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July 2004

Prospecting: Establishing Relationships

Keys to Successful Networking

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Prospecting:Establishing Relationships

ZigZiglarsts ms ls fi s lr

sales and training solution

Selling is a contact sport. By increasing your contacts, you increase your selling opportunities. Be creative.

1. Take a doctor jogging. One of our clients sells to hospitals, clinics and doctors. She was having a diffi cult time meeting with a certain doctor. The doctor’s staff told the sales rep that she (the doctor) was a jogger and that she participated in various volunteer activities within the community. The sales person thought outside the box and entered the doctor and herself into a 5K run for “Race for the Cure.” What an active way to establish a relationship.

2. Hit a bucket of golf balls. Do you play golf? (I do, but I still stand too close to the ball AFTER I hit it!) Does your prospect play golf? Instead of investing an entire four hours on the course, why don’t you invite your prospect out to the driving range and hit a bucket of balls for an hour?

You don’t play golf? Well, try this. Pay for your prospect to receive a golf lesson by a local pro. What a swinging way to establish a relationship.

3. Celebrate obscure holidays. For instance, did you know that January is Hot Tea Month? Perhaps you know of a prospect that is a hot tea drinker. January is your month to make an impression. September is Better Breakfast Month. Maybe you should celebrate by taking a prospect to your favorite breakfast restaurant. October is National Popcorn Popping Month. Is there an offi ce that could use an extra large container of assorted popcorn? You’ll be a big hit if you can fi nd one. What a fun way to establish a relationship.

4. Send greeting cards. Hand written cards get opened. Hand written messages get read. Capitalize on obscure days because you can rest assured that you are the only sales person celebrating these days. August 16th is National Tell a Joke Day. (Don’t get me started!) September 14th is

National Cream Filled Donut Day. October fi fth is National Do Something Nice Day. Buy a card. Write a message. Mail the card. Wait three to fi ve days. Call the prospect and tell her you were the one who sent the card on International Tuba Day (May seventh). Greeting cards can help separate you from the competition. What a creative way to establish a relationship.

5. Offer a free service.We all like free stuff. So do your customers and their business associates. Perhaps you can make a presentation in a “brown bag lunch” format. Maybe you can bring in an associate to address physical wellness, fi nancial issues, parenting or family matters. A vice president of a staffi ng agency here in Dallas conducts 30-minute sessions on what she calls “Lunch and Learn” programs. What an educational way to establish a relationship.

Zig Ziglar is the Chairman of the Board of Ziglar Training Systems in Dallas, TX. He can be contacted at 800.527.0306, or by email at zziglar@autosuccess.biz.

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Article

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Mark Tewart

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Keys to Successful Networking

sts ms ls fi s lr

sales and training solutionLydiaRamsey

There are events you can attend that produce opportunities to interact with others on a personal level and to develop

profi table relationships.

Talk to strangers. Talking to strangers is a way to generate interest and support for your products and services. You also make new connections and establish valuable contacts.

To get past any discomfort in talking to strangers, set a goal for yourself of how many new contacts you want to make or how many people you want to meet. You may specifi cally target certain types of individuals whom would be benefi cial to know.

Come up with icebreakers and conversation starters. Have questions prepared that you can ask anyone you meet. Inquire about other people’s business. Ask them open-ended questions about themselves.

You don�t need a formal introduction. It’s much easier to make a new contact when there is someone else to handle the introduction and pave the way. If you wait for another person to make the move, you lose. The goal of networking is to meet as many people as possible.

Walk up to people you don’t know, introduce yourself and start a conversation. You can do this if you have prepared questions and your self-introduction in advance.

You will not introduce yourself the same way on every occasion. Perhaps it is your fi rst time to attend an association meeting, say that as part of your introduction. Let people know who you are, why you are there and give them a reason to ask more about you.

Be pushy, in an elegant way. You may think that you will turn people off if you are assertive; being open, friendly and interested does not turn people off.

Seek out the “approachable” people. These are the ones who are standing alone or who are speaking in groups of three or more.

Two people talking to each other are not approachable because they may be having a private conversation and you would be interrupting.

Other people like you.There is always the risk that the other person is not interested in you and doesn’t want to meet or talk to you. It happens. If that is the case, don’t take it personally; smile, move on and say to yourself, “Next!”

Having your intentions misunderstood.Approaching someone of the opposite sex to begin a conversation may seem like fl irting. This is more of an issue for women than men. Women have an equal place in the work arena and need to make professional connections the same as men do.

Neither men nor women will have their motives misinterpreted if they present themselves professionally in their attire and if they keep the conversation focused on business issues or topics that are not personal or private.

Before the next networking event, commit to a personal plan for success. You will fi nd yourself connecting with confi dence and courtesy on every occasion and the results will be refl ected in your sales.

Lydia Ramsey is the President and Founder of Lydia Ramsey, Inc. She can be contacted at 800.452.5606, or by email at lramsey @autosuccess.biz.

Walk up to people you don�t know, introduce yourself and start a conversation.

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Choose to be a Professional

sts ms ls fi s lr

sales and training solutionJimAdams

As professional sales people, we must realize that, in order to maximize every opportunity, we must choose our attitudes.

There is no greater contributing factor of success than your selling attitude. Attitudes and emotions are choices that directly infl uence sales.

Everyone in the world has money problems, family problems, work, cat and dog problems. We all experience emotions like anger, sorrow and loneliness. These emotions are part of life, but many professional sales people allow their moods to dictate their incomes.

The defi nition of a sale is a transfer of enthusiasm. Build rapport with your customer and transfer the excitement of your product and dealership to the customer. A customer buys when the value of the product (to them) exceeds the price they pay.

A positive selling attitude will help you close more sales through a genuine transfer of positive energy to the customer.

Your check up from the neck upBegin your day with affi rmations. Remind yourself each day of the strong qualities you possess and of the avenues you will continue to master. (See last months article)

Stay out of the huddle. Come to work with one goal in mind. Put yourself in front of opportunity.

Do not subject yourself to negative conversation. When it happens, excuse yourself and leave. Be mission driven. Only participate in conversations that are positive and constructive. Avoid conversation that does not advance your career.

Emotions are choices. Seek emotions of love, happiness, pride, confi dence and inspiration.

Identify the triggers that produce your positive attitudes. Once we realize that our emotions are decisions, more goals are achieved. Never allow negative emotions to

dictate your income; it’s far too expensive.

Choose to be happy, helpful, proud, positive, committed and connected. In any people-to-people industry your number one asset is your attitude.

Choose to be different. Choose to be a professional.

Jim Adams is the General Sales Manager at Roper Kia in Joplin, MO. He can be contacted at 800.905.0627, or by email at jadams@autosuccess.biz.

july 2004 11

www.autosuccess.bizsuccessful solutions at12

MattHoffman

How to Get FeedbackThat BeneÞ ts Your Business

Regularly check the pulse of your business and fi nd out if your employees and customers are happy. If they’re not, then it’s

time to make some improvements to create the happy, loyal, long-term employees and customers that are the key to your company’s success.

A great way to evaluate how your business is doing is to gather feedback from your customers and employees. You can do this several ways, from asking questions verbally, to completing surveys. The following are some tips to help you get the feedback you can use to improve your business.

Customer FeedbackCustomers are by far the most important source of feedback. The only way to know if your customers are happy is to listen to what they say. This requires your employees to become active listeners and to directly ask the opinions of customers regarding different aspects of your business.

One of the simplest ways to gather feedback from your customers is to have your employees ask if there’s “anything else I can help you with?” or “Is there any way in which we’re failing to meet your needs?” Pay attention to what your customers say and record it. Another way to gather customer feedback is to have them complete a questionnaire with such questions as: “Did we ask everything you expected us to ask?” “How did we meet your expectations?” and “Were you satisfi ed with the service you received?”

