Make 2011 “Differently Better”

John Newberg said that:

“People can be divided into 3 groups: 

Those who make things happen 

Those who watch things happen 

Those who wonder what happened”

 Make sure you are in the top group and make something happen in 2011.

If, like most people, you want 2011 to be better than 2010, it means you need to improve.

By the very nature of it, improvement means change. Most people reject change, because it means they have to step out of their comfort zone. How does it make us feel to step out of our comfort zone? Uncomfortable of course!!

To help you with this process, it is important you understand how to change, and all the different stages involved. There are 6 main stages to change:

THE STAGES OF CHANGE

1. EVENT                              Something that brings on the awareness that change is needed.
2. AWARENESS                    Awareness happens as a result of an event. You become aware through the event, why change is needed. This realization then leads to making a …
3. DECISION                        Decide to do something about it. You see a need for change, and now make a decision to make that change.

These first three stages are the ‘Cycle of Hopelessness.’ Many people have the event, become aware that change is needed, and even make the decision, but have difficulty, for many reasons: fear of change, fear of the unknown or fear of leaving your “Comfort Zone,” when it comes to the next stage. In order to break out of this cycle, we must press forward to the fourth stage…  

     4. COMMITMENT                 Commitment is the bridge that, if crossed, can transform   the old person into the new person. The definition of commitment is to pledge!   Commitment is what it takes to enter into the most important and difficult stage   of all…  

     5. PROCESS                          Here is where most of us struggle. What is a process? It is   behavioral change over a period of time. That means challenge and a level of   intention that most of us are unwilling to enter into. We’ve become a people   very impatient with anything to do with process. We do not want to work for results if it means experiencing any kind of short-term discomfort. Process requires   CHARACTER; the habits we form, the way we live, the people we are, all must   come into question. The process is the only way to bring about lasting and   meaningful…  

     6. CHANGE                        The desired result – an alteration in our behavior – a new   level of maturity.

Starting the process: Since process involves change, we need others to encourage, coach, mentor, hold us accountable, and help maintain a steady course in order to stay consistent.

Make a Commitment: Not a Decision: A commitment involves every fiber of your being persistently set to a course of action. It means having and working a plan.

Determine to be patient: Remember that change is process. Don’t become frustrated if your progress is slow. Stay focused and committed and you’ll succeed. Surround yourself with others who are understanding and committed to you.

Pick something you want to improve on, or something you want to do that you haven’t done before, and focus on making the change in your every day routine to accommodate this new thing. Focus on all 6 stages to make the new thing become a habit. 

Quite often, we can pick something relatively insignificant to us, that will not take a lot to change, but will have a huge impact on our customers’ experience. Look at things from a customer’s point of view – literally! Sit at your desk as a customer. What are they looking at? It may be that you have a photograph of your family on your desk – can your customers see it, or are they looking at the back of the picture frame? By putting yourself in the customer’s shoes (watch our video on “Extreme Customer Service - Empathy”) you will be able to make some subtle improvements (changes) that will enhance their experience.

You may decide to incorporate video follow up in your process. You certainly need to embrace the technology that is available today, and video e-mail is one way to start. Before long, it will be the norm, so start it now and get ahead of your competition. Read the article and watch the video on video e-mails I made for the RVDA of Canada. Now decide to do something about it!

 

Whether 2010 has been good to you or not, if you want to make the most our of 2011, you need to be prepared.

Easier said than done, I know, but then if it was easier done than said, it probably wouldn't be worth doing!

In my video, I talk about budgets and forecasts, as well as goals. I will leave goals alone, as I have already covered them in a prior blog, titled "A New Month". There isn't a difference between forecast and budget in my book, it is just that different people call them different things. Budgets and Forecasts are the results that are truly expected out of a particular department or dealership.

Zero based budgets are those made with no reference to history. In other words, start with a blank piece of paper and figure out exactly how you expect to perform, taking in to consideration several things:

Inventory levels - both current and future

Inventory mix - both current and future

Marketing spend (both amount and where it is going to be spent)

Managers also need to work budgets out based on the number of employees they have/need to get the job done. Salespeople and advisors need to work out how many people they need to get in front of to hit their budgets. 

History based budgets use what has gone on in the past to try and predict the future. Usually these are done using the last 12 months, then going back 2, 3, 4 and 5 years to identify trends. These normally take less time than zero based budgets, as it requires less thinking!!

In order to properly prepare, I recommend doing both zero based and history budgets, then comparing the 2. your actual budget for the year will very likely be a combination of the 2.

Salespeople and service advisors who are performance based, you would best prepare for 2011 by setting goals - see A New Month.

