"Do what you like. Like what you do."
It's on my mug. Is it - in fact, a formula?
What do I like? I'm not sure I really like anything all that much.
I like golf - sometimes - Buy or lease a golf course
I like...?
Audio / Video "stuff" Tech tools and such - Start a chain of AV stores
Food - Open a Restaurant
Verne - Build a temple to the Empress V
Sports - Buy or manage a sports franchise / team / league / thing
Monday, December 17, 2007
Thursday, December 13, 2007
AAA
Agenda. Every morning in those days, I woke up and asked myself a question: What should I write a book about?
Assets. I had all the tools I needed to write and sell books. I had a great team, access to the publishing community, a brand... I figured my job was to leverage those assets.
Assumptions. I assumed that the world would stay pretty much the same while I leveraged my assets and completed my agenda.
Markets move. If you don't figure out how to set aside or forecast your A, A & A, you can't possibly grow. You can't take advantage of changes and opportunities. You snooze, you lose.
Assets. I had all the tools I needed to write and sell books. I had a great team, access to the publishing community, a brand... I figured my job was to leverage those assets.
Assumptions. I assumed that the world would stay pretty much the same while I leveraged my assets and completed my agenda.
Markets move. If you don't figure out how to set aside or forecast your A, A & A, you can't possibly grow. You can't take advantage of changes and opportunities. You snooze, you lose.
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Real Estate concept
Spacious 1 and 2 bedroom condos (loft style - Art district). These units include a retail location below.
See MLS in Maine: 867719
See MLS in Maine: 867719
Compliance Office - An outsourced remedy?
You know there is a business in the packaging of regulatory compliance help / safeguards / training and the idea that a client's efforts (participation in the program) does indeed matter should something blow up. Like environmental issues and employment practices, this is something that - should it go bad - can be fatal.
Create a proposal to form such a company. Its solutions and sales platform seem right on the surface. Hmmm...
Forecasting Tomorrow's Compliance and Regulatory Environment
By Jennifer Reed, Editor
December 06, 2007
MINNEAPOLIS and BATON ROUGE, La. — Top executives from Wolters Kluwer Financial Services and AppOne recently looked ahead to some of the challenges that will face the indirect lending arena and dealers in 2008.
When asked what the biggest regulatory and compliance issue that the auto finance industry faces today, Lee Domingue, chief executive officer of AppOne, told SubPrime Auto Finance News, "The biggest obstacle facing the auto industry is the sheer complexity of the various legal and regulatory requirements.
"Ensuring compliance can be a time-consuming and difficult task, especially for small- and medium-sized lenders, such as community banks," he said.
As for Kevin Kopp, director of indirect lending with Wolters Kluwer Financial Services, he indicated, "With a complex legal and regulatory environment, dealers and lenders need to make sure they are interpreting and implementing new requirements correctly, which takes education and training, as well as additional time and resources.
"However, outside compliance sources can help," he pointed out. "Dealers and lenders need to look for those that can provide key benefits, such as early fraud detection and complete compliance loan packages, while helping to maintain an expeditious funding process."
Looking ahead at some of the challenges that may face the industry next year, Kopp went on to say, "Our federal and state governments continue to consider and craft consumer-oriented legislation related to auto finance and particularly the indirect lending process."
Basically, he stressed that lenders and dealers need to take specific actions. They must not ignore the potential risk and liability that comes from being passive with regards to compliance.
"During the past year, the industry has seen a definite trend toward federal and state consumer protection law enactment relating to the auto finance process. For example, there are currently several states that are, at a minimum, considering Consumer Bill of Rights legislation, which could mean greater disclosure requirements for dealerships," Kopp indicated.
Another hot topic he mentioned was documentation fees, saying, "In some dealerships this will have an effect on their bottom line. Based on recent activity, it appears this trend of introducing consumer-focused legislation will not change soon."
Domingue characterized the current regulatory environment as "very volatile," saying he doesn't see this trend ending any time soon.
"It's only getting more intense. While there are a growing number of requirements affecting the automotive finance industry, they will likely not serve their purpose, which is protecting the consumer, if there is no real enforcement," he explained. "Little or no enforcement sends a wrong message and only offers a false sense of security."
Particularly at risk from compliance and legal issues are independent dealers, Kopp noted.
"Compliance and legal issues continue to have a weighty effect on the business of independent auto dealerships. A good example of this is the recent steps some states have taken to cut down on fraudulent titles, which impacts disclosures," he said.
"This increases the risk of error, which could slow the sales and finance processes," Kopp added. "It also adds time to the administrative process at the dealership, which leaves less time to market and sell vehicles, which is the dealership's primarily business purpose."
Domingue brought to light the issue of more lenders passing increased costs onto as the compliance and regulatory burden grows.