Listen to the words your customers say and also read between the lines. Even though a customer may say she’s happy, does her tone

of voice really refl ect that sentiment? Most communication is non-verbal, and if you’re talking with someone over the phone, you cannot read the expression on the person’s face or their body language. But you may be able to pick up on subtle reactions they have, like breathing patterns and voice tonality.

You can also pay attention to the questions a customer asks. For example, if a customer asks, “What about that offer you had a month ago; whatever happened to that?” After the employee gives a standard response, the customer may respond with: “Oh, okay.” You may just write it off as a passing comment, but maybe it isn’t. Track how many customers ask that same question. If you know that question always leads to three more questions, you can manage their expectations (and perhaps prevent disappointment) by developing a response that answers the initial question but also answers (preframes) the next three questions in advance. Anticipating your customer’s needs makes them happy and shows them that you know them.

Written surveys are also good tools to use to collect information from customers. They can either be done over the phone by a representative, over the Internet, or through direct mail. Remember to respect your customers’ time by keeping the survey quick and easy. Importantly though, make sure you include at least one question on the survey that allows customers the opportunity to give specifi c feedback using free form text.

How to Use CustomerFeedback to Your AdvantageNow that you have this feedback, what do you do with it? The fi rst step is to evaluate what you have. Develop a database tailored to the information you want to track (i.e. pricing structure, quality, service, etc.). Then look

at the percentage of your top two positive responses to get a good representative sample. Don’t count the neutrals. If you want to do some service recovery, look at the two lowest responses also. Once you have a representative of the negative response, you can research why people are disappointed and fi nd a way to remedy it.

Just as it is important to turn unhappy customers around, it’s also important to reward people who already think you’re good. Keep your loyal people happy. If you follow up with a customer about their feedback, they may think, “Hey, those people actually paid attention to me and my voice is important. I’m going to keep going back to them.”

Finally, you can use customer feedback as a tool to evaluate employee performance. To do that, ask specifi c questions about the employees, such as “Was the person who helped you knowledgeable, polite, and friendly?” With specifi c information about employees, you’ll know who needs more training and who is performing well.

Frontline FeedbackToo often we ignore information from our front line employees dismissing it as “complaining”. However, you must keep in mind that they’re the resource for providing customer feedback since they are the ones

Use the information gathered from these surveys to make improvements within your organization that beneÞ t employees and management.

sts ms ls fi s lr

leadership solution

july 2004 13

who actually interact with the customers. They can be an invaluable source of information by giving you both general and specifi c observations (i.e. that customers have mentioned they like one thing, but have not been happy with another). Your employees are on the frontline taking care of the customers, so you need to keep them as happy as possible. Listen to any input they offer; it makes them feel appreciated.

One way to do this is to have a monthly focus group with different employees in order to keep on top of new issues. Focus groups allow employees to vent and voice their opinions about the issues affecting their jobs - whether they are consumer related or not. Additionally, many employees feel more empowered to speak and feed off of the group dynamic. In some cases they may say more than if you asked them individually. Also, it is a nice motivational tool to follow up with the same group once you’ve acted on a suggestion - it shows you value their insight and makes them feel like a vital part of the team.

Another way to solicit feedback about internal policies, procedures and tools is by offering the opportunity to complete a survey. Sometimes employees are reluctant to participate in surveys. In this case, offer an incentive. One effective incentive could be a raffl e. When employees drop off their anonymous surveys into the box, they get to take a ticket. The ticket stubs go into a raffl e with the winner receiving a prize. Or, if your survey is not one that needs to be anonymous, offer employees cash, or a company-paid lunch, or movie tickets. This is not something you want to do if you think you’ll receive biased results. If you’re looking for consumer information, you’re more likely to get accurate responses and better employee cooperation if you offer an incentive.

Ask employees to talk about what they do and ideas on how to make their jobs better. If you ask about internal policies that affect them, such as attendance policies or dress codes, it may be a little harder to get cooperation from them unless they feel that it’s safe. Try an online survey for anonymity or even hire a third party to conduct the survey for you. This way you’ll avoid biased opinions and be more likely to get honest results. Use the information gathered from these surveys to make improvements within your organization that benefi t employees and management.

Survey employees on any policies that affect them directly (the attendance policy, for example), on how much they feel the company values them, and on how they feel

they fi t the company. You can do this with a survey, much like you would use with customers, or it could even be accomplished through an anonymous suggestion box. Even if you are unable to change a policy employees don’t like, at least you will learn what issues bother them and be able to explain why those certain policies are in place. Sometimes, people just like to know that their voice is heard.

Institute a Feedback Policy TodayThe way to know what your employees

and customers want and need is to ask them. Decide what information you need and develop a plan for gathering feedback. Analyze the data you receive and put it to good use. Then you will have the inside information to keep your company strong and profi table for years to come.

Matthew Hoffman is a Consultant and Quality Assurance Manager at Kowal Associates, Inc. He can be contacted at 800.526.9768, or by email atmhoffman@autosuccess.biz.

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RayVelasquez

www.Schomp.comSells 100 Extra Cars a Month

Ralph Schomp Automotive has a new profi t center – our BDC/Internet department. This department is selling

over 100 extra vehicles a month and our goal is to change the way people buy and sell cars in the Denver market. We have always had an unwavering commitment to exceed our customer’s expectations and today we are doing that in a very different way. Our focus on serving the customer has not changed but our customers have. Today customers are using the Internet to research before they buy their car, and are becoming more educated about shopping for vehicle. In addition, as customers learn more, they are also expecting more from dealers, and we strive to meet and exceed their expectations. Most customers know as much or more about the vehicles as their sales person and the pricing is all easily accessible online. We understand that customers are afraid of the traditional buying process and pricing games, and we deliver a customer friendly process to make buying a vehicle from our dealership a pleasure.

After considering what our customers wanted, we made a huge leap, and became one of the fi rst dealerships to adopt the one price method of selling and satisfying customers. We have held fast to the original version of one-price selling (no negotiating, no additional fees, and no commissions) to this day. The Schomps realized early on that people buy if you are honest and straight-forward, if you give them a fair price (not necessarily the lowest), and if you do what you say you are going to do. Today this commitment to customer service has led us to set up a brand new dealership on the Internet that is open 24 hours a day and 7 days a week to provide our customers with everything they need to buy and service

their vehicle with us. Our new web site, www.Schomp.com, has become a lead generating machine that attracts a lot of quality traffi c to our showroom & BDC.

The Modern Customer and the InternetCustomers go to the Internet for convenience. Today a customer can accomplish more in their living room in fi ve minutes than if they spent all weekend visiting fi ve dealers. Since over 70% of today’s buyers use the Internet to research before they buy a vehicle, we decided to target our marketing to where the majority of our customers shop – the web.

Early on, web site providers didn’t understand car dealers and saw them as just dollar dispensers. Many of them sold technology to dealers with a lot of promises but with no results. Most of these companies are technology companies that know technology but don’t understand the car business. Today many dealers have caught on and have hired the providers who understand the business and actually think like a car dealer and who understood that the web is about marketing and results not just technology. We believe the fi rst step is understanding the customer and then shaping your marketing strategy around what they want.

We have learned that Internet buyers want quick, convenient, positive customer service. They want prompt answers from someone who knows their product and who is genuinely concerned with what they want. They want to be treated fairly, and to get a good price. After determining what our customers wanted, we built our strategy around exceeding their expectations.

Many people ask us how we sell over 100 vehicles a month online, so here is a summary of the four basic ingredients to our success:

MarketingThe fi rst step of selling cars on the Internet is not the web site. The fi rst step is to create traffi c to your web site. This begins by integrating your web site’s address into your traditional advertising, but it defi nitely does not end there. Online marketing is critical if you want to attract customers that are shopping on the web. This starts with good search engine placement. Our old web site was not coming up on the search engines for a long time and our traffi c suffered. Once we

optimized our site for search engines, we dramatically increased our placement and traffi c. Email marketing is the easiest and least expensive method to attract customers to the web site and dealership. It’s just like direct mail advertising except it costs no money. We have hundreds of multi-media buzzmail campaigns that we send out to customers at different times with different messages. Have a plan that spreads these campaigns out so people are not inundated with emails otherwise they will opt out of your list.

