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 AMA Polls Reviews

VLA ads and inflated click to calls

CarlAutofusion
I spoke to one of our account managers and showed him this post. He added that you should also exclude mobile app traffic. This can only be done on at the account level. This should take care of most of the bad traffic as many apps, especially games, get accidental clicks.
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VLA ads and inflated click to calls

CarlAutofusion
Hi Brad, Are you running VLA-only campaigns? We have found some of our VLA-only campaigns only show on Search and others run on both Search and Display. Same settings.
For those running on both Search and Display, we use placement and content exclusions to limit the amount of ads showing on Display. There's no way to completely eliminate the Display ads as far as we know because we can only exclude the ads once they show up on Display but this does reduce it by quite a bit.
Hope this helps.
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Happy 21st birthday DealerRefresh - shots!

ryan.leslie
joe.pistell said:
:unclejoe: did @Ryan Everson have a driver's license 21 yrs ago? :baby:
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Not sure about that, but... THIS Ryan had hair! ;)

Happy Birthday Refresh! Congrats to the two of you for the commitment to empowering and improving this incredible industry!
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Looking for Reliable SEO Services – Recommendations?

Joe Pracher
kylewilliam said:
Hi everyone,

I’m exploring SEO services to improve my website’s visibility and search engine rankings. I’m particularly interested in providers who offer a comprehensive approach, including on-page optimization, keyword research, technical SEO, and quality backlink building.

I want to ensure the services are ethical and follow Google’s guidelines, avoiding any black-hat tactics that could harm my site. Has anyone had experience with trustworthy SEO companies or freelancers that deliver measurable results?

I’d love to hear about your experiences, recommendations, or tips for choosing the right SEO service without breaking the bank
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OneKeel.ai | AI Solutions for Automotive Dealerships We built the first ever and only 24/7 Complete Full Stack SEO AI Army....GSEO Hub....As a Co-Founder....Happy to Walk Through GSEO HUB with you.

Screenshot 2026-05-05 at 10.08.11 AM.png
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VLA ads and inflated click to calls

Brad Burlingham
Hi all, we are seeing VLA ads showing on display network once again and that means a ton of "fake" calls. I saw this happen to us at the end of last year, but its happening again. We discovered it happening at 5 of our dealerships and its happening across several vendors. IF you have access to your google ads account, you can look at pmax campaigns by channel. if you are showing on display network, its a waste of money.

Since google doesnt allow you to turn off display, you need to block certain sites (i'm not talking about the partner network) and rethink what you are optimizing for. If you are including click to call as one of your optimized events, this might be the culprit.

Anyone else having these issues and or have some hacks on preventing it. i hate google!
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Young entrepreneur researching independent dealers — what's your biggest frustration?

joe.pistell
Harrison Schneider said:
A solution I am proposing is an AI-driven solution
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Take a number, get in line.


Harrison, sarcasm aside, you never worked in a store, you've never seen why it works and why it doesn't. TAKE YOUR AMAZING MIND and go find a dealer group (or a store) that is looking for an AI guru partner. Roll up your sleeves and get to work. What you build will likely scale.

p.s. Better models plus Meta prompting is creating a bottom up revolution.
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p.p.s. SaaS has competition coming.
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Young entrepreneur researching independent dealers — what's your biggest frustration?

Alex Snyder
Harrison Schneider said:
I see. Would it be correct to say that inventory is the biggest frustration? Also, I am actively looking for people to network with that currently own or manage their own car dealership? This is why I am posting on this site, to connect with people who have experience and understand their day to day frustrations before I build anything. If you are interested, you can either reply to this or send me a direct message. I appreciate the connection and this goes out to anyone seeing this.
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You are in the right spot. The only criticism I have is that you’re asking to be a bit spoon fed.

We have absolutely no idea what you are thinking and zero idea what you are capable of. This is an advanced community who will give you more feedback than anywhere else. It will give you actions to roll. It is on you to figure out how to unlock us for your cause.
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Young entrepreneur researching independent dealers — what's your biggest frustration?

Alex Snyder
Harrison Schneider said:
When you say finding quality inventory is the biggest struggle, is it more about finding the right cars at the right price or more about competing with franchise dealers who have access to off lease vehicles and better auction relationships? Just want to better understand this pain point.
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Yes
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Guide to Your First CEO Gig in Automotive SaaS

john.quinn

RIF: The Playbook to Landing Your First CEO Gig​

An advice column for tomorrow's automotive SaaS executives, by Brock Hammerstein, CEO of VelocirAuto Synergistics™​

Friends, colleagues, fellow travelers on the journey from Series B to "strategic exit" —

It's me, Brock. Three-time CEO. Two-time LinkedIn Top Voice. My inbox has been overflowing with letters from junior executives asking the same question: "Brock, how do I become a CEO in this economy?" Pull up a chair. Let's get fit and focused.


Dear Brock,

I'm a VP at a dealer-tech SaaS company. I want to be CEO, but I don't have a track record of building anything. What do I do?

