Posts Tagged ‘sales training’

The Probability of Accountability

Sunday, December 4th, 2011

I arrived roughly 10 minutes early to train a new dealer client last week.  I meandered around the showroom trying to get a feel for who they were as a store and how they presented their dealership brand.  That’s when I came across a salesperson sitting at his desk with a very familiar CRM open.  To my wide-eyed amazement, I got to see him complete ALL of his scheduled calls for the day (roughly 30) in the 5 minutes before the store opened.  All without picking up the phone.  This guy was gifted.

“Left message, LM, LM, LM, LM, Flip to Lost, Flip to Dead, Flip to Bought Elsewhere, LM, LM, LM”.

 

Essentially, this gentleman had no desire to call a single customer back, but was more dedicated to simply getting his workload off of his plate for the day.   He was throwing away opportunities to both interact with his current clients and, in some cases, sell a car.  This is happening at your store too.

 

There are three things I know about the majority of salespeople in our industry.

1)  They will work their pay plan.  Whatever it is, they’ll work it.
2)  They won’t follow-up with their customers

3)  They won’t follow up with their customers.

 

I see managers hypocritically hold BDC and Internet teams to a high standard of number of calls made, number of appointments set and shown, but I find it amazing how they don’t hold their own sales team (those that they actually manage) accountable.  In my experience, the lowest probability of accountability happens on the showroom floor.  Your sales managers are around your salespeople so often, they easily overlook everything they aren’t doing.  You could almost remove the word “manager” from their title at all.  This needs to stop.

 

Salespeople won’t make their calls on their own.  They just won’t.  Even if you ask them nicely or schedule the call for them in the CRM and demand them to make the calls, they will find a way to push off, put away, hide, falsely complete, delete, bury, or kill that action scheduled for them.

 

You MUST actively train, track, and hold accountable your team to ensure they are making all of their follow-up calls, unsold calls, sold calls, lease retention calls, birthday calls, anniversary calls, bird calls, cat calls, or any other calls you have scheduled in the CRM for them.  Otherwise, without being held accountable, they will almost always take the path of least resistance, cycle through their day’s tasks and eliminate their opportunities to connect with a customer.  They simply don’t have their feet held to the fire enough.

 

There are systems out there (PBX boxes, call monitoring/recording software) that can increase the likelihood that accountability will become part of your showroom (and management) process.  Whether you invest in the technology, the people, or the training, you must demand that your entire sales team performs the duties asked of them in the CRM.  It is not just your livelihood; it’s theirs as well.  They just aren’t held accountable enough to realize it.

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The Test Drive Conundrum

Wednesday, April 13th, 2011

On your very first day in car sales, a manager (or likely the put-upon salesperson) brought you out onto the lot and showed you how to give a proper vehicle presentation and demo drive. You were shown this once.

Over the years, customers have become far more researched on the vehicles they are interested in and many believe the basics of the product presentation have changed. Their knowledge allows us to be more concentrated on certain aspects of the vehicle than others. However, my question to you is, do you feel the demo drive has changed?

Most customers primarily show up to test drive first and ensure they are indeed interested in the vehicle that is best for them. Like trying on clothes, they want to check the fit, feel, finish, and comfort of the vehicle.

I know I’ve made some comedic videos about test drives gone wrong, but recognize that there are only a few different ways they can be conducted. What style works for some won’t work for others. There are four primary ways a test drive can be handled:

Test Drive #1:
You pull the vehicle up for the customer. The customer sits in the driver’s seat and you sit in the passenger seat, navigating them through the vicious 4-right turn track that you’ve created for yourself.
Conundrum #1:
If you have given a proper presentation of the vehicle’s features before (or plan to after), how do you spend your time in the vehicle with them?
Do you
a) Just focus on their 5 senses (How does it feel? How is your field of vision? Are you comfortable? Do you smell that new car smell? Etc)
b) Do you focus on their need for the vehicle? What they are comparing it to and how they will be using it?
c) Do you re-highlight the features?
d) Do you build rapport with them and shoot the breeze?
e) Do you just shut up and let them experience it on their own?
Condundrum #2:
If the customer has a spouse with them, do you
a) Sit in the backseat and navigate from behind?
b) Sit in the front passenger seat so you can be a focal point for the second passenger?