The ToolsDo not buy anything that doesn’t help you sell cars or gain an existing market share. All of the technology in the world cannot compensate if you are seriously lacking in the other areas. However, if you drive a lot of traffi c to a poorly designed web site, you could be educating customers on why not to do business with you. We started out by using R&R for our web sites but did not move the needle. We decided that it was best to partner up with someone who specializes in this fi eld, rather than working with DMS generalists, who are not necessarily experts in automotive marketing. The results are the most important thing to us and we needed something that would generate more leads and traffi c to our dealership. Our goal is to wow our customers with a completely different experience than they will encounter at other dealerships templated web sites so we built a new site completely different from anything in our market. If you visit our web site and pick a brand, you will see a “Why Schomp” button which gives customers an overview of our new and different buying process. This is just one of many unique surprises we have on our sites to give us a leg up on our competition.

All of our leads are automatically sent into our CRM tool that organizes and forwards them to the right people. In addition, the tool automates a lot of our follow up activity to ensure our customers are contacted for a minimum of four months after their inquiry. This tool also helps us manage and measure our other opportunities, including our phone prospects. Having a tool makes our people much more effi cient and it creates reports of what everyone is doing and what can be done to improve results. Pick a CRM tool that

All of our leads are automatically sent into our CRM tool that organizes and forwards them to the right people.

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marketing solution

continued on page 29

fs feature solution

www.autosuccess.biz16

PatrickLuck

How long have you been in the Internet sales business?

Ray Lazick: Five and one half years

Tom Christopoulos: Six years.

David Handel: Six years already.

Mark Kanter: I have been in the internet sales business for over fi ve years; The car industry for over 11 years.

Robert Revere: Five years.

Brian Benstock: We have been serious about the internet for only six months.

What percentage of your total retail new come from Internet leads/department?

Ray Lazick: approx 15 percent.

Tom Christopoulos: 30 percent.

David Handel: CONSERVATIVELY the month of May accounted for 26.3 percent. I only count sales that are verifi ed and sourced properly.

Mark Kanter: Approximately 25-35 percent depending on the month.

Robert Revere: 255 units which is 35 percent.

Brian Benstock: 150 units/25 percent.

What do you contribute to your high close rate?

Ray Lazick: Immediate follow up with appointment set.

Tom Christopoulos: Responding Quickly, and a no nonsense approach to doing business.

David Handel: Process, people and a good lead management tool are the most

important factors! Our process includes an Autoresponse, and six additional attempts (three e-mails and three phone calls) within the fi rst seven days. Our e-mails are professional, yet “soft-spoken”. If there is no response the lead is placed in a folder that is bulk-email enabled. We send out two bulk e-mails per month – not too many and not too few. Follow-up can’t be overemphasized! The average purchase time from the initial internet inquiry is 60-70 days. For every deal you close in two days there is one you can close four months down the road.

Nothing can be accomplished without a great team. You need an owner that believes in the Internet as an important advertising tool. Everything starts with Mr. Rosen and drifts down to my staff. I have dedicated Internet Sales Managers who handle the entire process from inquiry through delivery. My job is made easier with professionals like Debbie Storck, Lin Treasure, Phil Kwiek, Chris Petranech, Joe Crement and Pauly Cassiani.

Mark Kanter: There are a few reasons that I can attribute to our process. 1) I am lucky enough to have a wonderful staff that realizes that specifi c needs of the Internet Client. They are focused, professional, and hard working. 2) We also have a detailed process which we follow that, much like fl oor sales, must be adhered to in order to insure: Follow Up, Feedback, Client Satisfaction and Sales. 3) The most important aspect is the support given by the Owners and President of our group. They gave me the opportunity to start and maintain this department. Without their support and willingness to break paradigms - our successes would have never materialized.

Robert Revere: Good people and process and our buzztrak lead management and CRM tool automates most of our follow up. Also, our people are well trained and our website is better than all of our

competitors.

Brian Benstock: A detailed process for selling the appointment and following up with customers who don’t respond, don’t set an appt, don’t show and don’t buy. The majority of our follow up is automatically done by our CRM tool. Also, we use our website in the sales process to build value and to answer customer objections because it has a lot of tools that none of our competitors have.

What sales levels (percent of retail new) do you project from your Internet department this year?

Ray Lazick: 15 percent.

Tom Christopoulos: 30 percent.

David Handel: Over 30 percent.

Mark Kanter: 30-40 percent.

Robert Revere: 300-350 and up to 50 percent of retail.

Brian Benstock: 200-250.

How do you handle the pricing question with your Internet prospects?

Ray Lazick: Quoted at one percent under.

Tom Christopoulos: We always give them a price right up front(never our lowest), but will always condition the pricing with whether the vehicle is in stock, when can they pay for it and when they want to take delivery.

David Handel: The pricing issue is a political hotbed if not handled carefully. It is something that I struggle with internally and externally. When my mental battle is over, I always choose to give an upfront price quote from the beginning. People choose the Internet to avoid a typical car-buying experience. The number one

See Why TheirClose Rates Are Over 24%

�Third-party lead providers are absolutely essential.�

july 2004 17

continued on page 18

customer complaint is “not getting a price”. I don’t believe that price is everything. If you sell yourself and your dealership properly, you can overcome price (within reason).

Mark Kanter: Upfront pricing is always the best policy. If an Internet client thinks you are holding back, they can always turn off the computer or hang up.

Robert Revere: We have been trained to sell the appointment and not the price but if we have to we give them a fair price and we send them a multi-media “Why Buy Courtesy” buzzmail.

Brian Benstock: We have a competitive pricing philosophy that also allows us to maintain a strong gross profi t.

How does your Internet sales gross compare to your retail ß oor?

Ray Lazick: $300-$500 less front end.

Tom Christopoulos: Lower to Same.

David Handel: Total gross (front end, F&I, and aftermarket) is nearly identical. With so many (75 percent) retail fl oor customers having done some research on the Internet, we usually wind up in the same place but without all the grief and aggravation of the negotiating process.

Mark Kanter: It is approximately the same.

Robert Revere: Our gross is the same as our retail showroom and some months it has been higher because we build value rather than sell price.

Brian Benstock: Our gross average is $2700. per vehicle which is similar to our showroom fl oor.

Do you/Internet department handle the

complete sales process, F&I included? or is it the same process as a ß oor customer?

Ray Lazick: Same as fl oor.

Tom Christopoulos: Same as a fl oor customer.

David Handel: Our dealership (and 99 percent of others) isn’t willing to go down the F&I road yet. I’m grateful for what we are allowed to do and the autonomy we have.

Mark Kanter: The process is different until the actual sale, then, it is the same as the fl oor in terms of delivery, F&I, etc.

Robert Revere: They sell the appointment and the car but they do not handle F&I. We tried that and it hurt our back-end gross.

Brian Benstock: Our Customer Relationship Center sets the appointments and follows up with the customer. The sales team sells the car.

Do you utilize a speciÞ c person/persons for the initial calls and appointment setting?

Ray Lazick: Yes.

Tom Christopoulos: Yes. Myself.

David Handel: Yes.

Mark Kanter: No - all of my Internet Sales Managers fi eld their own calls and make their own appointments.

Robert Revere: We have specialists who handle our phone leads to set appts and the sales team sells the car. Our internet team handles their leads from beginning to end.

Brian Benstock: Yes. We have a team and it has grown as our business has continued to grow.

What key metrics do you measure to keep your Internet department improving? (Example: Close Rate, Appointment show, Cost per sales, ROI)

Ray Lazick: Close ratio and appointment show.

