Back in August of 2006, I was mystery shopping on Edmunds. I wanted to see what type of responses I would get if I requested a price quote for a Mercedes-Benz E350. I of course figured I would get my own lead (since I purchase my New Car lead from AutoUSA), but was hoping that I would get a response from one of my competitors as well.

I did receive my own lead and rightfully so. I called up my AutoUSA rep and explained that it was a test lead and they had no problem replacing it with another valid lead.

Then in Feburary of 07, something weird happened and  AutoUSA sold me the same lead again..same name, same car, everything exact. Keep in mind, I NEVER used the same name to shop for another vehicle within that time frame. At first I thought it was a glitch with my eLead CRM. But when I logged into my AutoUSA account and there is was! 

I found this to be a little disturbing and was very disappointed in AutoUSA since I usually get my best leads from them. Receiving my own lead after mystery shopping was expected. Buying the exact lead again made me question.

Monday morning 4/29/2007 I log into my CRM only to find Maire Zahn, the same lead in there AGAIN! Same name, same vehicle, SAME LEAD! Let me point out again, I DID NOT USE this name to mystery shop. It would have been Sunday and I was doing yard work all day so there is no way I used my Sunday to mystery shop dealers.

Basically I had been SOLD the exact same customer lead 2 times over from AutoUSA. I’ve heard this happens quite often from someone that is a veteran in the 3rd party lead business. Apparently it’s common practice for many Lead vendors to resell leads to dealers after a period of time of the initial request. Their thought is; since many dealers do not execute the right amount of follow-up and in order to uphold their services and reputation, it’s a good idea to resell the leads after a period of time. Maybe they run the customer leads up against a DMV database of customers that have bought vehicles in the last 90 days?

Anyways, I again called my AutoUSA Rep to point out the fact that this was the second time. For some reason, he quickly got on the defense and said (and I quote) " That’s part of the business". WOW, I was not expecting that type of response. I was only calling to point out what happened and maybe who they are buying this lead from is reselling to them. Whatever the case maybe, something isn’t kosher here.

I’m not accusing AutoUSA of anything specific here and I’m really surprised I’m having this issue with AutoUSA. Like I mentioned before, I usually get my best leads from them. BUT I am disappointed that a quality lead provider is participating in such possible tactics.

Have you experienced this? What’s your feedback?

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iMotors / Reply leads for your dealer interest sales department

I “usually” keep my negative opinions to myself. BUT there are times where I find the need to take my voice above the boundaries.

When I first started here at Mercedes-Benz of Hagerstown, I quickly jumped on board with a few 3^rd party lead vendors to get the ball rolling. For some reason or another I brought iMotors (division of Reply Inc.) on board. Two months using their service I found myself spending more time managing duplicates and bad leads then actually following up and selling to qualified buyers. I quickly realized that it was not making sense keeping iMotors (Reply Inc.) on board as a 3^rd party lead provider for my dealer. So I axed them!!

Then last year, (Sept 2006) I started getting phone calls from one of their sales representatives again. I’ll have to admit, she had a sweet voice!! She called and called, convincing me that they had changed their “lead filtering software” since I had past used their services. Matter of fact, they even had a higher-up sales manager call to re-enforce the fact that they had made vast improvements in their process and software for filtering qualified leads. Now..I’m not a fool and I didn’t bite right away!! BUT “she” kept calling me! You know what it’s like to get that phone call that stimulates the ears. And I have to admit, I can be such a sucker. I’ll buy anything from a persistent sales person that can follow-up and be so convincing. Before I knew it I was signed up with iMotors..again.

So I don’t sound like such a sucker here, I’ll let you know that I worked the price down to a very persuasive cost per lead, AND since we wanted to have a strong end of the year push, I was biting on anything that made sense.

Before signing the agreement, I informed the sales lady that I ran a website and IF this time proved to be a flop, I would write about it (hence the reason for this posting). So…2 months back into using iMotors, it wasn’t setting the world on fire (but then again what 3^rd party lead does?). I have an effective follow up process established here at the dealer so no one could accuse me of not following up with each and every lead. The end of the year was approaching and by then we had 1 credit sales for iMotors. The crazy part was; the gross was very considerably high, so I continued on with the service.

