SLANTS & TRENDS–NEW PRODUCTS AND INFORMATION

FORD RECOGNIZES DEALERS' SERVICE TO THEIR COMMUNITIES IN ANNUAL SALUTE TO DEALERS
January 31, 2004—For its fourth annual Salute to Dealers, Ford recognized nine dealers for their contributions of money and time to a variety of worth causes, including public education, youth sports, children's health care, and a program that assists older people who are re-entering the workforce. Ford honored the dealers Friday evening at a reception. This year's winners are: Scott Bieler, West-Herr Automotive Group, Hamburg, N.Y.; Todd Buch, McCafferty Ford, Langhorne, Pa.; David M. Conant, Cerritos (Calif.) Ford and Lincoln Mercury; Les Eck, Rusty Eck Ford, Wichita, Kans.; Joseph S. Holman and his daughter Melinda K. Holman, who manage Ford, Lincoln Mercury, Jaguar, and Mazda stores in New Jersey and Florida; Casey and Debra Johnson, Fort Dodge (Iowa) Ford/Lincoln Mercury; Jerry Korum, Korum Automotive Group, Puyallup, Wash.; John Shoemaker, Riverside Ford, Macon, Ga.; and Wade Walker, Walker Motors Inc., Montpelier, Vt.

MARKET SCAN’S NEW PLAN
January 31, 2004—Imagine completing a deal in just 58 minutes! Ron Means, CEO of Market Scan, Westlake Village, Calif., says Market Scan’s mPod scanner can capture pre-test-drive customer data, plus credit check consent, so a deal’s nearly done by the time the customer returns. The system does the math for customers, showing them what it would cost to lease or buy. It also offers them auction transaction comparisons to assure them they’re getting a fair deal for their trade. The system secures the data by requiring salespeople to log in with a smart card. In addition to helping boost profits and smooth deals, the system can also tell dealers who bought, who walked, and which ads paid off. Means says he hopes to link up with an automaker to test doing similar information extraction but on an aggregate level without customer names or traceability, helping automakers and dealers better focus their advertising, marketing, and training money.

NAT ROLLS OUT EMENU TO SMOOTH F&I TRANSACTIONS
January 31, 2004—NAT, Inc., Rosemont, Ill., known for the NAT eGateway now offers the NAT eMenu selling solution, which lets F&I managers rate a proposed aftermarket product contract and create a presentation in three seconds—versus the traditional average of 7 to 17 minutes, says the firm. The new product will help ensure F&I staff give customers a complete, accurate rundown of the store’s aftermarket products. By linking a dealership’s DMS to its aftermarket product providers in real time, F&I staffers will cut down on incomplete or misrated info, know they’re complying with state and federal disclosure rules, and give buyers a customized menu of offerings. eMenu also gives managers a detailed activity log of what’s hot in F&I.