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AutoSuccess Best Practices Summit III Details Page 4AutoSuccess Best Practices Summit III Details Page 4

Dealix: DrivingOnline Auto SalesVice Presidents Steve Pace andDean Evans Talk Sales from10 Years in the Business

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48682_AT_AT5-351.indd 1 9/12/05 2:52:25 PM

Dealers & Managers Only!

Two days of intense learning. Dramatically improve

your results.

MGM GrandLas Vegas, Nevada

November 3 & 4, 2005

Limited Seats, Register Today!866.317.7914

Case studies from successful dealerships across the country.

Class room style seating only $695 in advance, $995 after

October 5, 2005.

Speakers and times subject to change

Dean EvansVice President of

Marketing, Dealix

You will learn:

- Internet Marketing that

generates high quality

leads

- Maximizing lead

generation from your

Web site

- Maximizing third party

automotive sites

- Metrics that matter

- Focus on return on

investment

Jasen RiceInternet Director, Lou

Fusz Automotive

Case Study: Ranked #17 in Total Internet

Sales for dealer groups, Internet departments

generate upwards of 20%-40% of the

dealerships total business.

You will learn:- Marketing to today�s

Internet consumers- Internet Department�s steps and processes to

the appointment/sale- Gaining revenue in the Þ nance department and getting them to become

more atoned to the Internet customer

- Meeting and exceeding Internet customers

expectations

David KainPresident, Kain

Automotive Inc.

Internet & BDC Training

Specialist

You will learn:

- Mapping out the best

Internet sales process

- E-mail templates for

the best short and long-

term communication

- Phone script elements

that turn leads into

appointments

- Recruiting, hiring and

compensating for results

Chip PerryCEO and President,

AutoTrader.com

Internet Advertising

Best Practices

You will learn:

- How AutoTrader.com�s

top performing dealers

get their outstanding

results

- Take home

examples of effective

merchandising you

can put to

immediate use

Robert RevereCRC Director, Avondale

Auto Group

Case Study: Transition

from Internet BDC to

modern day CRC

You will learn:

- Lower compensation

percentages

- Lower overhead

- 100 percent

accountability

- Higher results

SeanWolÞ ngton

Owner, BZResults.com

Case Study: How to use BDC/Internet departments to sell

100 - 500 extra cars a month.

You will learn:- Setup a successful

BDC/Internet department

- Use the Web to promote all your proÞ t

centers- Use the Web to drive

showroom & phone trafÞ c

- Sell old stock, vehicles & parts inventory

- Use e-mail marketing to drive more trafÞ c for

zero cost

Jim AdamsGeneral Manager,

Roper Kia

Honor Your

Commitments: The

Þ ve things we owe our

sales staff

You will learn:

- How to understand that

opportunity generations

are the key to success

- Individual goal setting

- Managing activities

bring results

- Daily one-on-ones: The

key to success

- Your selling attitude:

Mirroring behavior

- Building your dealer

brand

Erik StuttzVice President of

Consulting, STC Group

Case Study: Paragon Honda & Acura uses

CRC to sell 106 extra cars in one month.

You will learn:- How we increased our

leads and increased our closing ratio from 7

percent to 25 percent- How to evaluate the different CRC models

to choose the one that works for your store

- How to staff your CRC- How to build out &

overcome obstacles to creating a successful

CRC- Best practices for

turning leads into appointments that show

and appointments into sales

JenniferPicheco

Director ofe-Commerce, Germain

Motor Company

Case Study: Germain Motor Company�s

Internet department sells over 200 cars per

month - here is our secret

You will learn:- Dedicated vs.

Designated- The pricing fear factor

- Are you really listening to the customer?

- Third-party leads...Why not?

- Move forward or move on - Our follow-up

schedule- Measure, track and

feedback

Steve HiattOwner, Mountain

Mitsubishi

Case Study: How to increase your net by half

a million in a year.

You will learn:- Evaluating personnel,

the lazy or content ones- Continually train

everyone: Front end two times a week, Þ xed end

once a week- Put in controls. Move over aged inventory in

new, used and parts- Forge a deep

relationship with your manufacturer to help get

correct inventory, ß oor line and capital- Praise every

improvement in sales goals, certiÞ cations, etc.

out in public

Kevin RootVP & GM, Dealer

Advisory Service, The Cobalt Group

Case Study: Processes the top 20 dealerships

use to convert more leads to sales

You will learn:- Use the top three

key success drivers to convert leads to sales- Avoid the three most

common mistakes that kill sales

- Maximize your lead volume

- Respond to leads- Drive for appointments

- Focus on processes that deliver results

Darren Haygood

General Manager,

Lokey Nissan

You will learn:

- The "Real Deal",

maximizing REAL ROI

- e-Commerce success,

choose the right solution

for your dealership

- Used cars, sell more at

HIGHER grosses

- New cars, to BDC or

not to BDC

- Spend $200 to sell

9 units

Keith LatmanCEO & Co-Founder,

iCarMagic

Case Study: How to avoid the smoke

and mirrors and use technology to increase

your bottom line

You will learn:- How to use software

tools to merge the Internet & Showroom into

a cohesive opportunity- How to manage lead

providers and Web site trafÞ c to bring on real

ROI & not just hype- When technology can

help you and where it can hurt you

- E-mail prospecting pitfalls, how too much

of a free thing can hurt your store

Scott JosephPresident & CEO,

J&L Marketing, Inc.

Case Study: Johnson City Honda: Sells 65

extra cars a month and grosses increased

$1,300 per car

You will learn:- How to add 33% to

your bottom line and not increase ad budget- How to grow your

customer base- How to increase your average gross per unit

- How to increase purchase frequency plus customer residual value

Randy BaroneVice President of

Sales, American Auto Exchange Inc.

10 Must Haves for Today's Used Vehicle

Department

You will learn:- Sales people, the

right number and the right type

- How to achieve a 50 percent closing trade-in

ratio- What to list online for

maximum results- How to eliminate

wholesale loss- What to stock (80

percent of inventory turning in 22 days

or less)- Best practices of some

of the largest dealers and dealer groups in the

country

Call today to register. toll free 866.317.7914 web www.autosuccess.biz

IIISUMMITBEST PRACTICES

LEADERSHIP � INTERNET � CRM � MARKETING � BDC � SALES

INSI

DE

AutoSuccess Magazine is published monthly at 3411 Pinnacle Gardens Drive, Louisville, Kentucky, 40245; 502.588.3155, fax 502.588.3170. Direct all subscription and customer service inquiries to 877.818.6620 orinfo@autosuccess.biz. Subscription rate is $75 per year. AutoSuccess welcomes unsolicited editorials and graphics (not responsible for their return). All submitted editorials and graphics are subject to editing for grammar, content, and page length. AutoSuccess provides its contributing writers latitude in expressing advice and solutions; views expressed are not necessarily those of AutoSuccess and by no means reflect any guarantees. Always confer with legal counsel before implementing changes in procedures.© All contents copyrighted by AutoSuccess Magazine, a Division of Systems Marketing, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part is prohibited without express written consent from AutoSuccess. AutoSuccess may occasionally make readers’ names available to other companies whose products and/or services may be of interest; readers may request that names be removed by calling 877.818.6620. Printed in the USA.Postmaster: Send address changes to AutoSuccess Magazine, 3411 Pinnacle Gardens Drive, Louisville, Kentucky 40245.

3411 Pinnacle Gardens Drive Louisville, Kentucky 40245 ! Toll Free: 877.818.6620 " Facsimile: 502.588.3170

Patrick Luck, Editor & Publisher• pluck01@autosuccess.biz

Susan Givens, Vice President• sgivens02@autosuccess.biz

Courtney Paris, Sales-improvement Strategist• chill-paris04@autosuccess.biz

Brian Ankney, Sales-improvement Strategist• brian01@autosuccess.biz

Thomas Williams, Creative Director• twilliams03@autosuccess.biz

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BrianTracy

Can I Trust You MarkTewart

Understanding the Difference Between a Web Site and a TotalMarketing System Can Help Sell an Additional 500 Cars a Month

RadWeaver

PattiWoodMatching and Mirroring

AnthonyHallThe Science of Persuasion

Making the Most of Change

BrianAnkneyDealix: Driving Online Auto SalesVice Presidents Steve Pace and Dean Evans Talk Sales from 10 Years in the Business

SeanWolfi ngtonPeople Won�t Go Along With Youif They Can�t Get Along With You

RandyBaroneUsed Vehicle Market: Get Your Piece of the Pie

CarolMartin-ArdellBeyond the VisionUse Your Own Unique Leadership Style to Build a Better Team

TonyDupaquier

Just Promoted to Internet Manager, What to do First

MichaelYorkThis is YOUR Life, Don�t Trust Your Memory

TracyGetzCrunching the Numbers:Many Dealerships Pay More than Necessary in Trash Bills

A Perpetual State of Motivation JimAdams

God Bless America

Using the Service Drive to Sell VSCs

DavidKain

TomGegaxRide Employee Development to the Top

ScottJosephQuick-Þ x Ideas

Matthew 21:22“If you believe, you will receive what you ask for in prayer.” James 3:17“But the wisdom that is from above is fi rst pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality,and without hypocrisy.”

8

Making the Most of Change

BrianTracy

To deal with change, perhaps the most valuable quality you can develop is fl exibility. Form the habit of remaining

open-minded and adaptable to new information and circumstances. When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, instead of becoming upset or frustrated, practice looking into the change or reversal for the opportunity or benefi t it might contain.

Superior men and women are invariably those who remain calm and keep their wits about them amid unexpected turbulence. They take a deep breath, relax and assess the situation objectively. They keep themselves calm and unemotional by asking questions and seeking information when things don’t work out as they expected. For example, if someone doesn’t fulfi ll a commitment, or if a sale is canceled or fails to go through, they keep their minds clear and steady by asking questions, such as “What exactly happened in this situation?” They deal with change by focusing on getting the facts before responding. They develop the ability to cut through the confusion and ask questions such as “Why did this happen? How did it happen? How serious is it? Now that it has happened, what are the various things we can do?”

The critical issue in dealing with change is the subject of control. Most of your stress and unhappiness comes as a result of feeling out of control in a particular area of your life. If you think about the times or places in which you feel the very best about yourself, you will notice that you have a high degree of control in those places. One of the reasons you like to get home after a trip is that after you walk through your front door, you feel completely in control of your environment. You know where everything is. You don’t have to answer to anyone. You can relax completely. You are back in control.