Hard work.

Please be prepared to work hard to hit your goals and budgets - you will be rewarded greater the harder you work - that's why I love this job so much!! You get paid exactly what you are worth! 

Don't wait until the end of December to prepare - do it now, be ready to go full blast after your New year bash!!

Time - remember that time is money - watch the video below!

Empathy.

"Putting yourself in someone else's shoes." 

Why is it a good thing to have long relationships?

Long relationships breed familiarity, and as a lot of people have a fear of leaving their comfort zones, they stick with the familiar - it is what they want to do.

I have been married for just over 25 years - and yes, my wife certainly deserves a medal! Our marriage is stronger than it has ever been (maybe because I travel so much!) - we talk a lot, play a lot, and work together to provide our daughters with the best upbringing we can possibly manage.

The longer this relationship, the better it gets.

This is no different from your relationships with your customers and fellow employees. It is also no different when it comes to losing or potentially losing this relationship.

If my wife and I were to split up now and get divorced, how much will it cost? Not just in hard cash, but in mental anguish, heartbreak with children, starting all over.... it really isn't worth thinking about. So I won't.

Knowing that we won't ever end our relationship doesn't make it any easier for us to keep the relationship going - we have to work hard at it, and keeping this relationship costs us both. Again, not particularly financially, but with personal sacrifices and mental anguish.

How are we able to do it? I can't speak for my wife, nor do I want to, but I do it quite simply - with empathy. I continually have to consciously put myself in her shoes - what would I want me to do if I were she? 

It isn't easy to do this - you really have to take your personal thoughts and wishes out of the equation, but once you do this, your whole life will change!

Now do this with your customers - don't forget your internal customers as well as your external ones.

There are reasons why some people act the way they do - maybe they just had some bad news, maybe they just came from another dealership where they weren't treated very well. Take a minute to think about those situations - if you had been treated badly at another dealership by a salesperson and a manager, would it make you thrilled to have to deal with more? Probably not, so let's be considerate of all of our customers. How you take care of them will change a lot of things - how they feel about you, and how you feel about them. If you want to start a relationship that will hopefully last for a long time, you need to work at it.

Think about your long standing relationships with your internal customers - what will it cost you to end that relationship? If you are an employer, you already know how much money it costs to replace a good employee - and you may never recoup those losses. It is always better to work harder to retain the relationship than let any ego get in the way so you end up losing it.

You will not go far wrong by practicing and showing empathy. It is never a bad thing to let the other person know how you feel and what you are thinking - that is called effective communication. 

Now put it all together - you will soon start giving some extreme customer service - do that and watch your business skyrocket! 

 

The emphasis here must be placed on the word extreme.

Let me give you a true example of extreme customer service.

I was visiting Nova Scotia, Canada earlier this year. I made a couple of trips, and the first one I stayed in a hotel that the dealer I was working with recommended. It was in the middle of town, and supposedly the best around. It was comfortable and clean, and had a restaurant attached to it - what more could a traveler want?

The morning I was leaving, I had a couple of hours to kill so the dealer suggested that I go for a drive in order to enjoy the beautiful scenery.

The drive was indeed beautiful, for over an hour I enjoyed some of the most spectacular views - rolling hills, dramatic drops to the water, harbors full of fishing boats .... most remarkable.

Heading back in to town, I caught sight of a sign in the corner of my eye - Evergreen Inn. This rang a bell with me, as I had been looking at different hotels on line before my trip, and before the recommendation from the dealer. The Evergreen Inn had been one of the places I had looked at. So I turned my rental car round and called in to have a closer look.

I was welcomed in, and asked if I wanted to see one of the rooms. This was a small place, with just 8 rooms total. I had a look, and was very nicely surprised. They asked me if I was on business, then offered me a corporate rate, some $15 a night less than I was paying at the other place. So, knowing I was to be back in a couple of weeks, I made the reservation with the Evergreen Inn. 

Two weeks later I rolled up at the hotel and checked in at the office. The young lady asked me if I was Mr. Rees (with just 8 rooms, this trick isn't that difficult!) - this of course made me feel very welcome. She asked me what time I would like breakfast (you don't get that at most hotels!), and as I wanted to be at the dealership early, they made a special effort so breakfast would be ready for me at 7:00 am.

Now all this sounds nice, but is it extreme customer service? I think is it excellent customer service, but extreme? I don't think so.

Allow me to continue.

On the next to last morning of my stay, I informed the owner that I wouldn't need breakfast the following morning, as I needed to leave before 6:00am in order to catch my flight. He thanked me for letting him know.

