Normally I don’t receive my copy of Automotive News in south Florida from the U.S. Postal Service until Thursday or Friday. This week I was pleasantly surprised to find it in my mailbox on Tuesday. A couple of articles in the current issue (authored by Lindsay Chappell and Christina Rogers) inspired me to revisit the vehicle personalization opportunities I’ve previously discussed. I suggest you read each of these excellent articles in AN’s July 2^nd issue.

In his article, “$30 billion customizing business is up for grabs,” ChappelI reports that most franchised automotive dealers don’t seem interested in grabbing their share. Mr. Chappell draws his conclusion partly from a recent survey of 7,800 new vehicle buyers around the country conducted by Foresight Research in suburban Detroit. According to Chappell, the survey found that 65% of these purchases occurred without the dealer ever mentioning personalization and that nearly 60% of the dealers involved did not have an accessorized vehicle on display, and that’s despite Foresight’s finding that buyers spend $1,662 on average to customize vehicles. According to Beau Boeckman, a California dealer who’s become an aggressive aftermarket merchant, historically “a lot of dealers just didn’t want to do anything to risk messing up their sale. You’re still seeing that today—salespeople will walk around the accessories to avoid blowing the deal.”   

Christina Rogers’ article, “Accessory sales boost profits, store morale,” focuses on Toyota of Muncie, where the GM, Jeff Daniels, has implemented vehicle personalization strategies that bring in an additional $20,000 - $25,000 per month in revenue at his 100 retail units per month store. Jeff’s dealership is part of the Gates Auto Group of Richmond, Kentucky, which also has Nissan, Hyundai, Kia, and Audi franchises. As Jeff’s business partner, dealer principal Steve Gates put it, “I’ve always done a mediocre job of selling accessories. Jeff just ‘got it.’ He just figured it out. It became a part of the culture.” (Emphasis added).

In the November 9, 2011 issue of Up to Speed I presented a five-step plan for developing and implementing a vehicle personalization program at your dealership. To read that article, go here.  If you're reading this from the blog page, just Browse by Tag in the right-hand margin and click on “Vehicle Personalization.”

If you’re not currently in the personalization business, I’m sure there is a long list of reasons why. The fact is, your customers are (or soon will) be spending big bucks to personalize their vehicles. Shouldn’t that money be flowing into your bank account?

What about you?  Are you taking advantage of vehicle personalization in your store? If so, please share your successes with us by commenting on this article. If not, maybe you should take a field trip to Las Vegas this fall; the 2012 SEMA show begins on October 30^th. Or consider contacting the NCM Retail Operations division. Our Retail Operations coaches frequently discuss vehicle personalization during their Profit Correction Meetings.