"The direct effect on dealers is added documentation, but more indirectly is the never-ending compliance burden placed on the lending community," he explained. "The increased cost and exposure has caused some lenders to charge more and require more information from the dealer, which puts operational pressure on the dealer to be productive in an area where they typically have little or no expertise."
Returning to the topic of Consumer Bill of Rights legislation, the executives voiced their concern for the future.
"I think the general consensus is that the California Car Buyers Bill of Rights will set the standard throughout the country for the next three to five years. But this is another example of consumer-driven regulation that will only work if there is true enforcement at the state level," Domingue said.
Kopp was a bit more specific, saying that two states have passed or are considering legislation similar to what California has implemented — Minnesota and Massachusetts.
"Minnesota passed a less stringent version of the California Car Buyers Bill of Rights recently," he reported. "Meanwhile, Massachusetts has proposed Bill of Rights provisions in the past that would cap dealership markups and compensate dealers by replacing the markup with a fee of 0.5 percent of the loan amount, or $150 (whichever is less)."
He went on to say that Massachusetts is looking to require more detail in contract disclosures, particularly itemization of trade-ins.
"This type of legislation requires lenders and dealerships to be more diligent and educate themselves, which can take resource time away from their core business purpose," Kopp indicated.
In conclusion, Domingue said, "When looking ahead at the regulatory environment, it really comes down to preparation and protection. Dealers and lenders can benefit greatly from relationships with strong compliance partners who can help them avoid potential legal and regulatory land mines.
"There also needs to be better collaboration between dealers and lenders, and continuous improvement in finding ways to monitor and streamline industry requirements," he concluded.
Create a proposal to form such a company. Its solutions and sales platform seem right on the surface. Hmmm...
Forecasting Tomorrow's Compliance and Regulatory Environment
By Jennifer Reed, Editor
December 06, 2007
MINNEAPOLIS and BATON ROUGE, La. — Top executives from Wolters Kluwer Financial Services and AppOne recently looked ahead to some of the challenges that will face the indirect lending arena and dealers in 2008.
When asked what the biggest regulatory and compliance issue that the auto finance industry faces today, Lee Domingue, chief executive officer of AppOne, told SubPrime Auto Finance News, "The biggest obstacle facing the auto industry is the sheer complexity of the various legal and regulatory requirements.
"Ensuring compliance can be a time-consuming and difficult task, especially for small- and medium-sized lenders, such as community banks," he said.
As for Kevin Kopp, director of indirect lending with Wolters Kluwer Financial Services, he indicated, "With a complex legal and regulatory environment, dealers and lenders need to make sure they are interpreting and implementing new requirements correctly, which takes education and training, as well as additional time and resources.
"However, outside compliance sources can help," he pointed out. "Dealers and lenders need to look for those that can provide key benefits, such as early fraud detection and complete compliance loan packages, while helping to maintain an expeditious funding process."
Looking ahead at some of the challenges that may face the industry next year, Kopp went on to say, "Our federal and state governments continue to consider and craft consumer-oriented legislation related to auto finance and particularly the indirect lending process."
Basically, he stressed that lenders and dealers need to take specific actions. They must not ignore the potential risk and liability that comes from being passive with regards to compliance.
"During the past year, the industry has seen a definite trend toward federal and state consumer protection law enactment relating to the auto finance process. For example, there are currently several states that are, at a minimum, considering Consumer Bill of Rights legislation, which could mean greater disclosure requirements for dealerships," Kopp indicated.
Another hot topic he mentioned was documentation fees, saying, "In some dealerships this will have an effect on their bottom line. Based on recent activity, it appears this trend of introducing consumer-focused legislation will not change soon."
Domingue characterized the current regulatory environment as "very volatile," saying he doesn't see this trend ending any time soon.
"It's only getting more intense. While there are a growing number of requirements affecting the automotive finance industry, they will likely not serve their purpose, which is protecting the consumer, if there is no real enforcement," he explained. "Little or no enforcement sends a wrong message and only offers a false sense of security."
Particularly at risk from compliance and legal issues are independent dealers, Kopp noted.
"Compliance and legal issues continue to have a weighty effect on the business of independent auto dealerships. A good example of this is the recent steps some states have taken to cut down on fraudulent titles, which impacts disclosures," he said.
"This increases the risk of error, which could slow the sales and finance processes," Kopp added. "It also adds time to the administrative process at the dealership, which leaves less time to market and sell vehicles, which is the dealership's primarily business purpose."
Domingue brought to light the issue of more lenders passing increased costs onto as the compliance and regulatory burden grows.
"The direct effect on dealers is added documentation, but more indirectly is the never-ending compliance burden placed on the lending community," he explained. "The increased cost and exposure has caused some lenders to charge more and require more information from the dealer, which puts operational pressure on the dealer to be productive in an area where they typically have little or no expertise."
