Car Dealers Ignore Consumers!

We have been experiencing a great number of consumer inquiries to car dealers on MyDealerReport.com over the past few months, however they have been unanswered by dealers.  If you are a car dealer, this is the wrong time to drop the ball, especially with the present condition of the economy.  Listed below are just a few of the miss communication sent for dealers through our site:

Dealer Name:	J** ***** DODGE
DealerID:	7036
Contact Name:	Ericka ****
Contact Email:	***********
Message:	Need Help, I traded in my truck in 2002, with *** ***** dodge. I need to prove that I did this. I do not have the paper work. I do have the title on the Jeep that i bought. Can you help me? I have tried almost everything. Ericka ****

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Dealer Name:	****** Toyota Co
DealerID:	195
Contact Name:	Anealia ****
Contact Email:	************
Message:	Can you please have Jason fax me the complete information and breakdown of features. I will be driving 5 1/2 hours Sunday to come see the 2005 Toyota Highlander Limited Gold 43,000 miles. I just want to make sure it has everything I am looking for and will have the power I need. The ad on the internet is not detailed and according to the info I have got from Jason it is not correct on the internet. My fax is 850 229-****. I did not want to keep calling everytime I had a question about a feature. Thank you Anealia ****

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Dealer Name:	VW-HONDA
DealerID:	537
Contact Name:	Ron *******
Contact Email:	*************
Message:	I’m leasing a brand new 2009 Honda Accord V6 from your dealership and had a concern regarding the feel of the transmission when it shifts back and forth from ECO mode to normal mode. I brought the car in on November 26 and during the test drive, the service tech explained how the transmission works and that 2009 is the first year it’s been introduced into the Accord. However, it’s very annoying to feel the continous hesitation/surge as the transmission switches modes. After the test drive, I asked the service manager, Ben, if other customers had similar complaints and he replied in a very cavalier manner…Ya, a few. So the message I took away from this experience is that the Honda Accord V6 has a transmission issue due to its introduction of new technology in the 2009 model and the customer will just have to get used to it?! This new feature should be seamless to the driver. I also own a new Nissan Murano which has the Continuous Variable Transmission (CVT) and it’s as smooth as silk. Honda ought to take a lesson from Nissan on tranny’s. It is what it is, but, I’m not happy with the Honda product.         _________________________________________________________________

Dealer Name:	INFINITI OF ******
DealerID:	1853
Contact Name:	Isaac ******
Contact Email:	*********
Message:	I am looking for 2008 G35x w/Sunroof (NOT PREMIUM PACKAGE) I will lease this car TODAY! $349/mnth 36 months 30k/mi/yr Up front: $944 TOTAL: ($595 Bank Fee, $349 1st months payment) COLOR PREF: Black/TAN/WHEAT Please advise, Thanks         __________________________________________________________________

