AutoSuccessNov06

November 2006

From All of Us at AutoSuccess, Happy Thanksgiving

The InternetSales Trifecta

TRAINING – TECHNOLOGY - MERCHANDISING

From left to right: Jeff Bonnell and Cory L. Mosley

AutoTrader.com is now the exclusive listings provider for seven of the biggest sites.

With millions of shoppers each month, no one has more than AutoTrader.com. But hey, why stop there?

Now when you list on AutoTrader.com, you’ll also be listed on seven of the most popular sites on the Internet.

And when you add in all those shoppers, it’s practically impossible for people not to see your cars.

To reach the most buyers, call 1-888-249-6860.

Only one site will get your cars on all these sites.

©2006 AutoTrader.com is a trademark of TPI Holdings, Inc. and is used under license.

The Driving Force Behind Automotive Advertising 866-665-5507

CALL FOR A FREE MARKET REPORTEVENT SPECIALISTS ARE STANDING BY

Copyright © 2006 Turn-Key Events and it’s licensors.

The Bottom Line:

We provide the best Do-It-Yourself Sales Events in the nation. So far, our events have generated 273,125 ups this year alone.

NO TEAMS • NO COMMISSIONSJUST A TON OF QUALITY TRAFFIC.

CALL NOW AND RECEIVE A 10%

QUANTITY BONUS!!BOOTH#2699

AutoSuccess Magazine is published monthly at 3411 Pinnacle Gardens Drive, Louisville, Kentucky, 40245; 502.588.3155, fax 502.588.3170. Direct all subscription and customer service inquiries to 877.818.6620 or [email protected]. Subscription rate is $75 per year.

AutoSuccess welcomes unsolicited editorials and graphics (not responsible for their return). All submitted editorials and graphics are subject to editing for grammar, content and page length. AutoSuccess provides its contributing writers latitude in expressing advice and solutions;

views expressed are not necessarily those of AutoSuccess and by no means reflect any guarantees. AutoSuccess accepts no liability in respect of the content of any third party material appearing in this magazine or in respect of the content of any other magazine to which this

magazine may be linked from time to time. Always confer with legal counsel before implementing changes in procedures.© All contents copyrighted by AutoSuccess Magazine, a Division of Systems Marketing, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in

whole or part is prohibited without express written consent from AutoSuccess. AutoSuccess may occasionally make readers’ names available to other companies whose products and/or services may be of interest; readers may request that

names be removed by calling 877.818.6620. Printed in the USA. Postmaster: Send address changes to AutoSuccess Magazine, 3411 Pinnacle Gardens Drive, Louisville, Kentucky 40245.

8

9

10

12

14

18

20

21

22

26

28

30

32

33

34

36

37

38

40

41

42

Why Pay for the Entire Car

True Leadership: Making a Difference

Dedicate Yourself to Educate Yourself

No. 1 eDealer: Courtesy Chevrolet Shares Success on How to Get E-Mails Delivered Through Spam Filters

The Internet Sales TrifectaTraining - Technology - Merchandising

Top Gun

Know When to Quote a Price

The Perfect Way to Consistently Find More and More Clients

The Same is Lame:The Secret to Beating the Pants Off Your Competition and Putting More Money in Your Pocket

Just Give Me Five Minutes - I’llShow You How to Get Appointments

Unify and ConquerFrequency Economies and Presence Increase Dramatically

Attitude Determines Altitude...Income Altitude

An Attitude of Gratitude

Selling the Difference

The New Playing Field: Today’s Women’s Market

JeffMorrill

DeliaPassi

BrianTracy

CoryL.Mosley & JeffBonnell

ScottJoseph

JimmyVee & TravisMiller

MikeParsons

JerryShroff

DixonJudd

PeterBond & TerranceCox

TonyDupaquier

SeanWolfington

TomHopkins

DavidKain

SunnyKnocke

God is the source of all supply

JimYoungChoosing a Direct Mail Provider: The Who, Why and How of Increasing Sales Volume at Your Dealership

RalphPaglia

MichaelYorkThe Now Law of Time and Management...Carpe Diem

E-Mail and Multi-Channel Marketing: The New Frontier

MarkTewart

How to Maximize the Response to a Teamed Event

DavidThomas

Isaiah 40:8The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of Godshall stand forever.

Courtney Paris, Sales-improvement Strategist [email protected]

Brian Ankney, Sales-improvement [email protected]

Brian Balash, Sales-improvement [email protected]

Toni Stephens, Sales-improvement [email protected]

3411 Pinnacle Gardens DriveLouisville, Kentucky 40245

toll free: 877.818.6620 facsimile: 502.588.3170 web: www.SellingSuccessOnline.com

Patrick Luck, Editor & [email protected] Susan Givens, Vice [email protected] Thomas Williams, Creative [email protected] Dave Davis, Creative Strategist & [email protected]

helping to promote...

Scott’s Individualized Consultation Transcripts, Part 5

JesseBiter

The Treasury of Quotes

1212

Money GuaranteeMy Sales Event will bring you $100,000-$250,000 in gross profi t in 5 days GUARANTEEDor I will deduct the cost of advertising. You will experience 200-500+ customers walk through your doors in 5 days.

This guarantee is small potatoes compared to the tons of money that you will make from this event. That’s why I am so confi dent and can make these bold claims to you. Big dealerships, small dealer-ships, city dealerships, rural dealerships, it does not matter. We have been able to get results time and time again.

What Is This All About??? Big things, big break-throughs, big sales, big gross profi ts. And yes, you can do this without lying to or beating up your customers. That’s right! With a very good marketing plan, very good people, very good processes and understanding of proper desking principles you can get a ton of customers, sell a ton of vehicles and make a ton of money – THE RIGHT WAY.

For many 2006 has not been a banner year in traffi c, sales or profi ts. In fact, for many 2006 has been a real stinker. Many dealers and their personnel have begun to believe that it is just that way and you can’t push a market when it’s not there. Folks, I am here to tell you that those things are only opinion.

DO YOU WANT THE REAL TRUTH? Can you handle the real truth?

The real truth is that it was a 13 Trillion Dollareconomy last year in the US. 13 TRILLION! Now, if you believe that you and your dealership can’t get your fair share of 13 Trillion, then you can skip the rest of this letter because my company would not be a good fi t for you. If you don’t believe you can get your fair share of 13 Trillion Dollars, then you need to keep belly aching and whining about how bad things are.

However, if you aren’t willing to make excuses for the rest of your career about economies and manu-facturers and every other boogey man you can fi nd, then read on…

Tewart Enterprises Inc produces 5-day sales events for dealerships all across the country. We bring traffi c, LOTS OF TRAFFIC, with our promotions. We also bring a professional team of people to help you mange the sale and make it successful. We don’t bring drunks, drug addicts and derelicts. WE ARE PROFESSIONALS.

How Are We different?First of all, it’s our people. We have quality people. No vagabonds and rogues allowed. Secondly we have process and third we have experience. MOST OF ALL, we are an individual and organizational development company. Our mission is to leave your dealership better than when we came in. We will assist your people in growing their sales skills, people skills and deal process skills.

OpportunityDon’t let another weak month happen. If you would like to discuss the opportunity of what a Tewart Enterprises Inc. sales event can do for you:CALL 888 2 Tewart (888 283-9278)or e-mail us at [email protected] with the words “sales event” in the subject line and make sure to give us your contact info in the e-mail.

FREE BONUSFor all dealerships who schedule a sale with us in the next 30 days, I will include one month of our

distance learning program for FREE. You get our internet based sales training program available to you 24/7 for a month! ($497 Value!) Each person can view as many modules as they want and take a test on each module and the manager can track everyone’s usage and test scores.

FREE BONUS #2The fi rst 10 dealers who we schedule a sale with that mention this letter, I will give you my High Performance Sales DVD for FREE! ($597 Value)

“We have tried other companies and Tewart Enteprises is the best.” Lonnie Robertson, Dealer – Johnson’s of Chickasha – Chickasha, Oklahoma

$200,000 in 4 days at Jeff Wyler Auto Mall in Springfi eld, OH

P.S. I hope you come to hear me speak at the AutoSuccess Summit in Las Vegas in November. You can also subscribe to my free e-mail newsletter at www.tewart.com and make sure to come to my Workshop at the 2007 NADA Convention: 27 Marketing Secrets Guaranteed to Increase Your Traffi c and Sales in 30 Days or Less.

MARK TEWARTTewart Enterprises

8 www.sellingsuccessonline.com

Dedicate Yourself toEducate Yourself

TomHopkinssts fos ls ms sf fi s

sales and training solution

One of the most important lessons I’ve learned in life is that no one else is going to look out for you as well

as you will look out for yourself. To become and remain a professional in the automotive industry, you must recognize that you are in charge of your own education and act on that fact. Build on your strengths and correct your weaknesses. If you aren’t sure of what to work on fi rst, there is certainly someone in your life who will gladly assist you - your manager, your spouse, your children or a trusted friend.

There are some common, basic skills that apply to the business world. They all impact how well we relate to the needs of others to feel important when they’re around us, to accept the education we provide about our vehicles and the industry, and to help them own a vehicle that’s truly a good choice for them.

Here are six skill areas that I strongly recommend you consider developing or strengthening, as they have made all the difference for many of my students:

MemoryHaving a good memory is critical to anyone in today’s world, but especially so to those of us who meet many new people every week. I have learned to make a game of it in my career. I challenge myself to remember as many people and their stories as I can. There are some great courses and books written on this subject. Even if you learn and use only one small strategy, I guarantee you’ll see the benefi t of having done so. One little strategy that I learned and have used for years is to repeat each person’s name to myself four times when I fi rst hear it.

A Second LanguageConsider the part of the country in which you live and those people you do business with. As our country continually redefi nes itself by its people, be aware of the advantages of being able to communicate with others in their native tongues. Today’s projections show that both Hispanic and Asian portions of the population are on the increase. To be able to work with more people, you must learn more about them, their language and their cultures.

VoiceSince your clients choose to get involved with you based on what you say, doesn’t it make sense that you train your voice to give the highest level of professional presentation? If you’ve never considered voice training before, record yourself giving a portion of your presentation, then listen to it. Most of us hate the sound of our own voices. Just imagine how our clients must feel when listening to us. Your goal is to project your message with clarity and power.

Public SpeakingMany professionals in this business fi nd that giving short speeches in their communities helps build their name recognition and their business. Public speaking is also a great way to build your confi dence. Try your skills out by speaking to your child’s class about what you do or a hobby you have. Teachers love it when the students can learn fi rst-hand about careers. Join Toastmasters International. There are local chapters in just about every city. They provide excellent opportunities to hone your skills and meet other business professionals with whom you might do business or share referrals.

MathDon’t cringe on me here. I know many

people hate math. However, in business, you need to know some basic math skills really well. Invariably, you’ll have potential clients who will have champagne tastes and beer budgets. You need to understand what they can truly afford before trying to fi nd them the car of their dreams.

Know the current interest rates on vehicles and play with the math on a range of vehicle investments. Learn how to quickly determine what a monthly investment might be on a vehicle prior to persuading the client that it’s right for them. I know the favorite computation of every sales person who works on a fee basis is to determine their percentage of every sale. Don’t stop there. Play the numbers game often and you’ll get better at winning.

NegotiationDo you consider yourself a trained negotiator? Trained negotiators can quickly and effectively analyze the details of situations and determine the best route to resolution. If that brief description doesn’t fi t you, make an effort to fi nd a book, audio or seminar on the subject. Then, schedule the time to learn from it.

