Winners receive a complimentary pass to the 3-day conference, in addition to hotel stay and round trip airfare. All contestants submitted a 30 second video explaining why they should with the scholarship and members of the ADM community voted for their favorites. Ashley received 69 votes and Kenneth was not far behind with an equally impressive 67 votes.

Ashley is a marketing coordinator for her dealership in Corpus Christi, Texas and proudly proclaimed that she feels one can never learn enough about technology and how it is used in the auto business. She can’t wait to pump up her knowledge about social media and Internet marketing and bring back tons of ammo that Access Ford can utilize. Knowing that technology is constantly evolving, Ashley is sure to get the most out of her experience at this year’s Automotive Boot Camp.

Kenneth wants cars, marketing, technology, and Boot Camp and now, he’s got it! His video showcased his enthusiasm for the possibility of going to Vegas for this year’s Automotive Boot Camp.  A maniacal marketing machine, Kenneth is sure to take home a ton of valuable information and insights that will better his dealership in Delevan, Wisconsin.

First Class Educators and the ADM thanks all contestants for posting their videos and participating in the first ADM Boot Camp Scholarship contest. All contests are invited to contact Carrie Hemphill to receive a special discount to attend the Automotive Boot Camp!

To register for Boot Camp, please visit http://www.automotivebootcamp.com/ or contact Carrie Hemphill at 908.601.6475 or carrie@firstclasseducators.com.

Click here to register now!

One of the most talked about automotive marketing conferences, the Automotive Boot Camp, is set to begin in less than a month. Dealer employees from across the country will convene at the Monte Carlo Hotel in Las Vegas May 15-17 to learn from the industry’s leading speakers, trainers, educators and experts.

The Automotive Boot Camp is a two day marketing and exhibition event that brings dealers up to speed on the latest and most effective Internet marketing strategies, answers critical questions and helps dealers create effective BDC and business processes and provides hands-on demonstrations so attendees can implement what they learned immediately. In a nutshell, the Automotive Boot Camp provides the needed training and skill development dealers need to run their business in an Internet centric world.

Where Boot Camp really provides value though, is in its course structure. There will be over 40 workshops and class sessions specifically targeted to the needs of dealers. Instead of offering restrictive passes based on tiered pricing, a one time conference fee gives dealers access to all areas of the conference, all workshops and the vendor exhibit hall. Dealers can also take home all of the marketing material that is presented in workshops and participate in morning fitness programs, one is being lead by world renowned athlete Will Cross.

Since the Boot Camp is one of the most information and event packed conference, it is recommended that dealers send more than one person to the conference to take advantage of everything that is offered. In addition to unlimited access, the conference fee also includes meals for both days. Group discount pricing for the Monte Carlo hotel at just $59 per night has been secured for Boot Camp attendees.

Automotive Boot Camp is Best Bang for Your Buck Conference

With all of the included workshops, events, meals, cocktails, fitness programs and marketing materials offered to attendees, the Boot Camp is one of the ‘best bang for your buck’ marketing conferences available.

Car dealers seeking hands-on training, mentoring, coaching, and assistance with creating the structure, process, and innovative marketing plans should invest in sending key staff to the Automotive Boot Camp. The Boot Camp experience includes keynote speakers, roundtable discussions, workshops, labs, and technology showcases. The programs will be lead by industry leaders, subject matter experts, and leading dealership employees.

The Boot Camp offers classes for dealers just beginning their journey to the digital world as well as workshops, lectures and speakers for dealers that are at the peak of their digital presence and are ready to take it to the next level.

Some of this year’s featured speakers include Ralph Paglia, James Zigeler, JD Rucker, Jerry Thibeau, Brian Pasch, David Page, Glen Garvin, Tracy Myers, Joe Webb, Marc McGurren, Tim Martell, Ben Anderson, Joni Stuker, Egon Smola, Jeff Tirey, Christine Rochelle, Peter Leto (from Google), and AJ LeBlanc.

The Automotive Boot Camp is organized by First Class Educators. For more information or to register, please call Carrie Hemphill at 908.601.6475 or visit http://www.automotivebootcamp.com

The Exhibit Hall will make its debut at the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp, allowing many top industry names to educate attendees on the latest in automotive products, services, and technology. Liquid Motors is a Dallas, Texas based corporation that offers car dealerships a complete Internet marketing solution that will help to maximize lead generation. By using no-cost Internet classifieds, eBay auctions and listings, leading pay classifieds and dealer websites, Liquid Motors creates their advantage by providing a number of software and services.

First Class Educators is also proud to offer an impressive fitness program to all Automotive Boot Camp attendees to jump start each day the right way. First Class Educators knows how important the health of our team is and we want to extend this belief to all participants at our events. Liquid Motors will be the sponsor of the fitness program at this year’s Automotive Boot Camp.

Three internationally successful fitness experts will be at the third annual Automotive Boot Camp to help invigorate the mental and physical well being of all attendees throughout the conference. Rick Ivone, Stu Mittleman, and Todd Durkin will all be on site to give personal fitness analyses as well as lead the morning exercise programs. Every participant will receive a printed report to take home so they can build on their Boot Camp fitness experience.

To register for Boot Camp, please visit http://www.automotivebootcamp.com/ or contact Carrie Hemphill. Discounted group rates are available for groups of 3 or more!

Attendees who would like to sign up for the incredible fitness program can also contact Carrie Hemphill at 908.601.6475 or carrie@firstclasseducators.com.

About Liquid Motors:

Liquid Motors has the competitive market intelligence, customizable auto software, and service-oriented industry experts to provide optimal Internet marketing performance for auto dealers. Liquid Motors delivers auto industry experts, inherent market intelligence, automotive Internet marketing and technology experts, customization to each dealer’s brand image, competitive advantage through best practices, world-class account management and support, and the most comprehensive auto Internet marketing platform.

Whether your dealership is looking for an entry level automotive Internet marketing service, or a totally comprehensive automotive Internet marketing solution, Liquid Motors auto dealer software, products and services deliver results.

Please take a moment to view all of our workshops offered, supporting sponsors, keynote speakers, exhibit hall hours, meals and popular morning fitness programs we are offering at this year’s Boot Camp.

We look forward to seeing everyone out in Vegas in less then a month!

Note: click on images to view larger versions

Anyone attending the Boot Camp who needs assistance picking the workshops that would benefit their immediate dealership goals can call Carrie Hemphill for assistance at 908.601.6475.

The workshops at the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp include: 

• The State of Automotive Internet Marketing – Jeff Tirey
• The Dynamics of Dynamic Sales Management for High-Volume and High-Profitability – Jim Zeigler
• Mastering Facebook and Twitter to Increase Your Brand Awareness in Your Local Market – Tim Martell
• Selling with Blogging Without Really Selling – Christine Rochelle
• How To Use Green Screen Technology to Make High Quality Videos – Patrick Perrotto
• Best Practices for Screening, Selecting,  and Hiring Dealership  Employees – Ralph Paglia
• So | Lo | Mo: Winning With Today’s Car Shopper – Jack Simmons
• Using Location Based Apps In Your Digital Marketing Strategy – Eric Miltsch
• Increase Your Reach and 1st Party Leads with Proven Adwords Strategies (PPC) – Julio Gonzalez
• Reinsurance Strategies To Increase Profits – Tim Byrd
• How to Build Effective Processes For Collecting  Customer Reviews in the Service Drive – Paul Long
• Customer Retention and Loyalty Strategies That Leverage Mobile Technology – Glen Garvin
• 10 Ways to Optimize Your Primary Dealership Website – Sean Stapleton
• Automated Systems and Artificial Intelligence, Friend of Foe? – Drake Baerresen
• Advanced Google Analytics – Brian Pasch
• Independent Internet Leads: Do You Really Know Who They Are, Where to Find Them, and How to Sell Them? – Egon Smola
• Increasing conversions on your web site lead forms and 3rd party leads – Christy Roman and Jennifer Boland
• 10 Steps to Selling 10,000+ Internet Units – Jim Flint
• Maximizing Online Auctions for Increased Sales and Profits – Mark Burack
• How to succeed in reaching today’s auto shopper online using Social, Local, and Mobile strategies – Kate Balingit, Google
• Best Practices for Merchandising Your Online Inventory – George Nenni
• Keys to Finding the Right People and Giving New Hires a S.H.O.T. to be Successful in the Internet Department – Joe Webb
• Mobile Apps: How Dealers Can Capture, Convert and Retain Customers  on the Go – Ben Anderson
• CRM Templates That Increase Contact Rates & Appointments – Marc McGurren
• Video Marketing & SEO Strategies – AJ LeBlanc
• High Performance F&I:  What To Do and Say To Achieve “Super Star”  Numbers – Jim Zeigler
• Using Google + To Connect with Customers While Enhancing Your Automotive SEO Strategy – Brian Pasch
• Gearing dealer television stations to work with their digital advertising  – Tim Grand
• Creating Effective Landing Pages That Increase Conversion – James Fabin & Ulrika Beard
• How to Use Objective Data to Create Performance Plans and Compensation Models  – Ralph Paglia
• The Road to Revolution: How Car Buying Has Changed and How You Can Benefit From It – Howard Polirer
• Pinterest: What is it, Why you need it, Why it will boost your SEO  – George Nenni
• SEO Techniques that Leverage the latest changes in Google’s Search Algorithm – JD Rucker
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Internet Sales People – Keith Shetterly
• How to Leverage LinkedIn for Sales, Conquesting, and Client Retention – Steve Murphy
• How To Create Effective PPC and Digital Marketing Campaigns for Service – James Kovacs
• Video Production Tips:  Lighting, Audio, and Staging  – Patrick Perrotto
• How to Best Train Your Staff and How to Know When You Have It Right – Ralph Paglia
• Inspecting and Benchmarking Your Internet/BDC Department – Jerry Thibeau
• How to Create the Best Call Center Blend (Staffing, Training, Rewarding) – Joni Stuker
• Humanizing your Digital Strategy- Understanding that clicks are people too!  – Sean Peoples
• Are You Underestimating the Influence of ZMOT in Your Sales Processes? – Ed Parkinson
• New Strategies to Leverage Digital Automation for Service Appointments and Repair Orders – David Page
• Effective BDC Processes and Workflows to Increase Productivity – Marc McGurren
• Using YouTube to Supplement Your Social Strategy – Brittany Richter

Register While Tickets Last

With this lineup of topics and speakers, do not wait till the last minute to book your ticket for the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp.  Group discounts of 4 or more dealership attendees can be handled directly by calling Carrie Hemphill at 908.601.6475.

The workshop will cover the latest updates to the Google Analytics interface and help dealers understand how to use the latest features of the software.  Dealers looking to setup goals, Multi-Channel Sales Funnels, or review their website user heat maps are advised to attend.

A dealer’s website is their primary online marketing tool.  So it makes perfect sense to understand the ways in which consumers are finding the website and what they are doing when they visit.   Brian will show dealers why some website designs are hurting conversion and increasing bounce rates.

Attendees should come to the workshop with a computer and have administrative access to the Google Analytics account.   This will allow participants to follow along with data from their own website.  After the workshop, Brian Pasch will be available to help attendees with unique questions that pertain to their Google Analytics account.

Brian Pasch will also be presented a Keynote Address on the opening day of the 3rd Annual Automotive Boot Camp, on Tuesday afternoon May 15th.

About Brian Pasch

Brian Pasch, CEO of PCG Digital Marketing, has built his business insights and strategy on a foundation consisting of over 20 years of Information Technology and Marketing leadership. His career history includes work in the public sector, Senior Telecom Analyst on Wall Street and has an incredible talent for building successful private enterprises.

Fresh out of Rutgers University, Brian published his first book and software package with Prentice Hall in 1984.  Since that time he has been recognized as a builder of world-class data warehousing models, a creator of award winning search marketing strategies and the highest rated Internet Trainer in the automotive industry.

Recognizing a powerful shift in corporate advertising spending, Pasch founded PCG Digital Marketing in 2005 to assist growing companies with their digital marketing strategy.  Brian’s ability to speak authoritatively to business leaders and their technical teams on business architecture, marketing, and sales helped to catapult their growth and credibility.

In August 2011, Inc. Magazine named PCG Digital Marketing the 192^nd Fastest Growing Private Company in the United States.  PCG was also ranked in the Top 10 Fastest Growing Private Companies in New Jersey where PCG is based.   PCG serves many industries, but their largest by far is the automotive retail industry where they serve hundreds of car dealerships across the US and Canada.

Brian Pasch is an avid writer and blogger and his commentary on Search Engine Optimization and Digital Marketing can be easily found on the Internet.  In 2012 he founded PCG Consulting to provide vendor neutral advise to business leaders looking to create a comprehensive marketing strategy that includes the latest opportunities in traditional, digital, and social media.

Brian is an active speaker at automotive industry conferences, 20 Groups, and digital marketing workshops.  His popular training programs makes him an in demand speaker with elite flying status. Brian is an advocate of balance living and takes time to invest in his health and spiritual well being. That lifestyle includes making time for his family and friends in New Jersey where he lives by the Jersey Shore.