— Ambitious in Augusta

Dear Ambitious,

Building things is so 2019. Today's CEO doesn't build — today's CEO rightsizes. I haven't shipped a product since the Obama administration, but I've eliminated 11% of three different workforces, and the stock popped 7% each time. That's value creation, baby.

Here's your homework: take whatever your company does and announce you're doing 11% less of it. The number 11 is critical. 10% sounds calculated. 12% sounds desperate. 11% sounds like you ran the math. You did not run the math.


Dear Brock,

Our board wants us to "trim management layers." How do I frame that?

— Confused in Cary

Dear Confused,

The trick is to make eliminating managers sound like a gift to the people who remain. Try this:

"By flattening our management structure, we're empowering our individual contributors to own their outcomes, accelerate decision velocity, and operate with the agility of a true challenger brand. Our people have told us they want fewer barriers between them and the work. We're listening."
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Translation: we fired the people who knew what was going on, and now everyone reports to a Slack channel.

Pro tip: ensure exactly 20% of eliminated roles are management. Any less and Wall Street thinks you're protecting your friends. Any more and your remaining managers update LinkedIn before lunch.


Dear Brock,

How do I announce layoffs without sounding like I'm announcing layoffs?

— Wordsmith in Wilmington

Dear Wordsmith,

Never say "layoffs." Here is the approved lexicon:
  • Fit and focus initiative (we fired people, and we're proud of the alliteration)
  • Operational excellence transformation (we fired people and hired McKinsey)
  • Driving long-term shareholder value (we fired people and announced a $90 million buyback the same afternoon)
That last one is my personal favorite. Nothing says "we had to make difficult decisions" quite like authorizing $90 million to buy back our own stock approximately 14 minutes after the WARN Act notices went out. The optics are immaculate.


Dear Brock,

Be honest. Did any of you actually plan for the post-COVID environment, or are you all just panicking in unison?

— Skeptic in Schaumburg

Dear Skeptic,

How dare you. We are executing with discipline against a dynamic macro environment.

Also yes.


Dear Brock,

What's the final step? How do I actually land the next CEO gig?

— Almost There in Austin

Dear Almost There,

Here's the secret nobody tells you. Once you've successfully "right-sized" a company into a smaller, sadder version of itself, you don't get fired. You get promoted to the search.

You'll receive a generous severance, a non-disparagement clause, and a glowing LinkedIn post from your board chair using the phrase "after a successful transformation, [Brock] has decided to pursue his next chapter." Within 60 days, a private equity firm will offer you a portfolio company that needs to be — wait for it — fit and focused.

The cycle continues. The buybacks compound. And somewhere, a Series B founder is reading this column and taking notes.

Godspeed, you magnificent disruptors.

— Brock


Brock Hammerstein is the CEO of VelocirAuto Synergistics™. He is currently between layoffs.
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VinSolutions issues

Alex Snyder
Steve Roessler said:
Totally agree Alex and actually, you are supporting the message I am saying. LOL. You just gave 2 examples that add up to $5K/mth. There are other products that dealers can consolidate. So Bolt on all the products and if dealers spend 13K-15K but it's all "A la Carte" and DriveCentric is 10K, that's a winner for the store.
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We agree on most things, Steve. I certainly agree that you're a good salesman ;-)

Regarding our back-and-forth in this thread, I think you're adjusting my statement to fit your worldview. I'll distill it into something simpler: no solution fits every need.

If you have the expertise, stitch together solutions that make you more powerful. If you don't have the expertise, buy the bundle.
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VinSolutions issues

Alex Snyder
Steve Roessler said:
Lastly, plugging in solutions is not a solution. It's a "Bandaid". Diagnose the issue and solve it with what's available.
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Good point on Tekion, but I have to take issue with "plugging solutions is not a solution." It most certainly is a solution! In many cases, features of a specific product are not as robust as its main competencies.

Take AI follow-up as an example. I might be spending around $2,500/mo. for VinSolutions. If I wanted to fund a BDC to handle all my internet leads, I'd be looking at an additional $15,000/mo. + benefits and management overhead to staff it (assuming 3 people are enough). Or I can supplement my CRM and sales team with something like Hammer or Impel for around $1,500-$3,000/mo.

Yes, DriveCentric offers AI follow-up, but from some bills I've seen, that's a lot more money than stitching things together as provided in the example. Granted, that is a smart option if it is in the budget.

Or, take CDPs. CRMs should be doing that work, but none do.

Equity Mining... CRMs try to do it, but they don't do it well, and you get better solutions like AutomotiveMastermind. And damn, do dealers pay a lot for that one :eek3:

I can go on and on and on. I do recognize that your job is to sell DriveCentric CRM, but it should be stated that each system has its strengths and its weaknesses need to be supplemented where the dealer feels strongly about those weaknesses.
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Terms/Phrases in Car Sales or Sales in General You Find Offensive

Alex Snyder
More good ones (outside of the orignial intent of this thread), but focused less on "inside the business":

Industry Terminology

.
help.dominiondms.com
www.caranddriver.com

Glossary of Terms

Car terms: defined!
www.caranddriver.com www.caranddriver.com
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