America recently was under the Great Freeze of 2021, which lasted more than two weeks. Millions were without power. Businesses and schools were shuttered. Power grids strained under a brutal arctic assault. This will without a doubt negatively affect business output and the economy for the first quarter of the year, the automotive retail marketplace […] [Read More]

Changes are continuing at the National Independent Automobile Dealers Association. This week, NIADA announced a refreshed vision and mission statements and the 10 steps the association intends to take to accomplish its mission. NIADA’s vision and mission statements now say: “A robust, ethical and professional independent used-vehicle market trusted by consumers. The mission statement describes […] [Read More]

Two technology platforms used by buy-here, pay-here and independent dealers are now integrated to make customer relationship management and other dealership management segments work more efficiently. On Monday, Selly Automotive CRM announced its real-time integration with Frazer Computing, which provides dealer management software to more than 22,000 dealers. The company explained the integration allows Selly dealers […] [Read More]

Marketing technology company Force Marketing, which offers products and services to more than 950 automotive dealers, has acquired the business of GS Marketing, which is also a marketing technology company. The Jan. 31 closing of the deal brings the total number of dealerships served nationwide to more than 1,500. Force Marketing’s full portfolio of companies […] [Read More]

No matter how chief economist Tom Kontos and his team dissected most of their numbers, wholesale prices within the data available to KAR Global Analytical Services have demonstrated noticeable gains year-over-year. The latest installment of the Kontos Kommentary included not only an in-depth comparison of the January data, but KAR Global also delved into some […] [Read More]

Stellantis and Amazon are joining forces to help owners of one of the automaker’s iconic brands acquire additional merchandise to go along with their vehicle. The Dodge Store by Amazon officially opened its doors to automotive enthusiasts on Monday. Dodge//SRT fans now can shop hundreds of options for authentic licensed gear and merchandise across the […] [Read More]

Customer experience dealer management system provider DealerBuilt has appointed former VinSolutions product director Jim Nelson as vice president of operations, saying he will oversee the company’s software installations, customer service and support. DealerBuilt said Nelson will drive company-wide processes that result in a consistent experience for DealerBuilt’s clients and network of more than 200 integration […] [Read More]

IAA subsidiary DDI Technology is trying to make the titling process smoother for dealerships, finance companies and insurers that have vehicles in Michigan. DDI Technology announced the expansion of its electronic lien and title (ELT) services and Premier eTitleLien product into Michigan, becoming one of just two certified ELT service providers approved by the Michigan […] [Read More]

A new nationwide brand campaign from Cars.com highlights what it describes as the breadth and depth of its first-party data, paired with smart matchmaking technology. With that breadth and depth, the Cars.com marketplace can connect its more than 20 million monthly unique car shoppers with the vehicles that meet their needs and budgets, according to […] [Read More]

Consumer advocates and other regulators began National Consumer Protection Week on Monday in part by pointing to the significant jump in cases recorded in the complaint database housed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. According to the CFPB’s online dashboard, complaints in 2020 came in at 443,143; that’s up from the 206,607 complaints registered in […] [Read More]