Test Drive #2:
You pull the vehicle up, you drive the vehicle off the lot as your passenger and then perform the Chinese fire drill with a customer at an undisclosed place on the 4 right-turn track.
Conundrum #2:
While this is a commonly taught practice, I ask, are you driving it off the lot
a) for safety reasons?
b) so you can retain control of the experience?
c) because with your expertise you can show them “what this thing can do” better than they might be willing to?
d) so they can experience the vehicle without having to focus on the traffic in front of them?
e) because you are a control freak and you want all eyes on you?

Test Drive #3:
This form of test drive is rarely taught and often derided, but commonly executed. Many people feel the most effective form of test drive is to simply throw the customer the keys and let them take the vehicle out on their own. Do you find allowing the customer to test drive alone..
a) allows them to experience the vehicle on their own without any pressure or anxiety?
b) takes away your ability to build value or control the customer?
c) is effective, especially for Internet managers, because it allows them to complete in-store tasks while the customer is away?
d) makes you, the salesperson, appear more professional that you trust them to test drive it on their own?
e) makes you, the salesperson, look lazy because you are unwilling to spend the time with the customer?

Those are the different styles of Test Drives and the Conundrums that follow each. This is an imperative step in the road to the sale and I’d love to hear what works for you. At one time or another, I’ve used all of these test drive forms, with differing degrees of success. At DealerKnows Consulting, we have a fairly specific process that works like a charm for Internet shoppers stopping in to test drive that we train our clients on, but we’d like to hear from you. (We hear ourselves talk enough).

We understand that every customer is different so I’m looking for people to take a stand on this rather than just respond with “You’ve gotta get a feel for ‘em” types of answers. We KNOW that 25% of so (random percentage) will only want to do things their way, but that leaves 75% (unproven percentage) willing to follow your instructions. How will you proceed? How do you let your customers experience a Test Drive?

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Spring Training with Joe Webb of DealerKnows Consulting

Wednesday, March 30th, 2011

Baseball season is back in full swing. (See what I did there?  Yes, very cheesy, I know). And spring training for the teams is coming to an end.  They’ve spent well over a month preparing themselves and their minds for the day-to-day responsibilities that go along with a season of baseball.  Trainers, managers, and coaches get together to evaluate their personnel and to get them ready for action.  Several dealers do the very same when they seek out training for their team.

Dealers seek out trainers because it is necessary to have experts of different disciplines take a look at what you are putting out on the field of play.  You often need a skilled tactician to analyze your team, pinpoint opportunities, address concerns, teach fundamentals, build up your strengths, and eliminate your weaknesses.  Most importantly, it is the extra set of eyes from an outsider that helps shape a team into a successful bunch of athletes.

The problem is, far too many unemployed, out-of-work Internet Managers are calling themselves “consultants” and muddying the water of best practices.  (I’m only saying this because all season I’ve been doing my own “spring cleaning” where we clean up the mess made my another ill-prepared “consultant” the dealership mistakenly brought on before us.)  Just because someone reads the blogs, comments on the social networks, and attends conferences while achieving mediocre to slightly above average results at a non-descript dealership does not make someone a consultant…let alone a trainer.  These people are turning around and regurgitating articles they’ve read of best practices written by others, passing them off as their own ideologies, and implementing them into dealerships with no understanding of how to actually “teach” someone the philosophies behind it.  This is why the power of a Trainer or Consultant only goes so far.

