For those who have met me, you would know I have never had the problem of being lost in a crowd. At 6 foot 5 inches, I tend to be hard to miss. Most of you wouldn't know though that my wonderful wife Melody is 6 foot 1 inch, very tall herself. Like many of you I'm sure, I am punching well above my weight and I am convinced that my wife just married me because I was the only one she knew that was taller than her! It was my point of difference! And after celebrating 6 years of marriage last week, it's still working for me!

         In new car sales today, the number one enquiry source is becoming Internet leads. Whether it be test drive enquiries, brochure requests, quote requests or leads from Car sales, people are flocking towards the Internet to do their research.

         The latest research shows that when an Internet enquiry is made to your dealership, that same customer makes at least 2 other enquiries to other brands and at least 1 other enquiry to the same brand, but a different dealership.

         So why would they buy from you? What is your point of difference?

While price is most often the important reason, if you do not present your point of difference, you won't get the opportunity to offer that "best price".

         If your customer sends 3 separate enquiries they will more than likely get:

                           - 3 generic auto response email.                                    

                           - 3 phone calls/voicemails from salespeople                         

                           - 3 follow up emails from that salesperson

         Same, same... So what makes you think they are going to dump the other 2 and go with you???

The answer, you must be different!

So here are 3 ways to increase your internet leads closing ratio.

1.     Have A Specific Plan

There are different Internet enquiries, so you need different game plans for each one.

Test Drive Enquires, Brochure Requests, Quote Requests, Carsales Leads

At the upcoming Sales Academy, we will be constructing game plans for each enquiry type.

Get thinking now of where your customer is up to in the buying cycle, and how best you can tailor your follow up plan to that customer.

  
2.     Serve First

As I write this I'm sitting in a 5 star hotel watching a couple stand at the entrance to the buffet breakfast waiting for service. The phone is ringing too and there isn't a waiter in sight! Crazy!

We live in a now society where we are not willing to wait for service. We get impatient in the drive thru at Maccas.

When you get an Internet enquiry, implement your service plan straight away. There is no reward for tardiness. If your plan involves calling the customer straight away (which I highly recommend!), do it straight away!

Being the first and most enthusiastic to serve (not sell) the customer will help you build credibility, likability and trust.

3.     Do Something Weird

Go the extra mile with the service you provide. You might like to...

• Email a short video taken on your iPhone of the car they are enquiring about.
• Post a hard copy brochure with print outs of latest reviews and other educating documents such as history of Mitsubishi and facts sheet on dealership
• Send customer testimonies and reasons the customer should choose you!

Great Selling!

Dave Benson