If you have been around our team at Bob Clements International for any length of time, you know we are fanatics when it comes to your dealership generating obscene amounts of money! In order to do that, you must have a business that meets your customers’ expectations throughout the experience. Wish as you may, your business can’t exist without your customers. Most of the dealerships we work with sell a high-quality product, provide excellent service, [...]

As I was talking to a dealer last week, he and his wife were lamenting on the mistakes they had made over the years in running their dealership and how they wished they could turn back the clock and have a do over. While I am sure most of us in life would like to do some things differently, the reality of where we are at has to do more with the mistakes we made [...]

While I don’t know of many owners that are excited about paying for insurance, in my years of experience working with dealerships, insurance is one area that most owners fail to evaluate properly each year based upon ownership changes or changes in increased or decreased levels of risk. While it might be tempting to evaluate insurance based upon the cost of the policy, it’s just as important to make sure that you have the right [...]

For many of you, the season has slowed down and you are getting a chance to catch your breath for the first time. While it is important to grab some much-needed rest as you end your 2019 seasonal journey, it’s also the perfect time to reflect on the season while it is still fresh in your mind. This is the time that we begin working with the dealerships we consult with to get their sales [...]

Have you ever had a terrible manager? I have, and my guess is you have too. Whenever the topic of management comes up, I can’t help but mentally go to all of the bad managers I have had. When I think about a terrible manager, I think of someone who micro-manages, lacks communication skills and motivates with fear. The first manager I had, in my first “real” job embodied all of those characteristics and often [...]

Our final FAQ Blog will be covering two of our most common marketing questions. Check out Sara Hey’s advice below! If you have any questions you would like answered, send them to Vanessa@bobclements.com! What percentage of sales should be spent on marketing?W There is a simple rule of thumb in dealerships when it comes to how much you should spend on marketing. If your dealership is less than 5 years old, or if you have [...]

This week Jeff Blackton took some time to answer three popular questions. If you have a question you would like to submit, send it to Vanessa@bobclements.com. We are always happy to help!  What process seems to break down fastest when things get busy? Triage. When service departments get busy, it can feel counterproductive to take a few minutes out of the day to triage newly dropped off equipment. The thing to remember is that the triage [...]

Continuing to provide answers to our Frequently Asked Questions, Bob Clements took some time to answer two popular questions. If you have a question you would like to submit, send it to Vanessa@bobclements.com. We are always happy to help!  Is there a percentage of markup considered for lot rash or self-inflicted dealer damage to products?  While there is no industry standard number you can use to calculate things like scratches, dents or broken lenses – [...]

What does a marketing budget look like for a dealership? If you’re like most people I talk with, you’re having one of two reactions. The first reaction I get is that when I say the word “budget” the first group says, “No! Not a budget!” However, when I mention a budget to the second group they say “Yes, a budget! Where has this been my whole life?” A budget is simply giving us permission and [...]

I was recently working with one of our Dealer Success Group members, and they asked the question “How do I know WHEN to spend our marketing money?” That is a great question because the seasonality of a dealership can dramatically affect when you spend your marketing money. Here are three important factors to keep in mind. Have a good understanding of your room for growth This is a process we call forecasting, which in simple [...]