

Early tests have shown that the solution is effective on water, sand, smaller loose gravel and light snow.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

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People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, discusses used car management, lead management, and the metrics that are throwing things off.

Customers and cars go hand in hand. There are a lot of metrics out here that CRMs are using that Rice thinks become less relevant when you start breaking down the inventory portion.

Related: Why optimizing Google My Business can lead to high quality traffic

Closing percentage and leads to appointment ratios are key metrics in KPIs that dealerships spend tracking internet sales. They also use those to judge how well lead managers and internet managers are doing. If you start integrating and looking at inventory and lead management together, key metrics like closing percentages can easily be thrown off. You have to ask yourself, how many leads am I going to close?

Leads to appointment ratio can also get thrown off because of metrics. Rice says you may need to have how many appointments per car ratio instead of appointments per lead ratio. As an inventory manager, you have to understand there are certain cars that might not generate a lot of leads. If a customer comes in to purchase a $10,000 vehicle, you will have other ways to sell the car other than the internet.

Rice says your process should be based on the age of the car. As an inventory manager if you have a 60-day old car, every lead you have, you should be calling every day. Rice says you should act like it’s a fresh lead and have different word tracks. He says it’s an important metric but it can’t be your end all be all.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Used Cars Weekly? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Kain and Co., host David Kain, President of Kain Automotive, discusses process performance reviews. They were also called internet process performance reviews (IPPR). It’s a strategy to encourage your team to follow the processes you developed in the hopes that they’re going to engage, appoint and allow you to sell a guest a car.

The reviews allow you to catch your team doing things right. Process Performance Reviews are about teaching salespeople what they did well and what they can do better. The first thing you should do is review leads from Tuesday through Thursday. Once you review, ask, did we study and prepare before we reached out? Afterward, take notes of your discovery.

Secondly, ask, did we call first? If you reach out within a couple of minutes, you have almost a 400% greater chance of connecting with a guest according to a study by Calldrip. If you wait 20 minutes, it drops down to a 15% greater chance. Don’t forget to give specifics in the review and give accolades for good performance. Sometimes you may get a lead that doesn’t have a phone number, so you’ll have to send an email.

Related: WSJ best-selling author Alex Goldfayn explains the power and profitability of phone calls

Kain says you want to make sure the email is all about the guest. For emails, is there a personalized subject line in the email? Subject lines get the emails opened and the first sentence gets the email read. Also, give a short synopsis of no more than 40 to 45 characters of what the customer wanted to know. Kain encourages you to look for that continuity follow-up. Some dealerships do follow-ups on day one. The more you do things the right way, the more success you’ll end up with.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Kain & Co.? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Car dealers are reporting incredible sales and profits in today’s market, but is this success also breeding complacency among you or your staff? Have your processes or customer experience taken a dive as a result? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Glenn Pasch, auto marketing expert, and CEO of PCG Digital to discuss remaining successful in times of complacency.

Consumers will remember you and how they were treated for the next time they need to come back, says Pasch. It’s going to be 3 or 4 years from now when they’re looking to purchase a new vehicle. It may impact their choice of servicing with you or recommending you to someone else in their network. Pasch says it’s not easy to flip the switch back to a different style of doing business when inventory issues are resolved.

You can’t complain about turnover in an industry like we have on one hand and on the other hand, not asking yourself, am I doing anything in my store to cause the turnover, says Pasch. You can’t have it both ways.

There’s complacency with holding your managers accountable and not training. Pasch says you can get diluted by your own numbers of your greatness. You can also get complacent by changing your marketing plan. If you cut marketing out of your budget, you may become invincible to future customers.

Related: Success can breed complacency

Pasch says it should make you more excited that your team is successful. He says what weakens the process, is someone not appreciating the effort. It’s the leader’s job to make sure the team stays motivated, even during busy times.

At this year’s, Automotive Analytics and Attribution Summit, Pasch says they are challenging car dealers and vendors to clarify what is the data, that you should be looking at, and where have you’ve been misled about data?

To learn more about cutting-edge and innovating automotive marketing strategies, consider attending the upcoming Automotive Analytics and Attribution Summit this November. Click here to read the details.

Did you enjoy this interview with Glenn Pasch? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Auto Marketing Now, host Brian Pasch shares a follow-up to the groundbreaking research on Google Ads campaigns that was released last month.

Recently, BPE Brian Pasch Enterprises released the industry breakthrough report: Exposing the Outcomes of Google SEM Campaigns. Pasch found that even though sales were funding these campaigns, most of the conversions were for fixed ops.

When you ask your Google ads agency, what are they using as signals to optimize the sales campaigns, you will find, they are probably using Google store visit metrics and phone calls as the two primary conversion signals. The reason why you shouldn’t use store visits is that there are more people on the lot for service than sales. You shouldn’t use phone calls because less than 13% of ‘typical’ Google ad phone calls are for sales.

Related: How to analyze the effectiveness of your car dealership’s Google Ads campaigns

Pasch shares that you will be able to see whether someone went from their desktop or on their mobile phone. This helps dealers to use the sale phone calls to improve sales campaigns and service phone calls to improve service campaigns. You can now improve the optimization engine that Google has for its advertising with true signals.

Soft conversions are getting an estimate on a trade or starting a financing application. Hard conversions are where consumers give a phone number, address, or email. Pasch challenges you to go into your Google Analytics account and see how many hard conversions goals are working and how many soft conversions are in place. Pasch says to set up the proper goals for sales and service. You should be feeding in sales signals into your sales campaign.

To learn more about cutting-edge and innovating automotive marketing strategies, consider attending the upcoming Automotive Analytics and Attribution Summit this November. Click here to read the details.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Auto Marketing Now? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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At the tail end of last year, we talked to David Long and he said business was up and inventory was balancing out. Is that still the case today? On today’s show, we’re checking back in with the Executive General Manager of Hansel Auto Group and Veteran of the retail automotive industry, David Long.

I don’t have anything I can say that would be less than positive, says Long. He says he has “just in time” inventory. As fast as they are getting inventory, is just as fast as they are selling the cars. Their whole process has changed. They will either move that transaction to a pre-order, an incoming or switch the customer to a late model pre-owned car. Long says it has been incredibly smooth transactions.

Long says all of their decisions are made predicated on what they know to be true. They are leaning into their used car business. He says his part and service and accessories departments have never been better. They are doing a good job with what they have without having to depend on an auction.

I’ve been ridiculously rigid for quite some time. It’s a blessing and a curse says Long. He says he isn’t sure if we’re ever are going to go back to the way things were. The business strategy that we started at the beginning of the pandemic ended and we’re in an all-new completely revamped, and redesigned business strategy. Long says you’re not going to see rows and rows of inventory if he can help it.

Related: Why new vehicle inventory shortages don’t have to prevent you from gaining new customers

Long predicts the balance of the year, will be the same way it was in the first half of the year. He says there are no indications that it’s going to be anything but great, not just for the balance of the year, but he’s thinking 2022 midway through 2023.

Did you enjoy this podcast with David Long? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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After spending more than 27 years in retail automotive, General Manager of Germain Toyota of Naples, Brian Kramer, has been featured in F&I Magazine and has also been a past recipient (2012) of Automotive News’ 40 under 40 Awards. Today, he joins our show to discuss what business looks like for him in the current climate.

Kramer says we’re finally back to reality. His dealership is also being affected when it comes to Toyota cutting production by 40%. He says they are figuring out a game plan in order to make it through the next couple of months until things rebound. Toyota has plans for a big recovery. In terms of getting back to normal, Kramer says it won’t be until 2022.

We’re actually modeling after CarMax’s and Carvana’s business models, says Kramer. They are getting very aggressive on trades and using that as a leader to drive traffic to source cars. They’ve reallocated their sales floor to have more people in their service drive.

When it comes to Kramer’s employees, he says one of the biggest pieces is collaborating with them. He says, of course, he doesn’t want to reduce staff, so they’re finding other options to generate new revenue sources and thinking outside the box, to do things in different ways. Kramer includes everyone in the dealership in their decision-making process.

Related: Why setting the bar too low leads to employees missing the mark completely

Five percent of Kramer customers go end to end, with transacting a deal online. But 93% of them use one element of the site, which can include an unseen appraisal, credit application online, or by texting and chatting. He says it’s not so much of customers completing the entire process online, but 93% choose to do one or two elements of the online process. He thinks the next evolution is in the digital service transformation.

I think like the recession, COVID is a blessing in disguise says Kramer. He says they have been able to work a lot of things out. When the supply does come back, it’s going to be a slang shot effect. Kramer says then it’s going to be finding enough qualified people who are aligned with their culture, ethics, and morals to bring into the dealership.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Brian Kramer? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes sits down with Security Solutions Consultant at Intrinium, Tiffany Simonsen. Lopes gets straight to the point and asks Simonsen, is any dealership vulnerable to a cyber attack?

All dealerships are vulnerable, says Simonsen. It’s not a question of an ‘if’ but a ‘when’. She says her mission is to inform the industry at large, the different steps they can take to help be prepared for not and ‘if’ but ‘when’ scenario occurs.

A cyber attack is when someone has accessed or breached your database without your permission. They can either be gathering information or hold you for ransom. They can shut down your phone system, have complete access to your computers and get a hold of your customer’s F&I data. The DMS is also completely vulnerable to cyber attacks.

Related: Next-generation theft recovery: Why wireless, battery-powered devices relieve dealer headaches and drive F&I revenue

Simonsen says anything that is hooked up to a network, whether it’s a third-party vendor or even your Microsoft exchange server can be susceptible to attacks. She says she almost hears on a daily the occurrence of stories of automotive dealerships that have been breached. The increase in reoccurrences has erratically grown expeditiously.

To prevent a cyber attack from occurring, Simonsen says the first step is to establish a relationship with an incident response IT Firm. They’re able to act quickly. The second step is to engage in annual security hygiene checkups. Speak with your IT team and have open conversations to have someone evaluate your system. Lastly, engage in multi-factor authentication. Simonsen says, ultimately you should view your security as not something from keeping you from doing business, but enables you to do more business.

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Chances are if you’ve been in or around Philly you’re familiar with Barbera on the Boulevard, home to the Barbera Bear. Recognized by FCA as Philadelphia’s number one volume dealer in both new and pre-owned vehicles, the dealership has been consistently serving the area for over 30 years. On today’s show, we welcome Gary Barbera, Founder of Barbera’s Autoland, and Barbera Cares Division to discuss today’s inventory and chip concerns.

Barbera says this is a great time to double down on our fundamentals. He says he’s trying to be a better leader, recognizing he has to be a great employee first. He doesn’t want this time to be a blur. We should come out of it better, stronger, and more prepared than ever before. I still feel like my brother and I still have our training wheels on, says Barbera. He says he truly stays in tune with what he can change. Do with what you know works when all else fails. He says if he had a choice, he would keep a 45-days supply. He says he rather be his banker’s best friend than the zoning office.

When it comes to Barbera Care Division, someone asked Barbera, when will he stop, he answered, when the kids stop enjoying it. Although prices have increased with supplies, he made it a priority to purchase backpacks for kids to kickstart their first week of school.

I think you have to build people, says Barbera. You should find out, how well they can do in the automotive space. He thinks if you put people in a bad environment, you can make a good person bad. Barbera says people are entitled to repetition. He thinks employees come to dealers as a ‘C-‘ and it’s up to you to bring them to a ‘B’ and if they want, they can take themselves to an ‘A’. He says it’s his job to bring his friends or colleagues to a scoring position every day.

Related: Hiring new talent: Does your dealership have proper training in place?

Did you enjoy this podcast with Gary Barbera? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Carter Myers Automotive has roots dating back to 1902 as a hardware, machinery, and mill supply business that built and sold horseless carriages. Today, more than a century later, the family business has evolved and expanded to what we know today, including 17 franchises in 15 dealerships across Virginia. President and CEO, Liza Borches is the fourth generation of the Myers family and she joins us today to take a deeper dive into the CMA customer experience.

Borches says when it comes to the customer experience, she challenges her team to look at it from a lens of what’s happening in the industry currently. Consumers are walking into businesses today and being told what they can’t have. Borches believed they needed to become a ‘yes’ company. She says our job in today’s environment is to change our vocabulary to say, how do we say yes and how do we find solutions for consumers?

Related: 8 unique ways to provide a better customer experience than your competition

One thing that Borches says they do differently is taking the technology and processes and wrapping it with a relationship. It’s not about the moment the person comes to buy the car and creating just a frictionless experience. It’s how do we create an ownership experience that is a relationship that has trust and great communication, well beyond the sale. Borches believes in the next 10 years, consumers are going to be faced with decisions around their transportation solutions that they have never been faced with before.

Borches says she considers her personal customers to be their 720 associates. She says those are her internal customers. Their competitors, whether it be other dealerships or industries, can offer great benefits and a great workplace but they have to wrap those items with a relationship with trust and communication. Those type of environments creates a workplace that makes people want to stay and grow.

Borches says you can train hiring managers on how to interview a candidate and properly assess a candidate. She says but the two pieces that were missing were, they weren’t recruiting until they absolutely needed someone and they didn’t have time to actively recruit.

Times have changed says Borches. Candidates are now interviewing employers. She says you need to be able to convince them at the end of the time you all have spent together on why the auto industry is right for them and why the company has the best culture for them to grow and succeed in life and business.She says you do need to create awareness around what you have to offer. Then it’s your choice to figure out whether that person is a good candidate for your company. Borches says if you find a great person and they’re going to add to our industry or company, you find a way to bring them in, even if they don’t fit a normal position.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Liza Borches? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Wholesale values fluctuated significantly throughout the past month leaving many of you wondering what this means for you, the industry, and why it is happening. Jasen Rice, President, and CEO of Lotpop and the host of Used Car Weekly on CBT, spent more than eight years training dealers on used car inventory management before starting his own company, Lotpop. He has his hand on the pulse of what’s happening in the market and joins us today to discuss wholesale values moving up and then back down again.

Wholesale runs about three to four weeks behind retail. By mid-August wholesale shot back up a little bit and people started scrambling. Rice says the hard part is feeling out how much wholesale is driving retail? It’s typically retailing driving wholesale.

Rice says there are plenty of factors including inventory shortage, consumer demand, and also hurricanes. He says the tricky part is, we usually go into a seasonal slowdown but it can lead to a false positive. Dealerships are positive about their inventory situation because it’s running light but the negative is, will the consumers be there? Currently, it’s a seller’s market which means what’s happening on your lot becomes a little more important.

Related: US auto consumers demonstrate lowest brand loyalty in six years

Look at your last two weeks of sales multiply that by two, then carry to that says Rice. You don’t want to overstock. He says dealers will have to over-analyze their appraisal process and work their service drive. Always look at current sale rates and stay in tune with what’s going on with the market and the economy. Rice says you want to be where the customers are.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Jasen Rice? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Many of us go to college with a plan in mind for most things, except how we are going to pay off our student loans. For Jenn Reid, student loans were not an option so she sold vehicles to pay for her education before eventually moving to the financial side of the automotive industry.

Since then Reid has helped build a finance company for Mazda, managed partnerships at Equifax, and joins us today as Vice President of Strategic Partnerships at Market Scan Information Systems. We will discuss how she’s helping dealerships today with Market Scan’s innovative technology as well as being named a 2021 Rising Star from Automotive News.

As an industry, we’ve kind of lived in a world of “good enough” says Reid. What happened last year is customers weren’t coming through the door. They were coming through email and phone calls. COVID accelerated what was already happening for a very long time, says Reid. She says it’s been an important mission over the past year to get consumers the information they need to be tailored to them.

Related: 8 unique ways to provide a better customer experience than your competition

One of the biggest CSI issues in the dealership is around finance. 83% of consumers expect to get a price they can transact in the first interaction. It takes a partnership between everyone, to get the customer in the vehicle that they need. Reid says being transparent, builds trust and gives you what you need to be successful in doing the transaction.

A car can show up and paperwork can get signed but is it a seamless transaction Reid asks? Reid believes digital retailing is going to be a continued evolution. She thinks that a lot of consumers, herself included that still want to test drive the vehicle. Reid believes in modern retailing. You need to have processes in place to allow consumers to buy the way they want to purchase.

Market Scan is a company that focuses on bringing science, technology, and data together to deliver a scientifically perfect solution for any automotive transaction. One of their core principles is they let the dealers dictate the terms they’re willing to transact. Reid says the missing ingredient is bringing together the dealer and consumer to a place they’re willing to make a transaction. As the industry continues to evolve, it’s going to take time but it’s going to be in a way of how things should be done, says Reid.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Jenn Reid? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Think about your last purchase…was it an emotional one? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Jeff Shore, founder of Shore Consulting, trainer, and author to discuss the emotional aspect of a purchase decision. Shore’s work has been featured by NBC News, Fox Small Business, Success Magazine, Inc., Entrepreneur, and a host of other leading publications.

When making a purchase decision, it’s more emotional than we think says Shore. A buyer’s decision is usually 80% emotional and 20% analytical. The connection between like and trust is quite profound. Shore says, if I like you, I’m far more likely to trust you and if I trust you, you have that persuasive influence over me.

Some people don’t appear to be particularly emotional in the purchase process. There’s no such thing as a good deal, on a product you don’t like so much. Shore says if you have a customer coming in, you just have to have empathy for the situation and recognize they’re afraid and they might not know how to engage emotionally. A skill set for a great salesperson is figuring out what the customer loves first.

Related: How to handle and overcome car sales objections with today’s buyers

It turns out when customers are in that shopping mode, they’re evaluating a product and stepping into their future and then asking the question, how does this feel? The purpose is to get the customer into that mental stimulation. Shores says the curse of salespeople is they want to talk about features and prices but never allow the customer to step into their future, which is a huge mistake.

Another thing Shore sees in consumer behavior is the connection to video and the comfort with video. In December 2019, Zoom had about 10 million subscribers. Today, Zoom has over 400 million subscribers. He says, he’s thrilled about that, but it’s still underutilized. It’s a great opportunity to connect with your customers.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Jeff Shore? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Sonic Automotive, one of the nation’s largest retailers, recently announced the acquisition of RFJ Auto Partners. RFJ Auto consists of 33 franchised and used vehicle dealerships. This deal, expected to close in December, will add 3.2 billion dollars in annualized revenue for Sonic. Their stock is trading today at $55.96 a share, which also represents an all-time high for Sonic.

On today’s show we’re pleased to welcome Jeff Dyke, President of Sonic Automotive, to walk us through Sonic’s latest acquisitions and what the company is anticipating as we enter the final quarter.

Dyke begins by discussing the great synergy that Sonic and RFJ have with one another. He adds that while Sonic has invested a lot into its used car brand EchoPark, the balance sheet of the company has allowed for a greater expansion into new vehicle car dealerships. Sonic also acquired franchised dealership in Colorado, earlier this year.

Dyke says that Rick Ford, President and CEO of RFJ Auto, will stay on board for the better part of the next few years, along with his team. He adds that the RFJ organization has a lot of insight and resources to contribute. In return, Sonic is looking forward to sharing its technology, playbook, and processes with these new dealerships.

The future for Sonic Automotive looks bright from Dyke’s perspective. The dealer group will continue to add new regions, brands, and franchised dealerships to its portfolio. EchoPark continues to flourish as well with 30 stores currently operational, and many more planned in the future. In fact, Sonic projects that 90% of the country will be covered with an EchoPark store by 2025.

Prior to being elected President of Sonic Automotive back in 2018, Jeff Dyke held several positions in the company including EVP of Operations and Division COO for the Southeast. He first joined Sonic in 2005 as the Vice President of retail strategy, after spending nine years with AutoNation.

Be sure to watch our entire interview above to hear more from Jeff Dyke.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Jeff Dyke? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

CDK Global & Salty DotFirst up this week, big news from CDK Global, as they have entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Salty Dot, a convenient, mobile-first solution that helps consumers secure the insurance they need for their vehicle seamlessly without leaving the car-buying experience. Details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Salty’s technology will further expand CDK’s suite of digital offerings and grow its total addressable market beyond the digitization of traditional dealer workflows. This new capability will also enable dealers to create a new, recurring revenue stream from within the $311 billion U.S. automobile insurance market and develop deeper consumer relationships beyond the vehicle sale.

Salty’s insurance platform uses cutting-edge technology to build a customized, competitive, and bindable insurance quote through its top-rated carrier network. Through seamless integration with the dealer management system, the car buyer receives a text message during their purchase process with a link to a quick and easy form. Salty’s platform—driven by artificial intelligence—then selects the carrier and personalized policy based on their answers and presents it to them digitally within minutes.

Kavak.comKavak.com, a Mexico City-based startup that operates a pre-owned car marketplace in Latin America — think of them as the Carvana of Latin America, has $700 million in a Series E round that more than doubles the company’s valuation to $8.7 billion.

News of this raise comes just five months after Kavak raised $485 million in a Series D at a $4 billion valuation. The company only achieved unicorn status last October.

General Catalyst led Kavak’s Series E, which brings the company’s total raised to over $1.5 billion since its 2016 inception. Tiger Global, Spruce House, D1 Capital Partners l.P., Sea, Founders Fund, Ribbit Capital, SoftBank, and others also participated in the latest financing.

Volta TrucksIn the EV space this week, electric truck startup Volta Trucks has raised 37 million euros (or $43.7 million dollars) in its latest funding round led by hedge fund Luxor Capital and including an investment by Volta’s battery supplier Proterra.

The latest funding brings Volta’s total raised to 60 million euros. Luxor also invested in the previous funding round.

Volta said the funding will be used to develop a test fleet of trucks for customers in Paris and London.

The company aims to launch production of the Volta Zero, a 16-tonne electric truck, by the end of 2022 and says it currently has an order book of 2,500 trucks worth more than 600 million euros.

Xlerate GroupIn the auction space this week, the Xlerate Group has made its third acquisition in just over two months, purchasing Clark County Auto Auction.

Clark county becomes the 15th auction brand in the Xlerate family and the first in the group’s home state of Indiana.

Xlerate now has fixed-site and mobile sales in California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, and Wisconsin.

Redwood MaterialsIn the battery technology space this week, Ford Motor Company is investing $50 million dollars in Redwood Materials, a battery-recycling company created by Tesla Co-founder JB Straubel, and plans to partner with the startup to eliminate waste and eventually reuse components from its impending wave of electric vehicles.

The partnership is still in its infancy but will begin with ford tapping Redwood to recycle its EV production scrap and, eventually, end-of-life EV batteries.

Redwood last week announced plans to manufacture EV battery cathodes and other components from the recycled material it receives, and Ford said it could use such components in future vehicles to create a sustainable, closed-loop production system.

Ford is investing $30 billion in electrification through 2025, with plans to bring an EV version of the F-150 pickup to market next year. It plans to spend more on EVs than internal combustion vehicles in 2023.

Wrench, Inc.In the remote service area this week, Bridgestone Americas has purchased a 10% share in Wrench, Inc., a mobile vehicle services company.

The partnership paves the way for the companies to explore synergies in their service offerings, including pairing Bridgestone’s 2,200-plus company-owned stores with wrench’s complimentary mobile services marketplace.

Wrench’s mobile service platform offers on-site vehicle maintenance, roadside towing, and more.

The company’s users will be able to book service appointments at Firestone Complete Auto Care stores.

Existing Bridgestone customers will be able to book future mobile service appointments provided by Wrench.

Edge Case ResearchIn the autonomous vehicle space this week, Edge Case Research has raised a $12 million dollar Series A round, led by Yabeo Capital, and supported by existing investors Ansys, Lockheed Martin Ventures, Bluetree Allied Angels, and Liberty Mutual Insurance Strategic Ventures — and new investors reinforced ventures, Nonozukuri Ventures, and 412 Venture Fund.

Edge Case Research enables its customers to assure the safety of autonomous systems for real-world deployment. Their products deliver live safety cases backed by evidence to ensure their customers can define and measure the safety of autonomous systems in the real world.

TransfixIn the commercial trucking and freight space this week, Transfix plans to go public through a merger with Spac G Squared ascend I, giving the digital freight startup an enterprise value of $1.1 billion in the latest deal shaking up the middleman freight brokerage business.

The blank-check merger would allow new york-based Transfix, which competes with bigger rivals including Uber technologies, to tap public markets for backing to expand its business of using technology to connect shippers with truckers and to expand the development of additional services, such as transportation management software.

CardoorIn international news this week, Toronto-based Cardoor is preparing to expand its online car retailing platform across Canada after raising $3 million CAD in seed financing.

Framework venture partners led the round. The company did not disclose other investors in the round.

Launched in July, Cardoor offers online buying and delivery services to consumers. The company currently lists 308 vehicles for sale on its website, ranging from Land Rovers and Acuras, to BMWs and Hyundai.

The firm’s e-commerce platform can deal with trade-ins, financing, and insurance, while the company offers at-home test drives and free delivery with a 14-day money-back guarantee.

LightyearWith an aim to provide clean mobility everywhere, the Netherlands-based solar electric car company, Lightyear announced that it has raised $110 million dollars in a fresh round of funding.

The current round of funding came from Cooperation Dela, one of the largest international insurers in the Netherlands.

In March, the company had raised €40.2 million euros and announced that it was going to launch ‘Lightyear One’ – its exclusive series car, by the end of 2021. However, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and lack of funds, serial production was delayed.

But with the current round of funding, the Dutch company will gear up for mass production of its solar electric vehicle. The company now plans to launch the vehicle in 2022.

Deeproute.AiAlibaba Group has led investments worth more than $300 million into Chinese autonomous driving start-up Deeproute.Ai.

The Chinese-based start-up makes hardware and software self-driving systems for vehicles.

Deeproute.Ai runs a fleet of autonomous taxis with some operated by its partners including ride-hailing firm Caocao and automaker Dongfeng Motors. But the company is also developing technology for logistics.

Alibaba’s involvement in the funding round underscores the ambitions of China’s technology giants to get a foothold in the area of driverless cars.

The company said its long-term strategy includes developing medium-duty trucks for urban logistics, improving transit for shipments as well as freight delivery.

BridgeLinx TechnologiesPakistan-based BridgeLinx Technologies, a 9-month-old startup that operates a digital freight marketplace, has raised $10 million in what is the largest seed financing round in Pakistan.

20VC, Buckley Ventures, and Indus Valley Capital co-led the startup’s financing round. Wavemaker Partners, Quiet Capital, Truesight Ventures, Soma Capital, Flexport, and Untitled also participated in the round.

BridgeLinx Technologies is building a digital freight marketplace. The platform connects shippers — such as manufacturing companies, cement factories, textile companies — with truckers and private fleets.

GogoroTaiwan’s Gogoro will go public in the U.S. via a SPAC merger with Poema Global Holdings Corp. That values the battery-swapping pioneer at more than $2.3 billion dollars.

Founded in 2011, Gogoro makes electric scooters, batteries, and networks of vending machine-sized battery stations where drivers can swap out depleted batteries for fresh ones. In Taiwan, where its batteries power the vast majority of all-electric two-wheelers, the company operates a network of more than 2,100 battery-swapping stations that are paired with convenience stores, supermarkets, coffee shops, and other venues.

Companies to WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry intel report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday 5 to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, our companies to watch are Roadstr and digital dealership system.

Roadstr

First up this week is Roadstr, not to be confused with the Roadster digital retailer that sold to CDK Global earlier this year.

Roadstr was created with one mission: driving real connections between real auto enthusiasts. Their focus is both global, but more importantly, local — enabling enthusiasts to connect both virtually and in reality.

Roadstr’s features are specifically tuned to the auto enthusiast’s needs, combining the authenticity and spontaneity of local events and connections with the full range of social networking features and auto content from across the world, right in the palm of your hand.

The auto enthusiast community is a very social group, and the best moments often occur in person. Start driving your passion with Roadstr, the social network for real auto enthusiasts.

You can download Roadstr on the Apple app store and Google Play.

Digital Dealership System

Our second company to watch this week is Digital Dealership System.

The Digital Dealership System is the premier digital sign and interactive kiosk solution for car dealers.

Digital solutions for car dealerships include digital service menus, service appointment boards, customer lounge tv, touch-screen kiosks, dare to compare service signs, sales leaderboards, showroom video walls, interactive touch digital signs, and car dealer outdoor led messaging.

The custom-designed, high-definition digital systems assist dealer processes, marketing exposure of dealer products, services, and specials while maximizing customer interactive engagement and staff motivation on screens throughout the modern-day auto dealership increasing bottom-line revenues, long-term customer retention, distinguished market position, and staff performance.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

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People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

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We recently discussed today’s buy-sell market with the Kerrigan Advisors, who represents some of auto retail’s largest transactions, including Earnhardt Auto Centers’ sale of two Arizona dealerships. So on today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome back Ryan Kerrigan, Managing Director of Kerrigan Advisors, for an update on the market and we’ll also get into some of today’s headlines as well.