With a clear idea of where you’re going and what you want to accomplish, you develop resilience, which is the ability to bounce back rather than break. You develop what is called the “hardy personality” and become the type of person who is resistant to the negative emotions that affect people who have no goals or direction.

The fi rst step in dealing with any change is simply to accept the change as a reality.

Acceptance is the opposite of rejection or resistance. Acceptance keeps your mind calm and positive. The minute you accept that a change has occurred and that you can’t cry over spilled milk, you become more capable of dealing with the change and turning it to your advantage.

One of the best ways to deal with the worry that is often generated by unexpected changes is to sit down and answer, on paper, the question: “What exactly am I worrying about?”

In medicine, it is said that accurate diagnosis is half the cure. When you sit down and defi ne a worry situation clearly on paper, it suddenly becomes less stressful to you and it will often resolve itself. In any case, when it is clearly defi ned, you have diagnosed it, and you can now do something about it.

The second step is to ask yourself, “What is the worst possible thing that can happen in this worry situation?” Much worry and stress comes from the refusal to face what might happen as a result of your diffi culty or problem. When you clearly defi ne the worst possible outcome and write it down next to the defi nition of the problem, you will fi nd that whatever it is, you can handle it. Often your worries will begin to evaporate as soon as you have clearly determined the worst that might happen as a result.

Now decide to accept the worst possible outcome should it occur. Mentally resolve that even if the worst possible consequences ensue from this situation, it will not be the end of the world for you. You will accept it and carry on. In fact, it could probably be a lot worse. The very act of accepting the worst possible outcome completes the cycle of eliminating from your mind the stress and anxiety associated with the situation.

You are now ready for the third step in dealing with change, and that is to adjust your behaviors and actions to the new situation. Ask yourself, “What are all the things I can do to make sure that the worst possible outcome does not occur?” Sometimes we call this damage control. In business schools, this is an important part of decision making, and it is called the mini-max regret solution. What can you do to minimize the maximum damage that can occur from an unexpected change or setback? As you begin thinking of all the things you can do, you are

adjusting your mind to the new information and preparing to take steps to deal with the change effectively.

The fi nal part of this four-step method for dealing with change is to improve on the existing situation. Often, a change signals that your plans are incomplete or that you might be heading in the wrong direction. Serious changes, which seemingly create real problems, are often signals that you are on the wrong track. There is an old saying, “Crisis is change trying to take place.” If, instead of resisting change, like a pine tree that snaps in a strong wind, you bend with change, like a willow tree, you will often fi nd that the change is a healthy and positive step toward achieving your goals.

W. Clement Stone, the founder of Combined Insurance Company of America, is famous for his attitude of being an “inverse paranoid.” He is convinced that everything that happens is part of a conspiracy to help him to be more successful. Whenever something unexpected occurs, he immediately says, “That’s good!” and then looks into the situation to fi nd out exactly what is good about it.

The mark of a superior person is “tolerance for ambiguity.” This simply means that you have the capacity to deal effectively in a rapidly changing situation. The higher up you go the greater your income and responsibilities, the higher your status and position the faster the rate of change will be around you. At every stage, it will be your ability to function with calmness, clarity and quiet assurance that will mark you as the kind of person who is going places in life. In the fi nal analysis, your ability to perform effectively in a world of ongoing change is the true measure of how well developed a person you really are. And the keys are to accept change, adjust to change, improve upon change and move on to the next situation. As you continue to do this, you will have such a wonderful feeling of self-control and self-determination that your whole life will be bright and positive, and so will your results.

Brian Tracy is the chairman and CEO of Brian Tracy International. He can be contacted at 866.300.9881, or by e-mail at btracy@autosuccess.biz.

9october 2005

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The Scienceof Persuasion

AnthonyHall

Selling is the ability to be able to persuade another human being to see things your way, as it relates to the car business,

and to purchase the car you’re selling, at a reasonable price.

A professional automobile sales person is a professional mind changer, a persuader. Selling skills are word tracks and processes designed to persuade another person to act or think in a predetermined manner.

In the sales profession, words are your toolbox. The only thing you really are paid to do is to talk with customers. The words and actions you choose and the order you speak them and action you take, refl ect the interpersonal skills that separate great sales people from those who are merely poor or average.

Good communicators are always good listeners. Success in sales is directly proportional to a person’s ability to effectively communicate with customers.

The saying, “No man is an island” is an undeniable truth. We need the support and cooperation of our customers to help us in reaching our goals.

Selling skills is an area we need to study in detail, daily. The relationship with the customer is more important than any procedures or negotiation techniques. Structuring a sale is a series of events.

Successful sales people know that one of the most important abilities to possess is the ability to persuade and infl uence others. Here are seven hot tips to do this effectively.

1. Enter their worldTry to put yourself in the customer’s shoes and understand what would be important in the next vehicle from their point of view. Set aside your personal interests and concentrate on the customer. Ask yourself if you are him or her, what would you want from your next vehicle? What would be your concerns? Then structure the appropriate vehicle presentation that would build value and point out the benefi ts.

2. Mirror their body languagePeople feel comfortable with those who are like them. Copy the person with whom you are trying to create a connection. Observe how they act, how they speak, and how they think. If they rub their forehead while they think, act like them. If they speak at a clear

and slow pace, try to do the same thing. This is called mirroring.

Proceed with caution; however, do not let them be aware that you are copying them. They might interpret it as mockery and you’ll just get into trouble.

3. Be cheerful and niceDid your mother tell you to be nice to people? She was right. People like others who brighten up their day. Make sincere compliments to raise their spirits. Little things like these go a long way to breaking the ice and getting the relationship off to a good start.

4. Be sincere and trustworthyMake them feel that whenever they need help in the future, you’ll always be there to lend them a hand. You’re their go-to guy or gal. People tend to be more receptive to those they trust. When you have a customer you are trying to sell, over-deliver and exceed their expectations. They will notice your efforts and will be more than glad to do business with you and your dealership.

5. Provide them with compelling evidenceExplain to them that you, your dealership and vehicle could provide the most benefi ts for them. Show them undeniable proof that you have the best product by way of testimonials, magazine articles and detailed comparisons against your competitors. Just make sure that all your claims are true and verifi able. Always maintain a good reputation.

6. Show �What�s in it for them�This is the most important thing to remember when persuading anyone. People are self-centered. They always put their own well-being before others. No matter how close you are to becoming like them or how overwhelming your evidence is, if it does not satisfy the “what’s in it for me?” test, your persuasion efforts will not produce satisfactory results. If you can prove that your proposal will provide more advantageous benefi ts to them than you, they are more likely to accept it.

7. Genuinely care for themFocus more on their interests, desires, needs and expectations, so you can satisfy their craving for attention and establish mutual trust and respect. It also shows that you really care about them and that will make them more likely to trust you and to work with you.

Anthony Hall is a training consultant at Ziegler Supersystems. He can be contacted at 800.610.9047, or by e-mail at ahall@autosuccess.biz.

10

Just Promoted to InternetManager; What to do First

DavidKain

Congratulations to the new group of Internet managers out there! You are embarking on an exciting adventure that will

allow you to increase your income by serving the fastest growing segment of the automotive marketplace. Be excited about the opportunity and bring a lot of energy to the role. Regardless of what situation you walked into, there are some important fi rst steps you should take to ensure you have solid success now and in the future. Take these fi ve steps fi rst and you will set the stage for good results.

1. Identify expectationsOf course you have your own expectations and would likely not have accepted the job if you did not feel you could improve your income and position within the dealership. However, it is equally important to fi nd out what your management team expects from the department. Ask them how they will measure the department results and be sure to obtain objective goals that you feel you can reach. It is important that you understand what actions are necessary to achieve the goals and how management will work with you to support your efforts.

2. Identify resourcesTools – Today’s progressive Internet department’s should have the following tools in place to effectively manage leads and allow your Internet sales team the fl exibility to work with customers both in and away from their offi ce.

• PC – Every person working with Internet leads should have individual access to a computer so he or she can actively manage leads.

• Lead management tool – An effective lead management tool keeps you organized and allows you to manage large volumes of leads and market to your customers long-term.

• Cell phone – In order to fully serve the Internet customer you will need a cell phone so customers can contact you when you are away from your desk.

• Two-way pager – An e-mail pager allows you to respond anyplace anytime, which will likely exceed your customer’s expectations and position your dealership to sell the customer fi rst.

Leads – There are many sources of leads, and your dealership likely has leads coming in from a variety of sources already. Keep in mind that you will receive leads by e-mail and by phone depending on your listings. Both types are vital to your operation and it is important that your team be the recipient of the e-mails and the calls related to the Internet. Your lead management tool will be the best source for identifying your lead sources. A good rule of thumb is to generate 80 to 100 leads for each full-time Internet sales person if they work the deals from lead inception to vehicle delivery and to generate 150 to 200 leads for full-time BDC/CRC or call center team member if they set appointments for the dealership sales team.

Example Lead Sources• Dealership Web site leads – www.yourdealership.com• Manufacturer leads – FordDirect.com, BuyaToyota.com,

GMBuyPower.com, etc.• Third-party leads – Dealix.com, AutoUSA.com,

Autobytel.com, etc.• Online classiÞ ed leads – AutoTrader.com, Cars.com,

AutoExtra.com, etc.• Online Auctions – eBay.com, Overstock.com, etc.

3. Outline a lead handling processThere are a lot of different patterns for managing leads, and most of them work if you implement them consistently. Draw a simple process diagram on a sheet of paper that identifi es the steps to take and who should take them to complete the action within your department when a new lead arrives.

Be Specifi c and carry it out to the fullest detail possible.

4. Learn your products Internet customers have easy access to information about their choice of vehicles and they typically know a great deal about their choices. As a result, they tend to judge the dealership person they communicate with on a more critical basis if they cannot effectively answer questions about their products. To meet Internet customers’ expectations it is important that you ensure that each person on your team is fully committed to learning about the products you represent.

New inventoryHave your team become product certifi ed by the manufacturer and sharpen their skills with product presentations by the dealership sales team. Test drive the products so they can learn about the unique features and benefi ts.

Used inventoryDo a daily inventory walk, test drive new arrivals and ask the sales person that traded for the vehicle to tell you about the history so you can bring the vehicle to life for the customer.

