OLATHE, Kan. -

LotPop, which is designed to provide offsite contract management of a dealership’s virtual or Internet processes to help small-to-medium-sized dealerships compete like mega-dealers, made its formal market launch last week by a former vAuto executive.

LotPop already services more than 20 dealerships in Utah, Kansas, Indiana, Kentucky and Louisiana.

LotPop was developed by Jasen Rice, a former director of performance management for vAuto.

Rice believes LotPop’s service fills a strategic need that many smaller dealerships struggle to provide, given limitations on resources and management.

“Small dealerships rely on their managers to wear multiple hats, and there simply is not enough time in a day for them to manage everything they have to,” said Rice, who added that he observed this unmet need while working with dealers in his former capacity and as a dealership Internet professional.

“Unfortunately, being stretched so thin can cause these managers to lose focus on the most important thing that drives traffic to the dealership and that is the dealership’s Internet presence,” Rice continued.

In most small dealerships, Rice contends the used-car manager, Internet manager and business development center manager are often one in the same. These functions, whether handled by one individual or many, interface with the Internet in some business capacity.

They use the Internet to list and price vehicles on line, buy and trade vehicles via online auctions, and handle sales leads arriving from online car-shopping sites. They also manage the upkeep of the dealership website contents and inventory displays.

“By outsourcing some or all of those functions to our LotPop dealership professionals, we lighten the load so the store team can focus on working deals and selling cars,” Rice said.

For a flat rate and no contracts, Rice said LotPop can save a dealership’s Internet manager and/or used-car manager at least 10 hours a week ordinarily spent handling vendors, website updates, online inventory management and other Internet process.

Rice spent almost eight years with vAuto and its clients, handling more than 150 accounts, before starting LotPop. While at vAuto, he specialized in helping dealership managers bring more value to their dealerships.

Rice began his automotive retail career in 1997 selling vehicles via the fledgling Internet. He has shared his expertise at numerous industry automotive digital marketing conferences and through published articles, writing about Internet sales, processes and marketing.

For more information about LotPop and its services, contact Rice at (314) 568-2754 or jrice@LotPop.com. Dealers can also visit LotPop.com.

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