umesh

Advanced Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Content Count

    992

  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    66

Posts posted by umesh

  2. Posted

    2 hours ago, TobiasWalker said:

    Hi Guys, 

    New here but have been reading all of you chatting on here for a while. You've given me a good laugh over time and finally thought it was time to get involved in the craic. Based in Kent, newbie to the trade. Pretty dead out here though, only selling the cheapies with no decent punters coming in and very few enquires through on email and on the phones. Anyone who does enquire seems to just blank my calls. Very frustrating but guess it's just the nature of the game. 

    Just spent my morning discussing what we could possibly doing wrong and having the same old advertising chat we've had for the past god knows how long! Rang round and everyone round here is complaining of being quiet. Have reduced my cars, changed the adverts but to no avail. Autotrader is telling me my ads are being viewed 70% less than others as well. God knows! 

    If anyones got a spare 5 for any advice, maybe to look over an ad or two of mine then that would be greatly appreciated. 

    Nice to meet you all anyway! 

    Happy to help on here or ping  me an email umesh@autochange.co.uk or bell me 01782 822 700

    Umesh 

  3. Posted

    20 hours ago, EPV said:

    To be honest I self nominated at the suggestion of Rory but I got shortlisted which was pleasing. 

    I’ll be sick if I don’t get a highly commended spot and a picture with Mike Brewer, not because of him but it will look really good on the website. I’m going there for a good night out and a bit of fun but I want the PR material! Rory says the amount of people that say “you must be an alright dealer if you’ve got a photo with Mike Brewer” and i’m sure Umesh gets the same due to his photo with Theo Paphitis. 

    PR Machine indeed ! Mike Brewer and Theo paphitis pictures fo a long way!

    Look forward to seeing anyone who's going to the Awards on the 26th- ALWAYS a fantasic night and great to meet so many personally! 

  5. Posted

    Been challenging every where, just the odd exception who did well.

    Like most quietest month but good profits that helped, what a difference 12 months makes - Last september / october best two months for about 3 years! 

    Here's to a great November to everyone! 

    Keep smiling and taking the tablets ! :) 

    • Like 1

  6. Posted

    2 hours ago, David Horgan said:

    Rubbish platform is Motors .

    Listen to same old tripe about how views they have every time some new sales person pops in .

    I go STOP right there , Have you got any evidence of how many actual sales you produce .

    mmmmmm Cant answer that , Bye 

    David , I can't believe you're worried about number of sales ...... just think of the views !! :) ! #crazy

    I've said that for many years, I only want one view if that equates to a buyer ! #simples 

    • Like 1

  9. Posted

    On 10/12/2018 at 3:59 PM, David Horgan said:

    Blue Motor Finance are excellent 

    prime to subprime in one company , fast decisions 

    Same day payout and pay commission with the payout " not next month "  

    Use Northridge as 1st and Blue as 2nd As David says .. #GreatCompany #Blue 

  11. Posted

    1 hour ago, Mark101 said:

    Or just get your kebab ready for you with plenty of mayonnaise and lots of salt and vinegar on the chips - FFS, when will they learn, that’s all a bevvied up man wants to eat.

    Amazing Umesh - didn’t Saab go pop at least 3 years ago, where can you find these nearly new ones?

    SAAB did go pop ! " wasn't recently ..when SAAB were alive and kicking :) it was a " 12 Month old SAAB " 

  12. Posted

    1 hour ago, Contracts said:

    We had our Autotrader account hacked a few years ago and phantom cars and prices put on.  In the several hours until it was sorted we had about 50 calls and several people turned up expecting a 2 year old Evoque for £8k etc.

    Had similar a 12 month SAAB Estate should have been £15999 - advertised at £5999 !! had about 50 calls on various cars for couple of days until it got resolved! One lady I couldn't get through to her... No wonder these people get scammed, I said HOW do you expect to buy a car for £6k when the market value is circa £15k - it's just 12 month sold !! #NoWords 

    19 minutes ago, David Horgan said:

    Just had one woman ring us 

    is the Megan Cup for sale still . " yes " 

    We are weekend cash buyers . " Ok " 

    Are you in a position to take 85 " 85 what " 

    8 50 , " you mean £8,500  " 

    Yes 

    "Its £9,495 my dear so you want a thousand pound off the price" .

