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Old 11-01-2010, 04:05 PM   #1
XDCX
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Default This is what the car business has become - WhoIsTheLowest.com

We've had countless threads on the forum discussing the impact of the Internet on new car gross profits and the increasing tendency for customers to shop multiple dealerships for price quotes.

This thread addresses the same theme but takes it one step further - WhoIsTheLowest.com

I heard about this website from one of our members who received an Quote Request from a customer who wants to purchase a 2011 Dodge Ram 2500. The customer developed the "Who is the Lowest" website to track and compare the dealer quotes he receives. He indicates he'll buy the '11 Ram from the "winning" dealer after the competition ends at midnight on 11/30/10.

To be clear, I'm a Capitalist and I love the Internet - I don't have an issue with a customer trying to get their best deal. I do sense, however, that the customer is hopeful this will turn in to an Internet frenzy and dealers will want to sell him a car at a net loss so they can declare themselves the "winner" of the "Who is the Lowest" competition.

What struck me the most when I visited the website was the realization this is what the car business has become. The fancy facility with the conforming arch won't sell cars. Neither will the Factory's Direct Mail piece, the glossy brochures, the showroom furniture or the required OEM training. For an increasing percentage of customers, the only thing they care about is the deal....

Anyone else get a quote request from this customer?
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Old 11-01-2010, 04:32 PM   #2
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I really hope no one bids..

We do a decent internet business and at worst we go a couple hundred under on occasion but thats it.

This is the type of guy who would expect to get triple net...because he thinks he's so savvy...
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Old 11-01-2010, 05:42 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by XDCX View Post
We've had countless threads on the forum discussing the impact of the Internet on new car gross profits and the increasing tendency for customers to shop multiple dealerships for price quotes.

This thread addresses the same theme but takes it one step further - WhoIsTheLowest.com

I heard about this website from one of our members who received an Quote Request from a customer who wants to purchase a 2011 Dodge Ram 2500. The customer developed the "Who is the Lowest" website to track and compare the dealer quotes he receives. He indicates he'll buy the '11 Ram from the "winning" dealer after the competition ends at midnight on 11/30/10.

To be clear, I'm a Capitalist and I love the Internet - I don't have an issue with a customer trying to get their best deal. I do sense, however, that the customer is hopeful this will turn in to an Internet frenzy and dealers will want to sell him a car at a net loss so they can declare themselves the "winner" of the "Who is the Lowest" competition.

What struck me the most when I visited the website was the realization this is what the car business has become. The fancy facility with the conforming arch won't sell cars. Neither will the Factory's Direct Mail piece, the glossy brochures, the showroom furniture or the required OEM training. For an increasing percentage of customers, the only thing they care about is the deal....

Anyone else get a quote request from this customer?
WE HAVE A BINGO! Unfortunately.
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Old 11-02-2010, 08:08 AM   #4
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I really hope no one bids..

We do a decent internet business and at worst we go a couple hundred under on occasion but thats it.

This is the type of guy who would expect to get triple net...because he thinks he's so savvy...
I was thinking that too. I think the first reaction from most dealers would be this is not a game they want to play and it wouldn't be worth the effort.

I'm not sure how many Dodge dealers the customer sent quote requests to but I read that he allows dealers to revise their bid in an effort to have the top rating.
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Old 11-02-2010, 08:11 AM   #5
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Originally Posted by steve_biegler View Post
WE HAVE A BINGO! Unfortunately.
Yep...and this is the same "customer" who will then bring it in to his local dealer when he has a problem, and expect to be given the red carpet treatment and a loaner...or else threaten to start a new website called whohastheworstservicedept.com!
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Old 11-02-2010, 08:20 AM   #6
steve_biegler
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My grandfather had a saying that I will NEVER forget.

Business is like war.
In war you want all the land you can get.
Customers are like land.
BUT REMEMBER.
There is good land and there is swampland.
Let someone else have the swampland!