Dealer Name:  Chrysler Of *******       

  DealerID: 34022       

  Contact Name: Steven ******       

  Contact Email:  ***********       

Message: Dear Mr. ******, My name is Steven ***** and I would not contact you unless I felt it was important you know my interactions with your dealerships. Specifically, Dodge of ******** where I purchased a pre-owned 207 Dodge Caliber less than 2 mos ago. (Oct. 2008). Since my purchase I have unforunately not enjoyed the vehicle for one minute. And to this date, NONE of the problems I reported at the time of purchase and others which have developed have been resolved by the ******* location and even by the ******** Service Dept. I need to start w/ the purchase which at the time I informed the Salesperson (Dennis) that there was something wrong w/ one of the tires and there was a rattle in the driver door. However, during my time w/ Dennis he received a personal phone call which greatly upset him and he was bascially unable to continue assisting me. So, Trish (Mgr.) took over and assisted consummating my purchase. My credit is weak and I am paying a high interest rate – which I understand. I pd. $1000 down and have already made my first payment. Within the wk. I brought the car into ******** for repair (losing some work time in *******) including the tires. However, the car was returned to me without any of the rapairs (incl. problems w/ the ac/heater) properly completed. In addition, the tire issue remained (thumping). I brought the car into ******** again shortly thereafter on a Sat. for the same repairs. Again, nothing was fixed though the Service Mgr. acknowledged all of the tires were worn on the inside and were bad, but I needed to speak w/ Trish. I travel frequently for business and do not have alot of time to spend dealing w/ a situation like this. Realizing the ******* dealership was incapable of dealing w/ my problems, I brought it to ******* last wk. (and more time off from work). Again, nothing was fixed. However, the dealership was kind enough to give me a free oil change. I asked about the tires and the ******** Mgr. (Dave) said I would need to speak w/ Trish. I called Trish and she said I was out of luck and they do not warranty tires. When I infomred her I had told Dennis the day about the tires on the day of my purchase, she responded I had not told her and she wouldn’t have sold me the vehicle if she knew. She offered no other assistance. I have been trying to alter my schedule again to return the car to Paramus to fix the old problems and new incl. the rattle, heater and an electrical problem which ****** could not find, etc. However, this morning a hose broke on the **** Turnpike which engulfed the car in smoke. After 1 1/2 hrs. getting it on a flatbed and up to ****** (where it now sits) I am paying for a rental car. In addition, the tow truck co. lost my keys and so I am going to have to pay the dealership an addl. $200 to replace the keys. The lost keys is not the dealership’s fault, but at this point the work time lost and out-of-pocket costs have become alarming and very upsetting. What is most upsetting is the dealership’s inability to address the problems w/ the vehicle and the lack of responsibility taken by the ********* location regarding the bad tires on the car sold to me. I know this is a very lengthy email and I appreciate you reading it. My goal was to hold the car into ‘09 and upgrade, plus I will be receiving a co. car (VP of Sales) next yr., and I would have happily returned to your dealerships to purchase new/more vehicles. I bought 4 vehicles from one dealership in the past. I do not want to pursue other avenues incl. Lemon Law, etc. rergarding these unresolved issues and would hope the dealership would take responsbility for the tires and go the extra mile to see the problems with the vehicle are taken care of at the time the vehicle is brought in for servicing. thank you again for your time and I look forward to your response. Sincerely, Steven ***** 508-***-****        

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Dealer Name:	***** ******* DODGE
DealerID:	7033
Contact Name:	Wesley ********
Contact Email:	****************
Message:	James/Justin, I have dealt with *****  ******* Dodge on five occassions, and every time it was terrible service. I am under the impression that I can reach David ****** himself to fill him in on all my different experiences, and will. The most recent experience was dealing with a trade in on my Kia, which I took negative equity on, which I didn’t have an issue. We set up the deal to finance the 2005 Dodge Ram at 12.9 percent through ***** ****** Finance group as a temporary means until I got approval from my bank, which I finally did. The next day I brought in the preapproved. At that point your finance department cashed the check for 10458 dollars from my bank, but failed to pay the 3689 dollars off on my Kia, so my bank added that value to the 10458. And now I am being slammed with a loan of over 14000 dollars, very incorrect and unsatisfactory. I am an upstanding member of the community; I volunteer for many Oklahoma City Community events, I teach for ************* College in ******* City, which has close ties with the Dept of Commerce, and I also teach with ******* College, which has close ties with numerous business’ in the ******** City area. My wife is a government worker on ****** with close ties to some of the main executives at ******. I am also a Premium Support Manager at ****l with numerous connection at the 3000 plus employee facility. I expect my Kia to be paid in full. If interest has accrued to my 14000 dollar plus loan, I expect David ****** to pay that difference. I was also shipped out with a vehicle on complete E for fuel, now how is that for customer service. Again, like I said I have had several bad experience with ***** ******* Dodge. You need to take more pointers from ***** Nissan East, which I always recommend over any other dealership in ****** City, and will do when I contact David ******* himself. Get with your financing department and get this fixed. Customer Experience is the number one reason we stay in business. I deal with over 180 different customers a day, and if I fail at customer experience I am out of a job, as such anyone in a customer facing relationship would be. You can consider this a top level escalation. Wesley ********, displeased.         ___________________________________________________________________

 

Dealer Name:	DODGE INC
DealerID:	5106
Contact Name:	Joe *******
Contact Email:	***************
Message:	Hello, I am Nancy *******’s grandson and she has arranged for me to look at a 1999 Chevy Malibu at your lot, however today I haven’t been able to find transportation there. I was just writing in case she had sent notice that I’d be coming. I’m not sure of the hours on Saturdays, but I’d guess it’s just a half day. Sorry about the problem, I can arrange transportation for sometime Monday. Thanks.

Dealix and WardsAuto Are Now Believers in Dealer Ratings…

I received two interesting emails this week, a press release from the Ward’s “Automotive Spring Training Conference,” presented by Autobytel (http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/03-10-2008/0004770844&EDATE=)
and the other came from Automotivedigest’s interview of Dealix’s Kevin Root (http://dealerdigestdaily.com/video//index.html?videoIndex=1) . I have spoken a lot about how our space, car dealer ratings and reviews is gaining traction, now I can shut up and let the rest of the industry do the talking for us. Therefore, click on the links above and see what the experts have to say about car dealer ratings and reviews.

