Making 'Em Thirsty

     Auto sales, any sales really, is a people business.  It is about identifying a customer's wants and needs and tailoring your product to them.  Too many people who have “Sales and Leasing Consultant” on their business cards are nothing more than paper hat wearing, order taking monkeys with notes in their mouths.  Customer's come to dealerships and give the sales representative a list (an order) of what they…

     “There are two reasons people fail in the car business; they’re either lazy or they’re stupid.”  Those were the words of wisdom and inspiration I was given in a letter by my mom's second husband, Phil  when I first got into the business.  He was in his fifth decade in the industry, a dealer principal/owner on the East Coast.  I was a green-pea in the Pacific Northwest.  No pressure, if I fail, I’m either lazy or stupid.  I guess of the two, stupid would be…

7 Habits of Completely Useless Managers

Due to the overwhelming response to The 7 Habits of Largely Ineffective Salespeople I was compelled to write a follow up piece on Sales Managers. These 7 habits will be beneficial to those already in a management role as well as those aspiring to become to be managers. If you are a Largely Ineffective Salesperson these additional habits will put you on the fast track to the abyss of poor management…

What is a Car-Guy?

     When my, then girlfriend, now wife Bernadette and I announced to our families that we were going to get married it was met with let’s call it muted approval (concern and disapproval really).  First off, we were thousands of miles away from either of our kin, stationed on the island of Guam.  Secondly, we were young, 19 and 21.  Finally, we hadn’t known each other very long (I proposed on our second date!).  We had met in…

The 7 Habits of Largely Ineffective Salespeople

     It is with my sincerest apologies to Stephen Covey that I write these words.  As I review his book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and consider the simplicity of most of its contents my mind goes to the insanity of our industry.  I trust you will receive this in the spirit in which it is intended.

     The 7 Habits of Largely Ineffective Salespeople is a compilation of vast…

Cow Tipping and Other Hoaxes

     It is time to dispel more of those car business myths, rumors, hoaxes and fables that have been passed down through the annals of time.  Like the one about the pig farmer with…

It’s a common and prevalent misconception in any sales oriented business that, because someone has sold or even just spoken to a person in the past, the customer belongs to that sales representative, forever.  “That’s my customer”, “How did you end up with my people?” “Didn’t they ask for me?  They should have, they’re my customers.”  Where and when did the mentality that customers are “forever mine” begin?  The following is a result of my vast research to answer…

Staying Dumb is the Smartest Thing You can Do

While working the desk here recently I handed a proposal (pencil) to one of our senior, veteran, strong salespeople.  It was the first proposal so it reflected a retail price with shorter terms and an average A.P.R. (we hadn’t run credit).  The trusty, crusty veteran looked at the proposal and said, “Here’s what I think we should do…” and proceeded to tell me how we should discount the vehicle, stretch the…