How do you stop the BE BACK BUS?
How do you stop the BE BACK BUS?
I've always been amazed that when a customer says they will be back, how many Sales people and Managers agree right then and there and say good bye. There's a fine line between being pushy, and then again the same holds true for not going the extra mile to make them a deal right then and there.
What are some methods to stop a customer from leaving and jumping on the Be Back Bus?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Mike Stoner on -
Thanks CJ,
So when are you going to call me? I'd like to help you "pound out" some gross.
Did you watch the video testimonial?
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Permalink Reply by David Simpson on
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The reason, in my experience, that there is a need for the "Be Back Bus" is that we did not put the customer on the right car initially.
This goes back to the meet and greet and customer interview, initially, however there are some caveats. As a sales manager I made a point of getting in front of the customer after they returned from the demo drive. I would ask them, "How'd you like that _____? Isn't it great?" or something along those lines. I could tell, pretty closely, by the level of excitement whether we needed to do more fact-finding and perhaps switch cars or continue on through the process.
A lot of people would feel guilty about telling their sales person, who has done such a good job selling them the car they first selected, that they don't like the car or that it is too expensive or that it is not what they really wanted. But, they will tell the sales manager, or at least show the manager the tell-tale signs of lack of interest.
The problem in most dealerships is that the manager takes the sales person's word for it. The customer sees the numbers and says, "That looks great. Can I get a copy of that?" and if they really want to tie the sales person down they say, "Do you have a card?" and "How late are you here today?" or "Will you be here tomorrow?"
The salesperson, knowing that they have not yet heard a "no" will go to the sales office and make a copy of the 4-square or buyers order and tell the sales manager, "Mr. Johnson has to run home real fast but he is coming back tonight/tomorrow." and the manager will say, "Great, good job."
The next day, the sales manager will pick up the log and ask the sales person, "What happened to Mr. Johnson?" The salesperson will say, "That's a good question. I need to call him." and he does and the conversation goes to price. The manager thinks that Mr. Johnson would have bought the car if the sales person had done a better job soliciting a counter offer and the sales person might even start to think that he should have done a better job soliciting a counter offer.
If they get Mr. Johnson on the phone and get him interested in the wrong car for him at a a good price the only thing they have done is to give up gross on a car deal today and eliminate any chance at selling Mr. Johnson a car tomorrow.
Mr. Johnson, if he does buy the wrong car at the right price still has the wrong car. Every time he writes out that car payment he is going to be ticked that he didn't get the car that he wanted, the car that fit his needs or the car that fit his budget. Every remembrance of your dealership is going to evoke negative emotions.
And, remember, Mr. Johnson arrived on your "Be Back Bus".
The alternative is to do a better job helping Mr. Johnson select the right car for his wants, needs and budget initially. It takes a manager getting involved in the deal early on and confirming that Mr. Johnson and the sales person are on the same page.
When I was selling cars my GM called me the "King of the First Pencil". When I brought a deal to the desk it was a deal, pretty much no matter how it was written up. That was because I never put a deal on paper on a car my customer didn't really want to buy.
The rule, as I learned it, was you never sell a car you don't put on paper so I put every deal on paper but not till I had done the selling. So many sales people think that the selling starts when we present numbers but, you had better have the selling done before you go to paper or the only bullet left in your gun is, "How cheap can I make this car."
And, that customer usually leaves and only returns on the "Be Back Bus" and the fare on that bus is subsidized by our sales people and the sales departments gross profits.
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Permalink Reply by Mike Stoner on
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You are EXACTLY right Dave.
That's why when we write a customer up we do so assuming they are going to buy. If I interpret your statement correctly the concern is are we on the right car?
We obtain our pencil and take it to the customer. The first thing we say is " before we get any closer to you taking delivery of this car, would you consider one like it if we could save you 2, 3 maybe as much as 4 thousand dollars? Could be as much as $80 or $90 in the monthly payment".
There are 3 possible answers to the question.
1. Yes. In this case take them back out and show them lesser cars. Personal experience is that more often than not they reaffirm the car we were on is the right one.
