I was only trying to contribute to the forum. Fact is here in NJ there is not much sales or leasing going on so not sure how much traffic you are generating on that topic.
Also I thought it was proper to post in Off-Ramp. I’m not sure how you can infer my post was not leasing related so therefore not germane to forum? It says “Discuss all things automotive!” So you are saying it was not automotive, or should the sub-forum be one big thread since all things automotive are tangentially related?
It seems like you guys like to keep a nice neat forum with minimal post, fine I understand now and will certainly follow the “rules”. I don’t want to pollute your forum with silly things like threads.
Funny when you say don’t take it personally, I’m not sure how else to take it. MAde a post in good faith, got locked up and moved based on the premise it would go off the rails and become argumentative. Like I did it on purpose.
No PM, no notice just lock it up.
If you don’t think it was heavy handed I will agree to disagree with you too.
I didn’t post anything controversial, I didn’t bait anyone or any group, I didn’t use profanity. Yes, I bet most post are about COVID-19. Maybe you are on some other forums too, guess what same thing.
Again, my apologies for trying to contribute a little, I never meant for it to be this. I honestly respect(ed) the opinions of many people on this forum and thought it would be good conversation.
You are taking this way too seriously. There was no ill will. We merge threads all the time for just this very reason. Whether you started the first or second thread, is irrelevant. Both questions are still here and can still be answered.
Nobody said you posted anything controversial. Nobody said your post was baiting anyone. Nobody said your post had profanity. It’s about organization and not having multiple threads open on the same or similar topic.
Now, instead of arguing back and forth over something so petty, this is a 2nd request that we please get back on topic, whether you agree with our decisions on moderation or not.
I have found that this forum likes to keep on topic a lot more than other forums that I post on that allow for conversations to go wherever they end up going, so I agree that the moderating here is more heavy handed than other places one may be used to. That’s just the culture here and so be it.
With that said, in this specific case, your topic was merged, not deleted/sent to the abyss. They’re just trying to keep everything industry/covid related in one place as it’s been getting a bit out of hand otherwise. Has nothing to do with you and everything to do with all the other crap that’s been posted, so now everything is swept together. It happens to the best of us.
You asked a question in its own post, it got merged into an existing thread. Do you want to discuss the premise of your question, or the moderation habits of one particular forum?
i think this black swan presents an opportunity for manufacturers and dealers to revamp their model. But anything they change is still entangled with NADA (their lobbyists) and the state and local laws they’ve collectively put in place over many years.
You asked about dealers staying open: as @chevysalesgirl reminded us (I’m not scrolling all the bickering for quotes) service is where dealers make their money. Some % of that is warranty and manufacturer/prepaid maintenance, but they can survive on that for a while. Everyone wants then to take 50% losers so they might as well sit on the cars, especially if the banks extend their 0% on floor plan for a while.
I think the industry could adapt but doesn’t want to, and is going to wait to see how long before we return to “normal”, and how new or different normal is going forward.
And most of them are in meetings on Zoom and Webex and GoToMeeting from home trying to figure theses things up, scenario planning.
I’m confused to as why you’re making a speculative post when you yourself admit that these changes are happening in real-time?
Some dealers are closed, some are doing home deliveries, and others have laid off staff and are operating with skeleton crews. Do we really need to be speculating about this?
@Leasehackr2 - Personally, I think dealers will be more open to the WFH model and possibly allow salespeople to WFH. But I don’t think it’s going to be a big change. Think about this. When you go to a dealership, you have already done 90% of the work, the rest 10% is on the salesperson to make a sale. Now some of us that are seasoned hackrs, will probably walk in, test drive, chat, get some numbers and walk away. Those that aren’t seasoned, will get numbers, get pressured, the typical sales techniques, so on and so forth and will possibly end up getting a vehicle.
Keep this in mind, that is in person. You can’t do that online. As we do things here, we’ll get quotes, run the numbers and then see if they can do better, if not, we move on. Dealers need that walk in customer. So my answer to your question, I don’t think there’s going to be a massive change in the auto sales industry. Will there be some adapting and openness to working from home or online, most definitely. Will it be permanent - doubt it.
IMO, I don’t think things will change much. GM has tried an online approach called “shop click drive.” I won’t say its a failure, but it’s not a very popular service. One of the downfalls is that there is no negotiation doing things this way, so you take full price or not. While the younger generation seem to like this all in online buying experience, there are still many that like to touch feel and drive the car, more so than an online order ala Tesla. It’s also ingrained in the car buying public that you never pay sticker (or for most, that is). Sure, you can go into one of their stores and look and drive the car, but it seems silly to then have to order it online when you can take one home the same day at a traditional dealership.
Then you have the whole NADA lobby who won’t take too kindly to a complete online approach.
I think the current status quo will remain for the foreseeable future, which is really the best of both worlds. Those that want to visit a dealership to see and drive a car can, while others who want to email and work a deal online still have that option as well.
GMs portal is integrated into the Dealer website, so my answer was not manufacturer specific, but rather an example of online sales that don’t really work. GM itself doesn’t manage the portal. It’s up to individual GM dealerships to handle that on their own specific web pages. Some don’t even do it.
I still don’t expect the “must contact many dealers via email to get a few responses” will change. Dealers/sales staff are always going to focus on those in the store, as there is a potential to close a sale there. The general stereotype behind an email shopper is a tire kicker who may or may not close, or who is shopping the deal with several others.
To me the difference now is that this pandemic is a game changer in many ways.
I think many people who would usually walk into a dealership will have second thoughts now.
I think this prolonged social isolation / distancing practice will effect peoples psyche for a long time to some. And this isn’t a local thing it is nationwide
I think dealerships that adapt quickly will prosper with pent up demand when things get moving again, but some may never recover.
Dealers only care about making money. They make the most money (per unit) when people stop in and make deals in person under pressure. Currently though, they can only make deals via email/call/text, so that’s what they have to do. Once the shelter-in-place orders are over, dealers will go back to whatever makes them the most money.
I don’t think it will make a difference once things get back to normal. People are still going to go out to eat, go to casinos, concerts, shop, etc, etc. They’re still going to work in the cube right next to their peers. Car shopping will be no different. Within a year, there will likely be some form of vaccine similar to the flu shot as well. Americans tend to have a very short memory regarding crises
They will have to, since Amazon is/will be entering this space… And Amazon will presumably do to dealerships (and service stations) what it did to brick-and-mortar bookstores.
Here is a novel idea: all new sales done online through manufacturers’ sites. Dealers only provide new cars for test drives, service cars and sell used. Bingo.
Been through that process before, hated it. It shouldn’t take 3 weeks to buy a car that’s sitting (and presumably has been sitting) at your nearest delivery center.
That being said: anyone looking to get into a Tesla; Inventory cars are starting to see some fairly aggressive pricing if anyone is looking for a deal.
Agreed. Generally the dealership portion doesn’t really make big money. It’s everything else that brings in the cash.
@Leasehackr2 - I think for now, people will have second thoughts. Once this settles down and a vaccine is out or something. I think people are going to go back to their old ways. There will definitely be some change. But nothing so significant where people are going to stop going to a dealership all together. I doubt we’re gonna see a massive amount of dealerships going out of business.
