AutoSuccess: The Missing Piece – Paragon Auto Group Paves the Way with Personalized Customer Experiences

As a dealership partner and industry leader, Brian Benstock knows the importance of staying ahead of the technology curve.

AutoSuccess: Going Virtual – Bringing The Dealership Experience Online in the Wake of the Coronavirus Outbreak

Most of American life has been affected by the coronavirus outbreak.

‘Paycheck Protection Planner’ – Digital Portal Launched To Help Businesses Navigate, Secure Coronavirus Stimulus Loans

The Paycheck Protection Planner was created by American business owners who want to help

other small businesses get funding faster to save jobs.

 

NEW YORK, April 8, 2020 — PaycheckProtectionPlanner.com, an independent resource portal that helps small businesses navigate the complex web of the federal stimulus funds available, so they can quickly secure the funds they need to cover payroll and keep their people employed, was launched this week. The digital portal offers free tools and resources to help businesses get fast funding through the stimulus program, which offers up to $10M of forgivable funds to cover overhead during the crisis.

 

Everything on the Portal is provided for free by a group of business owners who’ve already successfully navigated the web of coronavirus-related stimulus funding. The group felt compelled to share everything they learned with others facing the same unprecedented challenges they faced, to prevent mass layoffs that could overwhelm our government’s current capacity to manage effectively.

 

The Paycheck Protection Planner creators are not accountants, lawyers, or representatives of any government agency. They are business owners who want to help other employers at a critical time for all American businesses who want to keep their employees on payroll.

 

Paycheck Protection Planner Portal Highlights:

  • Multimedia tutorials of the stimulus program rules, with animated FAQ’s, fact sheets and action plans to help businesses secure fast funding.
  • The Corona Calculator— the first and only interactive calculator that automates the calculations to quickly determine how much stimulus money businesses are entitled to and what businesses need to do to get full forgiveness of the loans.
  • Corona Crisis Playbook, a comprehensive plan with over 30 guides and playbooks that provide best practices to help businesses survive during the crisis and thrive through the recovery. The playbook shares best practices for:
    • Acquiring and Conserving Capital
    • Crisis Planning
    • Fast Funding Strategies
    • Capital Management & Conservation
    • Crisis Communications
    • Human Resources
    • Facility Management
    • Operational Excellence in Crisis.

“The Paycheck Protection Planner was launched by business founders who wanted to help other founders make use of these government loans so they can keep as many employees on payroll for as long as possible,” said Sean Wolfington, chairman of the Wolfington Companies & CarSaver at Walmart, and one of the creators of the Paycheck Protection Planner portal.

 

“For these companies, the biggest challenge is timing since, as small businesses, they have neither the cash to float themselves through the crisis nor time to navigate the legislation and program rules to secure federal stimulus loans,” Wolfington continued.

 

“Business owners are on the front lines of this crisis. We’re not just seeing it, but feeling the direct impact of the devastation,” said Brian Benstock, general manager of New York-based Paragon Honda.

 

“The stimulus program is right on time, but it was hard to figure out at first. The Planner has been a critical tool in helping our business move fast to secure funding that makes it easier to keep our employees on payroll, and get everyone back to 100 percent as quickly as possible,” Benstock added.

 

“Small businesses are the heartbeat of the American economy and right now are hurting badly,” said Chad Collier, co-founder/CEO of CarSaver at Walmart. “With the Paycheck Protection Planner Portal we’re doing what we can to help make a difference, just like every small business owner in this country.”

 

“The Paycheck Protection Planner Portal gathers the best resources out there for businesses looking to cover their overhead and navigate this crisis,” said David Boice, co-founder/CEO of Team Velocity. “We’re doing everything we can to make it easier and faster for businesses to get funding so they can make payroll and support the families they serve. We will weather this storm and we will emerge stronger—just as we have so many times before in our nation’s history.”

 

About the Paycheck Protection Planner

The Paycheck Protection Planner is an independent portal, created to help businesses navigate the complex web of stimulus funds so they can quickly secure the maximum funding available to keep their doors open and employees on payroll.

The Paycheck Protection Planner’s portal provides free access to critical resources and tools, including Multi-Media Tutorials of program rules & loan terms, along with Animated FAQ’s, The Corona Calculator for determining max forgivable loan amounts, and the Corona Crisis Playbook, with over 30 Business Guides & Action Plans that provide best practices that help businesses survive during the crisis, and thriving through the crisis.