Any respectable, “true” consultant or trainer will tell you that they can only take you and your team so far on their own.  We, as “true” consultants can get your team up-to-snuff on the fundamentals, help you set the best line-up and put the best people out on the field together.  We can recommend what type of equipment to use and give you a plan for attack, but we can’t manage.  A trainer can surely review the outcome of each game and help plan for the following day (as we do with our Virtual Dealer Training program by listening to phone calls, monitoring email correspondence from your team, and analyzing reports with the team’s management), but we can’t be on-site all the time.  You need a manager on the field watching over each game that can call plays on the spot and make quick decisions based on the situation in-store.  We, as trainers, need someone on-site – our advocate – that can continue to deliver our message and carry through on the collective game plan.

Spring training time is upon us.  The summer season is right here at our doorstep.  Have you made sure that your team is trained by the best?  If they are up to bat more often during the summer months, are you making sure that there is an on-field manager watching each cut they take?  Do your managers have someone they can rely on to discuss performance opportunities?

It’s time to play ball.  Have you prepared your team to take the field and win?

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Exercise Your Digital Muscles

Saturday, March 12th, 2011

The automotive dealership functions much the way the human body does.  Each department operates similar to an organ, controlling that given part of the dealer body.  When one fails, it affects the health of the entire system.   Every single employee, solution, and dollar spent must be cared for and maintained.  A dealer’s advertising efforts work much the way a person’s muscles do.  They strengthen the body and get the entire operation moving.  Stale advertising techniques and antiquated marketing tactics can cause a dealer’s sales to atrophy.  These advertising muscles must be exercised, not just when it’s nice outside, but during the slow, lean winter months as well.  Thank goodness for the incoming spring, but your efforts shouldn’t change.

When the economic crunch hit our industry two years ago, we saw many dealers revert back to the advertising methods of yesteryear.  No medium was left unturned (i.e. dug up from its grave).  Some dealers said to themselves (paraphrasing) “Hey, when we were at our best, we were in the newspaper every day, shooting out direct mail pieces monthly, we could be heard on the radio, and had TV spots.”  They cut budgets from each department and recreated their game plan from the mid 90’s.  Thankfully though, many dealers did the opposite.  They dedicated themselves strictly to internet initiatives, buying up leads, focusing on dominating the search engines, delved into social media (even if they didn’t understand it yet) and, in some cases, even overpaid for the newest and best buzzword solutions.  If it was online and quantifiable, they’d spend for it.  Heck, even if it wasn’t quantifiable, but it was online, they’d spend for it…much to their chagrin in some cases.  Few dealers have come out unscathed, but most that took the latter strategy seem to be, not just surviving, but thriving.  Dealers that attacked the online marketplace have been pushing forward.  Others waited to begin exercising their muscles until recently and realize their muscles have atrophied.  They are stuck on a treadmill, not going anywhere fast, just trying to keep their feet under them and stick with the pack.

As we all know, cold weather doesn’t always bring volume sales with it, but springtime is most certainly the best time to flex your digital muscles and try out some new strengthening programs.  During these last couple of months, our industry has been outperforming expectations.  (Our DealerKnows clients sure were doing that as well).  We, as an industry, have been moving units and trying to keep up with the basics of eCommerce:  Keep the website updated, inventory merchandised well, stay atop the search engines, play with social media, and handle leads/calls responsibly.  Well, we already know that we don’t always do these activities perfectly so I implore you to step outside your normal training regimen and focus on some new exercises.  These are the basics that help you strengthen your core.  The goal is to make sure you are properly maintaining your digital self by training on getting better at these basics.

As I sit here mid-March, having just returned from Dallas where I spoke on behalf of the Chrysler Southwest Business Center, with my Vice President, Bill Playford, in Austin for the SXSW Conference, I see some great things happening online. We all see Google changing their algorithms every week it seems.  Some changes are being made that will drastically affect how you are seen on the search engines.  Can I just say – Pay Attention to Your Google Maps and Google Places.  Start now.  Take the time while it is still a little cold outside (if you don’t live in the south) and flesh out your Google Accounts profile.  Explore those tools available to you.

