March 31, 2016
Google Launches Pair of Mobile Tools to Connect Car Shoppers, Dealers
Google has rolled out two mobile-search ad formats to help drive consumers to dealerships as more car-shopping activity occurs on mobile devices. According to Automotive News, illustrating the importance of imagery to the car-buying process, the interactive Model Automotive ads allow shoppers searching for vehicles to swipe through a series of photos on the results page while learning about details such as mpg. Google says searches for “pictures of [automotive brand]” were up 37 percent in September 2015 from the year-earlier period, with 80 percent of those searches taking place on mobile. Google shared plans that it was building Model Automotive ads in May 2015, a spokesperson said. Now, they’re being fully released to auto advertisers. The other format, Dealer Automotive ads, provides information about a dealership’s location along with a click-to-call button so consumers can contact stores. This format is available to franchised and authorized dealerships in the U.S., the company announced yesterday. For more on Google’s new mobile tools to connect car shoppers and dealers, click here.
Report Says Automakers Finding It Easier to Be Green
According to WardsAuto, auto industry specialists are backing the conclusions of a new report from the world’s largest think tank, the Paris-based Organization for Economic Co-operation & Development, which said following tighter environmental rules can be good business. The report, “Do Environmental Policies Affect Global Value Chains?” released March 10 at the London School of Economics, aims to counter the notion that stricter rules increase costs and damage business, especially in emerging markets. Instead, it argues, automakers can boost earnings through selling clean cars, leveraging investment in R&D through patenting innovation. Antoine Dechezlepretre, associate professorial research fellow at the LSE’s Grantham Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, notes there are 40 percent more inventions in clean-car technology than in more traditional car technologies. “Clean cars is one of the biggest green-industry growth areas and ranks alongside the nano-technology, 3-D and robot industries. We need more R&D incentives as well as emissions-pricing policies,” he says. For more on why automakers are finding it easier to be green, click here.
Autos Are a Small Part of Military Complaints to CFPB
According to Automotive News, in the runup to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s launch, much was made of how auto dealers abused our service members and veterans. On March 22, the CFPB released a report, “Servicemembers 2015: A Year in Review.” It shows, as prior reports have, that dealerships and auto loans are far, far down on the list of financial issues that service members complain about. According to Automotive News, the CFPB received over 19,000 complaints from the military community in 2015, up from more than 17,000 in 2014. Almost half of those complaints – 46 percent – were about debt collection. Some of those were complaints about collection tactics by auto lenders. In general, auto loans fell in the “consumer loan” category, which accounted for about 1,400 complaints, or 7 percent of the total. To be sure, the F&I manager at a dealership near a military base darn well better be aware of which loan contracts could be restrictive to their military customers. But that said, the latest CFPB report really shows that dealerships aren’t the problem they were painted to be. Read more about how auto loans are a small part of CFPB complaints here.
CPO: Greater Flexibility for Financing?
For the “Best CPO Dealers in the United States” edition of Auto Remarketing this winter, the publication asked top-selling Mercedes-Benz certified pre-owned dealers how the quality of CPO allows for flexibility of expanding financing terms to help buyers stay within their budget parameters. “Simply put, CPO vehicles command greater value than their non-certified counterparts, and they hold their value for a longer period of time. Knowing that the vehicle has passed the manufacturer’s rigorous inspection process and with the assurance of an extended factory warranty, a CPO vehicle brings a high level of trust to our buyers and confidence to our lenders,” said Randy Powell, the general manager and partner, Mercedes-Benz of Birmingham, which sold 572 certified vehicles last year. Over at Mercedes-Benz of Rockville Centre — which sold 499 CPO vehicles in 2015 — pre-owned sales manager Cary Weinstein said: “Lending on a vehicle that went through a manufacturer’s strict CPO inspection process allows banks to offer longer terms, lower rates, and more advance, allowing the buyer increased flexibility when fitting a vehicle purchase into a budget.” For more on how CPO vehicles are good for dealer financing, click here.
The World's Most Traffic-Congested Cities
Forbes recently highlighted a list of the U.S. cities in which commuters waste the most time sitting in traffic. While we suffer some intolerable tie-ups here, the most clogged arteries in the nation – those in and around Los Angeles – barely make the top-10 list of the most bottlenecked burgs on the planet. That distinction would go to Mexico City, where its car-bound citizens spend 59 percent more time getting to and from work than they would during the times of day commuters can only dream about – when traffic is otherwise moving freely. And that’s the daily average – Mexico City motorists spend an estimated 97 percent extra time behind the wheel during the morning rush hour, and 94 percent extra time during the evening peak. All told, that’s as many as 219 travel hours – nearly five and a half weeks of work time – wasted per year behind the wheel. Overall, traffic has increased by 13 percent globally since 2008. North America, enjoying the effects of economic growth, leads the globe in that regard with a 17 percent jump over the last eight years. For more on the world’s most congested cities, click here.
Join AIADA in Las Vegas at NADA 2016
If you’re headed to Las Vegas for NADA’s annual convention, don’t forget to add AIADA’s 46th Annual Meeting and Luncheon to your list of must-attend events. Join us this Sunday, April 3 at 11:30 a.m. at the Westgate Resort and Casino’s Paradise North Ballroom to hear from AIADA’s 2016 Chairman, Greg Kaminsky of California, who will discuss his goals for international dealers in this crucial election year. Toyota North America CEO Jim Lentz will provide keynote remarks and we’ll also recognize the recipient of AIADA’s 2016 lifetime achievement award. You can reserve your seat at the luncheon through Friday by clicking here to register online. Please note: After Friday, online registration will close, but will be available at the door prior to the event.
And, while you're in Las Vegas, make sure to check out AIADA's Affinity Partners. Click here for a quick reference guide on where to find them at NADA 2016.
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