Auto Dealer Monthly Magazine is the daily operations publication serving the retail automotive industry. This automotive publication serves dealer principals, officers and general managers with the latest best practices.
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ON THE C OV E R 2013 DEALERS��� CHOICE AWARDS The magazine���s ninth annual Dealers��� Choice Awards featured a tough competition between old favorites and new winners �����as well as several brand new categories. Tis year marks the ninth straight year that Auto Dealer Monthly has recogn nized the highest rated vendors, suppliers and fnance companies in the autom motive industry. Te Dealers��� Choice Awards are based solely on votes cast by d dealers and dealership personnel. Tey are the people who use these products and s services every day, so there���s no better way to judge the product and service provide ers in the industry. Te 2013 awards feature 27 diferent categories, six of which are new this year. Each company was rated on the product or service it provides, customer service, the overall value of the product or service, and if they would be willing to recommend the provider to another dealer. Tere are three awards that can be won in each category: Diamond, Platinum and Gold. To win one of these esteemed honors, a company must have a score among the Top 3 and score above the group average. Te highest scoring company above the group average wins the Diamond Award, while the second- and thirdhighest scoring companies with above-average scores earn the Platinum and Gold awards, respectively. Each year, the Dealers��� Choice Awards feature frst-time winners that shake up the competition, along with favorites that seem to crack the Top 3 every year in their respective categories. Te awards give credit where credit is due, but they serve as the premier forum for dealers looking for new product and service providers. Te staf at Auto Dealer Monthly would like to thank each of the dealers and dealer personnel who took time out of their busy schedules to cast their votes. Finally, we would like to extend congratulations to the 54 companies that won a total of 66 awards this year. To achieve these accolades, they must be doing an exceptional job serving the auto retail industry. AT A GLANCE ��� 66 Award Winners ��� 54 Unique Award Winners ��� 27 Categories of Products or rvices Services ��� 6 New Categories ��� 28 Companies Won Consecutive ards Awards ��� 12 Companies Won More Than e One Award THE RULES The Dealers��� Choice Awards are based on a survey that allows dealers and dealership personnel to vote for providers in a multitude of categories. Survey respondents are asked to cast votes only for providers with which they have frsthand knowledge and experience. In addition to identifying their primary providers in each category, respondents must rate their providers in four areas: (1) the product or service provided; (2) customer support and service; (3) the overall value for dollars spent; and (4) whether the dealer would recommend the provider. The 2013 Dealers��� Choice Awards survey was posted online from Jan. 4, 2013, through Feb. 15, 2013. Those who voted in at least fve categories qualifed to be entered into a drawing for a Kindle Fire. When it was launched in 2005, the survey was set up as multiple-choice, with a list of companies under a category from which to choose, plus the option of a write-in vote for a company that wasn���t listed. That changed in 2012. Now, respondents are asked to write in their primary provider for each category in order to vote. While this process did create some extra work in matching up companies based on differences in how respondents identify their providers, this eliminated some past concerns regarding write-in votes. In the auditing process, all votes were reviewed, scrutinized and cleansed for companies that received votes in the wrong categories. As always, the sheer number of votes is not the deciding factor. What matters is quality, not quantity. Scores were totaled, averaged and weighted for each provider. Then the overall average vote across all categories was assigned a value of 100. Then the scores ��� including group averages and company scores �����were adjusted according to their position above or below the overall average. Final placement is determined by raw scores. Ties can only happen if two nominees have the exact same raw score. The provider with the highest above-average score receives the Diamond Award, followed by the Platinum Award and the Gold Award, respectively, provided their scores are above the group average. 24 AUTO DE ALE R MONTHLY ��� APRIL 2013