James Baggott

I met one dealer group a year or so ago and they had employed a salesperson purely to deal with email enquiries. They were having it away. I think dealers forget that people email for a reason. The last thing these people want is a phone call as a reply (unless they've stated that). It's more likely they've emailed because they're sat at their desk at work and are browsing your site when they shouldn't be - hence an email reply makes them look like they're working. Or they're sat in front of the TV in the evening and hoping to get the information back that they want so they can read it at their leisure. It's like people who reply to text messages with a phone call. Ask any teenager and they'll tell you that's their pet hate. It's actually one of mine. People type stuff out instead of calling for a reason - their reason - so it's best to reply in the same manner. And those that don't bother replying at all? Well, as I said above, chances are they're losing a potential sale. For every dealer that doesn't take email enquiries seriously there's several who do, as our Used Car Award winners will testify...

What's more there are now even more manufacturers coming to market with EVs. The more that go on sale the more demand there will be for charging points. It's a self fulfilling circle.

This is fascinating. We were adamant that if were to hand out awards then we needed to be 100 percent confident they were doing the job correctly. The team worked hard on enquiries and we started them all via email - with 90 per cent of buyers now researching their next car purchase online before anything else why would we chose anything other method? Next year we may call and email. Or perhaps tweet instead. We needed to be confident that these dealers were doing exactly what they said and it's surprising that some who said they were brilliant in their nominations didn't even bother to reply. Morale or the story? Always answer a lead professionally. Yes some may be time wasters but some mag genuinely want to buy a car. And some May be the Car Dealer team calling to see if you're worthy of winning one of our awards...

I was always told the Chevrolet Man Utd deal was a worldwide decision as they're seen as a global sports team, not just a UK one or European one.

Thanks for this - a very interesting point. We'll get to work on this story and see what we can find out - and warn our readers too!

Thanks for this answer - very comprehensive and useful. Barrie - does that answer your question?

Morning all - I'm wondering have you ever sold a car that you wish you never had? My brother used to run a used car dealership and had a series of cool cars. As he traded he used to pick the nice ones for himself, drive them for a year of so, then sell them on. But some he wished he never had. One of those was a Mitsubishi Evo FQ360 - it was yellow and bonkers fast. I remember it well as he bought it from Mitsubishi's press fleet. I was working at Auto Express at the time and it was our long termer. He loved that car, but eventually sold it to someone in the town and then every time he saw it after that he wished he'd never let it go. So, my question is, if you're a dealer have you ever sold a car that you wished you kept for your own? Maybe it's because they're now worth a fortune, or perhaps it was just a car that you loved driving. And if you're not a dealer - same question. I know I've sold cars that I wish I hadn't. In a new series of posts on this forum I'm going to give a prize for the best answer - judged by the Car Dealer team - so please ensure you post in here by no later than December 16. PRIZE: LED Lenser torch. 28 Lumens bright. 93mm long and will work for 47 hours on one battery. Shock resistant and weighs just 115g. Comes with two sets of batteries.

Congratulations chaps. We're so glad you enjoyed the evening - well deserved awards for you and Umesh and all our winners. Thanks for making it a special night!

A sad day for the motor industry as another dealer group goes into administration. What do you think about this? Is it the start of another winter of discontent or a one off?

Funnily enough, I've just written my column for the next column all about this. I've heard the same thing but the SMMT is stonewalling with information - I'm not sure why they're so secretive about it. I don't think pre-reg is a good idea at all - especially when we're hiding the fact it's happening from the public. We all know it is, but consumers don't - all they see is the mainstream media reporting the car market UP again. This isn't good when monetary policy makers see this and base decisions on an economic indicator that isn't painting the whole picture. Dealers buying into pre-reg is another thing altogether - I think it's a very dangerous cycle to get into and one that many dealers have told me is impossible to break once they're addicted... Dangerous game!

VAT registered dealers with a premises, that customers can get some sort of come back should something go wrong, should be pushed as the right avenue. A man at the side of the road with a mobile phone number could be anyone and could disappear. They should be stopped.

I'd class a trader as someone who pays VAT and is set up as a company. Someone who has to abide by the same rules as everyone else in the motor trade - warranties, etc

Following this topic and all your comments, here's my column from the latest issue of the magazine all about this issue. http://cardealermagazine.co.uk/publish/baggott-isnt-time-tackled-kerbside-motor-traders-ourselves/77950 What do you think to a campaign where we print notices for real motor traders to stick on cars parked at the side of the road? Maybe in the style of warning triangles to potential buyers? Something tongue in cheek that would get people thinking. What are your thoughts?

Congratulations - well deserved. Good luck on the night!

I've been in the Far East for two weeks with Kia and Mazda in Seoul and then Tokyo respectively. Both are amazing places and I've learned lots. There was a fascinating insight into selling Kias to Koreans when I visited a dealer and the Tokyo Motor Show was as mad as ever. Full reports on both in the next issue of the magazine. But I'm wondering what you think - which country is innovating the most in the car industry these days? Is Korea still playing catch up or are the Japanese now lagging behind? Or will those from the Land of the Rising Sun always come up with the most innovations? Would be interested to hear your thoughts...

Hi Jim - just in case you're wondering I moved this here as it's likely to be seen more. Topics like this need to be started in General Chat. The Today's Talking Points is designed for comments from the website. Thanks.

As a consumer I couldn't care less if the salesman had a tie on or not. They're old fashioned and there's little place for them in business in general let alone in car dealerships. Smart causal dress is just as good. People are there to buy cars from professional people. Attire doesn't shout professional, but quality service and knowledge does. I think ties should be consigned to the bin...

PCP are now the most popular forms of finance - some 75 odd per cent I think at last count. That's far more likely to get people back in to change. I think the long warranties just show confidence in product and the fact they're transferable to used car buyer is even better.

I'm starting to think a long warranty is the best thing manufacturers can offer. Why? Because when something goes wrong - which it has on my Kia - you're not particularly bothered because you know it'll be fixed for free. It means things that would annoy others simply don't in a Kia because it gets done under warranty. And for seven years! It's a master stroke of marketing if you ask me...

We can help with video if you need it. The Blackball Media team has a full video production operation that works for a variety of car dealers and manufacturers. Let me know if you'd like any help...

Looks good to me - nice and clean design. Works well.

You'll be pleased to hear chaps that this has inspired me enough to write my next column for the mag about this very subject. I'll be interested to hear if you agree with my points when it's published.

Proof that people travel for the right car!

There's a lot of talk on Twitter at the moment about the scourge of roadside traders. How should they be tackled? What should local authorities do about them? Why are they such a problem? Let me know your thoughts. I'm interested to hear for a possible column I'm writing for the mag.

I've had an amazing experience this week. I got to try the Jaguar C-X75, the maker's super car that never happened. The story behind the car was fascinating, and we tell it in full in the next issue. It forms part of a brilliant (and I would say that) feature on 'Skunkworks' cars. Those being the back room projects of manufacturers that we wished had seen the light of day. It got me thinking - what cars do you wish had been made that never were?