Tom Christopoulos: Amount of Leads/Sales

David Handel: Cost per sale is the most important to me. I also look closely at Closing Ratio. Response Time is important, but not as critical as following up on a regular schedule. In addition, I look at our personal Website Pages Viewed as a measure of how many and how long consumers stay on our site. Our websites are my responsibility.

Mark Kanter: We measure every quantifi able statistic to ensure that we are managing our department correctly and effi ciently. The only way to ensure success is to measure your successes and failures.

Robert Revere: Leads, Lead source, Closing percentage, Cost per Sale, Dept Profi t.

Brian Benstock: Visitors to our website, Leads, , Closing percentage, Cost per lead and Cost per Sale.

Can you share with us what those metrics are for you today?

Ray Lazick: 17 percent appointment, 14 percent close.

Tom Christopoulos: Amount of Leads/Sales.

David Handel: Cost per sale is down to $201.26 (compares to $450 for other media)! Our group Closing Ratio stands at 12.7 percentt. The Internet Department accounts for a minimum of 26.3 percentof group sales. Website Pages Viewed have

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risen from 26,000 to 90,000 + im my fi rst year at Rosen Motors.

Mark Kanter: Those, I think I have to keep to myself. Sorry.

Robert Revere: Our close ratio is 22 percent and our cost per sale is only $165.

Brian Benstock: We have increased our closing ratio from seven percent up to 25 percent in only three months.

What is your view of third-party lead aggregators?

Ray Lazick: Necessary part of lead generation process.

Tom Christopoulos: A necessity for building sales.

David Handel: Third-party lead providers are absolutely essential. In order to have a dedicated staff, you MUST give them the opportunity to earn a good living. A great Internet Sales Manager needs (and can handle) 125-175 leads per month. Be wary of lead providers that rely on unmonitored “mom & pop” affi liates that generate their leads through spam and pop-ups!

Mark Kanter: Third-party aggregators are very good, if you measure their success. If they work well for you, keep them. If they are not producing, then it is time to let them go. Like everything, you need to measure every expenditure.

Robert Revere: We get leads from customers that we would not be able to get otherwise.

Brian Benstock: We have a blended marketing strategy where we use third-party leads & leads from our own website to get the best results. The aggregators combine the best leads for the lowest price.

What element of service do you expect out of your third-party lead aggregator(s)? (Example: Reps that understand my market and the business)

Ray Lazick: We expect this from our aggregator.

Tom Christopoulos: Quality of leads, Scrubbed Leads. Meaning phone numbers and email. I don’t like to waste my time.

David Handel: With nine franchises to manage, it is important that my reps are readily available and make necessary changes for me graciously and expediently. If I replace an Internet Sales Manager, I

need each provider to change the contact name as soon as possible. I treat my reps with respect and I expect the same in return. Go the extra step for me and I will sing your praises.

Mark Kanter: I expect the third-party sources to enable adequate scrubbing procedures. My staff and I don’t like to fi eld leads from Mr. Mickey Mouse or Mrs. Jane Doe. I would like the lead generators to check the leads for adequate information such as: email addresses, working phone numbers, etc. are the ones that will survive in the long run. The happier the dealers are, the most likely the third parties will survive.

Robert Revere: The most important thing is that their leads have a high closing percentage and we have eliminated all of the providers that don’t perform and that don’t have a low cost per sale.

Brian Benstock: I want someone who can help me sell more cars and make more money. Period.

Ray Lazick is the Internet Director at Georgetown Chrysler Jeep. He can be contacted at 800.601.3197, or by email at rlazick@autosuccess.biz.

Tom Christopoulos is the Sales Manager at Lexus of Watertown. He can be contacted at 800.601.3198, or by email at tchristopoulos@autosuccess.biz.

David Handel is the Internet Director at Rosen Auto Group. He can be contacted at 800.601.3201, or by email at dhandel@autosuccess.biz.

Mark Kanter is the eCommerce Sales Director at Bill Jacobs Automotive Group. He can be contacted at 800.601.3213, or by email at mkanter@autosuccess.biz.

Robert Revere is the eCommerce Director at Courtesy Chevrolet. He can be contacted at 866.873.0034, or by email at rrevere@autosuccess.biz.

Brian Benstock is the General Manager and Vice President at Paragon Honda. He can be contacted at 800.601.3214, or by email at bbenstock@autosuccess.biz.

Patrick Luck is the Editor and Publisher of AutoSuccess Magazine. He can be contacted at 800.331.9507, or by email at pat@autosuccess.biz.

continued

Targeted Marketing

CraigColender

It is vitally important for a dealership (or any business for that matter) to know where it’s prospects and customers are

coming from. It is very helpful for business to be able to quantify the intrinsic value of a customer, track percentages and results, analyze advertising trends and determine process effectiveness. Most CRM solutions provide the tools that enable dealership personnel to accomplish these tasks easily. The primary reason that CRM implantations succeed is that the end users (managers and salespeople) view the CRM process as a productive/pro active record keeping and marketing system.

Make sure that the CRM solution that you choose features a dynamic marketing

component. Effective CRM marketing communicates the dealership’s message to those most effected. When manufacturers announce new rebates on models, effective CRM marketing will enable the dealership to communicate the manufacturer’s offer to the most likely prospects. (If you’re selling Buicks) This might include the dealership’s 3 year old and older LeSabre

owners, LeSabre lessees a few months from termination, and the unsold LeSabre prospects from the preceding six months. This targeted approach to retail marketing completes the CRM circle: customers and prospects are logged, tracked and followed and the informative data enables the dealership to identify trends and opportunities and then targeted marketing drives the customers and prospects back into the dealership. As managers and salespeople begin to see the tangible results that targeted database marketing delivers, their enthusiasm will give the dealership’s CRM process the energy necessary to succeed.

Craig Colender is the National Sales Manager for ProResponse. He can be contacted at 800.601.3217, or by email at ccolender@autosuccess.biz.

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Your Selling Self-ImageYour Self-Image is a Key Part of Your Personality

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sales and training solutionBrianTracy

Your self image is often called your inner mirror. You look into this mirror in every situation to see how you should

perform in front of your “audience”. You always behave on the outside in a manner consistent with the picture you have inside yourself.

For example, if you see a calm, confi dent and competent refl ection, you will act in just those ways. You will be positive and happy. You will perform well and achieve excellent results. If, for any reason, it doesn’t go well at that time, you will throw it off and dismiss it as a temporary situation. Your self-image is clear. In your mind’s eye, you must see yourself as good and capable in every arena in order to fi nd success.

The most rapid improvements in sales results come from improving your self image. The moment you see yourself in a new way, your behavior improves to mimic your vision, and, as a result, you’ll earn better results.

Some years ago when I was selling club memberships from offi ce to offi ce, I would end my presentation by giving the prospect a booklet outlining the membership benefi ts and encourage him to “think about it.” My self-image was such that I could not bring myself to ask the prospect to make a buying decision. All day long, I would go from offi ce to offi ce giving my presentation and leaving a little book with descriptions to read. And, as you might imagine, I wasn’t making sales. When I called people back after they had time to think about it, they showed only disinterest.

I was getting desperate. I was seeing prospects, but making very few sales. Then, I had a revelation that changed my career. I realized that it was my fear of asking for a decision, not my prospects, that was the issue. It was me. I needed to change my self image and, consequently, my behavior if I wanted improved results.

The very next morning, I made the decision that I would not call back on a prospect. The size of the purchase was small, and when I had completed my presentation, the prospect would know everything needed to make a decision. When I had fi nished my fi rst newly-developed presentation, the prospect said, “Let me think it over.” I smiled and told him I didn’t make call backs because I was too busy, and then I said, “You know everything you need to know to make a decision right now. Why don’t you just take it?”

I remember him shrugging his shoulders and saying, “OK. I’ll take it.

