#512 -🕵️‍♀️ Cracking the Code

TOGETHER WITH

It’s funny what you learn about people when you ask.

Of course, being at a hotel/casino/conference center with them for four days also speeds up the conversation.

All the same, ask a teammate today what they wish they had more time for and get to know the person they are and the person they are becoming.

It’s worth the time.

Keep Pushing Back
-Paul, Kyle, Chris & Kristi

TODAY’S LOT WALK

• MTCM: Rafferty Subaru is committed to their local kiddos in need. 👶

• DATA & INSIGHT: Understanding behavior types can help you better understand your customers. 💡

• CULTURE: The FCC is getting aggressive about getting neutral 🤺

Reading time: 4 min and 11 secs

ASOTU CON 2023

Plug Revealed

Our friend and former Tesla executive, Jimmy Douglas, has taken the EV industry by introducing Plug—an online used-car wholesale marketplace exclusively designed for electric vehicles.

📅 Event Unveiling: He announced the platform at ASOTU CON 2023, but we won’t take all the credit for this dope new development in the retail auto world. 😉

Innovations leads to greater collaboration. The current EV market often overlooks vital EV-specific details, leading to inconsistent vehicle valuations. By capturing accurate EV data remotely—like battery health and software features—Plug aims to rectify this. Each listing offers:

• AI-enhanced photos

• Comprehensive Plug Report detailing the car's unique features

The platform serves specialized EV dealers and those looking for a quick turnover of used EV trade-ins. Douglas emphasized the industry's significant demand for a specialized used EV marketplace. ⚡️

it could get a lot easier soon for dealers of any size or style to access the used EV market.

/Positivity

We love sharing the stories of dealers partnering with their communities. If you have a story like that, send it our way! 🕊️

DATA & INSIGHT

Cracking the Consumer Code

Understanding why customers choose a particular car can be a game-changer in the world of car sales. Here's a closer look at how different consumer behavior models can impact the car-buying process:

1️⃣ Psychoanalytical: This model delves into deep motives behind purchases. Customers may desire a specific vehicle due to childhood memories or personal beliefs, leading to an emotional attachment that can influence their decisions, even when it comes to price.

2️⃣ Sociological: Societal groups play a significant role in shaping preferences. People tend to align their car choices with what their peers or colleagues drive. Understanding customer characteristics, such as employment and hobbies, can help tailor offerings.

3️⃣ Economic: Price and budget are key drivers here. Most buyers seek the best deal they can get. However, recent disruptions, like car and semiconductor shortages, have caused some customers to stretch their budgets to secure their desired vehicles.

4️⃣ Engel-Kollat-Blackwell: This model outlines the consumer decision process in five stages: awareness, information processing, evaluation, purchasing decision, and outcome analysis. Providing comprehensive information and engaging with customers at each stage can significantly impact their choices.

5️⃣ Black Box: External stimuli, often in the form of marketing materials, influence consumer decisions. Crafting compelling ads that resonate with customer needs and desires can drive them toward a purchase.

Incorporating these consumer behavior models into marketing and sales strategies can help car dealerships better connect with their audience. Whether dealing with price-sensitive customers or those seeking high-end vehicles, understanding these models will help inform your most successful sales strategies. 💪

TOGETHER WITH FULLTHROTTLE.AI

Marketing In The Clouds ☁️

fullthrottle.ai’s Integrated Marketing Cloud is the most advanced marketing platform for dealers.

Prioritize your customers with an always-on, one-to-one messaging solution that provides value to your customers – unique to each customer – to re-engage defective customers and keep your current ones. 

Transform your unknown website traffic into tangible, first-party households - households you need to power your marketing efforts.

Reward your customers by driving lead submissions and showroom foot traffic with enticing, customized offers. 

With fullthrottle.ai’s technology, you can target and measure segmented audiences of previous customers and new in-market prospects down to single-household transactions. 

Additionally, customers can easily receive and redeem dealership incentive coupons for test drives, appraisals, and lease returns.

Book a demo with fullthrottle.ai to convert more traffic, build dealership loyalty, and drive more foot traffic to your dealership.

BUSINESS

Lil’ Honda, Extra Rivian, and ChEV vs. Ford

Honda's launching sixty "Shogo" mini electric cars for U.S. children's hospitals. Initially designed by volunteer Honda engineers for the Children's Hospital of Orange County, the new Shogo aims to bring joy to patients aged 4-9. Features include a 1-5 mph speed limit, custom license plates, and an IV pole handlebar.

Rivian is poised to surpass EV delivery expectations this quarter suggests Baird analyst Ben Kallo, dubbing Rivian stock a "fresh pick.” Despite a recent 13% stock dip, Kallo remains optimistic, predicting Q3 sales of $1.5B.

Meanwhile, Tesla faces challenges with anticipated lower deliveries and factory downtimes, affecting its stock, which dropped about 11%.

Chevy's Silverado EV, touting a 450-mile range and 10,000 lbs of towing capacity, recently went head-to-head with the iconic Ford F-150 in a gas vs. electric towing showdown by The Fast Lane Truck.

With both towing 6,500-pound trailers, the Silverado's electric might maintain impressive efficiency, leaving it with a 52% charge after 116 miles. Both vehicles' refueling costs hit $98, but the Silverado's home charging cost is a mere fraction at under $20.

The primary challenge? The Silverado EV's need for pull-through chargers.

CULTURE

Neutrallity Restored?

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is set to revisit net neutrality rules ensuring equal internet access. These rules, first introduced in 2015, prevented ISPs from blocking websites or charging extra for faster services but were repealed in 2018.

FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel, emphasizing the essential nature of broadband access, announced that the commission plans an initial vote on October 19th to reinstate these rules. Though the proposal mirrors the 2015 regulations, reinstating them will require time, further says, and potential legal battles, especially as telecom giants like Verizon and AT&T have previously opposed such rules.

Quick Hits

• Lego has abandoned its effort to ditch oil-based plastics from its bricks after finding that its new material led to higher carbon emissions. 🧱

• After 146 days, Hollywood studios and screenwriters declared Sunday they’d reached a tentative deal. 🎬

• OpenAI has unveiled a new version of ChatGPT that allows users to speak aloud or upload an image to prompt its chatbot. 🤖

History

• 1825: George Stephenson's "Locomotion No. 1" became the first steam locomotive to carry passengers on a public rail line. 🚂

• 1905: Albert Einstein's paper "Does the Inertia of a Body Depend Upon Its Energy Content?" introduces the equation E=mc². 🧮

• 1908: Henry Ford's first Ford Model T automobile leaves the Piquette Plant in Detroit. 🥇