The Automotive Boot Camp is a two and a half day event designed to educate and inspire dealers with expert speakers and once in a lifetime opportunities to hear from some of the most amazing motivational speakers in the world. Will Cross is one of those speakers.

Will Cross has successfully ascended the highest peaks on all seven continents and walked to both the North and South Poles and is a sought-after speaker. Diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at age 9, Will never let his condition stop him from reaching the top.

Will has led expeditions to the ends of the earth, including climbing 15 unmapped, unexplored mountains in Greenland, as well as expeditions in Patagonia, Mountains of the Moon, the Sahara Desert, and the Thar Desert of India.

Cross’s Expeditions Receive National Attention and Recognition

Will’s achievements have been covered by CNN, BBC, The Today Show, Discovery Channel, Voice of America, KDKA News and Talk Radio, and ABC, CBS, and NBC national affiliate stations. He has also appeared in publications such as The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The New York Times, Explorers Journal, and GQ. During 2003 and 2004, Will delivered an inspirational Public Service Announcement viewed by over 17 million people. Will’s 2004 Mt. Everest expedition had a reach of over 37 million people. In 2005, Will won the Media Spokesperson of the Year Award.

Will’s motivational speeches are thought-provoking and engaging and can motivate change, productivity and improved processes. He uniquely applies his management of diabetes in the most extreme conditions and his organizational skills as a world-class expedition leader to any business of any size.

First Class Educators is thrilled to welcome Will Cross to the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp.

Registration for the Boot Camp is still open. Space is limited so dealers who would like to participate should go online to http://www.automotivebootcamp.com and reserve their seat immediately.

About Dealer.com

Dealer.com is the leader in automotive digital marketing solutions – serving automotive retailers, manufacturers and media companies worldwide. The company’s innovative, award-winning digital marketing and advertising platform significantly lowers the cost of customer acquisition, enhancing dealers’ efficiency and profitability. The company employs over 600 people in its Burlington, VT and Manhattan Beach, CA offices. Dealer.com’s commitment to employee health and wellness makes it one of the country’s most desirable places to work, and in 2011 was named best overall company in the U.S. at the American Business Awards for companies with under 2500 employees. For more information visit www.dealer.com .

About the Automotive Boot Camp

The 2012 Automotive Boot Camp is designed to give dealers access to the top industry experts to refine their automotive marketing strategies and operating processes that have been implemented for 2012. It is an intimate event limited to 300 dealer employees that gives all attendees one-on-one time with industry leaders, market experts, and innovative vendor partners.

Recognized industry leaders such as Ralph Paglia, James Zigeler, JD Rucker, Jerry Thibeau, Brian Pasch, David Page, Glen Garvin, Tracy Myers, Joe Webb, Marc McGurren, Tim Martell, Ben Anderson, Joni Stuker, Egon Smola, Jeff Tirey, Christine Rochelle, Peter Leto (from Google), AJ LeBlanc and Brittany Richter will be leading workshops and sharing their expertise in a wide variety of important topics at Boot Camp.

To register for Boot Camp you may contact Carrie Hemphill at 908.601.6475 or carrie@firstclasseducators.com .

Discounted group rates are available for groups of 3 or more.

Jim’s presentation, “10 Steps to Selling 10,000 + Internet Units,” will demonstrate effective paid search strategy and show dealers how to calculate the ROI of digital marketing investments.  In the confusing space that includes Google, Yahoo, Facebook and Bing there are certain must have commitments that any business–whether it be automotive, dentist, attorney or otherwise—should carefully consider.  Jim’s presentation will help make these commitments easier for dealers to understand.

As a 15-year sales & marketing veteran, Jim Flint is widely recognized as a leader in automotive sales, marketing and advertising.  In 2011 he helped the John Eagle Auto Group to deliver more than 10,000 Internet sales.  Subsequently, John Eagle, President and Managing Partner of the John Eagle Dealerships appointed Flint President of Local Search Group and spun the company off to provide support to external clients.

Local Search Group Provides Comprehensive Digital Marketing Campaigns

Flint’s superior knowledge of the advancements in digital marketing is evident, and many of his clients are reaping the benefits of comprehensive digital marketing campaigns provided by Local Search Group.  Throughout the industry many have praised Flint and his team for providing unparalleled results at a much more efficient ratio than traditional advertising through the use of comprehensive, integrated marketing platforms.

The 2012 Automotive Boot Camp is designed to give dealers access to the top industry experts to refine their automotive marketing strategies and operating processes that have been implemented for 2012. It is an intimate event limited to 300 dealer employees that gives all attendees one-on-one time with industry leaders, market experts, and innovative vendor partners.

Recognized industry leaders such as Ralph Paglia, James Zigeler, JD Rucker, Jerry Thibeau, Brian Pasch, David Page, Glen Garvin, Tracy Myers, Joe Webb, Marc McGurren, Tim Martell, Ben Anderson, Joni Stuker, Egon Smola, Jeff Tirey, Christine Rochelle, Peter Leto (from Google), AJ LeBlanc and Brittany Richter will be leading workshops and sharing their expertise in a wide variety of important topics at Boot Camp.

To register for Boot Camp, please visit www.automotivebootcamp.com or contact Carrie Hemphill at 908.601.6475 or carrie@firstclasseducators.com .

Discounted group rates are available for groups of 3 or more.

When pressed about how much more visibility this partnership would deliver for their customers, Pasch answered oddly: “26 feet”.

When pressed by reporters the company founder was unable to provide more details on the transaction but stated that the PCG logo colors will be changing to electric blue, yellow, and red to integrate marketing efforts with their new acquirer.

Effective immediately, the company will be moving resources away from digital marketing into on-site event marketing.   When questioned about this move Pasch stated, “When you are acquired, you can’t always get your way.  You have to trust the wisdom of your new partners. This is a team effort now and we have some unique ways to revolutionize the event marketing industry.”

Mobile Users Energize Event Marketing

Pasch quoting a new study that will be released later today by PCG added “Mobile users are breathing new life into event marketing.  When consumers drive past a dealership and see an inflatable gorilla, they are using their smartphone to snap photos of adorable big blue mascot.  These same consumers are posting the photos on Pinterest, Facebook, or sending out a Tweetpic.  The photos go viral and bring hundreds of in-market shoppers to the dealership.  Who needs SEO or SEM when you got a gorilla magnetizing millions of mobile users!”

Could the popularity of Pinterest revive the sagging sales of inflatable gorillas?  Pasch thinks so.

In addition to sponsoring the conference, Edmunds.com will have a booth in the exhibit hall, and will host a workshop in which Sean Peoples, Edmunds.com’s Executive Director of Dealer Initiatives, will share the company’s findings on the best ways to meet the needs of different types of car buyers. 

“It is no longer true that car buyers who use the Internet represent one specific demographic,” asserts Peoples, whose presentation is entitled “Humanizing Your Digital Strategy.” “Edmunds.com has interviewed 2500 consumers to better understand the variety of core needs that must be addressed in the car-shopping process for it to be a satisfying experience. One interesting and unexpected learning: in almost every case, price is not the focal point of attention for consumers.”

Edmunds.com has hired approximately 130 people in the past 18 months to help bridge car dealers and car buyers through its Dealer Initiatives business described at http://www.edmunds.com/dealers/insight-newsletter/new-edmundscom-program-directly-connects-dealers-with-car-buyers.html . The Edmunds Direct program is designed to give participating dealers direct, exclusive and immediate exposure to the rich audience of car shoppers who are actively researching and comparing vehicles on Edmunds.com. This carefully created new program is intended to be far more efficient than the “leads” system that was created in the Internet’s infancy.

To register for Boot Camp, please visit http://www.automotivebootcamp.com/ or contact Carrie Hemphill at 908.601.6475 or carrie@firstclasseducators.com . Discounted group rates are available for groups of 3 or more.

About Edmunds.com, Inc.
Edmunds.com, the premier online resource for automotive information, launched in 1995 as the first automotive information Web site. Its acclaimed mobile site, Edmunds.com Android App and five-star Edmunds iPhone and iPad apps make car pricing and other research tools available for car shoppers at dealerships and on the go. Its automotive enthusiast web site, InsideLine.com, is the most-read car publication of its kind. Its highly regarded mobile site and iPhone app features the wireless Web’s most comprehensive gallery of automotive photos and videos. Edmunds.com Inc. is headquartered in Santa Monica, California, and maintains a satellite office in suburban Detroit. Follow Edmunds.com on Twitter@edmunds and fan Edmunds.com on Facebook.

Click on the video below to see what the postcard looks like so you don’t miss this opportunity.

The 2012 Automotive Boot Camp is designed to give dealers access to the top industry experts to refine their automotive marketing strategies and operating processes that have been implemented for 2012. It is an intimate event limited to 300 dealer employees that gives all attendees one-on-one time with industry leaders, market experts, and innovative vendor partners.

This year the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp has been expanded with eight “core” curriculum tracks as well as 16 elective courses. This gives attendees a total of 48 workshops to choose from plus the additional keynote speakers, special events and networking sessions.

Recognized industry leaders such as Ralph Paglia, James Zigeler, JD Rucker, Jerry Thibeau, Brian Pasch, David Page, Glen Garvin, Tracy Myers, Joe Webb, Marc McGurren, Tim Martell, Jim Flint, Ben Anderson, Joni Stuker, Egon Smola, Jeff Tirey, Christine Rochelle, Peter Leto (from Google), AJ LeBlanc and Brittany Richter will be leading workshops and sharing their expertise in a wide variety of important topics at Boot Camp.

Automotive Conference Attracts Top Sponsors

This year’s sponsors and exhibitors include Cars.com, Dominion Dealer Solutions, Dealer.com, Car-mercial, Contact at Once! Dealix, Edmunds.com, Wikimotive and more.

The 2012 Automotive Boot Camp is organized by First Class Educators, the same company responsible for other high ranking automotive marketing conferences like the Digital Marketing Strategies Conference, which took place this past February in Las Vegas, and the Pit Stop marketing tour.

To learn more about the Automotive Boot Camp and see the full agenda of events, visit www.automotivebootcamp.com or email Carrie Hemphill at Carrie@firstclasseducators.com .

The 2012 Automotive Boot Camp is designed to give dealers access to the top industry experts to refine their automotive marketing strategies and operating processes that have been implemented for 2012. It is an intimate event limited to 300 dealer employees that gives all attendees one-on-one time with industry leaders, market experts, and innovative vendor partners.

This year the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp has been expanded with eight “core” curriculum tracks as well as 16 elective courses. This gives attendees a total of 48 workshops to choose from plus the additional keynote speakers, special events and networking sessions.

Automotive Marketing Experts Scheduled to Speak at 2012 Conference

Recognized industry leaders such as Ralph Paglia, James Zigeler, JD Rucker, Jerry Thibeau, Brian Pasch, David Page, Glen Garvin, Tracy Myers, Joe Webb, Marc McGurren, Tim Martell, Jim Flint, Ben Anderson, Joni Stuker, Egon Smola, Jeff Tirey, Christine Rochelle, Peter Leto (from Google), AJ LeBlanc and Brittany Richter will be leading workshops and sharing their expertise in a wide variety of important topics at Boot Camp.

This year’s sponsors and exhibitors include Cars.com, Dominion Dealer Solutions, Dealer.com, Car-mercial, Contact at Once! Dealix, Edmunds.com, Wikimotive and more.

The 2012 Automotive Boot Camp is organized by First Class Educators, the same company responsible for other high ranking automotive marketing conferences like the Digital Marketing Strategies Conference, which took place this past February in Las Vegas, and the Pit Stop marketing tour.

To learn more about the Automotive Boot Camp and see the full agenda of events, visit www.automotivebootcamp.com or email Carrie Hemphill at Carrie@firstclasseducators.com .

AutoTrader.com will be presenting a workshop on “The Road to Revolution: How Car Buying Has Changed and How You Can Benefit From It.” AutoTrader.com teamed up with Polk to conduct the Automotive Buyer Influence Study, a groundbreaking study that measured the most influential sources on new and used car buyers.

The workshop at the Automotive Boot Camp will share the results of this study as well as reveal insights to how long car buyers will do research online before shopping. It will also delve into how Search Engines and Social Networking sites factor into the study.

Howard Polirer, the Director of Industry Education, will be presenting the seminar at the Monte Carlo Hotel in Las Vegas. Howard has more than 15 years of experience as a dynamic automotive sales educator and has spoken to dealer audiences across the nation. He has served as a dealership consultant for over 25 major dealer groups and has over 30 years of experience in the retail automotive business.

Howard has been a featured presenter at the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Conventions, NADA 20 Groups, Exposition and more. He is thrilled to be presenting a workshop for the Automotive Book Camp at the Monte Carlo Hotel in Las Vegas.