The dynamics between sellers and buyers have been explosive profitability and activity in the first half of 2021. Through the first half of 2021, Kerrigan says you’re looking at 321 buy-sell deals in the industry. He says he has never seen anything like that before. He thinks that’s going to be accelerated into Q4, with some big announcements through the end of the year.

Related: Dealership M&A transactions continue. Why is buy-sell activity so high?

Folks have money and they’re looking to spend, says Kerrigan. The emphasis on personal mobility has never been higher. There are also 29 days of supply on the ground. With those combinations, that’s what’s driving the high level of earnings. He says people aren’t necessarily growing their businesses but they are growing the margins. Across the industry, debt to equity ratios is down about 30%. Dealers have billions of dollars of untapped credit with their bankers. Kerrigan says they are seeing groups, both small and large willing to look seriously with buy-sell. The capacity to do transactions is there.

Valuations are very tricky says Kerrigan. He thinks in 2022, we’re going to have big statements earnings. He says he’s confident that sellers are going to be less flexible, with an upward tick in valuation in 2022.

As for major trends, Kerrigan says he’s seeing the non-luxury import brands starting to trade more frequently. They have been running about 30% of transactions, ticking up to over 40%. Kerrigan says they estimate, your average blue sky has gone up in value by about 42%. You’re seeing fewer domestic deals getting done, on a percentage basis, not an absolute basis. He also says the OEMs are getting backed up and are going to be backed up. I think it’s going to be a very stressful Q4, says Kerrigan. We are anticipating quite a trainwreck in the next couple of months in terms of processing deals. He says they are already starting to see OEMs slow down a bit in their responsiveness.

Kerrigan says their heads are down and they are focused. They have a lot in the works, and he believes the industry will have a lot to talk about in Q4. It’s going to be an extraordinary close to a record-setting year.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Ryan Kerrigan? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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It has been some time since Hurricane Ida bombarded the Gulfcoast and Northeast with severe flooding. According to Carfax, 212,000 vehicles were potentially damaged by the storm. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome the President of New Jersey Coalition of Automotive Retailers (NJ Car), Jim Appleton, to give us a glance at recovery efforts still happening in his state and we’ll also get into the coalition’s agenda as we enter the final quarter of 2021.

The hits just keep coming, says Appleton. They are climbing their way back from the slump of 2020 while dealing with inventory and chip shortages. Appleton says Hurricane Ida hit the state hard. It’s the loss of motorist vehicles that was devastating in multiple areas of the state. He says the dealers are struggling and trying to source replacement vehicles for those consumers.

One of the biggest priorities for them is trying to get working men and women back up and operational. It’s helping to put people’s lives back together. This is what car dealers do, says Appleton. Motor vehicles are an essential need for people in the state and dealers are working overtime to try and find products to suit consumers’ needs. The used car inventory is light because sales have been somewhat depressed and the availability to trade vehicles isn’t there also. It’s a perfect storm situation, says Appleton.

Related: Chairwoman Annette Sykora discusses NADA’s Emergency Relief Fund to help dealers in need

Out of 510 rooftops, Appleton says 15 were seriously affected. He says this wasn’t a typical flooding situation. They were flash floods with different water patterns. Facilities that had never been flooded before were flooded. Out of the 15 dealerships that were seriously affected, 3 or 4 dealerships aren’t operational right now. The rest are back open.

In New Jersey, dealers are talking about 10% or less of the usual inventory. For the last several months, Appleton says, it’s no secret, business has been great. Inventory has been low but gross profits, as a result, have been high. Inventory that’s at a 10% or 15% level is difficult for dealers to make a profit in that environment. He says we have a rough 12 months ahead of us.

They continue in New Jersey to focus on electric vehicle transformation. Appleton says he probably spends 80% of his time on an issue that represents less than 4% of the market in New Jersey. All of the OEMs have announced significant plans to transform products to electric vehicle platforms and the dealers are all in for that. Appleton says their goal is to make sure public policymakers recognize the value of the franchise system as the most effective way to bring these new vehicles to market. He says they want to prepare dealers to meet the challenge. It’s government regulation that is what’s pushing the marketplace. Appleton says, he doesn’t think we’re going to see it reverse anytime soon.

You can help dealership employees impacted by Hurricane Ida or request relief assistance by visiting the NADA Foundation Emergency Relief Fund.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Jim Appleton? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, poses the question, is having a wholesale profit bad nowadays?

Making a profit on anything isn’t necessarily a bad thing but when it comes to wholesale, dealers sometimes believe it’s a bad thing. Rice says maybe dealers are missing opportunities on trade-ins and sales. A lot of national dealer groups like Carvana have another resource of revenue when it comes to wholesale.

Related: How transparency helped this Indiana dealership increase its net profit by 1200%

Rice poses the question, what if you can make a wholesale department? It would be no different than a buying center or service department. Some dealers may say it’s not worth the headache. Rice says, what if you buy or trade a $1,000 car, then you wholesale it for a day or two for $1,500? You just made $500 which is a 50% profit margin. He says if he was a dealer he would be going after any and every vehicle that would be available for him. With inventory shortages, wholesale revenue can be added profit.

Rice believes we are going into a slower time. Not every market customers have to buy a car. Wholesale volumes are going up. But, can you retail them for the profit margin you’ve been able to? Rice says you need to separate wholesale and retail and track your data differently. He says you have the advertising strategy and facility to write the check for the cars. Rice says don’t look at wholesale profit as a bad thing or clumped together.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Used Cars Weekly? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Kain and Co., host David Kain, President of Kain Automotive, talks about using a phone call script or outline when talking to customers. This is beyond the internet and has much to do with salesfloor people. Kain says oftentimes we convince ourselves that we’re so good on the phone that we don’t need a guide. You have to ask yourself, what are the eight areas you want to cover in the course of the phone call to get the desired outcome?

Related: WSJ best-selling author Alex Goldfayn explains the power and profitability of phone calls

Kain says the best outcome is securing an appointment. The second-best outcome is you have information, to create the next set of actions. The worst outcome is a hang-up with no information and you’re not sure what to do next. Working in the automotive industry, Kain says his connection to his guests came from when customers came into the showroom or when they were able to speak with them on the phone. Nowadays with new technology, Kain says sometimes we need to go back to our roots and recognized what caused that success level to happen. If we say and do the right things, we’ll get the right outcome.

Kain says it’s not so much of the words, but knowing the purpose behind the phone call script. You want to be able to check the boxes. In recent studies, salespeople who use call outlines or scripts are twice as successful in obtaining appointments. Leverage a phone call script or outline for the best possible outcome.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Kain & Co.? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Stellantis is expected to close a deal by year’s end, creating its own captive financing arm. Mike Koval Jr., Ram brand CEO said “until now, we were the only major OEM in the U.S. without a captive”. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome David Kelleher, Chairman of the Stellantis National Dealer Council and President of David Dodge Chrysler Jeep RAM, to give us his perspective on this move from Sellantis and we’ll also get into the overall state of automotive.

When it comes to Stellantis creating its own captive financing arm, Kelleher says, this is something they cautiously hoped for, for a long time. We will have to wait and see how it comes out and how it’s launched. He says it comes in at a time where we start to settle in with the Chrysler capital and it’s exciting.

Related: Stellantis to buy First Investors Financial Services to create lending arm

Kelleher says some relationships were born out of tough times. With banks coming through and continuing to sustain and help build buildings and grow businesses, those are going to be tough to walk away from says Kelleher. He hopes it’s not a situation where they are going to try to push everyone into a ‘one size fits all.”

Last month, Kelleher started with 42 cars and ended the month with 49, when he usually has 700 vehicles. In between that time, he has sold 168 vehicles. It’s a different world but an efficient world, says Kelleher. He says his customers are liking doing business this way. Kelleher says Stellantis plans to get rid of some long-standing incentives, temporary. A lot of dealers may push back on this but Kelleher wants to remind everyone by nature, these are incentives. The incentives were designed to help sell cars. He says everyone needs to understand this is a unique time with limited commodities to sell and you can’t blame the manufacturer for making those moves. As part of the national dealer council, Kelleher’s main focus is making sure the dealer’s bottom line doesn’t get impacted.

For the last quarter, Kelleher thinks we’re at the lowest inventory you’re going to see. He says, dealers should expect that well into next year. Kelleher says to take care of your clients, mark your cars, hold your gross profits and keep your expenses down accordingly.

Did you enjoy this podcast with David Kelleher? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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According to recent data from NADA, 2020 produced the highest net profit per retail dealership in automotive history. With record gross profit per retail unit on both new and used vehicles and record-high earning in F&I, fixed operations should be booming as well right? Well, in reality, that is not the case. On the latest episode of Service Drive, host Don Reed discusses why the service drive is lagging behind other departments in terms of revenue. Reed has helped thousands of dealers boost their service gross profits as CEO of DealerPro Training.

So, how can your dealership capitalize on service drive opportunities and grow? Reed says it comes down to one thing, training. A professionally trained service team will outperform an untrained group of service employees. Reed adds that car dealers often don’t consistently train their fixed ops employees, because, from their perspective, training is too expensive.

One of Reed’s favorite sales trainers, Jackie B. Cooper, said it best. “If you think training is expensive…try ignorance.” Reed likes this quote because ignorance does not mean incapable or unintelligent. It simply means that your staff is lacking the knowledge it takes to become a top-performer. The vast majority of dealership employees are hard-working and resourceful people, and it is up to the management staff to provide good training in order to improve their skills.

The position that needs the most training is the service advisor. The key processes that every service advisor must be trained on include:

Answering incoming calls and selling appointments
Scheduling appointments properly
Meeting and greeting customers properly
Conducting walk-arounds with customers
Putting the. customer first
Working with maintenance menus
Presenting MPI recommendations
Offering customers alternate choices
Overcoming objections
Conducting an active delivery
Scheduling follow-up appointments

To emphasize the importance of service advisor training, Reed says that a single untrained service advisor can cost up to $150,000 per year in lost customer paid gross. So, if your dealership has four advisors, that’s up to $600,000 in losses. Car dealers cannot afford to keep their service staff untrained.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Service Drive? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Hyundai Motor Group recently announced their efforts to “achieve a fuel cell vehicle price point comparable to a battery-electric vehicle by 2030.” Is this a cause for concern or could this be the future of automotive? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Bloomberg Intelligence’s Senior Automotive Analyst, Kevin Tynan, to share his thoughts and we’ll also dive into other topics making headlines today.

Toyota was the company that lead the market with the Prius, a gasoline hybrid. Tynan says, they never went with the logical next step to a plug into electrification. They’ve always talked about hydrogen being the better long-term solution. He says, he finds it interesting that these large companies can influence an industry. Even in terms of electrification, he says the best place to start with that technology was in the commercial vehicle segments. Tynan says in the history of the industry, it’s been about choice for the consumer. He says he finds it interesting that the states are determining certain choices.

Related: Is hydrogen gaining steam to power past the EV?

The three Hyundai Kia brands are all selling for the month, above the sticker price. I would never believe I would have seen anything like this says, Tynan. It’s an unprecedented time but it’s amazing. Toyota day supply at the beginning of the month was about 17-days. They’re usually around the 55 to 60-days supply average. Tynan believes there’s a happy medium somewhere between the two. This is a dynamic that impacts the domestic brands than the import brands.

Ford announced the hiring of former Tesla and Apple executive, Doug Fields, who was involved with Apple’s secret car project known as Project Titan. Titan believes it’s a great victory.It showed that a domestic manufacturer could attract Silicon Valley expertise. But Tynan says in the back of his mind, what does this say about Apple’s commitment to producing a car? To look at the auto industry as anything other than a technology leader is just wrong. He believes this will continue to be the direction of the industry.

In the last quarter, Tynan believes it will finish ‘in balance’. The demand is there but supply isn’t. He thinks overall, the industry is healthy from a demand perspective but dealerships have to get more units on the ground. This is the time to get into position for 2022.

Did you enjoy this podcast interview with Kevin Tynan? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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As demand continues to climb alongside inventory concerns, could you be doing more to get ahead of it all? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Brian Finkelmeyer, Senior Director of New Car Solutions at Cox Automotive, to discuss practices you can implement today and what you should be paying attention to.

Finkelmeyer says it’s a remarkable time for dealers across the country, as we have never seen a situation like this before. We’re running out of cars but profits are through the roof. In 2019, the average dealer had an average net profit of $1.4 million and in 2020 it improved to $2.1 million. Through the first six months of this year, the average dealer currently has an average net profit of $2 million.

I don’t think the days of 60, 70, or 80 day supply is anywhere in the near term says Finkelmeyer. He says he calculates an average of savings of about $2,500 to $2,700 dollars per car. He believes this ‘existing normal’ is going to be around for another six to nine months.

Related: Why new vehicle inventory shortages don’t have to prevent you from gaining new customers

Today, what’s happening is we have a 60 day supply but it’s different than what we’re used to. We have 30 days on the ground and then 30 days of incoming vehicles. Finkelmeyer says in some cases, 45% to 50% of vehicles that hit the lot, sell within the first week of being there.Asbury reported in their quarterly results that some dealerships have a 5-day supply of inventory.

The new car situation has had a direct impact on the used car valuation. Finkelmeyer believes there are great deals to be had in the used car market. The average gross on a used vehicle in the U.S. is $3,500.

For the second half of the year, Finkelmeyer says it looks a lot like the first half. We’ve hit a moment where the inventory shortage is having a direct impact on sales. Nonetheless, Finkelmeyer says the industry keeps turning out about a million new cars a month at very high margins. He believes that’s likely to continue. As we go into the new year, he thinks the big thing to watch is the adoption of electric vehicles, outside of Tesla.

Did you enjoy this podcast interview with Brian Finkelmeyer Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Labor Day weekend is a time where buyers typically search for new vehicles based on incentives. But with the industry’s inventory shortages, how are dealers changing their strategies? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Kevin LeSage, Director of Digital Marketing of Autotrader to discuss ways dealers can remain successful.

Auto sales were squeezed even tighter in August by a worsening supply situation. LeSage says with the summer slowdown, the reality is the available inventory on dealer lots has been failing for months and sales have been slowing as well. The annual new vehicle sales pace in August was forecasted to finish near 14.3 million, which is the slowest pace so far in 2021. August sales volume was expected to fall nearly 9% from a year ago and finish at 1.2 million units. LeSage a lot of dealers he’s working with is focusing on CPO.

Consumers are looking for that like-new inventory and they want to purchase warranties. In July, LeSage says they saw CPO sales of 1.46 million vehicles in the first 6 months of the year, which was an increase of almost a quarter-million vehicles above last year. One of the key ways Autotrader is helping throughout this is leveraging their first-party consumer audience data to drive more predictive insights for their dealers. Moving forward, it boils down to efficiency and matching that inventory to the audience.

Related: How to communicate with customers while working with less inventory

Autotrader has shared a few of the toughest new vehicles consistently selling above full retail price, factoring vehicle availability amid inventory shortage. Consumers and dealers are seeing an uptick in consumers ordering directly from the OEM. LeSage says he’s starting to see a lot of dealerships starting to advertise that. The scarcity of SUVs, trucks, and minivans is continually getting worse. Consumers have limited choices and higher prices on a lot of vehicles.

COVID forced this industry to rip the band-aid off and adopt quickly with a digital experience says LeSage. Across Autotrader, their biggest focus is educating the consumer to drive those high-quality leads. He says dealers need to be advertising that, ‘if you can’t come to us, we can come to you’. You need different options for different shoppers. He says implementing those tools, measuring consumer engagement, and constantly looking for those efficiencies is where dealers will find the most value moving forward.

Did you enjoy this podcast interview with Kevin LeSage? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes sits down with the General Manager of CMA’s Colonial Chevrolet in Richmond, Virginia, Shawn Hays. Lopes gets straight to the point and asks Hays, can any salesperson advance and climb the ranks from the sales floor to become a part-owner of a dealership? And, can they do it without taking 20 years’ time?

Hays says, absolutely. The opportunity is there but what you do with the opportunity is up to you. In under five years, Hays went from a salesperson to a general manager. Hays has been in sales since 1997. He starting off selling beepers, which lead to door-to-door sales, then certain life decisions eventually led him into car sales.

Related: The key to overcoming fear and rejection as a salesperson in the car dealership

The opportunity is endless says, Hays. But, he says you have to have the right opportunity and be ready for that opportunity. He says that’s you have to look in the mirror, create and make those changes about yourself. Make sure you’re getting better professionally and personally every day. Hays says some people settle to be in the wrong dealerships. If you did everything you can at that particular dealership and you’re unable to move up, you have to go find the opportunity and don’t ever settle where you’re at.

Hays doesn’t condone hopping from dealership to dealership. He says he only left because he went to the management of the dealership he felt loyalty to. The dealership, unfortunately, wasn’t rising in growth like he was and they didn’t see the level they could take it to. Hays says, remember to make sure you find the right opportunity for you.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Straight to the Point? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Are you still using the phone to generate sales in today’s digital retail environment? If not, this is something that you should get back to immediately as you may be missing out on customers. In his latest book, Pick Up The Phone and Sell, Alex Goldfayn, keynote sales speaker, CEO of The Revenue Growth Consultancy, and WSJ best-selling author explain how powerful and profitable a phone call can be.

Goldfayn begins the conversation by discussing the techniques mentioned in his latest book, Pick up the Phone and Sell. He says the techniques in the books are about the single most effective selling tool, which is the phone but it also is the most avoided tool. The reason it’s the least used is fear. He says, we automatically go to cold-calling when we think about making calls.

When you result in email, you volunteer yourself with the junk. But, when you call, you’re the only one. If you want to stand out, be memorable, and helpful, you need to call says Goldfayn. He says it’s just showing up, being present which is what customers want from us. Sending an email is less than doing nothing says Goldfayn.

Related: Silent website shoppers: How to convert more car shoppers to phone ups & showroom visits

When it comes to text messages, Goldfayn says it’s the second most effective communication pathway. He recommends, calling and leaving a voicemail. After you send the voicemail, send a text. If you call then text a customer, 2 out of 3 of them will get back to you. And two-thirds of those will do so by a text message.

Goldfayn says don’t underestimate the impact of showing effort. You’ve taken a step towards the customer when nobody else is. It’s an easy way to stand out in a crowd, which is 99% reactive.

Did you enjoy this podcast interview with Alex Goldfayn? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Pick Up The Phone and Sell: How Proactive Calls to Customers and Prospects Can Double Your Sales

Customer experience expert, New York Times best-selling author, and international keynote speaker Shep Hyken, has released new research into the state of customer service and experience called the A.C.A or Achieving Customer Amazement Study. On today’s show, Shep joins anchor Jim Fitzpatrick to discuss the study’s surprising findings.

The A.C.A surveyed over 1,000 consumers across different demographics including age, gender, and income level. According to Hyken, customer loyalty begins when a customer returns for a product or service. Repeat business is crucial for success. So, how do we encourage repeat business? How do we prevent customers leaving for a competitor? Hyken says that is why his study takes a close look at generational age. In fact, 87% of Boomers compared to 73% of Gen Z believe it is essential for a company or brand to provide an excellent customer service experience.

Other key findings from the study include:

83% of customers will switch because of bad customer service.
75% of Americans are more likely to be loyal to a company or brand that delivers a personalized customer service experience.
48% of Americans would rather go to the dentist than call customer support.
41% of consumers chose digital self-service options before picking up the phone

Related: How to communicate with customers while working with less inventory

The research also revealed that what consumers want the most are employees who are knowledgeable about their products and services. Additionally, consumers want employees who are helpful and kind as well as the ability to reach the right supervisor quickly. For example, while Amazon encourages users to resolve their questions or complaints online, they also make it easy for consumers to speak directly with a representative. Hyken says that dynamic is exactly what businesses need. More top consumer priorities include:

Convenience and hassle-free experience
Fast response times to emails and messages
Delivery times and logistics
Empathy from employees during frustrations or complaints
A personalized experience

To learn more, be sure to watch the entire interview above, and to get your copy of “I’ll Be Back” out now, visit IllBeBackBook.com or find it on Amazon.

Did you enjoy this podcast interview with Shep Hyken? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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I'll Be Back

On the latest episode of Mind Your Own Business, host Jonathan Dawson, founder of Sellchology, discusses eight ways car dealers can out-experience their competition. Dealers that provide a better customer experience will give themselves a sizable advantage and improve retention rates.

Not all customers view the transactions the same way. Dawson says he calls this the YOLO effect. The YOLO effect is what you do to cause a customer to say ‘you only live once’ and decide to buy from your dealership. They not only buy, but pay a premium to do so. Dawson’s eight principles include:

Making life easier. Anytime your life gets easier, you may say, take my money. Ease is the one way, we can use psychology to turn down the price sensitivity that the customer may have when buying a car. Dawson asks the question, how easy is it to do business with you? What process changes have you made to make buying a car from you easy?
Putting forth extra effort. Dawson asks the question, what is your team doing to exert that extra effort? He says if they do bring the extra effort, customers are willing to buy.
The efficiency of a customer’s visit to your dealership. How many times in your life you’ve paid more money because you want something to happen faster? Can you make things quicker without rushing customers? Dawson says, in the next sales meeting ask your employees, how and where can you make things more efficient?
Educating the customer. Whenever we’re being educated our brains tell us, it’s okay to pay money for this education. It’s easy to sell a car but are you educating the customer on the process? You need to teach employees how to use an educational selling approach not just being transactional.
Showing off expert staffers. Expertise is paying money to specifically work with an expert. On your sales team, are the members certified or accredited? Position your team as the expert in the marketplace.
Entertaining the customer while at the store. You need to make sure your customer is having a great experience. What are you doing to entertain your buyers?
The environment of the dealership. Dawson says some dealerships have put little to no thought into the actual environment they’ve created for their customer. The environment dictates whether or not a person feels comfortable paying you money. Ask your team to go around the building and look for areas where the environment should be adjusted or aren’t paying enough attention to the details.
Exclusivity of the experience and the result. When a person feels that what they experience is truly unique or special, their brain justifies paying a premium for it. You have a unique opportunity to out-experience your competition.

Have your team go through this list and have them identify things that they are doing or things they think they should be doing to elevate the customer experience.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Mind Your Own Business? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On today’s show, we are pleased to welcome David Kain, President and Owner of Kain Automotive, industry expert, and host of Kain and Co. right here on CBT News. Kain begins the conversation by sharing some takeaways he’s seen throughout the past year. He says something we learned is that the internet is a wonderful catalyst for dealers with a span of digital retailing tools. He also says the telephone has become more critical to the selling process. 82% of people remember the tone of the conversation more than what was said. Kain says you have to teach employees how to be more effective.

Related: To modernize car buying, we need to make it easier to sell

People do want to get back out in the showrooms says Kain. He also says you can’t abandon what you learned during the time when dealerships were shut down. Kain doesn’t believe people are abandoning digital retailing but when you have lessor inventory, consumers just want to know, do you have the car.

Digital retailing could work but it might need to be lead by the agent. This is a people-driven business. He says there are relationships you can develop with technology to build a strong process and that is what you should focus on.

Kain has a performance acceleration platform that is designed to create performance excellence. Most team members don’t get real-time guidance on how they’re doing. Each and every week they’re dropping new content, from onboarding employees to taking the veterans and teaching them how to be more effective.

Kain ends the conversation by sharing his predictions for the auto industry. He says cars will be made and we will have inventory levels back, maybe not where we’re used to but we’ll soon see full lots.

Did you enjoy this podcast interview with David Kain? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

AutoVerifyFirst up, in the dealership software space this week, AutoVerify acquired AIM Experts, an advanced inventory merchandising solution provider, to take the stress out of buying and owning a vehicle for consumers, and to help solve dealer frustrations in this area.

Details of the transaction were not disclosed.

AIM Experts was founded in 2012, and built a platform that is used by approximately 400 dealers, according to AutoVerify.

AutoVerify said the acquisition will allow dealers to better display, market and merchandise vehicles from their vehicle details pages, and better equip them to highlight the features that differentiate their vehicles from their competitors. It also provides dealers with an opportunity to introduce and explain finance and insurance offerings.

SpiffyIn the on-demand services space this week, Spiffy has purchased Pit Crew, expanding on-demand car care into Tennessee and bringing new preventative maintenance services to Spiffy.

Details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Pit Crew, which operates in the Tennessee cites of Nashville, Memphis and Knoxville, has primarily focused on oil and tire change services since its launch in August 2018. However, Pit Crew has dipped it toes into new services like providing replacement batteries, wiper blades, headlights and tail lights.

TritiumIn the EV charging space this week, Tritium, a global developer and manufacturer of DC fast charging technology for electric vehicles, announced a $40 million Australian dollar private placement by Cigna Investments, the investment arm of Cigna Corporation, a U.S.-based global health services company.

In May, Tritium announced its business combination with SPAC Decarbonization Plus Acquisition Corp II.

This is the second private placement financing by Cigna, following a June 2020 private placement of $45 million Australian dollars.

Tritium is a leader in a number of mature EV markets, such as Norway and California. Founded in Australia and having already deployed more than 4,500 charging stations, Tritium has provided more than 2.7 million high-power charging sessions across 41 countries, delivering an aggregate of over 55 Giga-Watt-Hours of energy.

ACCURE Battery IntelligenceIn the battery technology space this week, Germany-based battery analytics company ACCURE Battery Intelligence has received $8 million dollars in a Series A funding round, led by Blue Bear Capital, with existing investors Capnamic Ventures and 42CAP participating.

The software and AI-driven solution assists manufacturers and operators in monitoring the overall health and safety conditions of a battery system throughout its lifecycle.

Including this round, the company has raised a total of $10.7 million dollars in funding.

With a focus on safety and reliability, the Accure SaaS platform allows companies in the energy and mobility sectors to predict, and avoid, any battery failures before they happen. This potentially life-saving technology applies not only to new batteries but can also be retrofitted to existing battery systems.

AvivaIn the connected car space this week, Aviva has raised $26.5 million dollars in a funding round led by the founders of Marvell Technology Group.

The round will enable Aviva Links to speed product development and expand sales and marketing for its high-speed data movement for in-car communications. The company has raised $33 million dollars to date.

Vehicles have vast amounts of data moving through them, and Aviva is building secured in-vehicle connectivity chips that can move this data at multi-gigabit speeds while meeting the performance, power, security, and cost requirements of the market.

OculiiIn the Autonomous Vehicle space this week, Oculii, a software startup that aims to improve the spatial resolution of radar sensors by up to 100-fold, has scored a new investment from General Motors. The new funding, which the two companies say is in the millions, comes just months after Oculii closed a $55 million dollar Series B financing round.

Oculii wants to license software to radar companies. The startup claims it can take low-cost, commercially available radar sensors — sensors that weren’t designed for autonomous driving, but rather for limited scenarios like emergency breaking or parking assist — and use its AI software to enable more autonomous maneuvering.

Tricolor Auto GroupTricolor Auto Group announced a $90 million dollar convertible preferred equity investment from funds managed by BlackRock, which converts to a minority stake.

The new capital will be used to rapidly expand its mission-driven approach powered by artificial intelligence to the purchase and financing of high quality, affordable used vehicles for credit invisible Hispanics nationwide.

Tricolor has operated its vehicle retail and financing enterprise focused on the Hispanic market for the past 14 years in California and Texas.

Now with financial resources from one of the most notable investment firms in the country, Tricolor has its sights set on expanding nationwide.

XLerate GroupOn the heels of last week’s announcement that Private equity firm Brightstar Capital Partners entered a definitive agreement to acquire a majority stake in the auto auction and remarketing facilitation company XLerate Group, the company has purchased Greater Shreveport-Bossier Auto Auction. With this acquisition, which is the group’s 10th, XLerate now has 14 auction brands that include fixed-site and mobile sales throughout 11 states.

This news comes less than two months after buying Liquid Motors.

Cao Cao MobilityIn international news this week, Cao Cao Mobility, the ride-hailing unit of Chinese automaker GEELY, has announced a $589 million dollar Series B raise that the company says will help it upgrade its technology and expand its fleet, according to a statement released by the company.

The raise brings the company’s total funding to around $773.2 million dollars.

Suzhou Xiangcheng Financial Holding Group led the round along with Suzhou High-Speed Rail New City Group and three other state-controlled enterprises.

Cao Cao, which is currently available in 62 cities in China, saw ride volume increase 32% in July.

CARS24India-based CARS24 raised $259 million dollars at a $1.75 billion dollar valuation. Investors included DST Global, Alpha Wave Investors, Tencent, Moore Strategic Partners, Exor Seeds, and BloombergSen Investment Partners.

