The time now is 4:28 and the customer is just sitting there becoming more and more frustrated. Your new happy customer is NOT SO HAPPY anymore! FINALLY at 4:45 the F&I manager is starting to get the deal loaded and is also getting the skunk eye from the customers because they believe the delay is his fault! The F&I manager is looking through the deal and realizes the salesman never got a copy of the driver's license. Finally, we have everything we need and finance manager introduces himself at 4:55. Your once happy buyer who is not so happy is sitting there going through an F&I menu thinking "we just want out of her" so they say, "we don't need any of those products, we have to get going." Now the fight is on to sell some products.

Does any of this sound familiar at your dealership? This same scenario plays out at most dealerships. Here we are year after year and nothing changes. WHY? The answer is because F&I is a vital profit component at the dealership. WE NEED PEOPLE TO GO THROUGH F&I TO MAKE MONEY ON THIS DEAL... With profit margins on the front shrinking every year, dealerships simply rely on the profitability of the F&I department for profit.

How can we make it just a little better? The answer is reset the clock for your sold customers and set expectations up front. The second thing you can do is MAKE SURE EVERYTHING is correct in the deal jacket so F&I does not have any unexpected delays that pop up, like reprinting all the paperwork because the address was wrong. The third thing you can do is walk them through your dealership, but if its a repeat buyer that will not work... What ever you do, DO NOT LEAVE THEM JUST SITTING THERE!

One tool you should consider is StipTrac. Once just used for sub-prime deals dealers are realizing that StipTrac has huge upside with prime deals as well. StipTrac has a dealer branded app that will assist your salesman and customers through the delivery process. Each customer gets a unique to-do list while waiting for F&I that gets them actively involved in the delivery process. Your customers can SECURELY upload drivers license, insurance cards, check stubs, referrals etc. The APP rests the clock for the customer! When used correctly the finance manager will be able to SEE all the STIPS on his computer screen and be able to view what STIPS are still needed in REAL-TIME and even send real-time messages to the buyer! Imagine how far a message like this would go with your customer "Sorry for the delay, as you can see we are very busy. I will be getting your paperwork shortly. If you need anything please let me know." StipTrac is great for after the sale because in the event a new STIP is needed, your customers can just upload the document when they get home. For more information on StipTrac go to www.MyStipTrac.com.

PS: Your salesman can go ahead and take another up because the APP will help finish up the deal.. Just Saying..