As it is with all conditioning programs (so I’ve heard… I’m in no personal condition to talk exercise for real) that what you put into your body is just as important as the energy you put out.  As you prepare for the warmer months, look closely at the ingredients/vendors you are filling your diet with.  Are these really the right things to be consuming?  Were your eyes bigger than your wallet during the fall and winter months that you may have signed on for unsuccessful or underdeveloped programs/tools?   It might be time to trim a little of the fat out of your dealership diet and see if you can replace it with something organic… homegrown…. Do-it-yourself initiatives.  It’s the living room TaeBo work-out of in-dealership exercises.

Lastly, database marketing is well overlooked at most stores.  If your sales team is no longer busy brushing snow off cars or coffee-clutching, put them on the cycle and have them reach out to past customers.  If it takes you bringing in a new tool to data-mine your DMS, do it.  Auto dealers have endless opportunities for sales, service and parts if they only mined that gold that is sitting in their DMS. This is the Bowflex of internet opportunities.  A vendor and your staff must data mine for your loyal customers’ information, capture email addresses, utilize technology to review buying trends of the customers and develop targeted email campaigns to reach, convert, and attract those customers back into their store.  And beyond technology, just give them a call.  Wish them a ‘Happy St. Patrick’s Day’ personally.  That type of commitment to customer service goes a long way.

So if you are reading this and you realize the leads have remained a little stagnant from the slow winter months, less customers are walking in, and the phones aren’t ringing as abundantly, don’t sit back and wait.  Get up and exercise your digital muscles.  You may find yourself getting stronger during a time when you least expect it.  The digital cardio you perform now will allow you to keep you healthy and give you the energy to keep moving forward in the future.

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Grant Cardone recommends Joe Webb of DealerKnows Consulting

Friday, September 10th, 2010

NY Times Best-selling author and sales training expert Grant Cardone of Cardone Technologies endorses Joe Webb of DealerKnows Consulting for Internet sales training and digital marketing consulting.  Grant Cardone attended Joe Webb’s session at the Innovative Dealer Summit to the Colorado Automobile Dealers Association in Denver and reccomends auto dealers to get involved with Joe Webb and his ecommerce training initiatives.

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It Takes a Village – by Joe Webb

Sunday, August 8th, 2010

When a lead arrives, a prospect is born. As the lead ages in the CRM systems of our homes, it must be cared for. Every lead has specific needs and it is the responsibility of the guardians of that lead to nurture it. Rules must be set for the lead to follow and certain requirements are to be enforced. One person should not be the sole guardian of each lead. It takes a village.

To ensure a lead reaches its full potential (sale = adulthood), multiple people within your dealership have to get involved. At different points of every lead’s existence there comes a time where different influences must help it along its way to sale.

Simply put, it cannot just be the Internet Sales Manager’s sole responsibility to manage every lead. This is why a Business Development Center is of such importance to so many dealerships. It gives dealers the ability to have multiple hands on each individual lead. If you do not have the benefit of a BDC, you must bring your management team into the mix. However, with a BDC team in place, you are creating both a front line of defense for your dealership as well as a backstop.

If the initial correspondence with an e-lead is handled by the Internet Sales Manager, then I believe you should have a second stage of communication where a representative from the BDC/management team reach out to the customer under the guise of Customer Relations Manager. If a consumer feels as if they are valued and have the attention of multiple people in the store, they may feel better taken care of. At the same time, the second stage calls made from the BDC/management team will alert you to shortcomings the prospect may have felt they had with the original ISM. Much like a BDC call to an unsold walk-in on behalf of the sales floor, a second ear open to a customer’s needs usually yields eye-opening results.

In another instance, when an appointment is set by an Internet Sales Manager, it is only good business to have an additional person reach out and confirm the appointment. Let’s face it…. Doctors are not the ones calling you back to confirm your appointment, it’s the nurse receptionists.