I walked out of that offi ce on a cloud. That very day I tripled my sales. That week, I sold more than anyone else in the company. By the end of the month, they had made me the sales manager with 42 people under me. I went from making one or two sales per week to making 10 or 15. I went from worrying about money to a salary. My sales life took off, and, with a few exceptions, never stopped. The turning point was that conscious choice to modify my self image and make it more consistent with the results I wanted rather than the results I was getting.

To immediately put these ideas into action begin to see yourself the way you want to be. See a strong, confi dent, competent and professional self. The person you see is the person you will be. Second, identify an area of selling where your ideas about yourself are holding you back. You perform on the outside the way you see yourself on the inside.

Brian Tracy is the Chairman & CEO of Brian Tracy International. He can be contacted at 866.300.9881, or by email at btracy@autosuccess.biz.

july 2004 21

Networking Success

JoeTakash

We have been networking our entire lives. Discovering new restaurants, a good school system for your kids, and

the right neighborhood in which to raise your family, are all (usually) the result of networking. Personal networking occurs naturally as part of our daily interactions with others.

Business networking is a skill. Anyone can develop the ability to network regardless of his/her natural disposition. Once we practice networking as a skill, we realize that we can learn to network well. All it takes is planning and practice.

Eight tools to become a master networker.

1. Make a great Þ rst impression:

Every time you meet someone new, think, “SHE is the key.” S.H.E. stands for Smile/Handshake/Eye Contact. By greeting people with a genuine smile, a fi rm and friendly handshake, and direct eye contact, you set a positive tone and make the best fi rst impression possible. And fi rst impressions are what people remember.

2. Be a name-learning machine: Knowing someone’s name demonstrates that you value the person and that you have differentiated him or her from the crowd. It says, “I remember you; you made a good impression on me.” There is no better way

to make others feel good about themselves, and also to have a positive impression of you. One way to remember names more easily is to repeat the name after you are introduced, followed by, “It’s nice to meet you,” or a similarly appropriate statement. In your mind, associate the name with someone you know, with a physical feature of the person you are meeting, or anything that will jog your memory down the road.

3. Ask open-ended questions:

• Tell me about your job. • What are your most important responsibilities? • What do you like most about what you do? • Where are you from originally? • What are you passionate about? • What do you like to do in your free time?

Asking people questions about themselves and showing a genuine interest in their answers is the best way to show appreciation, and it’s a potent networking tool.

4. Master the art of listening:

Great leaders have mastered the art of being great listeners. A simple question to ask yourself is, “Am I fully engaged when listening?” Fully engaged means being entirely consumed in the other person and what he/she is saying. So eliminate distractions such as cell phones, and close your offi ce door. Show attentive body language by facing the other person and looking him/her in the eyes. Practice silence so you don’t violate the “don’ts” of listening, which include rehearsing what you want to say next, fi nishing people’s sentences, and interrupting.

5. Establish common ground:

When you fi nd common ground with someone, you raise the level of the networking relationship from average to great, because you’ve planted the most important seed for all relationships – a common, shared interest. From this foundation, you can build a relationship

of respect and friendship, which can increase your business. People like to do business with people they like. To fi nd common ground, apply the “ask and listen” technique. Use open-ended questions, like those in point three, to bring you closer to standing on common ground with anyone you meet.

6. Learn to help others before yourself:

Some people fail at networking because it’s obvious they are only out to help themselves. The most successful networkers take the opposite approach. They think of the many different ways they can help other people before helping themselves. For example, if you meet a freelance photographer who is starting her own business, you might be able to refer her to a graphic artist you sold a car to, so that she can get her business cards done. This web of networking creates success for all involved. To put yourself in this mindset, think of yourself as the networking coordinator. In this role you, make sure that everyone benefi ts from each other as much as possible. When you are constantly on the lookout for ways to help other people, they will trust you and, by extension, your business.

7. Describe how what you do helps others:

When you tell others about your job, think of them fi rst and explain how what you do helps others, be creative. People want to know how a relationship with you can benefi t them. It gives them something of interest to tell others about you.

8. Follow up and work your network:

Establish a system to record the data of contacts you’ve acquired and use it. An Excel spreadsheet is easy to start. Contact people on a regular basis. This follow-up activity will keep you in the front of people’s minds when it comes time to do business.

Joe Takash is the President of Victory Consulting. He can be contacted at 800.215.4776, or by email at jtakash@autosuccess.biz.

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sales and training solution

Asking people questions about themselves and showing a genuine interest in their answers is the best way to show appreciation, and it�s a potent networking tool.

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5 Rules for EffectiveWritten Sales Communication

DawnJosephson

When your written documents get to the point quickly and effectively, you will turn more prospects into clients.

1. Know the speciÞ cs of your audience. Tailor your message to your clients’ demographics. For example, if you’re writing promotional materials for a new car, and the majority of the people who come to your dealership are older, well-established professionals, you’ll want to highlight the car’s safety features and reliability record. However, if your main clientele were single, younger people, you’d want to emphasize the car’s turbo engine or “fast and trendy” image.

Survey your most loyal customers to determine which demographic gives you the most business. Also, keep track of those who visit your dealership, even if they don’t buy. Know who walks through your doors, fi nd out what’s important to them, and then tailor your message appropriately.

2. Organize your material according to the way your reader thinks about the subject. Realize that not everyone thinks like you. Just because you want your message to be organized one way does not mean your customers would agree. For example, one company created a free informational booklet about their product and organized it so that the product’s most popular features appeared fi rst. When customers still called with questions that were clearly answered in the text, the company was stumped as to why their customers weren’t reading the booklet. After interviewing some of their customers, the company discovered

that their customers found the booklet confusing.

The better you know your clientele, the better you can organize information to meet their wants and needs. How do they think about your product? Do they typically want to know the bottom line price fi rst, and then the features and benefi ts? Do they tend to think testimonials are more important than facts? When you understand how your customers think about your product, you can more easily present your information in a way that’s logical to them.

3. Write to express, not to impress. Examine each marketing piece you write and distill its core message or purpose down to one or two sentences. If you can’t do that, then your piece is not focused. If that’s the case, then go back to each paragraph within the piece and try to condense each down to one or two sentences. String those new sentences together, and then pinpoint your marketing piece’s purposes. That’s the core message you want to express. Rewrite the piece with the core message in mind, using common, everyday language. True genius is when you can explain your idea in such a way that a fi ve-year-old child can understand it.

4. In messages containing both goodand bad news, give the bad news Þ rst. At some point, every sales person will have to deliver bad news to a customer. Whenever you communicate bad news in writing, state it fi rst, and then counter it with a bit of good news.

For example, in a follow-up letter to a prospect you could write, “After checking, I discovered that the Model X doesn’t

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sales and training solution

come in red. It does, however, come with the leather seats you requested and you can take delivery by Friday.” By ending with the good news, you take the sting off the bad news and leave your reader with a positive image.

5. Write colloquially when appropriate. People like to read documents that sound as if the message is coming from a real person. If you write too formally, you can quickly lose your reader. Determining your tone is important, because a follow-up letter should not have the same tone as web copy.

Don’t use an excessively formal tone as a way to show expertise. Keep the tone of your writing colloquial and approachable.

Writing for ProÞ tsKeep the fi ve rules for effective written sales communication in mind. Remember, your ability to write clearly and succinctly will make your sales pieces stand out, and enable you to win the deal.

Dawn Josephson is the President and Founder of Cameo Publications. She can be contacted at 800.452.4806, or by email at djosephson@autosuccess.biz.

True genius is when you can explain your idea in such a way that a Þ ve-year-old child can understand it.

Today is the Day

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sales and training solutionAdamDeGraide

The decisions we make today shape our tomorrows and all of our yesterdays.