The next morning, I got up and packed, and checked the room for any item I may have left. I couldn't carry everything on one trip, so I took my bag out to the car and returned for my computer bag.

When I opened the door to go back in, I noticed something taped to the outside of the door. It was an envelope, attached to a Canadian flag, with a note on it.

The note said "Thank you for staying with us - we are sorry you couldn't make breakfast this morning, so here is a card for Tim Horton's - get yourself something to eat and drink on the way out of town, and Happy Canada Day".

Inside the envelope was a gift card for Tim Horton's restaurant for $5.00. It was July 1st (Canada Day).

I stopped at Tim Horton's (I had to drive right past the front door on my way out) and ordered a breakfast sandwich and a coffee. It came to $5.

I have told an awful lot of people about this experience, now all of you, too. Whenever I am visiting Antigonish, Nova Scotia in the future, I will never stay anywhere else but the Evergreen Inn.

Now that was extreme customer service. And what did it cost? Don't say $5, because I didn't eat any breakfast at the hotel that morning, so they saved there. Maybe a couple of bucks. Well spent, wouldn't you say?

So if you ever get a chance to visit that beautiful part of the world, stay at the Evergreen Inn and tell them why.

Now see if you can apply that same level of service in your dealership. Remember, you have two kinds of customers - internal and external - you need to look after them both. 

 

This is one part of the sales process that will help close more deals than any other. Yet, it is sadly missing in most dealerships. Why? Probably because the first 2 steps either weren't done, or were not done correctly. Or, you have a manager that can't seem to get him/herself off the swivel armchair to come and talk to customers.

So let's talk about putting it firmly in place, and taking advantage of the fact that most of your competition won't do this.

As a manager, you need to expect your sales team to get you involved. Don't just expect it, make it happen - this is a vital part of your job. 

As a salesperson, you need to take advantage of all the tools available to you. You need to use your manager at all times. Many sales are lost because we try and sell the wrong vehicle, or we don't know about a certain vehicle that just came in, that would suit the customer perfectly. Touching base with your manager before you show anything to your customer will help you save time, make more deals, and let the customer know that they are dealing with a real professional, instead of just an order taker.

Once the interview is completed properly, as outlined in our prior blog, as a salesperson, you need to share your customer's wants and needs with your manager. This way, you can both discuss what you think the best vehicle is to show them. Remember - 2 heads are always better than 1.

The next step will really make the difference. Take your manager over to your customer and introduce them. How do you think your customer will feel being introduced to the manager?

Edify.

Managers - edify your salesperson to the customer. You do this by letting the customer know how fortunate they are by working with this particular salesperson, and that you are confident they will be looked after very well. Ask them to come back and see you after the presentation/demo, to let you know what they thought. This will help to ensure your continued involvement in the deal, instead of just getting the famous "flying t.o." as the customer is leaving!

Here's the challenge - get out of your comfort zones and make this happen. Once you start, you will never go back, as you will see the power of touching the desk.

  

The interview is one of the hardest steps to the sale to master, mainly because you need to get on the same level as your customer within just a couple of minutes.

Let's go through a few ways to help you with this vitally important step.

First, where are you going to do it? The ideal place is at your desk, in a controlled atmosphere. So how do you make this happen at least 95% of the time? You have to conduct a proper meet and greet as David Foco described in last month's e-zine. If you didn't receive a copy, let me know and I will get it to you. If you do the meet and greet correctly, you will manage to start your interview correctly.

Conversation or Interrogation?

We recommend the use of an interview sheet - let me know if you would like an example. The sheet will help salespeople remember the important pieces of information we need in order to help our customers. It will also allow salespeople to "springboard" off those questions in order to build rapport. The only downside of using an interview sheet is that if a salesperson isn't careful, this interview  may come across as an interrogation. Be careful with this - use body language skills to help you here - look relaxed, lean back a little and pretend you are having a conversation like you were talking to a friend. The answers to the questions on the sheet should be written in between rapport building. If your customer has family, talk about them - where do they go to school, what are their hobbies etc.. Talk about your customer's work, and what they do in their spare time. Don't make the visit all about them buying something from you. This is a real art, and needs to be worked on daily.

The longer time you spend on the interview, the more you will be able to help your customer. Done right, the interview will let you know what your customer's "hot" buttons are. It is your job to listen out for them during the interview. They will come in the form of one or more of the following:

S - Safety

P - Performance

A - Appearance

C - Comfort

E - Economy

D - Dependability

You need to remember that the interview is a preparation for another important step - the feature/function/benefit presentation. Start building in your mind how you are going to present the vehicle to the customer - which features are your customer going to be really excited about?