    Yes    " NO " 

    "You want more than we do out of it "

    But your getting £8,500, what more do want out of it " She says " 

    Customers this week are all on drugs I reckon , had the most dopey requests ever 

    Number 2 

    I like your Z4 , Its a px 04 plate . 

    Customer request , Can you send me a price to have my sat nav and canton sound system took out of my dads car and put into the Z4 , I will send you my post code so you can arrange to remove the unit from dads car ,also I think the speakers need updating so can you arrange the purchase of 2nd hand ones from ebay as I'm short of cash till pay day .  When your man is here to remove Sat Nav  i will send you £500 deposit back with him . Then collect on 14th Nov .

    Its a 14 yr old Z4 :) , his dad has a 15 plate Octavia , and he is 200 miles away . 

    The  resounding reply sent back was " NO "  what a plonker :) 

    Some funny people out there reading what every one else has had 

     

    Number 3 

    Email this morning 

    Hi we bought a fiesta off you Thursday .

    "ok " 

    It catches when going over speed bumps .

    Reply SLOW DOWN THEN .

    Email back , Thanks for the advice , its a lovely car by the way .

    Totally Bloody NUTS they are 

    Number 4 

    Young woman comes in for MOT yesterday Aygo ,, takes it for her this morning , failed on de laminated tyres on both rears .

    Hi Marie its failed on tyres , both rear ones , £40 + Vat fitted each , oh have you got any you can lend me , :) er no .

    Suppose I can stay in this weekend if its totally necessary " There Fecking tyres and its winter " ffs girl get a grip .  

    Waiting for one more customer and I'm off , out for dinner :) 

     

    More stuff for your upcoming book David ! :) #BestSeller 

  13. Posted

    2 hours ago, Rory RSC said:

    Oh you are the guy who did the video I recognise your voice. I found it really helpful. 

    If you get it right it is an incredibly powerful sales tool and leads to many sales for us. Do I think they would come without, absolutely they did anyway we were not struggling without video but the thing I notice is the people who have watched them are far less picky when they come out and the sales are almost quick look, quick drive, sign here, pay here and off they go. I have sold it to them already instead of having to do it in person. 

     

    As Rory says  100% !  Few recently where I'm trying to show them the car and THEY say it's ok I've watched your video and know/have seen it all. Pay and go. 

    It's worked on older PX to clear too, show them exactly what it is , dents, scratches etc and they know what's on offer ! Had a real bizarre one few weeks back A3 taken in PX that i supplied needed about £1200/1500 body work, old chap caught gate post etc..you get the picture , I took over 50+ Calls ! Sheer madness , in fact on the sunday I wouuldn't even answer the phone. Monday morning 1st man bought /paid gone !( It was cheap ! £3500 - proper car would retail circa 5500/6000) Bargain hunters! 

  16. Posted

    11 minutes ago, David Horgan said:

    Packed up with dealer auction , fed of wasting our time , get there and i swear its a different car 80% of the time .

    Haven't done a deal with them for ages , Sytner auction too is same , 

    Even had one that was described as  Scratched , Dented ,Painted on rear bumper badly . EML light on , two tyres less the 3mm , one key , and only two services at 50 k .

    The car was NOT scratched  , not dented , had no paint , eml light not on , all tyres excellent , two keys , full seat history with cam belt too . Fishy Fishy as we got it £900 under book for a Cupra R .Just wanted a wash and hoover , Thinking tagged for someone at a price , inside job wink wink or am i getting cynical , 

    Just made me smile David !! you old cynic :) ! 

  17. Posted

    Easy mark , just ask the couple to call DVLA to say they can't remember ever seeing the V5! 

    DVLA will post a new one out immediately as it's still in their name - you collect from the customer, quick and easy - Done this a few times and its worked for me. 

    Umesh 

    • Like 2

  19. Posted

    I've been batting on for years about Video's ' they sell cars for me' ! my Customers love my vidoeo's , I don't like silent video's and some of what I've seen with 'just the wrong music' - it's a very fine balance between right music, silent movie and not OTT video over sell. 

    Each one to their own but those not doing vidoe's are missing out. 

    Nick - I don't really look at the stats , some stats are just bizarre ! one of the most watched video I have on youtube is a Rover 75 :) 

    1 View - 1 sale = happy days , 2000 Views no sale = Pointless !

    • Like 2

  21. Posted

    41 minutes ago, EPV said:

    I don’t agree. 

