Where oh where can the salespeople be ,oh where oh where could they be?

Outstanding point of view on the subject,with your permission I would love to copy asnd paste this to our Face Book page...everybody should see this.
SOOOOO now the question is how does that culture change? What "state change" needs to take place?....It must come from the head down...correct?

Finding New sales people for any business is hard but to find them for a Car Dealership has to be one of the hardest things to do.

Lets face it all the good Salesman for the auto trade all ready have a job if they are good and the only way you would get them to join your dealership is pay more than where they are on already and this just does not make sense.

You can advertise for sales people but then you rarely get the right person from that and the expenditure on advertising for staff through agencies and local newspapers for me has proved over the years to be a complete waist of money and we don't want to do that.

Finding the right Sales person for your dealership is no different to finding the right customers, you want to keep them for life.

So how do I find my sales people?

It's simple we all have great Electrical superstores in our towns in the UK we have Comet, Curry's etc in the US you have Circuit City, now here is good place to start. Take a couple of hours out on a Saturday or Sunday or in the evenings when the part time sales staff are working and watch and listen to the what these sales staff are saying to their customers. They all get targeted to sell extended warranties on all the products they sell as like the auto industry service contracts, they are the most profitable part of the sale. Like in your dealership only 3 out of 10 will think of after sales products because they are so relieved to get the sale they just want to get the order signed take the money and move on to the next. It's the same in these superstores.

Now this is were your skills come into it once you have seen and heard one of these stores salesperson go through the sale and attempted the extended warranty routine even if he has failed to do so it is your time to strike. Go straight to this sales person and call him by his name they all where name badges and tell him how much you liked the way he tried to sell the extended warranty and try and find a little about the person.

He or she will be pleased that some one has No1 complemented him on his sales skills and No2 taken and interest in him. His own boss will not do this as usually this sales person is just another no on the stores payroll. They are paid by the hour and if they are on commission they are capped so they can never earn great money unless they make it to management, they will most probably be driving an old clunker so they will want to take time out and talk to you.

Tell them what you do and tell them what you are looking for. Feed him or her with the way your dealership runs, what the earning potential is and the fact he could be driving a new car instead of his old clunker and tell him the story of how you started in the motor trade. Lets face it most of us got into it by accident (we did not know what else to do). 9 out of 10 of these guys or girls you meet will be interested believe me. I have done this for over 10 years so much so that I was barred from going in one of the local stores to me, in one year I poached 7 guys from the store and I am pleased to say that out of that 7, 5 are still working in the motor trade today and earning great money.

The reward you feel from taking a person out of a store and training them is so good they have no bad habits they don't know how to cherry pick they are not judgemental when a customer walk's on to the lot they are a walking talking learning machine and they will always look up to you as you took them out of a place where they did not want to be.

DON'T WASTE MONEY SPENDING ON RECRUITMENT GO AND SELL YOUR DEALERSHIP IN THE SAME WAY YOU SELL TO YOUR CUSTOMERS.

Marc thank you for your comment and with the possible exception of your last statement to NOT spend any money on recruiting {thats what my company does}.....lol.....I agree 100% that those are oustanding places to prospect for potential salespeople we always need to look for and approach people that treat us properly and professionally,they of course are more likely to be trainable into our industry.I think one of the key things you said was that we need to be better "selling" people on our business.....some dealerships think that with 30,000,000 out of work in the U.S. they would have an endless line of people waiting to work at the dealership and of course that just isn't the case. Lets impress the people we want about our business and then back it up with ongoing development,coaching and training.

Craig, Sorry about the last comment :) A slip of the finger when writing!!!

I think things are different in the US with Auto recruiters, in the UK from my experience most of the actual auto industry recruiters have never actually had any real life experience in the auto industry and that was reflected many times when I used them.

In the US it is a totally different and the wide choice of auto sales training is clear to see just by looking at the ads down the side of this website.

I can not name one training person in the UK who I would personally recommend in training motor trade sale people and yet just this site alone there is Joe Verdi, Grant Cardone and one not listed Paul Cummings who I would recommend and have had experience of listening to a couple of their seminars and taking part in some of their training programmes.

I think that says it all really.

No offence taken at all.....I am a bit familiar with the business in the UK...one of my x partners was from Stoke On Trent,was a dealer there....Cummings had some big contracts there years ago,didn't he?