Cars24 used to only buy cars on behalf of dealers until 2019. However, it more recently diversified into selling to retail customers and now directly competes with CarDekho, Spinny and Droom. Its indirect competitors include Mahindra First Choice and Maruti True Value. Besides India, the firm also expanded its offerings to the Middle East, Australia and the UK markets.

MarshmallowThe vehicle insurance space has been red hot recently, and this week U.K.-based Marshmallow has raised $85 million dollars in a Series B round, led by Passion Capital, with participation from Investec and SCOR.

This funding round catapults Marshmallow to a “unicorn” valuation of $1.25 billion dollars.

Marshmallow provides a new approach to car insurance aimed at using a wider set of data points and clever algorithms to net a more diverse set of customers and provide more competitive rates.

Companies to WatchEvery week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry Intel Report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, our companies to watch are Shyft Auto and Aucto.

Shyft Auto

First up this week is Shyft Auto.

With Shyft Auto, There’s a better way to grow your auto repair shop. Shyft Auto’s modern and easy to use software helps you minimize the chaos so that you can focus on operations and take your repair shop to the next level.

Their newest product, Bayley, is a smart service bay assistant. Bayley was invented by a service manager to help technicians be more efficient and cut out wasted time in different stages of repairing vehicles.

Bayley is an artificial intelligent touch screen assistant application that mounts to any service lift without drilling.

Technicians benefit by using Bayley with Real time tracking of how long vehicles have been on service lifts to help Sort repair jobs by fastest route to completion using machine learning and artificial intelligence; Turning more hours by getting recommendations to customers faster; and Automating parts and labor pricing saving saving technicians time spent in the Parts department and waiting on advisors to sell recommended work.

Shops benefit from using Bayley through greater REVENUE, Increased parts sales, and better Reporting to help you understand your technician speeds on jobs and bay efficiency.

Aucto

Aucto provides a digital platform and marketplace that enables enterprise organizations to recover value from surplus business and industrial assets. Think about automotive OEMs trying to change the configuration of their factories from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles.

Aucto believes that the current way of buying & selling surplus machinery and equipment needs improvement, that is why they created a platform that empowers sellers and provides buyers a chance to buy industrial equipment at fair market value.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

——————-

People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

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Google is the largest source of information that not only helps us with daily tasks, but also allows businesses to reach wider audiences by leveraging marketing and advertising technology. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Google’s Head of Automotive Retail, Lissette Gole, who discusses the revised Google’s Dealer Guidebook. We’re also joined by Brian Benstock, Partner GM and Vice President of Paragon Honda and Paragon Acura who has been adopting many of the guide’s best practices.

Gole begins the conversation by touching on Google’s Dealer Guidebook and what it covers. Gole says they re-released an updated version of the guide because the auto industry has been undergoing so many retailing changes that were accelerated by COVID. The guidebook is intended to give car dealers and agency partners best practices on how to use Google to drive profitability for their businesses. The great thing about the guidebook is that it meets you where you are, says Gole.

Related: The importance of using Google Analytics to inspect marketing partners

Benstock says the best practices they’ve implemented at Paragon come largely from the guidebook. He says you don’t need the largest platform to target people that are in the market to buy your product. He adds that car dealers should use the best platforms and master the ability to use those platforms to target customers in a cost-effective way. Regardless of what your strategy is, using a Google platform to reach customers is more important now than ever, says Benstock.

They don’t need to know about the guidebook, they need to master the guidebook says Benstock. The only way we’re going to be able to compete is to master the master platforms. Whether it’s Google, Facebook, or Instagram, these are where the customers are living. Being socially connected is the key.

Gole says they have two versions of the guidebook. One is for dealers to understand the landscape of what’s happening in the industry and the other is an implementation guide for advertising agencies and digital marketers. Gole wants car dealers to feel empowered to ask questions to anybody who’s managing their business. She would challenge car dealers to talk to their agency partners monthly, about their ROI and data analytics.

Gole ends the conversation by discussing what she would like to see from car dealers in the future. She says first-party data is powerful, and car dealers need to lean into that and use it for marketing. Gole says they are truly here to help. Leverage the guidebook because that’s where you’ll find all the answers to your questions and how you can sell more calls.

Click here to download the Topline Dealer Guidebook 2.5.

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The shortage of new vehicle inventory has led to a decline in sales and an uptick in stress for many of you. Cox Automotive is reporting that August was the fourth consecutive month of slowing sales for new vehicles. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Charlie Chesbrough, Senior Economist and Senior Director of Industry Insights at Cox Automotive to walk us through what is happening and how dealers are responding in the Q3 Cox Automotive Dealer Sentiment Index.

With August behind us, Chesbrough says one of the positive take-ways is that there is still interest from consumers for vehicles. Demand remains high for both new and used. It’s just market constraints on the supply side. Chesbrough says what dealers need to get ready for, is that the problem isn’t going away anytime soon.

The sales pace we saw in August was 13.1 million, far below what we expected for a 17 million market says Chesbrough. You’re going to have a difficult time if you’re a picky buyer out there trying to find exactly what you want. Chesbrough says he’s finding that successful dealers are able to get their customers to order their vehicles. He thinks as the products start to come back in, he’s see the consumers coming back to buying vehicles because they’re going to want them.

Related: Digital marketing methods for today’s car dealership

There is no end in sight with the chip shortage, unfortunately. Chesbrough says it’s a very fluid environment right now. He thinks those that were hit early, they may be able to catch up a little bit. Those that haven’t been hit so hard yet are going to start to see it in Q3 into Q4.

Chesbrough says the only guidance he can really give dealers right now is that there is strong demand out there but it’s going to be constrained by what the manufacturer can actually produce. Currently, there are about 1 million vehicles sitting on lots, but 5 million more is needed throughout the rest of this year.

The industry has been operating with tight inventory for more than a year now. I think the industry is going through a transformation says, Chesbrough. He believes it’s going to be more vehicle ordering with incentives going towards online ordering. Those who are patient will be able to get a better price.

Chesbrough wraps up the conversation by giving his prediction for Q4. He says we’re looking at a very tight inventory environment. He says he wouldn’t be surprised if we see the SAAR become lower this month. Dealers have to be prepared that margins are going to remain strong but volumes are going to be challenged.

Did you enjoy this podcast interview with Charlie Chesbrough? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, talks about how hurricane season and the wholesale market are going to impact your dealership and the used car market going into the end of the year.

During the recession, new car sales dropped from 15 to 17 million down to 10 million. The difference was not shifted to used cars. A drop of about 2 million is expected for this year’s SAAR. Rice says we aren’t as drastic in new car sales missed opportunities as we were back during the recession.

Related: Hurricane season and its impact on auto players

Lotpop tracks post-hurricane listings on third-party sites. Recently from June until now used car listings on those websites haven’t changed. There isn’t a shortage of used cars in the market in what Rice is seeing for sale on the listing sites. He says what the consumers see online is about the same amount of inventory volume that’s been out there for the last few months. Not much has changed between how many cars were listed in 2019 for sale to currently how many are for sale in September of the same time frame of this year.

Each market is going to be a little different but as a whole, there’s not a shortage of used cars, but there is for new cars. After Hurricane Harvey, many used shoppers went outside their market due to inventory shortages and pricing.

Dealerships in Louisiana have to buy outside of their market areas, which means shoppers hit by Ida will likely follow the same pattern. Shoppers not affected by the hurricane aren’t willing to pay extra to buy a used vehicle. People tend to tighten their budgets going into Q4 because of the upcoming holidays.

Rice does believe the hurricanes are going to have an impact on wholesale buyers and the retail markets but not on the national scale. Continue to watch the market, adjust your stock accordingly to market shifts and keep to your 2-week sale cycle. Rice says to keep watch of the rental car companies. Rental car companies can impact the wholesale market if they decide to dump their fleets. If they decide to pivot, you’re going to want to pivot as well.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Used Cars Weekly? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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More than half of all U.S. dealership jobs are created by international nameplate automobile dealers, according to the American International Automobile Dealers Association. The Association recently released their 2021 Economic Impact Report and joining today to discuss its findings, is Cody Lusk, President of AIADA. We’ll also get into what’s making headlines today and what the association has planned for the remainder of the year.

The 2021 Economic Impact Report from AIADA highlights the effects that its dealer members, dealership employees, and products have on the U.S. economy. This report is created annually in partnership with Autos Drive America and explores the growing segment of manufacturing presence in the automotive space.

Some of the key findings include:

The AIADA dealer network is responsible for 50-60% of sales in the market
The network also employs almost 600,000 of dealership positions
60% of direct jobs are in manufacturing
International automakers have invested $98 billion into U.S. operations
$34 billion generated in federal tax receipts and other revenues
$253 billion contributed to the GDP

“WE’RE SMALL BUSINESSES WITH BIG IMPACT AND BIG IMPRINTS THROUGHOUT THE U.S., SO WE WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT, ” LUSK EXPLAINS.A caveat to the manufacturing bumps, that the AIADA is constantly monitoring, is federal government favoritism to certain automakers and OEMs. Former President Donald Trump made several pointed speeches and tweets that swayed consumer and manufacturer decisions regarding automobiles. Lusk says the same is happening under President Joe Biden, specifically when he visited Ford Motor Company to test drive the Ford F-150 Lightning prototype.

Related: AIADA President Cody Lusk on how the Biden Administration will likely impact the auto industry

Additionally, Congressman Dan Kildee from Michigan’s fifth district, has introduced legislation to expand incentives for American, union-made electric vehicles, which recently passed through the House Ways and Means Committee. The AIADA is concerned that this is a show of favoritism to union workers over non-union workers. Lusk says that the first priority should be giving the consumers the best products available without the federal government picking winners and losers.

This example speaks to the larger goals of the AIADA for the remainder of the year which are to ensure that the auto industry is a level playing field. Lusk adds that the industry needs to get back to letting the consumer decided which product they want without overt government influence.

To learn about the AIADA and what they work to accomplish, visit www.aiada.org/news.

Did you enjoy this podcast interview with Cody Lusk? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Kain and Co., host David Kain, President of Kain Automotive, discusses the ‘power of the second voice’, also so known as turnover.

The power of the second voice is anything that will afford you the opportunity to introduce the customer to another dealership team member. If you’re getting ready to hang up the phone with a guest or walk the guest out the showroom door, don’t forget to have that customer meet a manager or peer on staff. The opportunity for the second voice has worked well in the showroom for years, says Kain.

If or when you’re unable to close a deal with a customer, it’s a good idea to bring in someone else with new ideas or an authoritative voice to guide the guest through the buying process. Kain says you’re still going to learn because you get to be right there listening to it.

When you’re on a phone call and you’re getting ready to hang up without an appointment, that’s the cue to set up and secure an appointment. Managers aren’t the only ones who can help. Tag-teaming with a co-worker could be a good second voice for the customer. A second voice needs to be someone who knows what to say, and how to provide an opportunity for the guest to offload the burden of making the decision for someone else. A second voice can help break down barriers in securing the deal.

Related: Why management training can make or break your car dealership – David Lewis

Kain says if he had a preference, he would escalate it to a manager. Managers don’t need a lot of ‘scene setting’ to say what’s going on. If you are going to involve a second voice don’t leave the customer on hold for more than 10 to 15 seconds. Kain believes if you set aside your ego you can leverage the power of the second voice.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Kain & Co.? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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We have all been impacted by dwindling inventory in today’s market. While profits still remain high for many, what we are experiencing may be more disruptive than predicted. Joining us today to share his insight on what’s happening in retail automotive is Dale Pollak, founder of vAuto and Executive Vice President at Cox Automotive.

Pollak begins the conversation by giving his assessment of the current inventory situation and how it’s impacting car dealerships across the country. He says it’s interesting. New car inventory is at all-time low levels, yet dealers still bring in strong profitability. Pollak says that’s because they have a lot of pricing power for the vehicles they do have on their lot both new and used. In certain aspects, it’s the best of times, then other aspects, it’s the worse of times.

One of the differences Pollak sees in the situation right now versus the traditional selldown season is we’re experiencing an unprecedented rise in wholesale prices. He suspects very soon the retail price will be soon to follow. Other than August of 2017, they have never seen wholesale prices rise in August, yet they did this year. In light of Hurricane Ida, he suspects wholesale prices rise will continue throughout the end of the year. He also says prices of used cars generally do not depreciate and certainly not in the fall but that’s exactly what’s happening right now.

Related: LADA Pres. Will Green talks dealership recovery efforts after Hurricane Ida

In many respects, this inventory crunch has been a good problem to have for dealerships and OEMs, most of which are making record profits. Pollak says we don’t need to have a large inventory to make large profits. The industry has certainly learned the lesson that you can still sell cars and make money by not overproducing.

Pollak says the best thing that can happen is that everyone gets vaccinated and that will put a lid on this virus. He thinks until we are willing to follow the science and take the vaccine, we’re going to continue to spread infections. Much of the supply problems that we’re experiencing in the industry are arrows point towards the supply chain disruption. He says it’s the industry and government that needs to see that the greatest cost to society is the fear of the vaccine, and until a substantial amount of people get the vaccine, we won’t recover from it.

Through Cox, Pollak says, their form of thinking is formulated through a lot of data analysis. He predicts we’ll see wholesale prices rise, perhaps through the end of this year into the first half of next year. Currently, in the second half of next year, he says, we’ll see an accelerated decline of wholesale prices for used vehicles. He believes the reason is because of the possibility, by mid-year, next year, we’ll see new car inventory return. His advice to dealers is that cars in the wholesale market are probably cheaper today than they will be tomorrow and for that reason, he says to relax. He doesn’t expect to see new car inventory pre-pandemic levels but anything at this point would be an improvement.

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On the latest episode of Auto Marketing Now, host Brian Pasch, Founder of PCG Companies, covers the latest updates to the dealer’s number one source of high-quality traffic, Google My Business.

Google My Business for dealers generates over half of the leads that visit your dealership. No other channel generates more phone calls or leads for the dealership.

Products were a way in which you could drive traffic into the website for people to shop for a specific model. Today, those products can be an inventory feed, so that on the mobile device, you have a search results page and a VDP for every vehicle that’s in your inventory feed. You can take that feed and work with Google to get the feed to show real inventory on Google My Business. Pasch says to put a UTM tag on the link in your feed that goes back to your website so that you can see those visitors came from Google My Business.

Related: Brian Pasch discusses surprising results from latest Google SEM Report

Pasch says 8 out of 10 dealers he inspects don’t have their service and parts Google My Business listing completed. Google wants you to have a GMB for sales, service, and parts. Each one of those is different departments with different products and services, with different operating hours.

Google My Business is the number one way in which local consumers find local businesses. Most franchised dealer service centers do not show up in generic searches for service in the local market, says Pasch. He says, dealers haven’t taken the time to make their business stand out. The average franchised car dealer in the U.S., service listing has less than 10 reviews.

Each Google My Business has 10 business categories that reflect to Google what the business is about. Each one of your business categories should have ample content on your website to support your claim that your business does that type of work.

The more great content you have on your website, the higher your website will rank and the more often your GMB will show. The rankings for GMB are ordered by SEO strength. Pasch says Google My Business is an organic ranking tool that’s a reflection of your website, each supporting the other.

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What’s working for you in digital marketing today and what needs to be revamped? As more consumers make purchases online, it is critical for you to have an effective approach. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Noah Lee, Director of Sales Engineering for Dealer.com to share his insight and top tips for digital marketing.

18 months into some significant changes to the auto industry, there’s clearly been a shift in consumer behavior towards online digital buying. This has undoubtedly affected car dealers’ sales strategy, and their ability to remain competitive.

A fire was lit under most dealers to invest in a digital retailing solution when COVID-19 shut down dealership showrooms. There was an increase in demand for digital retailing tools, however many dealers lacked an overall strategy to make these tools effective.

Lee says that many dealers need to overhaul their sales processes as well as the dealership culture that supports them. Jeff Wyler Automotive Family is a good example of really embracing a ‘DR’ workflow.

Now, the industry is facing inventory shortages and dealers are selling vehicles for record margins. Lee says that having strong digital retailing processes ahead of when market conditions slow down, is crucial for success.

To help dealers with this influx of online consumers, digital marketers have to ensure that they are getting enough of the right, digital traffic. With the end of third-party cookies, Less says that making marketing strategies have now been thrown out the window. Cox Automotive has prepared for these changes with its first-party data network across all platforms. This network allows digital marketers to identify in-market shoppers with a higher degree of accuracy.

To keep up with today’s evolving consumer demands, dealers need to constantly evaluate their dealership’s digital marketing practices. For starters, car dealers need to serve up customized content to in-market shoppers. Customers today want white-glove service through every stage of the car buying journey.

Therefore, dealers should utilize the digital data analytics tools and platforms available for them. Lee adds that they should set up a free Google Analytics account if they haven’t already as well. To further address these concerns, Dealer.com offers its own analytics platform which works in conjuction with other metrics.

Additionally, Dealer.com completed an entire redesign of Accelerate My Deal. Lee says that the redesign focused on the following methods:

Increasing conversion rate with the tools available
Increasing the volume of deals and opportunities
Improving the closing rate of those deals and opportunities
Improving the sales process, for both the consumer and the retailer

In light of the many digital-first and technological advances, dealers still need basic fundamental, tried-and-true sales methods to incorporate into their approach. If dealers can get consumers to take more steps in the digital retailing process, they end up happier with the overall sales process.

To learn more, visit Dealer.com.

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On the latest episode of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes is joined by Adam Marburger, President of Ascent Dealer Services. Marburger is one of the leading authorities in F&I department management. Lopes gets straight to the point by asking— is your dealership leaving money on the table in the F&I office? If yes, how do you stop it?

Absolutely, says Marburger. It’s an unfortunate event but he says, he sees it every day. The mistake F&I managers make is the lack of process. Those stores typically don’t perform at the highest levels, on top of the lack of accountability attached to the process. The lack of accountability is missing in stores across the country.

Related: A ‘back to basics’ approach to F&I during slower times

Marburger says, he needs the F&I department to get out of their office and help the sales department facilitate sales. Once the deal is confirmed, the F&I manager immediately gets with the consumer and sets realistic expectations. You need to let them know who you are and what you do. You then bring the customer into your office and discuss warranties and offer solutions to problems customers didn’t realize they might have had. Marburger also says, think about retention, from selling the car today and then selling it tomorrow.

Let’s look at areas we can improve on, says Marburger. The F&I manager of 20 years ago was a ‘serve me’ and ‘bring me the deal’ manager, Marburger says. He says those are the people we don’t hire today. In their organization, they look for young servants, regardless of age.He says, what does matter is that you’re more urgent to serve than you are to sell. We sell cars, that’s what we do and sometimes we forget about that, says Marburger. It’s always about the customer and how can we facilitate a sale to get the customer to come back, again.

The first thing F&I managers need to do is, knock out the first impression. Marburger says it’s not only important but it’s critical to have an EMI (early management intervention). The earlier management gets involved, the more profitable that transaction becomes and the more relevant dealer retention becomes. For CIT’s (contracts-in-transit) to be at a minimum, econ tracking is a must and slow down, says Marburger. Set aside time to clean your deals up.

Marburger says the three best products F&I managers should be selling are service contracts, protective codings, and bundles.

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Many car dealers we’ve spoken to recently, say they are experiencing record sales and profits in today’s market. On today’s show, we check in on the West Coast with Hilary Haron, owner of Haron Motor Sales in Fresno, California.

Haron begins the conversation by discussing her new role as the National Automobile Dealers Association Board of Directors At-Large West. Haron says, she wants to make sure that dealers’ voices are heard and that dealers have what they need to thrive.

Haron adds that she sees herself as the current average consumer. Customers aren’t coming to the showroom for dealers to sell them something. They’re coming to the showrooms knowing what they want. She says they have a little work to do overall, but dealers are embracing it well.

In regards to the chip shortage, Haron says it has been a struggle, but across the industry, manufacturers are allowing dealerships to order what they want and they will deliver. The chip shortage has sped up the timeline. She says, they definitely need more vehicles than they currently have.

One significant challenge Haron currently faces is staffing good employees. She hopes to see more people start to reenter the workforce in the coming months. With the holidays coming up, Haron believes people may want to get new jobs and save some money.

Related: NADA Show Committee Chairman Scott Dube discusses plans for 2022 event in Vegas

Haron ends the conversation by discussing the upcoming 2022 NADA show. She says, she cannot wait and believes Vegas is the perfect place to put on the type of show that NADA is planning.

For more information visit: show.nada.org

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On the latest episode of Straight Talk, host David Lewis, President of David Lewis & Associates, talks about building a relationship with your customers. He says this is the best way to develop the kind of loyalty that will bring them back to you anytime they or someone they know is in the market for a car. This takes time.

Rapport is defined as a harmonious relationship between two people free from disagreement or descent. Harmonious is define as soothing or comforting. Is buying a car soothing or comforting, Lewis asks. It may bring excitement to drive the new car home but the sales process is nothing is that of soothing or comforting.

Related: To modernize car buying, we need to make it easier to sell

The definition of trust is believing in the reliability, truth, or ability of someone or something. Lewis says the average customer will never trust a car salesman because of their general reputation in the marketplace. Car salespeople are usually just above members of Congress when it comes to public trust. Members of Congress are usually at the bottom of the list on the annual gala poll for honesty and ethics in professions.

Lewis says your main priority should be with customers, which is much easier to achieve than either rapport or trust. The best thing you can do for yourself and your customers is to just get them to like you. It’s easier than you think, says Lewis. It’s as simple as being unique and different from what most people expect what a car salesperson to be like. Present yourself in a professional and inspiring way during the initial meet and greet and in your entire sales presentation.

Always remember rule number 4 of the DLA four rules of sales. Always try to catch your customer pleasantly off guard. Lewis says it lets the customer know you respect them and appreciate that they came to your dealership in search of a vehicle. Devote your best efforts to listen to your customer closely. Do less ‘selling and telling’ and more ‘listening and learning’. If you follow your sales steps properly when you’re done with your presentation and demonstration, you should know if they’re going to buy the car or not.

Remember, you want to stand out as unique, different, and inspiring. Lewis says, get them to like you and the sale will be easier to close.

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How do you handle objections in today’s marketplace? Joining us today is Sean Gardner, instructor and sales trainer with the Joe Verde Group to help us understand the different objections we get from today’s car buyers.

The only reason why a customer leaves is because of an objection, says Gardner. He says we need to be able to focus on, work through and close on objections. 80% of all sales are closed after the fifth attempt. Gardner says, if we don’t have any tools in the toolbox to work through these objections, we’re going to miss a lot of sales we could be getting.

He says, he understands there is a market value for vehicles right now but the salesperson has to work with the hand that they are dealt with. Customers get nervous about spending money, even though they’re getting ready to spend it. 75% of salespeople only know and use one close. The one close, they should not be using is, what’s it going to take to put you behind the wheel today? He says the customer will more likely say, ‘go see what you can do.’ But in today’s market, managers don’t want to just give away vehicles, giving the customer false hope.

Related: Dealing with objections for service repairs

These are the three most common objections for today’s buyers in this market. Gardner says the biggest one is that they just want to think it over. The second most common objection is color equipment. 86% of consumers are flexible on color and equipment. Give customers a second opportunity. Sometimes a question is simply just a question, not an objection. If you don’t have the vehicle available to present or demonstrate, the excitement isn’t there for the customer. Now, the salesperson is forced to close the sale based on price, and you can’t do that anymore. Gardner says, 80% of the decision to buy is made in the presentation demonstration.

The last objection is customer experience. Poor customer experience can affect your closing deal, CSI, and your Google ratings. Gardner says it’s not the salesperson’s fault, it’s the way they were trained. He says shortcuts don’t cut it anymore in today’s market with today’s customers.

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We were all anticipating relief from the inventory and chip shortages by now, but unfortunately, as most experts predicted, we are still dealing with the crisis in the third quarter of 2021. J.D. Power recently released its monthly forecast. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Tyson Jominy, Vice President of Data and Analytics at J.D. Power, to walk us through the state of automotive today.

We didn’t have the inventory for August to live up to expectations. Jominy says we had this big summer selling season in front of us but no inventory and everything seemed to have caught up with us all at once. Retail inventory is below 950,000 vehicles versus 3 million in August 2019. Jominy says we don’t have anything in stock to sell to consumers that are showing up. Vehicles are turning about 50% in under 10 days.

Related: How car dealers can be proactive when stocking their used-car inventory

Total sales are expected to fall 33% from August 2019 and down 17% from last year. The sales decline is driven by a sharp fall-off in retail sales, with fleet sales remaining weak. What changed in August was that the retail side suffered for the first time. For the past 8 months, consumers set records on how much they were spending in the market. Jominy says prices are high, volume is now too low. He says demand is well above the sales pace. This past August, the average transaction price reached an all-time high of $41,400.

What incentives, says Jominy. Incentives are about $1800 a unit, down from nearly $4000 a unit, last year. He says there’s a temptation there, to want this ‘time‘ to continue. But in reality, it’s a fixed asset industry, says Jominy. Eventually, we’ll have more inventory and incentives and it’ll start to feel normal.

The bottom line for August was a bunch of missed opportunities, says, Jominy. It could have been a big month, with the demand there, transaction prices were there but this was the month that it just changed. It’s going to be a fairly tough half of the year but hopefully, in 2022 we’ll see improvement, says Jominy. In August, the average transaction price for used cars was up 24%. He says it’s a lot of money to be made on both new and used vehicles. Dealers are in the driver’s seat when it comes to negotiation and the sale.

Jominy ends the conversation discusses the uptick in online ordering. Now, things have changed to an order strategy and consumers are needing to work very closely with dealers to get what they want and it may take 6 to 8 weeks for the vehicle to come in. He says dealers have adapted pretty quickly to this new environment and it’s great to see it.

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The auto finance market is returning to pre-pandemic levels, according to Experian’s Q2 State of the Automotive Finance Market report. So what does this mean for the industry overall? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Melinda Zabritski, Senior Director of Automotive Financial Solutions for Experian. Melinda serves as Experian’s primary analyst for key automotive finance trends.

The Experian State of the Automotive Finance Market is an industry report that provides insights into the auto finance space. They primarily review how consumers are purchasing and what they’re purchasing. They also explore who’s doing the financing and credit trends.

Zabritski says they compare the quarter to prior years. She says by no means Q2 of last year was a normal quarter. They did start to see sales recover in the second part of Q2 of last year. There were some interesting trends, such as a surge in full-size pickup truck financing which drove up loan amounts and extended terms. This year’s loan amounts, payments, and terms are consistent with pre-pandemic numbers. Compared to 2019, there was year-over-year growth of nearly 14% for new vehicles and about 2½% for used vehicles.

Used vehicles saw a spike in valuation, and that drove up loan amounts and monthly payments. Zabritski says they’ve hit record highs for both of those. Vehicle values were up $5,000 dollars, that’s about a 25% increase. The average loan amount hit a high of $23,000 dollars. The monthly payments for used vehicles also hit a record high of $430 a month.

Consumer preferences have changed over the years, says Zabritski. Five years ago, cars made up about 40% of what we purchased. Today, cars are less than 25% and SUVs are approaching 60%. She says, we shifted to larger, more expensive vehicles and they carry higher loans. One of the benefits for those higher values, your trade-in is worth more now. Zabritski says when the prices do level out again, we should expect to see a softening in the values for used vehicles because the demand won’t be as high.

Leasing hasn’t recovered from the point it was pre-pandemic. Zabritski says, over the years, leasing had grown to be about 35% to 36% in new-vehicle financing. She says about 1 in 4 cars are being leased. Currently, leasing is around 25% to 26%. She thinks with low inventory and the demand for used vehicles, consumers are looking for other choices.

Zabritski ends the conversation by sharing what dealers should do for the balance of the year. She says, dealers should stay on top of the trends and keep aware of the data and what’s happening in the industry. Be aware of the affordability aspect to help consumers make the best decision and guide them to the vehicle that best meets their lifestyle and budget needs.

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Hurricane Ida devastated many on the Gulf Coast before making its way into the Northeast. As residents in both areas pick up the pieces and government officials tour the damage, we continue our coverage on the hurricane’s impact on dealers. We’re pleased to welcome NADA’s first female chairwoman and current NADA Foundation Chairwoman Annette Sykora, to discuss NADA’s Emergency Relief Fund and how you can get involved today.

Anytime we have a disaster, Sykora says, it takes some time before we get a full count of the number of people affected. She says they have received over 80 applications to date.

When these natural disasters occur, dealerships are huge community supporters and dealership employees are normally the first ones out there, helping their fellow man while needing help themselves. This fund does that, says Sykora. She says they can apply for help. It’s based on a sliding scale, up to $1,500 dollars.

This fund was established in 1992, and throughout the years, they’ve helped more than 12,000 dealership employees and distributed more than $9 million dollars in assistance. Sykora says, it feels good to help out our own, especially when we know they’re out there helping others. She also says donations are needed to continue to help others.

