Digital Dealer - August 2018 - 2

Contents

Message from the Show Director

COVER STORY
26 Interview With Phil Mitchell
of Sunset Auto Family
COVER PHOTO BY
MATT MCDANIEL

DEALER OPS
& MANAGEMENT
How to Spot Potential Leaders
in Your Organization
BY DAVE ANDERSON

CRM

24 The CRM of Tomorrow, Today
BY TONI ANNE FARDETTE

SALES &
VARIABLE OPS
FI XE D OP E R ATION S

32 2 Messages From
Dissatisfied Customers
R EP U TATION & B R A N D IN G

34 Why Reviews from the
Decision-Maker Matter
BY ANNE FLEMING

L E A D ERS HIP

Bridge the Gap Between
Where You Are and Where
You Want to Be
BY CHUCK BARKER

F& I SA LE S STR ATEGY

36 The 3 Essential Traits of
High-Profit F&I Managers
BY MIKE HIRSCHFIELD

S P E N D M ANAGEM ENT

12 Are You Organized for Success?
BY DOUG AUSTIN

LEA D H A N D LIN G

38 Price Is the Easiest Part of My Job
BY SEAN V. BRADLEY, CSP

L E G A L & RE GUL ATORY

14 BMW and Mazda Incentive
Program Changes May Violate
Franchise Laws
BY RICHARD SOX, ESQ.
F I X E D OP E RAT IONS

16 Accountability: The Centerpiece
of Success in Fixed Ops
BY CHARLIE POLSTON
F I X E D OP E RAT IONS

18 14 Ways to Recruit Technicians
BY ED KOVALCHICK
L E A D ERS HIP

BY ADRIANA PUENTE
H R A N D COM PL IANCE

MARKETING
& ADVERTISING
LE A D H A N D LIN G

40 Phone Power!
BY JIM BOLDEBOOK
SO C I A L ME D IA

42 8 Tactics to Help You Stand
out on Social Media
BY KATHI KRUSE
D I G I TA L R ETA IL

20 Disciplined Innovation

44 5 Signs It's Time to Part Ways
With Your Conversion Tools
BY ILANA SHABTAY

22 What the Companies With the
Worst Reputations All Have in
Common

SHOW DIRECTOR
David Southworth
Vice President, Digital Dealer
David.Southworth@emeraldexpo.com

BY KATIA TIKHONRAVOVA

L E A D E RS HIP

BY DAVID SOUTHWORTH

D I R E C T R ES P ON SE

46 Direct Response:
Now More Than Ever
BY ANTHONY J. TACITO

ADVERTISING
Publisher Melissa Green
melissa.green@digitaldealer.com
Associate Publisher Kerry Harrington
kerry.harrington@digitaldealer.com
Advertising Sales
sponsorships@digitaldealer.com

EDITORIAL
Editor & Content Manager Alissa Calvaruso
alissa.calvaruso@digitaldealer.com

ART
Creative Director Linda Fisher

PRODUCTION
Production Manager Terri Hill

MARKETING
Show Manager Matthew Ramirez
matthew.ramirez@digitaldealer.com
Marketing Manager Lindsey C. Kostura
Marketing Coordinator Meagan Rice

CONFERENCE
Operations Manager Chantelle Bean

CIRCULATION SUBSCRIPTION
Rich Jarrett
314-432-7511, gatewayrj@att.net

EMERALD EXPOSITIONS
Chief Executive Ofﬁcer and President
David Loechner
Chief Financial Ofﬁcer and Treasurer
Philip Evans
Chief Information Ofﬁcer
Bill Charles
SVP General Counsel and Secretary
David Gosling
Senior Vice President, Operations
Lori Jenks
Senior Vice President, Marketing Services
Joanne Wheatley
Executive Vice President
Darrell Denny
Vice President, Human Resources
Eileen Deady
Vice President, Corporate Operations
Denise Bashem

BY KYNZIE SIMS
Dealer magazine (ISSN 1537-6141) is published monthly by Emerald Expositions, LLC. Mailing address is 100
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alissa.calvaruso@digitaldealer.com.
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Association and a Committee of Publishers.

AUGUST 2018

D I G I TA L D E A L E R . C O M

A publication of
Emerald Expositions

http://www.DIGITALDEALER.COM

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Digital Dealer - August 2018