He sure did he spent some time at our dealership group in 1999 and I think made some big bucks, Level 10 on the brain. Great for hyping up a sales meeting. He was a really nice guy and took time out on a Sunday to come to our inter dealership football tournament.

Thanks Taffy for inviting me to join this group.

It's Saturday.
There are only 52 of them a year.Are you ready? Do you have enough REAL salespeople to properly,professionally take care of your clients today?
Looking back on past saturdays,were you able to take full advantage of each one?
What will you do different next saturday and one next month and the ones left in 2010?

Stan your question is very much like the one we started with. Instead of "where have they gone" you asked "why can't we find them." Unless you are hiring a successful salesperson that is already selling cars or something product like that, you can't find them. You make them.
The world is filled with people that want to win and are motivated to win but very few are willing to prepare for winning. We should get the best available candidate by using good interviewing techniques and/or a great system like "Hire the Winners". Then the rest is up to us. We teach them, We mtoivate their efforts properly and we keep doing that in various ways, for as long as we can.

Check out www.salesstud.com
A site for the people that go to our recruiting/training classes.always looking for experts to offer advice to new salespeople!

Here is one thing we have all done in recruiting and advertising for new salespeople.
We place ads in newspapers, radio, tv and even signs out front of dealership that read
" Professional salespeople needed, great benefits $100k per year potential"
Did we ever stop to think that the people we are trying to close on a deal have probably read this!
My point is perception is everything.
People flock to Wal-Mart because the perception they cut costs etc so things cost less at their store.
If the customer across the desk PERCIEVES the salesperson is making 80 to 100k, would you not agree it makes them defensive and negotiate harder on vehicle.

Don't get me wrong, I love money, but in this economy I believe we need to start changing the publics perception of our industry. It may be a small thing, but there are 3 dealers within a 25 mile radius of me that have these signs plastered everywhere. I just never understood why we have always advertised huge income in bold print so potentail and current customers can see it. i know some of you out there must have had a customer or 2 comment on this in the past. If they think it or see it it must be true. what is your take on this Craig and others?

Tim I think you are correct! preception is everything. If the sign reads "Our sales people take such good care of our customers that they send referrals everyday to us resulting in incomes from $80-$100" for our sales people." NOW THAT IS CUSTOMER SERVICE!!!

The same message will get across with the slant toward the consumer benefit.

Tim,that is an outstanding point.....and gives me a few thoughts....thank you

I think it is important to understand in today's economy that most sales people are overworked and underpaid. In addition, they are constantly subjected to customers who get great satisfaction out of telling them about the latest recalls of the cars they are currently selling and that the cars no longer command the prices they did a few years ago.
This is why you hire the best possible candidate available for the sales posititon and coach them with the best anwers for today's customers. It is ok to agree with the customer in a pleasant way, but then ask why are they here looking at the car they claim has just been recalled? It is because they know in truth that it is only a very few of the thousands sold that are truly affected and the properly trained salesperson will recognize this. We have to pay to entice better quality in our profession and to insure longevity rather than look for quick fixes all the time. Invest in their training and continue to coach them using proper techniques that are both reputable and above board all of the time. This is how we will change our reputations, one dealership at a time. There is no place for crooks in this business at a time when dealers of high quality and good people are trying to put their best foot forward to change the car buying landscape.
I have been in this business for over 35 years and love what I do and believe me I have never had to resort to unfair or deceptive practices to sell a car. It is simply wrong and unlawful.
Let's try together to improve who we are which are sales professionals which is what our customers are also investing in.
Thank you for listening.

Thank you Phil, and you have just set a very high bar for the other salespeople here....as it should be.Ethics,Integrity,be Professional,hope your dealer knows how good he/she has it!....Anytime you want to start a discussion or get involved,please do!

The very best sales person is the one who will follow what you tell them to do! Think about this!

LETS GET THIS PARTY STARTED!

Sweet!

Hey Peter ,good to see you here!

That's pretty sharp,Manny!

Where there is vision & passion, all things fall into place

Where there is vision & passion, all things fall into place

Where there is vision & passion, all things fall into place

Where there is vision & passion, all things fall into place

I like it!

Thanks Karl

I have been interviewing candidates for sales positions and the language was so bad that they never came back! It is amazing that the dealerships that use the "English" language the way it was intended is the most successful. If applicants hear the fowl language what do you think the customers hear? Remember "first impressions"?