 

Visit www.PaycheckProtectionPlanner.com for more information.

 

Contact
For more information, or to interview Brian Benstock, Sean Wolfington or others, please contact:
Megan@High10Media.com

Mitsubishi Offers Dealers New Choice of Digital Tools

Mitsubishi Motors isn’t like other mainstream automakers in the U.S. – it’s smaller.

Marketing Exec Says Dealers are Missing a Golden Opportunity

David Boice, CEO of marketing firm Team Velocity, says dealers are failing to tap a potentially rich source of business — and it’s right at their fingertips.

“A dealership is sitting on a gold mine of data,” Boice says. Speaking last month at a Shift conference in Las Vegas, he said customers already in the database don’t want to be treated like new leads when they visit dealerships’ websites. Instead, he says, they should be able to log in, just as they do on Amazon.

In an interview with reporter Sarah Kominek, Boice said dealerships’ returning customers should have online experiences that are relevant to their personal details and the cars they’re driving. Here are edited excerpts.

 

Q: Why do you think dealerships should use customers’ data to serve them online?

A: There are probably at least 50 very relevant pieces of data on you and your car that the dealership you do business with already knows. Every other company you do business with, you have a relationship with them online. They all know a massive amount about you because you are already their customer. Therefore, they treat you differently and personally online.

 

Q: What data do most dealerships have that they aren’t using?

A: These are very common data points that every franchised dealership has securely stored in their accounting systems: The customer’s name, address, phone number and email. Their vehicle’s year, make, model, trim, VIN and estimated mileage. Its service history, any recalls, services due, last service and recommended services. The customer’s sales info — the payment type, down payment, term, payoff, trade value, equity, likely upgrade options, next service visit, preferences and their shopping history. These data points are easily accessible to create a personal online experience for their customers.

 

Q: How should dealerships use this data when a customer goes to the website?

A: People want personalized service coupons that need to be specific to the car they’re driving. People really like to know their service history: Does the dealership have all the services that have been performed on record and are they accurate? People also expect you to give them a warning if their vehicle just went under recall. Without filling out any forms, they want to be able to schedule service and incorporate the coupons they’re entitled to. You know my name, you know my car and its VIN. I’m not going to fill out a form with the 14 pieces of information you normally ask me for, because I’ve signed in and I expect you to make scheduling a service appointment easy.

 

Q: What would the experience be like for a returning customer looking to purchase or lease another vehicle?

A: Now the customer has pretty high expectations because they have an expiration date. They’re going to ask, What upgrade options do I have? What would my payment be? What are the rebates and incentives that are currently available on the vehicle models I’m interested in buying? When you give a customer a personalized experience, people are naturally more comfortable because the service makes it easier for them to do what they need to do. What is best for the dealer’s customer is also best for the dealership. You have a five times’ greater chance of them completing the task if you treat customers with some relevancy, in a private and secure way.

 

 

 

AutoSuccess: The Top 10 Companies to Watch in 2020

Although the automotive industry continues to evolve around the way consumers research, buy and service vehicles, dealers continue to compete, implementing marketing strategies and technologies with the hope it will drive new sales and service business as well as retain existing customers. With hundreds of companies offering “the best” services — from niche programs to full-service marketing campaigns — dealers are bombarded by a time-consuming, often confusing research process that doesn’t always yield effective results. As a result, we are releasing the Top 10 Companies to Watch in 2020 to help dealers identify innovative businesses breaking the mold in the industry. In summary, the companies on this list are leading the industry and achieving measurable results for some of the most demanding and successful dealerships, associations and OEMs in the automotive space.

Advid Featured in AutoSuccess Magazine

AutoSuccess Cover Story: The Automated Future of Video Advertising

Meet the video tech leader that is revolutionizing the auto industry

Skip. The button most people hit so they can ignore the ad and go straight to the YouTube video they wanted to watch. But what if that ad was customized to every unique viewer with the current offer available at their local dealership for the exact car they were just shopping for?

Team Velocity Announces New Partnership with Audi North America

I am pleased to announce Team Velocity’s new partnership with Audi North America as a preferred digital advertising provider in the Audi Partner Program.