Ward's eDealer 100 sold 61,356 vehicles on line last year
Cliff Banks Ward's Dealer Business, Apr 18, 2001 12:00 PM

To see the 2001 Ward's e-Dealer 100 list, click here. Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader For free download, click here.

The Ward’s e-Dealer 100 is a story about dealers – and their successes.

Much recent media attention is directed at the dot-coms -– specifically third-party sites – and their pending doom.

The resulting message is that on-line automotive retailing is a fantasy.

It's hardly that. There are dealers who are selling cars on line, and are very successful at it.

That fact is the genesis of the Ward’s Dealer Business e-Dealer 100. The ranking is an industry first -– it is the first charting of information about what the dealer community really is doing on line.

The Ward’s e-Dealer 100 ranks dealers based on the number of vehicle sales they initiate using the Internet. hey sell using the Internet. It's a departure of sorts from our Dealer The Dealer 500 and MegaDealer 100 rankings, which are based on sales revenue. We believe, however, that the number of units sold on line is the best snapshot of the dealers’ Internet sales activity.

Every unit represents a transaction, and vehicle transactions are occurring on line in growing numbers.

Maybe it's not at the same rate as some people in the Internet world want you to believe. But as a percentage of total volume, there is definite growth.

Our definition of an Internet sale has evolved. Originally, we were hoping to provide the industry with a narrow definition –- that everything about the sale is done on line except for the paperwork.

We learned that most dealerships, though, define the Internet sale as one in which the contact is initialized on line and the process is handled by a designated Internet staffer at the dealership.  The process often includes both phone calls and e-mails -– many dealerships do not see occasional use of the telephone as intruding on the Internet process.

We opted, therefore, for the dealers’ definition -– and judging by the results of the ranking, the dealers know best.

The e-Dealer 100 reveals that more and more people are using the Internet to buy cars. California's Anderson Honda, number one on the 100 list, sold 2,346 vehicles on line last year. That's nearly half of their total volume.

Ken Smith of Dave Smith Motors in Kellogg, ID, says his Internet business is about 20% of his total and expects that could rise to 35%-40% by the end of 2001.

The trend is there, but very few dealers are getting on board, according to industry analyst Mark Rikess.

"Our research shows only 10% of dealers are actually in the game," he says.

That's despite NADA reporting 92% of all dealers have web sites now. But maintaining a web site is not the same as using the Internet as a key part of the sales process.

Ward’s e-Dealer 100 is a list of the dealers who are playing the game hard and playing to win. The Internet will not increase the total number of cars sold to consumers. What's changing is how dealers are interacting with customers to sell those cars.

Manny Souza, Anderson Honda’s Internet manager, says his incremental business –- defined as customers coming from at lease 15 miles away –- increases about 3%-4% each month. Those are customers he is probably taking from a dealer without an active Internet presence.

How are these dealers playing the game. First, the dealer must realize where the customer is -- whether it's the showroom, the dealership's web site, the manufacturer's web site or the third-party referral sites.

A Dohring Co. survey of consumers' car-buying habits says that 52% of American men intend to use the Internet for their next vehicle purchase. That compares to 32% last year. Thirty-eight percent of women, compared to 22% last year, say they'll do the same thing.

Dohring's survey indicates that less people this year are using on-line buying services (20%) compared to last year (42%).

Randy Raja, vice president of e-commerce for AutoNation Inc. says AutoNation uses an array of third-party lead generators.

“There is a place for them. The customers are looking there, and we need to be where customers are,” he says.

AutoNation as a group sold about 69,000 vehicles on line last year.

About half of the dealers on the Ward’s e-Dealer 100 list depend on the third-party sites for 50% or more of their leads while half depend on them for 50% or less. Every dealer on our list gets referrals from third party sites for at least some of their leads.

In contrast, of all the dealers in the U.S., 53% say they use a third-party web site, according to a survey by Automotive Retailing Today.

It's not just about getting those leads, though. As the profiles on the following pages show, it's what the dealer does with the lead that determines the sale. The Internet is a sales tool, not a member of the sales staff.

Each of the top 100 dealers use sophisticated systems for responding to and tracking leads. What matters is what  dealership personnel do with that technology.

“It’s the store process that is important,” says Dennis Rushing, Internet manager for McNamara Pontiac/Isuzu in Florida. “You have to leverage the technology you have. We’re a small dealership without all of the resources, but because of our system, we’re successful. It's about constant follow-up and fast response times.”

The dealership sold 488 cars on line last year.

Mr. Rikess reports that dealers able to contact customers three to five times with before they enter the dealership will experience 85% closings among those customers.

Ward’s e-Dealer 100 initiated a combined 61,356 on-line vehicle sales last year.

Vehicle sales don't occur without a franchised dealership's involvement. However, many consumers and the national media are unaware of who actually is selling or who can sell cars on-line. It's dealers.

