October in Vegas is lovely … But in August? Ever since NADA threw us off by popping up in April this year, we are still adjusting to the 2016 automotive expo calendar. What will Digital Dealer Vegas be like two months earlier than the schedule we’ve grown accustomed to over the years? I don’t know. I guess we’ll find out together.
As a vendor, attending these shows is much different than for a dealer. To put it in a dealer’s perspective, it’s like hosting a tent sale the same weekend as every other dealership within a 50-mile radius. So Mr. (or Mrs.) Dealer, how do I get you to stop by my tent instead of all the others? No, I mean really stop by and stay awhile after you’ve done the perimeter scan and found swag to bring home to your kids and spouse. Let me do my best to convince you.
Let’s cut to the chase and talk about the swag first because let’s be honest, that’s why the majority of you will slow and consider stopping as you walk by the very impressive DealerSocket booth. If you read our emails, you’ll know we have some of the best giveaways in the business. It’s truth. What I’m really excited about this year is our Team USA apparel. If you haven’t heard, DealerSocket is proudly sponsoring Casey Patterson, a Team USA Olympic athlete. So if you are a Team USA fan, stop by and get your special edition “We Are Automotive” T-shirt. We will also have plenty of pens, earbuds, industry data reports, and plush flying farm animals (for the kids of course).
Now let’s talk content. Our very own dynamic duo, Aaron Schinke and Eric Giroux, will be leading a workshop appropriately called “The Down and Dirty of Digital Retail.” Aaron and Eric are DealerFire veterans and have a lot of insight into all things digital, including digital retail. If you miss their session or want to dive deeper into websites, SEO, or merchandising, we’ve made sure they make it back to the booth to answer all your questions and talk shop.
Finally, I’d like to take a moment to discuss why we show up in the first place: our product! Besides all the exciting things we have been working on over the past 12–18 months that I’m not at liberty to talk about at this time, I’d like to provide a little “peek,” if you will, into what we are allowed to show you. Here’s a rundown of our featured product enhancements that are being announced at the show.
- Inventory+ mobile app — From acquisition to disposition, appraise, price, merchandise, and syndicate a vehicle anywhere, anytime. (product = Inventory+)
- SmartLinks — Enroll customers on focused campaigns from our CRM based on specific URLs customers clicked on from an email
- Easy media attachment through CRM — Easily add a brand new photo or video clip to an email in just one tap
- Enhanced merchandising capabilities on vehicle description pages through DealerFire responsive websites
- Service Pro package — A specially priced bundle of our most popular service products
- A sneak preview of soft credit pull through RevenueRadar
- A sneak preview of DealerFire website and Inventory+ inventory management integration
In addition to these featured products, we have a fully integrated platform and newer additions to the DealerSocket family we would like to re-introduce: DealerFire websites + digital marketing and Inventory+ inventory management solutions, including AAX. Over the last couple of years, dealers have asked what happened to DealerFire and even AAX. Dealers wonder what has happened to their beloved products because they don’t see their booths at the trade shows anymore. The short answer is a lot has happened to them — a lot of good stuff has happened and is happening. The reason you don’t see separate booths or even different signs hanging from the rafters is because that goes against our philosophy. Despite what you have heard or what you might think, DealerSocket has fully embraced these product offerings. We believe in standing tall as a united front. We want to set the stage with what we set out to do from the beginning and continue to do today: bring together the best products in the industry and make them work seamlessly with one another. Don’t believe me? I challenge you to step into our booth and learn more: Booth #627, August 8–10 at the MGM Grand in fabulous Las Vegas, Nevada.