5. Walk in your customer�s shoesIn order to understand what your customer expects from your Internet department it is important that each Internet team member visit the sites where your customer submits leads. This will allow them to experience fi rst hand what messages your customer receives while on the site and after they submit the leads. This will be an eye-opening experience and will tell you a great deal of how customers are infl uenced by the lead submission path they take. You will also understand why customers are a little surprised when a dealership e-mails or calls them after they submit a lead.

There is plenty more to learn, but taking these fi rst fi ve steps will give you a head start and allow you to generate sales this week!

David Kain is the automotive Internet training specialist at Kain Automotive Inc. He can be contacted at 800.385.0095, or by e-mail at dkain@autosuccess.biz, or visit www.kainautomotive.com.

Draw a simple process diagram on a sheet of paper that identiÞ es the steps to take and who should take them to complete the action within your department when a new lead arrives.

12

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Understanding the Difference Between a Web Site and a Total Marketing Strategy Can Help Sell an Additional 500 Cars a Month

RadWeaver

Dealers often look at our Internet success and ask me what makes our Web site unique. For starters, our success involves

more than just an awesome Web site, it is due to our entire Internet CRM strategy.

Our success is due to our strategy to create more traffi c, to increase our closing ratio, our gross, CSI and loyalty. Our strategy includes online marketing, search engine marketing, e-mail marketing, CRM tools, the right people, process and pricing. The reason we increased our sales from 100 to 500 cars a month is because we have implemented all of these key components.

First, the right Web site will generate high quality leads and lower your cost per sale, but only if you get the customers there. One way to do this is to make your URL a prominent

feature of all your advertising. If you use billboards, make sure the customer sees www.ABCDealer.com. We’ve implemented a number of innovative ways to gather e-mail addresses so that we can launch promotional e-mail campaigns periodically, as well. The key here is that the e-mails are unlike anything else on the market. For example, our customers view a movie-mail that includes sound and animation that works on slow connections.

We also know that seven out of 10 customers do their research online and might not look to the newspaper when they begin their shopping. For this reason, we’ve made sure that when the customer uses a popular search engine like Google, they’re likely to see our name at the top of the list.

The next step in the customer experience is to actually visit the site. While they’re there, our new site makes it easy to fi nd the information

that’s important to most customers. We started to shift out thinking when we began to look at our Web site as more than a place to go online to get information about our dealership, our products and our services. The difference between our old templated site and our new system is that www.RedMcCombs.com now serves as a total marketing system to drive more phone traffi c, showroom traffi c and Internet leads, and as a result has helped us sell an additional 500 vehicles in one month and generate 750,000 in additional gross. Specials are prominent and frequently updated, and the customers automatically get a virtual test drive on the vehicle in which they’re interested. This indicates to us that they’ve submitted a lead, and what’s great is that our system automatically sends out another movie-mail. At this point, the customer receives a brochure, a “Why buy here?” multi-media e-mail, competitive comparisons and a phone call to set the appointment.

If we are successful in setting the appointment, the movie-mail might be designed to confi rm the appointment and provide directions and let them know how fast, fun and easy it is to get a car this way. Our system even includes messages in the event that someone doesn’t show and of course, there’s a whole suite of campaigns for unsold follow-up, sold follow-up, service reminders and renewal campaigns.

We have learned that the majority of customers don’t but right away and therefore, we need to follow-up sometimes for three to six months. That is why our CRM tool is a critical part of our success. In particular, our CRM tool automates all of our long-term follow-up and as a result, it adds fi ve to 10 percent to our overall closing ratio some months.

Although our Web site has won many awards it is only part of our strategy. However, together with our online marketing people, process and CRM tools we have used it to sell 500 extra cars a month and that number continues to climb.

Rad Weaver is the Internet director at Red McCombs. He can be contacted at 866.210.2838, or by e-mail at rweaver@autosuccess.biz.

14

Used Vehicle Market:Get Your Piece of the Pie

RandyBarone

Dealers using an automated system to manage trade closing ratios in their used car business have increased gross retail

profi t by 10 percent. They also have reduced wholesale losses by 37 percent and achieved a turn time of just two days. If you aren’t using an automated system, think about the impact it could have on your business.

Automated systems enable dealers to keep close tabs on the percentage of used vehicles appraised versus vehicles actually traded. By having this information at your fi ngertips, you can better determine the steps needed to achieve an optimum trade closing ratio. To maximize your profi tability, you need a trade closing ratio of above 45 percent. This means trading for 45 percent of all used vehicles appraised. If you don’t have this type of ratio, too many of your potential customers are taking their business down the

street to the used car lot.

Achieve an optimum trade closing ratioDetermine the necessary steps to ensure the optimum trade closing ratio for your store. Learn know which vehicles to vie for and which to pass on to have the right inventory.

Software is now available that shows you which product you need to stock to have 80 percent of inventory turn in 22 days or less. The software determines when a vehicle is being appraised over or under auction book and market data. This helps ensure that the best decision is made while the customer is still at the dealership.

Show your customers good taste and excellent serviceIn addition, your customers and sales team can be confi dent that the appraisal your dealership provides is backed by solid data. If you want to track the performance of sales personnel, each individual’s activity is available. You

can identify training opportunities to ensure outstanding customer service.

Do you have multiple stores? You can get the latest reporting and monitoring so that information can be reviewed regarding single point or multiple stores from anywhere in the country. You can also obtain a track record of recon and how fast a vehicle goes from service to being front-line ready. You can get recommendations for which vehicles to list online to maximize time and profi ts.

Don’t allow the competition to take away your customers because of defi cient trade closing ratios. You have the potential to easily double your used car business by using current technology.

Randy Barone is the vice president of sales at American Auto Exchange Inc., a subsidiary of JM Family Enterprises Inc. He can be contacted at 800.901.3017, or by e-mail at rbarone@autosuccess.biz.

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16

Matching and Mirroring

PattiWood

I worked my last years of college doing telephone surveys for the governor’s offi ce. Yes, I was the person interrupting your

dinner to ask you questions about how many refrigerators you had in your home, whether you owned a boat and what you thought of the waste water sewage treatment in your area – you know, all those fun, stimulating topics. And I had to keep you on the phone for 45 minutes. I had to read straight from a script, with no add-ins or improvising except for my greeting and goodbye. Our supervisor listened in to check for cheating.

I loved this job. I am not joking. I really enjoyed it. However, most of the surveyors didn’t. They would sigh, curse and bang down the phones, stressed out that someone had hung up on them. Most surveyors lasted for one or two survey topics – one month and they were out of there. I couldn’t fi gure out why everyone else seemed to get all the bad

“callees.” Mine were so nice.

Because we were doing scientifi c research we had to complete all our calls. My boss started giving me the “hang-ups.” That meant I would call people who had hung up on other surveyors and get the person to complete the call. I was good at this, so I got a raise. Soon my salary tripled and I was calling people who had hung up on surveyors four and fi ve times. I would get them to complete the surveys.

So now you’re wondering how I did this (or am I just bragging?) Well, so did I. Then I took my fi rst nonverbal communication class and I learned about something called matching and mirroring. It‘s a natural phenomenon that causes you to match the body movement, voice tone, tempo and breathing of people you like. It also includes liking and feeling comfortable with the people who are matching you. That was what I was doing naturally on my phone calls without even knowing I was doing it! If the person picking up had a light, happy voice, I said hello in a

light, happy voice. If they answered with a quick, loud hello, I matched with a quick, loud hello. If they breathed fast in the fi rst few moments of the call, I did the same. If they paused a lot and breathed deeply and so did I. These people felt comfortable and safe with me. They felt, at the subconscious level, that we were from the same tribe, so they stayed on the phone, telling me about their boats and wastewater sewage.

Mirror MirrorReal communication — verbal and nonverbal — means being able to see the world both through your eyes and someone else’s. Communication is about creating understanding. Rapport is the fastest and most effective way to create understanding with another person. Neural linguistic programming (NLP) offers a way for us to create rapport consciously using nonverbal communication to match or mirror another’s body language.

Rapport creates a feeling of trust and safety between you and the other person. Rapport means the other person feels heard and understood. When you are in rapport with another person, you have the opportunity to enter their world and see things from their perspective, feel the way they do, get a better understanding of where they are coming from and, as a result, enhance the whole relationship.

Matching creates trust and self-disclosure Matching and mirroring are taught as part of FBI and law enforcement training. By matching the suspect and/or witness you gain trust and they are more likely to share information. You can begin to “feel” what the other person is feeling. There is another interesting aspect of matching physiology. Whenever we hold and move our bodies in certain ways, we create specifi c chemicals in our brains. Therefore, we feel and think the way we hold our bodies. Now, imagine that you can successfully match someone’s physiology. You create the same chemicals and the same thoughts. And those chemicals shunt into your bloodstream in less than a fraction of a second. You can begin to feel what the other person is feeling.

Change their emotions and persuade themYou have an upset customer in front of you. Remaining calm isn’t working. They are red-faced and yelling, and their hands are gesturing wildly. The worst thing you can do here is yell back. Instead, match the intensity of their nonverbal behavior and bring your volume up slightly as you bring your hands

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up to slowly gesture and say with intensity, “I understand that you’re very upset.” As you continue to do this for a moment or two they should feel a match, which in turn will make them feel heard and understood. While you’re talking with them, slow down your rate of speech and bring down your volume level. Your matching communicates your empathy for their pain. People yell loudly and keep yelling because they don’t feel heard. Ideally, they will not need to yell any more because you matched them and they feel heard and understood. As you slowly move to a calmer set of body language and vocal cues, they will come with you. Voila, magic matching!

You can do it!So, let’s discuss ways in which you can consciously match or mirror to create rapport. To do that, let's fi rst distinguish between matching and mirroring.

Mirroring is acting as if you are the mirror of the other person. If they move their right shoulder and lean to their left, you mirror and lean your left shoulder you move the right. If they lift their right hand, you move your left.

Matching is moving the same part of the body they are moving in exactly the same way. They lean back; you lean back. This is what I did with the tall one in the story. Typically, in mirroring, you mirror at the same time the other person moves. In matching, you wait until a bit of time has passed or wait until it is your turn to speak before you match.

Matching body language Body language includes everything except words -- facial expressions, eye movement, gestures and postures. But start out with one behavior at a time with one person and slowly move up to match multiple body postures and movements as you become more comfortable.

Matching voiceI called my friend Pat, but I knew even though she was talking to me, that she really didn’t have time to talk. Sure enough, when I checked in with her, she confi rmed that she didn’t. We’ve all done that. Your on the phone with your friend or your sweetie and something does not seem right. Your friend is probably not doing what would come naturally – matching your voice tone, tempo and speaking rate. By the way, people who do not have time to talk will do this without even realizing they are doing it. We know subconsciously that getting into vocal sync with someone means the phone call will keep going.