Sykora says, what highlights most for her is how resilient and adapting dealers are. Whatever challenge they get hit with, they find a way to still serve their customers. She says it makes her extremely thankful she chose this as a career years ago.

You can help dealership employees impacted by Hurricane Ida or request relief assistance by visiting the NADA Foundation Emergency Relief Fund.

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Many Gulf Coast residents are now dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Ida. CNN reports that more than 977,000 homes and businesses in Louisiana were without power as of September 1. Today, that number is down to about 430,000. Residents and car dealers in the area are now combing through the damage and picking up the pieces.

On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome the President of the Louisiana Automobile Dealers Association (LADA) Will Green, to walk us through car dealer recovery efforts today.

The damage inflicted up Louisiana from Hurricane Ida has devastated the state’s power grid. Leaving many residents and car dealers without electricity, tap water, and other essentials. Green says he recently visited a town just outside of New Orleans, accompanied by government officials, and saw car dealerships with obliterated showrooms, missing roofs, and everything in between. Green adds that they were able to provide food for the first-responders and residents in the area.

The LADA is trying to accurately find out the number of its dealer members that have been affected by the hurricane. It has been a difficult effort considering that at one point, 1.1 million people were out of power, and unable to use their phones or internet. After talking to several dealers, the number one priority appears to be their employees’ well-being. Structures can be re-built, however, employees need assistance and relief as soon as possible. Green says it will be a marathon recovery, not a sprint.

LADA continues to be on the ground helping car dealers assess their damages quickly, and reporting back to the National Automobile Dealer Association for relief assistance. You can help dealership employees impacted by Hurricane Ida or request relief assistance by visiting the NADA Foundation Emergency Relief Fund.

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On the latest episode of Auto Marketing Now, host Brian Pasch, Founder of PCG Companies, shares some insights on what to do during this unique time in auto retail, where inventory levels are still low, dealers have record profits and dealers are wondering if this is the time to make a change?

The question is— what should you be doing now to prepare for the future? This conversation is primarily for the variable op side of the business. Pasch says this is a great time to consider the future because there’s no true barrier to the reinvention of auto retail than now. If investments need to be made to secure the future of auto retail, it’s not going to be stopped because of a lack of funding. Inventory levels are down and the number of people that need to be retrained is smaller than ever before.

Pasch says this is absolutely the best time to decide on your sales process going forward. This is the time to simplify your websites. The cars you are listing on your website are selling faster than ever before. Pasch says this is the time to take a ‘risk’ and simplify the buttons on your website to indicate a single sales process. Whether a consumer is online or in-store, you’re using the same tools that are going to quote the same payments. When the consumer does come in, you’ll use the same tool to pick up that sales process and see it to its logical completion.

The second opportunity for improvement is the change of foundation of your customer communication strategy. Still, in 2021, email is the primary form of communication that we transact within auto retail. Pasch says when we switch our primary communications to our customers, people want to do business with us to a messaging environment, where their phone doesn’t change. There’s no limit to what can be done.

Pasch says what he doesn’t think is healthy, is the idea of not changing anything. He says this is short-sighted thinking. We should be using this time more efficiently. Pasch says this is the time to act, while you have the funds, resources, and opportunity to differentiate yourself before the normal supply and demand equation comes back.

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Dealers have seen record sales and profits throughout the last year with less inventory so how are things on the luxury side? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Peter Cooper, President, and CEO of Lexus of Lehigh Valley to discuss market trends and what he’s experiencing.

Cooper begins the conversation by discussing gross profits for his store. He says sales have been through the roof. He also says, the number one thing you need to do is tell consumers they can’t have it and they’ll all run out to buy it. He thinks a lot of dealers were shocked by Toyota and Lexus shutting down plants in September. The luxury market is limited with its supply chain.

When asked, how much the number of day supply, he would like to have at all times, Cooper says, that such a broad question, he can’t answer. He says their outside economic conditions that lead to that. It also leads to the customer having a horrible experience to have to go through. If the manufacturer believes dealers should have a customer-centric model, Cooper says they should be paying them a ton of attention to data that’s coming in now.

Cooper says they’re averaging between 70% to 80% of full transactions happening outside of their store. He says, he never wants a customer to come there unless the customer wants to. Their dealership is a negotiation-free store. He says, the less we can get people to do, the easier it becomes to transact.

Cooper ends the conversation by discussing the challenges for the automotive dealers and the industry. He says for him, it’s where and how they’re going to find or develop the technology to enhance their businesses? Also, create the process to support that. He says, he worries about their digital presence and how they can enhance that. He also says their facility and creating a great experience for their customers.

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On the latest episode of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes sits down with Ronnie Tejeda, new-hire salesperson specialist, as well as the coach and trainer at Brown and Brown Dealer Services. Lopes gets straight to the point and asks Tejeda, are new salespeople you hire doomed from the start because they’re not properly educated?

87% of salespeople do not get proper training, says Tejeda. It’s very easy to hire someone, but these are the same people who have never sold a car and don’t understand the process. In his class, Tejeda focuses on confidence. He says, you can spend all your money on marketing, but if the employee doesn’t know what to do when a customer gets there, it’s going to be difficult. If you hire someone, you have to invest in them.

Tejeda says his group does not put people on the floor immediately. They will do a week or two of one-on-ones, which gives trainers the opportunity to break things down. He says, he doesn’t tell people what to do, but why they should do it. People have to understand the psychology of selling a car. It takes a long time to learn the car business but it won’t take as long if you invest weekly.

Tejeda does a lot of speaking engagements and he does sales training for AT&T. He does the same process as the way he does car sales. Tejeda says, he didn’t have the best upbringing and wants to change people for the better. People need to have hope says, Tejeda. God gave him the gift to speak and Tejeda wants to use it. “I’m not talent-driven but purpose-driven,” says Tejeda.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Straight to the Point? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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There has been an influx of positions needed to be filled across retail automotive. Companies are looking for talented people and talented people are looking for great companies to work for. So what’s behind all of this and are these positions being filled? Joining us today is Laurie Foster, Founder and CEO of Foster Strategies Group, to discuss how companies can effectively seek out talent.

Every single job candidate is getting multiple offers. Foster says you have got to bring your ‘A’ game. Put your best foot forward as to who you are as an organization, how you treat your people and talk to potential employers about the vision from day one. She says people are making choices not just on the money but where they are magnetically drawn to go to work for. It’s not just about culture but purpose.

Foster says, dealers have so much legacy recognition and expectations, based on models that are antiquated. She says the hours are a problem because the leaders are told, that’s just what it is. Working hard had a different payoff for people. Foster says it starts in role reclarification of the leaders you hire and the objective clarification on what you want each of these roles to do and why. Employers need to ask, are we accomplishing our goals, and is there another creative way to do things? She says, the answer is yes! Not only does the role needs to be re-identified and clarified, so does the compensation.

We don’t have enough general managers who are true business leaders, says Foster. They are functioning like senior sales managers. She says it has to start with the dealers. Foster believes this industry is full of amazing opportunities. We have to echo what our consumers look like and what they want or we’re going to continue to get gobbled up by companies such as Carvana and Tesla.

Foster ends the conversation by discussing the future of automotive and recruitment. Foster says the future of automotive could be that the franchises slowly evaporates. She says we could still be the vehicle ownership enterprise. Foster says you have to ask the question, not what do we pay but why do we pay them? Also, you have to figure out what model you’re matching up against and the overall goals.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Laurie Foster? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Over the last year, COVID-19 has impacted the way we sell cars and operate our businesses. The independent auto industry is changing as well. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Scott Dooley, owner of the independent dealership CarBox, in Kenosha, Wisconsin, to give us his perspective on the industry’s changes and how they have impacted business.

Dooley says, nowadays, it’s a great business. Grosses are way up and he says it’s nice to be an independent field because they don’t have to be on a big large scale as bigger franchises. If they sell 20 cars, they are pretty profitable. Dooley says, he may need two cars from auctions, because he’s able to get them way underpriced and better quality.

“I made a huge mistake with starting CarBox from the ground up,” says Dooley. He explains that they probably should have bought out another dealership because it limited a lot of options being brand new. There are a lot of risks with brand new businesses. CarBox opened at the beginning of November, last year, selling about 50 cars a month.

Big floor plan companies are difficult to get into, especially for brand new dealerships. NextGear and FC Financial signed CarBox, with an increase in lines of credit. Dooley says, make sure you get your finances in order if you’re opening a new business. He says, look around and find local credit unions.

Dooley ends the conversation by sharing his outlook on the balance of the year. He says things are going to be epically strong, especially for used cars and independents. It’s going to be the highest, craziest sales year he’s ever seen, says Dooley. He doesn’t see the chip shortage ending until early 2022. Hopefully, by 2022, they’ll be selling 70 to 80 cars and that’ll make Dooley really happy. Dooley says in five years, he sees CarBox owning a large dealership and selling upwards of 300 cars.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Scott Dooley? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

I had a chance to moderate a panel on electric vehicles at the International Automotive Remarketers Alliance conference last week in San Antonio, and I was surprised at the amount of uncertainty there is around EVs and how the industry is going to remarket used EVs as they hit the market. But we’ll get to more on that a bit later.

For now, private-equity firms have been stocking up dry powder, as their investors continue to pour money into the asset class in search of yield in a flat-interest-rate environment.

Private Equity and Venture Capital firms are now holding $2.29 trillion dollars in undeployed capital. This is a significant increase from December, when the worldwide total was just under $2 trillion dollars; and December 2019, when the figure was just $1.63 trillion dollars.

All of that money is going to have to find a home at some point. PE and VC funds have zero incentive to sit on the sidelines, which should mean a very active M&A environment over the remainder of this year.

DealerPolicy The insurance tech space is very hot, and this week we got news that Goldman Sachs is backing startup DealerPolicy in a funding round that raised $110 million dollars for the company. DealerPolicy provides auto dealers with insurance quotes for their customers.

The financing included existing investors such as 3L CAPITAL PARTNERS and Hudson Structured Capital Management.

The latest round gives the company a valuation of more than $500 million dollars.

Spiers New Technologies Cox Automotive Mobility has acquired Spiers New Technologies, a service provider for electric vehicle battery lifecycle management with operations in the U.S. and Europe.

Spiers provides repair, remanufacturing, refurbishing and repurposing of advanced battery packs in hybrids and EVs, and gives Cox Automotive muscle in terms of diagnosing EV battery health and managing the lifecycle of those EV batteries.

Roughly 18 months ago, SNT and Cox Automotive Mobility started building a third-party battery health diagnostic tool, powered by SNT’s “ALFRED” battery decisioning platform, that assesses an EV battery’s condition and value.

The company likened such EV battery health scoring to the work that its sister company Kelley Blue Book has done in the vehicle valuation space.

Parent company Cox Automotive is providing EV health reports as part of condition reports at select Manheim auctions.

Rivian EV automaker Rivian has filed confidential paperwork with the SEC for an IPO.

Rivian is seeking a valuation of roughly $80 billion dollars, and eyeing an IPO around Thanksgiving. A valuation of $80 billion would make Rivian worth more than Ford Motor Company and General Motors.

The company was founded in 2009 and has raised $10.5 billion dollars since 2019 amid increased interest in electric vehicles.

Rivian received an order for 100,000 delivery vans from Amazon, some of which are making deliveries in the US already.

Upstream Security Upstream Security, the leader in automotive cybersecurity and data analytics for connected vehicles, has closed a $62 million dollar series C funding, led by Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance, and joined by new investors I.D.I. Insurance, 57 Stars’ NextGen Mobility Fund, and La Maison Partners. Upstream’s existing investors include Glilot Capital Partners, Salesforce Ventures, Volvo Group Venture Capital, Nationwide, Delek US Holdings, and others.

Upstream provides a cloud-based cybersecurity and data analytics platform which taps the mounts of data stored in connected vehicles and combines it with purpose-built artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies to empower its customers to improve business results by offering advanced security capabilities as well as data analytics actionable insights.

HAAS Alert HAAS Alert, a SaaS company that provides real-time automotive collision prevention for public safety and roadway fleets, has raised $5 million in seed funding that it will use to scale sales and outreach efforts and prioritize R&D with vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure technology partnerships.

The round was led by R^2 and Blu Ventures and joined by TechNexus Venture Collaborative, Stacked Capital, Urban Us, Techstars, Ride Ventures and The Gramercy Fund.

Gatik Gatik has raised $85 million in a Series B round led by new investor Koch Disruptive Technologies, the venture arm of Koch Industries. Existing investors Innovation Endeavors, Wittington Ventures, FM Capital, Dynamo Ventures, Trucks Venture Capital, Intact Ventures and others.

Gatik has raised $114.5 million to date.

In the two years since Gatik AI came out of stealth, the autonomous vehicle startup has launched pilots with Walmart and Canadian retail giant Loblaw Companies in its bid to prove that self-driving technology combined with box trucks is the secret economic sauce for hauling goods short distances.

TRADE X Vehicle trading platform TRADE X said Monday it has completed a financing round announced in late July, bringing in additional equity funding of $10 million dollars.

Leading the additional equity funding are new investors that include EchoVC Partners, Frontier Ventures and Upgrowth.

TRADE X provides a global, B2B vehicle marketplace designed to take care of the complexities of cross-border transactions for buyers and sellers, and said it will use the capital for acquisitions and to expand throughout North America, Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

Foretellix Foretellix has raised $32 million dollars in its Series B funding round. MoreTech Ventures led the funding round, though the amount was undisclosed. Other investors included Volvo Group and Nationwide Insurance, 83NORTH, Jump Capital, OurCrowd and Next Gear Ventures.

Foretellix, founded in 2017, has received approximately $50 million in investments to date.

Foretellix’s simulation platform allows customers to replicate driving scenarios with thousands of variations that would otherwise be impossible or laborious to collect.

Ideanomics Ideanomics, a fintech and electric mobility firm based in New York, has added to its list of acquisitions commercial electric vehicle manufacturer VIA Motors — in an all-stock deal valued at $450 million dollars.

Ideanomics has been aggressively purchasing mobility businesses this year, as it seeks to build out vertically integrated offerings for fleet operators and transit authorities transitioning to electric vehicles.

The acquisition of Via Motors is by far the largest in Ideanomics’ history. Via designs and manufacturers electric vans and trucks for short- and middle-mile delivery, using a modular, “skateboard” style architecture across three vehicle models.

ZEEKR In international news this week, GEELY’s premium electric car brand ZEEKR has raised a total of $500 million dollars from Intel Capital, CATL, bilibili Group, the Cathay Fortune Group and Boyu Capital.

Zeekr was founded in March and plans to launch one new model in each of the next five years. The electric cars will be built on the Sustainable Experience Architecture electric platform unveiled in September 2020. Initially, Geely is targeting the Chinese market with Zeekr, but later the electric cars could also be exported – as the company wants to “serve the growing global demand for premium electric vehicles”.

Xiaomi Technology Xiaomi Technology has acquired Chinese autonomous driving startup DeepMotion.ai for $77 million dollars.

With the move, Xiaomi is poised to become a competitor to other autonomous driving and electric car companies, including Tesla and Waymo in the U.S. and Baidu in China.

The news follows Xiaomi’s announcement in March that it will invest $10 billion dollars over the next 10 years into its upcoming electric vehicle business.

In July, Xiaomi overtook Apple to become the number two smartphone vendor globally.

Companies to Watch Every week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry Intel Report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, our companies to watch are Recurrent and Moment Energy.

Recurrent First up this week is Recurrent.

By providing more transparency and confidence in pre-owned electric car transactions, Recurrent accelerates the overall adoption of electric vehicles. Which will be key to reducing the 20% of U.S. carbon emissions that are currently produced by light-duty combustion engine vehicles.

As I mentioned earlier, there is a lot of uncertainty about the condition of the battery for used EVs, and Cox Automotive just made an acquisition in this area.

Recurrent is positioned to help buyers of used EVs have confidence in the remaining life of the car’s battery. This is going to become more and more important as used EVs become more prevalent, and newer EVs come out with better battery technology.

Moment Energy Our second company to watch this week is Moment Energy.

Moment Energy recycles used EV batteries at end-of-life to create sustainable energy storage systems to increase energy reliability in off-grid areas.

With supply relationships with OEMs including Nissan, the solution is created using second life electric vehicle (EV) batteries to provide a reliable, environmentally friendly, and price-competitive offering.

When it comes time to scrap an electric vehicle at end-of-life, we will need to figure out what to do with the battery. Moment Energy is working on a solution to reclaim used EV batteries and repurpose them.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

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People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of the Friday 5? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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After being ousted from his family’s store surrounding the 2008 recession, car dealer John Allen was determined to come back to the building that bore his family name. With his incredible story of determination and doubling store sales and profits along the way, it’s easy to see why he was named to Automotive News’ 40 under 40 list. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome John Allen, General Manager at Allen of Monroe.

Allen begins the conversation by discussing his journey into the automotive industry. He says, he doesn’t like talking about it because it was a rough time. It was a family dealership, but in a FedEx envelope, it was told to Allen, that everything they ever worked for was gone. This happened during the 2008 recession. One of their franchises closed and Allen and his brother were forced to run the store. They had to take on a partner and sold the majority share.

After being fired, Allen says he got some words of advice, which were, if you want to do this, fall in love with the business again. But after starting, Allen realized the problem wasn’t selling cars but about him and taking accountability. He went from selling six cars a month to being second on the leader board. In three years, Allen went from selling cars to the general manager of two dealerships.

The pandemic impacted many in the auto industry last year. Allen says, he had to lay off all his employees and that was one of the hardest days of his life. He says, afterward, they needed to find a solution to the situation. They worked with friends of the dealership and state representatives, to create an online selling process, to do everything digitally. After presenting a plan to their state senators, they were the example to show how dealerships can operate and sell cars safely. He says they are always investing in themselves.

Allen ends the conversation by discussing what’s next for him and Allen of Monroe dealership. He says they are excited. The question he asks his team is, what are we going to do to double sales? He says they don’t rely on people who are unreliable. They’ve put together a game plan and realize, this is the time to execute. When things change, they want to make sure they are ahead of the curve.

Did you enjoy this podcast with John Allen? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Kain and Co., host David Kain, president of Kain Automotive, is joined by Bill Taylor, General Motors retiree and founder of Vehicle Nanny to discuss his love for the automotive industry.

Taylor spent 32 years with General Motors, and held a variety of roles in sales, marketing, and service. After retiring from his tenure at GM, Taylor then joined the vendor ranks and created successful digital marketing ventures. Today, Taylor is focused on his platform, Vehicle Nanny, which supports automotive youth programs and any activity that promotes the car hobby.

Recently, Taylor participated in the Woodward Dream Cruise, which he said, was a great celebration for classic and collectible cars. The Woodward Dream Cruise began in 1995, and has grown exponentially over the years. The event was supposed to be only one day, however, festivities continued for a week. Taylor says he spent about two hours in the sun, watching cars go up and down the strip. He says, he had a great time.

As part of his commitment to the industry, Taylor has created an automotive history course for students at Northwood University and Midland County high school students. He doesn’t remember exactly how he got started but felt strongly that there needed to be a course to provide good foundational automotive knowledge. He says, he just hit on key topics that have shaped the industry. Every time there was an obstacle, he showed how resilient the automotive industry was and how the companies got around those obstacles and evolved. He says it has been a rewarding experience.

Upon his retirement, Taylor wanted to open up a small warehouse to help store classic cars in Michigan. In the Winter, for about six months of the year, owners are unable to drive these cars up north. He came up with the title ‘Vehicle Nanny’ to illustrate the care that these vehicles need. Additionally, Taylor decided to start up a blog, inspired by the many car events he attends. He wants to make sure the car hobby stays alive. Vehicle Nanny focuses on youth automotive programs as well. Taylor says, he’s probably busier than he was before retirement but he’s doing exactly what he loves to do, and the subject matter means a lot to him.

If you would like to support Taylor’s initiative, click here.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, is joined by Nick Miller, Pre-Owned Vehicle Manager at Moberly Motors.

Miller is a fourth-generation dealer whose family has been in the car business for nearly 80 years. He says while today’s retail climate during COVID-19 is nothing like the 2008 recession, there are some eerie similarities between the two events. When Miller walked back into the dealership in 2007, he says he saw about three or four really good months. Then, the economy took an unbelievable turn, and Miller was worried that he would lose everything. However, his showrooms managed to pull through and recover.

Today, Moberly Motors operates two showrooms; the Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram and a new Ford facility which house the service department as well. Together, the showrooms sell between 100 to 140 cars every month. Miller adds that it is roughly a 60/40 split, Ford to CDJR. Right now, Moberly Motors has 16 new units on the ground overall but got as low as four units in weeks prior. However, deliveries have become more frequent, and they are flying out the doors to customers. For used vehicles, Moberly typically runs 40-50 used units in stock, and 50-55 in sales each month.

In order to adjust to this lower supply, Miller says the dealerships flipped all of their advertising to a vehicle acquisition strategy only. He says, he received some pushback from his marketing partners, but ultimately moved forward with the messaging. It has been more successful than Miller could have ever imagined.

While Miller admits that his service lane is not as strong as it could be, the dealerships are buying lots of cars and acquiring lots of trade-ins. Miller says he handles 90% of those leads himself, and he’s not picky when it comes to vehicles. Moberly operates in a wide market as well, and they do not have direct competition from disruptors like Carvana.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Used Cars Weekly? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Auto Marketing Now, host Brian Pasch, founder of PCG Companies, demonstrates the benefits of using Google Analytics to inspect your marketing partners and he shares new research on a project called AutoWeb, which was once misunderstood by dealers but now is understood as high-quality traffic.

For years on Auto Marketing Now, we’ve discussed Google Analytics as part of the DNA of any dealership that wants to understand if their digital marketing is working. Someone in the dealership should have the desire to inspect marketing outcomes and traffic quality of the campaigns to help you sell more cars and services in the digital age.

Pasch says, AutoWeb leverages third-party marketplaces and other partners to double opt-in and drive traffic to their client’s websites. The websites themselves generate leads but they have a special platform and process to get an engaged shopper to visit a local dealer’s website.

Pasch says it doesn’t matter what website platform you use. But he says, he wouldn’t select a website platform that would not record into Google Analytics and the actions that shoppers take. It seems that there is a continued lack of understanding of how important Google Analytics is. Dealers spend thousands on Google ads, yet they don’t have the right goals set up to optimize the bidding. Pasch says, we have to rethink what we’re telling Google to optimize and inspect what consumers are doing on your websites.

Engagement is one element of the inspection of traffic. Conversion is another aspect of the engagement. The challenge is dealer’s websites aren’t set up properly to measure those qualities. Dealers have to remember, consumers, go to third-party marketplaces for shopping for vehicles, not for service. Since there are no standards for engagement measurement on dealership’s websites, third-party marketplaces have always got the short end of the stick. Pasch says until you set an equal playing field, products like AutoWeb have a hard time of showing their value.

The second reason why the study was groundbreaking is that traffic from third-party marketplaces is far more engaged than Google SEM. Pasch says, dealers are more focused on quantity, not quality. Products that require engagement tracking and goals to be set up properly get disadvantaged when people are selling quantity over quality. When you do like quality, Pasch says wouldn’t you want to be investing money in sources that generate the highest quality and highest engagement shopper traffic? You need to inspect the outcome of those marketing visits. Don’t count conversions.

For more information on the Google SEM report, click here.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Auto Marketing Now? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome one of Automotive News’ 40 under 40 honorees Jon Blakely, Operations Director of Coyle Chevrolet-Buick-GMC and Coyle Nissan. Blakely opens up the conversations, by telling viewers about his journey into the automotive industry. He joined the industry in 2010, right after college. He then started working in sales and worked his way up. The rest is history.

Blakely says, COVID-19 really opened their eyes to the way they do business and interact with their customers at Coyle Automotive Group. One of the things they ask is, are you transparent? They found that transparency meant putting customers in control. They didn’t test-drive vehicles but they did have zoom calls, virtual walkarounds, and allowed their customers to submit their own financing applications. They still use those practices today and have gotten great responses from their customers.

Training across the automotive industry puts everyone on the standby program, says Blakely. One of the changes they made, since COVID-19, is going to a four day work week. Blakely says, they learn that employees didn’t need compensation but more time with their families and flexible work schedule. Blakley believes attitudes need to change across the board. He also says you need to understand where people are coming from and spend time with them upfront, in order to train them appropriately.

Blakely says, when it comes to hiring more minorities, it starts with a conversation. He says, the biggest thing is the resources and opening everyone’s eyes to understand that opportunities are there. He believes the industry is doing a great job opening up those pathways and doors. Blakely says, let’s get rid of the negative connotation that surrounds the industry, and show the potential it has.

Blakely wraps up the conversation by offering advice for newcomers in the industry. He says stay consistent. Always be a student, always be learning, and continue to be humble.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Jon Blakely? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes is joined by an award-winning business coach, speaker, and trainer, and someone who Lopes refers to as the king of comebacks, Daniel Gomez. When one door closes another opens. From tragedy comes opportunity. Your mess is your message. We’ve all heard these quotes but Lopes gets straight to the point by asking, are they actually true or just nice enough to make us feel better about reoccurrences in our life?

Gomez says, of course, you can make a comeback from something of your past. He says these things make us strong. These setbacks aren’t tombstones, just stepping stones. After Gomez’s wife was diagnosed with breast cancer, almost 4 years ago, she says, she wasn’t going to play the victim. She didn’t ask, why me but why not me, and what can I learn from this? The choices that we make, defines whether we grow through them or play the victim mentality.

Gomez says we’re taught to ‘play the victim’ and have a negative mentality. That’s when people start attracting the wrong attention. He says our responsibility as leaders of the organization is when to pamper, guide, and show employees, tough love.

Most people quit the automotive industry because of the way they think and they refuse to grow. Just because they have that fixed mindset, keeps them stuck, says Gomez. He believes you need coaching with sales training. You can be the best salesperson, but if your heart or mind isn’t in it, you’re not going to do it. Gomez believes it’s vital to the organization these days to train effectively.

A few ways managers can relieve stress through the day is simple, says Gomez. Leave the dealership and take your lunch. Sometimes, Gomez would bring his lunch and go to the gym and walk for 20 minutes. You have to disengage for lunch, someway, somehow.

The number one thing salespeople need today is, affirmation, says Gomez. He says a lot of dealerships, haven’t learned how to deal with the next generation. He says they don’t have a role model to look up to. It’s time for men and women to rise up, be leaders, and set a good example for the next generation, that’s coming into the auto industry.

For more information, click here, or text ‘Confident’ to 26786.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Straight to the Point? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date or catch-up on all of our podcasts on demand.

While you’re here, don’t forget to subscribe to our email newsletter for all the latest auto industry news from CBT News.

On the latest episode of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes is joined by an award-winning business coach, speaker, and trainer, and someone who Lopes refers to as the king of comebacks, Daniel Gomez. When one door closes another opens. From tragedy comes opportunity. Your mess is your message. We’ve all heard these quotes but Lopes gets straight to the point by asking, are they actually true or just nice enough to make us feel better about reoccurrences in our life?

Gomez says, of course, you can make a comeback from something of your past. He says these things make us strong. These setbacks aren’t tombstones, just stepping stones. After Gomez’s wife was diagnosed with breast cancer, almost 4 years ago, she says, she wasn’t going to play the victim. She didn’t ask, why me but why not me, and what can I learn from this? The choices that we make, defines whether we grow through them or play the victim mentality.

Gomez says we’re taught to ‘play the victim’ and have a negative mentality. That’s when people start attracting the wrong attention. He says our responsibility as leaders of the organization is when to pamper, guide, and show employees, tough love.

Most people quit the automotive industry because of the way they think and they refuse to grow. Just because they have that fixed mindset, keeps them stuck, says Gomez. He believes you need coaching with sales training. You can be the best salesperson, but if your heart or mind isn’t in it, you’re not going to do it. Gomez believes it’s vital to the organization these days to train effectively.

A few ways managers can relieve stress through the day is simple, says Gomez. Leave the dealership and take your lunch. Sometimes, Gomez would bring his lunch and go to the gym and walk for 20 minutes. You have to disengage for lunch, someway, somehow.

The number one thing salespeople need today is, affirmation, says Gomez. He says a lot of dealerships, haven’t learned how to deal with the next generation. He says they don’t have a role model to look up to. It’s time for men and women to rise up, be leaders, and set a good example for the next generation, that’s coming into the auto industry.

For more information, click here, or text ‘Confident’ to 26786.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Straight to the Point? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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The key revelation from BPE’s report is that for years car dealers have been feeding their phone calls back into Google as a way to optimize Google spend. According to the report, about 90% of all dollars spent on Google, are funded through the new and used car departments. Managers then expect Google to increase business for those departments. However, less than 15% of all the Google phone calls were for sales. The remaining 85% of calls were for parts and service.