Please Belong To Tailor Your Techniques on http://www.dealerelite.net/group/tailoryourtechniques
Where We Bring The Old School New School Trainning Techniques And Tailor Them Everyday!
Lets Here It From Both and Fuse Them Together! ...

just got off the phone with a finance mgr with 20 plus years of experience.in south florida ..tells me that finding a managers job is very hard in his area...all dealers want him to start as a salesman...can anyone help me with this situation....hmm...hes one of the best guys ive ever seen in a dealership....are gms that insecure about there jobs

Bob have him call Rick...

Craig I see that you have a radio show this evening called
"Hiring a Car Salesman, The Good, The Bad, and The Really Ugly," really looking forward to it! If anybody else wants to tune in tonight (6 Eastern) here is the link:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/clockerd/2010/11/03/hiring-a-car-sales...

Thank you Craig. A great training conference. We practiced what we preach in our seminars: On-going education ... Synergy ... teamwork ... treating each other has if it was our last day on earth ... prospecting ... networking with social media ... building profit centers for our dealers ... driving sales with event marketing ... creating customers and friends for life. You have created a great team of Dealership Management professionals ... ready to help and serve. I am pleased to be part of that team.

Thank you Abe,it's an honor to be able to be around people like you and all the AutoMax people.

Time for the feast ... the prep has started ... Lisa the Jet Set Chef is in the house !

The story in our kitchen today ... Thanksgiving with Julia ... Julia Child gave a challenge to the Jet Set Chef. Prepare two turkeys: One freshly killed ... second frozen. Prep and baking times the same ... internal temp exactly the same. Which one did Julia like the best ? The answer later ...

To all members of the group, Have a great Thanksgiving. Remember that your legacy will not be what you accumbulated in life but what you gave to others.

If manager's really managed all the time....wow

 

we all know a team is a team - all members are needed

Social Media. Where do you think it is heading?  Do you need it in your future, busines, and your life?  Well, get ready for the ride.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cL9Wu2kWwSY

ok...what does the next 24 hours mean to u being in the best industry in the world mean!....motivation comes by example so if i give  lip service and say ill do it tomorrow it wont happen.So the best time to start something is right now!!!...easier said than done...Working with automax and Ziegler super systems means changing peoples lives right now....Its show time ladies and gentleman!!!!

Right you are Bob

Where is the elusive join this group button located lol

I think you must be joined if you made this comment?

Craig Lockerd started this group and is a regular contributor to it so I thought I would share with everybody the fact that he, Nancy Simmons and Jim Bernardi are doing a radio show tonight at 6pm eastern time titled:Automax & The AutoPro Alliance: Increasing Your Fixed Ops Revenue

 

Craig, just wanted to say thanks for the invitation to this discussion....looks most interesting especially at a time where our company is seeking new sales reps!!  Thanks again, and I will be following this and making comments on how our search is going and any specific difficulties we are running into in this, a most important aspect of our business DEALER DIRECT SERVICES {DDS}, DAVE BILLMAN, OWNER

Joyce we can actually help you with that.call Rick Emmons 800-878-5090 ext 2

Thank You Craig....will pass this information on to Dave, and will contact Rick!!

Thank you Craig

Mangorock

Thank you ,Sir

Hiring Vets - I have only experienced one potential negative in hiring Vets. IMHO there are some retired military that get too comfortable in a certain income range or the middle of the pecking order. However, despite an observable lack of  drive to be number one or make all the money they could, even these individuals were wonderful assets.

When do you cut your losses and fire a salesperson? That is perhaps the toughest decision a manager must make. You need to keep very good metrics so you can evaluate a salesperson's actual closing ratio, average gross, total gross etc. before abandoning the very expensive training you put into an individual, not to mention all the human connections that individual may have developed with your owner body. However, from time-to-time it must be done.

Usually when this is true an honest look back will find a poor hiring decision is the cause. Instead of holding out for the right candidate with the hard charging, eager attitude, a sales manager plugged a h*** with a convenient body, or perhaps, when hiring a group to train, kept a marginal candidate. Training (management time) and lower than acceptable closing ratios create a huge carrying cost ($tens of thousands per annually). Great care should be taken at the outset to insure that well-qualified candidates and ONLY well-qualified candidates make the cut.

Cheers, 

Pete

 

Yes Pete.that of course would be the case with many different people depending on the backgrounds,previous experiences etc. Initial "Screening"...sooooo important to look at "sales aptitude" We use and endorse the "Car Sales Simulator" through Hire The Winners...helps take a lot of the guess work out of the equation.