TAMPA, Fla. — Organizers of Dealer Summit have announced that Greg Goebel will lead three of the eight sessions dedicated to special finance at Dealer Summit, which will be held May 3–5, 2016, at the Sheraton Tampa Riverwalk Hotel.

“Greg’s unmatched, decades-long dedication to special finance has paid off for countless dealers and the industry as a whole,” said David Gesualdo, show chair and publisher of Auto Dealer Today and F&I and Showroom. “Dealers and dealership managers have a golden opportunity to make a wise investment in the subprime market by attending this year’s Dealer Summit.”

The president of DealerStrong will be joined by teammates and fellow trainers Harlene Doane, Shawn Foster and Wendy Reeves, each of whom will helm at least one additional SF session. Goebel said a strong subprime market, leading economic indicators and data gleaned from hundreds of dealers and finance companies all point to 2016 as the year dealers who want a competitive edge should commit to SF in a major way.

“As credit scores fall, having worked with dealers and inside dealerships, you see the frustration of sales managers and salespeople working deals to no avail,” Goebel said. “If you are not excelling in this market, you are falling behind your competition.”

In his keynote address on Wednesday, May 4, Goebel will reveal the annual results of DealerStrong’s long-running “SF Index,” which aggregates actual transaction data from more than 1,000 dealers and the nation’s leading subprime auto finance companies to create benchmarks for inventory, terms and profitability.

“Nobody has data like this,” Goebel said. “Each of the finance companies knows what their internal stats say, but they don’t know profitability from the dealer’s perspective.”

Goebel’s next session is “Finance Companies: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not,” DealerStrong’s rundown of the top-performing subprime auto finance companies. The information in this session should be of particular use to dealers who are new to the special finance segment and may not be aware of what the average transaction should look like.

“An SF manager may have a close relationship with a finance company field rep or credit analyst who wants the business but may not have the dealership’s best interest in mind,” Goebel said. “We will open their eyes as to what they can expect.”

Finally, “SF 101: The 10 Musts to Be Successful in Special Finance” will serve as a 55-minute crash course on the essential elements of a profitable SF department. Goebel said he decided to resurrect the topic for 2016 after leaving it off his annual curriculum for several years.

“So many dealers, finance managers and sales managers don’t understand the basics of SF,” he said. “We’re going to roll through the 10 critical components, how they relate to each other and what they would look like optimally.”

Having served as the industry’s leading special finance expert and trainer since 1989, Goebel has observed countless cycles of prosperity in the segment. He said the aforementioned economic indicators and a surge in interest from dealers of all stripes, including those who represent highline brands, has convinced him that 2016 will be a make-or-break year for experienced and rookie SF dealers alike.

“You can never quit learning,” Goebel said. “If you quit learning, you go backward.”

Registration for Dealer Summit is now open at the event’s website. Attendees who register by April 1 will enjoy a $100 early-bird discount. For information about exhibition and sponsorship opportunities, contact David Gesualdo via email or at (727) 947-4027.