Related: How to analyze the effectiveness of your car dealership’s Google Ads campaigns If you’re feeding phone calls into Google’s vast bidding engine, now is the time to measure its effectiveness and find out what all the phone calls are about. Using this data, BPE is aiming to help dealers make slight changes to improve the quality of these phone calls. Ad campaigns that are optimized for phone calls, are not going to see a return from increased spend.

The onus is on retailers to tell Google what is a signal for a quality sales phone call, and to feed those calls back into the platform. Additionally, auto marketers need to layer in shopping actions as well. So,—how can car dealers accomplish this?

Half of the service budget should party fund Google strategy.
Stop optimizing phone calls for specific campaigns designed to sell cars.
Using first-party data, and clean up marketing and data partnerships.

This is the first time Pasch is making specific recommendations that are different to the automotive marketing playbook that has been somewhat standardized.

These findings regarding Google SEM are sure to be a hot topic at this year’s Automotive Analytics & Attributions Summit. This year, the Summit will be held in Palm Beach, Florida this November 14-16. As a new feature, the day prior to the AAAS will be the CXO Summit, a new conference for C-suite executives of dealer groups with 10 stores or more. CXO will gather to discuss dealer group issues, like roll-up metrics, KPIs, digital retailing across a group, and used car inventory strategies. To learn more, click here.

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New and used vehicle prices continue to climb to record high levels. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Jessica Caldwell, Edmunds’ Executive Director of Industry Insights, to give us her take on how it may impact the overall market.

The average transaction price of a new vehicle was close to $42,500 last month. Caldwell says, what is happening now, is there is no discounting and incentives are vanishing. The scarcity is also making people pay more because they know that other buyers may want to purchase the vehicle. As a result, the prices keep climbing.

When it comes to affordability, Caldwell says, people are not able to afford these new vehicles because these price increases are going into the used market, which has kept those prices high as well. She says, for the past two years, the industry has been in a transition phase. Perhaps, we’ll see smaller more affordable options just not in the subcompact car.

Discounting is very minimal and low-interest rates are providing the only financial relief. The new vehicle average interest rate was about 4.5% last month. Caldwell says cars are something you don’t expect to pay MSRP for. She also says, now people are willing to shop for new or used vehicles because it’s not as if, the new vehicles have all the incentives and great finance offers. It’s an equal playing field.

Due to high transaction prices, down payments, and monthly payments at record levels for consumers financing vehicles. Caldwell says, with new consumers, you have to be financially secure at this point in time, in order to go down the road of a $35,000 and up vehicle or loan. The economy is a bit different than what we anticipated this time last year says, Caldwell.

Lack of new vehicle inventory is causing this spike in prices and new vehicle inventory is about a third of where it normally is and reports around the country are saying vehicles are being sold as soon as they are delivered to dealerships. Some consumers have reported being sold vehicles that have not yet been assigned VINs. Caldwell says, the microchip shortage is extremely fluid and can change daily. She says, anyone who is out here making predictions, you have to take them with a grain of salt.

The SAAR came in at 14.7 million in July but demand is probably in the 17 million range. In fact, April was the last month of decent inventory and SAAR was 18.5 million. For August, Caldwell says, it’s a good problem to have. Demand is so much higher than where supply is. She says at this point in August, you would have end-of-summer events and Labor Day deals, but this year, you may not have the inventory to go with these deals.

Caldwell ends the conversation on what automakers are doing well amongst the many issues the industry is facing. She says the South Korean automakers have done well and not suffering as much from the chip crisis. Hyundai, Kia, and Mazda have also marched through this as well.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

We kick off today’s show with big news today in the wholesale and remarketing space.

CARWAVE ADESA parent KAR Global has reached a deal to acquire CARWAVE for $450 million dollars.

The California-based dealer-to-dealer online wholesale marketplace was founded in 2009, and its network of dealer customers includes stores in Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon and Texas. The platform allows dealers to take trade-ins and aged frontline inventory and quickly wholesale them, while also sourcing vehicles to purchase.

Co-founders John Lauer and Bill Lauer will stay on with the company, which will continue operating its Escondido, Calif., headquarters.

The purchase is expected to close by the end of the year.

In September of last year, KAR Global announced the acquisition of BackLot Cars for $425 million dollars. More recently, in May of this year, KAR announced the acquisition of Auction Frontier, who provides the industry with auction simulcast solution Velocicast.

With ACV’s recent acquisition of MAX Digital, and XLerate Group’s acquisition of Liquid Motors, it’s an exciting time for M&A in the wholesale remarketing arena.

RepairSmith RepairSmith, launched in 2019, wants to make the process of fixing your car a little smoother through its mobile auto repair service that sends a mechanic right to the driver’s home.

The startup is already in seven states and now, with a new round of $42 million dollars in funding, is looking to grow its operations to encompass every major metropolitan area in the U.S. by the end of 2022.

RepairSmith lets customers book an appointment online and have a mechanic perform an inspection or repair from their driveway, a far cry from the conventional auto repair process.

RepairSmith was incepted at Mercedes-Benz AG’s incubator program, and the company’s first few funding rounds were furnished solely by the automaker.

Now that RepairSmith has a solid footing in multiple metros, with the data to show it’s an attractive business, the company decided to bring in new investors TI Capital, Porsche Ventures and Spring Mountain Capital to the latest Series B, in addition to Mercedes.

Koop Technologies Koop Technologies, an insurance technology startup specializing in autonomous vehicle and robotics risks, raised $2.5M in seed funding.

The round was led by Ubiquity Ventures, along with Bee Partners, Sure Ventures, WestWave Capital, and a number of strategic angel investors. In conjunction with the funding, Sunil Nagaraj, Founding Partner at Ubiquity Ventures, will be joining Koop’s board.

The company intends to use the funds to bring its data-driven insurance platform to more customers in the autonomous vehicle and robotics industries.

Koop is an insurance platform designed for autonomous vehicles, robotics, and machine-centric risks. The company securely collects data from autonomous vehicle and robotics companies and uses it for insurance underwriting, cost of risk, and claims handling purposes in a scalable manner. To date, Koop has partnered with some of the largest insurance companies, with clients in more than 10 different industries.

High Definition Vehicle Insurance More insurance news this week as High Definition Vehicle Insurance (or HDVI) has $32.5 million in new venture funding. The round was led by Weatherford Capital, with new investors Daimler Trucks North America and MCVestOnline.com, and continued participation from Munich Re Ventures, 8VC, Autotech Ventures and Qualcomm Ventures.

HDVI provides fleets with the data, tools and coverage needed to reduce insurance costs, increase safety, mitigate risk and improve efficiency.

HDVI is expanding its product portfolio with the addition of HDVI Shift, the dynamically priced trucking insurance coverage that allows fleets to save up to 12% on their monthly premium based on real-time driver safety. HDVI Shift is compatible with a wide range of telematics devices and is provided to fleets alongside HDVI’s proprietary data, software tools and apps.

DigiSure And for our third insurance deal this year, DigiSure, a digital insurance company that caters to modern mobility form factors like peer-to-peer marketplaces, is officially coming out of stealth to announce a $13.1 million dollar pre-Series A funding round.

Since its founding in 2018, DigiSure has built a business around using AI and machine learning to manage big data in real time in order to provide a nuanced risk assessment and more fairly priced liability insurance for individuals renting vehicles. DigiSure has a total of 12 clients, including motorcycle rental company EagleRider, EV rental company Envoy and truck rental company Fetch.

DigiSure says it goes beyond credit and driving history to give users a more personalized quote, and in the process helps operators lower their own insurance costs.

Ample Ample, a San Francisco-based developer of swappable electric vehicle batteries, has raised $160 million in a new funding round.

The company has developed a battery for EVs and an automated process for quickly swapping out depleted batteries for newly charged packs.

The Series C round brings to $230 million dollars the total raised by the seven-year-old startup.

Long charging times that are common at most public and commercial charging stations have dampened consumer and fleet demand for electric vehicles.

Ample says their process can replace a depleted battery with a fully charged one in less than 10 minutes, using an automated process that “works with any electric vehicle” at a cost “as cheap as gasoline.”

Ample’s financial backers include corporate investors Shell and Repsol as well as energy providers such as Japan’s ENEOS and Thailand’s PTT Group.

Swvl In international news this week, Swvl, a Dubai-based transit and mobility company, will be expanding into Europe and Latin America after it acquired a controlling interest in Shotl – which provides On-demand Shuttles.

Shotl, which is in 22 cities across 10 countries, matches passengers with shuttles and vans heading in that same direction. The company partners with governments and municipalities to provide mobility solutions for populations that are underserved by traditional mass transit options.

QCraft Chinese autonomous driving startup QCraft closed the series A+ financing round with $100 million raised. The latest funding was led by YunFeng Capital and Genesis Capital, and also attracted such financing institutes as Longzhu Capital, the venture capital arm of Chinese online-to-offline giant Meituan, and IDG Capital, one of Qcraft’s existing investors.

Since the foundation in 2019, QCraft has made headways in building a “Super Factory” for autonomous driving. It has formed an automation close-loop focusing to simulation technologies to efficiently utilize enormous volume of data. In addition, leveraging its full-stack technical capability, the company has launched the self-driving solution “Driven-by-QCraft” dedicated to handling complex urban transport scenarios and available for diverse car models. To commercialize its self-driving technologies, the company has deployed minibuses in nearly 10 cities to provide mobility services for tens of thousands residents.

Companies to Watch Every week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry Intel Report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, our companies to watch are iService Auto and Autozen

iService Auto First up this week is iService Auto.

iService Auto is a customer engagement company for car dealers that provides software to bridge the gap between car owners and automotive dealerships through trust, transparency, and effective communication.

iService Auto stands behind the value they deliver, by offering dealers a 20% increase in gross profit guaranteed, or they offer a full refund.

If you’re looking for innovative tools to help drive more profit in your fixed operations and service drive, it would be worthwhile to check out iService Auto.

Autozen Our second company to watch this week is Autozen.

Autozen’s tagline is that they are “Where selling your car is easy, fast, and fair.”

Autozen has created the most comfortable way to sell your car. Get the benefits of shopping your car around to hundreds of buyers, without leaving your home.

Autozen is a technology and service company headquartered in Vancouver, BC, Canada. It manages a digital marketplace, created to remove frictions, frustrations and safety concerns associated with conventional private used car sales. Autozen sources quality consumer cars, solving a major supply issue for car buyers. Autozen has a large network of car buyers on its platform, who will compete to buy the seller’s car so the consumers can get the best price. No haggling, no unfair sales strategies, and no stress.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

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People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

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Last time we spoke to Brian Maas, President of the California New Car Dealers Association (CNCDA), he expressed his concerns about Volvo’s plans to move its EV sales online. On today’s show, we take a closer look at current dealer sentiment in California and what the CNCDA has on its agenda for the remainder of 2021.

There are many companies in the auto retail space that are interested in pursuing a direct sales model. In California, as long as a retailer does not have franchised dealers, they can sell direct to consumers online. Tesla, for example, has been operating in California for many years and its business structure allows the EV maker to bypass some franchised dealers laws in the state. The CNCADA’s concern is to make sure that everyone operating as a dealer has a level playing field, and that state law compliance is consistent across the board.

There are also concerns regarding the spread of COVID variants especially in southern California, however dealerships remain open. There are indoor masking requirements in several jurisdictions like L.A. County and Sacramento County. As long as both dealers and consumers comply with these mandates, Maas is confident that they can continue to do business.

Like a majority of car dealers across the country, California dealers are having trouble sourcing new and used vehicle inventory.

Maas adds, “There’s just not enough product to meet the demand consumers have. Of course, that affects prices, features, and other things. We’re hoping the chip shortage resolves itself in the next several months and we get a little more close to an equilibrium.”

In fact, CNCDA economists predict that 100,000 to 150,000 fewer vehicles will be sold this year in California as a direct result of the chip shortage.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, is joined by George Nenni, founder of Generations Digital to discuss marketing used cars.

Nenni started in the car business in 1993. Two of his older brothers founded a startup called, Dealer Specialties and he joined the business as their first employee. They sold the business to Trader Publishing, which later became Dominion Dealer Solutions. In 2017, he decided to get back into dealerships, and began consulting and helping car dealers be better consumers of digital marketing.

With increased demand and low supply, there are a lot of challenges to marketing used cars. Nenni says, when it comes to used cars, you have to be competitive. In terms of marketing used cars, dealers have to figure out the most optimal way to strategize internally or participate with third parties. The key is not to get dragged down by inefficient marketing tactics.

One of Nenni’s tips is to look at the new shopping session percentage. This percentage can be very telling in terms of answering the question— which of my third parties is sending the most traffic?

The other two big categories dealers need to focus on are paid search and paid social, primarily on Facebook. Paid search is every dealer’s least efficient channel. Nenni says it’s tough to know the intent of what a person is searching versus the keyword on buying. For keywords, look at the search query. Google Analytics can look at the search query and the paid keyword you’re buying, so you’re able to see the disconnect.

In mid-September, bulk uploading to Facebook marketplace listings will go away for car dealers. Dealers will still be able to upload one at a time. Nenni says the big play on Facebook is doing catalog ads. He believes traffic ads are still better than Facebook ads.

Nenni thinks Google is positioning itself for a new ad product. He says you’re not going to get a lot of click activity, in terms of driving traffic to your website. But if you’re a dealer, be prepared for future ad offerings you may want to try. If you want to excel in the used car side, it’s having the right categories and driving reviews that mention used cars.

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Welcome to another episode of Founder Focus with Steve Greenfield, founder of Automotive Ventures. This CBT original series dives into the inside stories behind some of the most impressive entrepreneurial journeys. In this segment, Greenfield sits down with the Co-founders of Fluency, Inc., a digital advertising automation platform for automotive professionals. CEO Mike Lane and President Eric Mayhew are also Co-founders of the incredibly successful Dealer.com, which was acquired by Dealertrack and later, Cox Automotive.

Automation in advertising is not a new concept, however, Lane says Fluency focuses on the enterprise space of helping large businesses with large portfolios manage their digital advertising. He adds that everyone wants to advertise for cheaper, but advertising is only getting more complex.

“We focus on simplifying the things that can be simplified, says Lane. “Automating the things that can be automated and streamlining the process so that people can actually focus on what they should be doing, which is the strategy work, not the task work.”

In the early days of Dealer.com, Lane says there wasn’t a lot of business mentorship available in the tech space. The Co-founders took the advice of a fellow entrepreneur to set near impossible standards for growth on an annual basis. Lane says pushing hard to meet those standards gave the company the drive to work tenaciously.

Mayhew adds the important lesson he took away from his time at Dealer.com was that value delivery can happen in a much shorter timetable. That kind of perspective on minutes, hours, days, and weeks is crucial for entrepreneurs.

He explains, “You can’t lose sight of the big picture, but you need to be able to measure in those shorter units and deliver value in those shorter units.”

To learn more about Fluency, be sure to watch the complete episode above and visit www.fluency.inc.

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On the latest episode of Auto Marketing Now, host Brian Pasch, founder of PCG Companies, is joined by the President and CEO of Market Scan, Rusty West. In this segment, Pasch and West share insights into the Market Scan platform and the data that passes through its systems every day.

West says, recently Marker Scan analyzed what the rebate stats have looked like over the past 18 months. Initially, there were some mild to moderate fluctuations, however, over the past five or six months, rebate stats have largely gone down. The only exception was eco-vehicles, which has seen big upticks in the rebate. Consumers are paying a lot more for the same car than they were 18 months ago. There are lending institutions that are highly aggressive on particular vehicles. West says the difference is the opportunity in payments just shifted up considerably.

Market Scan is a partner for OEMs, lenders, and car dealers nationwide. They offer tools accessible on smartphones that allow sales teams to view scientifically proven transactional numbers, based on the terms and conditions that the car dealer wants to run their business on. This includes how a specific dealer interprets taxes, fees, and disclosures. West adds that their mDrive product is very new. It gives the salesperson the ability to address the needs of the consumer from a different lens, and it calculates about 300 million payments a day, on average.

When inventory breaks out, West predicts there will be an all-time record buying spree from consumers. He says with consumers having to stay home for the past 18 months, they’re sitting on disposable savings and demand is pent up in the anticipation of new cars. He predicts that consumers will buy much more expensive vehicles.

Pasch says, there’s been a shift to be more data-centric in automotive retail. At the dealer level, West says, they should be focused on “getting it right.” Everything that’s presented to a consumer for every step of their journey to the store needs to be accurate and consistent. It also should reflect the terms and conditions in the way they do business. Make sure the digital retailing companies have the ability to quote consumer payments, their way. He says that’s going to be the saving grace for a lot of stores.

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The 2021 market has been hot, but how long will it stay that way? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Erin Kerrigan, Founder and Managing Director of Kerrigan Advisors.

Kerrigan begins the conversation by discussing the buy/sell market. Just when you think it can’t get any better, it continues to surprise us all, says Kerrigan. It’s been an unbelievable first half and if we continue at this pace, we’ll hit another record year with 315 or more transactions. A normal year was between 150 to 200. This is remarkably high. The key is getting the deals done and pricing that works for the buyer and the seller.

Kerrigan believes the biggest driver of all the activity is everyone is ‘drunk’ on profits. The industry is the cash flow in auto retail. She says this has been proven once again that auto dealerships aren’t going anywhere and that they are a great investment. The buyer pool has such a high level of cash availability.

The earnings of this year are a driver of increased valuation. Year-to-date, the average dealer is approaching $2 million of earnings. On average, from 2014 to 2019, the average dealer earns $700,000. Kerrigan says most buyers are saying they are going to give some credit to 2021, but also look to pre-pandemic earnings, and somewhere in the middle is the likely long-term earnings level. Ultimately, these higher earnings are leading to higher valuations.

Kerrigan says there’s no question the biggest driver in their view of the increase in sellers coming to market, is the tax risk associated with a new administration and a new tax policy.

Kerrigan ends the conversation by stating her predictions for the market. Kerrigan says it’s hard to predict what will happen in 2022. She believes, what we’re dealing with currently, concerning the chip shortage and inventory limitations will continue on into 2022. She also says, she doesn’t see demand declining anytime soon for cars. She’s expecting the industry to be strong throughout 2022 and maybe beyond.

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On the latest episode of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes is joined by Joe Chura, CEO of Dealer Inspire. Chura went from working the assembly line to becoming the CEO of one of the largest companies in the automotive industry. Lopes gets straight to the point by asking, can anyone take themselves from humble beginnings to a leader in their industry?

Chura grew up in Chicago, right by the Ford Chicago assembly, and at the age of 19, he found out he was going to be a father. The one thing he knew, is that he needed a job. At 20 years old, with the help of family and friends, Chura started working at the assembly plant. He says the only way he was going to achieve his career goals, was to go to college. Chura says the secret to his success was multitasking.

Chura says anyone can become the best, but he adds that you have to ask yourself, how much do you want it? There’s nothing you can get in life without sacrifice in another area of your life. He says in his case, it was health, and being present with his kids and family. It was also a collage of knowledge. He says, anyone has the opportunity, but it’s what you make time for. He says you have to become active. It’s important to make progress towards something on a daily basis, but think about how active you were, not how busy you were.

Nothing great is easy. Chura says it’s about having a goal and multitasking towards that goal. He says you can learn so much, just through observations. If you want to invoke change on other people, Chura says, the best thing you can do is lead by example and be a leader.

Chura says so much of your performance is your mindset. You must remember you’re not almost there. You got to keep going at it on a daily basis, no matter what it is.

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On today’s show, we continue the conversation on digital retailing best practices and how the auto industry can elevate online transaction services. We’re pleased to welcome back Aaron Bickart, Executive Vice President and General Manager of OfferLogix.

Most car dealers believe that digital retailing is the future of the auto retail industry and Bickart agrees with that sentiment. He says that companies like Amazon, which started growing in popularity around 10 years ago, have now set the standard for online shopping. It’s difficult to imagine life without Amazon today because so many consumers rely on it. Car dealers are now in their infancy stages of digital retailing, and the tools and processes will only grow as time goes on. Digital retailing, however, is not only for sales. Bickart points out that it is also crucial to the service drive.

Bickart works with hundreds of car dealers, vendors, and OEM representatives and he says that, collectively, these groups are missing out on digital retailing opportunities because of the following elements:

Payments: OfferLogix specializes in online transactions and there are only a handful of companies that can actually perform a transactional payment. Typically, companies build their own payment calculations, but they can only provide estimates and quotes which creates a disconnect between the consumer.
Customer experience: Dealer calculation systems often don’t take into account different tier levels, multiple trade-in values, or incentives. The auto industry is complex and car dealers need to provide consumers with the greatest customer experience possible. Eliminate friction and confusion with transparent and accurate information.
Speed and Convenience: Another Amazon feature that car dealers should take note of is the ‘1-click’ ordering function. It’s important to move the consumer through a quick, dynamic, and convenient car-buying journey.

Imagine for a moment if Amazon did not provide accurate prices down to the cent. You might be hard-pressed to find a consumer willing to make a purchase on an estimate alone. In fact, Bickart often visits SRP or VDP pages in the industry and finds that the advertised payment for a vehicle does not match the actual payment that is calculated further on in the buying process. This is a critical misstep that consumers don’t often understand. Their confidence and trust decrease when presented with conflicting information from retailers.

Making these changes to the digital retailing process will allow car dealers to compete with disruptors like Carvana and Vroom, at higher levels. While OfferLogix does not work directly with car dealers, they assist vendors with their unique, patented API that uses data from lenders, OEMs, trade-ins, FICO scores, and compliance regulations to come up with the most accurate payment plans for any given vehicle. While it might take 25 to 30 calls to bring all of this information together, with OfferLogix, it takes only one.

To learn more about OfferLogix, visit offerlogix.com.

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The North Carolina DMV has banned Carvana from selling vehicles in Wake County, where their Raleigh dealership is located. for 180 days. So what does this suspension mean for the state? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Robert Glaser, President of the North Carolina Automobile Dealers Association.

Glaser begins the conversation talking through the violation. The North Carolina DMV issued a judgment against Carvana in Wake County for 3 alleged violations. The first violation says Carvana sold a car before it had been inspected. The second violation is Carvana put a temporary tag from another state on the car. The third allegation is Carvana did not provide the title to the consumer.

Glaser says the real important lesson from this is it’s a wake-up call for all dealers. All dealers have to be mindful of the consumer. In North Carolina, they believe the best transaction is consumer-centric, is done by the local dealer, and is 100% open and transparent. Glaser says it’s okay to deliver the vehicle to the consumer’s home but the paperwork must be completed in the dealership.

Carvana has multiple locations in the state of North Carolina. From an operational point of view, they can operate out of another location within the state. Glaser says, the operational impact is not as significant as it is a learning opportunity for all dealers.

As far as the pandemic and chip shortage is concerned, Glaser says, dealers are doing pretty well. Inventory is a major concern but dealers are finding ways to make it work. Covid has been a concern, but Glaser says the other issue they are having is a shortage of employees. It’s tough to find employees who want to come to work in a dealership. When you combine those issues, it’s going to make Q4 of 2021 a challenging year in North Carolina, says Glaser.

Glaser says, the next order of business on his to-do list, is they are going to approve a steering committee to help with the rollout of EVs. They’re working to get ahead of the curve and to make sure they can maximize the experience from a consumer point of view. Glaser says there are three issues that could accelerate the demand for EVs. Those are the price of gas, a battery breakthrough, and a federal mandate. He says, he hopes the consumer demand equals the automotive supply, we’re going to see in a few years.

Glaser wraps up the conversation by discussing his outlook on digital retailing. He believes it’s absolutely the future of the industry. He thinks the consumer wants to do as much as they can online before they show up at the dealership. Glaser doesn’t believe they will get to a 100% digital transaction, but as close as possible.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Robert Glaser? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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What is the difference between influence and impact and how can you use this to enhance your career? On today’s show we’re pleased to welcome back Bill Berman, Executive Coach, Founder of Berman Leadership Development, and Author of “Influence and Impact: Discover and Excel at What Your Organization Needs From You The Most” to continue the conversation on influence in organizations.

Berman begins the conversation by discussing the feedback he’s been receiving since, the release of his book, back in June. He says he’s been getting a lot of positive feedback. Berman says, the best feedback he has gotten was from two business school professors, who say, they’re recommending it to their students.

Berman says there’s always a balance between what people call ‘being themselves’ and ‘adapting to the culture’ that you’re in. There’s no difference in a company. If you don’t make the shifts you need to make, you’re not going to be successful. Berman says, and that’s not really about who you are, it’s about how you behave.

When it comes to the changes they are making, Berman says, he wants to make sure people are heard, understood, and that they feel seen and recognized. He says it’s critical because that hasn’t always been the case. There’s a difference between discriminating among people, about who can make decisions and who cannot. When a person feels like there are being discriminated against, there are a number of steps they can take to figure out what their options are.

One of Berman’s colleagues, Dr. Greg Pennington, wrote a chapter specifically on diversity and inclusion in the workplace, as it relates to influence and impact. He has over 50 years of experience. Berman believes you have to listen to what people are telling you and you have to pay attention to, how you make people feel. Rather than what you think you’re doing.

Berman ends the conversation by sharing what you can do if you discover you’re not in the right job. He says you need to first deal with the feelings and recognize you’re not in the right place. Then shift gears and think about where you can find a job that fits your strengths and values. A lot of people have more ability to change and shift gears than they think, says Berman.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Bill Berman? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Haig Partners has new, recently released data on the profits from the largest public automotive retailers. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Alan Haig, President and Founder of Haig Partners to discuss this data and how the ongoing chip shortage is affecting retail automotive.

Haig begins the conversation by giving an update on the M&A activity of the first half of the year. He says M&A seems to track the profitability of new-vehicle dealerships. The public companies have been releasing their second-quarter earnings and the results are astounding. The average gross profits for front-end gross are being reported at $3,756 per copy. That number is up 46% from the 2020 average, and 75% from the 2019 average.

Used vehicle profits are also astounding says, Haig. In the second quarter of 2021, used front-end average gross profits hit $2,355 per car. That is up 34% from 2020 and 58% from 2019. F&I numbers also look good. Public companies average $1,920 per copy, in Q2 of 2021. That is up 10% from 2020 and 17% from 2019.

When it comes to the chip shortage, Haig believes, it’s going to be with us through the end of the year. He thinks the domestic brands, Stellantis, General Motors, and Ford have been the worst hit. They’ve shifted their production towards their most lucrative vehicles, so their profits are fantastic. Haig says most dealers are assuming that margins are going to remain elevated, at least for the next six months.

There is a lot of demand for Toyota. Haig says that’s possibly one of the brands they get called on the most. He does say that Kia and Hyundai have elevated themselves in the last few months. The vehicle quality, the styling of the SUVs is leading to a big lift in profits for those dealers. They’re also seeing a different type of customer come into the showroom.

For luxury brands, there is also a lot of demand, says Haig. Those businesses are also producing record-high profits. They have a great pipeline of products coming in, with more customer loyalty in the mass-market brands. Haig says, what’s fun for them right now is, almost every franchise is doing well. He says we’ll see what the consumer demand is for electrification but all brands are focused on bringing products for that type of vehicle.

Haig does believe dealers are learning new skills, in the pandemic. Some of them have reduced their cost-based, with fewer units to sell. Maybe now, they are getting better at taking orders from consumers, which results in a higher profit for units. Haig doesn’t believe dealers are going to spend as much money advertising vehicles as they have in the past. Possibly, stocking fewer vehicles they have in the past. He’s optimistic that the profits at franchised dealerships are going to be averaging out higher, post-pandemic than they were pre-pandemic by a pretty good margin.

Haig wraps up the conversation by discussing the growth in markets. He says, there are certain markets of the country many people want to grow in. He believes Florida and Texas are at the top of the list because of no income tax, high growth in population, and high profits per store. Some states are more desirable than others, but Haig says, they are seeing good M&A activity in just about every state, right now.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Alan Haig? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Independent dealers across the country are gathering in San Antonio, Texas, next week for the 75th annual NIADA Convention and Expo. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Bob Voltmann, CEO of NIADA and Lou Tedeschi, President of NIADA to discuss the conference and expo happening taking place August 23 through August 26.

Voltmann begins the conversation by saying, “It’s time for Americans to get back together and get back to business. We’re going to be doing it safely. We have all the protocols in place…dealers are ready to get back together and interact and learn from one another.”

In addition to networking options, the NIADA has created a robust agenda full of learning opportunities designed by car dealers, for car dealers. There will be over 60 speakers doing break-out sessions, as well as micro-break-out sessions that are 20 minutes long and will focus on single topics from digital retailing, to marketing, to the service drive. Keynote speakers include NFL Hall of Famer Michael Irvin and Chris Collins, author of the best-selling books, “Gamification Playing For Profits”, “The Irreplaceable Service Manager” and, “Millionaire Service Advisor.”

