CrossCheck Blog

Recently, some of our merchant dealers have been asking us about artificial intelligence – what is it, how does it work, and most importantly, can artificial intelligence help auto dealerships increase revenue? To answer those questions, let’s start with some background.

In 1950, Alan Turing wrote a paper titled “Computing Machinery and Intelligence.” His idea was: “Humans use available information as well as reason to solve problems and make decisions, so why can’t machines do the same thing?” The problem back then was that computers could not store enough information, or process it fast enough, to add value to the procedure. We needed more processing power, new software, and ultimately putting the GPU in the cloud. This took a few more decades, plus the power of Moore’s Law, to be viable.

There’s an old saying in business, “Nothing happens until somebody makes a sale!” This is true, of course, and so is this corollary: “Nothing happens with cash flow until the building materials customer pays the bill.”

Cash flow is the lifeblood of the building materials industry. Sometimes a business with a full order book and a large accounts receivable position will be forced to close its doors because there wasn’t enough cash on hand to pay the bills that are due now.

This is why it’s just good business to have a company credit policy at a building materials center. As somebody said, “If there’s no plan, there’s no hope for survival.” This raises the question: how do you create a credit policy?

The 2020 NADA Convention & Expo is an excellent opportunity for auto dealerships to increase their business skills while attending the expansive NADA Exhibitor Showcase and participating in workshops, interactive learning sessions, and peer-to-peer learning events. The ultimate goal, of course, is for auto dealerships to increase sales and mitigate risk while saving time and money.

Attendees and presenters are composed of a highly qualified mix of industry leaders, manufacturers, exhibitors, experts, and of course, auto dealership management.

The National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) is the trade group for new auto dealerships in the U.S. NADA provides many valuable services for their members, including training programs, weeklong seminars, an academy, and setting up “Twenty Groups,” where a dealer will meet regularly with 19 other dealers in their area to get advice and guidance from their peers on current developments in their store. Another valuable service is developing research reports on the retail automotive industry.

Recently, Experian released their Q3 2019 “State of the Automotive Finance Market” report. The authors made a couple of important points — mostly about changes in the used car market — that automotive retailers should take note of.

The good news is that used vehicles are generating a larger share of the U.S. automotive finance market. Used car financing increased 2.4% in 2019. It reached 55.15% of total financing. Why did this happen, and why is it good news for a dealer?

Two of the most frequent questions asked by consumers at auto dealerships are: “Can you help me get a loan to buy this car?” and “How much of a down payment will I need to make?”

As a dealer, you had better have the answers accurately and quickly, or you might lose the sale. It turns out that these are not always easy questions to answer because, well, they are complicated.

In this short article, we are going to address both questions and take a further exploration of the customer credit journey at your store. More importantly, we are going to answer the question: “How can auto dealerships help consumers with down payments?”

You will learn how to provide a good customer experience, get the taillights over the curb, and inspire good reviews on social media.

What better destination for furniture professionals than one of the largest home furnishings shows in the nation? International Market Centers, L.P. welcomes home furnishings dealers, home décor retailers, interior designers, architects, and other industry experts to attend the Winter Las Vegas Market (LVM) 2020. This market fills more than 5.4 million square feet with thousands of home furnishings/home décor exhibits, products and services suited for all professionals in the industry. This year’s market takes place Jan. 26 ­– 30 at the World Market Center in downtown Las Vegas.

The Temptations aren’t performing, but their 1966 hit, “Get Ready,” sets the tone for a new decade of excellence at the 2020 NADA Show, the premier marketplace for auto dealerships.

The event takes place Feb. 14 – 17, 2020 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, presenting 650,000 square feet of exhibition space, educational sessions, franchise meetings, and networking opportunities for member auto dealerships, non-member dealers and other attendees.

NADA offers a separate web address for the annual show, including access to schedules, biographies of keynote speakers, maps, travel and accommodations suggestions, blog articles for auto dealerships, exhibitor details and links to its social media channels.

The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) is set to take effect on January 1, 2020, and enforcement begins a few months later, on July 1, 2020. The act was passed to give consumers who have been affected by a data breach, or are afraid of one, more control over their personal information. You may be affected if you do business there, or have customers, or even potential customers there, and it is likely that the effect will reach other states too.

Recently, I saw a survey taken by CrediCards.com showing that large retailers offering new store credit cards have increased the interest rates on those cards substantially in the last few months. The article noted that this is particularly ironic as the Federal Reserve has lowered interest rates during this same period. This article demonstrates how merchants using CrossCheck services help consumers avoid debt traps.

This is what the survey found:

• The average APR on store-only credit cards has increased to 27.52%.
• The average APR for new co-branded store cards (that can be used at other stores) has risen to 23.39%.
• The average APR for all retail store cards is 26.01%.

Like other things in life, these store cards have a good side and a bad side. First, the good.