David Kain’s annual Client and Friends workshop sheds light on emerging sales and marketing trends

As many of you know, in-person automotive events are back and seemingly here to stay. On this edition of Inside Automotive, we’re pleased to welcome back David Kain, President and Owner of Kain Automotive, to give us a recap of the 17th Annual Client and Friends workshop and he’ll also share a few highlights from the 20 groups that are keeping his clients tuned in.

Just last month, he hosted his workshop to share marketing and sales insights and training for dealership professionals. Kain says, “The reason we call it the Clients and Friends Workshop is we want to bring into our clients the very best speakers and educators in the industry that are going to tell them what the future is going to look like and how they can properly prepare for it.”

Although new vehicle inventory on the ground is sparse, dealers have shifted focus to used cars more than usual as well as vehicle ordering processes, and so have the marketing managers. The conversation now surrounds amending all the points of contact with shoppers to engage better in those areas. Kain’s training and consulting have morphed over the past year to address those digital marketing points.

This year, the Lexington, Kentucky-held event gave attendees an opportunity to attend live thoroughbred racing, adding a fun twist to an invigorating and informative event.

Kain also mentions that digital retailing has “picked up steam,” even since COVID lockdowns appear to be in the rearview mirror. Progressive dealers are “inventing markets” with digital retailing rather than just accepting the typical traffic they would see from traditional sales practices.

Kain discusses how business development is more than just fielding inbound calls and internet leads; but a process that all customer-facing personnel in the dealership need to be a part of.

Now, low inventory and a persistent vehicle shortage pose a challenge for dealers that have salespeople who have become comfortable essentially as order-takers. “That’s a very realistic problem that I think dealers need to work on is to ensure team members don’t become apathetic and somewhat less driven to solve the guest’s purchasing needs.”

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