In 1982 I had the biggest blessing ever in the car business.  "Bruce" hired me as a sales person.  Bruce was the GM of a small Ford store in NJ and I was still finding my way around the business.  All I knew for sure was that I wanted to be a sales manager.  At that time, I couldn't tell a good one from a bad one but I still wanted to be one. …

Average is a term I think is often overused.  Average income, average performance, average height, age, etc.  But, when it comes to sales performance, what does average really mean.  For some it means the worst of the best.  For others, it's the best of the worst.  I'm from Jersey.  For me it's the "Cream of the Crap."  Average for me is doing just enough to stay out of trouble and under the radar.  And, if you are perfectly happy, there is nothing illegal about that.  However, you give up…

Whether you're on the road like I am, or working in a showroom, you have to produce.  At the end of the month, the results fall squarely on your shoulders.  But, if you believe that you have to do it all in order to reach those goals, you'll never get there.  Clawing your way to the top is never very effective.  But, being carried to the top is not only a better way to travel, it's a faster means to an…

When salespeople get to work in the morning, what's their goal for the day?  As managers plan the week or the month, what outcome are they focusing on?  When dealers set their sites on year end, what do they see? Usually, in each case, whatever it is, it's not enough.  Sales people want a sale, or a commission.  Managers focus on total volume or gross.  And dealers see that they ended up above water. 

Unfortunately, with visions like that, even if you accomplish what you set…

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…

Overland Park, Kan., May 2, 2011 ― NCM Associates, a leading provider of retail automotive 20 Group services, Education, Retail Operations Consulting and the originator of the NCM Benchmark® for Success program for automobile dealers, today announced that Helms Brothers Mercedes-Benz has tripled its gross profits through the implementation of the Mercedes-Benz Pre-Owned Profit Improvement Program under the guidance of NCM…