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Ryan Gerardi announces the launch of the DealerRefresh Roundtable, a new media program years in the making that officially debuted after securing support at NADA 2017. The platform is designed to explore pressing auto retail topics in a meaningful, actionable format, joining other DealerRefresh initiatives like Refresh Fridays and the DealerRefresh Podcast. The thread serves as the formal unveiling of the program to the DealerRefresh community.
Dealers debate whether to use Lotlinx, a VIN-specific retargeting vendor, or build their own retargeting strategy through Google Display Network or Facebook. The consensus emphasizes that retargeting strategy matters more than the vendor itself—focusing on broader messaging (urgency, financing, trade-in value) to custom landing pages often outperforms VIN-specific approaches, though some dealers report Lotlinx delivers VDP traffic cheaper than other channels with strong conversion rates.
The DealerRefresh community hosted a panel discussion titled "Show Me the Money!" at the 3rd Rockstar Auto Conference in Las Vegas (November 13-14) to address the growing complexity and controversy around marketing attribution in auto retail and its impact on dealer relationships with third-party lead providers, website providers, and advertising partners like Google and Facebook. The thread documents the event through multiple Facebook Live feeds, including the main attribution panel moderated by Ryan Gerardi featuring Chris Leslie and Allyn Hane, along with supplementary content like exit interviews, vendor speed dating, and training sessions. While no explicit conclusion is stated, the thread demonstrates DealerRefresh's commitment to facilitating industry conversation around a critical pain point for dealers—understanding where their marketing dollars actually generate results.
Jornaya, a consumer journey insights platform, was recognized on Deloitte's 2017 Technology Fast 500 list of fastest-growing North American tech companies. CEO Ross Shanken attributed the company's rapid growth to its focus on delivering customer value and providing detailed visibility into consumer buying journeys. The announcement highlights Jornaya's emergence as a notable player in the automotive industry's data and consumer insights space.
The thread covers Authenticom's announcement that it will lay off 55 employees effective February 2nd as a direct result of its prolonged antitrust legal battle with CDK Global and Reynolds & Reynolds. Despite winning a court injunction against the two DMS giants in July, the ongoing fight has taken a serious financial toll on the company. The post frames the news as a sobering moment for the broader automotive technology community, with sympathy directed at both the affected workers and the industry implications of the dispute.
VINFactor announced a new "Saved Cars" feature that allows dealers to save and organize vehicles across multiple websites and software platforms, streamlining their research and acquisition process. The tool works as a browser-based helper that activates when dealers click on any VIN, providing local market context and advice to support better purchasing decisions. This product update reflects VINFactor's commitment to iterating based on dealer feedback to improve dealership workflows.
VINFactor, a free tool that provides local market intelligence when dealers click on any VIN number, officially launched at the DrivingSales Executive Summit on October 23, 2017, and was recognized as one of 2017's most innovative automotive retail products. The product is designed to help dealership employees make better decisions by offering 24/7 contextual market advice directly integrated into their workflow. The thread appears to highlight VINFactor's solution to recurring pain points dealers face, though the specific details of those pain points are cut off in the provided content.
The thread discusses October 2017 U.S. auto sales data showing a slight 1% monthly decline, but notes that the industry's seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 18-18.1 million vehicles would represent the second-strongest selling month of the year. The discussion is minimal beyond sharing the Automotive News article, with one commenter offering the insight that "you are only as good as your last month," suggesting sales momentum matters more than single-month fluctuations.
Tom LaPointe shared October 2017 automotive sales figures by brand from Automotive News, displaying detailed monthly sales data across major manufacturers including GM (252,813 units), Ford (199,698), and FCA US (153,373). The post provides a comprehensive sales breakdown across individual brands within each parent company, offering dealers a snapshot of market performance for that month.
Scott Painter's Fair, a flexible car-leasing app, closed a major funding round exceeding $1 billion combining equity investment from BMW iVentures and Penske Automotive Group with debt funding from traditional auto finance banks and specialized transportation lenders. The funding reflects industry confidence in Fair's technology-driven model for making vehicle ownership more accessible and cost-effective through flexible alternatives to traditional leasing and purchasing. The thread garnered minimal discussion, with only a brief acknowledgment of interest from the community.