 

 

 

Auto Consumers Respond!

I am happy to say that auto consumers are meeting the challenge I posed to them in the last post. It is good to hear their voices shouting so loudly. Ratings are coming in at an increase rate and research of dealer reputation is off the charts. Continue the push so the auto industry can continue to hear your cry good or bad! Tell your friends, relatives and co-workers to get involved at MyDealerReport.com

Some Auto Industry Insiders Turn Deaf Ear To Auto Consumers!

I recently had a conversation with an industry insider concerning the popularity of car dealer ratings and reviews. He told me that he is not buying into all this user generated ratings and reviews stuff in the auto industry. “I think dealers need to go back to basics”, he said.  I was extremely shock to hear this.  I truly respect this person’s work within the industry, but couldn’t believe what I was hearing.  However, the person went on to explain what he meant by his statement. He felt that the demand for car dealer ratings and reviews was low compare to other business sections i.e. dinner and movies. 

I partially agree with him.  General rating and review sites have received massive exposure and financial support from the media and VC industry.  Car dealer ratings and reviews have been slowly accepted and adopted by the auto industry.  However, now the wave has risen and the force is greater.  The auto consumers are shouting and demanding transparency and trust, this is apparent through the recent media and industry attention it is receiving.  Nevertheless, individuals like the person I was conversing with, don’t believe consumers are a powerful force.  “Consumers don’t want a relationship with dealers”, he added.  Again I was shocked by the statement. But I understand what he was saying and how he felt.  His sentiment is shared by a few other dealers, they don’t respect the power of the auto consumer voice, yet.  These individuals need to be forced to adapt to the environment around them.  It has to be no other alternative in order for these individuals to make a change.

I am glad this is not the sentiment of the whole auto industry, because they can not afford to gamble their future prosperity on stubbornness.  But regardless, I would like to challenge all auto consumers to voice their opinion by using blogs, forums and MyDealerReport.com, so the industry can hear. 

Carfax and MyDealerReport.com, Deja vu!

Car dealerships have a reputation issue and auto consumers have a trust issue. Not so long ago some car dealers were known to sell lemons: previously damaged vehicles. This destroyed the trust and confidence that auto consumers had in used cars. Therefore, a distrustful relationship was born. Not until a product call Carfax came along did this relationship begin to improve. Carfax allows consumers to check the vehicle history for any mishaps. In the beginning car dealers were reluctant to accept this form of transparency. However, they soon realized it helped establish trust and eliminate objections during the sales process. Now, Carfax is used as a great selling tool and consumers have come to expect it.

They say we can learn from history. If this is true, then what can we learn from Carfax? MyDealerReport is the modern day Carfax. Only this time the product (cars) are not the center of transparency, instead it is the car dealers themselves. This time the acceptance period is much quicker due to the growth of the Internet. So I say to all car dealers, use MyDealerReport as a selling tool by building trust and eliminate objections during the selling process, because your consumers are starting to expected.

Online Dealership Reputation Management

In 2008 a new phrase has been coined “Online Dealership Reputation Management”. In other words, good old fashion customer service meets the net. Over four years ago MyDealerReport.com brought a level of accountability to the automotive industry with the introduction of dealer ratings and reviews. It has taken this long for the industry to catch up, but it better late than never. Well, I wouldn’t say late, rather right on time.

I have to applaud the industry for embracing this new assignment of transparency. It is not easy for anyone to be criticized in public. However, we are discovering more positive voices concerning dealership customer service, than negative. The dealers who have be utilizing our site to enhance their relationships with consumers have seen a significant improve in their reputations.

With this new push for online dealer reputation management the old train of thought “What have you done for me lately” must be replaced with “How can we help you for life”. Relationship building takes time and effort, therefore dealers must not focus only on today, but tomorrow, next month, next year etc. A great reputation is formed from a long series of positive interactions (touch points).

Are there bad dealers and unreasonable consumers? I am sure there are, but it doesn’t matter. What counts is the dealers ability to address the issues that arises. Dealers must always be the bigger man when a dispute develops, its their reputation on the line or should I say online. That is the primary reason we developed different tools to aid dealers with settling issues with consumers, therefore making them the Bigger Man.

Dealers should and must get involved immediately. The lack of activity puts them at risk and shows a lack of desire to build a long lasting relationship with consumers. The phrase “Online Dealership Reputation Management” has been coined , now it is time for dealers to cash it in.