Choose just one of these six areas and dedicate yourself to improving in it this month. Then, next month, choose another. Once you get started on this journey of self-education, you’ll be amazed at what you learn and how simple things can have a powerful impact on your overall success in life.

World-renowned master sales trainer Tom Hopkins is the chairman of Tom Hopkins International. He can be contacted at 866.347.6148, or by e-mail [email protected].

An Attitude of GratitudeJesseBiter

sts fos ls ms sf fi s

leadership solution

The United Sates of America is a land of plenty. Freedom, opportunity, prosperity – all perks of being born in the greatest

nation in the history of the world. As Americans, we have much to be thankful for. Sadly, it seems we oftentimes take our many blessings for granted.

The Thanksgiving holiday is a time-honored and cherished American tradition. Turkey dinner, football games and festive parades aside, this special day is actually rooted in the Christian belief that God is the source of all life and goodness. As we prepare to celebrate with our family and friends, it’s important to remember that Thanksgiving is more than an annual event – it is a lifestyle choice.

Whether it is via a personalized greeting card, a fresh bouquet of fl owers, or a warm toothless grin, showing gratitude towards others is quite simply a fundamental component of healthy human interaction. Saying “thank

you” is more than a mundane custom of polite society. When your appreciation is genuine, it really shows something about what is inside of you. Giving thanks is also a vital part of the most important relationship, your relationship with God.

“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18

There are three things to consider about the nature of Thanksgiving: God desires it; we require it; and others never tire of it. Thanksgiving is a profound confession of our faith. It breaks the illusion that we can be suffi cient by ourselves. By giving thanks to others, we humble ourselves and admit that we owe it all to God.

Can we be thankful even when things are not going well for us? The Pilgrims and Indians who celebrated the fi rst Thanksgiving feast had little to be thankful for. The fi rst terrible winter had not been kind to the settlers, taking

the lives of many in the colony. Families were devastated by the loss of their loved ones, but new hope arose in the autumn of 1621. Yes, it is possible to be thankful in the face of troubled times because our eternal hope transcends our earthly troubles. The seeds of discouragement can’t grow in the heart of a grateful person.

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”Colossians 3:17

Thanksgiving is a special day to give thanks to the Lord. It is a day to allow gratitude to spill over to every corner of our lives in deep appreciation for all that God has provided. Be thankful beyond Thanksgiving and give the gift of thankfulness all year long.

Jesse Biter is the president and CEO of HomeNet, Inc. He can be contacted at 866.239.4049, or by e-mail [email protected].

We need them. They need us. We need you.

It’s that simple.

®

®

9november 2006

Chrysler Financial is a business unit of DaimlerChrysler Financial Services.

We’re dedicated exclusively to your business. When you choose Chrysler Financial for your wholesale and retail financing needs,

you’re choosing a company that has done just one thing for more than 40 years. Automotive financing. From customer retention and financial

software to real estate loans and E.L.V.I.S., our people, products and services are solely dedicated to helping you sell and finance more vehicles.

In fact, we’re completely invested in your long-term success. So you don’t have to wonder whether we’ll be there for you in the future.

The Treasury of QuotesBrianTracy




Leadership Integrity is the most valuable and respected quality of leadership. Always keep your word.

Leadership is the ability to get extraordinary achievement from ordinary people.

Become the kind of leader that people would follow voluntarily, even if you had no title or position.

Leaders think and talk about the solutions. Followers think and talk about the problems.

Respect is the key determinant of high-performance leadership. How much people respect you determines how they perform.

The three “Cs” of leadership are Consideration, Caring and Courtesy. Be polite to everyone.

Goals/Goal AchievementAn average person with average talent, ambition and education can outstrip the most brilliant genius in our society, if that person has clear, focused goals.

The establishment of a clear, central purpose or goal in life is the starting point of all success.

Goals in writing are dreams with deadlines.

Committing your goals to paper increases the likelihood of your achieving them by 1,000%.

Success equals goals; all else is commentary.

Rewrite your major goals every day, in the present tense, exactly as if they already exist.

ManagementPeople are your most valuable asset. Only people can be made to appreciate in value.

The most powerful and predictable people-builders are praise and encouragement.

Manage by objectives. Tell people exactly what you want them to do and then get out of their way.

Manage by responsibility. It is a powerful way to grow people.

Reinforce what you want to see repeated. What gets rewarded gets done.

Overcoming FailureRemember, you only have to succeed the last time.

Incorrect assumptions lie at the root of every failure. Have the courage to test your assumptions.

It is not failure itself that holds you back; it is the fear of failure that paralyzes you.

Most people achieve their greatest success one step beyond what looks like their greatest failure.

Never consider the possibility of failure; as long as you persist, you will be successful.

Failure is a prerequisite for great success. If you want to succeed faster, double your rate of failure.

Keys To Successful SellingThink of yourself as a resource to your clients: an advisor, counselor, mentor and friend.

The only pressure that you use in a professional selling presentation is the presence of silence after the closing question.

Concentrate on the activities of prospecting, presenting and following-up; the sales will take care of themselves.

Make a habit of dominating the listening, and let the customer dominate the talking.

Approach each customer with the idea of helping him/her solve a problem or achieve a goal, not of selling a product or service.

Telling is not selling; never make a statement if you can phrase it in the form of a question.

Character/Integrity/HonestyBe absolutely clear about who you are and what you stand for. Refuse to compromise.

Integrity is the foundation upon which all other values are built.

Truthfulness is the main element of character.

Deal honestly and objectively with yourself; intellectual honesty and personal courage are the hallmark of great character.

Character is the ability to follow through on a resolution long after the emotion with which it was made has passed.

Confi dence on the outside begins by living with integrity on the inside.

Customer ServiceEveryone is in the business of customer satisfaction. Who are your customers and how are they doing?

The purpose of a business is to create and keep a customer. All business activities must be focused on this central purpose.

You keep customers by delivering on your promises, fulfi lling your commitments and continually investing in the quality of your relationship.

If your job is customer satisfaction, your real job title is Problem Solver.

Offer your customer a long-term relationship, then do everything possible to build and maintain it.

Express your admiration for the traits, possessions or accomplishments of your customer. Little things mean a lot.

Brian Tracy is the chairman and CEO of Brian Tracy International. He can be contacted at 866.300.9881, or by e-mail at [email protected].

Chrysler Financial is a business unit of DaimlerChrysler Financial Services.Chrysler Financial is a business unit of DaimlerChrysler Financial Services.

Ever wonder where your support goes after your bank

merges for the third time?

We’re dedicated exclusively to your business.We’re dedicated exclusively to your business. When you choose Chrysler Financial for your wholesale and retail financing needs, When you choose Chrysler Financial for your wholesale and retail financing needs,

you’re choosing a company that has done just one thing for more than 40 years. Automotive financing. From customer retention anyou’re choosing a company that has done just one thing for more than 40 years. Automotive financing. From customer retention and financial d financial

software to real estate loans and E.L.V.I.S., our people, products and services are solely dedicated to helping you sell and fisoftware to real estate loans and E.L.V.I.S., our people, products and services are solely dedicated to helping you sell and finance more vehicles.nance more vehicles.

In fact, we’re completely invested in your long-term success. So you don’t have to wonder whether we’ll be there for you in theIn fact, we’re completely invested in your long-term success. So you don’t have to wonder whether we’ll be there for you in the future. future.

training technologymtrainintrainin

merchandisingnggygyg

traininggg ttmerchmerchtechnology

ngngmerchandisingmerchandisingtrainintrainintraitraimm

gm

12 13

fs feature solution

Cor

yL.M

osl

ey The Internet

Sales TrifectaTraining - Technology - Merchandising

www.sellingsuccessonline.com

Making the Investment and Seeing the Results

JeffBo

nn

ell

“We had leads, personnel, a Web site and even an advanced CRM system, but it wasn’t until we invested in Internet sales training specifi cally that we were able to realize true success in our BDC. Now sales, appointment shows, and close ratios are stronger. Grosses are up $689.00 per copy and we’ve become fi rst in our zone...”

- Kim Wigder, Wigder Chevrolet

“The Internet has been evolving for years and will continue to evolve. For now and the near future, we are witnessing the ‘technology of marketing’ bring the opportunity to dealerships to do a better, and much more exciting, job with their online merchandising.”

nnnns

nn nis

train n gy

There are astounding sales and profi ts available to dealers who are willing to make the investment in the proper training of Internet personnel, which is a crucial ingredient in any successful Internet operation. Kim Wigder of Wigder Chevrolet in Livingston, N.J. was experiencing lackluster results, as far as online sales where concerned. They decided to make the investment in specialized training.

“We had leads, personnel, a Web site and even an advanced CRM system, but it wasn’t until we invested in Internet training specifi cally that we were able to realize true success in our BDC. Now sales, appointment shows and close ratios are stronger. Grosses are up $689.00 per copy and we’ve become fi rst in our zone,” said Wigder.

“In my opinion there is no additional piece of technology we could have purchased that would have made the impact that the training provided. We also continue to provide refresher training to our sales staff and ongoing outside coaching support to our BDC staff to maximize and increase results,” said Wigder.

Dare to CompareGetting real about the decision to implement a training program at your dealership means realizing what it costs you to not invest in training. Consider this equation:

• The number of leads you pay for each month from third party providers.

• How much money you spend on your Web site.

• How much money you spend on online marketing, such as pay-per-click advertising or banner ads.

• How much money you spend on base salaries, health, 401k, and payroll taxes for Internet personnel.

• Add all of these numbers together and then take your store’s average front and back end gross. Then, pair that with the amount of service income generated by the average number of customers you sell on the front end and retain in your service department. Then, consider how much it costs in lost “right now” referrals and repeat business to have 80 percent of those leads you generate through all of your Internet channels mishandled on a monthly basis.

6.5 Ways to Sell More Cars Online1. Make sure the dealership is prepared

for a minimum of 60-days worth of follow-up.

2. Create a branded template library

focused on relevant messages.

3. Make your Internet strategic sequence e-mail to phone and phone to showroom.

4. Use targeted marketing instead of Web blasting.

5. Use control questions to create more appointments.

6. Secret shop the competition.

6.5 Remember that success online starts at the top.

Bridging Technology, Merchandising,and MarketingWhen you zero in on the single most important technology piece a dealership utilizes – its dealership Web site - you often times expose a little quagmire, where the lack of training negatively impacts the tremendous benefi t a dealer’s own Web site can - and should - offer.

Utilize Training to Leverage Technological Merchandising OpportunitiesSales and profi ts from a dealership’s Web site are maximized or minimized by dealership and vendor personnel who control the

marketing messages that appear - or fail to appear - in a dealership’s site. It is essential that each facet of a site be managed to create opportunities for the site to pique the interest of a visitor, and compel them to volunteer information, such as name, phone number and e-mail address.

Dealer principals and general managers that are engaged in the evaluation and implementation of successful tactical Internet marketing can positively improve the performance of their Web site by aligning the resources - either advertising agency, dealership personnel, or Web site vendor - to consistently and completely maintain their Web site marketing messages.

Utilize Technology to Leverage Merchandising and Marketing ImpactThe Internet has been evolving for years and will continue to evolve. For now and the near future, we are witnessing the “technology of marketing” bring the opportunity to dealerships to do a better, and much more exciting, job with their online merchandising.