Tedeschi adds, “More ideas, more ways to make money, new profit centers. Anything that can help our dealers. That’s what we’re trying to be all about.”

Are you interested in attending this year’s NIADA Convention and Expo? Find out how to register here.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Bob Voltmann and Lou Tedeschi? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

We kick off today’s show with some news hot off the press. So without further ado, I would like to introduce David Steinberg from automotive tech company, Foureyes. Foureyes has raised $10 million in its latest funding round, and as part of today’s episode, Steinberg discusses how they raised that capital, and what it will go towards.

Thanks for making time to join the show today and share this outstanding news. Congratulations to you and the teams at AdPearance and FourEyes!

So, let’s dig into the AutoTech deals of the past week.

Hagerty First up, a brand that anyone who is a collector car enthusiast will know and love, as specialty automotive insurer Hagerty plans to go public on the New York Stock Exchange via merger with a special-purpose acquisition company.

Hagerty, which focuses its insurance offerings on the “global automotive enthusiast market,” plans to merge with SPAC Aldel Financial. The deal values Hagerty at $3.13 billion dollars and includes $704 million dollars in PIPE financing from investors State Farm and Markel.

The deal, set to close in the fourth quarter, will leave the Hagerty family with 52 percent control of the new publicly-traded company.

FIX4 Capital FIX4 Capital, a company founded in early 2020 to provide affordable and flexible car repair loans, has raised $7.2 million in its first round seed funding to help propel its growth plans.

The round included the participation of venture capital firm Tactico, Keira Capital Partners and angel investors.

Since launching its app and quick loan service earlier this year, FIX4 Capital has helped hundreds of drivers get back on the road through its promise of quick access to money for car repair and maintenance. In the process, the company has helped service centers reduce the potential for lost revenues even and especially in the throes of COVID-19.

Privacy4Cars Privacy4Cars announced a Series A investment round led by FM Capital, with additional investment by Automotive Ventures.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Privacy4Cars is a tech company that aims to identify and resolve data privacy issues in the auto industry.

Privacy4Cars plans on using the funding for growing its service and platform, supporting its research and IP, recruiting talent and both international and domestic growth.

DealerPeak CRM DealerPeak CRM, a company that builds customer-relations management software for car dealerships, recently raised $3 million from investors.

DealerPeak makes customer-relations management (CRM) software for used car dealerships to nurture sales leads, track marketing efforts, monitor inventory and assist with the auto financing process.

The funding round was led by Geweke Auto Group, with additional participation from Tim Crown, one of the founders of Insight Enterprises in Tempe, Jim Prendergast, co-founder of HealthiestYou, and Zach Ferres, board member and co-founder of Coplex in Phoenix.

iLendingDIRECT iLendingDIRECT announced that it has raised an additional $35 million dollars through a transaction led by First Eagle Alternative Credit. This new capital follows iLending’s announcement in May that J.C. Flowers & Co. LLC had taken a majority stake in the company.

The platform from iLending is available in all 50 states, and can handle the entire process, including finding the best rates, paying off the previous finance company and re-titling the vehicle.

Executives from iLending said its platform can save consumers an average of $144 dollars a month on their payments through direct relationships with credit unions and other financing institutions that ensure consumers have access to the best available rates.

CHAMPtitles CHAMPtitles, a technology company that is changing the way that vehicle titles are created, managed, and transferred in the United States, has closed an $8.5 million dollar Series A investment. The round was led by Eos Venture Partners and W. R. Berkley Corporation, and it brings the company’s combined funding to over $17.5 million dollars.

Champ Titles was launched in 2018 and can reduce the amount of time it takes to create, manage, or transfer a vehicle title to just one day.

The money raised will be used to accelerate the distribution of its breakthrough technology across multiple vehicle title ecosystem verticals and a broader geographic footprint.

HopSkipDrive HopSkipDrive, a rideshare platform for kids, is betting that demand for its rideshare service will increase as parents send their kids back to school. To help fund that growth and expand into 30 new markets over the next year and a half, HopSkipRide raised $25 million dollars in a Series C.

The new cash injection, which came from Energy Impact Partners, Keyframe Capital, FirstMark Capital and 1776 Ventures, will be used to invest in electrification initiatives that will spur the company’s goal of helping its CareDrivers transition to electric vehicles affordably via partnerships with OEMs.

Innovusion Innovusion, a global leader in the design and development of image-grade LiDAR technology, has successfully raised $66 million dollars in Series B-Plus financing.

The round was led by Guotai Junan International Private Equity Fund (GTJAI) with participation from Shunwei Capital. Existing investors NIO Capital, F-Prime Capital, Eight Roads Ventures, and Temasek also participated in the round.

Having been recognized for efficient, safe, and cost-effective LiDAR solutions, Innovusion will use the new infusion of capital to increase the production capabilities of its automotive-grade LiDARs, expand their global footprint, and further broaden its research and development efforts to promote the widespread adoption of LiDAR technology across autonomous vehicles, smart infrastructure, and high-speed rail transit systems.

ChargePoint & ViriCiti U.S. electric vehicle charging company ChargePoint has acquired ViriCiti, a provider of electrification solutions for eBus and commercial fleets, for about 75 million euros (or $87.9 million dollars) to expand its operations into Europe.

Amsterdam-based ViriCiti is ChargePoint’s second acquisition in the European market, and comes less than a month after it agreed to acquire the operating software firm has·to·be gmbh.

With EV sales getting a boost, companies like ChargePoint are investing more to expand their footholds into new markets.

Kovi In International news this week, Brazil-based Kovi has raised $104 million in a Series B round of funding co-led by Valor Capital Group and Prosus Ventures. Quona Capital, GFC, Monashees, UVC Investimentos, Pipo, Norte Ventures and Globo Ventures also participated in the financing.

The round takes Kovi’s total equity raised since inception to about $145 million dollars. The company also recently closed on a $20 million dollar debt facility. It is not yet a unicorn, according to execs, who declined to reveal valuation.

Kovi rents vehicles to on-demand drivers who work for ride-hailing companies such as Uber, Didi and Lyft. It then expanded from on-demand drivers to food delivery workers.

Waycare Technologies Israeli startup Waycare Technologies has been acquired for $61 million dollars by Rekor Systems.

Founded in 2016, Waycare has developed a solution that uses artificial intelligence to aggregate and process data from various sources to help government agencies with crash prediction, congestion detection, as well as incident management and identification.

Waycare collates data from transportation agencies’ existing infrastructure, which is then synthesized with additional data from mobile apps, connected vehicles, weather analysis and event management systems. AI algorithms ingest and process this information to produce actionable insights and predictions.

Canada Drives Canada Drives, Canada’s largest 100% online car shopping and to-your-door delivery platform, announced the close of $100M in funding, led by Honor Ventures with participation from KAR Global and other strategic investors. The investment will be used to further expand Canada Drives service across Canada to new markets.

Founded in 2010, Canada Drives has been the largest online automotive finance company in the country, helping over 1M Canadians finance and purchase cars in the past decade. In May 2021, Canada Drives expanded its retail model from British Columbia to Ontario, allowing customers to purchase certified used vehicles online and have them delivered as soon as the same-day.

Companies to Watch Every week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry Intel Report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, our companies to watch are Dixon Technologies & Quotible

Dixon Technologies Dixon Technologies is an automotive software company that helps dealers grow and retain their customer base.

They have three products:

Status+ is a Service CRM Tool.
Recon+ decreases your time to market and points out any bottlenecks by measuring your process through every step.
Acquisition+ allows dealers to connect with private sellers with the fastest moving vehicles through an automated texting campaign.

If you’re looking for innovative tools in any of these three areas, it would be worthwhile to check out Dixon Technologies!

Quotible Quotible is a dealer founded interactive lead response and communication platform. They help dealers maximize every single opportunity and differentiate from the competition by delivering highly engaging interactive personalized quotes via text and email.

Dealers using Quotible deliver a first response that drives engagement, differentiates the dealership, and most importantly, helps increase contacts, appointments, and closing percentages.

If you’re looking to engage customers, book appointments & sell more cars, you might think about checking out Quotible.

With Quotible’s automated lead response & communication software, you are able to deliver a great first impression and maximize sales opportunities—every time.

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So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

——————-

People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of the Friday 5? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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The retail automotive industry changes rapidly so what are BDC departments doing to keep up? On today’s show we’re pleased to welcome Matt Raymond, Director of Digital Operations at Team Automotive Group to discuss his role and streamlining operations.

Raymond begins the conversation by discussing his journey into the automotive industry. He says it’s been 11 years since he told his wife, he would just ‘sell some cars’ until he could find something else. About three years ago, he was reached out by Kristin Dillard to come work for Team Automotive Group, with a goal to grow to the company with 10 stores in 10 years.

Team Automotive Group centralized BDC Operations in 2019, before the pandemic. In 2020, Raymond says they didn’t change business practices, such as adjusting budgets. They took their call center off-site, ramped up their sales and service BDC departments, almost doubling their staff. Raymond says they increase year-over-year. Last month, they had over 3,000 opportunities that came in. On the service side, they were responsible for setting 7,000 appointments last quarter for them, says Raymond. He says, 2020 has allowed them to continue to grow and think outside the box and prepare.

Raymond says they are blessed to have five dealerships in North Carolina, all falling under General Motors. For their used car inventory, they’re able to share the vehicles. On the new car side, they focus on customer experience and transferring the vehicle to the store for their customers.

In Raymond’s perspective, he thinks you’re going to see gross profits stay where they are. He also believes manufacturers are going to throttle back on the amount of inventory they’re pumping out, to help keep margins up. Raymond says automotive is the only thing people negotiate anymore. Inventory may come back but not at the level, we’re used to seeing it.

Raymond ends the discussion by talking about the goals he has for himself and Team Automotive Group. He says, he really wants to grow their digital department. He wants to see their BDC team develop into 40 to 50 women. Raymond wants to change the face of automotive and show people there is a path to success.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Matt Raymond? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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IAM Mechanics Local 701 union members from the Chicago area are now in their third week of a strike after rejecting a proposal for a new contract. Here to discuss the ongoing negotiations is the President of the Chicago Automobile Trade Association, David Sloan.

In terms of reaching a resolution, Sloan says not much has changed. The CATA’s New Car Dealer Committee (NCDC) has submitted another proposal and they are waiting for the union members to get back to them. There are a number of issues that need to be resolved. Sloans says it’s unfortunate because they had worked with the union for the last six months, to get a warranty reimbursement bill passed in the state of Illinois, which is favorable for the auto mechanics.

Four years ago, they had a seven-week strike and there were seven car dealers who went off and made a deal with the union, which was not legal. Because of that, the union left the majority of their auto mechanics on the street, holding picket signs, while other technicians went back to work. Sloan says this is very much the situation now.

Car dealers understand it’s not about short-term thinking but long-term says, Sloan. They want to make a deal that’s best for them and their auto mechanics. Issues include a most-favored-nations clause, as well as health and welfare fund. The union health and welfare fund has 32 months of reserve, which is more than the standard 16 months. Sloan adds, that the striking mechanics want increased contributions to the health and welfare fund, which Sloan says, doesn’t make any sense to him, since the proposal calls for increased wages.

Sloan wraps up the conversation by discussing where things stand. Sloan says, car dealers are willing to take the hit now, so they don’t have to pay for it again in four years by accepting a deal that someone else negotiated. The majority of car dealers in the Chicago area are non-union, and just over 100 are unionized.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, is joined by Chris Saraceno, Vice President and Partner at Kelly Automotive Group and frequent CBT contributor.

Chris Saraceno starting selling right out of college in 1984. He joined Kelly Automotive Group in 1989 and was promoted to General Manager two years later. From there, he became the Vice President, and in 2008, when the company separated, he became a partner of nine stores. Saraceno is also the author of the Amazon best-seller, The Theory of 5. The book has sold over 10,000 copies and it is inspired by the idea that every person is an average of the five people they spend the most time with.

Saraceno has opened 14 stores thus far in his career, so Rice asks about the most common problems he’s encountered. He says the most common problem has to do with training the people. Employees are the most precious commodities, and he says, “When you get the right people around you, all of the sudden life becomes easier.”

Saraceno adds that of course, inventory has become a challenged, but typically, it comes down to whether or not you have the right people in the right roles.

When it comes to used car inventory management, Rice asks hows Kelly Automotive Group is currently maintaining its inventory. Saraceno says first, they make sure they have a strict 60-day turn. At the end of 60 days, his managers have the option to buy that vehicle at market value before it goes to wholesale auction. While it is not a mandate, they strongly encourage it. Saraceno says that Kelly Automotive has always been strong in used car sales. Annually, they average 1.5 used car sales to 1 new car sale.

Kelly Automotive also has a strict policy regarding reconditioning. They have a maximum of 72 hours from when the trade comes in, to get it back on the lot. They also make sure that every store has used car technician specialists. They share detailed notes of every single 150-point inspection with customers, including repair orders.

While it took some time for the staff at their latest store to buy-in to the changes, the dealership has broken all of its previous sales records in the last four months of purchase from Kelly Automotive. Another one of their dealerships broke its annual gross profit record in just one month. Saraceno says that these are unique times and he knows other dealers having the same results.

While used cars do move internally from dealership to dealership, either Saraceno or one of the Kellys is involved in it. However, the clock doesn’t start over for the car at the new dealership. They continue to bind it to their 60-day policy. In order to track these metrics and monitor them, Saraceno says he’s a big fan of vAuto.

Saraceno and Rice end the conversation by discussing dealership culture and training. He says, “We do believe iron sharpens iron.” When you have one store doing well, you need to share the why behind it and best practices with your other stores so they can gain that knowledge too.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Used Cars Weekly? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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The Theory of 5

In light of new coronavirus concerns and the increase in Delta variant cases, the New York Auto Show has once again been canceled and rescheduled for a later date. Should car dealers be concerned that COVID restrictions are back on the rise? Joining us on the show, to discuss the cancellation is Mark Schienberg, President of the Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association (GNYADA).

Schienberg begins the conversation by discussing the decision to cancel the show. Schienberg says they started to see an increase in cases and situations concerning COVID that were going in the wrong direction. The health and safety of the public is their top concern, which is why the association decided to make the call and cancel the show. Schienberg says he is comfortable about the decision and feels that it was the right one to make.

New York City recently became the first U.S. city to require proof of vaccination for a variety of activities, including indoor dining, gyms, and performances. The auto show, which was estimated to occupy a million feet of the Javits Center, the state had a protocol that if you have anything more than 5,000 people in an indoor facility at the same time, people would have to be fully vaccinated, so it became impossible to manage. The auto show has a $300 million economic impact on the local area.

One of the biggest issues Schienberg says, they’ve been working on for the past few years, is automotive brokerage. In New York there’s allowance to have independent auto brokers, selling and leasing cars. It has created an issue, where there are more auto brokers than franchised new car dealers.

When it comes to EVs, Schienberg says, we are at a point where we see the adoption of electrification of cars is here and the technology is available. One of the things, Schienberg says they did at the auto show, 8 years ago was they had the electric ride and drive with consumers. Before this year’s show was canceled, they dedicated almost a quarter of a million square feet to ride and drives. The public is wanting to learn more about the technology. Scheinberg does think this is an exciting time for the auto industry, where electrification is what we’re going to see in people’s driveways.

Schienberg ends the conversation on how things stand currently in New York. He says things are getting better, but what they’re missing in New York is tourism. New York was a $61 billion tourism industry before COVID-19 and that’s going to take a while to get back. He says, it’s going in the right direction but they have a ways to go.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Mark Schienberg? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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On the latest episode of Auto Marketing Now, host Brian Pasch discusses the groundbreaking research on Google SEM for the automotive industry. Car dealers have been using Google ads for over 20 years. There’s been a massive increase year over year in how car dealers are investing to advertise their dealership online.

Pasch says this research is to challenge the thinking of the industry at the OEM level, agency level, and the dealer level to say, what is the best way to look at the effectiveness of Google ads to help car dealers sell more cars in a digital age?

The reason why this research is so important is because car dealers today are wanting to know if their Google ads are really working. One of the issues they faced, was just getting consumers to spend more just for the sake of spending more. The second issue that has been difficult to understand is why Google ads may not be as effective as car dealers think. It began when we’ve forgotten how much of a local business, car dealers are. They do not transact online or have huge service departments. When local advertisements campaigns run a lease offer or new truck sales ad, people are bypassing the ads to see if their vehicle is ready for pickup from the service department. Pasch says it was time to dig into the measurement and outcomes of Google ads in the report.

67% of all conversions from Google ads campaigns were done through the phone. 28% were using lead forms. 5% were through text or chat sessions. According to data, over 1 million Google SEM calls were listened to and determine on the intent of that call and less than 13% of the phone calls were representing a consumer who wanted to buy a new or used vehicle. You can’t force consumers to convert but you should be measuring how many of those hard conversions you get each month from your advertising. For consumers who didn’t convert, figure out how engaged were they.

Over 50% of the phone calls, generated by SEM campaigns are for fixed ops. Pasch mentioned dealers said, the cost to generate a sales opportunity in Google is much more expensive than they ever thought. Their cost per sales opportunity is often between $100 to $300, 5 to 10 times, more expensive than car dealers think it is. Pasch says it’s time to take a step back and ask yourself, what are the outcomes of your Google advertising to help you run campaigns better?

Pasch recommends you change the way, you optimize your Google advertisement campaigns to focus on getting more engaged shoppers. Have goals for configuring deals in the digital retailing tool. The second recommendation is budgets have to be realigned. Lastly, as a mandatory commitment to being efficient in your retail operations, you need a call management program.

For more information on the Google SEM report, click here.

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On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome back Bloomberg Intelligence’s Senior Automotive Analyst, Kevin Tynan. Tynan begins the conversation by sharing his thoughts on Q2 earnings. He says the past quarter revealed more bad consensus than really good performance. The second quarter of 2020 was plagued by uncertainty amidst COVID shutdowns. So, while many auto retailers are seeing massive increases in revenue and earnings, stocks are acting more to the beat of the consensus.

Tynan believes the industry is at a point where something has got to give. He adds that the industry is to a point where pricing is super firm. July numbers, in terms of MSRP, revealed that discounts fell below 1%, well under the average 6% that has been the previous standard. Analysts start wondering, considering supply issues, where consumers will start to push back on pricing.

Furthermore, car dealerships are now recognizing they don’t need four or five months of supply. Tynan says car dealers would be better off taking a conservative approach to inventory based on their particular level of output. Additionally, this realignment of the industry, including costs and supplies, is having a greater impact than any period of bankruptcy. However, car dealerships now have the opportunity to diversify their revenue base even more. Retailers have the ability to become healthier because business is much more well-rounded, which doesn’t push the pressure back on the automakers to say, we need more vehicles. For now, it appears like a win-win situation.

Tynan ends the conversation by discussing the balance of the year. He says the last two months in terms of the SAAR, were a little concerning. Currently, Tynan says that he is still predicting supply issues, and decreased consumer demand. We’ll see what the end of August reveals.

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Online vehicle retailer Carvana continues to grow at a rapid pace and doubled its first-quarter revenue in 2021. While some dealers have underestimated the company’s influence, our next guest has not. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Brian Benstock, Partner GM and Vice President of Paragon Honda and Paragon Acura, to discuss the modern retailing practices dealers need to pay attention to.

Benstock dives right into the conversation by discussing the ‘profit coma’ that many car dealers find themselves in. He says the ‘nauseous greed’ hasn’t stopped trying to take their gardens, alluding to online vehicle retailer Carvana, which quietly announced record profits. Like Amazon, Benstock thinks Carvana initially reported losses early on which were not necessarily true losses, just reinvestments back into their business models. He adds that many car dealers are just now taking notice. Inventory dictates search options. He says, If Carvana organically controls search options they have all of our inventory, then it will impossible for dealers to compete. He says, it’s a concern for him, and should be for other dealers.

In order to compete directly with Carvana, Paragon now aims to dominate Honda and Acura search in their market. Car dealers have to ask- how can we position ourselves to be the provider of our cars in our neighborhood? Outsourcing business to someone else always has consequences, says Benstock.

The good news is that if you’re digitally savvy and if you stay up-to-date, this is your game to win or lose. This is the time for car dealers to withstand everything that may come their way. The key message Benstock wants to leaves dealers with is to remain informed and keep an eye out on what’s happening.

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As reported by the Chicago Tribune, more than 800 union auto mechanics are still on strike after failed negotiations of a new four-year labor contract. The strike has shut down vehicle service work at 56 new car dealerships in the Chicago metro area. Joining us on the show today to discuss where negotiations stand from the union’s perspective is Ronnie Gonzalez, Business Representative for IAM Mechanic Local 701.

Gonzalez begins the conversation by describing how the negotiations began. After the union’s previous collective bargaining agreement expired on July 31, the Local 701 and the New Car Dealer Committee (NCDC), a branch of the Chicago Automobile Trade Association (CATA), failed to renew an agreement, resulting in the current strike.

Gonzalez says that one of the biggest issues is language. The NCDC’s proposal has applied most-favored-nations language that, from the union’s perspective, undermines the collective bargaining process. This clause is a provision that would give the NCDC authority to pursue other automotive contracts if they find terms more beneficial to them.

Gonzalez states, “We believe that each company, negotiation, and agreement has their own set of circumstances and shouldn’t be relevant to any other agreement.”

Currently, there are no union members inside, performing any service at any of the affected car dealerships as of August 2. While Gonzalez admits that he doesn’t know how long this process with go on, hopefully, the Local 701 can get back to the table and fix the issues that are before them.

Gonzalez thinks the membership spoke loud and clear with their 97% rejection of the NCDC’s proposal. He adds that minor tweaks to the agreement will not get anyone far in the bargaining process. The next step is getting back to the table with the other side and fixing the issues. Gonzalez is confident that the union has made it clear what its expectations are. The three outstanding issues included the most-favored-nations clause, the failure to properly fund health insurance, and the ability for management to reduce an auto mechanic’s base wage for overtime hours.

Gonzalez ends the conversation by discussing the need for auto mechanic recruiting. They aim to bring in young employees through an apprenticeship program. However, the training channels need funding. This is the only trade where employees have to be a master of multiple trades, to do just one.

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On the latest episode of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes is joined by Roger Love, world-renowned voice coach, speaker, and author. Lopes gets straight to the point by asking Love– Can your voice be a tool to close more sales?

Yes, Love says, and here’s why. When we communicate, people think that it’s a word-based system, but when we speak, the amygdala in our brain figures out what’s emotional and what’s not. The amygdala doesn’t think words are emotional. When customers are purchasing a car, the brain makes them believe there aren’t any emotions coming from you, and they don’t believe you. However, when the sound goes to the amygdala that is emotional, the amygdala then passes it on to the prefrontal cortex of the brain. The part of the brain that can decide how they feel about it. Love says salespeople have to learn how to make the sounds that are attached to the words if they want to move customers emotionally.

Love adds that a great communicator needs to be able to do three things:

They have to open up their mouths and within seconds control the perceptions of the other people.
They need to be able to move people emotionally.
Lastly, good communicators have to be able to predetermine the outcome of the conversation.

This process is called mirroring. Salespeople have to, within seconds, make the customer feel connected. There are certain sounds that already have emotions attached to them like ascending scale, which means going upward in your voice. As well as a descending scale, which means going downward in your voice. You have to create a melody, which is one of the elements for sound, that shows people you are happy. Salesmen believe they are getting paid by the word, and they hardly take any space after the commas to be silent. Love says, you have to speak and get to a comma fast and then there has to be a pause so the customer can decide how they feel about your words.

Love says that everybody was born with an instrument and we have to learn how to play that instrument. Love has a simple system to show people how to make more captivating and emotional sounds. Then, Love recommends creating a voice that works for their life. The number one thing that makes a speaker successful is their ability to convince their listeners, that’s exactly how they wanted to sound.

To learn more about improving your voice, check out the Roger Love Voice of Success event, by visiting rogerlover.com/vos21, and enter promo code FRANK at checkout for $200 off your registration fee.

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This year marks the tenth annual, 40 under 40 list from Automotive News. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome one of their honoree’s Nick Anderson, General Manager of Chuck Anderson Ford, who’s no stranger to the industry and spent many of his early years shadowing his father.

Anderson starts the conversation by talking about how his business is doing today. He says business has been really good, even throughout the pandemic. Their service business is growing, double digits. He believes the pandemic, has leveled the playing field against competitors. It has also shown customers travel for the experience, not necessarily the car. It has benefited them significantly, says Anderson, allowing their market shares to go up tremendously.

One of the key takeaways Anderson has learned from the pandemic is, every day you have to be ready for something new. There are new speedbumps, they are having to figure out how to get over. The focus of keeping our employees safe and happy has led to happier customers, says Anderson.

Anderson thinks you always have room for better people and more people. He also says, they didn’t lay anyone off last year and they are happy with their staffing level, but he also says, he would hire the next best big thing that came through town. From a dealer standpoint, Anderson says, you need to focus on the experience. When people are buying from outlets such as Carvana and Vroom, they aren’t buying because of the best deals or best cars, but because they get an experience out of it.

Until the infrastructure is there within the states to support the sustainability of driving an EV on a daily basis, Anderson doesn’t think the (year) 2040 or 2050 will be accurate. He also thinks even before 2030, we’ll have two more presidential administrations and who knows how far that will get kicked down the road? Everyone wants to do better by climate change, but until a trillion-dollar infrastructure bill is passed, Anderson doesn’t think it’s sustainable.

Anderson ends the conversation by discussing one of the factors that threaten the auto industry. He says over the next few years, manufacturers will be looking at direct consumer purchase options. When it comes to competitions, the argument he says he’ll stick with is, everyone should have to play by the same rules.

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Fixed ops are the focus for many dealers right now as profit continues to increase, but is training being left behind? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Sarah Vantine, Vice President of Business Development Strategy at Quantum5.

Vantine begins the conversation by discussing her transition from Scott Automotive Group to Quantum5. She says Quantum5 has been an opportunity for her to step out of the dealership retail space. She’s excited to bring the training and best practices to more dealers throughout the country.

Training is important for dealerships to continue, especially during times like this. One of the things Vantine says she saw with dealerships is that they weren’t really looking to invest in their people, especially since times are great with them making record profits with sales. One of the things that are really dangerous with a time like this, is that you can wind up in a situation, where you have untrained people looking for additional opportunities outside of your dealership. As dealerships are looking to attract talent and retain employees, they’re going to have to have a way their staff is meeting the customer in the way, their most comfortable doing business.

Vantine says, dealers have to be aware of adjusting their practices and their pay plans accordingly. Over the past few months, parents had to balance school, taking care of their children and other loved ones. It’s not just men and women, it’s both, that are looking and evaluating, ‘where do I go from here?’ and ‘what job is going to best fit the lifestyle I want for my family?’ Because we have so many opportunities available for people, the automotive industry has to get competitive, if they want to maintain the talent level they have and also track new people to the business. Vantine says, you also have to think about it from the customer’s perspective, and adjust processes to meet what people are expecting today.

Burnout is a real thing for everyone, customers included. One of the biggest pain points for buying a car is just how long it takes at the dealership. That is often the same complaint when servicing a customer’s vehicle as well. Vantine says, if you work with the customer to make sure they are aware of every step in the process, they’re more than likely to be happier with the process.

It’s worrisome when it comes to income, says Vantine. A lot of people lost their job or receive a pay cut within the last year, due to COVID and some of those pay cuts haven’t been reinstated even with record profits.

Vantine ends the conversation by talking about the solutions Quantum5 provides to dealers. Vantine says one of the reasons that she joined the company was the omnichannel approach to customers. They partner with the dealerships and they look to elevating your staff, by making sure they have the tools to understand how people do business. For more information visit Quantum5.ai.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

Carvana & Root Next up, Carvana and Root, the leading insurtech carrier, today announced an exclusive partnership to develop integrated auto insurance solutions for Carvana’s online car buying platform.

In connection with the partnership, Carvana will invest approximately $126 million in Root.

Car IQ Car IQ, a payment solution developed specifically for fleet vehicles, raised $15 million dollars in Series B funding.

The round was led by Forté Ventures with participation from new investors Ally Ventures, BlackBerry, State Farm Ventures, and TELUS Ventures and existing investors Alpana Ventures, Avanta Ventures, Citi Ventures, Quest Venture Partners, and Scrum Ventures.

Car IQ provides a contactless payment network that allows connected cars and trucks to pay merchants and service providers without a credit card. With Car IQ, vehicles can pay for a wide variety of services including fueling, tolling, parking, and more without needing to add extra hardware to the vehicle.