BUT by the end of February I found myself back in the same boat that I was in the first time using iMotors, too much time following up with duplicates and bullshit leads. I was getting leads for cars that no longer
existed in the Mercedes model line. Now, one could argue and say; “Jeff…you need to call every customer and ignore the car they are requesting a price quote on”. Well, I was and always do!! We were calling every customer and totally ignoring the vehicle of interest that was quoted on the lead. BUT the problem was most of the phone numbers were bogus or no longer in service. Complete total CRAP!!

Throughout the course of Jan, Feb and March, we sold 1 more credit sale for iMotors (again a decent gross), but it came to a point where it was not worth the time and effort to keep them around. The ROI on paper was making sense, but when you factored in my time and energy, my sales peoples time, the confidence in the service, it was not justifiable. So I AGAIN axed them!

The positive points were; the customer service was nothing less then great. They willingly credited every lead I asked to have credit for. The 2 cars that I sold during the period of using iMotors (again) were very lofty. BUT, it became too much for me to manage every month. The time that I spent following up with bogus leads and getting credit for these leads was costing me too much time and money at the end of the month.

I’m not saying iMotors will not work for your dealer. I’m merely pointing out that it didn’t work for my dealer on 2 separate occasions. I’ve taken the liberty to post my last 3 months of leads I received from iMotors (erasing the customer last name) with the current “status” each customer was in at the time of this posting. You can see most of them are marked “Bad Lead” and believe me I’m being generous. Several of the leads are in limbo/working status and I’m still not sure if they are real people or not.

Sorry iMotors, but I gave you fair warning.

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AutoTrader introduces their 2007 products and Chip Perry writes a few words about it.

New Solutions for Dealers at AutoTrader.com By Chip Perry

“As customers of AutoTrader.com, you know the Internet is no longer new, and neither are online classifieds. But we constantly work to take advantage of the latest technologies to make it even easier for you to work with us and for consumers to find your cars. This means developing functions and tools to eliminate information inefficiencies during the car-shopping experience and to meet consumers’ demand for rich media experiences, detailed information on vehicles and the most up-to-date prices and offerings on the vehicles for which they are shopping.

Autotrader.com annually delivers new products and services to you to more effectively drive qualified buyers to your dealerships. The suite of 2007 dealer solutions provides you with the most comprehensive means to market yourself to in-market shoppers since we launched our site nearly ten years ago. This year’s dealer solutions include a multimedia center, vehicle brochure, reduced price indicator, integrated vehicles valuation and new vehicle specials. The new features improve the site’s “find Your Dealer” function, an industry-vest service for locating YOU.

Through a new multimedia center within your Dealer community, you now have the ability to upload audio-visual components- everything from your TV and radio commercials to virtual tours of your showroom. Posting this online allows more consumers to view your other means of advertising on-demand. Your radio and TV commercials help introduce your dealership and vehicles to viewers and listeners, and now they can continue to do so to the additional 11 million monthly shoppers who visit AutoTrader.com.

Do you have a brochure about your dealership? A brochure for each car on your lot? A customized brochure for each customer? To avoid clutter and disparate paperwork for car-shoppers, we’re excited to share our new vehicle brochure with you. This customized collateral can be used for both used and certified pre-owned vehicles, and includes pictures of the vehicles and/or your dealership, information on a manufacturer’s certified pre-owned program, maps, directions to your dealership, and an industry-first capability to include a Carfax vehicle history report. All in one customized document consumers can print out in the comfort of their home.

We know you often reduce prices on cars that have been on the lot longer than several weeks. But when the ads are posted online, how do you alert shoppers of lower-priced vehicles to help you move more inventory? Well, to solve that problem, we have another key offering—the reduced price indicator. It notifies shoppers of a reduction in a particular vehicle’s price and eliminates them having to hunt and peck for recently-discounted vehicles. Right next to the vehicle’s listing price is an orange label, “Reduced!”

Finally, to continue our strides toward providing all the resources a car-shopper might need, AutoTrader.com is now also offering an integrated vehicle valuation function with your listings through NADAguides.com. This means you receive more informed and price-aware shoppers, and at the same time this give consumer’s confidence about how much their car is worth.

Even with all of these changes, we continue to look ahead and think, “What’s next? What else can be done to maximize the value of dealerships’ online advertising dollars?” To give you a sneak preview, next month AutoTrader.com will be the first to introduce new vehicle specials to you. This new function will highlight in real-time your specials, such as current and time-sensitive incentives on particular vehicles, such as rebates, coupons and special financing offers. Consumers can even receive e-mails to notify them of your vehicle specials and offers. The new vehicle specials were designed to bring the feel of the Sunday newspaper’s automotive advertising section online. Keep an eye out for it!