For voice, you can match tone (i.e. harsh, sarcastic, and assertive), speed (fast to slow), volume (from soft to very loud), rhythm (the beat and emphasis), accent and clarity or articulation (how crisp or slurred the c’s and k’s sound). Don’t match so quickly that

it sounds like you’re making fun of them. You don’t have to match for very long or match completely. Stay in a zone that’s comfortable for you. For example, if someone is speaking much louder than you, you could just get louder. It doesn’t have to be a perfect match.

Match breathing and pacingThis is the trickiest thing to do well, but it creates the most magic. You actually match the person’s breathing rate, including ways they breathe as they speak. When you do it well, you will almost immediately get a rush of the feeling that person is feeling. If you think matching breathing is odd, remember,

17october 2005

you already do this all the time.

Tit-for-tat matchingIn tit-for-tat matching, one person does one thing, e.g. shake their crossed foot up and down. In response, you do something else like drum your fi ngers at the same pace. Or they might pick up a coffee cup and play with it, so you pick up your sunglass case and play with it.

Patti Wood is the president of Communication Dynamics. She can be contacted at 800.849.3651, or by e-mail at pwood@autosuccess.biz, or visit www.pattiwood.net.

Ride EmployeeDevelopment to the Top

TomGegax

Some years ago, a junior IBM executive lost the company $10 million when a deal blew up. Shortly afterward, CEO Tom

Watson Sr. called the young man into his offi ce. When the contrite exec said, “I guess you want my resignation,” Watson replied, “You can’t be serious, son. We’ve just spent $10 million educating you.” Elementary, my dear Watson. Whether it’s Big Blue or a business of two, PR&D (people research and development) should be a big-ticket item on any company’s budget.

Yields on human-capital upgrades are better than on most other capital expenses. Thanks to my company’s education obsession, our competition always lagged a few steps behind. Competitors imitated everything we did. What they couldn’t copy was our people and culture, a proprietary blend of personalities and values. Whether you’re teaching an employee to manage payroll or coaching him to get organized, you’re equipping him with the wisdom and skills to meet your high expectations.

Build your educational infrastructureMore input equals more output. Input education and your people will output more productivity. It starts with you. Share what you know. Be a steady conduit of business-building information. If you keep your knowledge to yourself, you’ll be a roadblock, perpetually frustrated that nobody else “gets it.” The same goes for sharing best practices. If one department or store builds a better mousetrap, make sure it’s replicated throughout the company.

Employee education stretches beyond work-related subjects. The best education is multidisciplinary, reaching across all of life’s artifi cial boundaries. Well-rounded employees with mature, sophisticated outlooks are more likely to become (happy) masters of their craft. “Our focus on education had a lot to do with our low turnover,” noted Jim Pascale, our operations veep. “After all, the more educated you are, the more productive and fulfi lled you are. Learning new things prepares you to take on more responsibility.”

The building blocks of employee education Training. Consuming 8,000 square feet in our suburban Minneapolis headquarters, Tires Plus University included classrooms, an auditorium and a virtual store complete

with showroom and service bays. (In-house universities are expensive, but ours paid for itself countless times over.) We enrolled new employees in a week-long course with three primary objectives. First, TPU, taught standardization — indispensable to an explosive outfi t with employees from Milwaukee to Denver. Second, TPU instilled a familiarity with store responsibilities that allowed people to step right in and contribute. Third, TPU taught product knowledge. Nobody in the tire industry knew their “black gold” as well as our staff. Our sales people provided customers with manufacturer specs — as well as value and safety metrics — for every brand. Motivational Speakers. Familiarity breeds boredom. A new face in the offi ce complements your in-house experts. Mike Norman, a franchisee for Dale Carnegie Training, lit a fi re under a hundred of our regional and store managers during a half-day leadership workshop. “At the time, we needed to reinvent ourselves and quit relying so much on internal leaders to educate and motivate employees,” Chris Koepsell said. I always looked to the horizon for fascinating specialists who could speak on anything from business trends to psychology. Our roster of memorable speakers ran the gamut from basketball fi rebrand Bobby Knight to mind-body author Deepak Chopra. Chalk it up to human nature, but when an outside speaker says something, chances are it’s going to be heard and valued more.

But don’t just hand over the agenda. Before Mike Norman took the stage, I made sure his message jibed with our mission, vision and values. I also spoke during Mike’s workshop. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to set the stage for Mike — and to pump up a gathering of employees who were in constant contact with customers.

Seminars. Send employees to workshops that fi t their positions — and don’t neglect yourself. I took notes and collected handouts at numerous classes, conventions and seminars so I could re-present the content to our management team.

Books. I periodically asked my executive team to read a business or personal growth book. I’d assign each person to summarize a chapter or two at an upcoming meeting. The reaction was predictable: Nobody liked doing it, but everybody liked having done it. “I have a belated appreciation for Tom’s emphasis on

downloading information about successful people and companies,” said Dave Wilhelmi, vice president of marketing. “I found myself reading more books at Tires Plus than I ever did in school. It was like getting an additional education while going to work every day. With that kind of culture we couldn’t help but succeed.”

Mentors. Mentoring is a terrifi c way to leverage one employee’s strengths while simultaneously educating another. Mentors and mentees typically trade phone calls and get together for lunch monthly. If the right internal match doesn’t exist, go outside the company. Eric Randa, our vice president of loss prevention, trained under Gary Kasper more than 20 years ago at Montgomery Ward. Later, when we hired Eric to start up our loss prevention program, he often called Gary to ask him how he’d handle a particular challenge. “It’s always good to talk to somebody who’s been there and done that,” Eric said, “rather than try to reinvent the wheel every time.”

Tuition Assistance. In the early days, Steve Varner was a wholesale rep eager for a fresh challenge. We obliged him with an assignment to the collections department, followed by a bump up to credit manager that required him to squeeze people for money. Figuring there was more to the job, Steve signed up for a credit and fi nancial management course at the University of Minnesota. We were thrilled, and paid half of Steve’s tuition for every class in which he earned a B or better. “If I hadn’t gone back to school,” Steve said, “they would’ve eventually replaced me with somebody from the outside.” He’s right. Our rapid growth demanded that Steve know everything from calculating a customer’s credit risk to interpreting anti-trust and collection laws. But it was a classic win-win. His bad-debt ratio was well below industry benchmarks, and his stewardship played a key role in our wholesale division’s sales growth.

Encourage your people to advance their education however it fi ts into their busy lives. It’s deadly to assume they already have what it takes to play in the big leagues. Night and weekend courses make an immediate impact. And Web-based distance learning makes formal education more convenient than ever.

Tom Gegax served as the chairman and CEO of Tires Plus and is the founder of Gegax Management Systems. He can be contacted at 866.210.2832, or by e-mail at tgegax@autosuccess.biz.

18

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20

An Interview by - BrianAnkneyfs feature solution

This year marks another milestone for Internet lead provider Dealix Corporation. The company was ranked highest in Overall Dealer Satisfaction among primary new independent online buying services in the just released J.D. Power and Associates Dealer Satisfaction with Online Buying Services StudySM. AutoSuccess talked with Dealix’s Steve Pace, vice president of sales, and Dean Evans, vice president of marketing, to learn more about why dealers love Dealix.

AutoSuccess: You both had a background in auto sales before you joined Dealix. Tell us about that.

Pace: I’ve been in the business since the fi rst dealers were getting leads from the Web. I was a sales consultant at Saturn of Steven’s Creek down in Santa Clara (California), and we received leads from Autoweb. The fi rst car I sold from an Internet lead was in 1997 to a guy who was from 50 miles away in San

Francisco. It drove my manager crazy that we didn’t have the customer in the dealership to get the sale in the end zone; but it didn’t matter, as much of the deal was already done and the customer was blown away by the ease of the transaction. After that sale, I realized that this is where it’s all heading. Shortly thereafter, I joined Autoweb and started selling leads to dealers.

Evans: Similar to Steve, I was starting up one of the fi rst Internet departments in a full-line Chrysler dealership in San Francisco in the mid ‘90s. We joke about this now because Steve was actually my lead sales rep. That’s how we met. I was that dealer saying, “These leads suck! I want a credit!” Steve would say, “How are you handling your leads?” I was always grinding him about lead quality. I guess this means we’ve been in this industry for almost 10 years now. Funny, I don’t feel that old.

Pace: I think Dean must have submitted 200 leads back to me within the fi rst couple months. He wanted credits on all of them because he said they were bad leads.

Evans: When I was done ranting and raving, Steve would jokingly say something like, “Dean, for the time it’s taken you to call me and complain, you could have followed up with three more leads and sold another car.” I have to say, he was right. He gave me good tips on how to improve our sales process.

AutoSuccess: How has the sales process in dealerships changed over the past decade?

Pace: How a car is sold is evolving and will continue to do so with the expansion of Internet departments in dealerships. Prior to the Internet, the sale of a car was generally a reactive type of sale. You put an ad in the paper or on the radio and then you waited for the customer to call or stop by the dealership. Once they came in, the heavy close took place. Now consumers are more confi dent than ever and are fully armed with information from the Web. They respond to dealers who are proactive in meeting their sales and service expectations.

Evans: This is why dealers should not hesitate about giving customers a price range

if they request one. With Edmunds’ True Market Value and other such services, many consumers already have an idea of price. If they ask for the price and are not given at least ballpark fi gure, they most likely will get suspicious and will buy from a dealer who will be more up front about price. This doesn’t mean a sales person has to give it all away at the outset. Rather, the focus should be on identifying where the consumer is in their buying stage and giving them enough information so they’re comfortable about coming into the store to complete the transaction.

Much of the success of an Internet sales person can be attributed to three key actions:

1. Getting there fi rst2. Providing a thorough and honest

consultation with competitive pricing - this doesn’t mean the rock bottom price - just something fair to negotiate with

3. Following up rigorously to get the appointment and the sale.

Consumers want to speak with a sales person who has a lot of product knowledge and who is going to act more like a consultant who guides them through the buying process. The meet and greet is now happening in people’s homes or offi ces – on the computer and on the phone, which many consumers are more comfortable with, especially in today’s hectic world. A solid process for getting them into the dealership is critical. The consumer now has the luxury of sitting there and not acting until someone earns their business on their terms.