After the “The Road to Revolution: How Car Buying Has Changed and How You Can Benefit From It” workshop, attendees will be able to better understand the predominant shopping source leading vehicle buyers to dealers and how buyers allocate their shopping time. Attendees will also learn about the impact of Social Networking and Search on car shoppers.

To register for Boot Camp, please visit http://www.automotivebootcamp.com/ or contact Carrie Hemphill. Discounted group rates are available for groups of 3 or more!

About AutoTrader.com

AutoTrader.com is the only website with more than 3 million vehicle listings from 40,000 dealers and 250,000 private owners. Their website provides the largest selection of vehicles and attracts more than 14 million qualified buyers each month. AutoTrader.com’s mission is to be the ultimate online solution for buying and selling new, certified, and used cars. Designed to give shoppers more control of the buying process, AutoTrader.com makes it easier than ever for shoppers to find their right vehicle.

About First Class Educators

First Class Educators (FCE) is a new company created by PCG Digital Marketing, a full service automotive digital marketing agency. FCE offers high impact digital marketing education, private or partnered events and a variety of consulting opportunities for all industries throughout the US and Canada.

Featured national events include the Digital Marketing Strategies Conference, Automotive Boot Camp and PCG Pit Stop.

FCE also offers the Automotive Internet Program, an intense online training program that provides certificates in Digital Marketing and Social Media for dealership employees across the US and Canada as well as private partnered events with top vendors and industry leaders.

http://www.firstclasseducators.com

Press Contact:

Media Contact:

Carrie Hemphill

Managing Director

First Class Educators

732.734.6993

carrie@firstclasseducators.com

http://www.firstclasseducators.com/

Automotive Boot Camp attendees can also look forward to meeting Ed Parkinson, VP of Sales for Contact at Once! during his presentation on dealer web chat.

Ed has been working with auto dealers for 28 years and has championed many new services to his customers including: Leasing, Balloon Financing, Call Tracking and Monitoring and Lost Opportunity Management.

Ed began selling and coaching auto dealers on strategies for connecting with online shoppers in Q4 of 2006 and joined the company as VP of Sales in April of 2007. He holds a BBA in Marketing and Management from Temple University.

Automotive Boot Camp Expands Opportunities for Attendees

This year the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp has been expanded with eight “core” curriculum tracks as well as 16 elective courses. This gives attendees a total of 48 workshops to choose from plus the additional keynote speakers, special events and networking sessions.

Some of this year’s workshop topics include:

• BDC/ISM
• Search Marketing
• Sales/F&I
• Social Media
• Fixed Operations
• Website Management and Merchandising
• Organization Development/HR
• GM/Dealership Management

For more information or to register for the Boot Camp, please visit http://www.automotivebootcamp.com/

About Contact at Once!

Contact At Once! is the leading automotive chat software provider and operator of the industry’s only dealer chat network connecting more than 9,000 auto dealers with the websites car shoppers visit most often. Adding Contact At Once! dealer chat software to a website typically increases a dealership’s sales conversations by at least 25%. Named to the Inc. 500 as one of America’s fastest growing businesses, Contact At Once! is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. For more information about the company’s auto dealer chat product, please visit: www.autodealerchat.com.

Dealer.com is a top sponsor of this year’s Boot Camp event and will be exhibiting in a 10×20 booth at the Boot Camp vendor exhibit hall. The exhibit hall gives Dealer.com unprecedented exposure to hundreds of the top dealers in the country that are focused on growing their business online and becoming more competitive by way of innovative digital marketing strategies. Matt Murray, Director of Digital Marketing for Dealer.com, will also be a keynote presenter at the conference.

About Dealer.com

Dealer.com is the global leader in online marketing solutions for the automotive industry, providing award-winning e-marketing solutions to OEMs, auto dealers and media companies. More dealerships use the Dealer.com platform than any other platform in the world.

Recent national and international accolades include: The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year, top ranking in The Net Promoter® Score Survey of customer satisfaction, Deloitte’s Technology Fast 500 and the Web Marketing Association’s Automobile Standard of Excellence. In addition, Dealer.com was the 2008 top rated web provider on leading online rating websites, as well as the Diamond Award winner from the Dealers’ Choice Awards for best dealer website solutions.

http://www.dealer.com

About the Automotive Boot Camp

The 2012 Automotive Boot Camp is designed to give dealers access to the top industry experts to refine their automotive marketing strategies and operating processes that have been implemented for 2012. It is an intimate event limited to 300 dealer employees that gives all attendees one-on-one time with industry leaders, market experts, and innovative vendor partners.

This year the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp has been expanded with eight “core” curriculum tracks as well as 16 elective courses. This gives attendees a total of 48 workshops to choose from plus the additional keynote speakers, special events and networking sessions.

Some of this year’s workshop topics include:

• BDC/ISM
• Search Marketing
• Sales/F&I
• Social Media
• Fixed Operations
• Website Management and Merchandising
• Organization Development/HR
• GM/Dealership Management

The 2012 Automotive Boot Camp is organized by First Class Educators, the same company responsible for other high ranking automotive marketing conferences like the Digital Marketing Strategies Conference, which took place this past February in Las Vegas, and the Pit Stop marketing tour.

Group discounts are available. For more information or to register, please visit http://www.automotivebootcamp.com or contact Carrie Hemphill at Carrie@firstclasseducators.com.

Jim and Travis have been helping dealers attract customers, drive traffic and increase sales for over a decade. In 2004 they created the Rich Dealers Institute for busy dealers who want to stand out and sell more without spending more. It is the place for fun and profit in the car business.

Collectively their campaigns have directly resulted in the sale of over 2 million vehicles. Every month they create record shattering automotive promotions and bring together some of the brightest and most successful dealers, authors, entrepreneurs and business people to participate in fun and insanely profitable think-tank, mastermind environments.

They have authored dozens of business articles for Entrepreneur, Investors Business Daily, Direct Marketing News, Express: A Publication of The Washington Post, American Venture Magazine, South Florida CEO Magazine, Chief Marketer, and various automotive industry publications like Used Car Dealer Magazine, Used Car News, Auto Remarketing, Dealer Marketing Magazine, AutoSuccess.

2012 Automotive Boot Camp

This year the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp has been expanded with eight “core” curriculum tracks as well as 16 elective courses. This gives attendees a total of 48 workshops to choose from plus the additional keynote speakers, special events and networking sessions.

Some of this year’s workshop topics include:

• BDC/ISM
• Search Marketing
• Sales/F&I
• Social Media
• Fixed Operations
• Website Management and Merchandising
• Organization Development/HR
• GM/Dealership Management

The 2012 Automotive Boot Camp is organized by First Class Educators, the same company responsible for other high ranking automotive marketing conferences like the Digital Marketing Strategies Conference, which took place this past February in Las Vegas, and the Pit Stop marketing tour.

To secure a seat at the conference or view the conference agenda, visit http://www.automotivebootcamp.com

Flint’s seminar at the 12^th Digital Dealer Conference is entitled: “Moneyball: Prioritizing your Digital Ad Spend.”  His seminar will help dealers determine the most effective advertising strategies that deliver the most efficient and effective results.  During the session Flint will share his carefully calculated make and break elements of traditional advertising and digital advertising and how you can prioritize your budgets accordingly. This will be an eye opening discussion that smart dealers will not want to miss.

Additionally Flint, will speak on a panel with Digital Air Strike regarding the place that Social Media, Facebook and Twitter have in the car business.  This is a follow-up to the popular session that Flint and Alexi Venerri, Chief Operating Officer of Digital Air Strike, “Ten Things I Hate About You” teamed up for last year in Orlando.

Jim Flint Will Demonstrate How to Calculate ROI of Digital Marketing

Then in Las Vegas, a few weeks later, at the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp, Jim will be speaking on effective paid search strategy and how to calculate the ROI of digital marketing investments.  In the confusing space that includes Google, Yahoo, Facebook and Bing there are certain must have commitments that any business–whether it be automotive, dentist, attorney or otherwise—should carefully consider.

This broad perspective of speaking topics helps underscore the connection between Local Search Group and all the elements associated with being a full service digital marketing agency.

As a 15-year sales & marketing veteran, Jim Flint is widely recognized as a leader in automotive sales, marketing and advertising.  In 2011 he helped the John Eagle Auto Group to deliver more than 10,000 internet sales.  Subsequently, John Eagle, President and Managing Partner of the John Eagle Dealerships (and always the visionary), appointed Flint President of Local Search Group and spun the company off to provide support to external clients.

Flint’s superior knowledge of the advancements in digital marketing is evident, and many of his clients are reaping the benefits of comprehensive digital marketing campaigns provided by Local Search Group.  Throughout the industry many have praised Flint and his team for providing unparalleled results at a much more efficient ratio than traditional advertising through the use of comprehensive, integrated marketing platforms.

Here is what auto dealers have to say about working with Local Search Group:

Greg May, Greg May Auto Group – “Wow! That’s how to best describe what Local Search Group has done for us.  They have increased our website traffic, unique visitors and Internet leads.  Their in depth reports and knowledgeable staff have added a tremendous value to our internet department and our overall sales volume.  They truly are a business partner with us!”

Keith Orr, Orr Auto Group- “Local Search Group has effectively lowered my advertising cost per retail and increased my volume.  In my opinion it is the most effective ad dollar I spend.”

Rene’ Isip, owner of Toyota of Lewisville and Honda Cars of Katy – “It’s for real.  5 years ago 70-80% of my traffic came from the floor.  Now it’s flipped with 60-70% coming from the Internet.  The Local Search Group gets the traffic to our site and then through our doors.”

To contact Local Search Group, call 1-888-685-9888.

Car-Mercial.com is a top sponsor of this year’s Boot Camp event and will be exhibiting in a 10×10 booth at the Boot Camp vendor exhibit hall.  The exhibit hall gives Car-Mercial.com unprecedented exposure to hundreds of the top dealers in the country that are focused on growing their business online and becoming more competitive by way of innovative digital marketing strategies. AJ LeBlanc, Managing Partner of Car-Mercial.com, will also host a Video Search Engine Optimization workshop during the conference.

Automotive Video SEO

AJ LeBlanc’s presentation about Video SEO will give car dealers the knowledge they need to create powerful videos that index quickly on all major search engines. The videos can be leveraged for new car sales, used car sales and fixed operations.  Car-Mercial.com has been a long-standing leader in dealer education on Video SEO strategies.

For more information or to register for the Boot Camp, please visit http://www.automotivebootcamp.com/

About Car-Mercial.com

Car-Mercial.com combines the power of television’s sight, sound and motion with the power of search engines’ ability to speak directly to consumers who want to buy or service a vehicle now. Car-Mercial.com is the first company in the world to specialize in the optimization of online TV ads that attract more traffic for less cost than traditional advertising and paid search engine marketing.

Located in Boca Raton, Florida, the Car-Mercial.com team has created and implemented marketing strategies for 12 manufacturers, 75 of the top 100 dealer groups and thousands of dealerships over the last 15 years to improve their results online. The company leadership founded and ran two of the largest digital marketing companies in the industry and pioneered video search engine optimization and automotive online reputation management.

http://www.car-mercial.com/

As a Boot Camp sponsor, Dominion Dealer Solutions will have the opportunity to connect with the leading dealerships in the country who are focused on growing their business online and increasing the effectiveness of their digital marketing strategies.

Glen Garvin, Group General Manager at Dominion Dealer Solutions, will be presenting a workshop about Mobile Apps and Websites.  Dominion Dealer Solutions has won multiple awards for their innovative mobile solutions.  Specifically, their dealer-branded consumer mobile app, The Be Back app, was named the 2011 Most Innovative Dealership Solution by DrivingSales, awarded the 2011 Innovation Cup by a panel of dealers at the Third Annual DrivingSales Executive Summit (DSES) and recognized with a PCG Spotlight Award at the 2012 NADA Convention. This automotive industry exclusive mobile app is designed to grow and enhance dealer-customer relationships by giving vehicle management oversight on the owner’s mobile device.

Automotive Boot Camp

The 2012 Automotive Boot Camp is designed to give dealers access to the top industry experts to refine their automotive marketing strategies and operating processes that have been implemented for 2012. It is an intimate event limited to 300 dealer employees that gives all attendees one-on-one time with industry leaders, market experts, and innovative vendor partners.

The Boot Camp offers hands-on skills based training programs which cover the most important elements of automotive digital marketing strategies: social media, blogging, video optimization, mobile marketing, link building, content creation and SEO.

Early bird registration for the Boot Camp is available until March 1^st at a rate of $995 per person.  After March 1^st, the regular rate of $1,195 will go into effect.  Additional group discounts are available.

For more information or to register for the Boot Camp, please visit http://www.automotivebootcamp.com/ or contact Carrie Hemphill at carrie@firstclasseducators.com.

About Dominion Dealer Solutions
Dominion Dealer Solutions helps car dealers attract, retain, and service customers for life. Dominion Dealer Solutions’ marketing performance system includes: lead generation, mobile apps, reputation management solutions, web-based customer relationship and lead management tools; custom digital marketing tools including websites, SEO, SEM, digital advertising, specialized data aggregation; and inventory management analytics including market reports. Every OEM and more than 60 percent of auto dealers nationwide utilize the Dominion Dealer Solutions’ technologies to solve their marketing challenges.

