Two things will define success for dealers in 2023—better operational discipline and greater trust in outcome-driven decision-making. Those are two key take-aways Derek Hansen, VP Operations for vAuto, and Dale Pollak, vAuto founder, gleaned from their discussions with dealers at NADA. Hear how dealers can achieve greater success in the year ahead, despite uncertainty about today’s more variable market.

In this episode of the vAuto podcast, Brian Langley, director of service operations for the Sam Leman Automotive Group in Central Illinois, and Mike Boyd, founder of vAuto iRecon, discuss how Langley has brought more accountability and efficiency to the group’s used vehicle reconditioning. Langley outlines two things he tracks daily to avoid a backlog of vehicles waiting for reconditioning and reduce approval times on ROs from hours to minutes. Hear Langley’s tips other dealers can use to achieve team buy-in and diligently use technology-driven solutions to get used vehicles through service, detailing and online faster with more sales-to-service collaboration and far less friction.

In this vAuto podcast episode, three vAuto leaders, Dale Pollak, Derek Hansen and Nathan Fox, offer a preview of the new solutions and thought leadership the company will bring to the 2023 NADA convention in Dallas. Hear about current used vehicle challenges and how they’ll shape the year ahead, followed by a rundown of the NADA presentations that aim to help dealers improve their used vehicle retailing, wholesaling and merchandising. Plus, you get a sneak peek at the new innovations vAuto will debut in Dallas.

In this episode of the vAuto podcast, Nathan Fox, vAuto AVP Operations, Merchandising Software, outlines an opportunity gap for dealers with the VDPs on their online vehicle listings. Fox explains that while dealers have successfully optimized listings for SRPs, their VDPs have not kept pace with consumer expectations. Fox shares how dealers should think differently about the VDP experiences they offer consumers and the steps they can take to improve VDP engagement and relevance. Fox also describes a new metric that can help dealers measuring their merchandising success beyond the SRP/VDP counts they use today.

In this vAuto podcast episode, vAuto founder Dale Pollak explains why Variable Management, a new way to manage used vehicles based on each unit’s unique investment value, drives better outcomes for dealers than Velocity Management. Dale details how the data science behind Variable Management helps dealers avoid cheap selling their best cars for the sake of volume and holding out for gross on their worst cars to avoid losses—a common problem in the current market. Dale also shares how Variable Management can help dealers become smarter and more successful as they tap non-traditional channels to source used vehicle inventory.

In this vAuto podcast episode, Vaida Presniakovaite, president of Midway Autohaus, Bridgeview, IL, shares how she and her team have adjusted to retailing vehicles in an era of historically low and high-cost inventory supply. Presniakovaite details how her retailing strategy has shifted to lower-cost inventory and why she now prefers a technology-driven method to source these vehicles through a wider network of online auctions to drive greater efficiency and profitability. Presniakovaite also outlines how she’s preparing for future market conditions by running a clean and lean inventory today.

In this vAuto podcast episode, Mike Boyd, founder of vAuto’s iRecon, and Jade Terreberry, Senior Director, Strategic Planning & Business Development (Autotrader, KBB, & Dealer.com) discuss the ever-growing importance of fixed ops in increasing customer lifetime value (CLV)—and how a consumer-focused, digitally driven strategy in service helps them achieve the goal. Hear how consumer expectations have shifted during the pandemic and how dealers must proactively engage their customers throughout their ownership experiences, providing greater convenience, relevance and transparency to capture their vehicle service business.

In this vAuto podcast episode, Brian Neeley, president of the four-store independent dealer group, Drive N-Motion, shares how he and his team have shifted to acquiring nearly 90 percent of their inventory from online auctions. Neeley outlines how he uses technology and tools to minimize the time required to find and appraise available vehicles and expand his buying team’s ability to cover multiple lanes at multiple auctions across multiple states at the same time. Neeley details how he uses CR scores and market data to purchase inventory with greater confidence and trust, which drives profitable retail deals.

In this vAuto podcast episode, Mark Strand, senior director of economic and industry insights for Cox Automotive gives a data-driven perspective on how the used vehicle market will evolve in the final months of 2022. Strand shares how depreciation will continue to affect specific vehicle segments more than others, and how the relative stability of current retail prices creates near-term profit opportunities for dealers. Strand details why vehicle acquisition will remain more digitally driven in the future, and why dealers will have a tougher time sourcing near-new vehicles to feed their factory certified pre-owned sales programs and the local demand data dealers should mine to keep current with changing consumer preferences.

In this vAuto podcast episode, Brian Benstock, vice president of Paragon Honda and Paragon Acura, Queens, NY, and vAuto founder Dale Pollak discuss how they believe dealers should respond to less-favorable market conditions in the months ahead—and get out of what Benstock dubs a “profit coma.” The pair also discuss why service lane acquisition will need to become an even higher priority for dealers to ensure they maintain retail sales volumes in light of ongoing inventory constraints. Benstock details the process he developed and refined over the past decade to make service lane acquisitions a primary source of used vehicle inventory. He also offers guidance to help dealers avoid friction with customers, and between their sales and service teams, as they make the service drive a larger part of their acquisition strategy.