Everything I am today, the way I look, the way I think, the way I speak, the way I talk, the way I lead my family and employees, is all a result of either the good or bad that I have put into my life. It is true that we “reap what we sow”. Our minds and hearts are like computers. If we put junk in we get junk out. If we put good and positive in, the positive comes out. I often ask myself if we truly understand the power of our choices. The choices we make today will determine not only our future but the future of those around us. There are several questions that I ask myself to gauge my effectiveness in leading people:

1. Did I seek to serve others today or were my actions selfi shly motivated?2. Did I equip and inspire others or did I force my will on those who work along side of me?3. Would I want the actions and decisions I made today published in tomorrow’s paper for everyone to read?4. Did I leave anything of lasting value in someone else’s life?5. Did I balance my priorities of faith, family and work?

One of the secrets to truly having a lasting positive effect on people is to fi rst value yourself. It has been said that you cannot give what you do not have. In order for us to properly lead and love people, we must fi rst love and value ourselves. This can be diffi cult at times, however, it is essential to have a healthy self image before we can effectively help others. For me, the realization that God loves me, values me and has a purpose for me, thrusts me forward with the desire to help others. God doesn’t make junk and therefore, I am not junk. My mind, body and spirit need to be cared for because they are precious. The same is true for others around us. Do we treat others as junk or as the precious gift that they are?

True success is not determined by how much money or things we accumulate in this life. To me success is being able to put my head on the pillow and have a clear conscience and a restful night’s sleep. This peace can only be found when we have made the determination that today we will make a difference. Today I will keep my priorities straight. Today I will serve others instead of myself. Today

I will operate with integrity and lead others by example. Today I will love and lead my family in the right direction. Today is the best day that has ever been and I will make the best of it.

There have been many days that I haven’t followed these principles and sure enough the day left me wanting. I have learned that we are creatures of habit whether we like it or not. I also realized that I have many bad habits. Therefore, these bad habits needed to be replaced with good ones. By understanding this truth I have been able to replace a lot of my bad habits with good ones, and I continue to try to establish good habits every day.

When I fi rst determined to change my life and focus on the right priorities, it was an overwhelming task. I knew all of my faults, and there were many. The very thought of changing all of my bad habits deterred me from changing even one of them. Quite simply, there were too many. However, a very wise woman (my mother) told me a secret I will never forget.

God wants you to take one problem at a time, be faithful and picture the positive outcome until it is fi xed and then move on to the next.

Although I am not perfect, my life has progressively gotten better while I continue to seek becoming the best man I can be. Bad habits are easy to form, but hard to live with. Good habits are hard to form, but easy to live with. I have also found there is only one way to change, through choice and the development of the disciplines necessary to implement those changes over time, consistently and daily.

Today is all we have. Yesterday is gone and tomorrow has not yet come. Make the right choices today. John C. Maxwell says, “Successful people make right decisions early and manage those decisions daily.” Remember, the decisions we make today shape our tomorrows and all of our yesterdays. Choose wisely. Use the fi ve questions listed to evaluate your day.

“The decisions we make today shape our tomorrows and all of our yesterdays. “

Adam DeGraide is an Owner of BZResults.com. He can be contacted at 800.526.9804, or by email atadegraide@autosuccess.biz.

july 2004 23

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MarkTewart

You Can Make Things HappenThoreau once said, “Things don’t change, people do.” If things are to happen, you must make them happen. Good people

and businesses always make things happen. Let’s look at the essential rules of making things happen.

Rule 1 – Always have a CEO attitude – You must start by taking responsibility for all things both good and bad. Accept that your company signs your check and you fi ll in the numbers. Your own personal philosophy, which is determined strictly by choice and your own free will, determines your fi rst step in success or failure.

Rule 2 – Every business operates two businesses: People and Marketing. If you are great with people but don’t have people to speak to, you fail. Marketing has become essential to all sales people.

Rule 3 – Lead generation equals dollar-creation – The more leads you generate the more money you earn. How do you create leads? Develop a marketing web – Draw a small circle on a piece of paper and put the name of your company in the middle. (Your company, not the one that signs your check). Now draw lines in different directions that look like spokes coming out of the circle. Label each spoke as a source of leads. (Example: walk-ins, incoming sales calls, referrals, repeats, be-backs, service, networking, prospecting etc.) Notice that each spoke can have multiple spokes that sprout from it.

Rule 5 – Add value fi rst – The perception of price is always in relation to the value perceived. Perception is reality for your customers. What do they perceive to be the value in your offer, product, you, or the business? To create value you must TLC-think like a customer--and then take action.

Rule 6 – Give HFG - hope for gain. People always want something better than what they have. It’s human nature. Hope for Gain follows the pleasure versus pain rule of life. People act to either fi nd pleasure or avoid pain. Hope for gain moves people toward pleasure.

Rule 7 – Offer risk reversal - Take away your customers’ risk and it creates urgency in the eyes of the customer. You must

lower the barriers of entry that discourage customer traffi c. Risk reversal allows your customer to avoid pain.

Rule 8 – Provide leverage – Hope for gain and risk reversal provide leverage for people to take action. You must always be thinking of ways that your customers can get excited about contacting you now. Urgency, emotions, social proof, incentives and testimonials all provide leverage. Rule 9 – Facts tell; stories sell- Stories add the most important element of sales and marketing. People think in pictures. People relate to stories that they can see themselves in the staring role. Make them the star. People will avoid advertising and marketing on purpose, but they will react to a good story.

Rule 10 – Utilize the law of obligation and reciprocation – In sales or marketing, you must be willing to add the wow factor. You must be willing to give people extra service, extra offers, extra emotion, extra humor, extra enthusiasm... extra everything, until the customer feels an overwhelming obligation to give you a chance.

Now let me give you some examples to create leads using these rules.

1. – Record a two to fi ve minute be-back CD that you give to each customer who doesn’t buy a car and ask them to play it on the way home. On the CD, thank the customer for the opportunity, tell them your SDP--specifi c defi ning proposition- to get them excited about doing business with you and purchase your product.

2. Nice trade call – Every time you take a nice trade-in, call at least 20 of your sold customers and let them in on a secret. Let them know about the beautiful vehicle you now have and how it hasn’t been put all the way though service and clean-up yet. Let them know you’re calling a few of your preferred customers about the newly aquired vehicle. If they don’t want it, ask them who might be.

3. Create afÞ liations – Who does business with whom you want to do business? Always think of how you can add value to them fi rst. What can you do to help their business? Offer coupon swaps. Offer to create a coupon for a two for one special at their restaurant. In return, ask that they

distribute a coupon from your business.

4. Offer a free program – Offer a thirty minute program to some of the varying associations on how to buy a vehicle. Take brochures with coupons offering value that would make them take action to receive something of value from you. Create a lead fi rst.

5. Postcards – Postcards are cheap. You can send to targeted markets, with a targeted message, such as, “Employee Purchase Program – Buy a vehicle for what I would pay!”

6. Val-Packs – Postcard advertising made even cheaper.

7. Orphan Owners - Call every orphan owner and offer them something of value. If you offer all the clients who’ve not been contacted the chance to do business with you, a large percentage will consider doing more business with you in the future.

8. FSBO call – Call everyone selling your brand of vehicle and ask them about their trade. Offer to get an appraisal and to help them purchase their new vehicle.

9. Create a Free Special Report – “How to buy a vehicle” – You could combine your postcards with this message and once you’ve created a lead through their response by fax, phone or email, you can follow up after sending your special report.

10. Create your own web site – Put your web site address on all your business cards, mailing, materials etc. Put your picture, biography, special offers, recipe of the month, etc. Make people go to your site for a special offer.

John Wooden said, “Don’t let what you can’t do interfere with what you can do.” You can’t change economies, but you can work daily to change your actions. A little extra effort put forth everyday will help build a successful business. Make it happen!

Mark Tewart is the President of Tewart Enterprises. He can be contacted at 866.429.6844, or by email at mtewart@autosuccess.biz.