Pace: The consultative approach doesn’t translate into a weak closing of the sale. This is not a soft sell. It just means there’s been a shift in skill sets. The Internet has raised the bar for writing and phone skills, which today’s dealers need in order to get the customer into the showroom to buy the car. There are new elements to what professionalism means for dealers today.

Evans: If you go back six years, there was this misconception that cars were actually going to be bought and sold on the Internet – like an e-commerce transaction to buy a book and that the dealer would be replaced.

Vice Presidents Steve Pace and Dean Evans

Dealix: Driving

Steve Pace, Vice President of Sales

AutoSuccess

21

Online Auto Sales

Look all around you – that didn’t happen. The Internet works best as a sales-lead generation, advertising and marketing tool. Have you ever walked into one of those huge warehouse stores and there’s no one to help you or there’s not one person who’s worth their salt when it comes to answering questions? Consumers need dealers who know what they’re talking about.

Pace: Dealers who have recognized the shift in consumers’ expectations are winning the market share game. The best are expanding their Internet capabilities across their dealership, and management is proactive about these changes in the store versus having it forced on them. Dealers who are not on the ball are starting to notice their market share leaking over time. Their competitor a couple markets away is plucking their local customers in the dark of night by using the Internet and an impeccable follow-up process.

At a minimum, a dealership should be defending its own market, which means ensuring that anyone in their area who submits a lead for a vehicle is going to get a response from them. Ideally, dealers should be on the defensive and go on the offensive by trying out new markets. It means responding to as many customers as they can who demonstrate a sincere interest in the vehicles they’re selling.

AutoSuccess: Why do you think lead providers have become so important in automotive retailing?

Evans: We help dealers do what they do best, only more effi ciently. That’s our role, which is fi nding the most ready-to-buy customers on the Web and delivering them as leads directly to dealers. At the same time, we recognize that we are not the consumer marketing powerhouse that a Yahoo, an AOL, or an MSN is, so we let them do what

they do best, which is attract online buyers. They work with us because they don’t have the expertise in working with dealers.

With the growth of the Internet and all the opportunities it presents, dealers still need to keep the focus on what they do best, which is selling cars.

AutoSuccess: It’s become more common for lead providers, especially in their advertising, to tout their lead quality. What differentiates a quality lead?

Pace: Lead quality comes from having strong partnerships with the best auto sites on the Web and insisting that they adhere to our same high standards in terms of getting legitimate information from consumers who are seriously in the market for a new vehicle. The combination of good people, good technology and offering dealers a high degree of fl exibility on the leads they get all contribute to lead quality.

AutoSuccess: What do you mean by dealer control features and offering dealers “fl exibility” with their leads?

Evans: What we mean by dealer control features is that dealers have the best understanding of their ideal sales territories, their team’s resources and the makes and models they really need to move off the lot; so they should have control over getting leads that fi t their sales goals. The last thing we want to do is send them leads they’re going to have trouble selling to.

Dealer control features are simply the tools provided to determine the optimal lead strategy. A high degree of fl exibility means getting leads only from the Zip codes that match the demographics of their target market; or increasing their sales territory by mile radius because they’re ready to handle more leads. Or, it can mean turning off leads

Talk Sales from 10 Years in the Business

Dean Evans, Vice President of Marketing

Feature Solution

for models that they have no problem selling; and turning on leads for models where they have a high gross that they really want to move. By customizing their leads program, they ensure they’re connecting with their best prospects.

Sales is always a numbers game, but it’s about quality over quantity when it comes to leads, because you don’t want to waste your team’s time on leads they can’t close. You really do get what you pay for with leads – you pay for good quality. We’re constantly negotiating for placement and quality with our own lead acquisition partners in order to get the best leads for our dealers.

Steve Pace is the vice president of sales for Dealix. Steve can be contacted at 866.871.0240, or by e-mail at space@autosuccess.biz. Dean Evans is the vice president of marketing for Dealix. Dean can be contacted at 866.887.8892, or by e-mail at devans@autosuccess.biz. For more information, visit www.dealix.com.

By customizing their leads program, dealers ensure they�re connecting with their best prospects.

22

Crunching the Numbers:Many Dealerships Pay More than Necessary in Trash Bills

TracyGetz

Restructuring a facility’s waste removal often results in a savings of more than 25 to 40 percent per month in trash bills.

Dealerships generate a lot of cardboard, plastic, used parts and offi ce waste. To deal with the waste, most facilities throw their trash in open-top bins provided by their local garbage hauler. Recyclables are often put into another receptacle, then hauled away either for free or a small fee.

Garbage companies are basically trucking companies. They make their money charging for the number of trips they make out to a facility. The way to cut your trash bill dramatically is to reduce the number of times a waste hauler visits your facility.

Installing a trash compactor does just that — when you compact your trash, the waste hauler picks it up less frequently. On average, using a compactor reduces a garbage bill by about 50 percent. Trash compactors remedy many of the problems that open-top bins create, a compactor is cleaner, the garbage always fi ts inside the container and since the hauler isn’t visiting as often you reduce the traffi c on your property.

Trash compactors are often just the fi rst step. Dealerships can also benefi t from using cardboard balers. Using a baler provides two benefi ts — it eliminates cardboard from a facility’s waste stream and adds profi t to the bottom line. Specifi cally, if you pull the cardboard out of a waste stream then compact the leftover garbage you’ve reduced the volume of garbage to haul away. Moreover, the cardboard can be resold to recyclers for a cash return.

The Sullivan Auto Group — Toyota, Toyota Certifi ed, Saturn and Chevrolet dealerships — in Roseville, Calif, provides a good example of how revamping trash removal can signifi cantly reduce operating expenses. The Toyota, Chevrolet and Certifi ed dealerships were originally equipped with open-top bins. The three bins required pick up every 10-14 days. Moreover, staff members broke down all boxes so they could be hauled away for a fee. The addition of a new Saturn location also meant the trash bills were going to escalate further.

In response, property manager Frank Garcia rented two compactors and two balers. (Since the properties are clustered together, two dealerships can share a single compactor and a cardboard baler — another great way to save money.) The trash hauler only needed to pull each of the compactors every two weeks. In addition, the balers allowed the dealerships to sell back their cardboard. The trash bills plummeted. Even after paying a monthly rental fee, the properties save about half.

“It’s been a substantial savings,” Garcia said. “Not only in garbage, but the baler was a lot of help. Before, we had one or two guys out there cutting the cardboard up so they could put it into another open container. Now we don’t even have to cut it up. It’s freed up their time, and I’d say we get a week extra between pick ups just from pulling the cardboard. It saves a lot.”

If a dealership buys a compactor and baler outright, the return on investment is around 30 months. However, full-maintenance rental programs allow many businesses to reap the benefi ts of compacted trash and cardboard without any upfront money for equipment, on-site improvements or maintenance.

Not all dealerships are candidates. Chances are dealerships in areas with a lot of competition between waste haulers just don’t have garbage bills high enough to justify the equipment expense. A good rule of thumb is that any site that’s spending more than $1,500 per month in garbage bills is a candidate for a waste stream analysis. This is a simple survey that assesses a facility’s trash bills and typical waste generated to determine the best equipment for that location.

As an illustration, if a facility is spending $1,500 per month in trash bills, often a single compactor will reduce that bill to around $750. If the cardboard is removed from the waste stream, garbage bills are reduced to around $563. Once the cardboard is baled, the facility can take advantage of rebates offered by recyclers and haulers.

These are typical results if the dealership has purchased the equipment outright. Facilities that don’t opt to purchase the equipment can still rent a compactor and baler and see an immediate 25 to 40 percent reduction in trash bills even after rental fees.

Compactors and balers come in all shapes and sizes. Things to consider when purchasing or renting equipment are size, confi guration, aesthetics and safety features. To fi nd the best fi t for a dealership, facility managers should consult with a waste management expert. Just a few of the features available include vertical or horizontal units, a variety of sizes, key operation and container fullness monitors.

Tracy Getz can be contacted at 866.885.9808, or by e-mail at tgetz@autosuccess.biz.

Site before compactor installation — shown is a typical open-top bin installed by a waste hauler.

Image A Image B Image C

Installation time — site prep often includes concrete and electrical installation.

A new, 30-yard, horizontal compactor installed at Bay Area car dealership. It’s cleaner and more compact than open-top bins and saves the dealership in waste hauling costs each month.

24

Can I Trust You

MarkTewart

When you have a fi rst encounter with a customer, he or she is usually wondering one simple question. Can I trust you?

There are three stages of buying:1. Character and trust2. Emotion3. Logic

I don’t know that one stage is more important than the other but I do know that the trust stage usually happens fi rst. When you build a house and the foundation is weak, no matter how nice a house you build it comes crumbling down eventually. A sale is the same way. You can sell all you want. You can create an emotional frenzy. You can justify emotions with logic and reasoning but at the end if the customer has a twinge of doubt about you they will pause and hesitate to complete the sale.

Usually when the customer stalls after

showing all the right buying signs, we blame the customer and create some unfl attering names for him or her. Here’s a news fl ash: Most of the time it’s your fault. It’s not the customer’s job to trust you. It’s not the customer’s job to create a rapport and a bond. It’s not the customer’s job.

Often, the customer comes in sold on your product and has a need and desire for it. They want to buy it. But when it gets to the end, one thing keeps them from buying – fear. Fear of making a mistake. Your customers are human. Customers have fears of making a mistake in buying the wrong vehicle, getting the wrong price, getting the wrong information or having a bad experience.

To sell more, you must allow the customer to buy. To buy a customer needs a path without obstacles and doubt. To remove the customer’s doubts and fear you must practice risk aversion and reversal.

Sales training has focused primarily on handling objections and other reactive selling

approaches. Practicing risk aversion is a proactive approach to selling that addresses common fears up front and removes them before they become an obstacle. Fifteen minutes spent on proactive risk aversion can eliminate two hours of reactive objection handling.

Take a pencil and paper and write down all the common fears of your customers and common objections you receive. Write down the silent objections you don’t get but you know are really there. No matter what you sell, it’s the same objections over and over. It doesn’t take that much to be aware of the objections, to be prepared to proactively eliminate them and even answer them if they still come up.

Listen to what customers say and what they are trying to say. Listen to what customers really mean. And, listen to what customers aren’t saying but intuitively you know they are thinking. Increasing your intuitive ability is a major step in becoming a master sales person. Watch your customer’s body language. You don’t need a course to teach you what people are thinking by their body language. You simply need to observe, think and feel as they do. TLC – Think Like a Customer.