That is the power of the BDC. More than one person making multiple touches to maximize results. It is a team environment. We must make back-up calls for the sales team to unsold customers, to all sold customers, to all set appointments, to all missed appointments, to all potential customers, to all active leads, to all impending lost customers, and to all lease return customers.
And it isn’t just calls that should be made to these consumers, but emails too. Fit yourself with a strong CRM that allows several people to be prompted/triggered to contact each customer (via phone and email) without the lead changing hands. That is a very important trait to have in any good CRM.

A lead cannot and should not be handled by one. It must be handled by multiple. Don’t let the youthful leads of our generation slip through the cracks of our dealership society by letting them fall by the wayside. Guide the leads using different role models at different times through their life to help them blossom into the sale they deserve the chance to be. To raise a customer from lead to sale, it takes a village.

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Posted in Blog, Internet Lead Process, Internet Personnel, Internet Strategy | No Comments »



Mastering the Fine Art of Stick-to-it-ivness

Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010

In my time, I’ve come across many great eCommerce minds working in dealerships across the country. A few are recognized for their gift and contribution. A good majority are unappreciated and overlooked. The rest, no matter how dedicated, work in dealerships with limited resources and management that might seem stuck in the last century. More than likely, if you are reading this, you fall into one of the latter categories.

My advice to you? Stick with it. You are not alone. All experts were once where you are today. Often you feel like, no matter how much you want to grow your knowledge or your store’s online presence, it will go unnoticed. In some cases, you may even have your hands tied from improving your dealership’s online profitability. I repeat myself. Stick with it.

Keep reading the blogs/forums/magazines/e-newsletters. If you must, pay your own way to a conference or seminar. Employ the strategies that you feel will be most effective, even if you haven’t been given the green light. (I’m not trying to get you in trouble, but you and I both know that your boss at the top doesn’t have the know-how to monitor your activity in the CRM so your results will be the only indicator that something is different. If you’re right, you win.)

Stick-to-it-ivness is an art. A fine art. It is the Mona Lisa of resilience. In this industry, as brain damage is thrust upon you and more work is laid in your lap than necessary, staying determined to improve yourself and your store is a tall order. We know how easy it would be to follow the orders from the top… phone it in, essentially. It would be easy to follow their antiquated orders on how to connect with internet customers. You could continue to hit mediocre metrics and be safe. The people in power and not “in-the-know” will let you do (what you know is) the wrong things. You can listen to their old-school demands, turn in an average performance and make them think you are doing your job.

Don’t. Fight the urge. Stick to growing. Stick to improving. Stick to experimenting. Stick to enhancing everything you do and then learning more.

It may put you in the sights of management, which can be an uncomfortable place to be, but if you are as passionate about this automotive Internet landscape as the rest of us, you’ll only end up happier by following the path to improvement. No matter if “the man” has got you down, I urge you to master the fine art of stick-to-it-ivness. It will define you.

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The Dealer Internet Battle Plan promo

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010


The Dealer Internet Battle Plan seminar in Atlantic City NJ is bringing together Jim Ziegler, Joe Webb, Tim Jennings and Ralph Paglia to give a once-in-a-lifetime workshop on the best practices of automotive internet marketing. It is not a joke… you must be thinking, ” Lego my leg… it’s to good to be true.” It IS true. Four of the top auto industry experts in sales, marketing, video, social media, and internet training joining forces on July 6-8th. Don’t miss out! And tell them Joe Webb, the Dealer Jedi, sent you.

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The Genius of Chili’s

Saturday, November 7th, 2009

Far too many ideas seem like good ideas after a frozen margarita with a Coors Light chaser. However, I am pleasantly surprised to find myself struck with enlightenment as I sit bar side at a Chili’s. I am out to dinner alone after delivering a successful on-site training for a dealer client. As any consultant will tell you, these dinners on the road are commonplace and very little changes from city to city.

