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    • Ally: All Ears Podcast | Building trust to attract and retain customers
    • Ally: All Ears Podcast | Staying competitive with vehicle acquisition
    • Ally: All Ears Podcast | Used Car Bubble
    • Ally: All Ears Podcast | practices you may incorporate into your F&I department
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    • CDK Global: Shoppers make clear the service features they want
    • Capgemini: Unlocking the next turn in the mobility roadmap
    • Capital One Auto: Auto dealers are here to stay. Here’s the next step in their evolution
    • Champ: The history of titling and the cost of human error
    • Cox: Automation and the future of automotive retail
    • Cox: Transformation toward eCommerce in automotive retailing
    • Cox: Transforming F&I for Automotive eCommerce
    • Deloitte: ACCELERATING DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION
    • Easycare: Reinventing the service contract for EVs
    • Easycare: The importance of benchmarking your reinsurance performance
    • Effectv: Why “Customer Lifetime Value” Should Be the Auto Advertising Buzz Word for 2023
    • Experian, GroundfTruth and Spectrum Reach: Dealership marketing: Navigating automotive advertising in a post-pandemic world
    • Experian: Evolving identity beyond the “who” to enable the “how”
    • Experian: Three steps to adapting to constant change in automotive marketing
    • Haig Partners: Buy-Sell Q&A: Where the Automotive M&A Market is heading
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    • Haig: Buy-Sell Q&A | Navigating partial dealership sales
    • Haig: Buy-Sell Q&A: Future-proofing your dealership
    • Haig: Buy-Sell Q&A: What is the value of an M&A advisor?
    • JM&A Group, Easycare, Assurant: Unlocking new opportunities in F&I with digital retailing
    • Kerrigan Advisors: Interview with Baxter Auto Group
    • Kerrigan Advisors: Interview with Hitchcock Automotive
    • OEC: How to understand what customers are saying when they’re not saying it
    • PACE: Electrification Technology: Once the supply chain gets over the shock, EVs offer opportunities
    • Pace Program Navigating advanced driver-assistance systems
    • Phone Ninjas: 5 Reasons you need to use phone scripts for your dealership
    • REYNOLDS & REYNOLDS: Creating great retail customer experiences
    • REYNOLDS AND REYNOLDS: Are you ready for the FTC Safeguard Rule changes? Take this quiz to find out
    • Rey and Rey: Automation and the future of automotive retail
    • Siemens: The impact of vehicle electrification and connectivity on electrical system design
    • Spectrum Reach: Playing to win: How automotive dealers can capitalize on sports marketing
    • Swiss Re: Insurers and car manufacturers: how to unlock the potential of true collaboration
    • Text2Drive: Digital retailing meets the service department
    • Trimble: The future of autonomous vehicles speeds ahead
    • Truist: Capitalize on the changing structure of auto retailing
    • Truist: Prepare now for the next era of automotive retailing
    • Urban Science: Promoting dealer-consumer alignment across continued industry evolution
    • Walbridge: Video | Walbridge Chairman on how automotive companies are navigating the electrification boom
    • Western Digital: To Meet Consumer Demand, Automakers Must Double Down on Agile Development
    • Wipro: How to address safety and security for software-defined vehicles
    • Wipro: How today’s tech decisions drive tomorrow’s sales
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    • Wipro: The Promise of Software-Defined Vehicles and the Cloud Car Ecosystem
    • Wipro: Video | Wipro CTO on how OEM's are leveraging software-defined vehicle technology
    • Notarize: What to expect for the future of auto sales
    • Seagate: Unlocking value from connected-car data
    • Amazon Web Services: AI-powered supply chain decision-making
    • Epic Games: Five ways in-car designs will change in the next five years
    • Haig Partners: How are dealerships being valued today?
    • Haig Partners: Dealership consolidation trends
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    • Ally: Navigating the future of automotive retailing
    • Google: How a century-old brand is transforming the auto industry
    • Car Wars: Is a Rise in Service Leading to Poor Customer Satisfaction?
    • Solera | DealerSocket: Four real-time integrations that can save your dealership time
    • Solera | DealerSocket: Time for a new pre-owned pricing tactic
    • Kerrigan Advisors: Blue Sky Update Q4 2021
    • Qualcomm: Trading multi-year design cycles for on-demand features and experiences
    • Twitter: EV adoption is happening...in an unexpected place
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Arlena Sawyers

Former Reporter (retired)

[email protected]

313-446-0380

See All Staff Page
Recent Stories
Irma Elder
Elder: Business knowhow, ‘thinking of others'

When Irma Elder's husband died, she became the first woman to own a Ford dealership in metro Detroit and then expanded the group to become one of the largest woman- and minority-owned auto retailers in the country.