Dominion Dealer Solutions is a division of Dominion Enterprises, a leading, marketing services and publishing company serving the automotive, recreational and commercial vehicle, real estate, apartment rental, employment, parenting, travel, and daily deals industries. Headquartered in Norfolk, Va., with 3,300 employees in the United States, Canada, England and Italy, the company provides a comprehensive suite of technology-based marketing solutions, more than 60 market-leading websites, and 280 magazines. For more information, visit www.dominionenterprises.com.

Cars.com is a top sponsor of this year’s Boot Camp event and will be exhibiting in a 10×10 booth at the Boot Camp vendor exhibit hall. The exhibit hall gives Cars.com unprecedented exposure to hundreds of the top dealers in the country that are focused on growing their digital marketing strategies. Jack Simmons, Dealer Training Manager for Cars.com, will also be a featured presenter during the conference.

Jack Simmons to Present Mobile Marketing Strategies Workshop

Boot Camp attendees can join Jack Simmons for his workshop entitled “So|Lo|Mo: Winning With Today’s Car Shopper,” to gain insight into how social, local and mobile have converged to redefine the purchase process.

A recent Nielsen mobile study commissioned by Cars.com found that mobile car shoppers are using their devices throughout the purchase process, including researching pricing information, searching inventory, reading consumer reviews and accessing multimedia content, such as photos and video. What many dealers might not realize is that more than half of mobile car shoppers are participating in these activities right on the dealership lot.

Simmons will demonstrate proven strategies for using mobile and customer reviews to drive traffic to their dealerships, engage them once they’re on the lot and foster higher loyalty and better long-term relationships after purchase. The session will feature interactive, hands-on exercises that reinforce the concepts learned and equip audience members to develop their playbook for success.

Early bird registration for the Boot Camp is available until March 1^st at a rate of $995 per person. After March 1^st, the regular rate of $1,195 will go into effect.

For more information or to register for the Boot Camp, please visit http://www.automotivebootcamp.com/

About Cars.com

Cars.com was recently named the “Best Overall Customer Experience” by Keynote Systems, the leader in internet and mobile cloud marketing. Cars.com is an online destination for car shoppers that offers information from consumers and experts to help buyers formulate opinions on what to buy, where to buy and how much to pay for a car. With price listings, side-by-side comparison tools, photo galleries, videos, unbiased editorial content and a large selection of new- and used-car inventory, Cars.com puts millions of car buyers in control of their shopping process with the information they need to make confident buying decisions.

Launched in June 1998, Cars.com is a division of Classified Ventures LLC, which is owned by leading media companies, including Belo (NYSE: BLC), Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI), The McClatchy Company (NYSE: MNI), Tribune Company and The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO).

I’m so pleased to have Marc McGurren on the PCG Consulting team.  Marc is a great teacher and leader and I’m learning more each week about the opportunities and profit leaks in dealership Internet departments.

Over the past few months I have been asking dealer principals and GM’s to rate their Internet/BDC Departments and the majority rated their team’s performance as “C+” or “B-”.  A few gave their teams a failing score.

The executives I spoke with realize that their Internet sales team was working hard,  However, they recognized that their staff still had much more room to grow.  Many were frustrated in selecting the best coaching/process partner.  They thought that the challenges in their store were unique.

The more stores I see in action, the uniqueness argument holds little weight.

Approximately 80% of what Internet/BDC employees should be doing could be defined by industry best practice.  The basic processes and what I would call “blocking and tackling” skills are just not being executed each day.

As you know, the basic are vitally important to a store’s success.

How Do You Score A Dealership’s Internet Team?

Dealers I spoke with did not know how to rate their team vs. other dealers.  Dealers were not sure what they could realistically expect post intervention from a third party trainer, like Marc McGurren, Joe Webb, Cory Mosley, Joni Stuker, or other top consultants.

From my perspective, the biggest profit leak at most dealerships is how they handle phone ups and how leads are handled via their CRM processes.

That should make this area of operations the #1 priority to inpsect, measure, and benchmark.  Investing in BDC training should also be a priority but many budgets don’t reflect that reality.

To complicate matters, for the 18,000 franchise dealers, there are only a handful of BDC trainers that are actively promoting themselves online or in the automotive forums.

Improving BDC Performance

One of the reasons why PCG Consulting was created was to help dealers deal with their #1 profit leak in a platform  neutral format.  The PCG Consulting team will come into the dealership and optimize the dealer’s current technology (website, CRM, etc.) to increase their success.

That include working with competent vendor partners who bring to the table unique products and solutions that can enhance success.

One such example is Jerry Thibeau from www.PhoneNinjas.com who has helped countless dealers inspect and improve agent phone skills.  We are finding that the PhoneNinjas.com Phone Skills Index (PSI) scoring system is directly related to appointment rates.  Dealers now have a clear path to show how investments in training result in greater profitability.

Marc’s field experience is creating measurable improvements in BDC process in conjunction with PSI scoring.  Dealers need a coach who has been a proven leader and that can give BDC agents confidence and a path for success.

Marc walks into a dealership with a proven system for success and if you have ever met Marc, his passion for the car business is contagious.   This goes the same for professionals like Joe Webb, Cory Mosley, Jerry Thibeau who are passionate people who know how to make changes stick.

Is It Time For An Intervention?

I hope that dealers who are reading this post take a moment to reflect on the impact of increasing lead closing rate 25%, 50%, or even 100%.  The calls and leads are already coming in, so is it time to see how your team stacks up?

I have listed four companies, in addition to PCG Consulting, that provide BDC assessment and training to help your team succeed.  Don’t delay getting help for your BDC.
Marc McGurren, Joe Webb, Joni Stuker, and Jerry Thibeau will all be at the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp helping car dealers with their Internet and BDC Processes.

Brian

Brian Pasch, CEO

Marc McGurren, Partner

PCG Consulting

732.450.8200 ext 44

http://www.pcgconsultingservices.com

Joe Webb, CEO

DealerKnows Consulting

http://www.dealerknows.com/

847.456.5130

Cory Mosley, CEO

Mosley Training

http://www.mosleytraining.com/

877.667.5398

Joni Stuker, CEO

Owner Connect

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/joni-stuker/16/8a8/b14

847-612-2128

Jerry Thibeau, CEO

Phone Ninjas

http://www.phoneninjas.com/

877.475.1830

For registration information, please visit: http://www.automotivebootcamp.com/paypal/

The third annual Automotive Boot Camp will be held May 15-17th at the Monte Carlo Hotel in Las Vegas. Registration is always limited to ensure that classroom sizes are small and effective for learning.

This year the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp has been expanded with eight “core” curriculum tracks as well as 16 elective courses. This gives attendees a total of 48 workshops to choose from plus the additional keynote speakers, special events and networking sessions.

Automotive Marketing Workshops

Some of this year’s workshop topics include:

• BDC/ISM
• Search Marketing
• Sales/F&I
• Social Media
• Fixed Operations
• Website Management and Merchandising
• Organization Development/HR
• GM/Dealership Management

Recognized industry leaders such as Ralph Paglia, James Zigeler, JD Rucker, Jerry Thibeau, Brian Pasch, David Page, Glen Garvin, Tracy Myers, Joe Webb, Marc McGurren, Tim Martell, Jim Flint, Ben Anderson, Joni Stuker, Egon Smola, Jeff Tirey, Christine Rochelle, Peter Leto (from Google), AJ LeBlanc and Brittany Richter will be leading workshops and sharing their expertise in a wide variety of important topics at Boot Camp.

Full Vendor Exhibit Hall Added to 2012 Automotive Boot Camp

The 2012 Automotive Boot Camp will be the first time that a full vendor exhibit hall has been added to the popular conference format.  The vendor exhibitor space is limited and primarily sold by invitation only to ensure that the vendors match the educational goals of the conference.

The 2012 Automotive Boot Camp is organized by First Class Educators, the same company responsible for other high ranking automotive marketing conferences like the Digital Marketing Strategies Conference, which took place this past February in Las Vegas, and the Pit Stop marketing tour.

To secure a seat at the conference or view the conference agenda, visit http://www.automotivebootcamp.com

I was standing at the Macy’s checkout counter today and decided to “check-in” using FourSquare.  That 10 second action saved me 15% of my purchase at the register.

I saved $40 by tapping a few buttons on my smartphone.  Do you think consumers will engage with location based apps if their reward in money in the bank?

Lately, I have seen more business owners running incentives using location based media on FourSquare.

Emerging ZMOT Investments

I encourage their initiatives because these mobile investments most likely support what they are already doing via email, newspaper, and online.   Location based promotions are a Zero Moment of Truth investment.

Best of all, these incentives touch LOCAL consumers.  So you can imagine the traction if you started to entice local consumers to visit your dealership.

Could a service incentive start to lure consumers away from popular franchise chain stores like Jiffy Lube?

I’m not going to go into specific strategies that can be used for service promotions or sales for new and used cars at this time.  Those campaigns are best tailored to the specific goals of the dealership. But I have to ask you: Is it time for your dealership to engage?

My answer is YES.  The mega retailers are finding significant traction in social media promotions.  Just this week, I wrote about the Twitter Promoted Tweet program with American Express.  This week BMW just announced a Facebook promotion to give away a 2012 BMW 3-Series via a video contest.

The point is simple.  If you don’t have a strategy and process to test social media promotions, get one started.  Why fall behind when all car dealers are looking for ways to stand out in the Zero Moment of Truth?

Local Based Promotions Are Not Just For Mega Retailers

All types of businesses are using local based media promotions.  I was just at the Monte Carlo Hotel and Casino for the Digital Marketing Strategies Conference (DMSC) and even the casino bar had a way to entice our spending.

Do you start to see the potential?  When consumers are using their smart phone to select a local restaurant, bar, or car service facility why do you entice them to do business with you?

Amy’s Omelet House in Long Branch, New Jersey gives 15% off all bills for simply checking in on FourSquare.  I use that coupon every time I visit the restaurant for breakfast.

I’m getting addicted to checking into retail establishments just to see how much money I can save.  I think this is just the beginning…think how big “couponing” is and now think about instant coupons on a mobile device.

So, share your local based app story and/or tell me how your dealership is leveraging this emerging digital strategy.

Brian

Brian Pasch, CEO

PCG Consulting Inc

732.672.2356

P.S.  There will be specific workshops on Local Based Marketing  and Local Search Marketing at the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp which will be held in Las Vegas, May 15-17th.  Early Bird discount end March 1st.

This year’s event was the first event coordinated and executed under First Class Educators (FCE), the new company formed by PCG Digital Marketing to handle their growing automotive marketing conferences.  FCE brought many exciting changes and enhancements to the conference that impressed all who attended, vendors and dealer employees alike.

The 2012 DMSC featured elite industry speakers including Jerry Thibeau, Jim Ziegler, Ralph Paglia and more as well as Todd Durkin, CEO of Fitness Quest and NFL pro-trainer for Drew Brees.

Automotive video marketing was a key highlight during this year’s conference, so much so that FCE brought a 2012 Toyota Camry on stage during the video marketing workshops for hands-on demonstrations and had a professional videographer co-presenting the workshops to teach attendees simple tips that should be a part of any marketing video.

The additions to this year’s conference were well noted by all who attended and exceptional reviews were given across the board for the 2012 event.

2012 Digital Marketing Strategies Conference Testimonials

“It’s really something that you have to attend if you are serious about increasing your business and crushing the competition.” — Gene Kociuba, Barberas Autoland

‘This is the best educational conference I have been to, ever.” — Jim Bethard, Safford Automotive Group

“The speakers have really been first class, the education has been terrific. The expert speakers and the vendors that have participated have been really helpful for our business.” — Alan Krutsch, Walser Automotive Group

“I highly recommend attending conferences or even the Boot Camp coming up in May.  If you want to be on the leading edge of your digital marketing strategies, attend these conferences.”  — Jody DeVere, CEO AskPatty.com

These testimonials and more can be seen online:

The next anticipated event for First Class Educators is the fourth annual Automotive Boot Camp being held May 15-17th at the Monte Carlo Hotel in Las Vegas.

The 2012 Automotive Boot Camp will be the first time that a full exhibit hall has been added to the popular conference format.  The exhibitor space is limited and primarily sold by invitation only to ensure that the vendors match the educational goals of the conference.

This year’s conference is also the first to feature ‘mini boot camp tracks’ which give attendees the option to stay on course with the topics they feel are most important to their dealership

Registration is nearly full, but dealers can still secure a spot by going to http://www.automotivebootcamp.com

For more information and a recap of this year’s Digital Marketing Strategies Conference, please visit http://www.digitalmarketingstrategies.org/

According to Carrie, “In the first week we sold out all the Gold Sponsorship levels and in first two weeks over 50% of the exhibit hall was sold out.”

