You've decided to go outside your dealership to get something handled.  After a lot of thought, you realized it would be better to spend money with the right experts and handle things once, than to save money on paper and take your people away from what they do best for you.  Many times that's exactly what you should do.  But how do you know you have the right company for what you really need?      

To help you see how to rate a company or service, I will be using our company as an example.  The process should be the same for any aspect of your operation.  If you follow the steps we outline here, finding quality help for your challenges should be simple.  That said, let's begin.      

In his book, "The Seven Habits Of Highly Effective People," Steven Covey states, "Begin with the end in mind."  This should be the foundation for all of your decisions.  What is it that you hope to accomplish?  You should add this question.  What if this really works?  Is the only practical way to reach a solution, to go outside help?      

For example, you need to add people to your sales team.  How many?  After they are hired and trained, do you have a support system in place to make sure that they can grow to be successful in your store?  Why are you adding people?  What is your expectation once they hit the floor?  Let's look at each question.      

How many?  Generally, hiring an outside service should be a consideration if you are looking for more than 3 people.  Anything less, you should be able to hire them in house and put them under the wing of someone who can and will bring them along until they are up to speed.  Companies who offer the service for less than three people may have another agenda.  Often, to make it a profitable assignment, they put many more in a class to train them for other dealers.  If this is acceptable to you, it may be a good solution.  But, if you are not comfortable training people for your competition, consider doing it on your own. (Email us and we'll show you how to design a campaign for three or fewer people at no charge.  Email, dealerresourcegroup@gmail.com)      

Do you have a support system?  Many of our dealers have commitments to training that begins the moment we leave.  They enroll the new people in several online courses as well as provide a mentoring system until they are very familiar with the dealership procedure as well as becoming well versed in the products they represent.      

Why are you adding people?  Be absolutely sure about this answer.  If you feel that your team is doing a great job and now you need to increase volume, that requires one tactic.  If, on the other hand, there is some dead wood that needs replacing, we offer a totally different strategy.      

What is your expectation?  Our success has always been on meeting the dealers expectation.  Our plan to accomplish this is to have someone from the dealership be a part of our interview process.  This accomplishes two things.  First, we only have people in training that can work for our dealer.  Second, most trainers have the ability to train new people very well.  The benefit to doing it our way is that the dealer decides if there is a personality match that makes for less fallout after training.          

What's In A Name?  Back in the late 70's and early 80's designer clothes were the thing to wear.  Regardless of how much it cost, how poorly they fit, or how uncomfortable you felt while wearing them, you had to have clothes with the label exposed to impress the public.  Luckily, just like Disco, it faded from prominence.  But, what about today?  Should you buy a brand just because of the label?      

Here are some not so positive facts about The Dealer Resource Group.  We will never be the oldest company doing what we do.  At this time, we're not the largest.  And, the reality is, most dealers have never heard of us as a company.  And, if you're in the habit of buying labels, we probably will never work together.  But, if you go beyond the the pretty label, here's what you find:      

• Trainers with massive auto experience  
• One trainer who was Digital Dealer Magazine's Professional of the Year  
• One trainer who has trained 15,000 sales professionals  
• Wrote 10 books on sales and management  
• Owned two dealerships  
• Average experience 20+ years in the industry  
• The Partners Still Train In The Field To Keep Up With What Works      

Now, none of that may be important to you.  That's okay.  If it's not, then you have everything you need to decide what's best for your dealership.  However, if you feel "The Devil Is In The Details," knowing the facts BEFORE deciding may be more your style.  I'm a hard facts kind of guy.      

We all change.  Hopefully you're changing how you do business to be ahead of the 21st Century customer.  I gave up designer jeans a long time ago.  Partly because the label didn't seem so important, but also because they no longer fit me the way I'd like them to.  

John Fuhrman is the Senior National Trainer for Carolina Automotive Resource Services, a unit of The Dealer Resource Group.  His ten books have reached 1.5 million readers and he has trained sales professionals around the world.  Our Trainers are ready to work for you and develop a sales team you can be proud of.  Email us by Wednesday and we're in your dealership on Monday ready to interview.  When your dealership needs amazing results hiring new people, visit http://www.thedealerresourcegroup.net.   ATTENTION DEALERS:  VISIT OUR WEB SITE AND REGISTER TO KEEP UP ON MONTHLY TRAINING SAVING SPECIALS.  Our trainers are ready to show you our "WOW!" factor.  (c)2012 by John Fuhrman - Permission to reprint this post in its entirety, including contact information, is hereby granted.