Mike overy of the BDC experts will show your sales, service and BDC team how to reach more customers. After over 20 years teaching dealers we have found that contact ratios are as follow.

100 Calls 20-30 contacts and 4-8 appointments with one contact number.

These numbers are of course based on a trained BDC staff member calling sales, service or internet customers.

We are asked by customers, clients, owners and sales and…

I’ve often wondered what makes salespeople go from optimism to pessimism in such a short amount of time. (i.e. 30 day wonders) When they first hit the pavement, they are full of optimism; I mean they believe every customer is a buyer.  Eventually, they become pessimistic; their speech begins to change; all buyers are liars and all of them are buried or idiots. As…

Small businesses and owners SHOULD understand the importance of branding! What is branding? It is everything your company does or doesn’t do. Influenced, evaluated, judged, compared in the minds of your audience every given moment of the day. This DOES NOT mean that your spending budget needs to double, or you need to get a second mortgage on your home. How about offering the BEST, most Exceptional,  Unforgettable customer experience with some outstanding character? Not just be the…

Now the first thing we need to remember is that certain people gravitate to certain lines of work and for that matter, certain groups. Being a sales person doesn't make you a certain way, being a certain way makes you gravitate toward that line of work. Now if we agree on the sociology of the group, we see why this maybe more of challenge than you think.

The outgoing, friendly person who enjoys making friends traditionally moves toward a sales type of work.

The technical type…

You better hope they are!!

For those of you who have been in the car business a while, the service business has changed dramatically over the years. With the quality of vehicles getting better and aftermarket garages getting bolder, we have to rely on servicing vehicles as much as 'fixing" vehicle. 

So to service a vehicle, you need to sell service. 

I've overheard numerous service calls that went along the lines of; "Mr Customer, you need brakes and…

The secret paths on the journey to sales success do not exist.  There are no hidden doorways that inherently lead to a pool of wealth.  The trek requires tenacity, perseverance and commitment and is no place for the weak spirited. The route is littered with mediocre, unfulfilled promise…

Many people choose to stand in; those who do fall in line, conversing between the should’ves and the could’ves. When you stand in, you play it safe attempting to minimize exposure of any liability, risk, or mishap- anything that could make you look foolish. When you stand out, you expose yourself to all of the risks- becoming the sole beneficiary of…

They don’t trust you.

We both know it’s largely unfair, but they don’t trust you. 

You’ve seen all the polls where buyers say if they could bypass the dealership and buy directly from the manufacturer they would.  They trust the OEM, but they don’t trust you.

A couple weeks ago, I heard a Ford maven say this (I’ll paraphrase): “The more your outgoing emails resemble Tier 1 emails, the more prospects trust you.”   By gawd, he’s on to something.…

Another Coach is working with a SMgr who asks his salespeeps to submit a short activity summary at the end of each day. Not everyone does this and this SMgr is frustrated. Thoughts?

One point is missing. This will only pertain if this isn't a rebellious bunch who don't believe in accountability and it all…

How do we get our people, the culture, aligned with the strategies so that everyone is committed to the strategy?  How do we unleash the creativity, resourcefulness, talent, and energy of our team to come together? 

Momentum can carry a team through the most challenging times.  If the foundation is void of fundamental leadership skills, the team can decelerate quickly at the first…

There are two pains you will feel in your life…

The pain of discipline…

Or the pain of regret…

The pain of discipline…requires us…to do all…

The recent changes with Google Places make a strong case why dealers need a marketing strategy that is continually updated based on market conditions and changes in search/social.



I've been flooded this week with calls and emails asking for guidance on how to adjust…

The 11th Digital Dealer Conference & Exposition is excited to announce that our keynote speaker will be Erik Qualman, best-selling author of "Socialnomics"!

Erik Qualman has recently advised/given keynotes with the following: Coach, Facebook, UGG Australia, Starbucks,…

True self-worth stems from within

You can't be lifted up by anyone or anything any higher than

you're willing to lift yourself up.

You can't be put down by anyone or anything any lower than…

In a first, a dealership in Michigan partnered up with Groupon to offer Groupon’s first car buying groupon. The deal offered was $500 off the purchase of a vehicle for $199. Keep in mind that Groupon typically takes 50% of the price of the offer (in this case about $100) if the Groupon is successful (ie. meets the minimum purchase requirements). So in the event that the minimum of 10 deals were…

TO LAUGH IS TO RISK APPEARING THE FOOL

TO WEEP IS TO RISK APPEARING SENTIMENTAL…

Remember those old movies about the dark dank rooms that unwanted children were forced to live in.  They were left to fend for themselves, poorly fed, and ignored until they were old enough to go somewhere else on their own.  While some of these movies became musicals, an orpahn's life was not a pretty one.  How about those who have been left by the wayside when their salesperson moves on?  Are they just being ignored until they move on?

Orphan owners may be the most ignored…