CARS064_fl.jpg Paula Tompkins discusses online auto sales with Susan Romano (right) the Business Manager of Marin FORD San Rafael at her show room in San Rafael. Since 1995 Paula Tompkins CEO of ChannelNet, a 125 employees company out of Mill Valley and Detroit, has coordinated Ford Motor Co.�s online sales operation. According to industry analyst J.D. Power and Associates, 64 percent of car buyers researched their purchase online. Of people who have Internet connections, the figure is 89 percent. Car companies have figured out that the rush of consumers to the Web represents an unstoppable force, and instead of resisting it, for the most part, they�re starting to improve their Web sites and take control of the process. 6/18/05 San Rafael CA Frederic Larson The San Francisco Chronicle Photo: Frederic Larson
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