SEATTLE — Cobalt, the leading provider of marketing services to the retail automotive industry, announced the release of three new targeted paid search campaigns designed specifically to help dealers leverage consumer search behavior in the current economic climate. Cobalt’s brand-new campaigns are designed to generate awareness for multiple profit centers within the dealership and to extend dealers’ reach to specific consumers shopping online.
According to Google, while the total number of U.S. online in-market new vehicle shoppers declined by 16% between March 2007 and March 2008, there was a 35% growth in people visiting parts and service sites during the same time period. Cobalt has designed new search campaigns for its PowerSearch customers that focus specifically on parts and service. Cobalt has developed a package of service and parts keywords, and a bidding strategy that will optimize search results placement and local-market opportunities for dealerships. In addition, ad copy will leverage a dealership’s business name and custom “tag-line” to improve click-through rates.
Cobalt has also introduced new finance and special finance campaigns to allow dealers to respond to evolving consumer needs for lease programs, financing options and preferred payment methods. According to Automotive News, the average new-car loan now stands at 64 months, a significant increase from the average 61-month loan in 2003. These campaigns are designed to target the payment-driven consumer, whose focus is matching a monthly budget to a monthly car payment.
Cobalt’s extensive research and testing has shown very high email and phone conversion rates, demonstrating that these campaigns drive high-quality, ready-to-buy consumers to dealers’ websites.
“Cobalt is responding to our customers’ desire to generate more business for their fixed operations and financial centers,” said Max Steckler, Executive Director of Advertising Products at Cobalt. “These new campaigns help drive the right customers into the highest profit centers of their business.”
The core value proposition of Cobalt’s new search campaigns is flexibility for dealerships in how they target specific online consumers, coupled with the right ad copy messages to pull those consumers through to a dealer’s website for conversion. Only Cobalt’s search campaigns deliver this type of flexibility and address all of a dealership’s profit centers.
July 30th, 2008
Filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy may allow the debtor to decrease the price of his current car. Oftentimes debtors have automobiles that are worth significantly less than the balance owed to the lender. Having a car that is worth only $10,000 and having a due-balance of $18,000 is not that uncommon. In a Chapter 7 bankruptcy the debtor has choices of either returning the car back to the lender and not being liable for the $18,000, reaffirming the debt and continue to pay out the $18,000, or negotiate with the lender for a reduction of the amount owed. The lenders are well aware that the borrower may return the $10,000 car, without the lenders ever seeing a dollar of the $18,000 payment, leaving the lenders with the extra expense of selling the car. The lenders often times are willing to negotiate with the debtors to reduce the balance for their car. Accepting $14,000 for the $18,000 of the balance owed appears much better to the lender than just getting the $10,000 car.
However, lenders also have some leverage. They are well aware that debtors have bad credit history after bankruptcy and will have hard time getting a car loan at a reasonable interest rate. Therefore, lenders are not always willing to negotiate for significant decrease in the balance owed. In those cases the debtors should realize that they do have options, and are not necessarily stuck with paying for the $10,000 car that is costing them $18,000.
If the car is really worth $10,000 the debtor might be better of returning the car to the lender. A car-loan after bankruptcy will have a high interest rate; however the cost of having a high interest rate on another $10,000 car might be significantly lower than $18,000. Furthermore, the debtor can have a co-signer on the loan for the purchased car. A co-signer with a good credit history will allow the debtor to get a lower interest rate. Having assets after bankruptcy may also allow the debtor to put up more collateral for an auto loan, decreasing the interest rate.
For more information about Car-Loans in bankruptcy, visit the popular blog at http://newinfopost.com/bankruptcy/car-loans
June 25th, 2008
While credit cards are sometimes portrayed as a necessary evil, they also provide a lot of benefits. The key is to know how to use them to your advantage and not to get caught up in the traps that lurk behind the benefits.
Play the Float
Banks and insurance companies play the float all the time, investing the money you pay for premiums or park in a savings account at 0% interest. You can do that by playing the float yourself, and a credit card is the perfect way to do it. Charge a high-ticket item on your credit card and pay it in full when the bill is due. Time it right and you could get nearly two month’s interest free. Find out when your credit card issuer’s billing cycle closes (call customer service or check your previous statements) and then make your purchase right after that date. The charge won’t appear until next month’s bill, and depending upon the length of the grace period, you might luck out with a good healthy float. Note that this strategy does not typically work if you are carrying a balance on your credit card.
Rack Up Rewards
If you want travel rewards, free movie passes, or even cold hard cash, just pull out the plastic. There are rewards to suit just about every interest. The challenge is picking one! If you carry a balance, understand that the interest rate may be higher than what you can get elsewhere. And watch out for strings attached to the rewards, such as minimum purchase requirements, blackout dates for travel, or caps on the amount you can earn. Once you’ve found a card you like, you may find yourself using it for all your purchases. That can be rewarding - and addictive -so make sure you don’t overspend just to earn rewards.
Shop Safely
Credit card purchases are backed with the protection of consumer law. To dispute a billing error on your credit card, you must follow the rules, though. Picking up the phone to complain is not enough! Here’s what to do:
* Write to the credit card issuer at the address for “billing inquiries,” not the address for sending your payments (the address for billing inquiries is often found on the back of your most recent monthly statement); include your name, address, account number, and a description of the billing error.
* Send your letter so that it reaches the credit card issuer within 60 days after the first bill containing the error was mailed to you.
* Send your letter by certified mail, return receipt requested, so you have proof of what the credit card issuer received. Include copies (not originals) of sales slips or other documents that support your position. Keep a copy of your dispute letter. One warning: billing error protections don’t offer help in the case of buyer’s remorse.
Build Your Empire
Plastic is usually a lot easier to get than a bank loan, especially for a start-up venture. But that easy credit has its downside. With a large line of credit on your Visa or MasterCard, you may be tempted to spend money on things not essential to your business. If finances charges rack up faster than revenues, you’ll soon be in trouble. The better strategy is to start your business on the cheap, and use credit cards only as needed. When you do use plastic, choose a business credit card reported in the name of your business rather than on your personal credit. You’ll protect your credit rating from the additional debt and you will be setting up your venture as a serious entity rather than a side hobby.
Save at the Car Rental Counter
Your US$10 a day car rental can easily mushroom into US$30 a day if you buy the “protection” coverage the rental car company will try to sell you at the counter. The “Collision Damage Waiver” is technically not insurance, but it works like insurance in that it covers you if the vehicle you rent is damaged. The good news is that between your own car rental coverage and a CDW waiver benefit on your credit card, you may be able to turn down that pricey policy. You must use the card that offers the coverage when you rent the car, so make sure you carry that card with you when you travel.
June 8th, 2008
