{"id":5007,"date":"2024-07-24T09:43:42","date_gmt":"2024-07-24T14:43:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/niada.com\/dashboard\/?p=5007"},"modified":"2024-07-24T10:32:31","modified_gmt":"2024-07-24T15:32:31","slug":"top-tips-for-independent-dealers-to-thrive-in-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/niada.com\/dashboard\/top-tips-for-independent-dealers-to-thrive-in-2024\/","title":{"rendered":"Top tips for Independent Dealers to thrive in 2024"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Kyle Ballinger<\/strong>
From the July issue of UCD<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Succeeding as an independent dealer often means doing more with less and adapting to ever-changing market conditions and customer needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thankfully, no matter the challenges at hand, this industry proves over and over that its resiliency, creativity and grit can overcome them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The past few years have brought everything from scarce inventory to stubbornly high interest rates, but the good news is the automotive marketplace and the economy as a whole are expected to continue on a slow but steady course toward normalization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Economists are not predicting any job losses through the rest of this year, spending is expected to remain high despite those high interest rates and inflation has cooled. While not ideal, these conditions lend themselves to success for independent dealers who are thoughtful and proactive as they make decisions on everything from inventory to staffing and vendor selections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While there are many ways to grow your business this year and beyond, here are seven considerations:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Find the right inventory.<\/strong> As tempting as it may be to get your hands on what\u2019s available, don\u2019t forget that the money is made at the buy. Profits are lower than what they have been historically, so you have to be smart. Find the right inventory based on your past sales, the success of other dealers in your area or any other data you can get your hands on. And source it in every way possible, from wholesale to trade-ins and more. Wholesale prices are softening slightly which should help. Paired with future interest rate cuts, affordability will begin to rise once again.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Price vehicles based on market trends.<\/strong> Do your research and get it right to both turn inventory quickly and maximize your profit. And don\u2019t get tied to a certain vehicle or price. Follow market trends and adjust accordingly. If a vehicle isn\u2019t working out, move on quickly. Knowing exactly what you have in a vehicle will help you make the right decision at the right time.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Make the right hires.<\/strong> Find people who free you up to do what you need to do and allow you to focus on how to make your business as profitable as possible.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Make the right decisions for your business.<\/strong> From recon to transportation and beyond, figure out whether it\u2019s more profitable to bring services in house or outsource them. It\u2019s different for every dealership.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. Market your inventory.<\/strong> One place where you can\u2019t afford to cut expenses is the way you market your inventory. People need to be able to find your inventory where they\u2019re looking. This is one area where cutting costs can end up costing you.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  6. Free up your cash flow.<\/strong> With a floor plan, you can source more inventory while also saving your cash to invest in other parts of the business. These types of enhancements can generate additional revenue opportunities or create a better customer experience that will help you stand out from your competitors.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  7. Understand your floor plan.<\/strong> I get asked all the time how to make the most of a floor plan or how to pick the right floor planner. Again, the answer is different for every dealership. One commonality is to make sure you educate yourself on the ins and outs \u2013 and floor planners should provide the transparency for you to do that. I also encourage people to shop around to make sure the floor plan they choose is the right one for their business. Make sure they floor any inventory from any source you use and that they provide the services your business needs beyond just funds.\u00a0 And then take advantage of those services \u2013 particularly when it comes to technology innovations as the way we do business continues to move in that direction. Those services should evolve over time. You\u2019re always adapting your business and floor planners should as well.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Although the current marketplace has its challenges, it\u2019s in times like these that dealers who are making the right business moves can thrive. If you pair that with vendors who are in it with you \u2013 those with the expertise and flexibility to help you succeed and understand your business \u2013 you can get ahead of the pack and stay there.n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Kyle Ballinger<\/em>
    AVP, Sales, for NextGear Capital<\/em>
    Kyle.ballinger@coxautoinc.co<\/a>m<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Kyle BallingerFrom the July issue of UCD Succeeding as an independent dealer often means doing more with…\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5008,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"csco_singular_sidebar":"","csco_page_header_type":"","csco_appearance_grid":"","csco_page_load_nextpost":"","csco_post_video_location":[],"csco_post_video_location_hash":"","csco_post_video_url":"","csco_post_video_bg_start_time":0,"csco_post_video_bg_end_time":0,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[44,3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-5007","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-best-practices","8":"category-industry","9":"cs-entry","10":"cs-video-wrap"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/niada.com\/dashboard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5007","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/niada.com\/dashboard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/niada.com\/dashboard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/niada.com\/dashboard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/niada.com\/dashboard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5007"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/niada.com\/dashboard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5007\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/niada.com\/dashboard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5008"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/niada.com\/dashboard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5007"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/niada.com\/dashboard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5007"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/niada.com\/dashboard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5007"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}