Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Craig Lockerd on September 16, 2010 at 11:12am

Dealership/ Customer Pay R.O increase daily training , measurement and managment of the process,most of increase goes to net.
Salesperson Recruiting &Training Business/ 08,09 forced me to open my eyes to finally SEE enough fat to keep 2 companies warm,cut it, got lean and profitable!

Permalink Reply by Ryan Kleinjan on September 16, 2010 at 12:55pm

Nancy -
Great post.

My experience with our clients - for quick change, we have most often seen addressing of labor and benefits (insurance, PTO, paid holidays, etc). This has had a quick affect on the bottomline but must be managed rather 'gingerly' due to the potential harm to morale.

This method is NOT without potential consequences BUT can be affective quickly.

Apologize for not more - our world at PMG is more predicated on strategic-long term 'lean' processes...

Have a great weekend!

Permalink Reply by Joe Brunner on September 16, 2010 at 5:28pm

We had everyone build an evidence manual. 71% of people buy from someone they like, respect, and trust. The evidence manual helps you build trust. Use it with every customer and you will sell more!

Permalink Reply by NANCY SIMMONS on September 16, 2010 at 6:17pm

Hi Craig, I had a long answered typed out and jumped into Carbucks for a moment and lost it... So I am going to keep it brief and say I agree with you that tweaking the process of writing an RO is the simplest change which can be most effective and long lasting. It is not a quick fix event, but it will increase gross profit instantaneously! Example, looking at your average line per RO and coming up with a way to increase. How about having the customer sign off on declined recommended services... that is a quick fix and works wonders!

And trimming the fat or cutting the unnecessary and sometime luxurious expenses has a dramatic impact as long as your are not bound in contractual agreements. The dealer I worked for in the late 80's gave 4 company American Express Cards to his key people. We were empowered to use at our own discretion; however one of the cardholders liked to entertain often and called it training..."We are talking about business, right?"... Well this false training was reduced by 3k per month when the cards were taken back!

Great answers!

Craig Lockerd said:

Dealership/ Customer Pay R.O increase daily training , measurement and managment of the process,most of increase goes to net.
Salesperson Recruiting &Training Business/ 08,09 forced me to open my eyes to finally SEE enough fat to keep 2 companies warm,cut it, got lean and profitable!

Permalink Reply by NANCY SIMMONS on September 16, 2010 at 6:37pm

Ryan, as an Automotive Comptroller who has been in the Retail Operations side of automotive for over 30 years I have been through a few recessions, three different dealers, One dealer I worked for was non-reactive and is no longer in business, the next was reactive, and reacted after a crisis presented itself, and the third dealer was proactive, and still very vibrant and successful today!
I have to say that other then the luxuries, like employees empowered with American Express company cards, I always tried to stay away from cutting in the areas of personnel and I will tell you why! When the economy takes a turn into a downslide position, 90% of the employees' (productive employees) incomes are affected as well. Commissioned salespeople, Flat Rate mechanics, and Managers with gross driven bonus plans will most likely take a reduced pay. So now increasing their deductions for health insurance benefits, or reducing their holiday pay/ vacation pay is a great formula which not only attacks employee morale, but reduces productivity and employee loyalty/retention. The hidden costs associated with employee turnover far outweighs maintaining current staff and finding other areas to cut costs!

Thanks for your posts! I am not saying that my philosophy on this is the correct one, but I remain true to believe that if you have talented, loyal, and hardworking employees, that is your best commodity and keep them happy to keep them period!!!!


Ryan Kleinjan said:

Nancy -
Great post.

My experience with our clients - for quick change, we have most often seen addressing of labor and benefits (insurance, PTO, paid holidays, etc). This has had a quick affect on the bottomline but must be managed rather 'gingerly' due to the potential harm to morale.

This method is NOT without potential consequences BUT can be affective quickly.

Apologize for not more - our world at PMG is more predicated on strategic-long term 'lean' processes...

Have a great weekend!

Permalink Reply by NANCY SIMMONS on September 16, 2010 at 6:39pm

Love this idea, Joe! You have shared it with me before over the phone but most clients purchase because they like the person they are dealing with and the dealership. An Evidence Manual tells a story, builds credibility, and helps the client to formulate a great perception leading into a trusted relationship! Thanks for sharing with our friend here on dealerELITE!

Joe Brunner said:

We had everyone build an evidence manual. 71% of people buy from someone they like, respect, and trust. The evidence manual helps you build trust. Use it with every customer and you will sell more!

Permalink Reply by Fred G. Slabine on September 16, 2010 at 8:55pm

Congratulations Joe! You hit the nail on the head. The most successful sales people develop long-term trusting relationships. The evidence manual is a great tool that is often only used by the best of sales pros to document their success.

Asking friendly probing questions that reveal the customers’ wants, needs and desires, listening intently, not interrupting, and rephrasing their answers to make sure the facts are clear shows the customer that you really care about them. Finding common ground is another great way to develop the relationship. Who would you rather buy from--a friend or someone who seems to be solely interested in earning a commission?
Sales managers can help by slowing the sales process down at the sales desk. Find out what the sales person knows about his or her customer other than his or her buying issues. Yes, negotiating price is important, but you and the salesperson will get much further if the customer feels some connection to both of you and vice versa.

Selling is all about developing relationships. That goes for a salesperson selling vehicles to the consumer or the sales trainer selling services to the dealership. In both cases, you want to deliver what you promise, follow-up to make sure that the customer is satisfied, and develop a relationship that lasts.

Joe Brunner said:

We had everyone build an evidence manual. 71% of people buy from someone they like, respect, and trust. The evidence manual helps you build trust. Use it with every customer and you will sell more!

Permalink Reply by NANCY SIMMONS on September 16, 2010 at 10:52pm

Thanks Fred for posting on this site...Please feel free to start your own discussion here... Afterall, basically EVERYTHING that happens in the dealership has an impact on the bottom line in some way..right?

Thanks again!

Permalink Reply by Brad Alexander on September 17, 2010 at 2:04am

About a year and a half ago my dealership brought me on board! I'm only 5'7" so that's a little change that has improved the bottom line. You know I couldn't resist Nancy. But on a serious note, we set up an express lane in service for oil changes and maintenance etc to help alleviate the congestion with customers who are having repair work done. Things move smoother less customer frustration, more repeats and the express lane thrives!

Permalink Reply by NANCY SIMMONS on September 17, 2010 at 8:09am

Hey Brad,

Thanks for posting... I love the idea of an express lane! Do you take business from the local independent "Speedy" chains as well? Does it bring in a whole new wave of clientale? I know there is quite an investment to setting up an express lane, so I wonder if you dealership has actually calculated the ROI...Since you are in Alaska, I must ask, where is the closest competing dealership/express maintenance type chain? And are your really 57" tall?


Brad Alexander said:

About a year and a half ago my dealership brought me on board! I'm only 5'7" so that's a little change that has improved the bottom line. You know I couldn't resist Nancy. But on a serious note, we set up an express lane in service for oil changes and maintenance etc to help alleviate the congestion with customers who are having repair work done. Things move smoother less customer frustration, more repeats and the express lane thrives!