Jerry Just months after raising $28 million, Jerry has raised $75 million in a Series C round that values the company at $450 million dollars.

Existing backer Goodwater Capital doubled down on its investment in Jerry, leading the “oversubscribed” round. Bow Capital, Kamerra, Highland Capital Partners and Park West Asset Management also participated in the financing, which brings Jerry’s total raised to $132 million since its 2017 inception.

Jerry, which says it has evolved its model to a mobile-first car ownership “super app,” aims to save its customers time and money on car expenses. The startup launched its car insurance comparison service using artificial intelligence and machine learning in January 2019. It has quietly since amassed nearly 1 million customers across the United States as a licensed insurance broker.

Turo Daimler-backed car-sharing marketplace Turo confidentially filed paperwork with regulators for a U.S. IPO, seeking to take advantage of the country’s red-hot capital markets.

The company’s platform allows car owners in 5,500 cities across the United States, Canada and the U.K. to rent out their vehicles. It has over 450,000 listed cars ranging from pickup trucks and minivans to luxury options such as Lamborghini, Rolls-Royce and Porsche vehicles.

Carputty Carputty has raised $7.2 million in a seed round led by Kickstart Fund, which contributed $3 million. The funding round also included Kinetic Ventures, University Growth Fund, and Aries Capital Partners.

Carputty currently has two solutions, including:

Flexline, which can allow consumers to have one or more vehicles on a single platform, all while having interest rates determined by their unique profile versus what a dealer determines with markup.

And V3 Valuation, which can provide predictive analytics to help consumers obtain the best values for their vehicles, saving money by pinpointing the best time to add or remove a vehicle from their Flexline, using past, present and future values to their benefit.

Voi Technology Micromobility startup Voi Technology has raised $45 million dollars, funds that will be used to research and develop technology that will improve safety, keep users from riding on sidewalks and ensure scooters are properly parked.

The funding comes a month after Voi launched a pilot in the U.K. with Irish startup Luna to test how computer vision technology might be used to solve parking and sidewalk riding issues. The R&D spending will include “pioneering the use of computer vision software to prevent pavement riding”.

Voi, which already has scooters in 70 cities across the U.K. and Europe, is aiming to expand. And technology that solves parking, safety and sidewalk clutter is viewed by Voi as key to winning city partnerships and maintaining the ones it already has.

Fetch Package Fetch Package, a last-mile package delivery company for apartment communities, has raised $50 million dollars in a Series C round of funding and closed on a $10 million dollar venture debt facility.

Ocelot Capital led the Series C round, which also included participation from GreenPoint Partners, Alpaca VC and Rose Park Advisors. Existing backers Iron Gate Capital, Signal Peak Ventures, Venn Ventures, PANDO Ventures and Seamless Capital also put money in the round.

Fetch launched its operations in Dallas in February of 2017 with the goal of solving “the package problem” for apartment communities.

Niron Magnetics Niron Magnetics, the company developing the world’s first high performance permanent magnets free of rare earths, today announced it has raised $21.3 million dollars in new financing. The Volvo Cars Tech Fund and Volta Energy Technologies join existing investors Anzu Partners and the University of Minnesota.

Niron will use the funding to build its pilot production facility in Minnesota and accelerate the development of its Clean Earth Magnet technology.

Niron’s production process is up to 95% less damaging across certain environmental impacts than alternatives, as its input materials require no toxic mining and refining.

Freightify Freight forwarders often keep track of rates on spreadsheets they email to customers, but the pandemic has made that difficult because prices are constantly fluctuating. Freightify, a startup that refers to itself as the “Shopify for maritime freight,” provides white-label rate management and e-booking tools that freight forwarders can use to set up online stores, reducing the time they need to spend on administrative work.

The startup has raised $2.5 million dollars in pre-Series A funding led by Nordic Eye Venture Capital, with participation from Tradeworks.vc, Venture Catalysts, 9Unicorns and Blume Ventures Funders Fund.

Cepton Cepton, a leader in high performance MMT lidar solutions, and Growth Capital, a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company, have entered into a definitive business combination agreement for an aggregate $58.5 million dollar private placement in connection with the business combination.

Cepton has from its inception focused on ADAS, the largest-end market for lidar. Cepton has a shared vision of how lidar could become instrumental in dramatically reducing traffic collisions, in eliminating the human and financial toll of avoidable vehicle and pedestrian accidents, and in enabling safe autonomous driving for passenger vehicles. Cepton has deep lidar and optical technology expertise to deploy state-of-the-art lidar sensors aimed at the automotive market.

Azuga Bridgestone Americas, Sumeru Equity Partners, Danlaw, and other shareholders have reached an agreement for Bridgestone to purchase Azuga, and the Azuga fleet management platform for $391 million dollars.

The acquisition of Azuga will rapidly advance Bridgestone’s comprehensive solutions for small to enterprise-sized fleets, providing real-time vehicle operations insights and data analytics that will improve safety, increase efficiency and enhance customer service experiences. Bridgestone will leverage Azuga’s robust fleet data capture platform to advance the development of Bridgestone core tire products and AI solutions.

Elroy Air Elroy Air has raised a $40 million dollar Series A, including financing from Lockheed Martin’s venture capital arm, to ramp up the building, testing and validation of its inaugural autonomous cargo drone.

The funding round saw participation from MARLINSPIKE CAPITAL and Prosperity7 Ventures, as well as existing investors Catapult Ventures, DiamondStream Partners, Side X Side Management, Shield Capital Partners and Precursor Ventures. This latest round brings Elroy’s total raised to $48 million dollars to date.

Elroy is focused on building “a dual-use system,” fit for both the defense industry and the commercial market. Elroy’s flagship autonomous cargo aircraft, Chaparral, is designed to fly at a 300-mile range, carry 300-500 pounds of cargo and have automated flying and cargo handling capabilities. The idea is to minimize the need for humans not only in the pilot seat, but on the ground, manually loading and unloading payload.

ClearRoad ClearRoad, which uses plug-in devices to charge drivers based on mileage and location rather than fuel, has raised a $2.35 million dollar seed round from investors.

If the U.S. transitions to electric vehicles — as predominant market and political trends suggest it will — then the gas tax is doomed. And yet the country has done little in the way of preparing for an alternative to fund roads.

ClearRoad aims to build up such an alternative.

Octane Lending Octane Lending has raised $52 million dollars in a Series D round that values the company at over $900 million dollars. Progressive Investment, a member of the Progressive Insurance group, led its latest financing, which included participation from existing backers Valar Ventures LLC, Upper90, Contour Venture Partners, Citi Ventures, Third Prime and Parkwood LLC, as well as new investors Gaingels and ALIVE.

Octane Lending, which offers “instant” financing for large recreational purchases, boasts impressive financials in a startup world whose inhabitants are mostly unprofitable. For one, Octane is both net income and operating cash flow positive, and expects to originate more than $1 billion dollars in the next 12 months. It has been doubling revenue annually, and projects that the company will see over $100 million dollars in revenue this year. Its valuation is now more than double what it was at the time of its July 2020 $25 million dollar raise.

John Deere U.S. tractor maker John Deere will acquire agriculture tech startup Bear Flag Robotics for $250 million dollars, with the goal of developing over the next year systems Deere can sell to allow farm tractors to operate without a human driver in the cab.

Over the next 12 months Deere and Bear Flag intend to develop their automated tractor technology for commercial production in higher volume. The company’s technology is designed so it can be installed on an existing tractor.

So far, Bear Flag has focused its development on automating tractors for tilling fields on California farms that aim to plant two or more crops a year. Self-driving tractors that run 24 hours a day can allow farmers to squeeze in extra plantings.

Third Wave Automation Fresh off a strategic partnership with Toyota Motor Corporation to build an autonomous forklift, Third Wave Automation has raised $40 million in a Series B round led by Norwest Venture Partners, including participation from prior investors Innovation Endeavors and Eclipse, along with Toyota Ventures.

The injection of capital came after Third Wave’s partnership with Toyota Industries Corporation, which builds a third of the world’s forklifts. Third Wave and Toyota Industries will develop an autonomous forklift together.

Veoneer Chipmaker Qualcomm has offered to acquire Swedish auto technology supplier Veoneer for $4.6 billion dollars, trumping an earlier bid by Canadian rival Magna International.

Qualcomm hopes to grow its automotive chips business by creating open and competitive platforms for automakers along with Veoneer.

Magna had offered to buy rival Veoneer in July for about $3.8 billion dollars in cash, looking to boost its efforts on building driver assistance tech geared toward autonomous vehicles.

Veoneer makes advanced driver assistance systems that add features ranging from collision warning to parking assist. Veoneer’s systems also collect data from cameras and radar to monitor surroundings, interpret the situation and take action.

MotoRefi MotoRefi announced a $5 million dollar investment from Curql Fund. With the investment, MotoRefi said it has officially become a credit union service organization or CUSO.

Curql Fund I is the only fund of its kind that connects credit unions with innovative fintech companies, with more than 45 of the nation’s largest credit unions participating.

This additional funding comes after MotoRefi announced it had raised $45 million dollars in Series B funding in May, bringing the company’s round total to $50 million dollars.

ViriCiti In international news this week, U.S. electric vehicle charging company ChargePoint has acquired ViriCiti, a provider of electrification solutions for eBus and commercial fleets, for about 75 million euros (or $87.9 million USD) to expand its operations into Europe.

Amsterdam-based ViriCiti is ChargePoint’s second acquisition in the European market, and comes less than a month after it agreed to acquire the operating software firm has·to·be.

Nanotech Energy Fubon Financial Holdings has led an $64 million dollar investment round in U.S. battery maker Nanotech Energy.

Nanotech Energy makes batteries for the fast-growing electric vehicle market, as well as consumer electronics.

Nanotech Energy will use the new Series D funding to build a graphene battery manufacturing facility in Reno, Nevada and open a European headquarters in Amsterdam. The Reno facility, due to open in the second half of 2022, will bring hundreds of jobs to California, Nanotech Energy said. Nanotech Energy also plans to increase capacity in its current Chico, California factory for graphene itself, graphene-based conductive inks, adhesives, shielding and silver nanowires.

BlackBuck India’s trucking system has a big inefficiency problem that continues to drag the economy. BlackBuck, one of the handful of startups that is digitizing the freight and logistics across India, has just attained unicorn status after securing new funds.

Tribe Capital, IFC EMERGING ASIA FUND, and VEF led the $67 million dollar Series E financing round in the six-year-old startup, valuing it at $1.02 billion dollars (up from about $850 million dollars in a 2019 Series D round).

BlackBuck is the 16th Indian startup to become a unicorn this year.

BlackBuck connects businesses with truck owners and freight operators. The startup has developed a simplified app for truck drivers in India, who are typically not very literate, to help them accept work and easily navigate to their destination using Google Maps. On the client side, businesses can fire up a similar app to place orders.

About 700,000 truckers and 1.2 million trucks in India today are connected to the platform, which sees more than 15 million transactions each month.

Inceptio Technology Inceptio Technology, an autonomous driving truck technology and operating company, announced the closing of a $270 million dollar Series B equity financing.

This round of financing was jointly led by JD Logis, DEPPON Express, IDG Capital, CMB International, SDIC Fund Management Co, Mirae Asset Global Investments, Eight Roads, and Broad Vision Fundstics, Meituan, and PAG. also participated in the investment, and the existing shareholders GLP Hidden Hill Capital, NIO Capital and Eastern Bell Capital actively followed.

The successful closing of the Series B will allow Inceptio Technology to accelerate the development of its self-developed full-stack autonomous driving system, and speed up its deployment in electrification.

Udrive Dubai based start-up Udrive, announced that it has closed a $5 million dollar funding round led by regional business leaders and three venture capitalists.

Founded in 2016, Udrive – the app-based pay-per-minute car rental service in the UAE was the first in the region to fractionalize mobility by introducing the rent-by-the-minute idea, which allows customers to pay only for what they use.

Unlike traditional rental services, with Udrive no humans are involved in the rental process which is managed via the app. Over the last four years, the company has empowered over a quarter of a million UAE citizens, residents and visitors to complete over 1.4 million trips, delivering estimated savings of approximately 25 per cent, compared to traditional mobility alternatives.

Companies to Watch Every week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry Intel Report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Claim Genius First up this week is Claim Genius.

Claims Genius is the industry’s full-service AI-based auto claims solution for the global automotive industry.

Claims Genius helps to reduce claim processing time by up to 50%, reduce claim costs by up to 50%, increase claim accuracy and increase customer retention.

AutoFleet

Our second company to watch this week is AutoFleet.

AutoFleet is the leading Vehicle as a Service platform for fleets.

Use AutoFleet to electrify your fleet today.

Design and launch the optimal electrification strategy for your operation, and receive results within days.

AutoFleet allows you to launch on-demand delivery and ride services by leveraging unutilized vehicles.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of the Friday 5? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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At the close of 2020, the number of minority-owned dealerships rose to 1,257, resulting in a net gain of 17 for Nissan. Although the overall numbers are still disproportionately low, Nissan is committed to improving the situation. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome David Kershaw, Division Vice President of Dealer Network Development and Customer Quality for Nissan US and Canada.

Kershaw begins the conversation talking about what Nissan is doing to garner more minority dealers. Kershaw says they’ve been working hard on their current dealer diversity program. It’s a first of its kind for Nissan as a brand. Kershaw says they’ve worked extremely close with NAMAD (National Association of Minority Dealers) and have had a great relationship with them throughout the years. He says it’s all about flexibility because a lot of owners are looking for that as they build their portfolios. From day one, their candidates own the store and they can count on support from Nissan.

As far as Nissan’s goal regarding the number of minority dealers, Kershaw says, they are in a favorable position. He says they don’t necessarily have a set goal in mind for a certain number. Instead, they’re focusing on the best program with the candidates and opportunities for them to be successful.

The biggest challenge for a minority candidate is the substantial financial commitment that it takes, says Kershaw. Nissan’s diversity development program addresses that head-on, and they have financial assistance for incoming candidates. Kershaw says, currently within their brand, they have seen where majority owners have come in and allowed partnership with a minority and then a buyout happens.

Kershaw ends the conversation by sharing his thoughts on when things will be back to normal, regarding the inventory shortage. He says, they’ll continue to work with their suppliers, making sure they are accessing where the impacts are. Nissan has been in the midst of a few product launches. He thinks the semiconductor issue will be with us for a while. Kershaw says he’s excited about the future for Nissan, their new products, and how their dealers are doing.

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2020 was an incredibly active year for M&A activity in retail automotive and the M&A market doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Ron Frey, Strategic Advisor to the Industry with RL Frey and Eric Denlinger, Partner at Portico Capital.

Denlinger begins the conversation, by giving viewers a little background about Portico Captial. Portico Capital as a firm has been around for 22 years. They advise companies on M&A and private equity capital advisory. Within the different sectors, they deliver sass or data solutions to the industries in which they participate in.

With 13 closed auto tech transactions since October, Portico has carved out a leadership position in the sector. They’re a handful of different factors, driving the transaction activity in the auto software sector. Denlinger says it’s been incredibly remarkable to see how the industry bounced back through the challenges of the pandemic. Many of the companies, Portico worked with provide software and data solutions, that help the dealers move things from an offline setting to online, which was a huge driver in their transaction activity.

Frey said, going through Covid, he thinks dealers are now more focused on what they’re looking for in terms of solutions to advance auto retail. It’s helping to drive innovation and solutions are coming together in the platforms, that better serve dealers.

Denlinger recently announced three significant M&A transactions in digital retail software – the sale of Darwin Automotive to JDP, Gubagoo to R&R, and CarStory to Vroom. Frey says he sees the trend where dealers are trying to meet their customers where they want to transact. Oftentimes, that includes wanting to take care of a number of things before the customer comes in. Covid was an accelerator into digital retailing and dealers feeling a need to have a position there. He also says having dealers and customers talk to each other and getting them on an end-to-end platform, is what dealers find attractive and can be efficiencies for both of them.

Denlinger advised CarOffer and TradePending on significant transactions. He says CarOffer really helped dealers be more efficient, by moving vehicles around from a dealer to dealer, in a wholesale setting. The chip shortage has only made sourcing and getting enough inventory to meet the customer’s demand, that much more important.

Denlinger wraps up the conversation by giving advice on what businesses should focus on to maximize their valuation and what investors and acquirers are looking for current M&A activity. He says it’s about growth, and how your company is growing. Secondly, it’s having a customer-centric mindset. Lastly, it’s a need to have a solution.

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The National Automobile Dealers Association is back in Las Vegas, Nevada planning the annual NADA Show which will take place next March 10-13. The live, in-person event will feature an exciting kickoff reception a day ahead of the main show in 2022. Today, we’re pleased to welcome Scott Dube, NADA Show Committee Chairman and President of Bill Dube Hyundai to discuss the reception and what attendees can expect from next year’s show.

The NADA Show in 2022 will kick things off in Allegiant Stadium, a state-of-the-art facility that opened just last year which is home of the Las Vegas Raiders. Dube says he has visited a lot of football stadiums and very few come close to Allegiant Stadium. Attendees will first be greeted by the Drumbots, the official drumline to the NHL Vegas Golden Knights.

Dube adds that depending on the route that guests take, they will be greeted by different clubs, refreshment areas, and be able to go onto the field for more activities. A digital DJ opens for the headliner act, Train, an American rock band known for hits like “Meet Virginia”, “Drops of Jupiter”, and “Hey, Soul Sister.”

While nobody can predict what will happen over the next seven months, Dube says that the NADA Show is expected to be an in-person event next March. If COVID-19 or the Delta variant become an issue, Dube explains that the committees will ensure a responsible and safe show, whatever that looks like. Car dealers, vendors, and OEMs alike are eager to meet face-to-face once again, and over the last 18 months, Dube says, those different groups have learned to rely on each other.

Are you interested in attending the 2022 NADA Show? Registration Opens on September 13th. Learn more by visiting show.nada.org.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, is joined by Stephen Granger, founder and CEO of RecallRabbit. The pair take a deep dive into driving recalls to your dealership’s service lane, appraisals for possible trade-ins, and other used car department recommendations.

As inventory shortages continue to challenge car dealers, now is the time to drive more recall dollars to the service department and increase trade-in appraisals. Granger says that throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, his business has grown substantially. Car dealers today are constantly on the hunt for used inventory. RecallRabbit aims to help dealers find recalls within their DMS, that have high ROIs, and use those opportunities to increase periphery revenue; either by fixing the recall or trading up the customer.

Although used car prices are high at the moment, Granger says car dealers can help alleviate those costs by encouraging service visits when recall issues arise. Additionally, Granger says that RecallRabbit sees on average, 48% of the revenue generated for car dealers, is customer pay. This can be higher or lower depending on the brand, however, Granger says worst-case scenario, dealers are getting 40-45% customer pay over and above the warranty work.

For independent dealers that cannot handle recall work due to OEM constraints, Granger adds that this could be an opportunity for franchised dealers to form some partnerships and make the most of those recall opportunities. Partnerships like this can also help the independent car dealer with their recon costs.

Due to current shortages in parts, Rice asks if that has had any effect on recalls. Granger says that yes, across the board, parts are more difficult to get. However, he hasn’t seen it have a huge impact as long as the car dealer has good processes in place to effectively communicate with customers. If a customer is waiting on a part, this is an opportunity to reengage with the customer in other ways.

The goal here is to create an influx in recalls and service appointments, but car dealers also have to be strategic about their scheduling process, especially with rental car shortages. Granger recommends having a seamless process customizable to the dealer. Be transparent with the customer regarding the service timeline for their vehicle. This comes down to having high-performing service writers and BDC employees.

Rice and Granger end the conversation by discussing how recalls integrate with appraisals and trade-ins. By identifying recalls with high ROIs, dealers can target those customers and prepare their employees to earn opportunities.

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CDK Global has recently released data that hones in on what car dealers can do to win back and keep their service customers. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Kim Saylor, Director of Product Marketing for CDK Global to discuss the findings.

Saylor begins the conversation by telling us more about the survey and who they reached out to. The success of fixed ops is critical to the overall success of the dealership. New-vehicle dealerships did over $111 billion in parts and services in 2020 according to NADA statistics. Saylor says that was only 30% of the overall auto maintenance in business repair. They reached out to 400 service shoppers to determine where they are going for service and why.

Saylor said the responses were telling but not something car dealers can’t overcome. 74% of those surveyed said they would try the car dealership service again in the future. They were able to narrow the reason why consumers go to a third party into three main areas: convenience, price, and trust. 97% of customers said trustworthy service was important to them in their service experience. When it came to price, 77% of the shoppers said, good and consistent prices are important. 64% of shoppers said, that convenience features were important as well.

Specific features that car dealers should be looking into are vehicle pick up and drop off and remote service solutions. Saylor says other features car dealers can look into, is having a single pricing guide through the entire process. CDK Global offers a pricing guide as well as service pricing consulting to help car dealers maintain that pricing. To continue building trust with consumers, Saylor says utilize technician videos.

Saylor ends the conversation on what she recommends car dealers can do, based on what she learned from the data. Car dealers have an opportunity to capitalize on a feature that’s bringing customers to their dealership. Dealers can educate the customers on the knowledge they have. Saylor says, also focus on the relationship with the OEM and the positive impact that would have on the customer.

For more insights from CDK Global, visit www.cdkglobal.com/automotive.

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On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome back David Lewis, President and CEO of David Lewis and Associates, and also the host of CBT’s original series, Straight Talk. He joins us today to discuss the vital importance of management training.

Lewis begins the conversation by discussing who is actually training today’s managers. Lewis says it’s the same people that trained them 35 years ago. It’s the sales manager you just fired. Managers come from our salesforce. Dealers should ask themselves, what management training do you have in place for your management staff?

Training the manager of today is not the way it was 20 years ago, says Lewis. What you should train on, is how to be a leader and how to get people to do what they’re supposed to. You have to put people first, how to work with each person’s emotions, and getting them better at what they do.

Lewis says one of the biggest failure points we have in our industry is recognition. We don’t recognize our people when they do a good job or thank them for a job well done. A good leader when trained properly knows how to do those things. Lewis also says a leader who’s out for himself or herself is not a good leader. A leader is someone who wants to see other people succeed, how they succeed.

A lot of dealerships are on cruise control. Lewis says some dealerships are starting to get inventory. He also says, if he was a service manager, he would sit down every day with his advisors for 10 minutes, they would watch one or two videos and discuss them. He would ask, what did they like or didn’t like, and what are they going to implement immediately? You’re following through with the conversation, that points forward, and that’s effective. People enjoy participating. Good leaders know they have to involve employees in the training process and learn how to listen.

Lewis wraps up the conversation by talking about what you can expect from him at NADA, next year. The topic this year is, ‘Understanding the Service Customer’. This topic is critical because it’s all about creating extra customer pay revenue. The biggest mistake that service departments make is they don’t understand their customer. Lewis says he’s going to share how to make better presentations when the customers are there and the power of video. Lewis says, whoever takes a piece out of what he shares, will see an immediate increase in customer pay revenue.

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Scaling a business whether it be two car dealerships or twenty, is a large undertaking, and it can easily become overwhelming. On today’s show, we welcome automotiveMastermind’s Chief Operating Officer, Matt Leone, to share his insight on the best ways car dealers can optimize their growth strategies.

automotiveMastermind takes a two-pronged approach to the industry. The first prong is leveraging the best data science to predict consumer behavior and help car dealers engage customers through different distribution channels in terms of marketing. The second prong is conquest, which aims to help dealers acquire more customers in their sphere of influence. The company is also exploring how to maximize incentive dollars for dealers and zero in on customers lower in the sales funnel.

For dealers who are ready to scale their business, Leone says it’s a great time for car dealers to look at their growth strategies due to strong economic conditions and increased profit margins. The first thing to evaluate is whether or not it is the right time to scale your business. Ask yourself- Is my car dealership in a good position to scale? Leone also recommends having some tailwinds behind you to support operations. Be sure to take a holistic approach and assess your buildings, collections, processes, training, and especially the people.

Recent events like concerns over the Delta variant and inventory shortages have challenged dealership culture. automotiveMastermind focuses on putting customer needs first and reacting quickly to those needs. At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, automotiveMastermind repurposed its account management teams for BDC support. Inventory shortages led the company to pivot from helping car dealers sell cars to helping them acquire cars.

It’s crucial for car dealers to interlock their teams as well. If dealers focus on just one aspect of the business, then they will never achieve that interlocked performance and will miss out on the fly-wheel effect. Selling cars is a team sport, Leone says. It is critical for teams to be in sync and to communicate well, particularly when the business is growing.

The power of automotiveMastermind comes from the data they acquire along with its parent company IHS Markit. The company has a robust selection of car history data, consumer data, and broader industry data in their environment, to learn more about the consumer. The highly tailored and customizable marketing strategies from this data lead to much more attribution and effective ad spend.

Additionally, automotiveMastermind is aiming to ensure that they stay in front of the best possible data from the best possible sources in 2022 to achieve five things, including:

EV marketing
Data integration
Vehicle acquisition
Service marketing
Dealer group management

The company is committed to drilling deeper and triangulating data sources to garner the best accurate, real-time data. Similar to helping car dealers scale, Leone is focused on scaling automotiveMastermind’s business as well to keep up with its dealer portfolio.

To learn more about automotiveMastermind, visit www.automotivemastermind.com.

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Zeigler Auto Group is continuing its aggressive expansion plan with the purchase of 4 dealerships in the state of Wisconsin. Joining us today to discuss acquisitions, inventory shortages, and emerging markets for digital technology, is Aaron Zeigler, President of Zeigler Auto Group.

Zeigler begins the conversation by discussing the brands he acquired during the expansion of his automotive portfolio. The group acquired Toyota, Hyundai, Subaru, and Honda. When it comes to new franchise opportunities, Ziegler says the most important thing he looks for is location. Then it’s about the franchise, and where it’s going in the future, and how strong it is. They were looking at franchises that could do bigger volumes.

As far as inventory is concerned, Zeigler says, it’s a short-term deal. They have record inventory, from a used car standpoint, which has helped them out. For talent, Ziegler says, that his group has an extensive development program. When an employee starts with them, they lay out a career plan for them to figure out what they want to accomplish in the next few years. They do their own NADA-type school, in-house, called the Performance Group. It teaches employees how to run their own business. Zeigler says, their philosophy is, if you want really good people, you have to pay really well.

When it comes to digital retailing, Zeigler says just about 100% of customers go online to get information nowadays. Communicating online can be a much friendlier process for the consumer and car dealer alike. However, to go 100% without talking to someone in person, is unfamiliar. There are going to be questions that a computer can’t answer. Zeigler says he’s not buying into everything moving online.

Zeigler ends the conversation by giving his take on the EV revolution. He says, if consumers want EVs, they will absolutely sell them. Some of the challenges he foresees are charging infrastructure concerns, battery lifespan, and used-EV valuations. He says while he isn’t seeing it yet, technology is getting better and they may be selling a lot more EVs in the future.

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On the latest episode of Straight to the Point, host Frank J. Lopes is joined by Joe Cala, vice-president of sales at Auto Dealer University and a graduate of Rhema Bible College. Lopes gets straight to the point by asking Cala– is there a place for faith and religion in the car business?

Cala says, he thinks so. Although, we’re in the car business says Cala, we’re in the people business, too. The golden rule Jesus had said, was to love one another, as he loves us. Cala says, why wouldn’t you want to apply that same rule to customers, dealers, or vendors? Cala says you have to put action from our works into motion.

Cala says his faith helped him every month in believing and trusting the Lord for provision. In a commission-based business, he had to learn in order to provide for himself and his family, he had to continue trusting the Lord.

Everyone in the auto industry has a story. God is all about finding people where they’re at. One thing Cala says, he loves about the business is, God accepts him when he makes mistakes and has used many people in the business to influence him that are believers, too. It’s all about making an impact and a difference.

A lot of times the auto industry is parallel to the things we discuss about life. For example, when you purchase a new vehicle, you fill it up with gas. Over time after significant use, the gas will go down, possibly becoming empty. When life hits, sometimes situations try you, and typically you’re running on ‘E’. Cala says people need to refill up their ‘tank’, by consuming the word of God, every day.

Cala says they are a faith-based company. Their number one purpose is to glorify God in everything they say and do. If they take care of their customers with world-class service, their incomes will take care of themselves. Cala says, if we keep God number 1, everything else will line up.

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On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome back the team from Velocity Automotive Solutions, Gage Hathcock, Vice President of Dealer Relations, Kalah McCoy, Executive Vice President, and Hugh Hathcock, Owner. The panel discusses the new VAS digital portfolio tool VelocityEngage, and why car dealers need to focus on creating value for potential car buyers.