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How to Avoid and Overcome NO

GeorgeJackson

One of the most diffi cult things to do in the business offi ce, or any sales environment, is to overcome a broad objection

when attempting to bring a customer to a decision. Broad objections come in many forms including “I don’t need it,” “I never buy those,” or “I’ll take my chances.” The broadest objection of all is simply “No.” The best way to overcome an objection is to avoid it, and the second thing to do is prepare for and expect it.

Avoiding NoThe main reason a customer says no is because he/she was asked a bad closing question. When any sales person uses a direct close such as “So, what do you think?” or “Will that work for you?” or “Do you want it?” that sales person is inviting a negative response. The question is what put the customer in a position to give that no answer. Ask better closing questions, ones that give the customer a choice. For example, “Would you like fi ve or six years of coverage?” or “Which plan works best for you?” or “Would you like joint

or single life coverage?” are much better ways to ask the customer to buy your products. Remember that direct closes lead to negative reactions, but ones with choices lead to sales.

Preparing For NoWhen a customer buys from you, he/she is saying yes to you as a person and yes to the quality of your presentation. One of the hardest things for a sales person to admit, is that the customer actually said no because of them. It’s easy to label the customer as diffi cult or tough and move on to the next one. Every once in a while, you must look at yourself in the mirror and ask if you would buy as a result of your own presentation. Your body language, enthusiasm, and knowledge communicate a message to the customer about your confi dence and interest in his or her needs. Your presentation skills communicate to the customer your level of competence as well as your interest in people. If the customer is actually saying no to you and the quality of your presentation, improve it.

Expecting NoFinally, the best way to overcome any broad objection is expect it and have a response for

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f&i solution

it. Most people say no simply to avoid buying without revealing the true objection. You need to fi nd out the true objection, and after doing so, you must acknowledge the objection and attempt to fi nd out the details of why the customer balks at the purchase. For example, “Mr. Jones, I can appreciate that, but what concerns you most about the coverage?” This works extremely well. Once the customer offers the specifi c objection, it will then be much easier to overcome.

Put yourself in a position to avoid ‘no’ by asking a good, choice close and prepare so the customer can’t say no to you or the quality of your presentation. If you still get a no, attempt to uncover the true objection and then overcome it. If you do this, you will increase your sales and be more successful.

George Jackson is the Director of F&I Training for American Financial & Automotive Services, Inc. He can be contacted at 866.280.0301, or by email at gjackson@autosuccess.biz.

july 2004 27

DeÞ ning a Dealer�s �Corporate Culture�

CarolMartin

If your dealership has turnover, where do the people go? Do they leave the business or do they fi nd a better fi t for themselves

within the car business? How does turnover affect the stability of your dealership and its revenue stream?

This article is the fi rst in a three-part series dealing with the critical importance of the workplace, the business environment, or the “corporate culture” of a dealership and what it means to your top line and your bottom line.

• Defi ning a dealership’s “corporate culture” (this article)• Retaining top performers • Communications and individual management

Components Affecting the Dealership’s “Corporate Culture”

Automobile dealerships vary in many ways:

• Age• Location• Size• Growth rate and growth commitment• Degree of skill and formality in the management system• Personalities of the managers and other key players

Age:The older a dealership, the more tradition-bound it is likely to be. Traditions, or “the way we do things around here,” are like an entirely distinct set of controls and rules. There is certainly a place for traditions and we hope they will be benefi cial to our future. We must ask two questions:

• Do all of our employees really thrive in an atmoshere of control and rules?• What if only some of our players

thrive in an atmoshere of control and rules? How do we manage the others?

Start-up dealerships are often more entrepreneurial than established dealerships because they are not yet constrained by a set of rules. The founding owner of the new dealership might be busy selling cars and not administering the business- he or she will rely on a limited staff of highly motivated employees to do that.

Location:“Geographical” refers to more than place. It also refers to the environmental differences between a dealership in Brooklyn, New York and Park City, Utah. Cultural demographics, industry mix, and lifestyle differences all play a role in how a dealership will approach business. A dealership with locations in multiple geographies may employ different hiring, marketing, and managing philosophies in each territory.

Size:Size is similar to and often related to a dealership’s age. The work environment of a small dealership is like a family where everyone has access to dad and mom and decision-making is quick and consistent. In the larger dealership, because of the number of employees and the value of the business, there are more levels of management, controls, rules, and guidelines. The larger dealership may also offer better benefi ts, training and career opportunities, and these may be important to some employees, but probably not all employees.

Growth rate and growth commitment:Most auto dealerships say they are committed to growth and most dealer principals will say that profi table growth is a dealership goal. However, not everyone defi nes growth the same way. How motivated is the dealership principal to achieve high levels of growth, or is the real goal to sustain personal income and freedom? In recent years we have witnessed intense competition; dealerships are merging, and large dealerships develop

into much larger dealerships through aggressively managed growth plans.

Degree of skill andformality in the management system:Business schools spend little time teaching managers how to manage the individual. There is no “Standard User’s Manual” for employee management and motivation. Nor is there one method of managing all employees. People are different; managers are different and their motivations for working and thriving in the dealership are diverse. In the third article in this series, we will discuss a few simple management systems that genuinely empower employees and lock them into accountability for their results.

Personalities of themanagers and other key players:The single greatest “wild card” in a workplace is the personality of the manager and one management system does not work for all. Just as there are differences in dealership cultures, there are differences in employee personalities. Therefore, before hiring new employees, the dealership must assess its own environment and workplace. Will an ego driven salesperson thrive in this dealership, or is a different kind of sales personality required? Will a good salesperson be a good sales manager? Is the outstanding service technician really cut out to be a service advisor? Will the general manager who is successful in a dealership across town be successful in your dealership?

Assessing the dealership environment helps to fi nd out “what is working now.” When assessing potential employees, the dealership looks for candidates who can meet the success profi le of the dealership.

Carol Martin is a Senior Consultant with The Omnia Group. She can be contacted at 800.601.3216, or by email at cmartin@autosuccess.biz.

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leadership solution

�Average is the beginning of sucks.�- Jim Ziegler

Maximize Your Internet Sales Close Rate

DeanEvans

Going through a diagnostic of every step in your sales process by asking pertinent questions can give you a precise

area for improvement, and you can make adjustments accordingly.

Here’s a check list of questions to ask when you aren’t getting the close rates you want:

Is your response time within 24 hours? Responding within 10 minutes to a prospect who submits a lead is most effective in most cases, they’ll still be on line. If within 10 minutes seems impossible for your team, strive to respond within the fi rst 24 hours. In addition, have staff available during weekends or off hours so your prospects don’t have to wait. Be sure to use auto responder emails so, no matter what, the prospect gets immediate communication back from you.

ISMs should employ the LIFO method when it comes to responding to Internet leads – that’s last in, fi rst out. Acting quickly on new leads is critical. If a lead has been sitting over the weekend, then it can wait another 20 minutes. But if it just came in, you should launch an immediate response. So, always act on the freshest leads fi rst.

If you’re not clear how quickly your Internet team is following up with its leads, you should be able to get that information from your lead provider. A good lead provider will regularly conduct consumer surveys to make sure its customers are getting responses from dealers. Your lead provider should be able to tell you when consumers reported that they were contacted, as well as the quality of the communication with the dealer.

What is your appointment-to-lead ratio?Always look at this ratio: appointments set to leads. It’s important to know this because if your team is not setting the appointments, the problem may be in your response process and interaction with prospects. If you are setting appointments, but the prospect is not coming in, your

business proposition for the prospects is not compelling enough.

Do you have ISMs who arededicated only to Internet prospects?When it comes to selling to Internet customers, the approach should be different from selling to fl oor ups. Internet customers are usually looking for a different experience. Also, if a lead is passed around to different sales people, the weaker the relationship is with the customer and the less likely they’ll be to buy. Typically, when leads are passed around randomly, follow-up decreases to about two phone calls and no one is really accountable. Having sales people who are dedicated to Internet customers yields the highest profi t per vehicle sold.