ROSSFAM-MAIN_i.jpg
Rosses: Influential dealer family pays it forward

Bob and Norma Ross became the country's first Black Mercedes-Benz dealer, paving the way for daughter Jenell to become an influential industry advocate for the development of women and minorities as dealers and in the retail automotive work force.

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Wilsons: Paving trails for Black, female dealers

Barbara Wilson became the industry's first Black female dealer principal when she and her husband, Porterfield Wilson, acquired a Honda store in 1979. Porterfield's sales prowess put them on the path to retail success, landing him a Pontiac dealership in 1970.

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3D printing at the dealership could ease supply chain kinks

Parts shortages and a surge in repair work could spur dealerships to add 3D-printing capability in about 5 to 7 years.

inventory-MAIN_i.jpg
Dealers tap retail tech tools to fill used-car lots

At a time when car dealers are desperate to land more vehicles to sell, retail technology firms see an opportunity to bolster their inventory-sourcing offerings.

How one dealership socks away cash to help employees in times of crisis

Workers at Planet Ford-Lincoln in Texas can voluntarily contribute $10 per month to a fund from which they can also withdraw money when a personal emergency arises.

Consumer auto loan rates are declining

After four federal interest rate hikes in 2018 and three reductions last year, consumer auto loan rates are easing, according to analysts who track loan patterns and dealers committed to finding the best rates for their customers.

Joe Knoepfler of Knoepfler Chevrolet in Sioux City, Iowa, said that using educational videos and training staff helped boost F&I sales.
Marketing means explaining F&I products to consumers

Educating consumers before they arrive at the dealership about why they need such products is critical, pros say.

Remaining compliant as regs change

F&I trainers, auditors and software providers help dealerships be compliant by alerting them to new laws and regulations, including changes that may be coming.

Killer clown case spawned auto career
There's always a back story. For Terry O'Loughlin, director of compliance for Reynolds and Reynolds, a case involving a killer clown led him on the path to an automotive career.
Dealerships benefit by valuing employees
Lamborghini Broward and Honolulu Volkswagen completed 2017 without any employee turnover. One of the secrets to their success? Generous and flexible paid time off.
New York's Paragon sweetened Clunkers deal
Brian Benstock reduced management headcount, lowered advertising costs by targeting his existing customers and embraced Cash for Clunkers.