The 2012 Automotive Boot Camp will be the first time that a full exhibit hall has been added to the popular conference format.  The exhibitor space is limited and primarily sold by invitation only to ensure that the vendors match the educational goals of the conference.

The conference will be held on May 15-17th at the Monte Carlo Hotel and registration is limited to ensure that classroom sizes are small and effective for learning.  The conference attracts thought leaders in Automotive Advertising, Marketing, Sales, Service, and BDC Operations.

Expanded Workshop & Skills Development Tracts

This year, the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp has been expanded with more workshops and labs on specific dealership responsibilities.  Multiple workshops will be created to cover these “top of mind” issues that car dealers face today:

I have written about the influence of Jim Lecinski’s book “Winning The Zero Moment of Truth” and the data that confirms that consumers are actively researching online during the Zero Moment of Truth prior to contacting a local car dealer.

This first contact, called the First Moment of Truth (FMOT), can be elusive for car dealers.  Whether a consumer makes initial contact by phone, a website lead form, or a chat session getting the consumer to come in for a test drive does not happen without considerable effort.

Internet BDC employees know the truth better than most.  A lead submitted can take numerous calls or emails to make contact. Lead to show ratios are unpredictable and can vary based on the BDC agent.   I won’t even start to go into the other challenges that include fake phone numbers and names!

Increase Lead To Show Ratios

So I have some great news.  What if you could increase those lead to show ratios?  What would that be worth to your pay plan or monthly profits?

I’m not talking about introducing BDC phone scripts, training, recording and inspection of lead/phone processes.  That should be standard operating procedure at your store. If it not the case,  you can get expert assistance by coming to Boot Camp in May.  We will have workshops on phone skills as well as BDC process.

Consider that the contacts that come through your website are based on previously committed marketing costs. Anything that improves lead to show ratios should stand on its own merits.  What is it worth to get someone from behind their computer into your store?  Is it worth $25 to you?

Our consulting team has been exploring this question and have been very pleased with the data and results from a new product strategy from HookLogic.  Behind this great product is the passion and BDC/Internet experience of Jeff Kershner who many know through his DealerRefresh.com community website.

Jeff helped develop this product over the past three years while working at the Younger Automotive Group and the end product is just fantastic.  The product uses targeted incentives to get consumers to show up for a test drive.  Research has shown that the test-drive is an important “step” in a car purchase so the dealer who gets the test drive is most likely to win the sale.

Gift Cards Done Right!

So, by using gift card incentives, Hooklogic technology increases Lead to Show ratios significantly.  One way this is done is  by IMPROVING your lead forms with the option to receive a gift card, normally $25 in value, to stores like Starbucks, Home Depot, or even an Amex gift card.

When you visit their website, you will see that they practice what they preach.  The image on the right is an enhanced lead form using the HookLogic technology.  This product is called “Web to Show”.

The second part of the strategy is to filter and score UNSOLD LEADS, which we all have, and offer these leads a reason to come in for a test drive if they score properly. This product is called “Lead to Show”. Considering that many dealers buy third party leads, this scoring and activation can “data mine” great prospects without the tedium of calling everyone.

Reports show an average increase of 5-7% closing ratio on 3rd party leads alone. The case studies, which Jeff can share with you, are impressive.

Contact Jeff For A Demo

If you have not tried a seamless incentive program for your dealership, you are missing another opportunity to distinguish yourself during the Automotive Zero Moment of Truth (ZMOT).  If you are coming to Boot Camp, you should schedule a demo with Jeff and his team.

You can reach Jeff via email at: jeff.kershner@hooklogic.com and it would be a mistake not to get a webinar demo if you are not attending the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp.  Snooze you lose!   You can read more at http://www.leadtoshow.com

I’ve known Jeff for a number of years and last year I was pleased to present him with the Lighthouse Award for his passion and contributions to the Automotive Industry via DealerRefresh.

Disclaimer

I am not a partner or equity stakeholder in HookLogic nor  have I accepted commissions for referrals for this product.  I am sharing this product because the PCG Consulting team has found this to be a great product to recommend to dealers.

Brian

This Automotive Zero Moment of Truth Infographic is a great discussion piece to have with your dealership team about how the car shopping eco-system is working today.

Stimulus Investments Drive ZMOT Activity

Stimulus investments (Radio, TV, and Newspaper) for a majority of consumers do NOT create a direct beeline to the dealership (FMOT).  Stimulus investments encourages further online research prior to direct dealer contact.

This research, prior to dealer contact, is called the Zero Moment of Truth.  This term was coined by Jim Lecinski in his book “Winning The Zero Moment of Truth“. (download book)

It is at the Zero Moment of Truth (ZMOT) that dealers need the most help in creating an effective strategy.

For many dealers offline stimulus investments are a large part of their budget. However when a consumer goes online to research, the dealer is often not showing up to the party to the same degree as their offline influence.  You could make the case that dealers who are weak at ZMOT are actually funding traffic to their competitors.

Consumer Reviews Impact ZMOT

Prior to the Internet, whether a consumer was treated professionally or poorly they had little power to hurt or help a dealer’s sales goals.  Today, consumers have tremendous power to negatively or positively influence sales during the Zero Moment of Truth.

Sites like Google Places, Yelp, PrestoReviews, and DealerRater often appear on Page One of search results when a consumer researches a dealer by name. This fact should remind all members of the automotive community to treat every consumer, regardless if they purchase, with utmost respect and clarity.

Not all sales that are “lost” result in a negative review. Consumers in the end will choose who they feel most comfortable with and the dealer not getting the business could have done everything right accounting to their playbook.

However, for some dealers that still use “bait and switch” advertising will find a a tsunami of negative press building that will educate future buyers to stay aware from unethical business practices.

Improving ZMOT

So, how do you know if you have a well balanced budget for marketing in today’s eco-system?    I have listed some actions that will help improve your visibility in the Zero Moment of Truth.  If you are not doing all these things, you should revisit your overall strategy and rebalance your budgets.

Improving FMOT

Once a consumer has narrowed their choices and has decided to contact you, it is very important that your sales team recognizes that the consumer has been shopping.  They most likely are considering more than the ONE car that they inquired about.  Failing to ask “what other cars have you been considering?” would be a mistake considering the Infographic above.

I would also like to add that dealers who are not recording their incoming calls, inspecting, and scoring how consumers are being handled most likely have a big profit leak.  Compared to overall operating budgets, phone inspection companies like www.PhoneNinjas.com are worth their weight in gold.

Here are some investments that will make the FMOT a stronger and more positive experience for consumers:

Improving SMOT

Once a consumer has purchased a car or serviced a vehicle with your dealership how do you keep them connected?  Leveraging a consumers positive experience with your dealership can be worth thousands of dollars of equivalent advertising.  Here are some thoughts to consider:

Do You Have A Comprehensive Strategy?

The Infographic can not cover all the aspects of the consumer shopping experience but your marketing and operating budget must connect at all touchpoints of the ZMOT, FMOT, and SMOT.  Dealers only can invest in strategies that they understand and measure.  The good news is that measurement is getting much easier.

If you would like a copy of the ZMOT budgeting spreadsheet I created to help dealers see how their marketing and advertising investments fall into each of these categories, you can request a copy by sending me an email, simply click on this link:  brian@pcgdigitalmarketing.com or send me an email and in the Subject Line please add “ZMOT Spreadsheet Request“.

See you at the 2012 Automotive Boot Camp where we can discuss in greater detail the opportunities to expand your reach during the Zero Moment of Truth.

Brian Pasch

New to this year’s Automotive Marketing Boot Camp sponsorship opportunities is the Exhibit Hall Space which will provide select sponsors a 10×10 or 10×20 booth to display their products and services. All sponsors will also have the opportunity to network with the leading dealerships in the country that have come to the Boot Camp to learn more about enhancing their digital marketing strategies and take their business to the next level in 2012.

Sponsorship opportunities are categorized by level of sponsorship including Bronze to Platinum, Keynote Speaker, Promotional Marketing Sponsor, Cocktail Reception Sponsors and Lanyard/Badge Sponsor.

Automotive Marketing Conference

Click here to register for the Boot Camp

The 2012 Automotive Marketing Boot Camp (AMBC) is designed to give dealers access to the top industry experts to refine their automotive marketing strategies and operating processes that have been implemented for 2012. It is an intimate event limited to 300 dealer employees that gives all attendees one-on-one time with industry leaders, market experts, and innovative vendor partners.

The Boot Camp offers hands-on skills based training programs which cover the most important elements of automotive digital marketing strategies: social media, blogging, video optimization, mobile marketing, link building, content creation and SEO.

Similar to last year’s format the boot camp will feature classes and speakers from some of the industry’s leading digital marketing and operations experts. Attendees of last year’s boot camp posted rave reviews regarding their investment of time for this unique industry event.

The Automotive Marketing Boot Camp delivers the skills dealers need to understand, create, execute and manage their online marketing strategy. The classes are designed to give attendees the tools needed to implement effective ideas and strategies for their dealership. The boot camp is perfect for General Managers and Internet Sales Managers.

For more information about becoming a Boot Camp sponsor, please call Carrie Hemphill at 732.734.6993.

Dallas area car dealers are pleased to see the PCG Pit Stop digital marketing conference coming to Texas on July 9th and 10th. The conference will be held at the beautiful Hyatt Regency in downtown Dallas. PCG has secured great room rates ($109) to allow attendees to come the Saturday afternoon presentations, dinner, and reception and then stay overnight to prepare for the full day of workshops on Sunday.

This is the first time that DFW Metroplex dealers can gain access to high quality digital marketing training offered by PCG Digital Marketing without a flight out of town! The program is designed to provide the same high quality education offered at larger national events at a much lower cost per attendee.

Car dealers looking to learn more about effective digital marketing strategies will be able to participate in workshops lead by industry experts and thought leaders from PCG Digital Marketing. PCG has a strong reputation for attracting the best speakers and creating the most compelling materials for their educational programs.

Dealers looking for updated strategies for SEO, SEM, Social Media, Reputation Management, CRM Lead Handling, Chat, Fixed Operations, and Improving Sales should mark their calendars and register today.

Why Should Dealers Attend?

Please Answer These Questions:

• Are you leveraging the new communication channels provided by social media?
• Do you have an integrated digital marketing strategy for your dealership?
• Is your website conversion rate increasing each month?
• Could you be handling your calls and Internet leads better?
• Would you like a 2-4% average increase in closing ratios to to phone and Internet leads?
• Is your Fixed Operations Budget using SEM, SEO, and Social Media?
• Are you looking for advice on how to structure your entire advertising budget?
• Are you ready to implement free advertising strategies to increase website traffic?

Get the answers, advice, and strategies from industry pros at the PCG Pit Stop Conference in Dallas!

Register Today and Save!

Register to attend the next PCG Pit Stop^® today using the link on the menu above or just click here. The conference is conveniently located in Dallas so you can easily travel to and enjoy the workshop experience offered by PCG Education. Six other cities are included in the 2011 tour so if you can’t make the Dallas tour date, hop of a plane and get to a conference in another city.

Dallas/Fort Worth dealers need more than just their 20 Group Meetings and annual conferences to stay connected with the latest changes in our industry. Google has been making significant changes to Internet marketing every few months so don’t get left behind. In fact, anyone in Texas or surrounding states would be well advised to invest in this conference.

Details on the automotive conference can be found in the color brochure below:

The automotive community has embraced Burg for his critically acclaimed book and CD series, Endless Referrals: Network Your Everyday Contacts Into Sales. The book has sold over 200,000 copies and continues to be used as a training manual for top sales organizations throughout the world. The Endless Referrals CD series has been extremely effective in the automotive industry in helping dealer sales professionals and dealer principals rethink their sales and marketing strategy.

In addition to working with the automotive community, he speaks for corporations and associations internationally, including fortune 500 companies, franchises, and numerous direct sales organizations.

Register for the Automotive Marketing Boot Camp

Many dealer professionals know Burg for his national bestseller, The Go-Giver. It has been heralded as a new business classic and to date has been translated into 18 languages.  The Go-Giver is Burg’s fourth book to top 150,000 copies sold.

Burg will deliver his presentation at the 2^nd annual Automotive Marketing Boot Camp to the leading dealerships in the country that are focused on leveraging Burg’s proven ‘success formula’.

Brian Pasch, CEO of PCG Digital Marketing, is quoted, “We are thrilled to have Bob at the Automotive Marketing Boot Camp.  He is revolutionizing the way car dealers all over the country are doing business and I know every dealer professional that attends is going to be amazed by Bob’s presentation.”

The Automotive Marketing Boot Camp is being held April 16-18^th in Orlando and is organized by PCG Digital Marketing.

“Expect to be challenged, expect to be engaged and expect to take something back to your dealership for immediate implementation,” said Alex Snyder, Director of Product Research at Dealer.com.

Representing Dealer.com for their technology showcase presentation will be automotive marketing specialists Darren Haygood, Dave Winslow, Ben Gilbert, Joe Mescher and Alex Snyder.