Doing a better job at online merchandising means several things. It means getting set up – either through vendor arrangements – or with dealership personnel to ensure that a variety of strong merchandising messages

are published in Web sites on an ongoing basis without fail.

Once automated or dealership-assisted Web site merchandising content is competently appearing in your Web site, the next technology front for dealership Internet profi ts is centered around amplifying the power of the merchandising message through the application of online multimedia presentations.

The perfect example is the addition of talking car pages made by Flemington BMW.The technology they employed combines their pre-owned inventory data feed, some carefully written marketing copy for each car, and the employment of a text-to-speech generator. Add the programming to create a spoken audio fi le for each car, set to music to tug at the emotions a bit and their talking car pages with music has increased used car leads by 17 percent. Beautifully enough, an MP3 is made for each car automatically, in both English and Spanish.

Now dealership sites are just beginning to take advantage of technology and vendor services to bring video presentations to Web sites that reinforce the dealership’s brand and synchronize with a dealerships week-to-week advertising campaigns. Visitors to a dealership’s site, in synch with that, are

capable to comfortably receive and playInternet video marketing messages.

A Little Overview Can HelpYou UnderstandRoughly 10 years ago, when the Internet emerged in popular culture, a dealership had an advantage by simply being there. Five years ago, a dealership that could bring their inventory to customers online set the bar. Two years ago, the dealership that jazzed their visitor with a piece of glitzy animation got the oohs and aahs.

Today and tomorrow the dealership that stands to profi t most will do all the prerequisites with ease. They will use technologically advanced multimedia production to breathe life into their online sales presentations, and will have lined up the trained professionals to ensure that their online marketing messages use the technology everyday to say the right thing.

Cory L. Mosley is the founder & CEO of Mosley Automotive Internet Training Group. Jeff Bonnell is the Principal of MJM Internet. They can be contacted at 866.883.5005, or by e-mail [email protected].

Scott’s Individualized Consultation Transcripts, Part 5

ScottJosephsts fos ls ms sf fi s

marketing solution

John (real name omitted to protect the store’s identity) is the owner of a Chevrolet dealership on the East Coast. His customer

satisfaction scores are above average but sales are fl at.

In this consultation, I gave John a wide range of innovative ways to approach prospects, showed him how to resell existing customers, and told him how to word a compelling message to convert his “deadwood” into live buyers.

If you want to reach more prospects or convey a stronger and more compelling message read this transcript.

(Continued from October 2006 issue of AutoSuccess…)

Scott: I like the fact that you are so aggressive trying to sell more cars. I want to make sure you get what I’m talking about when it comes to your mindset because I want to make sure you don’t fall into that trap and give up on everything 30 to 60 days after this conversation.

Almost every dealership I’ve ever worked with was massively under-utilizing their resources when I got to them. You are, too. If I can open your mind to taking advantage of some of the assets you already have, I think you’ll fi nd it easy to sell a lot more cars. Does that make sense?

John: Sure.

S: OK let’s start to talk about the importance of a great marketing strategy. In the militaristic view there’s a big difference between strategy and tactics. Strategy is the science of planning and directing large-scale integrated objectives. This is different from tactics, which involves the most skillful methods and arrangements of your resources, weapons and forces in order to gain the most complete, substantial, successful and overwhelming outcome possible. Strategy drives all tactics.

I know this sounds overly simple, painfully obvious and ridiculously transparent, but I urge you not to overlook their signifi cance and the impact they can have on your dealership. Realize the key distinction between strategy and tactics has produced

more monster overnight success stories than you can possibly believe.

Marketing strategically is, has always been and will always be the single greatest business lever of them all. It’s the ultimate wealth-building tool you could ever possess.

Most people who seek to make a change in their dealership mistakenly begin on the tactical level. If you do this I can almost guarantee you’ll get mediocre results. Ignoring the importance of strategy is similar to someone repairing a New Orleans home destroyed by Hurricane Katrina and putting in a new carpet without repairing the roof fi rst.

Your strategy is your overall plan and the tactics are the means to the end. On the other hand, if your dealership’s growth formula begins and ends merely with strategies and never gets to the level of tactics, it’s like an architect handing someone a blueprint and saying, “Your house is done.” Does that make sense?

J: Yes, it makes perfect sense.

S: Good, because everything starts with a mindset and philosophy that is a long-term growth strategy and produces big results now. Are you ready to get specifi c on a strategy that will make your store the best Chevrolet store in the Northeast?

J: Now you’re getting me excited. If we can come up with a good game plan I know I can motivate my people to follow it and carry it out. It just has to make sense to me and them. What we’ve talked about makes perfect sense to me. I’ve just never really thought about my dealership this way before.

S: The reason the marketing strategies I lay out are so successful is because they follow universal rules of business today. And when something is a universal rule, it works ALL the time. These strategies, tactics, and implementation methods are guaranteed to work for YOUR dealership as well. Do you remember what the three goals are to grow your dealership?

J: Absolutely. I need to increase my active customer base, transaction value and frequency.

S: Great. Let’s start with increasing your active customers. There are three things

you need to. First, increase your phone, Internet and walk-in traffi c. Second, increase your retention rate, and third, improve your closing percentage.

J: We try to do all these things now.

S: Great. Don’t forget the third key category that will have the biggest impact on your store’s performance is your ability to optimize and get the highest and best result from a situation, action or effort.

Let’s talk about what you can do to increase your phone, Internet and walk-in traffi c. And at the same time I can give you suggestions on how to optimize some of the things you are currently doing.

J: Great.

S: To increase your traffi c, there are 12 universal rules: Referral systems, Acquiring customers at break-even up front and making a profi t on the “back-end,” Guaranteeing purchases through risk reversal, Host-benefi ciary relationships, Advertising, Using direct mail, Using telemarketing, Running special events or information nights, Acquiring qualifi ed lists that more effectively target your prospect, Developing a Unique Selling Proposition, Increasing the perceived value of your product or service through better client education and Using public relations.

J: We do some of these and there are other things you mentioned that I have questions on.

S: What specifi cally?

J: What do you mean by guaranteeing purchases through risk reversal, host-benefi ciary relationships and developing a Unique Selling Proposition?

S: Great question. Let’s start there.

Over the next several months the rest of this private consultation will be printed. If you would like it in its entirety now please e-mail Scott Joseph at the e-mail below.

Scott Joseph is the president of J&L Marketing, Inc. He can be contacted at 866.429.6846, or by e-mail at [email protected].


Sales person Rick escorts prospective customer Sandra to the door and shakes her hand then turns back to his offi ce.

Rick (to himself): “That went great. I managed to hit every selling point and ask all the important questions. I’m sure she’s confi dent that we’ve got what she wants. She’ll go home, get permission from her husband and probably bring him back and sign the papers. If I don’t hear from her by the end of the week, I’ll follow up.”

Sandra (to herself): “What a waste of time, and like I have time to waste. I don’t think he listened once to what I was saying, or maybe he was too preoccupied trying to get through his pitch. I hope I fi nd someone soon who will be the right person to help me fi nd the right car and the best deal. This is so frustrating.”

Selling is a communication process. Communication means the transmission of ideas or information. With women, the communication process becomes a bit more complex than just making your pitch or gathering information. Selling to women is harder than selling to men. Women take longer, need more input, expect more attentive service, require more follow-up and more. I’ve heard the same story over and over: Women are far tougher customers to do business with, and they demand more service than men.

So why bother? By now you already know the drill. For one thing, anyone who succeeds in selling and servicing women customers will tell you that the extra effort will pay you back in multiples. You could say that 1 + 1 = 3. That means, sell well to one woman and she will reward you with her business, her loyalty (more business) and probably a large number of referrals to other women (and the beat goes on).

DeliaPassi

For another, there’s an even larger payoff as well: Once you can effectively sell, market to and retain women customers, you’ll have the tools to sell anything better to anyone. Men may not need the extra attention - but will appreciate it. And almost any target market you can name demands attentive adjustments to their way of shopping, deciding and buying. Think minority markets. Think ethnic markets. Think Baby Boomers. Think seniors. Think about it - That means a lot of new business.

Now whether she likes the sales experience or not, eventually she’s got to buy from someone. But when given a choice, a woman will go out of her way to do business with someone who provides the experience she prefers.

What does this mean to you? As a sales person, you can create an advantage for your product by providing an experience that can’t be found at your competitors. Being the fi rst one on your block to master the technique of selling to women is also more valuable than her business alone. Let’s face it: women talk. They like to share stories and compare notes. They care about sparing their friends or family unpleasant experiences.

The New Woman CustomerWomen today have the discretionary and disposable income to buy much more of whatever they want. They are the largest and best growth market out there - and they are never going back to the way things were.

The growing ranks of well-educated women are the ones who will go on to become the high earners in their professions, and in corporate America. Right now women hold the majority - 50.5 percent - of management and professional jobs, according to Catalyst, even though they make up only 46.5 percent of the U.S. labor force.

That spells serious money to spend. Now that their lives have grown, women act

even more decisively not only as buyers, but also as gatekeepers and deal-breakers. Clearly, we are well past the era of the dependent woman, whose access to fi nancial wherewithal and purchasing decision-making was more passive and secondhand. The new breed of woman consumer today is educated, informed and more empowered than ever.

Tips for Car Dealers:1. Get your business in order fi rst. That means making sure your showrooms and your environment/individual offi ces are women-friendly.

2. Create a business and marketing plan to increase your business among women. Dealers who made the effort to create a plan have increased their sales among women up to 50 percent.

3. Put your active listening skills into high gear. Women claim that they are often “not heard” or understood.

4. Be patient. Recognize that women take more time in the sales process. Use this time to learn more about her.

5. Build trust with your women clients. That means returning her calls the same day, calling her quarterly just to connect, create anywhere from fi ve to 10 points of contact throughout the year which can include newsletters, e-mails, holiday cards, etc. The more valuable the client, the more points of contact.

6. When selling to women, exceed expectations and build your business through loyalty and referrals.

Delia Passi is the president and CEO at MedeliaCommunications. She can be contacted at 866.883.4953, or by e-mail at [email protected].

The New Playing Field:Today’s Women’s Market




The page came on a hot Tuesday afternoon. “David Thomas to the reception area – customer waiting.” I quickly greeted a

gentleman, who looked to be in his mid-forties, with a slightly sad look on his face. He explained that he recently got a divorce and he wanted to get something exciting to drive. “I want to get back in the fast lane,” he said. I deduced that he probably also wanted to get back into the single life and wanted something fun, and maybe a little fl ashy, to announce his available status. His four-door family sedan wasn’t the image he was going for. His fi rst question was, “What do the ladies like?” I prompted him to look at a Lexus SC400 Sport Coupe, and we proceeded to the pre-owned area and picked a rally-red SC400 Coupe to test drive.

I started the engine to allow the car’s interior to cool before our test drive. During the

Top GunDavidThomas



walk-around demonstration, I paused to ask him a few key questions to determine what was important to him and focus on his areas of interest. Style, sportiness and comfort were his responses, which instantly became the theme of my presentation.

Next, I invited the prospect to sit and enjoy the soft, supple leather seating, the real wood maple trim, and the quiet but powerful automatic climate control system. I routinely placed my own CD magazine loaded with a variety of movie soundtracks in the 12-disc player, waiting for the opportune moment to turn it on.

