Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Richard Emmons on December 27, 2010 at 12:18pm

It is all about appointments and followup. 85+% of people shop the internet before purchasing a car. The right trained person on the phone making appointments will be the key.

Permalink Reply by Mark Proctor on December 27, 2010 at 12:26pm

Replace the clerks with salespeople that are taught to sell the Dealership, the Product, themselves and pleasure of buying through their Internet Department. You must give a prospect a reason to buy... buy... buy today and buy from you... The majority of internet departments contain kids who the GM thinks knows how to use a computer and makes him the Internet Manager and waste countless opportunities to do business.

 

Permalink Reply by Stan Sher on December 28, 2010 at 2:13am

They need to employ proper follow up procedures including a strong email follow follow up process and most importantly a strong phone follow up process. It is also important to learn how to utilize all available tools such as google, your crm/ilm, social media and other forms of technology. If you would like to discuss, please feel free to send me a message.

Permalink Reply by Rick Bryant on December 28, 2010 at 5:29pm

The Internet customer is usually fact finding and price shopping, the Internet staff must get a responce, not an automated e-mail either answering their questions or asking for some more detail so they can get them answered within 20 minutes during working hours, the then call right away, the Internet is just a tool to start communicating.

Permalink Reply by Snehal Patel on December 29, 2010 at 7:52pm

Try installing a simple chat application on your web page that allows the potential customer to interact with a sales person right away if they have a question about a car.  The better the answer, the better chance the customer will come into the showroom.

Permalink Reply by Stan Sher on December 30, 2010 at 3:39am

A lot more to it then that.  The quality of the follow up and the quality of the appointments.  It is a matter of how the follow up is being made.

Richard Emmons said:

It is all about appointments and followup. 85+% of people shop the internet before purchasing a car. The right trained person on the phone making appointments will be the key.

Permalink Reply by Stan Sher on December 30, 2010 at 3:41am

Good idea but it has to depend on the situation.  People in the dealership need to be properly trained to handle the phones, email, and chat conversations.  Chat is not as easy as it seems.  If you do not have the right skills and word tracks, you will not succeed.

Snehal Patel said:

Try installing a simple chat application on your web page that allows the potential customer to interact with a sales person right away if they have a question about a car.  The better the answer, the better chance the customer will come into the showroom.

Permalink Reply by Snehal Patel on December 30, 2010 at 4:15pm

It is true that the best path for success starts with getting everyone on the same page.  That means consistent training and plenty of education.  But I would still argue that you should not pass up an opportunity to use simple, easy to understand tools like chat or internet postings.  It doesn't take long for a professional salesperson to understand the basics as long as they are open to learning.  There are plenty of expert companies in this field that specialize in teaching these tools to your sales staff.  It's a very small investment that can net large returns in the short term. 

The future of sales is definitely going more and more to the internet.  Whole brick and mortar companies have closed down because of the competition online.  That is why internet communication should be two-way, not just in one direction like most traditional advertising.  A significant number of car buyers already decide on their next car purchase through literature and online research.  Savvy buyers are clicking through all the local dealership websites to find the best deals.  A slick website will get their attention, but a quick response to their inquiry can bring these people in the door.   If they were going to buy a Ford Kumquat anyway, then it better be your Ford Kumquat.

Stan Sher said:

Good idea but it has to depend on the situation.  People in the dealership need to be properly trained to handle the phones, email, and chat conversations.  Chat is not as easy as it seems.  If you do not have the right skills and word tracks, you will not succeed.

Snehal Patel said:

Try installing a simple chat application on your web page that allows the potential customer to interact with a sales person right away if they have a question about a car.  The better the answer, the better chance the customer will come into the showroom.

Permalink Reply by David Marod on December 31, 2010 at 3:11pm

So some may feel I'm off base here but I think internet departments are going to go away. We are Internet dealerships now, there are no more walk ins. Everyone touches the web before their purchase and we need to empower sales people to take leads and follow up to turn these leads into sales, we need to develop our process so that sales people can turn leads into show room traffic. More salespeople means more attention per lead and better follow up with the help of technology. The Internet department was a stepping stone to deal with new informed customers shopping on line, now that's all the customers and we need to take the next step within our stores........