DealerRefresh successfully hosted DSES 2017 and has compiled 12 Facebook Live interviews plus a panel discussion into a dedicated playlist on their Facebook page for community members to review. The post serves as a resource guide for automotive professionals who attended or want to catch up on the event content, with links to individual video segments organized by topic and speaker.
T3 Consulting Group announced the hiring of George Nenni, a veteran automotive technology executive with 30+ years of experience and former VP at Dominion Dealer Solutions, to serve as an advisor focused on B2B consulting for dealer service providers. Nenni will leverage his background in technology, M&A, and senior leadership to help DSPs and dealerships improve profitability and business strategy. The thread is brief with minimal discussion beyond the announcement and congratulations from community members.
A dealer raised concerns about vendors overwhelming dealerships with poor pitching practices, citing an Automotive News article and a Digital Dealer Conference panel discussion, and solicited suggestions for how vendors could better engage dealers. The thread touches on vendor accountability and sales approaches but appears to have minimal discussion, with only one brief reply suggesting that attribution/accountability is key to vendors maintaining dealer interest. The thread is more of a question posed to the community rather than a developed discussion with clear conclusions.
Fastlane, an e-commerce platform for car dealers offering an Amazon-like online buying experience, has partnered with F&I Express to provide VIN-specific vehicle service contracts and aftermarket pricing. The integration allows dealers to offer accurate, vehicle-specific F&I products during their online checkout process, addressing a critical need for dealers selling cars digitally. The partnership reflects industry momentum toward comprehensive digital retail solutions that include both vehicle sales and financing/service options.
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DealerRefresh is promoting their presence at the 2017 DrivingSales Executive Summit in Las Vegas (October 22-24) and encouraging forum members to connect with them there for meet-and-greets, interviews, or video appearances, with a potential exclusive dinner event for premium members. The post also advertises a 20% discount on dealer passes available through the Deals4Dealers section for logged-in users. A few members confirm their attendance plans, with one noting he'll be at the automotiveMastermind table during the reception.
Autobytel Inc. announced in October 2017 that it would rebrand and change its name to AutoWeb, Inc., with the ticker symbol changing to AUTO, citing the need for a name that better reflects its modern digital automotive services business and resonates with consumers. Respondents generally supported the rebrand as a clearer descriptor of the company's current offerings, with one commenter sharing a historical anecdote about capitalizing on a similar earlier acquisition and divestment of AutoWeb's website business in 2001.
Fastlane, a new e-commerce platform providing an Amazon-style online car-buying experience, has partnered with Market Scan to supply real-time payment and rebate data from manufacturers, banks, and credit unions. The integration addresses a critical component of the online checkout process by ensuring customers receive accurate lease and financing information. The move highlights Fastlane's focus on dealer flexibility and customizability while building trust through reliable data partnerships.
Fastlane, a Dallas-based startup, has launched a customizable e-commerce platform that allows dealerships to brand their online car-buying experience and guide customers through a complete purchase journey—from inventory selection through financing, service contracts, and insurance. The key differentiator is that unlike competitor platforms with fixed checkout flows, Fastlane enables dealers to customize their online purchasing process to match their business model and customer preferences.
LotLinx announced plans to expand its automotive AI platform into Canada starting December 1, 2017, initially targeting the country's largest dealership groups with an invitation-only launch. The company will offer its TURN platform and VIN-View Optimizer tool, which uses AI to target shoppers based on search behavior and optimize vehicle display pages for conversion. This represents the introduction of transparent, AI-driven digital marketing technology to the Canadian automotive dealer market.
MaddyLow solicits input from the DealerRefresh community about what makes automotive industry events appealing or unappealing to attend. Jeff Kershner responds by noting this is a frequently discussed topic with archived threads on the subject, then provides links to previous conversations rather than directly answering the question. Ryan.gerardi humorously criticizes Kershner's tone as unwelcoming, suggesting his response may have discouraged further engagement.