2. Maybe, but I'd like to see where we're at on this one first. Making the proposal is a go. We have set up the take away and put a floor in the negotiation.
3. No. The customer is saying 2 things with the no answer. This is the car we want AND they're saying no to savings. Again we have set up the take away and put a floor in the negotiations.
Alternative hoices must be offered several times during the selection process. It's a the customer is searching with a broad beam light for the right car and offer to save him money on other things causes him to focus his beam down to laser point on THE car for them.
All of that said and done no one closes every deal, or even close to every deal. If they leave you sure as heck want them to come back. Nobody walks til the boss talks. He just shouldn't turn it into a long drawn out dissertation. The proper release is key to getting back those that after the boss talks still walks.
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Permalink Reply by David Simpson on
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When I first got on the desk I saw that the tendency of the other managers was to "load the sales person's lip" until the customer was obviously not going to buy today then they would go out and take a turn on the customer. This was always a "no lose" situation for the manager. If he was able to close the deal he would say, "I had to close that deal" and if he was not able to close the deal he would tell the sales person all the things that they had done wrong making it impossible for even him to close the deal.
I knew, even with my new position as a manager, that I wasn't going to get paid unless we sold cars, regardless of who closed or didn't close the deal. I also knew that, although my responsibilities had been expanded to include managing my people, my product and my processes, I ultimately was still being graded the way dealers, managers and sales people are always graded; by volume, gross and CSI.
My dad, who owned his own businesses and was a very savvy operator, gave me some sage advice whenever I was young and that was to always be training your replacement. That is the only way that you can make a case for advancement as your skills and abilities grow and improve. Another reason that I, as a manager, would get involved in every car deal early and often was that my sales people began to see me in a different light. Instead of following my instructions out of compliance they began to follow my example out of belief; belief in me, my message, my methods and my motivation. By showing them that I cared about them and their success they began to mirror that devotion to our customers. I can't tell you how many sales people I have managed over the years that are now managers themselves and, hopefully still following my, and leading by, example.
Jan and I have a favorite restaurant here in Dallas that we like to treat ourselves to occasionally, Chamberlain's Steak and Chop House. The manager there for the longest time was a guy named Johnny. When we walked in it was Johnny who greeted us, instructed the greeter where to seat us, whose section to seat us in and what we would be drinking. Then he would occasionally come by our table and check on us. Nothing imposing or disruptive to our conversation but just a "fly by". I noticed that he made a point to always look very busy so the fact that he was taking the time to check on our satisfaction meant that much more.
Whenever I am working the floor and I want to go speak to a customer I always move towards the sales person's desk as if I am headed somewhere else with a purpose, then I will stop and say something like, "How's Mike treating you guys? Isn't he great?" Just to check their response. I might ask them about the vehicle they have selected, how their experience has been so far, little inquiries just to get a reaction so that I can gauge the their temperature. Also, to let them know that their time in our store was important to us, so important in fact that I, as the manager, have taken time out of my "busy" day to ask and genuinely care about their experience. Most of the time customer's who have bought cars before didn't see the manager until the end of the process when they came in to "close". I always wanted to be different.
Also, although I haven't been a "sales person" for many years I am still the best sales person on the property. Why would I want to not use my talent, in concert with my sales person's talent as well as the quality of my process and my product, to insure that we have every opportunity to make a deal today?
Ultimately, if and when I would go in to take a turn on the customer at the "close" I wasn't a stranger, they knew that I had more invested in their deal than just putting the figures in the computer and spitting out an offer and that the sales person had my every confidence because I wasn't just coming into to do something they couldn't do, I was coming in to complete a transaction that we had all been working on together.
And, no, I don't sell every customer but, when following up with an unsold customer if the sales person is making the call they could say, "David wanted me to call and let you know...'that we got another $500 for your vehicle' or 'that one of our wholesalers is coming by this afternoon and really wanted a chance to make a buy-bid on your car' or 'that he spoke to the bank and it may be possible for you to purchase this vehicle with less money down than we previously discussed.'" Whatever. Probably 80% of the time I am the one making the initial follow-up call (at the sales persons desk by the way) being consistent with the perception I had begun to build the day before, "We care". That greatly increases my ability to get customers a seat on my "Be Back Bus".
