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In the past few days, I’ve been visiting the 19th Friends and Client Workshop by David Kain in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. The gathering is a stark contrast to NADA in Las Vegas, especially in terms of content; it’s a much better concept! In a small hotel, 100 dealers gather for three days to attend presentations by the CEOs and founders of various online automotive companies!

Some solutions in retail automotive are very obvious. I’ve been explaining for years that when it comes to lead follow-up, it’s best to call quickly instead of emailing. Is there a phone number available? Then call immediately after the request comes in (after a minute, that is). The approach is simple and obvious, yet for some, execution remains challenging.

The universal car company and the follow-up of online leads… that’s often a fine combination! After all, most universal car companies are small in setup, and more manageable than, for example, a dealer company with multiple branches. Leads are generally better picked up in the first line, only often there’s a lack of insight, and the second and third follow-up of the leads is often more problematic.

This week, I had the opportunity to give a presentation to our sales team at Marktplaats and 2dehands.be about ‘the online automotive’. As I was preparing the presentation, I reflected on the past twenty years. My conclusion? The subject is far from new!

We recently visited a workshop by Jasen Rice at the NADA in Las Vegas! We attended his presentation with a clear purpose: Jasen is coming to our #DCDW Events in Antwerp and Almere on April 16th and 17th, so it’s good to know what he’s focused on.

Last week, viaBOVAG.nl announced that the vehicle inventory on the used car platform has been expanded to include cars without BOVAG warranty. My initial reaction was: why? Why would you discard your only USP for more inventory?

Sometimes I encounter dealers, especially those with multiple branches, who, despite all the data and common sense, employ a methodology regarding leads that doesn’t make sense. I don’t draw this conclusion because my perspective is the only correct one, because it isn’t, and there are really many more perspectives, but anything that leads to delay results in lower conversion rates. Speed is paramount in 2024, even in lead follow-up.

VDL ceased production of the Mini last week. Not only did the production halt garner attention in the press, but the trade unions also received a noticeable platform. In my opinion, entirely unjustified!

We’ve been back from NADA for two weeks now, and many people ask me if it’s worth investing so much time, energy, and thus money into such an event. My answer is always the same: yes! If you want to grow as an entrepreneur, as an employee, and also as a company, sometimes you need to take a step back. And it’s valuable to hear something different from the stories you already know. It can happen that you come back with a completely different idea, a different vision, or mindset, even though those new insights weren’t even addressed at the conference itself.

In October 2023, it finally happened: operational profit at the Ligier Store Doesburg! In the months that followed, November and December, black figures were also recorded, and for January, the results were likewise positive. My thought is that if we can make a profit for one month, we can also do it for two months. And if we can achieve that for a quarter, we can do it for two quarters, and then always….