Remember, that trust comes before money.

Mark Tewart is the president of Tewart Enterprises. He can be contacted at 866.429.6844, or by e-mail at mtewart@autosuccess.biz.

Listen to what customers say and what they are trying to say. Listen to what customers really mean.

TOP 10 REASONS NOT TO USE PRORESPONSETaken from the home office in Phoenix, Arizona, here's the following top ten reasons automotive

dealerships give for not using ProResponse's services.

10. I'd rather buy expensive computer systems and do it myself.

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6. I don' t mind losing my customers to the competition.

5. Closing ratios, ad sourcing and accurate reports? My managers can give me those numbers rightoff the top of their heads.

4. I don' t want my customers to remember me after they leave the dealership.

3. I have goals. Had 'em for years. What would I do if I reached them?

2. I don' t like being the #1 dealer in my market. Who needs all that attention?

1. I'm already selling enough cars and making so much money, the guilt is killing me!

AND . . .THE NUMBER ONE REASON NOT TO USE PRORESPONSE . . .

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26

Beyond the VisionUse Your Own Unique Leadership Style to Build a Better Team

CarolMartin-Ardell

Successful leadership is not just about having objectives, devising plans, enforcing rules, developing relationships and

executing ideas; it’s also about knowing who you really are, how you’re wired, why subordinates respond to you the way they do, and what it takes to obtain the respect and backing you expect. This is the fi rst in a series of articles that will examine three common managerial personalities -- and tell you how to maximize the benefi ts of each.

The entreprenerial personalityIf you’re a person who’s not hesitant to give orders and push people to their limits, you probably assume you have a natural ability to take on leadership positions … and you may be right. You assert yourself in situations, have no fear of confrontations, make steadfast decisions and maneuver your way through crises. Meeting goals and getting ahead are two of your most valued objectives. You like people, but business relationships are important to you mainly if they open the door to lucrative opportunities. You’re aggressive, personable, zealous, hurried and ambitious – the quintessential go-getter!

Be careful, though, as it’s all too easy to cross lines and transform from one who is authoritative to one who is authoritarian.And there is a major difference. If you start to consistently bark orders, make bold demands, you’ll sound more like a dictator than a motivator and you’ll risk losing the support of your team, lowering morale and raising everyone’s (including your own) stress level. Remember, your job as a leader is to make people want to reach your objectives.

Because you likely fi nd it easy to communicate with others, you probably have no qualms about speaking before a group, sharing your ideas, expressing yourself. You may notice you “click” more with outgoing individuals than introverts, though. When giving directives to those who are clearly sedate and conservative, eliminate the small talk and get right to the point. Lower your voice, and try to repress some of your natural

enthusiasm – save it for when you’re with gregarious people who are more like you. Reserved types typically fi nd emotionally based behavior and loud, booming voices unnerving.

You may also be known for your feverish pace, ability to juggle several pressing commitments at once and desire for fast results. Use that strong sense of urgency to keep subordinates moving at a brisk pace. You’ll be driven to build a team that’s not only adaptable but also ready to provide quick resolutions to problems requiring immediate attention. Remember, though, that not everyone on your team is going to share your ambitious timetables; discuss your time expectations up front so your objectives and expectations are clear. Make sure your deadlines are reasonable.

People less hurried than you can still maintain effi ciency, but they need a sense of predictability in their day. Respect that and allow them to stick to a routine as much as possible. Avoid springing last minute surprises on them.

Be sure your hurried work approach does not make you overly impatient. A person who makes excessive demands and also lacks patience is highly suspected as a good leader. The intention may be to stretch employees to their limits and maximize their

potential, but the end results might be far more negative than positive. The last thing you need is to intimidate your staff, turn them off, or unwittingly push them out of your dealership.

Learn the expectations and needs of your staffIf you manage informally and expect others to fi ll in their own blanks, you’ll be praised by your independently minded workers. These are staff members who prefer to function on their own and don’t want any hand-holding from management. However, there are other workers -- potential superstars -- who are loyal, dedicated and meticulous; these people may seem overly cautious to you, incapable of making a big decision on their own. They hold back when you want them to push forward and probably leave you scratching your head, unable to relate to them most of the time.

The key to increasing their level of independence and self-suffi ciency lies in providing detailed information, specifi cs and guidelines before assigning new tasks. Cautious, conscientious workers don’t like taking chances; they want to be sure they’re doing things correctly and will expect you to point them in the right direction any time unusual circumstances develop. If you have neither the time nor the inclination to guide these workers, assign them a mentor, a rule-abiding but self-directing employee who might be more readily available than you to answer questions.

One of the most important lessons any leader can learn is that the secret to establishing and maintaining a cohesive, productive, loyal and effi cient team is no secret. All you really need to do is gain some honest insight into your own strengths and weaknesses then use that knowledge to your advantage. Once you learn how to identify your own natural tendencies and make the most of your assets, your power as a leader becomes virtually unlimited.

Carol Martin-Ardell is a senior consultant with the Omnia Group. She can be contacted at 800.601.3216, or by e-mail at cmartin@autosuccess.biz.

One of the most important lessons any leader can learn is that the secret to establishing and maintaining a cohesive, productive, loyal and efÞ cient team is no secret.

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28

Using the Service Drive to Sell VSCs

TonyDupaquier

There is a great opportunity to sell VSCs after the initial sale of the vehicle - the service drive.

In most cases, when a customer picks up a vehicle after having factory warranty work performed, the customer does not realize the value of the work that was done. The repair order states $0. In customers’ minds, the repair was worth nothing. All customers know is that there was a problem with the vehicle, they brought it into your service department, and when they picked it up, there was zero out-of-pocket expense. Have all customer repair orders show the amount of money it would have cost to perform the repair, with a credit for the amount so the balance due is zero.

The cashier should also be trained on how to properly present repair orders to customers. Some simple phrasing that allows the customer to acknowledge how much the repair would have cost can be very benefi cial in the event the customer does not have a VSC. Have the cashier say, “Mr./Mrs. Customer, your repair today came to a total of $____________, and with your factory warranty still in place, your out-of-pocket expense today is zero. It’s a good thing you have coverage today, isn’t it?” To this, the customer will respond positively. Then, have the cashier follow up so the customer realizes how little coverage is left on the factory warranty. “In only a few thousand miles, you will be out of your warranty. Wouldn’t it

be nice to have coverage that would pay for repairs in the event something like this were to happen again?” Customers will respond in one of two ways: If they already have a VSC, they will tell the cashier. If they do not have a VSC, they will likely say that they would like some sort of coverage. If the latter is the case, have the cashier hand the customer a brochure on VSCs and contact the business manager to come to the cashier’s window, if he or she is available.

The service advisors on the lane present an excellent opportunity to sell additional VSCs, as well.

When a service advisor sees that a customer’s vehicle is running out of warranty, have the service advisor offer advice or a recommendation to the customer. Do not have them try to sell a VSC. For the most part, customers have a great deal of trust in service advisors and will listen to what they have to say. Train your service advisors to say something like, “Mr. or Mrs. Customer, I see you have _________ miles on your vehicle. At this rate, you will be out of your factory warranty coverage in only a few months. Are you planning to trade in your vehicle soon?” If the customer says that he or she does plan to trade it in, then get the customer in front of the sales manager. If the customer says no, follow up with, “Would you like to save money? We have a program here at our dealership that is designed to help our customers save money over the long-term ownership of their vehicles. I am sure that is something you

would like to look at, right?” The customer will likely answer yes to this question. At this time, you, the business manager, should get involved to show the customer the benefi ts of having the security of a VSC.

You know exactly how many miles a year the customer drives, you know the customer will be keeping the vehicle and you know the customer’s vehicle has experienced some form of failure or defect. Use these facts in your presentation.

Draw a simple graph that represents the mileage the customer is driving per year in comparison to the amount of time the customer intends to keep the vehicle. Even if the customer plans to keep the vehicle for only a couple more years, this could easily represent 50,000 miles of exposure. In addition put together a complete repair history on the vehicle, detailing what it would have cost the customer to pay for these repairs. If the customer sees the amount it would have cost to repair the vehicle when it was new and still under warranty, it is very easy to justify the cost of a VSC over the long-term cost of ownership. Be sure to use the words “cost of long- term ownership.” Show how the small investment of a VSC can save the customer thousands of dollars in repairs in the future.

Tony Dupaquier is the director of F&I training for American Financial & Automotive Services Inc. He can be contacted at 866.856.6754, or by e-mail at tdupaquier@autosuccess.biz.

30

Quick-Þ x Ideas

ScottJoseph

Here are a few quick-fi x strategies and turn-around techniques for anyone who desires a quick shot in the arm to get their dealerships

going and growing again.

Work your customer list and your prospectsToo many companies reactively wait for their customers to come back. Most think their customers are going to be so motivated that they are going to come back to them whenever they’re good and ready. They don’t realize that you have enormous control and capability of getting people to re-purchase from you at remarkably rapid and continuous intervals if you go to them and follow up.

Follow up means working your customers and working your inactive customers and working your prospects who did not buy.

Christmas cards and birthday cards to customers are nice but they are not enough. You have to follow up and really work them. Working those means you write letters to them reestablishing the basis of why your product and your dealership is the best fi t for them. You call them and advise them in a consultative manner. You keep doing this in a constant sequence of events.

Fifty percent of your customers will leave you within fi ve years. Eighty percent of those customers say they are satisfi ed or completely satisfi ed when they defect.

You’ve got to sell your customer not just when they make the purchase but upon delivery, after the fact – and keep re-selling them. That’s how you get re-purchases and increase how often they buy from you.

In today’s environment you cannot afford to only transact one-shot sales. The cost of acquiring a prospect and the cost of converting them to customers is so high that the only way you can really recoup the enormous investment is to have a high frequency of repurchase transactions occur.

That only happens if you are continuously selling, re-selling and making sure that your customer recognizes with an abiding fervor what a great value the product or service you offer them has been and will be – and what a great dealership you are for having fulfi lled

it now and in the future.

Let’s face it, you are in a business where there are a lot of prospects who do not buy from your dealership. They leave and they don’t come back. You should analyze the real cost of inducing those people to come to your showroom in the fi rst place. I’m talking about the people who actually respond to a specifi c ad not just walk in the door. The number would shock you. In fact, it would be diffi cult to fi nd a dealer who does not spend at least $150 to $200 just to get someone to walk in their door. That’s $150 to $200 per up not sold.