Whenever I do sales training the first place I start is at the desk so I understand the process as well as so I can measure the amount of sales ability present there. I also like to see how sales people are being treated, what the managers say about them when they are not around and what the general personality of the management is. A store always takes on the personality of it's manager. Sam Snead, the golfing legend, once said, "Give me a man with big hands and big feet and I will make a golfer out of him." What that means to me is that if a sales person has the talent and the tools to be successful I just have to give them the skills and teach them the process and then support them as they perform.
As a manager, I am not just the coach I am the quarterback. That means that I don't just guide the team through my instruction, I lead the team through my performance. Once I sell managers on the idea that by getting involved in their sales people's deals they are getting invested in their sales people's success, everything works better and the "Be Back Bus" although a constant in any sales industry, is something we manage rather than loath.
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Permalink Reply by Mike Stoner on
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Management involvement early and often goes a very long way. You sound like a great leader David.
Installing in a Dodge I took a turn from a guy that was one of the top sales people because he was not able to get the customer to make an offer in response to our proposal. I was not able to get them to make one either so we released them.
All day long he was wanting to call them and say "we got another $500 for your vehicle" convinced he would be able to get them back in that day. He was counseled to resist the urge. It was tough for him but we made it through the day without doing it. The next morning those customers were waiting patiently for us to finish our meeting and unlock the door. When we did and they came in and said "if you could get us another $500.00 for our trade we would buy your car. We made the deal and it was a very good gross.
Another dealership we installed at (Ford/Nissan) they were heavily involved in measurement of traffic. Hawks on the lot counting and note taking. Prior to our install they were closing 21% of everything that hit the lot. 30 days after install they were closing 34% of that same traffic while simultaneously increasing gross per car by $900.00.
When asked to what they attributed that greater than 50% increase in volume they said about half the increase was from writing up buyers that previously they would thought were not buyers and the other half of the increase they attributed directly to be-backs.
This was not a store doing a bad job. They were very successful already. The employees were for the most long term employees and now 12 years later most of them are still there.
Every effort should be made to close the deal RIGHT NOW and with the right process and presentation fewer will get on the bus and of those that do the right release will bring them back.
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Permalink Reply by Arnold Tijerina on
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OK, this comment has absolutely no "best practice" content, it's just a related story.
When I was working as a closer, I had my team on the point and we were discussing that they make sure to introduce the customer to me before letting anyone leave.
Right after having this meeting, I swear to God, a school bus pulled up, parked along the curb, and the bus driver came onto the lot and started looking at cars. She said she drives by every day and that we had a used car she'd been eying.
Ultimately, although the bus was empty, she was on the clock and had to bring back her husband later.
It's always been a joke to me, since then, that, every once in awhile the be-back bus DOES come back.
In this case, the be-back bus became, well, a be-back. haha
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Permalink Reply by Bobby Compton on
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Arnold, thats a great share my friend - and Funny! Truth of the matter is that I do believe in the be back bus as there is a way to create success in having customers return on it... Your share is a best practice without no question, you did something right when she stopped by and then returned with her husband. Some might have blown the deal and turned her off from returning! Nice job....
Arnold Tijerina said:
OK, this comment has absolutely no "best practice" content, it's just a related story.
When I was working as a closer, I had my team on the point and we were discussing that they make sure to introduce the customer to me before letting anyone leave.
Right after having this meeting, I swear to God, a school bus pulled up, parked along the curb, and the bus driver came onto the lot and started looking at cars. She said she drives by every day and that we had a used car she'd been eying.
Ultimately, although the bus was empty, she was on the clock and had to bring back her husband later.
It's always been a joke to me, since then, that, every once in awhile the be-back bus DOES come back.
