Last September, we ranked the top dealerships in the Eastern, Middle, and Western United States by average close rates during the second quarter of 2003. This was a favorite article among our readers, so here it is again – the top dealerships by close rate for the first quarter of 2004.

Stewart Toyota, Bernardi Honda/VW, Hendrick Honda, Jeffrey Honda, Superior Toyota, and Pacific Honda all deserve honors for making it in the Top Dealers List for the second time. Congratulations to all the ISPs in the dealerships that made the list.  You’re doing a fantastic job closing your leads!

# 1 in the Eastern US – Keenan Honda of Doylestown, Pennsylvania

Ron Davenport and Mark Lenny, Internet Sales Managers

How Keenan's Internet Department Works:         

“We have a set process in place,” explains Ron Davenport. “When we receive a lead, we immediatey send an auto response email to thank them and to say we’ll be with them shortly. Within an hour, we send a personal email with an exact price quote that is only available to our Internet customers. We don’t play games. We offer our rock bottom price up front. Then we follow up with a phone call.  All in all, we’ll contact the customer about six times.”

% of Keenan’s Total Sales That Are from the Internet: 

About 17%

Gross from Floor Sales vs. Internet Sales:

Higher with floor sales

Forecast for Keenan’s Internet Department:

“All we see is growth. Customers tell us all the time: ‘This is the neatest, cleanest, easiest experience I’ve ever had buying a car. This is the only way I’ll buy a car from here on out.’”

#1 in the Middle US – Phil Long Hyundai of Colorado Springs, Colorado 

Kevin Cannon, General Sales Manager and Jim McCarty and Troy Smith, Internet Sales Managers

How Phil Long’s Internet Department Works:

Phil Long’s sales team handles both Internet customers and walk-in customers. “We build the one-on-one relationship with the customer as soon as possible,” explains Kevin. “That means we get on the phone and call our Internet customers as soon as we receive a lead. The only time we email is if they prefer to be contacted that way. We like to avoid the back and forth of emailing and establish a face-to-face meeting as soon as possible. We offer set pricing only to our Internet customers.” 

% of Phil Long’s Total Sales That Are from the Internet:

30%

Gross from Floor Sales vs. Internet Sales:

It’s the same.

Forecast for Phil Long’s Internet Department:

“One-third of our sales are from the Internet,” says Kevin. “Our plan for the future is to continue what we’re doing. This is just extra gravy.”

#1 in the Western US – Honda World of Westminster, California

John Callahan, Internet Director and Natalie Smith, Internet Sales Manager

How Honda World’s Internet Department Works: 

“Our ISMs, five of them, work the guest from start to finish and they are all dedicated to the Web and referrals,” explains John Callahan. “We do have some great referral marketing methodologies in place that bring people back consistently – any dealer who is not focusing on the sold customer database is doing itself an enormous disservice! We’re also advancing on our lease retention program.”

% of Honda World’s Total Sales That Are from the Internet:

“Currently our Internet department accounts for 35% of our sales – we intend to grow that to 70% in the next two years and most of it will be from the methods I just described.”

Gross from Floor Sales vs. Internet Sales:

“Gross is slightly less than the floor – but we are working on this, and again, with the referral marketing, we see it exceeding the floor as time moves on.”

Forecast for Honda World’s Internet Department:

“Our future plan is to increase our staff by 100%. Expenses should drop by 30% and sales should grow by 70%. We forecast 110% for both the floor and Internet. We’ve got an awesome department!”

About the Study
The Dealix Dealership Close Rate Index^SM is a weighted index based on the number of Internet sales leads that are generated from the Dealix Lead Trading Platform^SM and result in a sale. Dealerships with the highest close rates are given a score of 1000. Primary data is derived from email and phone surveys conducted on consumers that Dealix Corporation delivers to its Member Dealers as Internet sales leads. The smallest sample size per dealership was 50 surveys.  This study does not represent data for all dealers, nor does it claim to state close rates for dealers and Internet leads not included in the study. This report is brought to you by Dealix Business Intelligence^SM (DBI).