How are your communication skills?Examples of “the basics” are – having no grammatical or spelling mistakes in your emails and leaving voice mail messages that are clear and concise. When leaving your phone number, say it twice and speak clearly and slowly.

Are you giving your Internetprospects something to build trust,such as competitive upfront pricing?The most important thing to do with your Internet prospects is to get them to come into the dealership. The key is to build trust. By offering special pricing and incentives to Internet customers, you make it worth their while to come in and meet you in person. As for pricing, if you don’t want to be locked into a price, offer them a range with various packages.

Do you work each lead until it�s �dead�?It’s essential to contact your leads as soon as possible. Even if a prospect does not buy right away, it’s important to continue to market to them. While some ISMs close their leads in about two weeks, the overall average is more in the range of 45-90 days. So, continuing to communicate with these prospects keeps them engaged until they’re ready to buy.

How�s your pipeline?Leads come in at different stages of buying readiness. Understanding where your lead

is in their buying cycle should dictate your sales approach. Having this information will also enable you to manage you sales pipeline. Close rates may seem low at certain points if you do not have a well-managed pipeline. Create a long term follow-up schedule in your CRM/lead management tool or Outlook calendar, and keep your pipeline full.

Do you use mailing campaignsto communicate with your prospects?While email is the most cost-effective way to communicate with your Internet prospects, sending Internet customers coupons and incentives via regular mail campaigns can be an effective tool. Most often you will get a mailing address on your lead form, so using that information as another way to communicate can be a great way to capture Internet customers’ attention. Always transfer Internet customers’ information to your direct mail database.

Do you have enough ISMs to handlethe lead volume in your market area? A good rule of thumb is that one ISM can handle about 100 leads per month. An ISM that is overloaded cannot properly manage their leads, and they’ll be compelled to “cherry pick” leads and you can lose sales.

If you have a lot of leads available in your market area, it’s best to grow your team so that you have enough ISMs on board to respond to that consumer interest. Different sales people can handle a different number of leads. Determine the threshold of effectiveness for each ISM.

Are you only getting leads for vehicles you have available and turning off leads for vehicles that are hard to get or have a poor history of Internet sales?

You lead provider should be fl exible enough that you can request leads only for those vehicles you have to sell. You shouldn’t have to pay for leads that you have less of a chance to sell to.

Are you getting leads from territoriesthat are your prime selling areas?Having a clear understanding of your optimal sales territory is essential. This

www.autosuccess.bizsuccessful solutions at28

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marketing solution

doesn’t mean you have to stay within a small, local territory; some dealers do very well with leads from a wide radius. The key is to have a lead provider that is fl exible enough to adjust your territory according to your needs and to be able to offer the volume of leads you require in your optimal market area.

Do you know the close ratesfor each of your lead providers?Tracking the results from your leads by lead source, whether it be your OEM, your own site, or your different third party providers will help you weed out weak performers and know where to direct your Internet budget.

Do you know how to useyour CRM/lead management tool?Properly using your CRM tool, to its full potential can take care of tracking the important metrics you need to see, your communications with your prospects, etc. in order to take full ownership of your close rates and fi ne tune the areas that need to be improved.

Do you have crystal clear objectives? It’s critical that everyone in the Internet department knows exactly what their objectives are and that this awareness is part of the overall dealership philosophy and culture. When everyone knows their short and long term goals and the steps they need to get there, productivity increases tenfold. It’s essential that your GM has a clear picture in mind and communicates this to you the team.

Are you seeing reality? If you want your Internet department to be top of the line, you should strive for a high level of awareness of the hard metrics that relate to each step in your sales process, from appointment sets to appointment shows, to close rates, sales cycle times, grosses, and more. This will help you see reality, rather that basing decisions on a hunch. Then you can do a clear diagnosis of when and where problems arise and correct any weak links in the chain with precision.

Dean Evans is the Vice President of Marketing at Dealix Corporation. He can be contacted at 800.526.9828, or by email at devans@autosuccess.biz.

is web based, easy to use, and that automates as much as possible.

PeopleOne of the most diffi cult tasks in business is to fi nd, and keep, good people. You can hire someone who gives a great interview, or talks the talk, but until you fi nd someone willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done, you merely have an employee who is only with you until someone better comes along. The best way to solve this problem is to create a positive and productive work environment that no one wants to leave.

The leadership in your dealership must be willing to manage the people more than the work in front of them. People follow good leaders. Good leaders focus on serving their people and have a genuine desire to make them better sales people. This begins with training them on the processes and skills they need to succeed. Also, be willing to sing their praises when they do a good job and to constructively correct them when they do not. In the end, like attracts like, and if you continue to grow and improve, your people will do the same. We are fortunate enough to have strong leadership and hands-on involvement from the top. Their vision and integrity helps keep us focused on doing what is right.

ProcessIf you have good people, but not a good process, you may not get good results. Processes from how to respond quickly to a lead to setting appointments, and delivering the vehicle, must be clearly outlined and adhered to by everyone involved. You must work out every scenario, and be ready to trash it and start over if it fails. There are also a few vendors in our industry that do get it and are willing to help you form the processes and set up the framework. Seek them out.

What all this teaches us is that dealers who work hard now to harness the power of the Internet will reap the benefi ts down the road. As we have seen with previous trends, they evolve over time, but the core principle of taking care of our customers never changes. Meet them on their terms and they will come back time and time again.

Ray Velasquez is the Internet Director at Ralph Schomp Automotive. He can be contacted at 800.526.9808, or by email at rvelasquez@autosuccess.biz.

continued

july 2004 29

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How can you eliminate all the elements of a promotion that do not give you the return on investment you need and at the same time improve on the aspects that produce exactly what you want? That�s the real question isn�t it? If you could invest advertising dollars only where you see great results and eliminate what doesn�t work, how many more cars could you sell? How much money would you make?

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Now, you�ve heard the cliché� Information is what? Right. Information is power. If you could look back upon the history of thousands of promotions, examine the mailing lists, read over the direct mail letters, track what worked, what didn�t, who bought, who didn�t, and why� would this be powerful information to you?

The reality is every direct mail promotion produces both good and bad results. The problem is being able to easily recognize which is which. That problem is solved! Now you can have all the information you need to ensure success at the touch of a button.

Imagine being able to know immediately which market areas produce results that exceed your expectations and more importantly which ones to avoid. Simply asking the computer� �How do we generate more trafÞ c and sell more cars?� J&L�s proprietary Response Analysis System directs us toward those activities that bring success, and away from those that don�t. We reÞ ne the offers, prices, strategies, locations, and even the days of the week that bring the highest return.

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But J&L can, and J&L does. Our statistics tell us that for the last 3.5 million pieces of mail delivered, the Response Analysis has helped our dealer clients sell an average of 33 cars for every 10,000 pieces of mail delivered!

The Response Analysis is the most powerful marketing tool in automotive advertising today. Find out why J&L�s dealership response rates have increased 72% in the last two years. This combined with unequaled professionalism and customer support is why 94% of all J&L customers continue their relationship with us for years.

Just ask them for yourself. Rick Hillman from Hollingsworth Mazda says, �J&L Marketing�s direct mail program is the most cost-efÞ cient form of advertising that I have seen in the thirty years that I�ve been in the car business.�

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You too can start experiencing consistent results from the most professional marketing company right now by contacting my ofÞ ce at 866.856.6782 and asking for Lisa Wilson. Or e-mail her at: lwilson@jandlmarketing.com. As soon as you contact us we will begin to create a growth strategy unique to your organization, producing more proÞ t, more volume, and more satisÞ ed customers.

Stop wasting money on prospects gone cold.Heat up your direct mail campaigns with the automotive industry’s bestalternative to registration data–Total Market Predictor™ (TMP™)*.

TMP identifies WHAT is currently parked in the garage; WHEN ahousehold is in the market for a new or used vehicle; and HOW MUCHa household is likely to spend on its next vehicle purchase.

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