In this case, the be-back bus became, well, a be-back. haha
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Permalink Reply by Mr. Natural on
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Though I'm no longer involved in the negotiating process much these days, once in a while, I'll get thrown into the tail end of a deal. Things have taken a turn for the worse, and for whatever reason, the customer is intent on leaving without their new car.
It always seems like a tough one, and frequently, I won't know too much about what's been going on, or how it got to this stage. One thing's for sure however,,,I have a vested interest in the outcome, and the sales person is pretty interested in how I do. I have a pretty standard M.O. for this one: Be honest, very honest.
I usually tell the customer how we feel about them leaving to think about it. "We hate it when this happens! This just never seems to work in our favor. I don't know much about what has been going on out here, but I do know one thing for sure Ms. Customer. We couldn't have gotten this far if at some point you had not agreed that if the deal was right you would own the vehicle...Right?" (well yes, but we just want to think about it over night, we always do.) "I understand, and it so frequently comes down to this moment, but you know what? No matter how many times you go home to think about it, it's always going to come down to this moment. The moment where you are finally going to have to say yes. This is that moment. You have spent a lot of time getting to this very moment. The time to think about it is past...You have spent three weeks traveling to get to this time, three weeks, and now it's here...And you have to call it...It's either yes or no, and you have to say. You're ready to walk out the door, and you know what? We have never let anyone walk out the door if there was a lower price we could go to. You've done a great job. We have no lower price to go to. You have gotten yourself a great deal. You'll never find a lower price anywhere. I know that you know we are offering you a great deal. We do have a deal now don't we?" Stick out your hand and shut up...Shut up. Hold out your hand and shut up even if it takes five minutes. They will shake your hand.
Of course this is far oversimplified, but this is how I do it, and when done with total sincerity, it works every time...almost.
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Outstanding Gillon.
On one aspect you helped the customer realize that they've already spend a considerable amount of time prior to ever coming to the dealership in their research.
Secondly you identified the amount of time they've spent at the dealership with the sales person.
Thirdly you held ground on painting the picture that nobody walks out of the dealership without getting the absolute best deal possible, and at this point they've achieved every bit of that.
Lastly you tip them over with complimenting them on they're ability to negotiated their best deal...
Great share my friend, and completely a customer friendly way to close the sale...
Super STRONG - Thanks for sharing!~
Gillon S Johannson said:Though I'm no longer involved in the negotiating process much these days, once in a while, I'll get thrown into the tail end of a deal. Things have taken a turn for the worse, and for whatever reason, the customer is intent on leaving without their new car.
It always seems like a tough one, and frequently, I won't know too much about what's been going on, or how it got to this stage. One thing's for sure however,,,I have a vested interest in the outcome, and the sales person is pretty interested in how I do. I have a pretty standard M.O. for this one: Be honest, very honest.
I usually tell the customer how we feel about them leaving to think about it. "We hate it when this happens! This just never seems to work in our favor. I don't know much about what has been going on out here, but I do know one thing for sure Ms. Customer. We couldn't have gotten this far if at some point you had not agreed that if the deal was right you would own the vehicle...Right?" (well yes, but we just want to think about it over night, we always do.) "I understand, and it so frequently comes down to this moment, but you know what? No matter how many times you go home to think about it, it's always going to come down to this moment. The moment where you are finally going to have to say yes. This is that moment. You have spent a lot of time getting to this very moment. The time to think about it is past...You have spent three weeks traveling to get to this time, three weeks, and now it's here...And you have to call it...It's either yes or no, and you have to say. You're ready to walk out the door, and you know what? We have never let anyone walk out the door if there was a lower price we could go to. You've done a great job. We have no lower price to go to. You have gotten yourself a great deal. You'll never find a lower price anywhere. I know that you know we are offering you a great deal. We do have a deal now don't we?" Stick out your hand and shut up...Shut up. Hold out your hand and shut up even if it takes five minutes. They will shake your hand.
Of course this is far oversimplified, but this is how I do it, and when done with total sincerity, it works every time...almost.
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