Prestige Auto lost 5 dealerships, but efficiency and cash helped keep it steady
Operating lean, working harder to get financing for customers and selling more used vehicles softened the blow of losing five dealerships at Prestige Automotive.
Barnett Auto Group cross-trained staff, brought discipline to ad spending
Carl Barnett Sr.'s three dealerships retailed 1,452 new and 1,069 used vehicles in 2017 and is tracking to exceed those numbers in 2018. Things weren't nearly as good during the recession.
When leases dried up, Michigan dealer Bill Perkins retrained his staff in the art of retailing
When new-car leasing dried up, dealer Bill Perkins retrained employees to sell through retail contracts and schooled them about the ins and outs of selling CPO vehicles.
  • Load More
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    • Dealers
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      • Best Practices
      • Dealership Buy/Sell
        • Done Deals
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      • Guide to Economic Development
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      • Daimler
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        • Porsche
        • Seat
        • Skoda
      • Volvo
      • (Discontinued Brands)
    • Cars & Concepts
      • Auto Shows
      • Future Product Pipeline
      • Virtual reveals (Sponsored)
        • NISSAN: 2023 Z
        • MITSUBISHI: 2022 Outlander
        • NISSAN: 2022 Pathfinder and 2022 Frontier
        • GENESIS: 2021 GV80
        • KIA: 2021 K5
        • LEXUS: 2021 IS
        • NISSAN: 2021 Rogue
        • TOYOTA: 2021 Venza and 2021 Sienna
      • Photo Galleries
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      • EY
      • Infomedia
      • McKinsey
      • Microsoft
      • Polly
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      • Truist
      • Wolters Kluwer
      • Acxiom
      • Blue Yonder
      • CDK Global
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      • DealerPolicy
      • Equifax
      • Gentex
      • IHS Markit
      • MSX International
      • Micron
      • Qualcomm
      • Remember Group
      • Reputation.com
      • Ricardo: Dave Shemmans
      • Ricardo: Marques McCammon
      • Salty
      • T-Mobile
    • Publishing Partners
      • Allstate: Compliance standards are changing. Here’s what you need to know.
      • Allstate: The ABCs of maximum F&I effectiveness
      • Ally All Ears Podcast Episode | The next evolution in virtual F&I
      • Ally All Ears Podcast | How F&I is driving dealership profits
      • Ally All Ears Podcast | building customer loyalty during challenging times
      • Ally All Ears Podcast | reducing friction in the purchase process
      • Ally: All Ears Podcast | Building trust to attract and retain customers
      • Ally: All Ears Podcast | Staying competitive with vehicle acquisition
      • Ally: All Ears Podcast | Used Car Bubble
      • Ally: All Ears Podcast | practices you may incorporate into your F&I department
      • Amazon Ads: Marketing tips for electric cars and alternative-fuel auto advertisers
      • Big Ass Fans: Reducing risk and productivity loss with Big Ass Fans & evaporative coolers
      • CDK Global: Shoppers make clear the service features they want
      • Capgemini: Unlocking the next turn in the mobility roadmap
      • Capital One Auto: Auto dealers are here to stay. Here’s the next step in their evolution
      • Champ: The history of titling and the cost of human error
      • Cox: Automation and the future of automotive retail
      • Cox: Transformation toward eCommerce in automotive retailing
      • Cox: Transforming F&I for Automotive eCommerce
      • Deloitte: ACCELERATING DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION
      • Easycare: Reinventing the service contract for EVs
      • Easycare: The importance of benchmarking your reinsurance performance
      • Effectv: Why “Customer Lifetime Value” Should Be the Auto Advertising Buzz Word for 2023
      • Experian, GroundfTruth and Spectrum Reach: Dealership marketing: Navigating automotive advertising in a post-pandemic world
      • Experian: Evolving identity beyond the “who” to enable the “how”
      • Experian: Three steps to adapting to constant change in automotive marketing
      • Haig Partners: Buy-Sell Q&A: Where the Automotive M&A Market is heading
      • Haig: Buy-Sell Q&A | Advisors add value to sales process
      • Haig: Buy-Sell Q&A | Navigating partial dealership sales
      • Haig: Buy-Sell Q&A: Future-proofing your dealership
      • Haig: Buy-Sell Q&A: What is the value of an M&A advisor?
      • JM&A Group, Easycare, Assurant: Unlocking new opportunities in F&I with digital retailing
      • Kerrigan Advisors: Interview with Baxter Auto Group
      • Kerrigan Advisors: Interview with Hitchcock Automotive
      • OEC: How to understand what customers are saying when they’re not saying it
      • PACE: Electrification Technology: Once the supply chain gets over the shock, EVs offer opportunities
      • Pace Program Navigating advanced driver-assistance systems
      • Phone Ninjas: 5 Reasons you need to use phone scripts for your dealership
      • REYNOLDS & REYNOLDS: Creating great retail customer experiences
      • REYNOLDS AND REYNOLDS: Are you ready for the FTC Safeguard Rule changes? Take this quiz to find out
      • Rey and Rey: Automation and the future of automotive retail
      • Siemens: The impact of vehicle electrification and connectivity on electrical system design
      • Spectrum Reach: Playing to win: How automotive dealers can capitalize on sports marketing
      • Swiss Re: Insurers and car manufacturers: how to unlock the potential of true collaboration
      • Text2Drive: Digital retailing meets the service department
      • Trimble: The future of autonomous vehicles speeds ahead
      • Truist: Capitalize on the changing structure of auto retailing
      • Truist: Prepare now for the next era of automotive retailing
      • Urban Science: Promoting dealer-consumer alignment across continued industry evolution
      • Walbridge: Video | Walbridge Chairman on how automotive companies are navigating the electrification boom
      • Western Digital: To Meet Consumer Demand, Automakers Must Double Down on Agile Development
      • Wipro: How to address safety and security for software-defined vehicles
      • Wipro: How today’s tech decisions drive tomorrow’s sales
      • Wipro: Software Helps Address the Affordability Challenge
      • Wipro: The Promise of Software-Defined Vehicles and the Cloud Car Ecosystem
      • Wipro: Video | Wipro CTO on how OEM's are leveraging software-defined vehicle technology
      • Notarize: What to expect for the future of auto sales
      • Seagate: Unlocking value from connected-car data
      • Amazon Web Services: AI-powered supply chain decision-making
      • Epic Games: Five ways in-car designs will change in the next five years
      • Haig Partners: How are dealerships being valued today?
      • Haig Partners: Dealership consolidation trends
      • Haig Partners: Dealership valuation trends
      • Haig Partners: Dealership succession planning
      • Ally: Navigating the future of automotive retailing
      • Google: How a century-old brand is transforming the auto industry
      • Car Wars: Is a Rise in Service Leading to Poor Customer Satisfaction?
      • Solera | DealerSocket: Four real-time integrations that can save your dealership time
      • Solera | DealerSocket: Time for a new pre-owned pricing tactic
      • Kerrigan Advisors: Blue Sky Update Q4 2021
      • Qualcomm: Trading multi-year design cycles for on-demand features and experiences
      • Twitter: EV adoption is happening...in an unexpected place
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