VIN Basics Blog

As a VIN decoding and vehicle data provider, we interact with many different segments of the auto industry, including auto insurance. So, we thought it’d be a great idea to have our friends over at The Zebra contribute on our blog. Without further ado...

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.

Auto Technology: Luxury Vehicle Features

Luxury cars offer the latest in automotive technology combined with the next-generation on-demand features that savvy car shoppers want. Whether in the market for a new luxury vehicle, or merely daydreaming about features for their next car, we're willing to bet that these top 7 luxury features in the auto industry will impress many consumers and perhaps be considered for their next vehicle purchase.

Over the years, online vehicle shopping has grown in popularity. For many consumers, it’s an easy way to educate themselves on current vehicle makes, models, and features, as well as what they should pay for each vehicle before ever stepping foot in the dealership. Still, there is plenty of room for improving the online vehicle shopping experience.

Over the last 5 years, there has been a paradigm shift in marketing and advertising across all industries. The "spray and pray" method, hammer everyone with promotional content and hope it sticks, is finally fading, as businesses become more strategic in their messaging.