The Dealer.com marketing team will work one-on-one with attendees and offer their different perspectives and expert opinions on the topics that matter most to attendees.

Google Analytics and Social Media for Car Dealers

Dave Winslow, the Intelligence Chief at Dealer.com, will lead Sunday’s discussion about Google Analytics for auto dealers.  Dave has been active in the online marketing industry for over a decade specializing in the areas of online business consulting, search marketing, testing and optimization, and web analytics.

Joe Mescher, Digital Marketing Director with Dealer.com, will lead Monday’s showcase about Automotive Social Media strategies.  Joe is also an adjunct Professor of Internet Marketing at Champlain College in Burlington, VT. His focus at Dealer.com is on developing effective search and social media strategies for dealers and dealer groups across the US.

Click here to register for the Boot Camp

During both days, the Dealer.com marketing team will be diving-in to the dealership process, website design, search marketing, and where it all fits in the consumer buying funnel.  Darren Haygood, Ben Gilbert, and Alex Snyder will be helping dealers navigate these critical pieces in each dealer’s business strategy.

Attendees are encouraged to bring any of the following:

• Website statistics for review
• Process plans from CRM or ILM
• PPC performance reports
• Month-end statistics
• Any questions

This year’s second annual Automotive Marketing Boot Camp is being held at the Hilton Orlando, April 16-18.  Dealers can still register for the Boot Camp online or call Renee McGowan at 732.450.8200 ext 5.

PCG Digital Marketing is pleased to announce that DrivingSalesTV.com will be live broadcasting the keynote speakers from the 2011 Automotive Marketing Boot Camp (AMBC) in Orlando which starts on Saturday April 16th.

The AMBC conference has attracted top dealers, industry leaders, educators, and motivational speakers for this two and a half day educational event.

The content from the 25+ workshops and educational sessions will not be broadcast live, only the 10 speakers listed below.  Dealers who would like to attend the Boot Camp in Florida can call Renee McGowan at 732.450.8200 ext 5 or you can register online.  Deadline for registration is Friday April 15, 2011.  Walk-in registrations will not be permitted.

The schedule of live broadcasts is listed below based on Eastern Standard Time (EST) and you can visit www.drivingsalestv.com to register to view the broadcasts.

Saturday April 16, 2011

7:45 pm pm Brice Englert from Dominion Dealer Solutions

8:30 pm Brian Pasch, CEO of PCG Digital Marketing

Sunday April 17th

8:00 am  Best Selling Author Bob Burg – presents “Endless Referrals: The Go-Giver Way”

12:15 pm Daimen Boyd General Sales Manager-Automotive Marketing at NetBiz.com

1:00 pm  Tracy Myers, Dealer Principal at Frank Myers AutoMaxx

7:15 pm  Egon Smola – VP, New and Used Car Leads Businesses at Dealix

8:15 pm  Erin Touponse – Director of Communications for the Harte Auto Group

Monday April 18th

8:00 am Best Selling Authors Jimmy Vee and Travis Miller – “Gravitational Marketing”

12:15 pm  Allan Chell – President of cDemo Mobile Solutions

8:30 pm Brian Pasch, CEO of PCG Digital Marketing

You can register for the Boot Camp online or by calling Renee McGowan at 732.450.8200 ext 5.

Prior to the start of each day’s automotive training workshops, Rick Ivone will be leading Boot Camp attendees in a morning fitness and stretching program.

According to Ivone “Anyone attending the morning workout sessions will have more energy throughout the day and not less.”  Ivone is the personal trainer and business coach to PCG Digital Marketing CEO, Brian Pasch.   Rick is also a Type One Diabetic with an amazing story that will be shared with attendees of the Boot Camp.

The morning workout sessions start at 5:30 am and are designed for people at all fitness levels.  Rick Ivone encourages all who are registered for the Boot Camp to start the day with movement.  Ivone added “We were created to move and movement creates energy.  I’ll be showing attendees who to burn fat and not sugar as part of the morning sessions.  Most people don’t know the difference and their home workout and running sessions are not helping them to burn fat. We have unlimited supplies of fat which creates clean burning fuel for our bodies.”

Slow Burn by Stu Mittleman

All attendees of the morning training sessions will also receive a free copy of “Slow Burn” by US ultra marathon record holder Stu Mittleman. Stu set the world record for the 1,000 mile run as well as setting numerous ultra-long distance running records.

Stu is a unique individual and close friend of Brian Pasch and Rick Ivone.  Slow Burn discusses how to properly burn fat from exercise and how to avoid burning sugars to maintain high energy levels.  The book will change your thoughts on running and exercise forever.

Start Your Day With Movement

As exciting as the Boot Camp program will be, nothing will prepare your mind and body for the speakers and workshop leaders than proper movement.  Attendees are encourages to attend the morning workout sessions.  Questions about the morning program can be addressed to Rick Ivone at:  rick@rickivone.com

Dealers can register for the Boot Camp online at http://www.automotivebootcamp.com or you can call Renee McGowan at 732.450.8200 ext 5.

I love my 1969 Superbee and as much as I enjoy the ride, there are a few things that give me reason to be careful when driving this classic.

Today we have grown accustom to air bags, superb braking and handling technology, surround sound stereo, iPod connectors, and the convenience of navigation systems. All of these conveniences are not included in this enhanced 1969 Dodge Coronet frame.

At 80 miles per hour on the Garden State Parkway I admittedly do not feel as safe as I do in my 2010 Infiniti G37x Sedan. A car that was once deemed safe in 1969 is now marginally acceptable. Did I mention that the Superbee lap belts just don’t feel right without a shoulder harness?

Holding On To The Past

Its in our human nature to remember more of the “good times” when we were younger than the bad. We relish the memories of our high school cars whether it was a Superbee, Chevelle, Charger, Camaro, or some clunker. Cars were much simpler and working under the hood was easy.

What was your favorite car in high school or college?

Today, some dealers want to believe that the strategies that they used to marketing their dealership in the 60′s, 70′s, 80′s and 90′s are basically the same today. I think they want to remember easier times and less complicated processes. They are hooked on how easy it was to work “under the hood” of their dealership in the past.

However, the reality is that in the past 10 years, marketing and operating a car dealership requires a significant investment in education that may be unparalleled in recent automotive history.

I might concede that once a consumer walks into a dealership not much has changed in the past 10 years. However, getting customers in the door and how dealer connect with consumers in your local market has drastically changed.

Are You Using Retro Marketing Strategies

The cure for the 1969 Blues? Education and Engagement. There are a number of great opportunities for dealers to learn from their peers. There are ample opportunities to read great case studies of dealers who are leading the way in new marketing strategies. They are not found in the trunk of a 1969 Dodge Superbee.

They are found in great online communities like DrivingSales.com. They are found at great conferences like the Automotive Marketing Boot Camp. There are also found on an emerging breed of online universities and teaching communities like www.DrivingSalesUniversity.com.

I estimate that less than 10% of dealership employees are attending live conferences and participating in online communities to grow their knowledge and refine the career path. This is embarrassing and so 1969! It’s time to invest in the staff that will become the next generation of car dealers.

With that said, I hope to see you in Orlando on April 16th!

Boot camp attendees will learn how to leverage the Internet to grow fixed operations revenue.  This will enable dealers to increase direct consumer leads and decrease their dependency on third party lead collectors.

Auto Dealers Need to Debunk Fixed Operations Myths

For many dealers, the prior emphasis for search engine optimization has been on sales of new and used cars. However, a lucrative opportunity exists in an area that most dealers have ignored in their digital marketing strategy. “The goal is for dealer service departments to win over local consumers in need of repair or service and to debunk the myth that dealership service departments are more expensive,” says Pasch.

Pasch and Page will give dealers the tools to regain search authority for fixed operations; parts and service.  This will generate more leads for common services such as oil changes, brakes, tires, radiator service, transmission, front end alignment, transmission repairs and dozens of popular Repairs orders.

Click here to register for the Automotive Marketing Boot Camp!

Held April 16-18^th, the 2^nd annual Automotive Marketing Boot Camp is one of the most powerful educational opportunities of the year for automotive professionals.  The conference brings together more than 30 speakers who are considered experts in digital marketing, automotive seo, website analytics, social media, and more.

About Dave Page and Dealer e Process

Dave Page has been involved in growing fixed operations departments since 1991. He has held nearly every position in fixed operations starting from a porter, parts driver, parts counterman, service advisor, assistant service manager, service manager and eventually becoming the service director of a large Chicago seven franchise auto dealer.

In the early 2000’s, Page increased his fixed operations department from 15 customers per day to 200 and was one of the early pioneers of utilizing pay per click advertising along with a powerful SEO strategy to bring visitors from all over the United States to his parts website.

Before leaving to start Dealer e Process, Page worked in the highest crime district of Chicago and grew the dealership from three service technicians to twenty-six.  He was honored with six consecutive Mark of Excellence Awards.

Dealer e Process is a leading company in online marketing solutions for the automotive industry, providing award winning automotive dealer websites to auto dealers and media companies.  The company’s  focus on innovative websites and integrated online tools engage consumers and produce more opportunity and conversion for auto dealers than any website provider in the industry.

Google recently announced changes to their search algorithm and included in those changes were efforts to lower the visibility of spammy websites. One of the secondary conversions was will Google lower the weighting of keyword rich domains like “www.buyviagra.com”.

Matt Cutts addressed this specific question in a video below:

I want to thank Anirban Das for bringing this video to my attention.

All car dealers have their primary domains set and locked for most cases so buying extra domains would be used for marketing microsites for lead collection, brand awareness, or to capitalize on popular search phrases.

Matt Cutt’s video and his examples are really misleading because car dealers would not be investing the millions of dollars needed to create large technology or marketing portals like Twitter, Tech Crunch, Zappos, etc. Branded websites do not become popular for non-match keyword searches magically, which is a large omission from Matt’s video message.

Regardless if Google turns down the dial slightly for exact matching domain names, they are still the fastest way for a dealer to gain page one visibility in their local market for long tail keywords.

Non-Matching Domain Names

Buying non-exact matching domains still works, like Matt said, but what he didn’t disclose is that non-exact matching domains needs significantly more external links with anchor text on the targeted keywords.

Example, search Google for “Automotive Microsites” and you will see www.dealerbytes.com on Page One. It does not have either phrase in the domain name but it ranks on page one. Why? Because Paul Rushing, domain owner, has content on his website and links on the phrase “automotive microsites” directed to that domain.

For dealers, exact matching domains are the better match because dealers have smaller budgets for SEO projects. There are hundreds of automotive microsites that I have build that demonstrate that exact matching domains with great unique content are still the fastest way to hit Page One.

Need some examples, post Google update:

1. ToyotaRecall – ranks on page one for “Toyota Recall” over most major giant news sources
2. MiamiUsedCars.org – ranks well on Page One for “Miami Used Cars” in a very competitive market
3. ChevroletFortWorth.com – DFW is a very competitive market for Chevy dealers, Jerry’s gets more awareness.
4. SeattleJeep.com – Seattle has a number of choices for Jeep dealers, Rairdon get more visibility.
5. BuffaloCars.net – A popular search phrase in Buffalo is “Buffalo Cars” and this site get the brand out there.

So, as many writers have said in the past, content is King and great content on a keyword rich domain can deliver an annuity of page one placements. Then the focus has to be switched to testing designs that increase calls, leads, and floor traffic. In the end, a poorly converting microsites is a waste of time.

Microsites are a great tool for car dealers and regardless of what Google may signal, the proof is that SEO marketing strategies on a small budget can benefit from exact matching, keyword rich domains.

Microsite Education

If you are looking for advice and strategies to build effective microsites, PCG is offering two classes at the upcoming Automotive Marketing Boot Camp that will show you everything you need to succeed. You can register for the April 16-18th event by visiting http://www.automotivebootcamp.com.

I will be conducting a workshop on Automotive SEO Strategies and two members of the PCG team will be conducting a workshop on WordPress microsites and optimization strategies. The combination of these two workshops will empower you to launch, test, and improve your microsite marketing campaigns.

Bring your laptop to these workshops since you will be jumping in and doing hands-on work for these sessions. If you have microsites that have not been doing well, bring your logins and passwords so you can optimize them during the boot camp with help from the experts.

Mobile Chat App

Contact At Once!, the leading provider of auto dealer chat that moves online car shoppers into live conversations with dealerships announces the newest version of their groundbreaking mobile chat app, now with native support for the iPhone and iPod Touch in addition to the iPad2.  Contact At Once! is a sponsor of the 2^nd annual Automotive Marketing Boot Camp in Orlando where they will be demonstrating the new Mobile Chat App for dealer professionals.

The latest release of the ContactAtOnce! Mobile Chat App offers dealership salespeople the freedom to move about the dealership, and anywhere else they choose, while continuing to receive and respond to incoming chat leads originating from their dealership’s website and the vast network of automotive listing sites featuring chat powered by Contact At Once!. Using the ContactAtOnce! Mobile Chat App automotive salespeople are able to interact with prospective buyers throughout the day resulting in more sales opportunities and cars sold.

