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Car engines. The best way to be green

When is a car engine green and when isn’t it?

This is not going to be a documentary on how maximising compression ratios or ‘squish’ improves the burning levels within a combustion engine or the use of extra enormous catalytic converters to wash burnt exhaust gases before they arrive at our lungs.

This discussion is how a car manufacturer can become green, when it manufacturers engines.

Car engine makers, which is the best way to go green.

Broadly speaking, today, we can see three different approaches taken by manufacturers looking to become or be seen to be green, while still making an honest living.

  • They don’t make internal combustion engines, they only make electric models – and somehow avoid looking at the initial stages of the production of motor vehicle batteries and all their inherent mining and exotic material issues.
  • They lobby their own countries government, in Europe, and ‘adjust’ the time frame agreement which said all production of ICE vehicles would be stopped by data X and only electric vehicles would be produced (see option1.)
  • They keep making the engines, in their existing engine factory, but sell them to countries who haven’t yet signed up to an agreed move to electric only propulsion.

Now, looking at the options above you may decide that those manufacturers choosing route (3) are, in a way, cheating or going against the spirit of the thing.

You may think that the manufacturers taking route (2) and taking advantage of their huge employment levels and contribution to GDP (a countries overall profitability) to influence circumstances to their own advantage.

And, you may come to the conclusion that option (1) followers are being slightly deluded if they think the running cost, the ownership cost by the driver, is the only ‘green liability’ associated with the cars production.

We all have our own view.  Depending upon your country or origin, that may be :  Germanic, northern European, stand up Germany, who are running a route (2) programme and intend to continue to continue producing engines ‘ . . . as long as they run on sustainable fuels . . .’

The western European countries, France and Portugal, through the manufacturing plants associated with Renault are focusing on route (3). ‘. . . .lets keep making ICE engines, we can sell them to other countries . . . ‘

And then the Swedish, Volvo in this instance moving to a electric, battery only model.  Definitely on paper, the cleanest most planet friendly route.

So which is really the best?

If we all try to step back from the edge, the majority of motoring organisations, press and commentors are generally all of the opinion that the electric, battery only / charge at home or for half an hour at the side of the road, is a bit of a dead end.  The Betamax equivalent to the eventually sensible VHS for videos before DVD came along.

Progress. Is it real, is it expensive, is it better.

And while looking at that comparison, how long has DVD been the complete replacement for an old VHS tape.  If you look at sales figures, DVD didn’t surpass VHS until the early 2000’s.  If we say ‘2004’ then that is only 20 years. 

Currently, our chosen medium is live streaming, in the overall picture DVD could also been see as a flash in the pan, certainly when you compare it to the internal combustion engine, which has been around, honed and fine tunes for over 125 years.

Progress. But for who, especially if you spent hundreds of pounds on a VHS collection, then replaced it with a DVD collection, only to find that you can just download them.

As suggested in hundreds of automotive blogs and articles, surely the way forward is ‘going to be’ hydrogen, at some point in the next 10 years.  In which case the current drive for electric vehicles carting around a tonne of heavy batteries is looking like the Betamax contender and won’t even reach the dizzy heights of DVD acceptability.

The three main routes mentioned at the beginning of this article only go to show that there is more than one way to look at this problem / opportunity, and not all manufacturers are working in the same direction.

Governments need to stop reacting to ecological news feeds, and ecological campaigners need to, realistically, look at what advances the automotive industry have been able to make in the past 5 years. Think about what they could achieve if they were TOLD that the way forward was going to be Hydrogen.

Cars that can already run on it (see JCB conversions)

Easy / ready built supply points (petrol stations)

Reduced end to end emissions. Let me know which route you prefer.  Whoever guesses the right answer and gets a product to market first – that can be marketed, will win the real race.

Telemarketing team

5 Major Benefits of Outsourced Telemarketing.

Today, many retailers try to outsource their telemarketing to an expert team.  It is the right option for a number of reasons.  Do you wonder if outsourced telemarketing can work for your dealership?

A trained and professional telemarketing team for the motor trade.

Cost effective.

Hiring a third party company for telemarketing is one of the best approaches to increase vehicle sales and workshop bookings for both small and large dealerships.  When you have a large in-house sales team in the showroom, it becomes too expensive to have a matching bank of trained telesales exec’s to keep up with the on / off demand.

Outsourced telemarketing, with a specialist company is a solid investment and, frankly, it is cheaper than any other marketing method.

Skilled workforce.

The ability to communicate over the phone makes telemarketing successful. Hiring a third party telemarketing expert means that you are getting telemarketers who are well versed and trained in the art of motor trade customer contact over the telephone.  Well-motivated and experts in getting results.

Flexibility.

Telemarketing is not only about calling leads, but also shortlisting potential customers – looking to buy within the next couple of weeks from the tyre kickers not really looking to buy until the autumn.

Cymark can dedicate time, flexibly, to make the telemarketing calls when they need to be done. When they are most convenient for your customers and when they are likely to give you the best return.  To achieve this you want an experienced and skilled telemarketing company to work with you.

Greater sale conversion.

Successful retailers are linking their internet and telephone enquiries, first to an immediate response sales executive in the showroom, then on to a trained team who can qualify properly, find the hot spots that will convert a prospect to a customer.  A skilled customer support representative contacting a customer helps generate a sale and improves the conversion rate for the whole team.

Return on Investment.

A major advantage of outsourcing telemarketing is that both objectives – sales today / sales tomorrow – can be measured from the very beginning.  Outsourcing your telemarketing services will both authenticate what your true conversion rate is, from engaging with customers as a third party, and see that identified opportunities are followed up and converted.  Every metric and analysis is important and makes the whole sales team generate greater success.

Challenges of outsourcing telemarketing.

Since your telemarketing operation will be handled by a third party company, direct supervision may become a bit challenging. Choose a third party partner with the ability and the correct experience becomes vital.  A specialised telemarketing company that offers relevant analysis and metrics is an incredible thing to have.

Language limitations.

Is it right for you? It is important to make sure the language spoken is compatible with the target audience, is this the voice that the customer is expecting to hear? A customer from the north west is more likely to trust either a non-geographic or northern accent.  A good third party provider will have trained telemarketers that are clear and professional.

Confidentiality.

Data protection and GDPR are key. Ensure you speak to a third part company that has a long experience of working with, and protecting, your most valuable asset.  Your sales data and prospect data.

Do they work with people you know, not flaunting their own customer base may be important, if they preserve the confidence of their own clients, they are likely to preserve yours.

The plan.

Outline what you expect to see from the collaboration. How you expect the success’s and failures to be communicated back to your own management team.  Don’t get tied into a long term contract, can you engage the company on a month by month basis.  Are they confident enough int heir own ability to do that.

Conclusion.

The increasing number of retailers that are opting for outsourced telemarketing is proof that dealerships understand the advantages and benefits.  The rapid pace of technology within the motor trade, new products, new drive trains is making showroom executives time ever more precious.

Outsourcing with either an in-house team or outside agency, finding a company that can both save you money, increase your conversion rate and reduce you liability.

Get in touch with us at info@cymark.co.uk or sales@cymark.co.uk to learn how to maximise your conversion rate and be on top of the trends.