When across the bar does my curious eyes spot a sales process secretly displayed for the bartender at this Chili’s establishment. Within moment’s I arose from my stool to see what was the matter. I was incredibly pleased to see a list of steps to follow for this bartender that closely resembles our very own road to the sale. The Chili’s Steps to the Upsell, so to speak.

I’ve attached this picture so you can follow along as we compare proven best practices. I have made it easier for you by spelling out each step they’ve provided to their employees below.
Chili's Steps to the Upsell
Chili’s: The following is the minimum expectation for every bartender. If they cannot execute these, then they should not be responsible for driving our most profitable position in the restaurant.
Joe’s: This is what we expect from you as a sales representative. If you cannot proudly, competently, perform these tasks and follow these steps after we’ve trained you, you may want to consider another line of work.
Summary: You don’t have to go home, but you can’t stay here.
Chili’s:
1. Greeting every bar guest with “Welcome to Chili’s, my name is ——, I’ll be taking great care of you today and your name is….?
Joe’s:
1. Every customer is greeted, preferably on the lot, (at the very least on the showroom floor) before they reach a manager, with “Welcome to ABC Motors, my name is —–, and you are…? Are you here for anyone in particular? No? I will be happy to assist you and answer all of your questions.
Summary: The best pick-up line in the world is still your name, asking for theirs, and asking a simple question.
Chili’s:
2. “Let me tell you about a few great happy hour specials we have”, or weekends “Let me tell you get you started with our Presidente Margarita or ice cold draft.” (Yes, theirs is grammatically incorrect, or (sic) can be said, but nonetheless a similar practice would be
2. Joe’s:
“Allow me to tell you about our amazing new vehicle incentives” or, used “Let me tell you what I feel are some of the hidden gems and best buys on our lot.”
Summary: They’ll never like it if they don’t try it. Make sure to introduce them to your specials.
Chili’s:
3. “Can I get you started with ______ or _______.” Being suggestive with appetizers choose their favorite and let guests know why it is their favorite.
Joe’s:
“I personally believe this vehicle is likely the best fit for you and your family because it is both ______ and ________, both features/needs you said were important to you on your next vehicle.”
Summary: I told you that you were going to enjoy it.
Chili’s:
4. “Check down after every item is rung up, no “I will get it in a minute.”
Joe’s:
4. (If I am reading this correctly) Answer and address every question they have immediately so as to overcome any potential objection in the future and then confirm it is answered.
Summary: Don’t let problems linger or questions go unanswered as it looks as if you are avoiding the subject or not caring about their needs.
Chili’s:
5. Engaging lounge area tables even when there is a lounge server working.
Joe’s:
5. If a customer is walking around on the lot or showroom, whether you are aware if someone is assisting them or not, make sure to approach them and ensure that someone is working with them and they are having their questions answered/expectations met.
Summary: Engage every lone/abandoned customer regardless of the situation to let them know someone is there is assist them at all times.
Chili’s:
6. Running bar beverages at all times when not engaging bar top guests.
Joe’s:
6. If you don’t have a customer, you should be either out on the lot familiarizing yourself with vehicles, looking to assist other managers/guests/salespeople, or looking to follow-up with active/past customers.
Summary: No coffee clutching. This is work. If you want “me time”, stay at home. When you are on the lot, you are there to produce and be productive.
Chili’s:
7. Coaching team members on up-selling beverages that come to the bar screen.
Joe’s:
7. Listen to your coworkers with their customers. If you can offer any guidance after the fact, constructive criticism and helpful hints should be widely accepted among the staff.
Summary: Role-playing will help you improve consistently.
Chili’s:
8. Energetic, friendly, and sociable.
Joe’s”
8. No other way to say it.
Chili’s:
9. Constructive with free time
Joe’s:
9. Get busy. There is ALWAYS something you can be doing to improve yourself and make money.
Summary: In all aspects, Chili’s has it right. And yes, in the picture below, that is a margarita. I did partake in one. After all, you have to reward a good salesperson.
The Chili's Road to the Sale

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Posted in Blog, Retail Automotive | No Comments »