Automotive Dealer Chat, Social Media and More

In addition to showcasing the new Mobile Chat App, Boot Camp attendees can also learn about the new Connections Bundle available through AutoTrader.com from Contact At Once!.  This includes Chat, Dealer Ratings, Social Media Connections and Sitelink Advanced.

Click here to register for the Boot Camp April 16-18 in Orlando, FL

The 2^nd annual Automotive Marketing Boot Camp takes place April 16-18 at the Hilton Orlando.  The nation’s leading automotive marketing experts, like Contact At Once!, will be sharing the latest innovations in digital marketing technology and proven strategies with dealer professionals who want to hone their skills in Automotive Digital Marketing.

This year’s diverse lineup of speakers offers extensive experience in CRM systems, BDC structure and workflow, Google AdWords, blogging, lead management processes, video optimization and more.  This 2-day event will include hands-on training in the most significant automotive marketing topics in the form of panel discussions, workshops, round-tables and presentations.  An absolute must for GMs, Internet Managers and Dealer Principals, the 2011 Automotive Marketing Boot Camp will empower dealers to strategize and execute for digital marketing success in 2011 and beyond.

Social media is revolutionizing the way dealerships conduct business online and is forever changing the way dealer professionals interact with current and potential customers.  The roster of social media experts speaking at the Marketing Boot Camp will unravel the mystery behind social media success and reveal the biggest mistakes dealers make when incorporating social media into their digital marketing plan.

Social Media Marketers

Featured social media speakers like Tim Martell of WikiMotive will share game changing strategies for dealers to develop a compelling and financially advantageous Facebook presence. At the conclusion of Tim’s workshop, many attendees will have a completed and customized Facebook fan page for their dealership.

SOCIALDEALER, a comprehensive social media management technology company for auto dealers will also be networking with boot camp attendees as a sponsor and will be on-hand to speak with dealers that want to learn how to effectively manage their social media networks growth, performance and effectiveness.

Click here to register for the 2011 Boot Camp April 16-18.

Additional boot camp speakers focusing on Social Media Marketing include JD Rucker, Director of New Media at TK Carsites, and Paul Potratz, COO of Potratz Advertising, a full service automotive advertising agency that specializes in digital marketing strategies for auto dealers.

The Boot Camp includes hands-on training in many of the most significant automotive marketing topics including CRM systems, BDC structure and workflow, Google AdWords, blogging, lead management processes, video optimization and more, in the form of panel discussions, workshops, round-tables and presentations.  An absolute must for GMs, Internet Managers and Dealer Principals, the 2011 Automotive Marketing Boot Camp will empower dealers to strategize and execute for digital marketing success in 2011 and beyond.

See the full list of Boot Camp presenters online.

My job requires me to be in front of a computer for many hours a day. When I started PCG Digital Marketing in 2005, I remember many months where I would be at the computer 12-18 hours a day, 7 days a week. This lifestyle choice coupled with lack of exercise and a healthy diet resulted in some significant weight gains by January 2010.

During those first five years of entrepreneurial growth I told myself I didn’t have time to go to the gym. I was convinced that I needed every hour to invest in the business. I was excited about how many opportunities existed and at the same time was buried with so many “things” to do.

I rationalized that when things got easier I would invest in myself once again and get back to the gym.

During those first five years I was also challenged by a statement Grant Cardone; “CEO’s of the nations largest and most successful companies read over 70 books a year”. I laughed and said wow, who has the time to read that many books. Once again, I was convinced that I didn’t have time to invest in my intellectual health because I had some many things to do.

The Myth That Blocks Building a World Class Dealership

It amazes me that when I speak around the country at 20 groups and conferences how many dealers openly admit that they are lacking the skills and knowledge to operate key components of their business. Overall, they are challenged to understand how to leverage the internet to grow their business.

Dealers admit that they have broken processes and business structure that make them inefficient. They have questions on lead management, CRM processes, social media investments, digital marketing strategies, and how to best leverage their website to increase conversion.

Yet when I encourage these same dealers to send their managers and key staff to training conferences they reply just like I once did; “My team is too busy to leave the dealership“.

This is one of the most dangerous myths that any dealer could buy into. It’s the belief in this myth that has put dealers behind other industries in leveraging the opportunities in a digital world.

My Wake Up Call

In January of 2010 my doctor gave me a wake-up call. He told me that if I didn’t change my lifestyle I would become a Type 2 Diabetic. My first reaction was “This is impossible. There are no people in my family with diabetes!”.

What I later learned is that diabetes is becoming an epidemic around the world as people refuse to educate themselves on the impact of poor diet and lack of exercise.

Unlike many other Americans that are presented with these facts, I listened. I changed my diet and invested in a personal trainer 3 days a week. Today I weigh 35 pounds less and my physical endurance, energy, and mental clarity has increased.

In fact, when I was in high school, I was a cross country runner. I thought that my days of running were over. Next month I’ll be running a half-marathon at the Jersey Shore.

I’m also reading one book a week. It’s amazing how much knowledge, power, and enlightenment you get by reading books from leaders in all fields of life. Grant’s admonition was true; leaders who read can lead better. The investment to read is making my vision clearer, processes more streamlined, increasing customer service, and creating a better workplace for my employees.

More Time And Greater Success

The irony is that since I have invested in physical exercise and mental exercise I have MORE TIME and MORE SUCCESS in my business. It’s the exact opposite of what so many business owners, managers, and workers believe. I challenge dealers to experience the same realization and success that I have found.

Dealers and General Managers this is your wake-up call. Debunk the myth that you can’t afford to send employees to educational conferences. Recognize it as a lie that will perpetuate mediocrity.

Dealership employees may retain more by getting them out of the dealership. By taking them out of the normal mix, they can focus on learning. They also benefit from learning and collaboration with their peers. Every time I train at a dealership, the minds of the employees are in work mode. Interruptions are common and often people are pulled out of a training session for an “urgent” matter.

The combination of live conference and online webinars and training tools is the key for dealership success. There are many great online courses, training systems, and whitepapers that dealers should leverage as well.

Success and change will only be realized when dealers understand that they CAN NOT afford to ignore training and skills development. Investing in employee education should be considered a mandatory part of their employment experience.

Any dealership should be able to operate efficiently if key members are away for a few days for a conference. If you have to, consider it an educational vacation. If the business can’t operate smoothly for a few days, then there are larger structural issues at play.

Grow At The Boot Camp

On April 16-18th, the Automotive Marketing Boot Camp will offer best practice advice from over 30 industry experts and specialists to assist dealers remain relevant and competitive. The Boot Camp experience starts on Saturday afternoon April 16th and ends on Monday Night April 18th. The schedule minimizes the time out of the dealership and maximizes the investment in education. The boot camp format includes inspirational keynote speakers, workshops, and hands-on labs. Get your team registered and stop buying into the myth that is undermining your success.

Bob Burg author of “The Go-Giver” and “Endless Referrals” will be the keynote speaker on Sunday morning. Jimmy Vee and Travis Miller authors of “Gravitational Marketing” will be the keynote speakers on Monday morning. The workshops will cover important topics that include social media, fixed operations, CRM processes, telephone skills, content syndication, microsite marketing, video marketing, Internet pay plans, and more.

Follow this link to receive $100 off the registration for the Automotive marketing Boot Camp: Boot Camp Special Registration Offer

In fact, that’s the only way one can make money in a free-enterprise based society. Thus, shifting your focus from “getting to giving” is not only a nice way to do business, but a very financially profitable way, as well.

We are proud to announce that Bob Burg will be delivering the Keynote address on Sunday April 17th at the Automotive Marketing Boot Camp. Spend the morning with Bob you’ll learn how to genuinely and authentically accelerate your ability to connect with new people and build the trust that is essential in life and business!

In fact, Bob’s mantra is: “ All things being equal, people will do business with, and refer business to, those automotive dealers they know, like and trust.”

During this powerful program you will learn the philosophy at the heart of The Go-Giver, embraced by so many of today’s top producers and leaders. You’ll learn how to quickly and easily build a prospecting and referral “Machine” to continuously create more sales than you ever dreamed possible!

You will also learn the philosophy at the heart of The Go-Giver embraced by so many of today’s top producers and leaders, including the principle behind The Law of Influence – perhaps the biggest factor of all in terms of success.

In this information-packed morning session, you’ll learn how to:

• Quickly cultivate new prospects — whether or not you have ANY existing contacts
• Dramatically increase your business without spending more time or money
• Instantly connect via the “One Key Question” that will set you apart from the rest
• Develop an Army of “Personal Walking Ambassadors”
• Model the one SECRET all superstar salespeople use to get to the top

Click to register while space is available:

Click Here To Register Today

Learn More About Bob

If you would like to learn more about Bob Burg, visit his website at www.burg.com .  Request the first chapter of three of Bob’s best selling books and he’ll send them to you for free.  This way you can get to know Bob before he speaks at the Automotive Marketing Boot Camp.

You can also watch videos of Bob speaking or read his blog which contains valuable insights for anyone who seeks to live a world class life.  You can also connect with Bob on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Automotive Professionals Enthusiastically Praise Bob’s Message

We are so pleased to have Bob Burg as part of the Boot Camp Experience. Car dealers need fresh ideas on leadership, sales, and most importantly how to connect with consumers.  Car dealers can benefit from innovation in technology but they can also benefit equally as well from new strategies to serve their customers and prospects.

If you are coming to Boot Camp to take your dealership to the next level, Bob Burg’s keynote presentation will provide the strategy and case studies to show you how to create Endless Referrals, the Go-Giver way!

Here is what other car dealers have said about Bob’s strategy:

“After reading Endless Referrals, never again will any salesperson in your dealership have to depend on ‘ups.’ Instead they can meet people wherever they go and form friendships and relationships that create a steady stream of referrals. Burg has put together a primer for developing, what he calls, personal walking ambassadors. And, it works!”

-Sam S. Edelsbert, #1 Mercedes-Benz Salesperson in the Southeast Region of U.S. 2003 and 2004

“Thanks for the terrific program at our dealership. I believe the tools you provided for us have the power to transform the earning potential of our team. You presented them with proven principles that empowered them to take control of their own destinies. You didn’t just talk about selling cars. Instead, you gave our team winning approaches for developing and leveraging relationships with people in the local marketplace. This cultivates people wanting to do business with them directly, as well as people who refer others whether or not they themselves are in the market for a car. As you called it, they are developing ‘Personal Walking Ambassadors.’”

What you brought to the battle, Bob, was very hard-hitting, easy-to-apply ‘how-to’ information. You provided exact, simple language for situations, like the one you gave us regarding asking for referrals. So simple, yet no one I’ve seen actually does it. This one principle-based tactic could account for a huge increase in referral business, all by itself.

While not everyone applies the great information our company provides for them through excellent teachers like yourself, I am aware of several who are doing so now and already seeing results. It works that fast! These individuals are not only increasing their own success quotient, they are also becoming the building blocks that we can use to improve our overall corporate performance.

Please consider this my enthusiastic endorsement for any dealership or family of dealerships that want to significantly lower turnover and increase repeat and referral buyers in order to dramatically increase both their sales and the resulting profits as well!

-Mark Barton
Former General Sales Manager
JM Lexus
#1 Lexus Dealer in the World

Join NetBiz at the 2011 Marketing Boot Camp April 16-18 at the Hilton Orlando.

PCG Digital Marketing organizes the annual Automotive Marketing Boot Camp. Attendees of the Boot Camp will benefit from a diverse roster of automotive marketing experts who will share their knowledge and best practices with dealer professionals who want to hone their skills in Automotive Digital Marketing.

Automotive Social Media Strategies Highlighted at 2011 Boot Camp

Topic to be covered during the 2011 Automotive Marketing Boot Camp include Internet marketing, social media engagement strategies, lead management, BDC optimization, video optimization, reputation management, Google Places optimization, blogging content creation, website analytics, Automotive SEO and more.

This year’s program will include seminars on dealership process, phone scripting for success, and a lighter look on Google Analytics. Last year, Boot Camp attendees posted rave reviews of their investment of time for this event.

Click here to register for this year's Boot Camp April 16-18.

This year’s workshop leaders include dealer principals, general managers, and dealership employees that have stood above their peers in achieving excellence in their dealership’s digital marketing and sales strategies. Workshop leaders include JD Rucker, Jeffrey Kershner, Andrew DiFeo, Rob Fontano, Tracy Myers, Eric Miltsch, and Timothy Martell.

The Boot Camp is also attracting popular speakers with specialized skills including Jerry Thibeau, Brian Pasch, Sean Wolfington, Matt Murray, Christine Rochelle, and Alex Snyder.

The Automotive Marketing Boot Camp is very unique and effective because participants receive preparation materials in advance of the class and come fully prepared to engage in actual demonstrations.  Participants use their own accounts during the classes so that they can then continue to work with them on their own long after the boot camp.