The complete list is as follows:

1. Anderson Honda, CA, 2,346 units

2. Dave Smith Motors, ID, 2,252

3. Classic Auto, NJ, 1,598

4. Conicelli Autoplex, PA, 1,513

5. Maroone Ford, FL, 1,084

6. Prestige Ford, TX, 1,069

7. Gillman Honda, TX, 1,029

8. Burt Toyota, CO, 1,022

9. Burt’s Araphoe Ford, CO, 988

10. Jim Ellis Auto Dealership, GA, 939

11. Hudson Toyota, NJ, 830

12. Courtesy Ford, NY, 814

13. Maroone Honda, FL, 747

14. Jim Koons - Baltimore Ford, MD, 732

15. Jim Koons - Tyson’s Toyota, VA, 730

Tie Payton Wright Ford, TX, 730

17. Boch Enterprises, MA, 726

18. Jim Koons - Falls Church Ford, VA, 723

19. Jim Koons - Sterling Ford, VA, 719

20. Jim Koons - College Park, MD, 712

21. John Elway Toyota, CO, 675

22. Herb Chambers Honda/Saab/Infiniti, MA, 672

23. Tyson Chevy, VA, 669

24. Texan Ford, TX, 641

25. Team Ford, GA, 639

26. Jim Koons – White Marsh, MD, 638

27. Burt Chevrolet, CO, 634

28. Champion Pontiac/GMC, TX, 630

29. Bankston Ford, TX, 617

Tie Champion Toyota, TX, 617

Tie Sutherlin Nissan, GA, 617

32. Northpoint Chevrolet/Mitsubishi, GA, 603

33. Downers Grove Dodge, IL, 566

34. Champion Chevrolet, TX, 564

35. Quality Toyota, CA, 560

36. Charlie Thomas Ford, TX, 558

37. Magic Ford, CA, 553

38. Texan LincolnMercury/Isuzu, TX, 549

39. Tom Bush Mazda/VW/BMW, FL, 548

40. Autowest Honda Fremont, CA, 542

41. Mike Hall Chevrolet, TX, 537

42. Bob Baker Volkswagon/Chrysler, CA, 531

43. Seminole Ford, FL, 530

44. Jim Koons – Annapolis, MD, 517

45. Bowen Scarff Ford, WA, 516

46. Libertyville Toyota, IL, 505

47. Shamrock Ford, CA, 501

48. South Bay Ford, CA, 500

49. Steve Oliver Dodge, KS, 497

50. Brown & Brown Chevrolet, AZ, 495

51. McNamara Pontiac/Chevrolet, FL, 488

52. Crevier BMW, CA, 483

53. Desert Toyota of Las Vegas, NV, 478

54. AutoWay Toyota, FL, 475

Tie Champion Ford, TX, 475

56. Toyota of Cerritos, CA, 473

57. Stone Mountain Toyota, GA, 470

58. Lew Webb’s Irvine Toyota, CA, 463

59. Brown & Brown Nissan, AZ, 454

60. Maroone Toyota, FL, 448

61. Burt’s Castle Motors, CO, 446

62. John Elway Honda, CO, 442

63. Burt Subaru, CO, 432

64. Anderson Chevrolet, CA, 427

Tie Herb Chambers BMW, MA, 427

66. Tuttle-Click, CA, 417

67. Courtesy Chevrolet, CA, 412

68. Steakley Chevrolet, TX, 411

69. Bankston Nissan, TX, 407

Tie Smythe European, CA, 407

71. Fred Haas Toyota, TX, 404

72. World Ford, GA, 402

73. Maroone Ford, FL, 400

74. Maroone Chevrolet, FL, 398

75. Toyota Carlsbad, CA, 397

76. Jim Koons Chrysler, VA, 392

77. BlueBonnet Motors, TX, 385

78. Towne Automotive Group, NY, 384

79. Tuttle-Click Ford, CA, 383

80. Classic Automotive, TX, 382

Tie Costa Mesa Honda, CA, 382

82. Hayward Toyota, CA, 377

83. Maroone Chevrolet of Miami, FL, 374

84. AutoNation Dodge, TX, 370

85. Peyton Cramer Ford, CA, 368

86. Pitre Buick/Pontiac/GMC, AZ, 367

87. Lew Webb’s Irvine Nissan, CA, 364

88. Sutherlin Honda, GA, 362

89. Bob Baker Ford, CA, 360

Tie Don Chalmers Ford, NM, 360

Tie Jim Koons - Falls Church Dodge, VA, 360

Tie Lew Webb Toyota, CA, 360

93. Five Star Ford, AZ, 358

94. Classic Chevrolet, TX, 356

95. Mercede-Benz of South Bay, CA, 355

96. Anderson Chevrolet, CA, 351

Tie House of Imports, CA, 351

98. Desert Dodge, NV, 350

99. Autowest Honda Roseville, CA, 349

Tie Gaudin Ford, NV, 349