This guy is swampland.
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Old 11-02-2010, 08:38 AM   #7
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Yep...and this is the same "customer" who will then bring it in to his local dealer when he has a problem, and expect to be given the red carpet treatment and a loaner...or else threaten to start a new website called whohastheworstservicedept.com!
Ya know DealerEx thats not a bad idea..it could be a cash flow stream.
Start the website and list every dealer and in order to get out they must send so much a month. Since this is the internet and you can say anything without using your real name or location, it might just work. We could call it the Soprono website!

JUST JOKING!!!!!! but it wouldn't suprise me if it happend.
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Old 11-02-2010, 06:26 PM   #8
79LilRedExpress
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This bozo has a lot of time in his web-site....
He has a better mapping system than Chrysler...
Every dealer is marked with a "!" in the little yellow triangle

By the way I emailed a "NO THANKS" reply to his offer.

Is there a remote possibility that Factory people are behind this???
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Old 11-02-2010, 06:57 PM   #9
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...or else threaten to start a new website called whohastheworstservicedept.com!
That's funny. I just checked with the Internet Domain company I use - that URL is available and it can be yours for only $9.98/year.

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JUST JOKING!!!!!! but it wouldn't suprise me if it happend.
I agree. It's almost like the Better Business Bureau's business model in reverse.
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Old 11-02-2010, 07:04 PM   #10
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Originally Posted by 79LilRedExpress View Post
This bozo has a lot of time in his web-site....
He has a better mapping system than Chrysler...
Every dealer is marked with a "!" in the little yellow triangle

By the way I emailed a "NO THANKS" reply to his offer.

Is there a remote possibility that Factory people are behind this???
I didn't notice the map until you mentioned it. It appears he sent a quote request to every Dodge dealer in the nation and intends to show "markers" on the map locating the dealers who responded.

So far he hasn't received a single quote....
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Old 11-04-2010, 05:12 PM   #11
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I didn't notice the map until you mentioned it. It appears he sent a quote request to every Dodge dealer in the nation and intends to show "markers" on the map locating the dealers who responded.

So far he hasn't received a single quote....
I just checked again and he still hasn't received a quote.....

Only 27 days left to submit your quotes.
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Old 11-04-2010, 07:22 PM   #12
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I just checked again and he still hasn't received a quote.....
If all of us dealers could stick together like this on really important things...
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Old 11-04-2010, 08:37 PM   #13
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You know what I would like to do with this jackass is give him a quote of $1,000 and on the day of the delivery, Sell it to the store as a rental right before he arrives. He didn't have money on it is my defense and then I would send him on his way with a bucket of sand and a hammer.

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Is there a remote possibility that Factory people are behind this???
That was the first thing that I thought of was some factory viral marketing program.....
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Old 11-07-2010, 06:04 AM   #14
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After looking the site over, you can see that he is really hopeful that some publicity hungry dealer will actually GIVE him a new truck for LESS than nothing! He even allows for the hopeful possibility that more than one dealer will offer it to him at $0.00...in his bidding rules he explains the tie breaker scenario in which if 2 or more dealers offer it at $0, then it will come down to what non-specified extras they include in their standard itemized bid, such as aftermarket accessories, ext. warranties etc...that they will throw in for free on top of the free truck. I hope that no one is stupid enough to give this guy any bid...this needs to be stopped cold right now.

Last edited by DealerEx; 11-08-2010 at 10:02 AM.
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Old 11-07-2010, 08:01 PM   #15
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After looking the site over, you can see that he is really hopeful that some publicity hungry dealer will actually GIVE him a new truck for LESS than nothing!
The quote request he sent to the dealers implied the same thing - he referenced all the publicity the dealer could generate as the bidding became more competitive. He even cited the story about the teenager who used Craigslist to keep trading his way up from a cell phone to a used Porsche and all the media attention that story attracted.

I just checked and he still hasn't reported his first bid.
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