What Experts are saying:

We all know that the mix of low inventory and higher prices on vehicles has affected sales. The world, after all, doesn’t revolve around gross alone. What wasn’t expected was an 11% drop in new car sales from April to May. This has some experts concerned about an upcoming economic downturn. “The market appears increasingly concerned about the economy, inflation, rising interest rates, and a recession,” Joseph Spak, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, said in a…

We’ve been dealing with strange times in the automotive industry recently with chip shortages and an insane gross market. This is not only creating tension for both the customer and the sales associate, but it’s straining an already tumultuous relationship that exists between customers and salespeople. 

Therefore, first impressions are…

You never hear a prize fighter say he fired his trainer directly after he won the championship belt, right? Well, that’s the whole reason why it’s important to continue coaching and training of the salespeople and BDC employees. Even after they seem to have mastered the phone and their appointment set rate is off the charts, continued coaching and training are paramount. This is what keeps them sharp! …

It’s no secret how much COVID-19 changed the automotive business. Many dealerships were shut down for months on end and others had such restrictive business practices that made it difficult to function. We’re now in a post-Covid world, and many things have changed within the automotive industry. While it’s still unclear as to whether these trends are here to stay, they have changed the face of the industry. …

Make no mistake about it, car dealers have an uphill battle to fight when defending their reputation. The sleazy used car guy character is still top of mind for consumers when making a purchase. And it is no fault of their own. 95% of all sales are made at the dealership, but most of that research now begins at home. Consumers will tell you the #1…

Selling work over the phone is something that has been done since service centers opened, and this goes for independent centers as well as dealerships. Most advisors love it when they can sell work over the phone as it gives them the upper hand. There is nothing better than when an advisor actually has a minute to breathe and works through a quote, put the numbers together, and presents a well-organized “package” to their customer who isn’t tapping their foot in the waiting room.  This…

Servicing your vehicle has been an age-old activity for anyone who owns or drives a vehicle. With today’s world and technology advancing, we’re gathering new tools to enhance our daily lives on a regular basis. This includes technology in our vehicles, so why wouldn’t it carry over into service.  

Virtual service has started to take hold in…

You’ve had one customer on a test drive, your next appt just showed up an hour early, and somehow you were the only “available salesman” when a family just walked into the dealership… what do you do?

That answer is easy, you start juggling! Get them comfortable in the customer lounge, tell them to enjoy a warm or cold beverage, or snack, and here is…

I remember it like it was yesterday, the first time a car was discounted to make a deal. It was 1932, in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Big Red Ewing accepted $1,450 “out the door” for a brand new 1933 Studebaker Dictator that stickered for $1,466 Plus TTL. Now, whether or not that’s true, I cannot say. But I’m sure it went down just like that. …

There are actually over 50 reasons why your Salespeople need coaching. They may not know it; but you do. Their managers know it. Their customers feel it.



Even if your customers don’t know what Coaching is, they know how they feel during and after an encounter with an un-coached Salesperson. It’s not pleasant nor very efficient.



Here are seven reasons why Salespeople need Coaching, why Active Coaching is the best, and some suggested solutions.…

Customer service is extremely important. We get that. But one thing we might not notice, or suspect is that not everyone is good on the phones. In fact, some of your best Service Advisors could be the absolute worst on the phones! Just because you’re great in front of a customer doesn’t mean you have the skills necessary to replicate that via telephone. And…

ENHANCE YOUR DEALERSHIP’S CONVERSION RATES WITH CAR SALES PHONE SCRIPTS

One thing we often don’t think about is just how many businesses we interact with on a daily basis. Think about it, you order food from restaurants, you get your hair done at salons, travel around using Uber, book airfare & travel, and buy things online. But, to complete these tasks, you have to use several apps and visit multiple websites. And it’s in…

More importantly, we have to ask ourselves why we’re continually having to “reset” when things aren’t going right. That is  not hitting sales objectives, low appointment set-rates, low appointment show-rates, low appointment sold-rates, as well as poor results in handling inbound calls or internet leads. The reset on the dealer level often includes…

Regardless of the business model, the dealership's business models have changed over time, with dealers introducing business development centers, exchange managers in sales, product consultants, and marketing managers, to name a few. On the other hand, the GM position is seldom addressed or evolved - a position that manages all departments at the dealer level…

How many times have you been told by a vendor that your current efforts aren't cutting it? If you don't sign up for their product, you're not going to get the same results. To then go with their product -- having been sold a bag of goods only to be left with a mess putting you in a worse position you were previously. Not to mention, don't you think some vendors have been conditioned to our tactics of saying, "well, what are other (your OEM) dealers doing"? To which they, in most cases,…

If there's one thing we're obsessed with in our industry – it's our CRM workflows. We live and breathe by the workflow; everything from our daily reports, reviewing them multiple times a day and using them as the “benchmark” for success to judging people’s worth based on them. While I am a fan of having a historical reference of past performance metrics and believe it's essential to have consistency in follow-up and a score card, the fact is many CRM's workflows are flawed. Flawed to…

We sometimes wonder why the BDC is not performing like they used to be. At the same time, instead of acquiring new talent to fill a position or assist another department, we often shift them over instead. Sounds like a great idea, right? It means that we don't have to hire another position, and they have the skills needed for the job! But what we often don't consider is that it leaves an empty gap in the BDC. Or worse, if you leave the BD Agent in the BDC but have them off task, it lessens…