During the interview, your customer will tell you how to sell him/her on your product. But you have to listen. God gave us 2 ears and 1 mouth - use them proportionately!! Use open ended questions - ones that require more than a yes or no answer. The more the customer talks during the interview, the more he/she will enjoy the process. Some salespeople think that as they are salespeople, they need to do all the talking. WRONG! Let the customer do all the talking, the best salespeople do all the listening!

Once you have built rapport and found out what is important to your customer, you need to excuse yourself in order to share this information with your manager. Do this by saying something like:

"Mr. & Mrs. Customer, based on the information you have shared with me, I think I have 1 or 2 vehicles that would really fit. We have a sale going on at the moment (you really came at the right time), so I just need to check with my boss to make sure those vehicles are still available. Wait here, and I will be right back. Can you get you a coffee or water while you wait?'

This allows you to leave them for a moment so you can get the input of someone else (your manager), and it also lets them know that other business is being done. People like doing business at busy places. be firm when it comes to telling them to wait here - neither you nor your manager want then looking over your shoulder when discussing what vehicles to show them.

 The interview is a tough one, but once mastered, you will wonder how you ever managed without doing it this way. 

6)   Firm, professional Handshake

7)   Eye Contact

8)   No Sunglasses

9)   No Chewing Gum

10) No Smoking

Lets give our customers every opportunity and every reason to do business with us every timethey walk in to our dealership.  Let's train our employees properly and hold them accountable to this process, it's not a magic pill or sales dust, just dedication to our customers. 

Now that we understand the ingredients that are needed for a proper "Meet & Greet", how do we train our service and parts personnel and more importantly IMPLEMENT this process with the proper verbiage that is needed to become "Differently Better" than our competition?? 

The only answer is dedication to video role playing and training in enthusiastic and energized service meetings.  We have a lot of fun with this portion of the training, and all department personnel see for themselves the amazing results in a short period of time. 

Let me share with you what type of verbiage is needed.  Now we all know the typical response from our customers especially in the sales department when we ask the question; "Hello, can I help you?"  Yes you guessed it; "No just looking". In our service and parts departments the greeting is typical and the answers are even more predictable! 

Well let's change the responses as well as the customers experience by starting off with; "Good Morning Folks", "WELCOME to World Dealership", "My name is David Foco... and You Are?" "Nice to Meet You, Are you here for OUR SERVICE SPECIALS TODAY?"

Typically the customer is going to answer in a couple of different ways: No, or what kind of specials are you having?  Either way the customer is acknowledged in a fashion that they probably did not expect, with professionalism and enthusiasm, and now we have an opportunity to present our specials and handle their concerns.

With this type of Meeting & Greeting process the results are spectacular, because now we are incontrol of the service process right from the start and the customers appreciate the professional warm greeting. 

It allows us to engage with the customer and set the stage for the next step, to listen and find out what the customers concerns are and what they are trying to accomplish.  As previously mentioned all of this is done with a smile and a lot of enthusiasm and appreciation for the customer's business.  Lets be the BEST OF THE BEST and appreciate our customers!! 

Click on the video below for more information: 

Call me - (989) 324-0317

E-Mail -  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  

 Can we look at our financial reports at the end of the month and say, "I know Charlie is not the most friendly person in the dealership, but he gets the job done" and be happy with the last line on our financial report? 

The customers are sharing their service, sales and parts experiences with friends and acquaintances around the country, so we need to make sure our dealership is talked about in the very best light. 

Every dealership that we are in, personally starts off with the proper ingredients to a Meet & Greet and they are as follows:

1)   Be Prompt

2)   Acknowledge Customer ASAP

3)   Enthusiastic Approach

4)   No Hands in Pockets

5)   BIG SINCERE SMILE!!!

 Please click on the video below for more information:

 

Call me - (989) 324-0317

E-Mail -  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  

I just want to start off by saying; no I'm not trying to copyright Coke's ad several years ago with "A Coke and a Smile". 

You have probably experienced the following at any retail business you come in contact with: No-one greets you with a smile anymore.  More importantly...no one greets you.  It amazes me that almost every retail business we know has suffered some sort of profitability set back, yet none of these businesses train their key personnel to properly "Meet & Greet" their retail customers, and give their customers the ultimate experience. 

Typically the agent, clerk, salesperson, associate, or customer relations rep is paid hourly with no training, no regard to customer satisfaction and more importantly with no accountability. 

