After going in an out of dealerships for over 20 years, you start to see ( like superman sees through buildings) the good, the bad and the ugly without even looking for it.  Each store has it's own characteristics and to the untrained eye it all looks like the same things are going on.  Some dealerships are just lucky right?  How can they be selling 50 cars more a month than the average dealership in that area?  Must be product....No wait, maybe location, no has to be  the 'deal" the incentives that the factory has on right now....  If this is all sounding familiar to you than I will give credit where credit is due.  In the book "Good to Great" by Jim Collins he summarizes that it is not those items that make any company GREAT, it is in fact the people that make great companies.   

My point here goes a little further than that.  Hire great people and great things will happen because they just out think, out work, out smart everyone around them.  But how many truly great people are available to hire right now?  I think it is important to develop great people.  Teach them, coach them, inspire them and show them what has made you great.  Yes, another philosophy we have all heard of comes to mind, "replace yourself".  So exactly what am I saying here?  What is the most important factor in success?  

It is that you decide to be the best.  You commit to it and you follow through.  No one item you read about here or at any conference is the end all be all answer.  You can not hang your hat on being good at one thing and let your ego lead the way through life.  The guys that are beating you right now are good, if not great at it all.  From advertising, training, culture, branding, execution, inventory, CSI, social media, SEO, SEM and much much more.  It is a new world compared to when many of started and the play book has gotten very thick.  The best guys in the market know all the plays and execute them well.

Think I am wrong, or this is to simple a formula?  Look around your City?  State?  Someone is outselling the Toyota Dealership in town and should not be.  Someone is selling 35 more used a month than everyone else.  Someone has 100% service absorption and no one can figure it out.  Every time you have to say " I can't figure it out"  remember, it wasn't luck.  The are great at what they do and they probably earned there way there by OUT THINKING, OUT SMARTING AND OUT WORKING THE COMPETITION  and therefore earned it.   That should inspire you to decide to be GREAT yourself.

Obviously, this post will have a few people saying I am the great one!   I applaud you and can only say.... keep up learning the new plays, because the playbook is not complete yet.

Troy Spring

President

Dealer World

www.mydealerworld.com