Now, the fun begins – the ultimate test drive. We pull out of the dealership and turn right on Lemmon Avenue (right turns are easier). Mr. Prospect is moderately accelerating from 0 to 40 mph, but about the time he hits 2nd gear, I activate the renowned Nakamichi CD system to disc two, track one, and the theme music to “Top Gun” came in full force. Mr.

Prospect is now Tom Cruise commanding his sport coupe down the avenue. It was probably the fi rst time he had smiled in months. He sat a little taller in his seat and blurted out, “This might just work!”

How long do you think it took me to close that deal? Do you set the stage for an enjoyable test drive? A powerful product presentation will carry momentum and enthusiasm into the close. Captivating the prospect’s attention makes them less likely to shop around, and easier to close.

As a kid, one of my favorite shows was Monte Hall’s “Let’s Make a Deal.” The game show models could make a $10 toaster look better than a new car. That is where I learned about presentation skills.

On a recent shoe-buying venture, I visited a large discount shoe warehouse. When I fi nally found a clerk, they tossed me a box and mumbled, “see if those fi t” before lumbering away. Needless to say, I wasn’t there very long. A little while later, I visited the men’s shoe department at Neiman Marcus in Dallas. If you want to see great presentation skills, go to Neiman’s and try anything on. Not only do they lace up both shoes for you, they offer their continued assistance while bearing a chrome shoehorn, a smile and a compliment on your selection, and you “test drive” your shoes on the thick pile carpet.

Did I pay more? Yes. Did I mind? No. I enjoyed the outstanding service and the enthusiasm.

Ask Yourself:• Are you exciting and enthusiastic? If

you are bored, they are bored.• Do you get their senses involved?

Look, touch, feel, smell.• Are you differentiating your product?

Yourself? Your dealership? How?• Are you asking the right questions?

What are their needs and wants? • Are you listening to their responses?• Are you user-friendly?• Are you treating them like a guest in

your home?

David Thomas is the owner of Subaru of Dallas. He can be contacted at 866.429.6803, or by e-mail [email protected].

IMN Loyalty Driver™ is a turnkey e-marketing service thatdrives interest, sales and customer loyalty. Customized, trackable email communications provide tangible results for dealerships across the country. A couple of examples:

• 15 test drives scheduled within the first hour afteran IMN Loyalty Driver e-newsletter was sent.

• Web traffic spiked to 2.5 times its normal rateafter a dealership’s first e-newsletter.

Looking for results like these? Call 866.964.6397, ext. 214 or email [email protected].

Drive customers in…For sales, for life.

866-964-6397 imnLoyaltyDriver.com

> Scott Haynes, Penske Chevrolet and Honda

Client:Job #:Date:Rev:

AE:AD:Prod:

Approval:

Pub:1st run:Due:

Bleed:Trim:Live:

Date:


SeanWolfi ngton

True Leadership:True Leadership:Making a DifferenceMaking a Difference


leadership solution

Leadership involves empowering and equipping colleagues with a solid foundation of virtues to handle life’s challenges. But

as with any effective development program designed to bring about a desirable and lasting result, it starts with a vision and comes to fruition through steady and continuing progression.

I remember discovering the news that a friend was suffering from an addiction and had reached the point of realizing that his life was out of control, and he needed help. He informed me that he had found a group of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that, together, they may solve their common problem and lead others to recovery.

Out of my concern for him, and a little curiosity, I probed into the resource from which he was seeking guidance. To my surprise, I discovered an organization with tremendous results-based success, managed by a courageous group of true leaders who have dedicated their lives to the service and common welfare of people in need. The organization’s core values and beliefs provide poignant illustrations for building leadership qualities and can be translated into a blueprint for personal development for all of us.

Twelve Principles for Personal Development1. Realize that there are areas in your life that are out of your control.2. Believe there is a Power greater than you. 3. Surrender your will to the care of your Creator, as you understand Him. 4. Take a thorough and fearless moral inventory. 5. Admit to yourself and to another person the exact nature of your fl aws. 6. Humbly ask God, as you understand Him, to remove your shortcomings. 7. Be entirely open to the merciful and miraculous removal of defects of character.8. Make a list of all persons you have offended, and be willing to make amends. 9. Make direct amends to such people wherever possible, unless to do so would cause harm to them or others.10. Continue to take personal inventory and when wrong, promptly admit it. 11. Seek, through prayer and meditation, to improve your conscious contact with God, as you understand Him, praying for knowledge of His will and for the courage and strength to fulfi ll it.

12. Practice these principles in all aspects of life.

What awesome roles of leadership these anonymous individuals have become for the world. Loyal leaders who are but trusted servants with one primary mission: to carry the message of faith and hope to those who

still suffer, empowering them to become future leaders. That’s making a difference in the world, one life at a time.

Sean Wolfi ngton is the general manager of BZResults.com, an ADP Company. He can be contacted at 866.802.5753, or by e-mail at swolfi [email protected].

21november 2006

The Most Intelligent Multi-channel Marketing System On The Planet

MarketView360 is a hands-free, intelligent multi-channel marketing system that automatically sends targeted email, voice broadcast, text and direct mail marketing messages to 100% of your customers based on an algorithmic formula. Let MarketView360 do all the work for you, so YOU can focus on the right things; boosting sales, generating service & parts revenue, and keeping profitability at a maximum.

Call 1.866.591.4238 or visit www.marketview360.comto find out more about MarketView360

Work Smarter. Market Smarter.

Just Give Me Five Minutes - I’llShow You How to Get Appointments

DavidKainsts fos ls ms sf fi s

marketing solution

Some things in life are simple, and others are a bit more complicated. When it comes to talking to strangers, befriending them and

selling them a $40,000 vehicle, one would have to guess that this action would fall into the “complicated” category. The fact is, if done correctly, it is actually pretty simple and can be done in about an hour. Comparatively, I think selling an appointment to come in and test drive a vehicle is actually more diffi cult. However, I have found that if you are willing to spend fi ve minutes or more building rapport and really showing a genuine interest in the prospect, setting an appointment is not that hard.

Ask any veteran car sales person and they can verify that selling vehicles is a mix of art and science. The art is in building rapport, earning the trust of your customer and persuading them to let you sell them a vehicle. The science is in the preparation – knowing your product, knowing your inventory, understanding what your dealership processes are for handling trades and fi nancing and how you can use them to better assist the customer.

In my own experience, I think it is easier to sell a car to someone at the dealership than it is to sell an appointment to someone who inquires about a vehicle over the Internet. At the dealership, the customer has shown clear physical intent to purchase by showing up. Additionally, you have the product right there and in a variety of colors and equipment to motivate them to test drive and fall in love with it. With an Internet lead, you fi rst have to get them to respond to your e-mail and then you have to get them on the phone so you can start trying to talk them into coming to the dealership. There are some who will appoint via e-mail but my own experience

in working with multiple dealerships is that these are few and far between.

Getting someone to answer the phone is defi nitely part of the “science” of the process. The best thing to do is to call as soon as you respond with your personal e-mail. The hope is that you catch them when they are actively shopping online. However, some lead providers scrub their leads, which may take extra time for you to receive it and the customer may already be offl ine. Some Internet managers believe there are key times that you should make the calls to have the best chance at catching the customers. These include around 9 a.m. when they fi rst get to work if it is a business number, lunchtime at home or work and then early evening.

Be Over-PreparedPreparing for the call is essential. Before you rush to pick up the phone and dial, fi nd out as much as you can about the prospect and what caused them to generate the request for price, information, trade value, etc. Research the lead by checking their name in your DMS or CRM database to determine if they are a previous sales or service customer. Next, check where the lead came from and then duplicate the path if you can to see what the customer was exposed to before they clicked “submit.” You may fi nd that the customer is expecting certain things from your dealership that the Web site they visited promised you would deliver. By understanding what they expect, you will do a better job in meeting their expectations. Make sure you know if you have what they are looking for or if you have to locate a vehicle. Also, it is important to read their comments if any and to see if they have identifi ed a trade-in. Think through what you are going to say and how you intend to build rapport and then make the call.

Being over-prepared will reward you over

and over because most of your competitors are simply making the call to prove to themselves that the customer is not really interested. Be prepared and optimistic and you will do much better on the call.

Take Your TimeRecently I was at a dealership that uses call-tracking technology and the dealer principal shared with me that since they have been measuring their calls they are fi nding that when their calls generally last two to three minutes they set fewer appointments for sales and service. However, when the calls lasted an average of fi ve minutes or longer, the appointment setting rate was two to three times greater. By taking the time to build rapport and show genuine interest they fi nd the prospects much more receptive and willing to come in for a test drive. It reminds me of the old saying “they don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”

Most call scripts are designed to be brief, which is truly a design problem. The call should take as long as necessary to serve the prospect’s needs without being too long to bore them. There is a balance and that is where you have to blend art and science and hone your skills. If you have call-tracking technology, start measuring the time and see if the results for you are similar. If you don’t, then just use a clock or watch and see for yourself the benefi ts of warming up the customer and exceeding their needs on the call.

David Kain is the automotive Internet training specialist at Kain Automotive, Inc. He can be contacted at 800.385.0095, or by e-mail at [email protected], or visit www.kainautomotive.com.



The Perfect Way to Consistently Find More and More Clients

DixonJudd

If you want to continuously fi nd new clients to grow your business, then you will need a plan that allows you to intersect with

people who want and need your services, at the time that they actually need your services. Building a long-term career in sales involving a plan that starts with your own personal involvement. This is why it is important to know your personal goals in detail, to the point that they are actually exciting and motivating. Then, managing your time and prioritizing these activities to make sure that you are pursuing them consistently, ensures progress. Understanding the key ingredients in order to have a valid client lies in two components, desire and ability. One without the other does not produce a successful closing. How do you build the perfect system to generate more and more clients consistently? With a written plan, you will start with building on foundational pieces - a plan that has one main area of focus that you have an insight or deep interest in. This will enable you to build a main pillar of business that will return dividends for your entire career. It is similar to a doctor or attorney selecting an area of expertise. Thinking longer term will give you the perspective to choose an area that you will be very passionate about. As these are deep areas that require an investment of time, energy, resources and a commitment to becoming an expert they will not be areas that you change in and out of.

The second foundational piece is to have a system to capture the repeat and referral business that your past clients and your sphere of infl uence can provide. An ideal business will have 70 percent of its business coming from past clients and sphere of infl uence. This is only possible and can be accelerated

to these levels by having an adaptable system in place to bring these clients to you consistently. This will take most professionals one to three years to build momentum in these two areas to the point that a predictable fl ow of business can be established. This is where most people fail. Having a correct understanding and expectation of this phase of your business will prevent you from making the mistakes that cause so many people to fail. Most people get side tracked somewhere along the way of this fi rst stage that we will call “The Momentum Build Up Phase.” They either stop adding new clients (this usually takes the shape of celebrating the current success and spending 110 percent of the commission before it is received.), only to run dry when their current pipeline closes. Then they have to rev up the engines and start the building process all over again and again. This creates burn-out and frustration very quickly. The other pitfall is they start going after every lead generation activity that catches their eye. In a six month to one-year time frame, they have tried four to fi ve different lead generation strategies but have not stayed with any one of them. This does not allow enough time for seeds planted to be cultivated and harvested. Time, effort, money and enthusiasm spent on these revolving lead generation activities cannot be monitored or measured for their return on investment and, therefore, are usually wasted. The most successful professionals who dominate their fi elds have a plan that, at its core, focuses on one main area of expertise and a solid, consistent past client/sphere of infl uence program. Then and only then do they look to add additional lead generation systems to this foundation. This is usually during years two to four that we will call “The Maintenance Phase.” You can add niche marketing or go after demographic lead generation systems that have a much higher success rate of consistently producing

qualifi ed clients. Many times these can be demographic groups that are easily identifi ed and when approached have a much higher rate of needing and using your services than the masses. Examples of these types of groups would be:

• First time vehicle buyers• Long-time vehicle owners for 10+

years, and are looking for a newer model

• Parents that are looking to get rid of their minivan, now that the children are out of the house

There are dozens of other proven niches that people have added successfully to their business. The fi nal stage of building your business is referred to as “The Mastery Phase.” This is the ultimate goal of every professional. It is the stage where your business will sustain itself without your daily involvement. This is the reward of those who have followed the growth plan outlined here: One to three years of momentum build up, two to four years of business maintenance and cultivation that will produce a self-sustaining business for the long term. This is when a practice becomes a perfect operation. Whether you build a team, an offi ce or an entire company this will yield the opportunity to enjoy a business that can be an annuity for many years, or a business that can be sold for a value many times greater than the actual business volume. Congratulations on building “The Perfect Way To Finding More and More Clients.”

