Your dealership has had to adapt to many changes in the last decade. The Internet and technology have changed the way you sell cars. Now, a generational change is requiring a new style of managing, which I really believe is more like coaching.   

Thirty years ago a young salesperson was willing to sacrifice much to be successful. They were willing to work long hours, weekends, holidays and miss family events for years to become successful. Today, not as many people are motivated by money, and they are not willing to sacrifice as much to get it. 

Instead, they are motivated by feeling that they're a part of something and what they do matters. They value their time, and they want to feel valued by their employer. They want to be heard and understood. 

Enter the coach. Coaching and counseling are really a lost art, but it's a very successful management technique. Instead of managing down, coaching relies on managing up. That is, let the salesperson set their own goals, report their own KPIs and come up with solutions to their own problems. Getting the entire team involved gives the individual a sense of purpose and motivates them to be accountable, not to the manager, but to their team members.  

Before a meeting, the manager still prints a report, but it's just to verify the numbers given by the salesperson. If there's a problem, don't tell the salesperson how to say or do something. Instead, offer feedback that prompts the salesperson to come up with a solution. An example might be: "So you didn't get the outcome you wanted. What do you think you should do differently?"  

This approach forces the salesperson to become involved and acknowledge the consequences of failing to do something, like making those phone calls. 

A coach offers ideas and a knowledge base of what works based on real-world experience. Ultimately, it's up to the salesperson whether they decide to listen or take your advice. But here's the thing: when you empower your salespeople to make their own decisions, they have to own the results of those decisions.  

Another common denominator I have noticed in many dealerships is that successful salespeople are empowered with the use of technology. Specifically, mobile technology and multi-channel communication tools that allow them to transact deals in a customer-centric manner.  

This means that your salesperson should be able to transact deals anywhere. With mobile tablets, they can look up information, make offers and transact deals wherever the customer is most comfortable --whether that's in the showroom, on the lot or even at the customer's house. 

Additionally, salespeople need to be empowered with appropriate communications tools. You already know half your customers prefer to communicate with text. Do you have an integrated texting system yet? Many car shoppers prefer watching videos over reading text. Do you have inventory videos and virtual test-drive videos to send to these customers? 

If your salespeople can't communicate with customers in the way those customers want or expect, your salespeople are not empowered. The ability to build rapport with customers is an important part of the sales process. The more emails, texts, phone calls and videos you send, the more likely the customer will connect, engage and buy.  

The most successful sales teams I have seen are empowered. They are empowered with new styles of management and with technology. They streamline their processes to remove as many unnecessary steps and people as possible. The end result is a better experience for your customers, which translates to a better bottom line for your dealership.