Hare Business Elite's online newsletter for May/June 2017
Haretruckcenter.com 1-888-322-1660
RAISING THE BAR ON CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
Though it’s been a crazy first half of the year around the Hare Truck Center, we’ve had a few moments to catch our collective breath and see just how far we’ve come. Earlier this year, Kevin and I were awarded Bronze Status for sales and customer satisfaction for 2016. This is my first time being recognized and Kevin’s second year in a row! On the service side of things, John Pence and the service team were awarded Gold Status by Isuzu. This recognition comes down to one important detail: We’re one of the top iLease dealers in the country! On the Chevy side of things, we took home the 2016 Mark of Excellence Award. This, too, is the second year in a row Business Elite has been recognized for our dedication to all things automotive. But it’s not just about how many cars and trucks we’re moving off our lots. While our sales numbers have been great, they’re nothing compared to the satisfaction we deliver to the customers who have come to rely on us. That satisfaction means everything to us and to the brands we represent. When we get an award, a lot of it comes down to the customer satisfaction surveys and the feedback that goes along with it. You can’t just sell a bunch of cars and trucks and hope to come out on top. We have to take care of every person who walks through our doors. Our Isuzu sales staff has been working diligently to keep up with demand. We’ve been selling trucks about as fast as we get them in. Though it may be a bit chaotic around here, we can’t help but
have a lot of fun. We’re meeting new people, catching up with old customers, and seeing a lot of great trucks roll onto the lot (and out again). In our service department, it’s nearly as crazy. Both sides of our service department are working at full capacity. We had a couple of new guys just start, and we’re already hiring more mechanics. We’re on the lookout for good service technicians and diesel mechanics for both Chevy and Isuzu. On top of that, we’re also looking for a few salespeople. As you can tell, we are growing — and growing fast. On a personal note, both of my boys, Spencer and Conner, are playing baseball. I’m coaching my kindergartner, Conner, while Spencer is playing with the third-graders. This is the first year Spencer will be pitching, and it’s a lot of fun to watch. This year marks Spencer’s first time playing baseball since he broke his leg two years back. But he’s completely recovered, and he’s doing great! As for me, I’m eager to get back onto the golf course — once the rain clears up, that is. Hopefully, by the time you read this, the rain will be a thing of the past, at least for a while. That’s all I ask. Regardless, we will be out there this summer, and Hare will be sponsoring several events, so if you happen to be on the course yourself, or at one of the events, be sure to swing by and say hi!
- Todd
May/June 2017 | www.haretruckcenter.com | page 1
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AN EPIC AMERICAN JOURNEY THE STORY OF LEWIS AND CLARK
Play-Doh was originally used to clean wallpaper. That’s right, the childhood toy was first developed at the request of the Kroger grocery store chain — which needed a way to remove coal residue from wallpaper in its stores. But it turned out that kids liked the stuff even more than Kroger, and decades after its debut, Play-Doh was re-released and marketed specifically to children. TV ads, newspaper articles, and product placement turned the putty into a household name. But it never would have happened if the inventors hadn’t paid attention to what people were actually doing with their product. Marketing guru David Vinjamuri calls this accidental branding. “This does not mean that the founders didn’t work hard and make a lot of smart decisions,” Vinjamuri writes. But real branding success comes when you pay attention to what customers are doing in the real world. As a word of caution to big business, Vinjamuri says “the brand you want to watch out for” is the one that “understands the customer in a way you don’t.” Play-Doh is the perfect example. The Play-Doh people were teachers and engineers with a small budget. They couldn’t afford to spend years developing the product and testing it with If you wanted to, you could go online right now and view a detailed map of every inch of the country with a simple Google search. With technology like that, it’s easy to forget that not so long ago, much of the United States was largely an uninhabited wilderness. When Thomas Jefferson organized the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, he knew little of the vast swath of land he had bought on behalf of the country. To survey the newly acquired terrain, Jefferson commissioned two men, Captain Meriwether Lewis and Second Lieutenant William Clark, to lead an expedition across the Continental Divide. They set off from St. Louis 213 years ago this month, on May 14, 1804. When asked what is so enduring about the story of Lewis and Clark, historian Stephen E. Ambrose notes, “They were first. They led the way. Everyone who canoes on the Missouri River paddles in their wake. Everyone who crosses the Rocky Mountains does so in their footsteps.” The expedition they led was truly a journey into uncharted territory, which can be hard to comprehend for contemporary Americans. Lewis and Clark departed with 33 people and encountered many native tribes, both friendly and hostile, during their excursion. Perhaps the most famous Native American they met was Sacagawea,
a Lemhi Shoshone woman who provided the party with invaluable guidance.
a controlled consumer group. And they didn’t have the money for a massive marketing campaign. Instead, they looked around, saw that kids wanted to play with wallpaper cleaner, and then marketed it on a wider scale. Entrepreneurs and small businesses are particularly adept at this. They have the maneuverability and flexibility to change strategy at a moment’s notice. They’re also usually hungrier for success than a big corporation, and they’re willing to take bigger risks to achieve that success. At the end of the day, everyone is competing for consumer attention. According to the Harvard School of Business, it’s becoming a very precious commodity — especially in the digital age. By marketing something that consumers are already interested in, you’re already halfway around the baseball diamond while the competition’s starting on home plate. So if your clients are asking for Y, don’t waste their time by trying to sell them X. Sure, X might be your marketing baby. You may have spent lots of money on X. But if you make household cleaners and your only consumers are children, then you’re no longer marketing to Kroger — you’re marketing to kids. And that’s a good thing! Nearly 18 months later, on November 7, 1805, the expedition became the first party of Americans to see the Pacific Ocean. Remarkably, despite the incredible hardship of the journey, only one man, Sergeant Charles Floyd, died during the trip. The cause of death, innocuously enough, was likely a ruptured appendix. In addition to mapping out a significant portion of the continental United States, Lewis and Clark also identified scores of native species that were previously unknown. The geographical, botanical, and anthropological discoveries of the pair are still marveled at to this day through the remarkable journals they kept. The story of Lewis and Clark is an essential part of American history and a powerful account of courage and discovery. Geography professor John Loga Allen succinctly summed up the tale’s allure: “It is the American Epic.” When we think of the American ideal of perseverance and ambition against insurmountable odds, it is hard not to think of Lewis and Clark.