Why? Because today the buying market is apathetic, ambivalent, diluted and diverted in their attention. They’re apprehensive and they’re afraid to trust anyone.

Because of these factors, the person or the company that amounts a concerted, continuous, on-going, systematic and structurally sequential follow-up system that brings value, information and education (not just sales rhetoric and hyperbole), to people can be assured of closing more business and of acquiring more repeat customers than their competition can imagine.

You owe it to yourself to create a follow-up marketing strategy of letters, calls, letters, constantly informing, educating and consultatively advertising both customers and prospects before just giving up prematurely.

You have the power to lead, to program, to direct, to proactively cause things to happen but it requires you to do your part by following up and guiding people. The

market place today, more than ever is silently begging to be led. Take full advantage of that.

Work your customer list and your prospects.

Stop spending a lot of money on advertising; use cost effective alternativesWhat are those alternatives? Start by calling and writing your customers. Contact all your old customers and get them to recommend and refer people to you. Set up relationships with local businesses that have good-will with their customers. Have those businesses introduce you and your products to their customer base.

Make sure your letters and offers require a direct responseIt’s important that everything you do in this environment, meaning in this type of marketplace, justifi es its existence.

You’ve got to make your letters or your offers solicit a direct response. They’ve got to make a proposition to a customer to take some action – either to make a purchase, to come in and get free consultations --- to do something to commit them so they can get invested in what you’re doing. It’s critically important.

Create headlines that produce optimum resultsHeadlines are the ad for the ad. The headline is an integral component not just to advertising but it’s the fi rst paragraph of a sales letter, it’s the fi rst sentence you utter when you meet someone, it’s the fi rst words people hear when somebody calls them or when they watch your television commercial or listen to your radio spot.

You’ve got to create headlines that produce the optimum result. How do you do that? You do that by understanding that the purpose of a headline or its equivalent is to promise a very self-serving and powerful result to the intended prospect for listening more, taking the next step, reading further, calling you or whatever it is you’re asking them to do.

Headlines must promise a powerful and provocative self-serving result of the highest level in order to get people excited.

Scott Joseph is the president of J&L Marketing Inc. He can be contacted at 866.429.6846, or by e-mail at sjoseph@autosuccess.biz.

You have the power to lead, to program, to direct, to proactively cause things to happen but it requires you to do your part by following up and guiding people.

This is YOUR Life,Don�t Trust Your Memory

MichaelYork

In Dallas, Texas, in 1988 a friend and fellow pursuer of the American Dream introduced me to Jim Rohn. Mr. Rohn was

unlike any other speaker or teacher I had ever heard, and he remains that today.

As a student of Mr. Rohn’s for more than 15 years, from aspiring sales professional to director of sales to professional speaker, some of the most powerful lessons I’ve learned in this life have come as a result of his fundamentals and philosophies on success, achievement and life. Too often it seems organizations want to talk only about business and work and selling and the wherefores and how-tos of whatever it is you do for your vocation. In doing so they can mortgage the real encouragement that focuses on the personal improvement of the individual. They forget that we all need to improve; to be inspired as well as instructed.

Some of the best instruction I ever received in that area was to “work harder on you than you do on your job.” When you become better, you begin the process of fueling your attitude and desire and achievement and results. Don’t neglect working hard on you.

When I fi rst began listening to those tapes, Mr. Rohn said there were fundamentals and foundations for those who really wanted to succeed. And I did.

Three things he said we all should do if we wanted to be a top performer and high achiever.

They are…1. Take (and keep) lots of pictures.2. Build your own library (and use someone else’s until you can).3. Keep a journal!

There will come a time to learn more about one and two, but here I want to encourage you about number three, your personal journal. Writing in a blank book. Taking and keeping good notes on your life.

My fi rst thought was probably much like yours, “I can’t keep a diary…” But Mr. Rohn was ready for that one. “It doesn’t have to be a diary,” he said. He went on to explain that I didn’t have to write in it everyday, but surely

something had happened in my life over the last year that I needed to write down. And he was right.

So I began keeping a journal. And soon that became two, and two became four, and so on. Because once you start, you can’t keep everything in just one journal. And eventually you fi ll it up. When that happens you’ve now increased the value of the journal. How?

When you purchase the blank book it will be, well … blank. No writing. And whatever you pay for it, fi ve dollars or ten dollars or even 20 dollars (you can get a nice leather journal for $20), matters little. Because when you have written just a few pages, and especially if you’ve fi lled it up, you’ve increased the value of that journal.

Now, when you or someone you love pulls it from the shelf of your personal library … your spouse, child or grandchild, it will be priceless! Not for sale at any price because of your contribution to the book. And because of the memories or ideas or thoughts that you personally have captured on paper, about your life or work.

When my fi rst book “Becoming Uncommon” was published people would ask, “Is that the fi rst book you’ve ever written?” My reply? “No, I’ve written several but this is the fi rst one that’s been published.” Because I’ve been fi lling up journals with my personal writings for years … and you can do it, too!

You can keep journals for lots of things. Wouldn’t your manager just fall over if you walked into your next meeting with a notebook or leather book that you opened and took notes of what he or she was saying? Notes about ideas you might have or things you remembered to take care of? You do take an occasional note, right?

Meetings, big days in your life, trips or travel to exotic locations, birthdays, anniversaries, be as creative as you like. I keep goals journals and golf journals (my goals journal is bigger than my golf journal). I have journals that hold all of my business meetings, what was discussed and when.

I’ve kept journals for my kids as gifts. Like the one I gave my son on the day he graduated from high school. I wrote in that journal for almost 30 months, fi lling it up

with my observations of him, the events of his life and the special days and times we shared together as father and son.

I wanted him to learn how powerful it could be to keep a written record of your life. It would have been easier just to tell him to do it and try to explain why, but it was so much more powerful as an example. To show him what I thought of this lesson, and what I thought of him, that I would commit to a project that took almost 30 months to complete. Knowing all along that the plan was to give him the fi nished project on graduation day.

The book only cost a few dollars. In the grand scheme of things took only a few minutes at a time to complete a work that is most certainly uncommon. Guess how many moms and dads do something like this? Guess how many could? If only they’d thought of it. If only they had heard of the idea, as you now have. And then committed to seeing it through to the successful completion of the project.

That’s what personal development is: a consistent commitment to getting better and adding value to you and your life. That’s why it’s called continuing improvement. That’s the power of reading, writing and listening. That’s the power of a journal. It’s actually easy to do. Problem is, it’s easier not to do. And that’s the option that most people will choose … easier. “I can’t,” they’ll say “You don’t understand, where I work, I don’t have the time …”.

Hey excuses are common. Coming up with the clues of success and the reasons for doing them are, you guessed it, uncommon!

Try it. Start with just one journal and see how it affects your life and the lives of those around you.

For my short list of uncommon tips on starting and keeping your journals. E-mail me at the address below.

Michael York is an author and professional speaker. He can be contacted at 800.668.5015, or by e-mail atmyork@autosuccess.biz, or visit www.MichaelYork.com.

32

People Won�t Go Along With You if They Can�t Get Along With You

SeanWolfi ngton

Have you ever known someone who appears to have what it takes to be a great leader and yet, rather than being drawn to that person

you feel the need to distance yourself? Have you ever known someone with tremendous vision, a solid strategy, solid skills, a great business plan and every indication that they were headed for success and yet you walked away from partnering with that person because you simply couldn’t get along? When we take a look at whom we choose to work with and why, people tend to underestimate the importance of getting along with others. Any one can lead with an iron fi st and dictate to those around them, but the truly great leaders are those who recognize and practice the art of getting along. Here are tips for becoming a leader who fi nds it easy to attract others and gain their support:

1. Everyone counts.Value people and live your life so that your colleagues know that everyone counts. It’s not just about making money; it’s about making a difference in your own life and in the lives of those around you.

2. Serve them.You’re there to serve them; they’re not there to serve you. Ask yourself, “Am I doing everything I can to give them what they need?” and approach the leadership role as one of service. An added bonus is that it makes the business a lot more gratifying.

3. Expect the best.It’s like Henry Ford once said, “Whether you think you can or you think you can’t; you’re right.” If you see another person’s potential, rather than his or her limitations, that’s what you’ll get. Expect them to deliver excellence and they’ll step up to the task; expect them to fail and you’ll never be surprised with how often they do.

4. Be �other focused.�When it comes to success, focus on bringing it to others and you’ll be repaid a thousand fold.

5. Strive relentlessly for perfection.Too many leaders experience a modicum of success and fall into the trap of languishing in fl eeting success rather than reaching continuously for never-ending improvement.

That’s a sure recipe for getting left in the dust which makes it tough to get along with anyone.

6. Passion.Isn’t it easier to get along with someone who has passion for what they do and what they believe in? Share that passion by fi nding a way to connect that passion to what’s important to others and you’ll fi nd yourself getting along with them, and they will happily go along with you.

7. Principles.If what you think, feel, do and say is grounded in solid principles, you’ll be able to make solid decisions in times of confl ict, and others will be drawn to a person of integrity.

8. Power of intention.Call it karma, call it the law of cause and effect, call it a universal principle, but take a look around and notice that good intent results in a good outcome. Bad intent delivers bad results. To get along with others, check your intent.

9. It�s not a popularity contest.To say that you need to get along with others in order for them to go along with you does not mean that leadership is a popularity contest. A leader is a trail blazer who often makes decisions with which others will disagree. Trying to please every one will paralyze your ability to take action.

10. Practice gratitude.There are no inherently positive or negative events in life; it’s our response to each moment and each event that gives it meaning and determines quality. When faced with a challenge or a struggle, fi nd something you can learn from the potential “setback” and train yourself to approach each day, each moment and each person with gratitude. Others are drawn to an appreciative, solution-oriented outlook and repelled by the opposite.

Follow these tips and prepare to be amazed by the quality of people who are drawn to you and the integrity of your organization.

Sean WolÞ ngton is the owner of BZResults.com. He can be contacted at 866.802.5753, or by e-mail atswolÞ ngton@autosuccess.biz.

