Randy Lively, AFSA's President & CEO and Eric Hoffman, Senior Vice President, Powell Tate in Washington, DC, provided the background and answered questions on the importance of the AWARE Coalition (Americans Well-Informed on Automotive Retail Economics).

Facilitated by Dennis McCuistion, Producer, McCuistion Program on PBS, auto dealers in leadership positions at NADA participated in a panel discussion. From Left to Right they included: William Bradshaw, newly-elected Chairman of the Board of NADA, William Underriner, 2006 NADA Treasurer, Dale Willey, 2006 NADA Vice Chairman, and William Willis, 2005 NADA Dealership Operations Chairman.

Almost 300 top executives from vehicle finance companies, dealer groups and industry suppliers gathered recently for the 10th Annual AFSA Vehicle Finance Conference & Exposition. For the third consecutive year, this conference was held in conjunction with the NADA Convention & Exposition; this year, at the beautiful Walt Disney World's Yacht Club Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida and was co-sponsored by the AFSA Vehicle Finance Division and AFSA Education Foundation.

"The importance of educating consumers on all aspects of purchasing and financing vehicles has resulted in joint efforts with the NADA," said Don Gottwald, HSBC Auto Finance and chairman of the AFSA Vehicle Finance Division during the opening general session. "AFSA values this partnership and looks forward to more joint initiatives in the years to come."

Tom Hallman, chairman of AFSA and vice chairman, specialty finance for CIT, also spoke at the opening session, noting that a long list of 2005 accomplishments meant "AFSA's operations are healthy, its visibility is rising and its ability to provide member services is expanding." Among these accomplishments were a revamped Web association site, several successful meetings, the addition of 45 new members and the enactment of the bankruptcy reform bill and other key legislation.

Following that session, J. Walker Smith, President of Yankelovich, Inc. provided an eye-opening presentation on the results of the recently released Yankelovich Financial Services Industry Report. Smith encouraged vehicle finance executives to keep consumers "in the loop" and advocated a trust-based marketing model.

"Control belongs to consumers," Smith told attendees. "Business does not run the economy—consumers set the rules. People want an experience not just a product or service. Consumers are willing to spend more money on things they want to spend time with," he asserted.

The first day of the conference education program closed with a general session on "Aligning with New Technologies to Reduce Costs, Streamline Operations and Improve Customer and Dealer Satisfaction," which was led by Marguerite Watanabe, Practice Manager, Auto Finance, BenchMark Consulting International. A panel of vehicle finance company executive and technology experts discussed their views on the importance of technology in today's auto finance business and the new world of Web-based solutions. "Start with the customer in mind before developing technology solutions. Efficiencies must translate into value to dealers and customers," Brent Burns, president, World Omni Finance Corp. and Center One Finance Services told the audience. Jeff Edwards, vice president, operations, Nissan Motor Acceptance Corporation (NMAC) told the group that the "greatest challenge is in the Information Technology world. NMAC is doing 15 percent of its retail business through electronic contracts with a goal of 25 percent by April," Edwards announced.

Day two of the conference opened with the popular Dealer Panel led by Dennis McCuistion, Host and Producer of the McCuistion Program on PBS Television. NADA leadership participated in the panel discussion and included William Bradshaw, 2006 NADA Chairman, Dale Willey, 2006 NADA Vice Chairman, William Willis, 2005 NADA Dealership Operations Chairman and William Underriner, 2006 NADA Treasurer.

One NADA member told the group that "the Internet is a great source of information but people still want to see, touch and drive before they buy." Panelists agreed, however, that a more informed consumer is a better customer and the Internet can be an excellent educational tool. "With all the homework they do over the Internet, they are ready to buy when they come to the dealership," said another panelist.

McCuistion asked the dealers the most important value they receive from a lender, and the entire panel agreed that a consistent policy by the vehicle finance company purchasing the sales contract is the most important. Another dealer told the audience that "people are comfortable about selecting the auto they want to buy but the mystery is in the financing. The more we can educate consumers on the car-buying process—the better."

Following the Dealer Panel, Randy Lively, AFSA president and CEO, and Eric Hoffman, senior vice president, Powell Tate provided background information that emphasized the importance of the newly-formed AWARE Coalition (Americans Well-Informed on Automotive Retail Economics). "AWARE helps create a unified message on the value of the auto finance process," Lively told attendees. "Pooling of resources to provide a consumer outreach and deliver a consistent message is a powerful tool and a good business decision."

The conference continued with Critical Legal and Legislative Issues Affecting Vehicle Finance, which was led by Thomas B. Hudson, Chairman, Hudson Cook, LLP. Panelists included Robert Cohen, President, Auto Advisory Services, Inc., Danielle Fagre, Senior Vice President, State Government Affairs—AFSA and Christopher A. Taravella, Esq., Montgomery, Little & McGrew and former General Counsel, DaimlerChryler Financial Services.

The conference closed with a presentation by Jeffrey C. Rachor, President & COO, Sonic Automotive, Inc. on "The Benefits of Doing it Right." In 2001, Sonic launched an internal task force to re-examine existing F&I policies and procedures. "Publicly-traded corporations are held to a higher standard of accountability for consistent financial performance and compliance," Rachor told the audience. "As a result, our company worked diligently to develop F&I solutions to meet these critical goals." Rachor stressed the importance of understanding that companies do not have to choose between compliance and profitability.