PAY ATTENTION TO CUSTOMER BEHAVIOR WANT YOUR NEXT MARKETING NICHE?
page 2 | May/June 2017 | www.haretruckcenter.com
isuzu awards
John Pence and the service team reach Gold Status for sales and customer satisfaction.
Hare reaching the Top 10 iLease dealership in the country award
Kevin receiving his Bronze Status award
Todd receiving his Bronze Status award
Never Gonna Give You Up
When a Cat Went Missing, One Woman Wasn ’ t About to Say Goodbye
PERFECT STEAMED ARTICHOKES
If your best furry friend went missing, you’d do everything in your power to get them back. You might scour the neighborhood, post signs, set up a Facebook page, and ask friends and neighbors to keep an eye out for your beloved pet. These are some of the steps Iris Samaniego took when her cat, Diego, went missing in June 2015. Iris and her flame point Siamese had been through a lot together. They had been best buddies for 12 years. Friends and family called the two “inseparable.” The story of Diego’s disappearance is a familiar one. One June day, Iris accidentally left the garage door open. Diego, an indoor cat, happened to be in the garage and wandered out. Led by curiosity, Diego decided to explore the world he had only seen through the window. “I posted signs everywhere for a year,” Iris says. She never gave up hope, even when it seemed likely that she would never see Diego again. She knew he was out there somewhere. In December 2016, while at her job as a vet tech, Iris began browsing the website of a local animal shelter. Before that day, Iris had not thought to check the shelter website. But as she scrolled through the dozens of cats, she spotted a familiar face. “I saw his picture and left work as fast as I could.” There was no doubt in Iris’ mind that she had found Diego. Iris met her sister at the shelter. There, they held the cat and confirmed it was Diego. “The moment I saw him, I felt indescribable joy,” Iris said. After a year and a half of being apart, Iris says Diego is happy to be back at home. “He is totally back to his old self.”
INGREDIENTS
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4 large artichokes (about 2 ½ pounds) Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• • •
1 lemon, halved
1 stick butter, melted 1 garlic clove, finely minced or grated
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DIRECTIONS
1. Trim artichoke stems, leaving about ½ inch. Snap off and throw away any browned leaves. Remove and discard top fourth of artichokes. Use kitchen scissors to snip any thorns. 2. Bring 2 inches of water to simmer in a large pot. Put artichokes in a steamer basket and place basket in pot. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and steam until leaves pull out easily and hearts are tender (test by inserting a paring knife; it should meet no resistance), about 70-80 minutes. 3. Remove from heat and sprinkle with lemon juice. 4. Mix butter and garlic in a small bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve with artichokes.
Recipe inspired by bonappetit.com.
May/June 2017 | www.haretruckcenter.com | page 3
www.haretruckcenter.com TThurston@HareAuto.com 1-888-322-1660 HARE TRUCK CENTER AWARDS • ToddThurston & Kevin Engerski were Isuzu Winner Circle, Bronze winners for 2016. • ToddThurston was a Chevrolet Mark of Excellence Winner for 2016. These awards are based on units sold, product knowledge testing, and customer satisfaction.
PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID BOISE, ID PERMIT 411
Hare Truck Center 3477 Conner Street Noblesville, IN 46060
Raising the Bar on Customer Satisfaction page 1 An Epic American Journey Marketing to Consumer Behavior page 2 Isuzu Awards Perfect Steamed Artichokes The Search for Diego the Cat page 3 Rosetta Phone: Apps for Learning a Second Language page 4
It’s said the best way to learn a new language is to be fully immersed in another country. Unfortunately, most of us need to be at work on Monday. So, if taking an extended trip for an immersive language lesson is out of the question, consider one of these language-learning apps, perfect for learning around your 9-to-5. Duolingo Learn a new language on your own time with Duolingo. This app lets you select your lesson intensity based on how much time you’re able to dedicate to each session and can be adjusted at any time. Lessons can range from 5–25 minutes, meaning you can be learning a new language during your lunch break! Additionally, Duolingo blends video game aspects into the learning, awarding students with experience and providing support and encouragement as you advance through the lessons. The Rosetta Phone LANGUAGE-LEARNING APPS FOR EVERYDAY LIFE
busuu Along with writing and grammar exercises, as well as flashcards and quizzes, students can communicate with any of the 60 million other users across the globe through audio recordings. Users can get help with pronunciation and find answers to questions from native speakers with firsthand knowledge. An independent study conducted by City University of New York determined 22.5 hours of busuu Premium offered the same level of knowledge and experience as a semester in a college-level language course. Babble Using speech recognition technology, the Babble app really focuses on helping students get their pronunciation correct right from the start. Rather than overwhelming students with grammar rules, vocabulary comes first, with students learning grammar as they go. Babble offers more customization in its lesson plans, meaning you can focus on the vocabulary that’s relevant to you and your current needs. Whether you need to learn a new language for travel, work, or just for fun, apps like these can help turn you into a real multilingual logophile.
page 4 |May/June 2017 | www.haretruckcenter.com
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