    The first impression lasts, as the saying goes and if the first thing the punter sees is a couple of old part ex shitters to clear their first impression won’t be a good one. It’s not even a conscious thought it’s all sub conscious. 

    Not saying YOUR website is like that Mark  of course, I like your website i’m just saying that in a digital market place (and it will only become more and more digital) then it’s important that the customer immediately sees reliable, trustworthy, professional. Take a look at Rory’s website. It’s absolutely perfect. First impression is a bloke who wins awards and the second impression is “look at my reviews they’re the bollocks”

    When someone has more or less decided they want the car, and most people will be coming to your site via a referral (I.e. AT or Car Gurus or eBay) then what they are looking for is information about you as a company, as a person etc. They want reviews they want trust they want to feel they are going to buy a car from a proper dealer. 

    So imo, the first impression should be exactly that. Plenty will disagree with me here i’m sure, particularly the elder statesman as they think reviews and videos aren’t necessary and perhaps they aren’t for THEM but for someone starting out in this industry then digital marketing and reviews/brand trust is imperative. 

    I may have gotten slightly off tangent here but i’m a firm believer in the notion that Car buying is becoming more and more digital by the month almost, so what people see online of you makes a significant impact on whether they will buy a car from you. 

    As ever mate it’s the case of whatever works for you. No one can tell you that you need AT as you’re doing it without but no one can tell me that I can do without AT as i’ve tried it and I cannot do without AT. I like the fact that we can all show proof it can be done different ways. 

    Agree with you EPV ! 1st Impressions.

    Overall picture of the business not just what cars are being sold. 

    Video's sell cars for me [ been saying that for 4/5 years] 

  22. Posted

    Already been said but you need a good website know both suppliers mentioned dealer5 - Adrian offers great value for money sites, and Click dealers are a great bunch too,( Know and have dealing with both)  all depends on what you actually want/need. 

    I'm still on Autotrader because it still works for me, be sure to monitor where the leads are coming from thats the only way to ensure you're spending your hard cash with the platforms that bring results for you.

    I have many friends who are NOT on AT and have very, very successful business, so what works for one doesnt work for another. We're all in the same game but all very different in the way we do business and what /who we atract as customers..

    One thing I would say is if it's not working, stop paying and move on don't just keep throwing money at it. 

    Cheers 

    umesh 

  23. Posted

    Findandfundmycar.com, the online car finance aggregator website created by MotorNovo Finance, has axed dealer fees.

    Whereas before dealers were charged for placing cars on site thus funding cross media advertising, now they can list stock for free.  MotoNovo said this will help to get more dealers on board and grow the volumes of cars listed on the site.

     

    MotoNovo Finance’s Motor Division CEO Karl Werner: “In January, we set out on a mission to redefine the vehicle aggregation market and create the most dealer-centric platform.

    “We have proved that findandfundmycar.com can deliver results and now, we need to scale up and build upon the impact the platform has already had.

    “The way to do this at pace is to a model that is similar to a free subscription. Advertising on the platform is free, and payment is by results.”

    Findandfundmycar claims that dealers using the website see a 15% increase in finance proposals and a 8% increase in volume written.

    “You can’t argue with the figures. The platform is helping dealers sell more cars and sell more finance. What we aim to do now is rapidly grow stock levels and enhance the customer experience, giving better choice and attracting an even larger audience.”

    MotoNovo cited analysis by Morar HPI which revealed that 83% of customers who have used the platform would recommend it.

    “We have proved we can drive finance sales for dealers through the platform. We are backing the impact of findandfundmycar.com as a proposition that can drive finance and car sales with no up-front advertising costs,” said Werner.

    “Dealers have an opportunity to become the disrupters by changing their vehicle advertising approach and trying something entirely new – something with a truly dealer-dedicated promise.”

    2 minutes ago, umesh said:

    Oops ! Heading should be ' FREE Advertising ' Find and Fund / Motonovo ( Unable to edit ? ) 

     

  24. Posted

    Phil Nothard is a great man! He helps when he can everyone in the motortrade, Have known him for many years , I've asked on many forums inc this on his behalf for monthly input once he has all the info he always shares it, it gives us all a snap shot of what is happening in the country, trends, etc etc, All useful info in my opinion. 

    It takes less than 2 minutes to complete the survey, I've always asked and thanked everyone for the input from me and from Phil. 

    He now works for Cox and previously CAP for those who don't know his full history. 

    Umesh 

    • Like 1