MADA wishes to extend hearty congratulations to Travis Martz and Erin Appel who welcomed their son, Beckett Daniel Martz, on October 31, 2013 at 4:20 a.m.  He weighed 7 lbs and 3.6 oz and was 18 inches long.  Father, mother, and son are settling into their new life together.We all look forward to watching him grow in the coming years!  

Best wishes are also extended to Katie Jones on her recent marriage to Rafi Guroian.  The happy couple were married on November 16, 2013 at St. Anne's Episcopal Church in Annapolis.  They made their wedding get-away in the groom's 1964 1/2 Mustang!

MADA reminds all dealers to contact any purchaser for whom you were required to file a Form 8300 (Cash Reporting) in 2013. Each purchaser should receive notice, by January 31, 2014, that your dealership has filed the Form with the Internal Revenue Service. The statement must show the name and address of the dealership, the total amount of reportable cash received and indicate that the information was provided to the IRS. Don't forget to keep a copy of the correspondence for your own records.

We have provided the following sample language which you can use to counter the "surprise" some customers may have in being informed of your cash reporting responsibilities:

Dear Customer:

We are required by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to report transactions involving more than $10,000 in cash and "cash equivalents," under the provisions of 25 U.S.C. 60501. We have filed a Form 8300 with the IRS on (month, day, 2013), indicating that you provided us with (dollar amount) in connection with the purchase of your (year, make, model). We wanted you to know that we have complied with this federal reporting requirement. Again, we thank you for your patronage.

Dealerships should make sure they are using the most recent Form 8300 (Revised July 2012) which can be downloaded HERE. 

As a reminder, dealers selling new vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating under 8,500 lbs are required to prominently display paper copies of the guide at each location where new vehicles are offered for sale.  These guides must be available for free upon customer request.  The Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Energy recently released a preliminary 2014 Fuel Economy Guide which is available for download.  

The annual fuel cost estimates in the electronic fuel economy guide are updated weekly to match the Energy Information Administration's current national average prices for gasoline and diesel fuel. Paper copies of the guide are no longer mailed automatically. To request a paper copy of the guide, call the DOE's Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Information Center at (877) 337-3463 or visit their website. 

The 2014 National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Convention & Expo will be held January 24-27, 2014 in New Orleans, Louisiana.  Advance registration will remain open until January 16, 2014. Registration fees for NADA member dealers and managers are $230 per person, spouses or relatives are $185 per person and non-NADA member dealers and managers are $410. All registration fees increase on January 17, 2014 through the start of the Convention.

As of early November, 32 of the 35 hotels in the NADA Convention block have already sold out.  Only three hotels have rooms available. To accommodate the increase in Convention registrations, the Courtyard St. Charles and Hilton St. Charles were added to the hotel block. The Hyatt Regency still has rooms available. Please visit the NADA Convention & Expo website for more information.

#1: LinkedIn for Auto Dealerships...How to Build, Maintain and Safely Market to Your Contact Network  

Date/Time: Thursday, December 5 at 1pm  

Presenter:  Stephen Murphy of Bamboo Interactive

Cost: $149.00 per participant

LinkedIn can provide access to a network of contacts with high-value demographics - mostly employed professionals from 25 to 55. But like all Social Media you need to be careful when marketing in this arena.  Facebook and other social media platforms have, up until now, received most of the attention.  However, a skillfully built and developed LinkedIn network of contacts can provide more high-value leads for the sale of new and used vehicles. Find out how to build and then leverage your LinkedIn network without breaking the rules.  This webinar will cover the following:  

• Why LinkedIn is quickly becoming an important social media platform
• Best Practices for building and communicating with your network
• The "Who" and "Why" of LinkedIn connections
• How to engage your network and earn their business

 #2: How to Manage and Maximize Your Dealership Marketing Investments in Today's Multi-Channel Environment

Date/Time: Thursday, December 12 at 1pm  

Presenter:  Dennis Galbraith