Returning to the topic of Consumer Bill of Rights legislation, the executives voiced their concern for the future.
"I think the general consensus is that the California Car Buyers Bill of Rights will set the standard throughout the country for the next three to five years. But this is another example of consumer-driven regulation that will only work if there is true enforcement at the state level," Domingue said.
Kopp was a bit more specific, saying that two states have passed or are considering legislation similar to what California has implemented — Minnesota and Massachusetts.
"Minnesota passed a less stringent version of the California Car Buyers Bill of Rights recently," he reported. "Meanwhile, Massachusetts has proposed Bill of Rights provisions in the past that would cap dealership markups and compensate dealers by replacing the markup with a fee of 0.5 percent of the loan amount, or $150 (whichever is less)."
He went on to say that Massachusetts is looking to require more detail in contract disclosures, particularly itemization of trade-ins.
"This type of legislation requires lenders and dealerships to be more diligent and educate themselves, which can take resource time away from their core business purpose," Kopp indicated.
In conclusion, Domingue said, "When looking ahead at the regulatory environment, it really comes down to preparation and protection. Dealers and lenders can benefit greatly from relationships with strong compliance partners who can help them avoid potential legal and regulatory land mines.
"There also needs to be better collaboration between dealers and lenders, and continuous improvement in finding ways to monitor and streamline industry requirements," he concluded.
V-Dealer
Specialize: Eco-cars (Green Dealer?), Lexus Only, Toyota Only, Honda Only, Camry Only, Convertibles, Work Trucks... Represent these specialties to define your expertise.
Find a non-retail location (industrial money) where vehicles can be stored inside in a controlled environment. Pay for the facility with related services performed by partners... or not.
Inventory management is strict with limits on dollars and age. Replace anything that sells in < class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">AutoTrader, Cars.com and Ebay Motors. These are the primary sources and major advertising expense.
Wild value proposition supported by web experience.
Maintain a stream of wholesale appearance recon flips.
Find a non-retail location (industrial money) where vehicles can be stored inside in a controlled environment. Pay for the facility with related services performed by partners... or not.
Inventory management is strict with limits on dollars and age. Replace anything that sells in < class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">AutoTrader, Cars.com and Ebay Motors. These are the primary sources and major advertising expense.
Wild value proposition supported by web experience.
Maintain a stream of wholesale appearance recon flips.
Friday, November 30, 2007
Created from thin air
Create a company; incorporate it, and loan it money - enough to garner your own attention (silly but useful - stay tuned). This obviously is a pointless act unless the company is charged with a purpose.
Q. Even then, why go through all the crap about setting it up and such?
A. The entity now exists...
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Eye tracking rules
(some of which are made to be broken).
Tim points us to a terrific summary of lessons learned from eye tracking studies.
The highlights, in alphabetical order:
Ads in the top and left portions of a page will receive the most eye fixation.
Ads placed next to the best content are seen more often.
Bigger images get more attention.
Clean, clear faces in images attract more eye fixation.
Fancy formatting and fonts are ignored.
Formatting can draw attention.
Headings draw the eye.
Initial eye movement focuses on the upper left corner of the page.
Large blocks of text are avoided.
Lists hold reader attention longer.
Navigation tools work better when placed at the top of the page.
One-column formats perform better in eye-fixation than multi-column formats.
People generally scan lower portions of the page.
Readers ignore banners.
Shorter paragraphs perform better than long ones.
Show numbers as numerals.
Text ads were viewed mostly intently of all types tested.
Text attracts attention before graphics.
Type size influences viewing behavior.
Users initially look at the top left and upper portion of the page before moving down and to the right.
Users only look at a sub headline if it interests them.
Users spend a lot of time looking at buttons and menus.
White space is good.
Tim points us to a terrific summary of lessons learned from eye tracking studies.
The highlights, in alphabetical order:
Ads in the top and left portions of a page will receive the most eye fixation.
Ads placed next to the best content are seen more often.
Bigger images get more attention.
Clean, clear faces in images attract more eye fixation.
Fancy formatting and fonts are ignored.
Formatting can draw attention.
Headings draw the eye.
Initial eye movement focuses on the upper left corner of the page.
Large blocks of text are avoided.
Lists hold reader attention longer.
Navigation tools work better when placed at the top of the page.
One-column formats perform better in eye-fixation than multi-column formats.
People generally scan lower portions of the page.
Readers ignore banners.
Shorter paragraphs perform better than long ones.
Show numbers as numerals.
Text ads were viewed mostly intently of all types tested.
Text attracts attention before graphics.
Type size influences viewing behavior.
Users initially look at the top left and upper portion of the page before moving down and to the right.
Users only look at a sub headline if it interests them.
Users spend a lot of time looking at buttons and menus.
White space is good.
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