I have confidence that all of these new enhancements will help consumers cut through the clutter, get your vehicles closer to them and higher up on their car-shopping list, and get them onto your showroom floor.”

Any Comments?

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I was thinking about the Dealer Summit I attended last year; particularly about a speaker from one of the larger 3rd Party Lead providers who spoke regarding 3rd Party Leads and how they still have a place in the dealer marketing process. I agree that 3rd Party Leads to do have a place in a dealers marketing process, but I myself have been cutting back on the providers with whom I deal with and have repositioned my budget, distributing it into different avenues in an effort to get more qualified customers.

I remember asking this speaker, “Why will 3rd Party Lead vendors not disclose from WHERE the lead ORIGINATES (except for the occasional Edmunds lead)?”

Did the lead come from Edmunds or KBB?
If so, I know I have an informed customer who is potentially getting quotes from a variety of dealers. The key point here is that the customer is most likely very informed about the product and could be shopping other vehicles as well. What’s the angle I need to work this customer?

Did the lead come from CarPriceSecrets.com or Carsunderinvoice.com?
Now I know I could have a dealer distruster or just a price shopper and I have to change my selling process and how I interact with this customer via email and phone.

Maybe the lead came from Car and Driver or MotorTrend.com?
Now I’m possibly dealing with an enthusiast and again can change the wording in my emails and initial phone conversation, allowing me the advantage in dealing with this customer’s personality.

What about leads from WomenMotorists.com?
Here is another great example of where you could change your follow-up process and how you interact with the customer.

I was told the reason this specific 3rd Party Lead Provider did not disclose this information to the dealer was due to the possibility of the dealer cherry-picking the leads and not giving all of the leads the same attention they deserve. Though I can somewhat agree, I wasn’t thrilled with that answer. Personally, I think one reason is because they don’t want the dealer to see that the majority of their leads are coming from these inferior price-driven websites.

What do you think?

Would it be beneficial to know exactly what websites your leads are originating from?

Post your comments here.

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Autotrader has introduced their 2006 Market Adjustment pricing and I personally think they are getting ahead of themselves. On average they have hiked their rates anywhere from $800 to $1500 over the 2005 pricing depending on what market you’re located in or what package you sign up for. With the new inflated pricing, they are trying to convince us that their “enhanced products” are worth the extra money. But I don’t think so!

They’re pushing their new “Find Your Dealer”,a dealer search tool found on the homepage providing easy access for consumers to find your “enhanced dealer information” pages. Basically allowing consumers to search by dealer rather then my make and model. These dealer pages will allow you to add Specials, a photo of your dealership, services provided (Spanish speaking, incentives, rebates, etc.) and a few other small additions. About the only enhancement that I find of any value is the ability to list 27 photos. But then again… 9 photos is a decent number to generate a lead, plus it’s always an easy excuse for me to get the customers email address so I can send them a link to more photos and drive them to my website.

Here is my thinking…consumers go to AutoTrader to shop for vehicles, NOT to find a dealer. If they want to find a dealer they will google it or go directly to the dealers website. I’m sorry but I do not see the benefit in the new product enhancements especially for the additional money they are charging. Are you really going to sell anymore cars with a Dealer Search feature? Maybe having the ability to add some new and used car specials to a “Specials Page” can have a small benefit, but let’s face it…how many dealers update their specials page on their own dealer website?

They’re also offering 360 degree video tour? Come one…most of these programs suck up bandwith and are slow to load. Why do you need a 360 degree virtual tour when you get 27 photos anyways? I’m thinking this is nothing more then a way for allowing DealerSpecialites to charge for an additional 360 video shoot service.

Don’t get me wrong, I like AutoTrader and am very effective with it, usually selling 15-20% of our used car inventory a month with it. Though if I jumped up to the 2006 pricing, I truly do not think I would sell anymore cars. The only thing that is going to be affected is my cost per sale…and in a bad way.

None of this even takes into account that they want to charge the same amount for their New Car inventory search (being enhanced)! So go ahead and double that price for listing your New inventory on AutoTrader as well.

Sorry Chip Perry but this had to be said!

Any way…I could be totally wrong about this..it’s just my opinion what’s yours?

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