CBT automotive newscast: June 3, 2022

Inside Automotive:

Brian Pasch shares valuable takeaways from the annual DMSC
Each year dealers across the country flock to Napa Valley, California, for The Digital Marketing Strategies Conference or DMSC, and this year was no different. Today on Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome back Brian Pasch, Founder of PCG Companies, BPE | Pasch Enterprises, and host of the CBT series, Auto Marketing Now, to give us a recap on this year’s conference. Watch the complete segment here.

Headlines:

Ford CEO Jim Farley said this week that the automaker may need to make further adjustments to its business model to stay in the competition with other electric vehicle makers like Tesla. Farley said the transition to EVs is exciting, but that ford may need to implement various “tiers of dealers” and cut advertising, especially for its most popular EVs like the Lightning F-150 truck.

In other news from Ford, Ohio governor Mike DeWine announced yesterday, that the automaker will be investing $1.5 billion to further the production of a new electric commercial vehicle at the automaker’s Avon Lake assembly facility. The plant’s expansion is expected to start sometime in the coming months, and Ford said it will employ 1,800 people. The automaker is hoping to start building the new commercial vehicle around 2025.

The National Transportation Safety Board has announced that various automakers agreed to integrate the agency’s recommendations for the improvement of their emergency response protocols for electric vehicle battery fires. These include a total of eight automakers such as Honda, Hyundai, Volkswagen, and Volvo. Other automakers, including Ford and General Motors, have begun to take action but have not fully incorporated the agency’s guidelines since they were issued in January of 2021.

More than 15,000 car dealers across the United States now have access to UVeye’s new technology that helps expedite repair orders with the use of cameras and scanners. The new offering is available to dealers who utilize CDK Global’s Fortellis dealership management system, and it can seamlessly check the underbody and exterior of a vehicle as well as inspect the tires.

News & Opinion:

3 tasks BDC staff should handle and 3 they should not
The Business Development Center (BDC) is the central nervous system of many auto dealerships. It’s the hub that makes things happen and the lifeblood that keeps customers returning. That’s why BDCs need to be effective, efficient, and organized. It would also be good if the BDC crew spent time on the sales and service floor to see how vital the BDC relationship is to other departments. So here are some tasks that a strong BDC should be doing daily – and some that it definitely shouldn’t. Read More

The Great Resignation continues: here’s what dealers can do to increase employee retention
Employers across all industries should keep their HR teams on alert. The Great Resignation has not been confined to 2021 as everyone had hoped. The Global Workforce Hopes and Fears Survey 2022 released by PricewaterhouseCoopers at Davos has found that roughly one in five employees will leave their jobs within the following year. The automotive retail sector is no stranger to high turnover, especially in sales-based positions. In 2019 – two years before the Great Resignation – Cox Automotive reported that dealership turnover was already 46%. Through the next three years, that figure has almost certainly increased. What can dealerships do to stem the outflow of employees? Here are three areas to address. Read More