VIN Basics Blog

Vehicle technology is not only becoming more widespread and more affordable each model year, but increasingly more complex. And with that, it can be difficult for vehicle shoppers --and even vehicle marketers-- to distinguish between the common technologies on offer. This could be attributed to the marketing names given by the OEMs or their nuances in functionality.

Every vehicle service business needs a VIN decoding solution. Whether you are a dealer service department, independent garage, or auto body shop, the ability to identify vehicle details, specs, and compatible parts is necessary for an effective and efficient business. There are several VIN decoders to choose from, however, some are far more basic than others. 

Though it may be tempting to choose the less expensive, or free, VIN decoding option, keep in mind that there may be a reason why it's so inexpensive. In this article, we've highlighted five reasons why a basic VIN decoder simply will not cut it for your auto service business and will leave you needing more.  

Some of the biggest auto industry news this week I'm sure your familiar with was Toyota's announcement to pull the plug on Scion for the 2017 model year (MY). This is especially surprising to us since they recently released the iA and iM models, which were supported by a great advertising campaign. It turns out that buyers today would prefer Scion's parent brand. 

VIN lookup and Year Make Model (YMM) search are both valuable tools for the auto industry. There's a good chance you are already using these search tools internally for business processes, externally for consumers, or even for both purposes.

Though YMM is a great way to conduct a vehicle search --especially if the VIN is not available-- there is much more room for imprecise vehicle details without VIN lookup. And in some cases, YMM search simply cannot give you or your consumers the information needed.

In this article, we've highlighted five advantages VIN lookup offers over YMM search.   

2015 is coming to an end already. And for many of us, this means it's time to turn over a new leaf at the start of 2016. Unfortunately only 8 percent of people who make New Year's resolutions actually achieve them according to a University of Scranton study.

When it comes to making New Year's resolutions --or rather setting next year's goals for your business-- It's easy to be intimidated.

With the right tools and business practices, these goals can be achieved. In this article, we've taken seven popular New Year's resolutions and applied them to attainable goals for the automotive industry with pointers on how to achieve them.

The NHTSA has been providing valuable crash testing ratings since 1978 that are based on front-impact crashes, side-impact crashes, and rollover resistance (added in 2011). In recent news, however, there could be some added categories to these crash test ratings.

If you've seen Scion's latest ad campaign for the iA and iM featuring James Franco, Jaleel White and Car Dealership Tubeman, then you may have noticed that they are really pushing their business model of a single-trim approach. The campaign's tagline states, "standard features that actually come standard." With Scion, there is no such thing as à la carte -- except for a few accessory add-ons -- and it's been that way since they started in 2003. 

Why is it that just Scion limits all of their vehicle models to a single trim and standard equipment? Could this strategy work for other manufacturers (OEMs)?

For more than 100 years, the environment has been polluted with vehicle emissions. I don't claim to be an environmental expert, but the toxins released from gasoline and diesel powered vehicles are not ideal. And based on recent news, it turns out that many "clean" diesel vehicles aren't all they were cracked up to be! Let's face it, at one point or another we will need to either change our driving habits or support plug-in hybrid and electric technology. 

You've built a solution that helps many companies better manage their fleet. Your customers can easily keep up with their vehicle maintenance, title renewals, and insurance policies -- among other tasks. They are even finding ways to increase fuel efficiency with your telematics reporting feature. So what else does your software need?

It's hard to believe that INBOUND 2015 has come and gone already. HubSpot, an inbound marketing and sales software provider, has been hosting this rapidly growing conference on our turf (Boston, MA) for a few years now, with an attendance of over 14 thousand professionals this year.

This was my first year attending all three days of breakout sessions, in addition to the keynotes and newly added spotlight speakers. In this post, I've highlighted the top 10 takeaways from all the speakers I was able to catch in this action-packed week of inspiring talks, tactical training and networking.