Dixon Judd is a Partner in Your Success at Performance Resource Group. He can be contacted at 866.883.4916, or bye-mail at [email protected].



New York & New JerseyDecember 12th & 13th

New York & New Jersey

We stand out in the crowd.

1.888.695.4278 • [email protected]

www.highergear.com

Showroom Customer Relationship Lead Management System


Selling theDifference

MarkTewartsts fos ls ms sf fi s


Cars, dealerships and sales people can be commodities. As a sales person, your job is to move everything you do and

everything you have towards being a non-commoditized item or service. You must sell your difference.

When making a decision, customers look for deciding factors. Being able to know what the differences are and then helping the customer know what they look like, sound like and feel like is your job. Customers don’t spend an hour with you and say, “This is exactly the vehicle I’ve found everywhere, the dealership is exactly the same as every other one I have seen, your presentation was the same as every sales person gave me and the information you have given me is identical to everything else I have received, so I want to do business with you.”

People make buying decisions by matching up what they know or think they know to what you give them and then by fi nding what they did not know or understand. The fi rst step is to match up with their thoughts and belief systems. If they don’t connect with who you are and what you give them, they won’t buy from you. Although that’s a big part of selling, it’s only the fi rst half. The deal maker is making sure you stand out with your positive difference.

Go back to the 3Ms – Money, Me and Machine. What makes your vehicle unique? If nothing, what makes your dealership unique and the better choice? If you still say nothing, you better go on a mission to fi nd something. When you have the answer, always ask yourself deeper questions about your answer, such as “How?” and “Why is that so?” Be concise and specifi c and be emphatic with your statements. Conviction creates confi dence and confi dence sells cars. If you are confi dent, it will be evident.

The last of the 3Ms is ME. Me means YOU. What about you personally will make you the unique and better choice among sales people? Nobody on earth is the same; we all have our unique experiences, talents, abilities, personalities and thoughts. Utilize

that to not only connect with people, but to sell your difference. Relate to customers in a personal way that shows why they should do business with you.

If you are new, sell the difference of how they benefi t from that. Show your eagerness to please and go beyond what most veterans would do. If you are a veteran sales person, sell your knowledge and experience in how that will make their life better. Let me say that again – “Make their life better.” That’s your job – to make their life better. People don’t buy a car from you because they thought you were going to take them out of their car, put them in a worse car, with more mileage, and worse terms and give them less knowledge, service or experience. TLC – Think Like a Customer, not a sales person.

Ask lots of questions. Find out what they liked while they shopped and bought before. Find out what they have not liked about shopping and buying a vehicle. Don’t assume that your uniqueness is enough. Package your uniqueness in a way that is appealing to the customer. People buy products every day because of the packaging. How do you present your package? How do you dress? What kind of questions do you ask? How do you present? If your customer shops fi ve dealerships, will they have absolutely no choice but to choose you if the sales person truly makes the difference?

Write down every criterion a customer consciously and subconsciously considers about you and any other sales person when they buy. Rate yourself honestly from 1-10 on each. Then have someone else rate you on each from 1-10 on each. Once you have an accurate assessment of your position you can now create a game plan to improve on each one. Break your plan into small chunks. Make your growth and improvement plan gradual and consistent. Consistent = Persistent. When you see the improvement in you, your customers will too. You make the ultimate difference in everything.

Mark Tewart is the president of Tewart Enterprises. He can be contacted at 866.429.6844, or by e-mail [email protected].

The Now Law of Time and Management...Carpe Diem

MichaelYorksts fos ls ms sf fi s


Carpe Diem. It’s about all the Latin I know.

I do love saying it. It just sounds cool. And it feels cool too. It’s

only a couple of words, but in any language it can’t help but add value to your day, and to your life, if you adhere to the challenge. Seize the Day. Grab it. Enjoy it. Maximize it.

Throw your arms around each day and give thanks for big things, little things, and all the things we often take for granted. Seize the Day with a zest and zeal and a passion that resolves to get the most from it.

I love how one of my teachers once described it, “Michael, wherever you are - BE THERE.” Squeeze every drop you can from the experiences you’ll face today.

How’s your day going? Hectic? Too fast? Can’t get everything done? Not enough time? Join the crowd. The common mantra of today’s society is “I need MORE TIME.”

Some clichés are true, like all work and no play making you dull. Some, like “time is money,” aren’t. Time is so much more. And if there’s one thing that most of the masses misunderstand almost as much as money, it’s time.

Here’s a better question: How will you get more of it?

You can’t. You’re already getting “the max.” The maximum time allowed by law is 24 hours a day, seven days a week. That’s it. You’re getting right now the same amount of time as anyone you consider wealthy or special or successful. The same as Bill Gates. Same as Billy Graham. And we know how they used their time right?

Sound silly? It’s not meant to be, it’s wisdom and thinking differently.

The power of understanding time tells most top performers and high achievers that TIME IS BEYOND OUR ABILITY TO MANAGE IT.

“Time management” is a poor objective and a miscommunication. Time is oblivious to you and me, and our feeble attempts to harness it. “Me” management is a much better objective. There really is no such thing as time management. I’m sure you’ve at least heard that statement, but the real power is in truly understanding it.

If there’s no such thing, why do individuals spend countless hours and expend their energy each year sitting in training meetings or seminars as companies and organizations attempt to increase effi ciency and productivity by focusing on the completely wrong objective.

Time does not respond to anything you or I can say or do to slow it down or speed it down. Done any time traveling lately?

Consider this: Long hours aren’t the best measure of performance or results. What are you actually accomplishing in the time you’re “working?”

Good students of life and work understand the difference between spending time and investing time. One means it is gone forever, the other means it will continue to return rewards and results.

The next time you hear someone say “I don’t have the time,” look them in the eye and tell them how special they really are. “You’re getting the maximum amount of time the law allows!” All there is, as far as we know, is 24-7, and you’re getting it. The question is, what will we do with it for the greatest return on results for our life?

You choose. How can we get the most from the time we’ve all been given? It really is a gift that keeps on giving, if we’ll only pay

attention to the instructions.

Here are a few items for you to consider during your busy schedule:

1. Make Time for Life, not Just WorkSome clichés are true, like the one about “all work, no play” making you dull. Life and work are much better when your tools are sharp. Lots of individuals have goals for work, but very few have written goals for their life and what they want it to become or what they’ll get from it.

2. Take a VacationDon’t be a martyr for the company. You’ll get better results, at home and at work, when you take the time to re-charge your battery and get a fresh mindset. Never sell your vacation time or let it expire. It’s worth more than money…it’s your life.

3. Simplify Make your life and work easier, and the lives and work of those around you.

4. First Things First Dr. Covey got it right in his book, some things that are urgent scream for our time, while the really important things in life can sit quietly in the corner waiting for you to notice. Pay attention to what’s important and not just what seems urgent. One day you’ll be glad you did…or wish you had.

If you’d like the rest of my short list on TIME and how to get the most from yours ,e-mail your request for the TIME LIST to the address below.

Michael York is an author and professional speaker. He can be contacted at 800.668.5015, or by e-mail [email protected], or visit www.MichaelYork.com.



Unify and ConquerFrequency Economies and Presence Increase Dramatically

JerryShroffsts fos ls ms sf fi s


By uniting your vehicle departments, developing a united media buy and sending out one united message, you will not

only increase advertising economies and frequencies, but will see substantial sales volume and profi t increases.

Let’s look at ways to create a united front – by combining departments, synching up media and sending one message, thus avoiding the media and dealership clutter.

Combine Franchises and Departments When dealerships separate departments and separate franchises, profi ts can suffer.

Rather than making your departments fi ght each other, unite your franchises, new vehicle departments and used vehicle departments into one campaign, and one brand – your dealership group.

A choir can be heard far louder and more effectively than a single voice.

Synch Advertising MediaWhen making media buys, synch the media together in the buy. Do not buy newspaper ads one at a time while TV and radio spots here and there; buy them cohesively, ensuring that you are maximizing frequency with the strong message you have developed.

A strong message is important – as important, and maybe more important, is ensuring that the message is heard. Frequency and impressions are the keys to getting the message heard. Your customers need to hear it, see it and react to it.

Send Out One Message – OneCampaign at a Time Just as you are combining departments for economies and synching media for frequencies, you should focus on one campaign or event at a time. By focusing on one event you accomplish a number of things.

With one event, you are giving your potential customers a solid message to buy, buy now and to buy from you. With the frequency that you may achieve with your message, you give the customer an opportunity to hear it, hear it again, see it, and see it again. You put yourself in a position of causing that customer to act, and act on an emotional basis.

If you send out multiple events and multiple messages, you risk having the customer maybe hearing it, maybe not – maybe seeing it, maybe not. You dilute and confuse your messages, giving you a far smaller chance of creating a customer that has become emotionally caught up in the event and comes to it with that buying excitement.

One message, unifi ed media and unifi ed department and franchise spending allow you to sing louder than your competition, rise above the automotive clutter, and get your message out. Your reward is increased sales, happier employees and bottom line gross.

Jerry Shroff is the president of GCS Automotive. He can be contacted at 866.883.9237, or by e-mail [email protected].

33november 2006

Know Whento Quote a Price

JeffMorrillsts fos ls ms sf fi s


Again and again, focus-group participants identify negotiating as one of their least-favorite aspects of car buying. They want car

dealerships to offer their fi nal prices over the phone or on-line so they can streamline the comparison shopping and buy from the cheapest store. Such a system is actually disadvantageous for everyone - for you, because you aren’t always the cheapest store, and for buyers who might save 50 bucks (or maybe not) and lose all the value in dealing with you and the benefi ts at your dealership.

Here’s what often happens when you give a fi nal discounted price to prospects who aren’t ready to buy today:

1. They thank you and tell you they need to “think about it.”

2. Then they take your price to another dealership. That second dealership will fi nd it easy to beat your price because there is always another $100 or more in a deal.

3. The customer will buy there because it’s been a long process, they just want to get it over with, and that store is cheaper anyway.

4. If you ever hear from the prospects again, they will brag that they beat your price and no, they don’t care that you gave them three hours of your time on a busy Saturday.

