Consider the schedule of the past few weeks:
• The National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) held its annual gathering in Orlando, Florida;
• The Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA) held its inaugural CADA Summit in Toronto;
• The Toronto auto show (properly called the Canadian International AutoShow) held its media day and VIP night;
• The third Digital Dealer Conference was put on by the Trillium Automobile Dealers Association (TADA) in Ottawa and Toronto.
For dealers, and certainly for us magazine-types that write for dealers, these events offer a truly remarkable set of learning opportunities.
So what did I learn? Here a brief sampling:
FROM THE ECONOMISTS
Overall, the economic picture is pretty good. The housing market is recovering in the States, and while the federal government’s intervention in tightening mortgage rules in Canada has cooled it, this does not likely foreshadow a market drop. The employment picture is improving in the U.S. and is not bad in Canada. Interest rates remain at historic lows and are expected to stay that way for the foreseeable future. The age of vehicles out there is at an all-time high, so many customers will need or want to make a change. Even the high personal debt levels we so often hear about in the media don’t appear likely to seriously undermine an otherwise positive picture given the low cost of carrying that debt.
FROM BOB LUTZ
Standing onstage with Bob Lutz at the end of the CADA Summit, with Bob happily fielding my questions, was a great finish to a great day. I’ve done a lot of event moderation and public speaking. That stands out as a special moment. Bob had given an engaging keynote talk, but it wasn’t until I explored what’s next for him that he truly lit up. Here’s a guy in his eighties, with decades of automotive experience under his belt, who is launching a car company, writing a new book, and showing no signs of slowing down. For me, the lesson learned is very simple: What’s done is done. Learn from it, but throw your energy and passion into what’s coming next.
FROM STEVEN RATTNER
The audience at the CADA Summit was truly enthralled listening to Steven Rattner describe the events and discussions he participated in as the Obama-led U.S. government decided how best to prevent the demise of GM and Chrysler. Let me distill it down to this: Poor management can kill any company, of any size. Many of you reading this lead your companies. Let us always be on the lookout for our own bad decision-making.
FROM TADA’S DIGITAL DEALER CONFERENCE
Many dealers are moving past learning about why they need to be great digital marketers, and are now focusing on how to do it. It wasn’t long ago that online leads weren’t always treated with great care. That is increasingly not the case. Hats off to Canada’s dealers for embracing their digital business development. Hats off to TADA for evolving their conference content to reflect this. For those not there yet: you missed the first bus. Don’t miss the next one.