This year’s diverse lineup of speakers offers extensive experience in CRM systems, BDC structure and workflow, Google AdWords and Google Places marketing, blogging, lead management processes, video optimization, website design, social media and dealership management and leadership.

Hands-On Automotive Marketing Training

Register today for the Automotive Marketing Boot Camp!

This 2-day event will include hands-on training in the most significant automotive marketing topics in the form of panel discussions, workshops, round-tables and presentations.  An absolute must for Dealer Principals, General Managers, Internet Managers and Social Media Specialists, the 2011 Automotive Marketing Boot Camp will empower dealers to strategize and execute for best practices for important dealership operations.

See the full lineup of automotive marketing educators at this year’s Boot Camp.

The Automotive Marketing Boot Camp is very unique and effective because participants receive conference materials in advance of the class and come fully prepared to engage in actual demonstrations.  Participants use their own accounts during the classes so that they can then continue to work with them on their own long after the boot camp.

This year the Automotive Marketing Boot Camp has introduced longer workshop sessions and labs (2.5 hrs) to allow important topics to be covered in greater detail.  The 2011 Automotive Marketing Boot Camp will also feature Technology Showcases, which will offer attendees a glance at the latest vendor innovations for the automotive industry.

Space is limited.  Register for the Boot Camp today!

Eight Reasons to Attend

PCG Digital Marketing organizes the annual Automotive Marketing Boot Camp. Attendees of the Boot Camp will benefit from a diverse roster of automotive marketing experts who will share their knowledge and best practices with dealer professionals who want to hone their skills in Automotive Digital Marketing.

Automotive Social Media Strategies Highlighted at Boot Camp

Topic to be covered during the 2011 Automotive Marketing Boot Camp include Internet marketing, social media engagement strategies, lead management, BDC optimization, video optimization, reputation management, Google Places optimization, blogging content creation, website analytics, Automotive SEO and more.

Register for the Boot Camp April 16-18 in Orlando.

This year’s program will include seminars on dealership process, phone scripting for success, and a lighter look on Google Analytics. Last year, Boot Camp attendees posted rave reviews of their investment of time for this event.

This year’s workshop leaders include dealer principals, general managers, and dealership employees that have stood above their peers in achieving excellence in their dealership’s digital marketing and sales strategies. Workshop leaders include JD Rucker, Jeffrey Kershner, Andrew DiFeo, Rob Fontano, Tracy Myers, Eric Miltsch, and Timothy Martell.

The Boot Camp is also attracting popular speakers with specialized skills including Jerry Thibeau, Brian Pasch, Sean Wolfington, Matt Murray, Christine Rochelle, and Alex Snyder.

The Automotive Marketing Boot Camp is very unique and effective because participants receive preparation materials in advance of the class and come fully prepared to engage in actual demonstrations.  Participants use their own accounts during the classes so that they can then continue to work with them on their own long after the boot camp.

Last October’s winner in Las Vegas was Dennis Colome of eXteres Auto, followed by a pack with Matthew O’Such (PCG Digital Marketing), Ralph Paglia (Tier10 Advertising), Mike Benavides (Autodata Solutions) and Barry Brodsky (GetAutoappraise), all taking their shots at the cash prize pool. Currently the event is co-sponsored by PCG Digital Marketing with more details and opportunities to be announced shortly.

IMACS Web Poker Returns!

Guests will be participating for a multi-place cash pool as well as other special prizes just for dealerships in attendance. “Now with two fantastic events under our belt and the caliber of attendees at the Boot Camp, this will be the place to be at come Monday night’s close of the AMBC” announced Gary May, President and Founder of IM@CS. “The change in venue from classroom table to the poker table will be a blast for everyone involved!” added May.

PCG Digital Marketing organizes the annual Automotive Marketing Boot Camp, which attracts dealers who seek to increase their competitive edge through education of automotive industry best practices, strategies, and technology.

After an extensive search and testing process, AutoTrader.com selected Contact At Once! to power the dealer live chat solution because of Contact At Once!’s position as a leader in the space and ability to deliver a best-in-class chat experience for both dealers and consumers.  The chat window can display the name and photo of actual dealership employees, which improves the consumer experience and has been shown to increase the number of chat inquiries dealerships receive. The dealer live chat solution is also presence-aware, so consumers will only be prompted to initiate a chat session if a representative is available, ensuring that consumers are never left hanging.

Additionally, the Contact At Once! dealer live chat solution enables dealers to conduct chats via their iPads, smart phones or other mobile devices, so dealers can be responsive to consumer inquiries even when they’re not at their desks.

Chat on AutoTrader.com Increases Dealer and Customer Interaction

The majority of auto shoppers use third-party classified sites during their search, and the addition of chat to AutoTrader.com helps dealers connect with those customers earlier in the shopping process.  According to the recent Automotive Buyer Influence Study conducted by Polk and AutoTrader.com, consumers spend 18-19 hours shopping for a car before they make a purchase, with approximately 60% of that time spent online.  However, consumers have shown a reluctance to pick up the phone to call dealers during their search and have long been dissatisfied with email response times, leading 70% to just walk into a dealership without first making contact.

“Faster than email and more convenient than a phone call, online chat enables consumers to get instant answers to their questions while enabling dealers to begin creating a relationship with shoppers before they show up on the lot,” said AutoTrader.com President and CEO, Chip Perry.  “We are pleased with the performance of the Contact At Once! dealer live chat platform and excited about the value it has already brought both dealers and consumers.”

Early value tests conducted by AutoTrader.com showed that dealers who added dealer live chat to their listings experienced an average lift in shopper interaction of about 20%.

“AutoTrader.com’s embrace affirms the mainstream status of dealer live chat software and signals a new reality – that dealers not using chat are missing sales opportunities”, said John Hanger, President & CEO of Contact At Once!  “We are honored to have been selected and look forward to working with AutoTrader.com to connect dealers and consumers.”

The chat feature on AutoTrader.com is a part of the new Connections Bundle, which includes Chat, Dealer Ratings, Social Media Connections and Sitelink Advanced. Dealers who are interested in learning more about the Connections Bundle should talk to their AutoTrader.com advertising consultants.

About AutoTrader.com

Atlanta-based AutoTrader.com, created in 1997, is the Internet’s ultimate automotive marketplace and consumer information website. AutoTrader.com aggregates in a single location millions of new cars, used cars and certified pre-owned cars from thousands of auto dealers and private sellers and is a leading online resource for auto dealers, individuals and manufacturers to advertise and market their vehicles to in-market shoppers. The company also provides a robust suite of software tools for dealers and manufacturers to help them manage and market their vehicle inventory and display advertising on the Internet. AutoTrader.com continues to grow key business metrics, including revenue, profitability and site traffic. Today, AutoTrader.com attracts more than 15 million unique monthly visitors who utilize the site to review descriptions, photos and videos of vehicles for sale; research and compare vehicles; review pricing and specials; and read auto-related content like buying and selling tips and editorial coverage of major auto shows and automotive trends. AutoTrader.com operates two other auto marketing brands, AutoTraderClassics.com and AutoTraderLatino.com. AutoTrader.com also owns used vehicle management software company vAuto, Kelley Blue Book (Kbb.com) and HomeNet Automotive, a leading provider of online inventory management and merchandising solutions for the automotive retail industry.  AutoTrader.com is a majority-owned subsidiary of Cox Enterprises. Providence Equity Partners is a 25 percent owner of the company and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers is also an investor. For more information, please visit www.autotrader.com.

About Contact At Once!

Contact At Once! is the leading provider of dealer live chat software for automotive websites and operator of the industry’s only chat network, connecting over 7,500 car dealers to the websites that car shoppers visit most often.   Adding ContactAtOnce! auto dealer chat software to a website typically increases a dealership’s sales conversations by at least 25%. Contact At Once! is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. For more information about the company’s auto dealer chat product, please visit: www.autodealerchat.com.

PCG Digital Marketing organizes the annual Automotive Marketing Boot Camp. Attendees of the Boot Camp will benefit from a diverse roster of automotive marketing experts who will share their knowledge and best practices with dealer professionals who want to hone their skills in Automotive Digital Marketing.

Topic to be covered during the 2011 Automotive Marketing Boot Camp include Internet marketing, social media engagement strategies, lead management, BDC optimization, video optimization, reputation management, Google Places optimization, blogging content creation, website analytics, Automotive SEO and more.

Marketing Boot Camp Topics

Register for the Boot Camp in Orlando April 16-18.

This year’s program will include seminars on dealership process, phone scripting for success, and a lighter look on Google Analytics. Last year, Boot Camp attendees posted rave reviews of their investment of time for this event.

This year’s workshop leaders include dealer principals, general managers, and dealership employees that have stood above their peers in achieving excellence in their dealership’s digital marketing and sales strategies. Workshop leaders include JD Rucker, Jeffrey Kershner, Andrew DiFeo, Rob Fontano, Tracy Myers, Eric Miltsch, and Timothy Martell.

The Boot Camp is also attracting popular speakers with specialized skills including Jerry Thibeau, Brian Pasch, Sean Wolfington, Matt Murray, Christine Rochelle, and Alex Snyder.

The Automotive Marketing Boot Camp is very unique and effective because participants receive preparation materials in advance of the class and come fully prepared to engage in actual demonstrations.  Participants use their own accounts during the classes so that they can then continue to work with them on their own long after the boot camp.

PCG Digital Marketing organizes the annual Automotive Marketing Boot Camp. Attendees of the Boot Camp will benefit from a diverse roster of automotive marketing experts who will share their knowledge and best practices with dealer professionals who want to hone their skills in Automotive Digital Marketing.

Automotive Marketing Boot Camp Topics

Topic to be covered during the 2011 Automotive Marketing Boot Camp include Internet marketing, social media engagement strategies, lead management, BDC optimization, video optimization, reputation management, Google Places optimization, blogging content creation, website analytics, Automotive SEO and more.

Register for the Boot Camp April 16-18 in Orlando.

This year’s program will include seminars on dealership process, phone scripting for success, and a lighter look on Google Analytics. Last year, Boot Camp attendees posted rave reviews of their investment of time for this event.

This year’s workshop leaders include dealer principals, general managers, and dealership employees that have stood above their peers in achieving excellence in their dealership’s digital marketing and sales strategies. Workshop leaders include Jeffrey Kershner, Andrew DiFeo, Darren Haygood, Tracy Myers, Eric Miltsch, and Timothy Martell.

The Boot Camp is also attracting popular speakers with specialized skills including Jerry Thibeau, Brian Pasch, Sean Wolfington, Matt Murray, Christine Rochelle, and Alex Snyder.

The Automotive Marketing Boot Camp is very unique and effective because participants receive preparation materials in advance of the class and come fully prepared to engage in actual demonstrations.  Participants use their own accounts during the classes so that they can then continue to work with them on their own long after the boot camp.

The “Impact of Rich Content” workshop will explore and discuss three primary elements that impact the dealer’s ability to generate online leads and facilitate online transactions. The purpose of this workshop is to enlighten and educate the participants on the importance of generating the unique content that consumers are searching for in the online environment.

Topics to be discussed and/or demonstrated in a 90 minute interactive, informative and engaging atmosphere.

1) Content

A) How searchable is your unique vehicle content.

B) Do your search listings engage people to click on your content first

C) Does your vehicle content engage and hold the viewers attention

D) Is your unique vehicle content actionable

2) Process and Control

A) Explore the current processes being used by dealers to capture, manage and distribute vehicle content

B) Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each process

3) New Technology

A) Get your hands on the latest technology and experience the options related to taking control of your content

4) Question and Answer with Facilators

PCG Digital Marketing organizes the annual Automotive Marketing Boot Camp, which attracts dealers who seek to increase their competitive edge through education of automotive industry best practices, strategies, and technology.

Attendees of the Boot Camp will benefit from a diverse roster of automotive marketing experts and automotive leaders that include JD Rucker, Tracy Myers, Eric Miltsch, Sean Wolfington, Brian Pasch, Jeff Kershner, Andrew DiFeo, Gary May, and Rob Fontano.

Learn Google Adwords Strategies and More at Boot Camp in Orlando

Register for the 2nd Annual Boot Camp April 16-18 in Orlando.

Topic to be covered during the 2011 Automotive Marketing Boot Camp include digital marketing, social media engagement, lead management processes, BDC structure and workflows, video publishing, reputation management, Google Places marketing, Google Adwords strategies, automotive blogging, content syndication, website analytics, as well as Automotive SEO.

The Automotive Marketing Boot Camp is very unique and effective because participants receive conference materials in advance of the class and come fully prepared to engage in actual demonstrations.  Participants use their own accounts during the classes so that they can then continue to work with them on their own long after the boot camp.

This year the Automotive Marketing Boot Camp has introduced longer workshop sessions and labs (2.5 hrs) to allow important topics to be covered in greater detail.  The 2011 Automotive Marketing Boot Camp will also feature Technology Showcases, which will offer attendees a glance at the latest vendor innovations for the automotive industry.