Hugh says that in the last 6 months, the product has changed and grown so much. 300 car dealers have already committed to it, which is well on its way to having 1,000 car dealers by the end of this year. VelocityEngage is a digital packet that goes out to the consumer in various ways. McCoy says the portfolio is customized by the dealership. Included in the top portfolios are window stickers, original OEMs, service records, and service inspections. McCoy adds that they want to enable dealers to give customers everything they need in one spot and why they should buy from that particular dealership.

Gage says it’s all about the path to building value through transparency. The VelocityEngage portfolio is completely customizable and car dealers can choose to put whatever they want in it. While VAS started in Recon, Hugh says they needed this tool to help car dealers speed up the process of selling cars. Adding this tool has changed so much for the company.

McCoy adds that one of their biggest pieces of feedback they received was having an all-in-one tool with one login and a lot of automation. They’ve built automation into all their CRMs. Gage says that they recently learned car dealers love the window sticker component and wanted to start using it for appraisals. The automations have allowed them to build integrations and have window stickers instantly. Hugh ends the conversation by sharing what sets them apart from their competitors. Hugh says car dealers don’t get the same support from other solutions.

For more information visit velocityautomotivesolutions.com.

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Today on CBT News, Don Hall, President and CEO of the Virginia Automobile Dealers Association (VADA), discusses recent headlines from EVs to F&I. Hall begins the conversation, by discussing recent approval for EV-maker Tesla, to open three new stores in Virginia. From previous discussions, Hall says, the association has fought Tesla for about five and a half years in the court and spent seven figures doing so, only to lose on a technicality.

While some car dealers wanted to object to Tesla coming to Virginia, Hall says the VADA won’t fight them in the courts or the legislature. However, car dealers will show their strength to Tesla when it comes to selling EVs. Hall goes on to add that the association aims to prove that the best way to sell EVs in the future, is through the dealer network.

Many dealers are facing challenges with hiring new, top-performing talent. Hall says that one of the biggest reasons for this, is because their benefit structures are often not up to par. If car dealers don’t treat their employees, as their single largest asset, then they are not going to work for you. Hall adds, we have an opportunity one more time to lead from the front. Car dealers need to be good or better at attracting young people into the business. If you are a dealer committed to this business, then ask yourself- what can we do to make our experience in hiring and treating people even better?

A recent article in Automotive News reported that F&I profits soared at the largest U.S. dealership groups. While these findings signal strong growth for car dealers, Hall believes that lawyers or legislators might use the findings to further restrict F&I operations. He adds that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) could potentially see large F&I profits as a reason to impose stricter standards. Hall elaborates that car dealers can’t prove that they have massive losses. So when you sell products, be sure to have complete disclosures, and explain the benefit and value to the customer.

Hall ends the conversation by saying that car dealers can benefit by networking and learning from pros in the industry. Associations like VADA are committed to being in your corner and can go out and fight on your behalf.

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On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Jessica Caldwell, Edmunds’ Executive Director of Industry Insights, to give us an update on the chip shortage and how it’s affecting prices in the new and used market.

Caldwell kicks off the conversation, giving a brief overview of the current chip shortage situation currently happening. Caldwells says we’re starting to really feel the crunch of the supply crisis. In June, numbers were affected in many areas across the industry. She also believes this is the worst of it. Chipmakers are working hard to get shipments out.

Looking at luxury sales, Caldwell says, they don’t look as affected. In terms of volume, they have to turn around, she sees them fairing pretty well. Everyone in the auto industry is finding ways to excel.

Every month Caldwell looks at the numbers and thinks, how is this even possible? When it comes to used- vehicles, she says, she’s never seen increases like these. Used car transactions prices are up 14% from last quarter (Q2). You don’t ever see that type of movement in three months. Caldwell says they continue to see numbers climb and don’t believe they’ve hit the top yet. Even though used prices are high, trade-in values are off the charts. The acquisition of used vehicles is a challenge.

As far as the SAAR going into August, Caldwell says, it simply comes down to inventory. You have a lot of consumers, shopping for vehicles but not finding the ones they want or at the price they want. The real question is, what is that pent-up deferred demand that will end up in Q4 or 2022?

Caldwell wraps up the conversation by sharing her thoughts on the impact on supply and demand. She says if you look at April where we had inventory and SAAR was fairly high, around 18 million. Maybe, for the year, we wouldn’t get to 18 million, but it would definitely be on the higher side. She says the variants of the coronavirus will affect how things are.

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After taking the reins of what was once his father’s single dealership, our next guest expanded his dealer group to 13 stores in California, the latest of which, opened just recently. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Mike Sullivan, owner of LAcarGUY, to discuss his newest store as well as the EV revolution that is taking place in our industry.

Sullivan begins the conversation, discussing the expansion of his auto portfolio with his 13th dealership. Sullivan has acquired a Genesis store in Santa Monica, California. Genesis is moving to do standalone stores and looking to build an electric future. Sullivan says it was a natural fit for both of them. He says they do not have plans to expand beyond California. He loves being close to his stores.

Sullivan dealerships didn’t open until March of this year. When COVID happened, they closed and went from 1,000 employees to 250. In his 45 year career, Sullivan says, that was the worst time of his career. Currently, they are back to 650 employees and he says, it’s been an interesting transition. COVID has allowed him to restructure and learn more about digital sales and home deliveries. To go from the worst year to the best year you ever had, Sullivan says, you got to be flexible to do what, they do.

When it comes to digital retailing, Sullivan doesn’t believe it’s the future but a piece of the future. 35% to 40% of their deals have some sort of digital component in them. It allows them to shorten the process and customers have much more information. They won’t be doing all home deliveries.

Sullivan says they are one of the largest hybrid dealers in the world. He’s excited about the EV revolution and they are aggressively moving into it. One of the things that attracted him to Genisis was the new electric vehicle. The market is growing as the manufacturer comes out. Sullivan also believes, more fast-charging stations are needed. He says, he’s not concerned about the EV revolution and looks forward to what’s to come.

Sullivan wraps up the conversation by sharing some of the life lessons he’s learned over the past year and a half. He says you have to learn how to keep your chin up and continue to be optimistic.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday 5 with Steve Greenfield, Founder and CEO of Automotive Ventures, an auto technology advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs raise money and maximize the value of their companies.

The Electric Vehicle SPAC and IPO market continue to be very hot and we’ve had a number hit the public markets this past week.

We have discussed here on the Friday 5 that we’re seeing the blurring of lines between the traditional wholesale and retail parts of the auto industry.

This week we have yet another example that supports that we’re seeing the auto evolution of the traditional marketplace evolve in real-time.

CarZeus AutoWeb has acquired the assets of CarZeus, a Texas-based used vehicle acquisition platform that purchases vehicles directly from consumers and resells them through wholesale channels.

AutoWeb intends to expand its used vehicle acquisition offering beyond CarZeus’ current San Antonio market by leveraging AutoWeb’s significant traffic acquisition capability and the management team’s depth of relevant experience.

This acquisition positions AutoWeb to participate more meaningfully in the consumer used vehicle disposal market, which is highly fragmented and very large. Industry estimates size that market to include approximately 25 million vehicles annually with a total estimated value of approximately $230 billion dollars.

The acquisition of CarZeus also supports AutoWeb’s ongoing product investment strategy to provide increasingly useful consumer experiences through its portfolio of automotive brands, including Car.com and UsedCars.com. This blended online and offline approach is intended to not only benefit consumers, but also dealers, who will gain access to a new source of inventory in an efficient and cost-effective manner.

Auto Advocate Your Auto Advocate, an online community that brings peace of mind to car buyers and owners, has raised $4.2 million dollars in Seed funding, led by Flybridge Capital Partners and joined by NextView Ventures, and Long Journey Ventures.

Congratulations to Zach Shefska, Ray Shefska and the YAA team!

Flock Emerging from an academic project to look at drones, Flock shifted into providing drone insurance, then commercial vehicle insurance. The twist is that it hooks into the telematics of cars so that the vehicle only triggers insurance cover when it’s actually moving, not when it’s sitting on the lot, incapable of causing any accidents.

Flock has now raised $17 million dollars in a Series A funding led by Social Capital LP, the investment vehicle run by Chamath Palihapitiya, best known as a SPAC investor and chairman of Virgin Galactic.

Flock’s existing investors Anthemis Group and Dig Ventures also participated.

This round brings Flock’s total funding to $22 million dollars.

Redwood Materials Redwood Materials has raised $700 million dollars in a Series C round led by T. Rowe Price and including Goldman Sachs, Baillie Gifford, the CANADA PENSION PLAN, and Fidelity Investments.

Previous investors — Capricorn Investment Group’s Technology Impact Fund, Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Ventures and Amazon’s The Climate Pledge Fund — returned to put more capital into Redwood. Valor Equity Partners, Emerson Collective and Franklin Templeton also participated.

Redwood previously raised $40 million dollars in a Series B round and some seed money, which brings its total raise to just under $800 million dollars. The company’s post-funding valuation is $3.7 billion dollars.

Redwood Materials is aiming to create a circular supply chain. This closed-loop system will be essential if the world’s battery cell producers hope to have the supply needed for consumer electronics and the coming wave of electric vehicles.

Allego European electric vehicle charging company Allego will go public through a merger with a blank-check firm backed by private equity giant Apollo Global Management, in a deal valuing the equity of the combined company at $3.14 billion dollars.

The deal with SPARTAN ACQUISITION CORP 3 will generate proceeds of $702 million dollars, with $150 million dollars coming from a private investment in public equity (or PIPE) transaction.

Investors in the PIPE deal include Hedosophia, ECP, EV company Fisker and affiliates of Apollo.

InstaCarro In international news this week, Instacarro, a digital marketplace that connects used car sellers to dealers in Brazil, has raised $23 million dollars in a Series B round of funding.

Notably, U.S.-based firms co-led the investment, including J Ventures, FJ Labs and Rise Capital. Spain’s All Iron Ventures and Big Sur also participated in the financing, among others.

With the latest round, InstaCarro has now raised more than $56 million dollars since its inception in 2015.

InstaCarro plans to use its new capital in part to capitalize on the shift and aggressively expand its reach within Brazil.

The startup compares itself to Carvana in the U.S., Che-hao-duo in India and CARRO in Indonesia.

Inspired by the early success of AUTO1 Group in Europe, InstaCarro decided to return to Latin America to build a similar model, with an exclusive initial focus on Brazil because it is the third-largest car market in the world.

Bolt Ridehailing startup Bolt has raised €600 million Euros (or $712 million US dollars) as it plans to enter the online rapid grocery delivery market.

The fresh funding values the Estonia-based company at over €4 billion Euros (or $4.75 billion US dollars) and came from investors including Sequoia Capital, D1 Capital Partners and G Squared.

Bolt will plow some of the cash into a 15-minute grocery delivery service, Bolt Market, which it plans to launch in 10 European countries over the next few months. The company will also invest in existing services such as restaurant food delivery, car-sharing, and scooter and bike rentals.

The rapid grocery delivery market has become fiercely competitive in Europe during the pandemic. The sector has attracted hundreds of millions of dollars from VCs and is starting to reach a saturation point in many markets.

Kavak Mexican-based automotive marketplace Kavak, which reached a valuation of $4 billion US dollars, is buying a controlling stake at Turkish automotive company Garaj Sepeti.

Kavak, which was founded in 2016 and is backed by Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp, became Mexico’s first tech “unicorn” last October when it reported a valuation of more than $1 billion.

Kavak is an online platform for buying and selling used cars operating in Mexico and Argentina and Brazil.

Fixcraft Fixcraft, an Indian tech-enabled car bodyshop, has raised $1 million dollars in equity and debt from a marquee angel investor and UBIQUITY CAPITAL, respectively.

The startup will use the funding to open 10 new workshops in India by the end of the year.

Founded in October 2018, Fixcraft provides end-to-end car-repair services—from picking up the vehicle from a customer’s location to filing insurance claims, if any, in case of an accident. The company, which at present has three workshops, has provided services to 3,500 customers so far.

The startup has so far raised $1.5 million, including the current round.

Companies to Watch Every week we highlight interesting companies in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my monthly industry Intel Report, I showcase a few companies each month, and we take the opportunity here on the Friday Five to share some of those companies each week with you.

Today, our companies to watch are AutoBuy and Kyte.

AutoBuy Are you a consumer who needs cash quickly for your vehicle?

AutoBuy makes selling your quality pre-owned vehicle fast and easy by buying your used vehicle for the maximum price possible.

Call AutoBuy – regardless of your used vehicle’s condition – and set up a free appraisal with one of their expert buyers.

AutoBuy is one of the largest car buying companies in the State of Florida and is committed to paying its customers more.

AutoBuy is currently serving Florida customers in twelve different locations throughout a variety of counties.

If you have a car to sell, you can take advantage of their simple car buying process.

As they say at AutoBuy: “We Pay the MAX”

Kyte Tired of the inconvenience of having to go to a rental car counter to rent a car?

Kyte provides consumers with Rental cars delivered to your door. Reserve a new, clean car, and a driver will bring it to you, whenever you need it.

Kyte feeds into the rapidly expanding convenience economy.

Reserve a Kyte and a driver will bring it to you, on-demand. When you’re done, a driver will pick up your Kyte from the location of your choice.

Kyte is making the car rental process far easier.

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So that’s your weekly Friday Five, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

If you’re an early stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who is trying to decide whether and when they should raise money or sell their business, I’d love to speak with you.

——————-

So that’s your weekly Friday 5, a quick wrap-up of the big deals in automotive technology over the past week.

It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive space, with a ton of deals going on. Make sure you stay tuned in each week to stay up to date on the auto industry’s technology M&A activity. I’ll keep my fingers on the pulse of deals being done, so I can share updates with you.

If you’re an early-stage automotive technology entrepreneur looking to raise money, or an entrepreneur who wants to chat about the best timing and process to sell your company to achieve the best outcome, I’d love to discuss it with you at steve@automotive.ventures.

——————-

People often ask me why I’m affiliated with CBT News.

Besides having an outstanding, extremely talented, and hardworking team up here at the studio, I greatly appreciate the valuable role that CBT News plays in the automotive industry.

Every day, I eagerly look forward to my morning email from CBT News to ensure I’m getting the most up-to-date and relevant information on the industry.

I encourage you to tune in to CBT News to ensure that you’re getting the automotive news that matters.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of the Friday 5? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date or catch-up on all of our podcasts on demand.

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On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Jonathan Smoke, Chief Economist for Cox Automotive. He discusses the Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index and the used-vehicle market. The Manheim index tracks what’s selling at Manheim. The monthly value report reflects the average price dealers are paying for used vehicles at auctions. It allows analysts to see, what car dealers are paying for their most expensive inventory.

The July Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index was recently published and shows that used-vehicle values are finally coming down off a record high. In the latest report, prices also continue to be up substantially year-over-year, and that’s across all major segments. However, prices in July were down, following most segments being down in June, says Smoke. As a result, all prices are well-off of the peak year-over-year increases, they had in the Spring.

Smoke says they are seeing some important shifts in how the segments have been performing. Pickup trucks have risen the most over the past year, and are now falling the most. Luxury vehicles are holding their value quite well. Smoke says, what they’re seeing is, segments that increased the most over the last year in the Spring, are falling the most now. Smoke adds, the industry had the most extreme imbalance ever seen this past Spring.

Smoke believes the Spring frenzy is now over. Prices are a self-regulating mechanism and are rolling over. Smoke says we’re returning to what he calls a fairly predictable depreciation pattern. He also says no one should be waiting for a major drop in values. We’re seeing the balance in the wholesale market.

We have seen record-high retail used-vehicle prices as well. Wholesale prices typically lead retail prices by about six weeks on average. The data reveals that the whole markets peak in June, with retail peaking just a few weeks ago, in the second half of July. Both are declining like they typically do around this time of the year.

As far as sales and inventory levels of used vehicles with these elevated prices, Smoke says, sales have cooled off from the frenzy. He predicts that July will be one of their softest months, compared to what sales were back in 2019. Inventory started to improve in the used market and Smoke thinks, we’re getting closer to normal supply levels for this time of the year. Looking forward, the used market will be very well positioned. It’s important to acknowledge that 2019, before this year, was the best year in history for used retail sales.

Smoke ends the conversation by advising dealers as they close out the Summer. Smoke says, car dealers should continue focusing on their used car departments. They will sell fewer vehicles in the back half of the year, compared to the incredible Spring we’ve had. He also says, don’t plan and manage your inventory at pricing the same way that you did in the Spring.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Jonathan Smoke? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of Used Cars Weekly, the original CBT News show dedicated to bringing car dealers best practices and tips for the used car department, in-depth dealer interviews, hands-on dealership strategies, as well as vendor analysis. Today, host Jasen Rice, founder of Lotpop, is joined by Bill Zadeits, President and Group Publisher of Cherokee Media Group, which produces Auto Remarketing magazine.

Over the last 16 months, Zadeits and his team have made changes to their business plan. One of those changes was to produce an industry white paper twice a year, to specifically share was is happening in the used car market.

When it comes to auctions, Zadeits believes the process has changed just like every other aspect of the auto industry. The acceleration of innovative technology solutions has allowed people to think in different ways. The purpose of auctions is to make sure car dealers have the best pre-owned inventory. However, car dealers are now sourcing premium used vehicles from other parties as well.

Additionally, Zadeits says the industry has seen incredible amounts of travel over the Spring and Summer month. He believes the industry is going to see some impact on rental cars at the end of the year. Also, Zadeits says, some form of COVID will be around, and cr dealers will need a contingency plan in place. As a society, we have to learn how to live with it.

Cherokee Media Group is also hosting the upcoming Used Car Week 2021 event in Las Vegas later this fall. For the first half of the event, Zadeits says attendees can expect preowned and CPO content. In the second half, attendees can learn about the wholesale side of things. Zadeits says, that they missed everyone last year and are excited about this year’s conference.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Used Cars Weekly? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date or catch-up on all of our podcasts on demand.

While you’re here, don’t forget to subscribe to our email newsletter for all the latest auto industry news from CBT News.

If a topic is trending, it’s most likely being discussed on Twitter. As more sales move online, the social networking site has become a key tool for retail automotive. So what’s trending right now? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Guy Schueller, Industry Director of Automotive for Twitter, to discuss how car dealers are being affected by current trends and how they can utilize Twitter.

Schueller jumps right into the conversation by talking through the trends he’s seeing in retail automotive in comparison to last year. He says things have changed and continue to evolve rapidly. Twitter is a real-time conversation. Consumers are now seeing how important a vehicle can be for safe transportation during a health crisis. Car ownership changed throughout the pandemic, including availability due to inventory crunches. Schueller also says, one of the massive conversations happening on Twitter is about electric vehicles.

From Schueller’s perspective, car dealers should be focused on their brand and how they want to represent themselves. It’s not about cars, but what role are you going to play in the buying process. Don’t assume. Ask yourself how you can further engage in online conversations. As retail changes, car dealers will have to convince customers on why they should purchase from them. Schueller says the most important thing car dealers can do is listen and participate.

When it comes to social platforms, Schueller says you need to establish yourself, become active organically and listen. You can learn a lot about what people are saying about your dealership. Don’t forget people voice their opinion very loudly and you should jump in those conversations. Schueller says salespeople are influencers. Salespeople have built their own brand and are using their influence to drive people into the dealership, even without the dealership’s support. Schueller also says help your salespeople become influencers. Big corporations are now paying their employees to drive online influencing.

Schueller wraps up the conversation sharing what he’s most excited about. Schueller says he’s excited about Twitter starting to think more about shopping within the social platform. They’re looking to create a shopping model within businesses’ profile pages. He says, use the power of this platform to communicate with those people that might be buyers and figure out how you want to amplify that.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Guy Schueller? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date or catch-up on all of our podcasts on demand.

While you’re here, don’t forget to subscribe to our email newsletter for all the latest auto industry news from CBT News.

If a topic is trending, it’s most likely being discussed on Twitter. As more sales move online, the social networking site has become a key tool for retail automotive. So what’s trending right now? On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome Guy Schueller, Industry Director of Automotive for Twitter, to discuss how car dealers are being affected by current trends and how they can utilize Twitter.

Schueller jumps right into the conversation by talking through the trends he’s seeing in retail automotive in comparison to last year. He says things have changed and continue to evolve rapidly. Twitter is a real-time conversation. Consumers are now seeing how important a vehicle can be for safe transportation during a health crisis. Car ownership changed throughout the pandemic, including availability due to inventory crunches. Schueller also says, one of the massive conversations happening on Twitter is about electric vehicles.

From Schueller’s perspective, car dealers should be focused on their brand and how they want to represent themselves. It’s not about cars, but what role are you going to play in the buying process. Don’t assume. Ask yourself how you can further engage in online conversations. As retail changes, car dealers will have to convince customers on why they should purchase from them. Schueller says the most important thing car dealers can do is listen and participate.

When it comes to social platforms, Schueller says you need to establish yourself, become active organically and listen. You can learn a lot about what people are saying about your dealership. Don’t forget people voice their opinion very loudly and you should jump in those conversations. Schueller says salespeople are influencers. Salespeople have built their own brand and are using their influence to drive people into the dealership, even without the dealership’s support. Schueller also says help your salespeople become influencers. Big corporations are now paying their employees to drive online influencing.

Schueller wraps up the conversation sharing what he’s most excited about. Schueller says he’s excited about Twitter starting to think more about shopping within the social platform. They’re looking to create a shopping model within businesses’ profile pages. He says, use the power of this platform to communicate with those people that might be buyers and figure out how you want to amplify that.

Did you enjoy this podcast with Guy Schueller? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date or catch-up on all of our podcasts on demand.

While you’re here, don’t forget to subscribe to our email newsletter for all the latest auto industry news from CBT News.

The messaging-first dealer concept is similar to live chat. However, when live chat sessions end, the browser completely closes and engagement ceases. Messaging-first keeps the conversation going. It allows consumers to walk through the car buying process virtually with a salesperson from start to finish, as long as the consumer is comfortable with the concept. The consumer can have a relaxing dialogue with the salesperson instead of feeling rush.

Kain explains that he doesn’t dislike live chat. It has its value. Chat platforms nowadays even have SMS capabilities to stay in touch with the consumer. The problem becomes when car dealerships don’t have a strategy in place to execute SMS capability. Guests are shopping online and they want to talk to someone. While that immediate engagement would appear bizarre in person. It has become completely acceptable online.

This also speaks to the level of professionalism your salespeople have. Kain adds that salespeople might be intimidated by immediate engagement. Maybe they are not strong typers or are not quick on their feet. If you are working with a sales team that is in tune with what consumers are looking for, then they can lead conversations online.

This allows salespeople to work with consumers at the peak of their buying interest. Kain is confident in the efficacy of this method and he hopes that more car dealers will continue to move toward it.

Did you enjoy this podcast episode of Kain & Co.? Please share your thoughts, comments, or questions regarding this topic by submitting a letter to the editor here, or connect with us at newsroom@cbtnews.com.

Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date or catch-up on all of our podcasts on demand.

While you’re here, don’t forget to subscribe to our email newsletter for all the latest auto industry news from CBT News.

Listen to the top automotive headlines on today's CBT Automotive Newscast for September 16, 2020

Today's headlines include: - With the election only seven weeks away, both major party candidates have made their stop in the auto-centric state of Michigan. - Fiat Chrysler and PSA have agreed to amend their planned merger. - After spending nearly two years in Japanese custody, former Nissan executive, Greg Kelley, appeared in court - General Motors is playing the EV game, and CEO Mary Barra says they intend to win. - GM also announced the date for the big reveal of one its premier EVs

Visit CBTNews.com to watch the full interview and to check out all of today's top stories.

https://www.cbtnews.com/cbt-automotive-newscast-september-16-2020/

Please remember to share your thoughts, comments, or questions.

Listen to the top automotive headlines on today's CBT Automotive Newscast for September 15, 2020

Today's headlines include: - Sonic Automotive continues to grow despite industry setbacks – Jeff Dyke - Auto manufacturers continue to lag behind due to a labor shortage - Dealers are also struggling with a shortage of auto technicians for their service departments - General Motors is at odds with an Iowa dealership group - Ford Motor Company is hoping that the new Ford Ranger Tremor will help the company dominate

Visit CBTNews.com to watch the full interview and to check out all of today's top stories.

https://www.cbtnews.com/cbt-automotive-newscast-september-15-2020/

Please remember to share your thoughts, comments, or questions.

Listen to the top automotive headlines on today's CBT Automotive Newscast for September 14, 2020

Today's headlines include: - President Donald Trump caught the attention of many auto companies - Sonic Automotive continues its expansion - Following a major stock climb, Nikola stocks fell as much as 13% - Auto dealers across Oregon were forced to evacuate and temporarily close their doors

Visit CBTNews.com to watch the full interview and to check out all of today's top stories. https://www.cbtnews.com/cbt-automotive-newscast-september-14-2020/

Please remember to share your thoughts, comments, or questions.

Listen to the top automotive headlines on today's CBT Automotive Newscast for September 11, 2020

Today's headlines include: - The competitor to the Tesla Model S has arrived - Mercedes-Benz and Microsoft are teaming up to redefine auto maintenance - New-vehicle inventory continues to fall, especially for luxury vehicles - Hundreds of thousands of Americans filed for unemployment insurance last week

https://www.cbtnews.com/cbt-automotive-newscast-september-11-2020/ Please remember to share your thoughts, comments, or questions.

Listen to the top automotive headlines on today's CBT Automotive Newscast for September 10, 2020

Today's headlines include: - KAR Global has signed a definitive agreement to acquire BacklotCars, Inc - Nikola shares are skyrocketing after GM took an 11% stake in the electric truck maker - After suffering its worst single-day loss in the history of the company, Tesla made a solid rebound - The Labor Day weekend brought air-travel its highest numbers

https://www.cbtnews.com/cbt-automotive-newscast-september-10-2020/

Please remember to share your thoughts, comments, or questions.

Listen to the top automotive headlines on today's CBT Automotive Newscast for September 8, 2020 https://www.cbtnews.com/cbt-automotive-newscast-september-8-2020/

Please remember to share your thoughts, comments, or questions.

Today's CBT News headlines include: - Ford continues to press into the fight against COVID-19 - Fleet sales took a step back in the month of August - Used-car sales ended the month on a high note - Stock experts say that Tesla could be the most dangerous stock on Wall Street

Visit CBTNews.com to watch the full interview and to check out all of today's top stories.

https://www.cbtnews.com/cbt-automotive-newscast-september-7-2020/

As always, please remember to share your thoughts, comments, or questions.

Don't miss the top automotive headlines on today's CBT Automotive Newscast for September 3, 2020 https://www.cbtnews.com/cbt-automotive-newscast-september-3-2020/

Please remember to share your thoughts, comments, or questions. —

dealerlife #autoretail #automotive #sellingcars #autoindustry #cardealership #cardealer #cars #auto #retailautomotive #carbusiness #carbusinesslife #carownership #carbuying #retailauto #automotive #retailauto #carbusiness #automotive #autoretail #AutoNation #LAautoshow #MaryBarra #Ford

Today's headlines include:

Labor Day weekend is quickly approaching, and many car shoppers are expected to be on the hunt for their next vehicle
Ford Motor Company has completed its production of ventilators
Tesla expects to see a record rise as shares soar

Visit CBTNews.com to watch the full interview with Dale Pollak and to check out all of today's top stories.

https://www.cbtnews.com/cbt-automotive-newscast-september-2-2020/

As always, please remember to share your thoughts, comments, or questions.

Joining us today to give a full recap on retail automotive trends and what dealers need to know is Steve Finlay, senior editor at WardsAuto. For a number of years, automotive digital retailing has been a topic of conversation, but the COVID-19 pandemic kicked it into high gear. Steve wonders if the surge of online transactions and home delivery will stick, or if many dealers will revert back to their usual practices.

While many consumers would still rather do their shopping online, the flip-side for dealers is that building the infrastructure to facilitate online transactions can be expensive. Steve asks – Can smaller dealers really afford this? However, digital retailing allows consumers to do most of the heavy lifting, while dealers can spend less on marketing and other expenses.

Inventory also continues to be a challenge for dealers nationwide. Domestic OEMs have considerably reduced the manufacturing of their sedan models. This is due to the high demand for trucks and SUVs among consumers. Brand loyalty is also not what it used to be according to Steve. Despite these challenges, Steve believes that the auto industry is resilient and pre-COVID sales levels are expected to return in 2022-2023.

In addition to being the senior editor at WardsAuto, Steve Finlay is also the editor of WardsAuto Dealer Business Magazine. As such, he covers automobile dealers, OEMs, and retail practices. His career in journalism started 42 years ago as a crime reporter. For the last 23 years, he has followed the automotive retail industry, and continues to write informative and engaging stories. https://www.cbtnews.com/wardsauto-editor-steve-finlay-on-digital-retailing-inventory-struggles-and-more/