34

A PerpetualState of Motivation

JimAdams

“Attitude is everything” is just too cliché. A positive selling attitude is the fi ber of this or any other industry. Your

attitude can lead you down the road of professional greatness in our industry or it can take you right out the door. In 15 years, I cannot count the numbers of highly skilled sales people that I have seen fail in the car business solely because they could not maintain a positive selling attitude. There are a few keys to keeping yourself in a state of perpetual motivation. Here are a few:

1. Recognize that your attitude is your responsibility. I am sure that you have heard the expression, “It’s not what happens to you but how you react to what happens to you.” As I have said in past articles, we all have problems: cat problems, dog problems, wife, kid and money problems. The Bible says it clearly, “As sparks fl y upward, so troubles come to man.” In another scripture, it reminds us that the rain falls on the just and unjust alike. Attitudes bring forth emotions. Emotions are the strongest form of personal expression. For the few people that understand this fact, they have the power of using their positive emotions to accomplish great things. For the multitudes of people that have been convinced that they are servants to their emotions, they use those emotions as a reason to fail without even realizing they had a choice.

Let’s take a closer look at what I am talking about. Happiness, anger, fear, resentment, denial, envy, hate, love, encouragement and offended are all emotions. Bad things happen; good things happen. This simply means things happen. Remember, it’s not what happens to you but how you react to what happens to you. It is too easy to assign blame and not take personal responsibility for your failures. It’s the sales manager’s fault, the used car appraisal, the F&I offi ce or the service department. Stop it. Here is an exercise. Every time an uninvited emotion surfaces put four words in front of it. I chose to be: mad, angry, jealous, offended, disappointed and replace them with the attitudes that you must possess to be professional: happy, calm, proud, relaxed, confi dent, motivated and inspired. The most important thing you can do today is guard your attitude. James 1: 2, 3 says, “Count it all joy when you fall into various trails, for the test of your faith produces patience.”

2. One of the easiest ways to keep yourself in a perpetual state of motivation is to read and listen to anything that you can get your hands on to encourage you. There is far too much garbage that steals our time and keeps our focus on things that just serve no personal or professional redeeming value.

Joe Verde says your car should be a university on wheels. Find a speaker or author that really hits your sweet spot and educate yourself daily. Not just when you are feeling down, but a daily dose of inspiration. Zig Ziglar tells a story that when he fi nished a seminar he was shaking hands with those in attendance and a man approached him and said, “Hey Zig, every time I get down I just pop one of your tapes in and it just picks me back up.” Zig responded by saying, “why don’t you just keep it in and you won’t get down as much?” There is so much truth in that statement. The old TV commercial used to say a mind is a terrible thing to waste. My list of favorites include Andy Andrews, Joe Verde, Zig Ziglar, Paul Cummins, Jeffery Gitomer and Stephen Covey just to name a few. The key is to fi nd the ones that motivate you and keep listening and reading all you can about improving yourself on a daily basis.

3. Stop thief: We would never think of sneaking into our offi ces in the middle of the night and rifl e through our coworkers’ desks and steal their money. When we step into the huddle and participate in negative destructive conversations that destroy morale and create cancer on the sales fl oor, there is little difference. Negative conversations on the sales fl oor have destroyed more departments and sales teams than any other in dealerships today. Just walk away. Don’t even listen. You, the professional automotive sales person, have far better things to do.

Guarding your thoughts and your attitudes are key to success in our industry. Realizing that attitudes are choices we make on a daily basis can help you begin to develop the characteristics of a true sales professional. Keep yourself in a constant state of motivation.

Jim Adams is the general manager at Roper Kia in Joplin, MO. He can be contacted at 800.905.0627, or by e-mail at jadams@autosuccess.biz.

36

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America’s Oldest Transportation Company Now Generates 55 Extra Sales a Month Hare Automotive Used the Web, BDC & CRM to Generate $137,500 in Incremental Gross Profi tesley Hare used na-tive timber and sim-

ple tools to start Hare Wagon Works in 1847 with the motto “Keep up the qual-ity.” From small beginnings, the Hare family moved into automobile sales by adding early Cadillacs, Hupmobiles, Overlands and Studebakers. They be-gan selling Chevrolets in 1912. The forefathers of the Hare Automotive organization had visions broad enough to transform the art of buggy making into the successful sales and service of automobiles and today, David Cox and Jackie (Hare) Cox represent the fi fth generation to own and operate the family business. Only now, Hare Auto is looking to their Customer Re-

lationship Center to drive the group’s steady increase in sales by 50 to 100 extra sales per month. With growth like that, they’re aiming for a position among the top 10 eCommerce dealers in the nation for 2006. In this article, Scott Hiller shares how Hare Auto is using a new online marketing system to increase sales and uphold the “Keep up the quality” motto behind Amer-ica’s oldest transportation company.

What would you say someone who doubts the Internet can generate incremental sales?

Last November, Hare Automotive was selling 50 to 100 fewer cars than we

are today. Those incremental sales are a result of establishing a CRC to han-dle Internet and phone leads that our new marketing system generates. One year ago we had one person respond-ing to email and no defi ned Internet department to speak of. That was the fi rst month with our new system and today, we have 3 dedicated Internet Specialists, plus myself, working to generate 55 sales a month at an aver-age gross of $2500 per sale. That ac-counts for $137,500 in gross profi t and at that rate we’re generating $1.6 million dollars in revenue per year. To get these incremental sales, we’ve invested in the right system and tools, the right people and the right process.

Case Study:

I’ve been doing this for 8 years and if there’s one thing I’ve learned it’s that you will not see the return on investment if you’re missing any one of those key factors for suc-cess. One of the reasons I came on board with Hare last November is because they saw the value in us-ing the right system. I’ve worked with all the templated website pro-viders and there is no close second place. I’ve worked with dealers who thought that all you need is a website and CRM tool to make it work when in reality you need a system and a strategy as well as the right people, process and tools. I wanted to work with Hare because the Hare family recognized the potential of the Internet and was willing to make the commitment.

Could you describe the right system?

It’s more complex than getting the right website and CRM tool; dealers need a complete strategy for mar-keting, bringing on the right people, implementing the right process and establishing a pricing philosophy so that at the end of the month you show a profi t. The right website is important too and it needs to be ca-pable of generating phone traffi c, showroom traffi c and Internet leads. The right website is really a market-ing center for your dealership and the right CRM tool will do 50% of the follow up automatically so that your team can attack the phones.

What makes your website unique?

Customers love it because it’s user friendly and makes it easy to fi nd the information they’re looking for. We love it because we’ve been able to customize it and because it gets results. Some of those other platforms are so Flintstone that it takes months to get an upgrade and there’s no way to set your dealer-ship apart from the guy down the street. At Hare Automotive we feel that our pricing philosophy is unique and we know that our cus-tomers love it so we’ve made that a prominent feature of our website. If you go to www.HareAuto.com it’s obvious that we do things a little differently and our website provid-er really helped us get that message out there in a way that prompts the customer to pick up the phone, send

in a lead and drive to the dealership.

What’s the secret to generat-ing leads?

We found that you need the right fl ow and you need to use anima-tion that gets the customer’s atten-tion but you also need to put out just enough information to prompt a question from the customer. We have these coupons that pop up on virtually every page to let the cus-tomer know that factory and suppli-er pricing is the best that’s available and they can fi nd out which they qualify for simply by completing a coupon. That alone generates a tre-mendous amount of leads, and the great thing about the Internet is that everything is measurable. The re-ports that I get from our admin tool shows that our Specials section is also a consistent source of quality

Success Story

“Our website has helped us sell 55 vehicles a month and there is no close second available on the market.” Scott Hiller

leads. Again, customers like that section because it’s easy to fi nd on our site and in some spots, the infor-mation comes at them in the form of a mini-movie which is a lot more interactive than what they’re used

to. Customers also love the fact that they can take a virtual test-drive of the vehicle they’re interested in, print reviews, get fi nanced, get a free Carfax report, receive an in-surance quote, watch tutorials and

the list goes on. I said it before, but I promise you there is no close second when it comes to a website that is capable of generating leads.

How do you market your site?

We piggy back our URL on all other advertising. We end all radio spots with “Visit HareAuto.com” and our provider uses Search Engine Opti-mization. We’re able to reduce our reliance on third party providers by buying the most popular phrases a customer would use when searching online. This way we can ensure that our dealership comes out on top and we only pay when a customer clicks through. Guaranteed top placement creates more traffi c and leads and for the fi rst time ever in the car business, we only pay for the adver-tising that works. The bottom line is that we get more traffi c and ap-pointments at a lower cost per sale.

Success Story

• Founded in 1847, Hare Auto is America’s oldest transportation company.

• Hare Auto used their new system to sell an extra 55 units in one month.

• Hare Automotive Used the Web, BDC & CRM to Generate $137,500 in Incremental Gross Profi t.

• Hare Auto uses their web based CRM tool from BZResults to automate 50% of their follow up.

• Automation enables Hare Auto to lower overhead by handling more leads with fewer people.

• Hare Auto uses search engine optimization to generate more traffi c at a lower cost per sale.

• Vision enabled the buggy-making forefathers to evolve into the sales and service of automobiles in 1912. Vision enables Hare to use the Internet to promote all their profi t centers today.

“Our virtual testdrives generate an incredible amount of leads. Just one example of how we’ve been able to increase sales with smarter marketing.” Scott Hiller

How do you manage all these leads?

Everyone knows that response time is key and with three locations, we found that a centralized Internet Business Center is the best way to respond immediately. This also

allows us to increase effi ciency and adopt quickly when we’re in growth mode. Of course, you have to staff your department with the right people and we have a pretty intense screening process to fi nd them. Currently we have 3 special-ists who are great on the phone and

100% dedicated to the IBC. We’ve also learned that it’s not enough to fi nd the right people; you have to give them what they need to make it easy to follow the right process. Our web-based CRM tool automates much of the email follow up which allows us to focus our energy on the phones. Automation is the only way to make sure that no one falls through the cracks during the lon-ger buying cycle that we see today.

What’s the secret to fi nding and keeping the right staff?

We do some pretty heavy market-ing to fi nd people with the right sales and customer service back-ground and some serious screen-ing once we do. Phone skills are crucial so I conduct an extensive phone interview to look for a good speaking voice, enthusiasm, clarity, confi dence and direction. Although we rely heavily on our technology, it’s simple to use and easy to train so we don’t need to fi nd someone with an IT background, just some-one who’s a superstar on the phone.

Success StoryVo

lum

e

“We use BZ Results Search Engine services to appear on top of all the search

engines. We have tripled our traffi c and cut our cost per sale in half.” -Scott Hiller

“After switching from a templated site to BZ Results, we’re selling an extra 55 units a month.” Scott Hiller