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Comment by Kevin "Friend Me" Bradberry on August 30, 2010 at 12:04pm

WELL SAID!

Comment by Fred G. Slabine on August 29, 2010 at 1:00pm

HOW YOU CAN AVOID COSTLY HIRING MISTAKES

Did you know that automotive salespeople rank #2 in turnover, just below employees at McDonalds, Arby’s, and other fast food chains? How can that be? Fast food franchises hire unskilled workers in routine, low-paying jobs that demand very few skills other than asking the customer, “What can I get for you today? Do you want a drink with that?” That’s hardly what an automotive sales person needs to be successful.

Most often, the problem often begins with the initial hiring decision. Hiring is a complex process that requires a lot of skill and time to get right. Most automotive dealerships are extremely busy, so they often take short-cuts.

Making hiring mistakes can be costly. First, you can wind up with people on the floor who turn away potential customers and tarnish your reputation. Second, these “poor performers” require a lot of additional training and close supervision. Often, that takes the sales manager’s time away from what he’s really paid to do--negotiating and closing deals. Finally, these hiring “mistakes” usually wind up quitting or getting fired. Then you’re back where you started with another costly and time-consuming advertising, hiring, and training process.

You can’t always judge a book by its cover. Many candidates look like they have great experience on paper and make an excellent first impression. Yet, these same individuals may have developed bad habits that lead to poor performance or conflict with others on the floor. Other candidates may lack automotive sales experience, but have the drive, people skills, and work ethic necessary to be highly successful. How can you tell the great or potentially great sales person from the “average Joe?” Here are seven tips to help you avoid costly hiring mistakes and stop the revolving door at your dealership.

1. Create attention-grabbing ads that attract a large and highly qualified applicant pool. The best way to find great hires is to have many good choices.

2. Use on-line job sites to reach technology-savvy candidates and save money in advertising.

3. Strengthen initial screening. Develop clear screening criteria based on what is most important to you. Be sure to look for details in the resume (e.g., number of vehicles sold per month, average closing ratio, steady progression of responsibilities over time). Note any gaps in the chronology for follow-up.

4. Use 20-minute follow-up phone calls to save valuable interviewing time. Don’t probe for all the details necessary for a final hiring decision. Just gather any missing information on the candidate’s employment history and answer any questions you still have.

5. Take control of the face-to-face interview. Develop a structured interview guide to make sure you get what you need. Keeping the interview on track maximizes the information you gain and keeps the candidate from hiding vital information.

6. Follow the “80-20” rule. Talk only 20% of the time and listen 80% of the time. Each moment you talk, you lose valuable time to learn about the applicant.

7. Get a second opinion, Don’t go it alone. Ask another manager or one or more of your seasoned sales people to interview the finalists as well. Getting others involved from the beginning can help prevent mistakes and prevent second-guessing later on.

8. Don’t skip the most important step—check references. The automotive sales industry is full of “professional interviewees” who know how to make a great impression, but don’t know how to sell vehicles. That’s why you should always check references. Probe for the candidates’ weaknesses, as well as their strengths. Find out why they left their last position, and if their employer would hire them again. If not, why not?

Sound time-consuming? It is. Making effective hiring decisions is not easy. That’s why most large corporations have a human resource department to help managers with the hiring process. If you don’t have the time to do it well, you may want to outsource specific steps, like advertising, initial screening, and reference checking. In the long run, it may save you time and money and reduce the revolving door at your dealership.

Comment by Fran Taylor on August 29, 2010 at 11:26am

Advertise how much money you can make will get attention. Do not use a dealerships name or phone number. The average person gives dealerships a bad rap. Most people don't know that you can make a lot of money in the auto business. Advertise the opportunity and see what happens. Qualify them over the phone first. Rate them from 1 to 10 . Call your top people back and have them come in all at one time for an interview. Let them know your not hiring just anyone. The people at Penn State College helped me do my sales training book and this was a good idea that has worked for me in the past. Best of luck to all.

Comment by aaron kominsky on August 26, 2010 at 4:00pm

Yhere are numerous ways, first and foremost FACEBOOK, LINKEDIN, etc, you could actually set up job fairs in colleges high schools, trade schools, and Chamber of Commerce . Customer Service people at retail operations are a great source of potential candidates, since they are people savy. You also need to be transparent too. I find that you explain the facts of life with a fuly disclosed job description will get you people who are driven and have the best attitude, and will accept the challenge making a full committment

Comment by Kevin "Friend Me" Bradberry on August 26, 2010 at 11:55am

Thanks Bobby. knowing your successful retail track record, I'm always interested in hearing your take on things.

Shari, I think that is an excellent approach. Your first answer neglected to mention your linkedIn and Facebook. I would be interested to hear how you use them aside from the obvious of posting the available position on your walls. What exactly do you do with them when you say...........need to hire 4 salespeople at once?

Comment by Shari Doran on August 26, 2010 at 8:01am

I agree, a bit "Old School", however...effective. I may have been around the business a long time but I have continued to grow along with the technology. I capture info via palm in files organized by area of expertise. Facebook and Linkedin have provided a great new way to set ourselves apart from the competition as well as staying up to date on contact info.

Comment by Kevin "Friend Me" Bradberry on August 25, 2010 at 3:57pm

Shari's doing it OLD SCHOOL, but it works! If you have the TIME, patience, organizational skills, and means to capture their contact information as you travel the countryside.
Mark makes an excellent point mentioning LinkedIn. I would agree that between the 2 LinkedIn has the old school way hands down. With a log, or an organized portfolio contact information can change and you can lose people. (How do you overcome that?)
With LinkedIn. the data changes as the people move from job to job, or geographical location. They simply update it themselves and we always know how to find them. Plus with LinkedIn.com you allow others to see your contact, or you can choose to not let them see them. it's up to you. There are certainly benefits to both.

Comment by Mark Ragsdale on August 25, 2010 at 2:08pm

I think LinkedIn is a good source for virtually all industries.

Blessings,
Rags

Comment by Shari Doran on August 25, 2010 at 1:46pm

After almost 24 years in the industry, you can imagine that I have come in contact with some of the most talented people in our industry. I have always made it a point to keep either a log or an organized portfolio of the great talents I meet along my way and when I find myself in need of filling one of those positions, I look there first. I want the ones that are successful now and working. I give them the best tools I can along with superior working conditions, income and benefits and then treat then right when I have them...Loyalty and long term success go hand in hand here.

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