The general problem with giving a discounted price to a prospect who isn’t buying today is that you give complete control to the prospect. Specifi cally, the prospect will make the fi nal decision to buy outside your showroom - the decision will be made without you in the room. You won’t be around to point out that the other store is playing games or to point out that saving $100 is hardly worth giving up all the benefi ts of buying from you. You want to be present when the decision to purchase is made. If the prospect already has your fi nal pricing information, why do they need you for anything else?

The key is to postpone the discussion of specifi c discounts, trade-in values, and fi nal pricing until the appropriate time - at closing.

So when a prospect asks you for a price, what are you supposed to do?

1. At all times, be upfront with ballpark information about list pricing. If someone walks in the door and asks for the price of a used car, tell them the price and then keep going with the steps to the sale. If a new car, give them basic information about the price range between the least expensive and most expensive models and any customer rebates, and then keep going with the steps to the sale.

2. If someone asks for a discount, bypass the question with, “Rather than spending the time on fi tting the car into your budget now, let’s make sure we have the right car fi rst,” and keep going with the steps to the sale.

3. If someone absolutely insists they need a price today for the express purpose of shopping your numbers, ask them, “If the price were the same everywhere you went, where would you buy it?” Assuming it’s from your store, tell them to come back after they get all the numbers in writing from other stores. Assure them that you’ll match or beat the lowest price. If they complain about the need to come back, say, “If you wanted the best experience, then you would just pay a fair price right now and we would be all set. But you said you wanted the best price. You can get both here. Are you sure there isn’t some way to agree on something fair today to avoid the brain damage for everybody?”

4. If a prospect won’t buy today but insists on getting fi nal pricing, you can back the prospect off by explaining that you love your job but you like the negotiation part the least. “Approximately a quarter of the folks I help ultimately buy a car. If I had to negotiate with 100 percent of my customers, I would quit. Isn’t it fair that we wait to negotiate the price until you’re actually ready to buy it?” Taking this personal approach may help someone understand why it’s impractical to negotiate with every person who walks in the door.

Jeff Morrill is co-owner of Planet Subaru in Hanover, Mass., and Planet Chrysler Jeep Dodge in Franklin, Mass. He can be contacted at 866.872.8699, or by e-mail at [email protected].



marketing solution

T o p - a u t o m o b i l e dealers in the nation will tell you that e-mail marketing is a vital and cost-effective method of communicating with

the Internet-savvy prospect. At Courtesy Chevrolet we have the results to prove it. We have learned to leverage the marketing power of the Internet to dominate our region, and in a short time we’ve increased our sales by 380 vehicles per month while decreasing our cost per unit sold.

As with any new dealership process involving technology, there are always obstacles. With the increase in popularity in the use of the Internet by consumers, came an infl ux of undesirable junk e-mail. Recent reports indicate that spam accounts for over half of all e-mail traffi c, and an abundance of e-mail fi ltering devices are springing up everywhere, from the desktop to the Internet Service Provider (ISP), to combat it. The problem is that a large portion of legitimate, permission-based e-mail messages are erroneously blocked by these anti-spam fi lters, a number that continues to steadily increase.

E-mail communication is critical for today’s auto dealer, so anything that disrupts this channel is a hazard to the success of your business. Whether you are new to digital marketing, or an expert at managing your database, the following best practices will increase the odds that your e-mail campaigns will successfully reach your customers.

1. Identify and Understand ISPFiltering Rules Many of the larger, more common ISPs are installing anti-spam fi lters to identify and block spam before it is passed to their clients. AOL, MSN, and Yahoo! and others all have their own customized rules for defi ning and weeding out spam. The big ISPs have routers for their e-mail domains that analyze and streamline all incoming e-mails. It is

important to understand that certain trigger words and phrases can cause legitimate e-mail to be fl agged as spam. A small sampling of such words is: Free, Guaranteed, Savings, Discount, Cash Bonus, $$$$, while supplies last, Special Promotion, money back, and Savings. Be sure to thoroughly research these word lists and other fi lter triggers.

2. Maintain Good Relations with ISPsIt is critical that your dealership and e-mail provider have a “good e-mail reputation” with the ISPs. When complaints have been lodged about your e-mails, routers can automatically block your e-mail servers, resulting in a “blacklist” classifi cation. Once your servers have been blacklisted, you will be unable to deliver and process your legitimate e-mail. Any dealer that has mistakenly been put on an ISP blacklist knows how burdensome it is to get off. It is imperative for both your dealership and your e-mail provider to remain in good standing with ISPs.

3. “Blacklist” DefenseIf you suspect that your dealership may already be on a blacklist, simply go to www.openrbl.org and type in your domain name. The site will do a quick check against its database of major blacklists, and within seconds will be able to tell you which, if any, of the blacklists your Web site(s) are on. Another useful resource that will allow you to check your status on blacklists can be found at www.senderbase.org. If you fi nd yourself blacklisted, visit the Web site of the blacklist and look for removal procedures. Some blacklists have procedures for removal, while other lists are permanent.

4. Seeding (Testing) E-mailsIt’s important to continuously monitor and test the integrity of your e-mails. Open accounts with all the main ISPs and test your campaigns to make sure your mailings are optimized to prevent fi ltering. Check your CRM tool search function to determine what e-mail domains are being used by your customers.

5. HTML vs. Plain Text E-mails:Send BothDue to the high threat of malicious e-mail-born viruses, most major ISPs no longer automatically load HTML graphics, and these e-mails tend to be deleted more frequently than plain text e-mails. Offer your customer an optional text-based version of your HTML media, and offer your readers a choice of which format they wish to receive. Find a technology partner that believes in the benefi t of sending messages in both formats.

6. Be CAN-SPAM CompliantWith new legislation in place, dealers need to pay close attention to bulk e-mail practices. Failure to comply with CAN-SPAM can result in criminal and civil penalties. Read up on this Act in more detail and review your dealership’s e-mail policies.

At Courtesy Chevrolet we believe that the Internet is one of the most powerful tools available to our staff, and that the integrity of our e-mail marketing is critical to the future success of our dealership. The fact is that spam is here to stay, and the plethora of fi lters in place will continue to be necessitated. At Courtesy Chevrolet, we continually monitor and research spam fi lters to discover new avenues and methods to obtain a higher penetration of e-mail deliverability. We work with our e-mail provider, using their best practice guidelines to obtain the high marketing standards set by our dealership. With the right technology, the right tools and the right processes in place, we are able to optimize navigation past anti-spam fi lters and ensure the overall success of our e-mail marketing campaigns.

Ralph Paglia is the CRM/eBusiness director at Courtesy Chevrolet. He can be contacted at 866.883.9250, or by e-mail at [email protected].

RalphPaglia

No. 1 eDealer: Courtesy Chevrolet Shares Success on How to Get E-Mails Delivered Through Spam Filters

JimmyVee & TravisMiller

The Same is Lame:The Secret to Beating the Pants Off Your

Competition and Putting More Money in Your Pocket


marketing solution

“All car dealers are the same. They just want to rip you off!”

We don’t believe this stereotypical statement

– but many of your potential customers do.

Why shouldn’t they lump all car dealers in the same category? Most dealerships look, act, sound and feel like all the others.

The biggest part of the problem is that most car dealers ADVERTISE the same. And that’s what your potential customers see fi rst – your advertising.

If your advertising looks the same, people assume that everything else you do is the same too. And since all used car dealers are “out to rip us off,” you must not be any different.

Of course, this isn’t the case at your store.

So if you’re not like those stereotypical car dealers, why advertise like them? The same is lame.

But the good news is you can fi ght back – with a vengeance.

These are the basic ingredients you’ll need to market smarter and make a bold and clear statement that you are not that stereotypical car dealer.

1. Do The OppositeOne great way to get more than your fair share of the market is to take Earl Nightingale’s advice, “If you want to be successful, look at what everyone else is doing, and do the opposite.”

So why aren’t you trying to be different?

Most dealers all have similar backgrounds and experiences in the business. But the opportunity for success and the attention of your prospects is endless.

You must become a risk-taker. Status quo thinking and common sense action delivers status quo and common results. If you are seeking more than average results and success you need to do the opposite.

Doing what’s comfortable is safe for you – but boring for your customers. Boring is invisible and invisible means no sale.

2. Give Value FirstAt the beginning of every customer/dealer relationship there is a set of emotions like fear, distrust, uncertainty and lack of knowledge

that exists and stands between you and the sale. Think of this as “The Mighty Wall Of Mistrust.”

In the car business it’s a higher and thicker wall than in any other business. Most dealers and sales people try to do a standing jump over the wall, only to miss it by a mile.

It’s foolish to try to jump the wall in a single bound. The smart thing to do is break the wall down from the bottom, brick by brick.

By providing your customers with valuable information you put yourself on the same side of the table as them. You become a trusted advisor instead of a sales person.

This allows you to chip away at the wall more quickly and ultimately overcome all the emotions that stand in the way of the sale.

3. Create An Irresistible OfferWhile all of your competitors are screaming price or payment, service or selection, you must create a truly compelling, irresistible offer.

Analyze your dealership and fi nd out what you do that your competitors don’t do (or don’t talk about) that delivers a high return on investment for your customers.

Focus on the value-added services your store provides. Do you offer a unique warranty or satisfaction guarantee? Do you include a maintenance package with your vehicles? Do you give free car washes to your customers on Thursdays?

This is not about pulling silly marketing stunts like pink gorillas on your roof or talking dogs in your commercials. This is about offering a truly unique and valuable experience and benefi t to your customers that effectively removes you from the commodity pricing game.

If you want to take matters into your own hands and dominate your competition by being unique, request our FREE Special Automotive Business Advisory For Car Dealers and Managers, a 32-page industry bulletin titled, How To Uncover The Hidden Wealth In Your Used Car Dealership. To get your free copy visit www.RichDealers.com/success.

Jimmy Vee and Travis Miller are the founders of Use Car Marketing Center. They can be contacted at 866.852.0145, or by e-mail at J&[email protected].


Juvenile Diabetes

affects millions

and causes long-

term complications like blindness

and kidney failure. Not to mention

pain and worry no kid should have

to live with. But we’re closer than

ever to a cure. Your help makes life-

saving research possible.

Call 1.800.533.CURE or visit

www.jdrf.org.

you are his cure

Mary Tyler MooreInternational Chairman

37november 2006

E-Mail & Multi-Channel Marketing: The New Frontier

SunnyKnockests fos ls ms sf fi s

marketing solution

“There’s no better way to touch our customer base than by the Internet,” said Richard Mikels, General Manager of

Beck Imports of the Carolinas. Mikels has experienced success in e-mailing customer’s information on driving tips, maintenance, coupon savings and even survival kits.

Many dealers have identifi ed the importance of collecting e-mail addresses as a means to lower their overall marketing costs. What some aren’t sure about is how to do something profi table with those e-mail addresses.

It starts with your overall marketing strategy. With the advent of new marketing technologies, dealers should be leveraging a multi-channel marketing approach with their customers and prospects to include e-mail marketing.

Most customers that walk into a dealership have e-mail addresses. In fact, 85 percent of them do. And dealers recognize this as evidenced in e-mail programs in the automotive space in 2005. In 2002, 36 percent of dealerships were using e-mail marketing. In 2005, that number jumped to 74 percent. So the question is: Why wouldn’t all dealers use e-mail as a primary form of communication with their customers – a major-channel in the multi-channel marketing approach?

