Local Auto Dealer Associations  (continued)
I attended the MSADA on Dec 1st with some dear friends
and business colleagues; Nancy Phillips and Jim Ziegler, the
keynote speaker at the show. We introduced our programs
and battle plans for the upcoming year which includes a
phenomenal new tool for fixed operations.
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Jim Bernardi has held such positions as; Dealer, General
Manager, Director of Operations, District Operations
Manager, Parts & Service Director, Service Director,
Service Manager, Service Advisor and is President of
AutoPro Training & Marketing Solutions. A National Fixed
Operations Training Company which guarantees
increased GP or their training is free.  812-325-5651
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SUPERIOR DEALER SOLUTIONSsm
Jim Bernardi
Publisher/CEO Automotive Dealers Network
President/CEO AutoPro Training Solutions
email: jbernardi@automotivedealersnetwork.com
and visit
MotiveLogic has become a strategic partner in our continued assault for service and parts profitability internationally.
Attending the convention were over 200 Massachusetts dealer principles and their managers. As for many dealers in
attendance we were relieved to hear and witness a sense of calm and optimism for the “Road Ahead”.

    Dealers today are experiencing tremendous growth and profitability in their fixed
    departments. As in the recent past while the economy was buckling and so many
    dealers had to close their doors after 3 generations of success, we thought we were
    in for a rough ride and a turbulent future with fewer dealers and less operating
    capitol. The resounding voice and message at the convention was optimistic. For the
    dozens of dealers I had the pleasure of speaking with, I applaud their openness and
    sincerity for discussing their plans and allowing us to assist their franchises.

    Some time ago I made a comment regarding the fixed department as a whole. Since
    81% of dealership profitability comes directly from the service and parts
    departments, dealers understand the huge demand for a safe and reliable vehicle
    exiting their departments daily. Our first goal remains keeping your customers out of
    the phone books.

    Allow me to illustrate a scenario:
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    Dealerships as a whole spend several thousands of dollars annually trying to generate new and loyal
    customers through a variety of marketing strategies. However if your service and parts team doesn’t have
    the same vision as the sales team, well then it’s the same as flushing your hard earned business down the
    drain. Here’s my example:

     Customers who purchase vehicles from you will most likely have their Warranty Work performed
    by you.

     If you’re performing your customers Warranty Work, you should be performing their Scheduled
    Maintenance.

     If you’re performing their Scheduled Maintenance, you will obviously have an opportunity to
    perform their Major Repair Services.

      If you are performing their Warranty Work, Scheduled Maintenance, as well as Major Repair
    Services, the opportunity will arise when it’s time to buy another vehicle, they will most likely Buy
    From You.

    When you drop the ball anywhere along the way, you lose the customer’s loyalty. And quite honestly: our
    industry drops the ball entirely too often (approximately 82% of the time). In football this would be
    considered a fumble, which generally leads to the other team (your competition) taking possession of
    your #1 asset (your customer).

    If you do not have a team that has your same vision, perhaps it’s time to evaluate the performance of
    the entire fixed team. We still travel the nation delivering uncompromising results.

    We are in our 1st quarter with a fantastic dealer in Delaware and have made huge gains in just our first
    month; over $47,000 increased GP as compared to previous Year's MTD. That’s HUGE! We always look
    forward to receiving dealership financial statements to review your increases. Contact me and I will go
    over the gains and discuss our long term battle plan for your franchise.  Have a very Merry Christmas
    and a very Happy New Year.