There is the issue of CAN-SPAM compliance. And how does one ensure deliverability of their e-mails? Are they getting through the customer’s spam fi lter? And how might a dealer make certain that the piece has a high open rate? And what about click throughs? In fact, what is a click through?

These are the questions that your e-mail marketing solution and overall marketing strategy should answer and deliver on. Dealers all over the country are still asking these questions and more. For example, “How do I get repeat customer visits in Service? How do I market effectively to those customers?” And, “How do I get those customers to spend more money?” Dealers need a solution that will report the results, from sent e-mails, to bounces, and the open rate and revenue generated from the e-mail

campaigns.

But here’s where the rubber hits the road.

When you combine e-mail marketing with other marketing channels, you can expect a fi ve percent to 10 percent lift in your response rates.

So how does one start this process? By collecting those e-mail addresses. Reward employees that collect e-mail addresses through a spiff. There is an art to e-mail collection and it’s important to encourage your sales and service people to ask without being to aggressive. Some folks are still leery of providing e-mail addresses, especially if they don’t know what’s in it for them. Unless they see the value and benefi ts they may still be hesitant.

It is important to send relevant messages to your customers. The batch and blast is a thing of the past. You should send targeted, relevant messages to your customers that apply to them individually. This is done by segmenting the data, watching trends in customer responses and returns, and creating pieces that meet the needs individually of the recipient. Dealers can utilize customer data with automated e-mail triggers that deliver one to one communication with their customers.

Next, make sure you are using the right medium for the right customer. While e-mail works for most of a dealer’s customers, voice broadcasting might work better for others. In a rural area, direct mail is still getting traction. And for the Generation M (the multi-tasking generation) people, text messaging might be the way to go to maximize your customer reach.

Ideally, your e-mail marketing solution should refl ect your existing direct mail efforts and your dealership’s brand combined with a strong call to action for the customer. When a dealer hooks up with a strong e-mail marketing solution, it should enable them to easily create and manage e-mail campaigns while delivering a low cost of ownership.

Sunny Knocke is the president and co-founder of MarketView 360. She can be contacted at 866.452.3715, or by e-mail at [email protected].


Cash conversions may be one of the most diffi cult challenges business managers face when working with customers. Despite

the fact that many incentives offer 0 percent fi nancing, there are customers who still want to pay for their vehicles upfront. A one-pay lease may be the best solution a business manager has to convert this type of buyer.

A vehicle is a depreciating asset. Paying cash for this type of asset is not necessarily the best method of payment. Yet many customers who pay for their vehicles upfront do so because they think they will be saving money. In some cases, it is a source of pride. For others, they simply do not want the burden of writing a check every month. Either way, a one-pay lease is the solution.

One-pay leasing offers the advantages

TonyDupaquiersts fos ls ms sf fi s

f&i solution

Why Pay for the Entire Carof a cash payment and fi nancing. Most importantly, customers only pay for the portion of the vehicle they use. In today’s industry, leases are available for as short as 12 months, extending to as long as 60 months. However, overall, I do not recommend leasing a vehicle for an extended amount of time. Keep it short. This will present the opportunity to sell a customer several vehicles. Most customers can drive two new vehicles for the same amount of money and over the same amount of time as buying one vehicle with cash upfront.

A one-pay lease works the same as a standard lease with one exception: Customers do not write a check every month to pay the lease. Instead, they write one check to pay for the entire lease upfront. Some lease companies offer a special money factor for one-pay leases. (Many factor banks, however, do not, but it is always a good idea to check.) Do customers pay for the use of the money? Yes

they do. However, the money paid in this type of lease far out weighs the depreciation the vehicle will suffer.

For the most part, a vehicle usually remains under the factory warranty for the length of the lease, so the customer should never have to purchase tires, replace brakes or pay for any other major repairs. At the end of the lease, the customer has all the same options: write one more check and own the car, sell the car/trade it in (if there is any equity), or toss the keys back and walk away.

GAP coverage is an additional bonus that comes with leasing. Say, for instance, a customer purchases a new luxury vehicle, and that after six months, the vehicle is declared a total loss. If the customer paid cash for the vehicle, will the insurance company reimburse the full price for the vehicle, including sales tax? In most cases, the answer is “no.”

Regardless of how a vehicle is purchased, the market value of any vehicle is determined by using real-time information from the day of the claim, which is the amount the insurance company will pay. Unless the customer pays an additional amount for full vehicle replacement coverage, he or she will lose a considerable amount of cash. A lease or a one-pay lease will eliminate this from happening. Most lease companies offer GAP coverage as a complimentary feature of their leases, which can ultimately save customers a signifi cant amount of money.

The next time a customer wants to write a check for his or her new vehicle, offer the customer a one-pay lease program. He or she will only pay a percentage of the vehicle and will reduce the overall cost of ownership for his or her investment.

Tony Dupaquier is the director of F&I Training for the Automotive Training Academy. He can be contacted at 866.856.6754, or by e-mail at [email protected].

or email: [email protected] 6 5 74 2 4

©©

A m e r i c a ’ s

©

Call Mike Nichols at 866-642-4657

Honda Dealers: Setting up an ad group?Call Us! We have over 12 years experience as a General Motors key ad agency.

AGENCIESWELCOME

CompleteCustom BuiltAdvertisingCampaign!

ViewSamples At:

NOCONTRACTTO SIGN

*Plus dubs, shipping and announcer.

Choosing a Direct Mail Provider: The Who, Why and How of Increasing Sales Volume at Your Dealership

JimYoungsts fos ls ms sf fi s


www.sellingsuccessonline.com40

Direct mail is a great way to target customers in your immediate area and get immediate results - results that

are measurable. To get the best results from your advertising budget and your time, you need to pick the right mail house. Here’s the Who, Why and How of picking the right house for your business.

Who?Who you should be doing your direct mail advertising with can be measured in just a few categories:

1. Competitive Pricing: You should know what the competitive rates for direct mail are in your market and around the country. Buying direct mail services is no different than buying cars at auction. There is no reason to overpay and no reason not to know what you’re getting for your money. All it takes is a little homework to fi nd out if your mail house is charging you a fair price.

2. Market Exclusivity: You should be the only client in your fi eld that your mail house has in your immediate market. At minimum, make sure there are no dealers in your market that will be utilizing the same list and/or mailer.

3. Measurable Results: Always track your results. Track which types of mailers, lists and envelopes perform best. What offers draw the most quality traffi c? What days of the week are most successful. Which days are second and third? Your mail house should be able to show you in black and white what they are

generating for you. The mail house shouldn’t rely on the dealership for result tracking.

Why?Use a company that is in it for the long haul, can show you a successful track record and has your best interest in mind.

1. Consistency: Dealerships, both franchise and independent, will tell you that the most effective advertising they do is the most consistent advertising they do. Find a mail house that you can work with month in, month out, year in and year out, and you will see the results.

2. Trust and Relationships: Many dealerships have used the same vendors for touch-up, window tinting, custom tires and wheels for years. They have built a relationship with these companies and their people over time. Your mail house should be no different. Every dealership with consistent results from direct mail has a long-term relationship with their provider.

3. Planning: A solid mail house partner for your dealership can help you plan your marketing efforts, helping to free you up to sell cars and make money.

How?How does a dealership fi nd a good mail house? Qualify a potential mail house like you would qualify a customer.

1. Check references: If they have done a good job, a mail house should have plenty of current customers for you

to call. Also, they should be able to show you response rates for their programs in similar markets.

2. Go to their Web site: If the Web site looks like it hasn’t been updated since the Clinton administration, that’s probably not a good sign.

3. Get a media kit: A good mail house shouldn’t just have a few random mail pieces to send you. They should have programs available in any category you can think of and a few you’ve never heard of. If you know more than they do about direct mail, that’s not good either. Make sure you are dealing with someone who understands the car business. Many of the best mail houses employ people who have worked in dealerships previously.

The Bottom LineDirect mail is an effective measurable way to target specifi c audiences. From saturating a specifi c area to mailing to your own database to credit scored and bankruptcy direct mail, it can turn bad months into solid months and mediocre years into record years. What’s more, direct mail done properly with a good mail house can be done for less than you would spend on TV, radio and newspaper. Choose your direct mail house wisely.

For fi ve free tips to maximize your direct mail e-mail me.

Jim Young is the sales and marketing coordinator for Allegiant Marketing Group. He can be contacted at866.883.6669, or by e-mail [email protected].

41november 2006

Have you ever been crab fi shing? When you catch one, you put it in a wicker basket and then place the lid

on it to prevent an escape. Catch two or more and the lid is no longer a necessity. Why? It’s because if one tries to escape, the others will reach up and pull it back down into the basket. They prefer to pull each other down instead of working together to escape, or better their situation. Sound familiar to your work environment?

Misery loves company, and it’s easier for co-

Attitude DeterminesAltitude...Income Altitude

MikeParsonssts fos ls ms sf fi s


workers to pull each other down emotionally and mentally than it is to work together as a team and lift each other up. You’ve heard it before, and it’s applicable to Internet sales as well - attitude affects gross. And gross affects your income. When your eyes get tired of staring at the computer screen, instead of getting involved in a gossip session with the “guys” and “gals,” try something different. Find yourself another true professional and role play, hone your phone skills, practice overcoming objections, drill each other on product knowledge, and keep each other motivated. That will put much more money in your pocket than the alternative uses of time.

It’s important to remember that while many aspects of our business are evolving due to changes in technology, there are many areas that stay the same. One of those is the fact that your attitude will determine your fi nancial altitude.

Mike Parsons is the director of eCommerce at Asbury Automotive Group, Southeast Region. He can be contacted at 866.446.7143, or by e-mail [email protected].

How to Maximize theResponse to a Teamed Event

PeterBond & TerranceCoxsts fos ls ms sf fi s


A teamed event is a great way to jump start sales and make an ordinary weekend an extraordinary weekend. Properly preparing for

the event is crucial to its success. By taking the following steps, you can drive the right kind of traffi c into your showroom.

First, draw a circle, determined by budget, around your dealership and fi nd out how many households are located within the circle. Concentrate on the closest households within your market, and extend out after accomplishing immediate market concerns. Once you determine a household count, determine how many of those households have a telephone, purchase a telephone list and electronically call each household, letting them know that they will receive your mailer within 24 hours of the mail drop. Do not call nights or weekends. Your goal is to leave as many messages on answering machines as possible. The message is a recording less than a minute in length which says something close to the following: “Hello, this is Mr. Moore from Quality Ford in (address) and I’m calling to offer you a three-day/two-night vacation getaway, where I’ll pay for your hotel/motel accommodations to (describe resort areas within driving distance) if you test drive any of our new or pre-owned vehicles this Wednesday through Monday. We have an infl ated vehicle inventory and we are liquidating as many vehicles to the public as possible instead of taking them to auction. We will dramatically sacrifi ce profi t to move all vehicles in inventory. No purchase is necessary after you test drive any vehicle in inventory. I’m sending you an invitation

tomorrow or the next day, so please look in your mailbox for details. Thanks and please visit us anytime between Wednesday and Monday of this week.” When you work with direct distributors of vacation, shopping sprees and gifts, you’ll pay less. Send mail with the objective to get it read. People automatically throw away “junk mail” unless you provide reasons for consumers to read it, which is the reason for the telephone call and incentive. People will read the mail in record numbers in great detail when you send it in this manner. You will not run into “Do Not Call” issues because you are offering a test drive and not a sales call requiring a sale to get a gift. This is highly effective. Also, send the mail in saturation, utilizing names where available so it is personalized. Use scratch-off mail that indicates the consumer has won a gift that must be picked up during sale hours at the dealership. The scratch-off is another great motivator for consumers to read the mail.

In addition to mailings, the following actions have proven effective in getting people aware and excited about your teamed event: • Put “advertorials” in the local

newspapers. An “advertorial” is an ad that looks like an article, whereby you outline the sale highlights. This is more effective than a display ad in the automotive section of the newspaper, because people read articles with catchy headlines while skipping ads.

• Use live telemarketers to call each

past customer and invite them to the sale event with an incentive to do so. With this tactic, you’ll be able to set

appointments immediately. The prior customer is four times more likely to attend your event than someone who is not familiar with your dealership.

• Use newspaper inserts and fl yers to

get the word out. Saturate newspaper subscribers both within and outside of your immediate market. Use extra fl yers that employees can leave at businesses around your market area. They must contain high impact and effective messages to compel people to visit your sale event. Instruct your sales people to call every prospect that has visited the dealership in the past three weeks to notify them about the special sale event. Use specifi c, proven word tracks to bring them back.

• Drive people to a Web site for the

event, which will register and attract hundreds of consumers prior to the sale and urge them to set appointments. This truly enhances the traffi c for the event. Imagine having a couple hundred contacts prior to the event being held. Set as many appointments as possible. Conduct an e-mail campaign for opted-in e-mail addresses. Contact credit bureaus and other associations to inform them of the incentive-driven event prior to the sale.

For more free tips, e-mail us at the address below.

Peter A. Bond is the chairman/founder of Targeted Traffi c with Results, LLC. Terrance Cox is the co-CEO of Targeted Traffi c with Results, LLC. They can be contacted at 866.883.4258, or at [email protected].

www.sellingsuccessonline.com42

Dealix Drives Success.

Introducing Dealix’s Used CarAdvertising and Leads Program

Call Dealix today at (800) 717-8079, or visit www.dealix.com.

ParagonCars.com

HouseofCourtesy.com RedMcCombs.comSheehy.com Schomp.com

Tasca.com

DickHannah.com

HerbChambers.com

CDodge.com

Free CRM Biz Plan &Free In-Store Consultation

877. BZ.TOOLS877.298.6657

BZResults.com

Congrats!eCRMDealers

Yearof the

9 10outof

Winners use

BZResults.com

Success StorySuccess StoryCase Study:

he Rick Case Automo-tive Group is experienc-ing tremendous growth

in its eCommerce initiatives doubling their Internet sales from 250 to more than 500 units per month while cutting their cost per sale from $340 per car to only $210! With 15 dealerships throughout Fort Lauderdale, Atlanta and Cleveland, Rick and Rita Case have led the Rick Case Automotive Group through re-markable growth in recent years. Founded in northeast Ohio in 1962, the group today is based in south Florida. With more than a half a mil-lion square feet, and over 1,500 new Hondas inside under showroom lights,

Rick Case Honda opened in Fort Lau-derdale, Florida in 2002 as the world’s largest automotive complex.This amazing enterprise began to emerge when Rick Case sold his first car at the ripe age of 14 years old. It was an old “fixer-upper” which he pur-chased, tweaked, and then sold for a profit. Rick claims he made more on that one car than he had made all year as a paper delivery boy. By 1965 Rick had opened his first Honda vehicle franchise, and established his stature as having a keen eye for how innova-tion can lead to opportunities. Rita Case was raised in the ‘car busi-ness’ with her father being the first Honda dealer in the US. When Rita

graduated college, she began to man-age her father’s dealership. Both Rick and Rita met their destiny while at-tending a Honda NADA Group Meet-ing in 1978. The two were married in 1980 and, well, the rest is history.Today, Rick and Rita Case have taken their dealership to a new level through the unparalleled potential of internet marketing. We visited with Phil Co-hen, National Director of eCommerce, to gain insight on the driving force be-hind their phenomenal success at Rick Case Automotive.

The Right StrategyOne key to recent success at the Rick Case Automotive Group was their

Success Story

www.RickCase.comUses eCommerce to Double Sales

switch in technology and training ven-dors. The group put together a new eCommerce strategy and uses the power of Search Engine Marketing and email campaigns to increase sales and lower ad costs. Their new e-mar-keting strategy helped reduce cost per sale from $340 per car to $210 per car while generating an average of 5000 leads per month (up from their aver-age of 4000 leads per month). They’re even selling an additional 250 units per month out of their eCommerce De-partment. “We see the highest return on investment from internet and phone leads generated from our own website, www.RickCase.com and from the email campaigns we run, so we shifted

some of our focus to these areas. By tracking cost per sale by lead source, we’re able to make smarter decisions with our marketing strategy and bud-get. For us, it makes the most sense to reduce our reliance on traditional forms of advertising. Our new web site, Search Engine Marketing and email campaigns are cheaper and get better results,” says Cohen.

With customers tuning out radio and television and becoming less respon-sive to direct mail and newspaper, Rick Case Automotive turned their focus to using the web as an alter-native way to drive traffic to their site and ultimately the showroom.

Here’s how they did it:

Marketing Best Practices

Implement the right balance of advertising and SEO/SEM

Create effective, low-cost email campaigns

Establish a strategy to pop-ulate their email database

Build the right web site

Search Engine MarketingWithout traffic, it’s tough to gener-

•

•

•

•

Success Story

Success Story

ate salequickly are usinGoogle processRick Caand traimore hig

crease iwebsite

Email MThe gosame asMarketitraffic a“We lovpensiveleven thotential cthat it’sto creathat graprompt dealershour highup untilcently fe“Race foOnce wCRM toquery ou

“Our vendor, BZ Results.com uses Search Engine Optimization to ensure we appear at the top of the most popular search results.” Phil Cohen, National eCommerce Director

Success Story

buying service. Their site along with innovative SEM strategies drive more quality traffic to the dealership en-abling Rick Case to increase leads, re-duce reliance on 3rd party lead provid-ers, and lower costs.

Phil Cohen says, “After putting to-gether the right people, process and technology partners our numbers in-creased dramatically. Due to the suc-cess we’ve had with our digital mar-keting provider in Florida, we recently switched all of our Georgia and Ohio stores to BZ as well. We are increasing our leads and sales at a rapid pace.”

Cohen names a few keys to any great automotive web site:

1. Simple and easy to use for the customer2. Cool technology that’s new and fresh3. One click to inventory4. Updated specials and cou-pons5. Designed to be a market-ing center that drives results, rather than merely provides information

The Importance of Process and PeopleRick Case Automotive fine tuned their process for handling leads. “Ini-tially we had sales people responding to leads. The pitfalls are obvious: we have high-volume stores, so during a busy weekend or close to the end of the month when our sales team has a customer face to face, too many leads would be dropped without a response. We now have a dedicated team and a clearly defined process. Our highly-trained teams of specialists are solely

responsible for responding to phone and internet leads and they are com-pensated in such a way that drives ap-pointments and shows.”

The ResultsRick Case Automotive has established a dominant presence on the web that has increased traffic and quality leads. Their eCommerce team is setting and confirming more appointments that generate results: increased sales at lower costs.

Success Story

Success Story

“After hiring a company that specializes in digital marketing our numbers skyrocketed. After we switched to BZ we increased leads and sales dou-bled.” Phil Cohen, National eCommerce Director

500

Sale

s

450

400

350

300

250

The Rick Case Automotive Group increased sales from 250 to 500+ in just 9 months

Months1 6 7 8 95432

$350

Co

st

Days20 3025151050

$250

$150

$50

$25

$0

The Rick Case Automotive Group used their new e-marketing strategy to cut cost per sale from

$340 per car to only $210

Rick Case Success Story

Success Story

Success Story

ate sales and Rick Case Automotive quickly learned that customers today are using internet search engines like Google and Yahoo during their buying process. To attract today’s shoppers, Rick Case relies on their technology and training partners to help generate more high quality leads at a lower cost.

Phil Cohen explains, “Our vendor, BZ Results.com uses Search Engine Optimiza-tion to ensure we appear at the top of the most popular search results. There’s or-ganic optimization, which is free, and pay per click, which is not. We appear up top for free when a customer googles a popular search like ‘Fort Lauderdale Honda’ or ‘Fort Lauderdale Hyundai’ whereas our competitors have to buy sponsored links. As a result we’ve seen an in-

crease in the traffic to our phones, our website and ultimately to our stores.”

Email MarketingThe goal of email marketing is the same as the goal for Search Engine Marketing: To attract more quality traffic at a lower cost. Cohen explains, “We love how quickly, easily and inex-pensively we can reach hundreds and even thousands of customers and po-tential customers. Best of all, we love that it’s 100% measurable. We’re able to create unique mini-commercials that grab the customers’ attention and prompt them to come in or contact the dealership. If they don’t contact us, our highly trained CRC team follows up until they do. For example, we re-cently featured Rick and Rita Case in a “Race for the Record” email campaign. Once we customize the Buzzmail, our CRM tool, BuzzTrak, makes it easy to query our database, load and blast. We

set criteria to target only the custom-ers we want to reach. For example, if Honda comes out with a low lease pay-ment or special rate on the Accord, we can target every one who’s been in the last 60, 90 or 120 days on the Accord and send them an interactive email. Our customers also love our Virtual Test Drives because they hit play and get to watch a multimedia vehicle tour that highlights the unique features of the vehicle they’re interested in.”

How effective are these email cam-paigns? Cohen says, “It’s impossible to create 100% accountability but our technology helps us measure how many emails were sent successfully, how many duplicate email addresses we have and how many customers opt out. This is our fastest, easiest, most effec-tive and least expensive form of mar-keting.” Compared with conventional advertising like print, radio, television and direct mail, email marketing al-lows the team at Rick Case Automo-tive to communicate with hundreds or thousands of customers with just a few clicks and virtually no cost. It’s faster, easier and more effective.

Populating their Email DatabaseOnce you have email addresses, you can begin to establish growth through email marketing. With the right peo-ple and process in place to hold the team accountable in both sales and service, Rick Case Automotive has seen their email address capture rate increase nearly 30%. All leads go into their lead management tool, BuzzTrak, which makes it quick and easy to ex-ecute as many campaigns as often as they like.

The eCommerce team at Rick Case is responsible for contacting and follow-ing up with all prospects in order to build value in their products and their dealership while building trust. The staff appreciates that their CRM tool makes it easy to manage and measure all customer activity. The Virtual BDC can automatically execute thousands of daily activities and do the work most sales people avoid.

The Right Web Site: www.RickCase.com is more than just a website; it’s a Virtual Dealership which serves as their own regional

In a Nutshell• The Rick Case Automotive Group used their new eCommerce strategy to double sales

• The Rick Case Automotive Group increased sales from 250 to 500+ in just 9 months

• The Rick Case Automotive Group is comprised of 15 dealerships throughout Fort Lauderdale, Atlanta & Cleveland.

• Rick Case Honda opened in Fort Lauderdale, Florida in 2002 & is now the world’s largest automotive complex

• In their fi rst month & fi rst year in operation became the world’s largest volume Honda dealer & broke all Honda sales volume records

• The Rick Case Automotive Group used their new e-marketing strategy to cut cost per sale from $340 per car to only $210

AutoSuccessNov06

Business

Transcript of AutoSuccessNov06