Recently I was in a large retail sporting goods chain store in New York one hour before they closed.  Dressed in a suit (and that should not make one bit of difference) I spent the entire hour looking at golf equipment and apparel.  Now if you have ever watched my golf game, you would know that the best shoes and equipment is not going to help me any, I should take my own cue and practice, practice, practice!  But that's not the point here; the point is that not an associate, representative, manager, or even a clerk ever approached me.  I found myself sounding like a customer, "Business must be so good, that they don't need mine". 

Wanting to give them another chance I went back the following day and guess what...same experience!  I wonder if the corporate sales manager is in a back office somewhere crunching numbers and cutting expenses because the regional sales numbers are down and supposedly business is slow.

The reason I bring this up is; please observe your key customer-facing personnel in your own dealerships and find out if this is or is not happening in every department. 

Please click on the video below for more information: 

 

Call me - (989) 324-0317

E-Mail -  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  

As I continue walking you through the recruiting process, hopefully you have already seen that in order to have a successful campaign, you need to put a lot of effort and thought into it. Like most things, the more you put into it, the more you will get out of it.

We have just finished up with the initial interview - hopefully you will have several applicants that you would like to hire - even more than you need. So how do you decide on which ones to hire? Don't rush in to this decision; take some time to gather more information about your applicants so you can make a more informed decision. 

Further Interviewing/Initial Training

I know a lot of dealers who like to hire people on the spot, especially with salespeople, and let them sink or swim - this is time consuming and expensive as they have to go through the hiring process a lot more often than is necessary. 

Invite all the applicants you like back for further interviewing and training. That's right, training. Before you hire them!! How many times have you hired someone who interviewed well, and when they show up to actually do some work, it is as if someone else showed up instead!! Take a lot of the guesswork out of hiring and put potential employees through some training and role-playing. How should you do that?

If you conduct the initial interviews over 2 days, say Monday and Tuesday, have the applicants you want to pick from show up for a full day interview and training the next morning (Wednesday). Let them know that they have successfully passed the first interview and they have been invited to attend your training class so they can learn more about the business before they make a decision, and let them know that this will also give you a chance to look at them further. This is too big a decision for both you and them to make on a whim, and one interview doesn't give anyone enough information to make a decision of this magnitude. We are talking about potentially changing peoples' lives here; so let your candidates and your own team know the importance you place on the recruiting process.

Wednesday Morning.

Set a specific time for the candidates to show - 9:15am is good as it gives you and your team time to conduct your normal early morning activities before you have to turn your attention to your candidates. Ask them to arrive at 9:15 for a 9:30 start - this sets the stage for punctuality.

Make the effort to welcome your candidates as they arrive at the dealership - this personal touch speaks volumes - it makes them feel important (they are!) and it will show you and your dealership off in a favorable light if they are considering other jobs. You would probably want to do this for very important customers, and as these people have the potential to make you more money than any of your customers, let's treat them right.

Assemble your candidates in a suitable meeting/training room - this room needs to look the part. Make sure it is clean and tidy, and will not be used for lunch or other activities that day (put a sign on the door if necessary)- show these people the respect they deserve as potential employees.

I now suggest you hold a motivational seminar - let's get these people excited about the car business and what a great career it will make. You have to believe that our business still has somewhat of a tarnished reputation in the eyes of the general public, and it is the general public you are working with. We need to start to change that opinion, and this seminar will help with that.

Give them a background of the industry - talk about the attitudes that they will need to be successful, and how hard work will pay dividends. Talk about yourself and how you came to be where you are - if you are anything like me, you worked your way up in the business - this is indeed an industry that if you want it to, will take you wherever you want to go. Let everyone know that.

Go over how much they can earn - explain how commission works and the advantages to them that come with being on commission. A lot of people fear commission, mainly because it is a fear of the unknown. Let them know that really it is like going in to business with you, the dealer, without having to put up any money. You have invested in the property, the building, furniture, computers, telephones, parts inventory, vehicle inventory, advertising and people - all to attract customers in your door. All they have to do as salespeople is to take care of these customers the way you are going to train them, and then you will split the profits with them. Sure, you will keep a higher percentage, but you will pay them off the top - they don't need to worry about any of the costs associated with running the business - you will take care of all that. Pretty good business for them to be in, isn't it? Make sure it comes across that way.

Once they are excited to be there, give them some basic training - an introduction to how they will need to do things if they are successful. Teach them how to professionally meet and greet your customers, and how to conduct an interview. Get them to role-play with each other - let them practice on themselves rather than real customers. The important thing here is to offer critique - positive statements about their performance, and point out areas of opportunity.

At the end of the day, give them some homework. Ask them to prepare a 5-minute stand up presentation on what they learned today. They will be making these presentations tomorrow morning in front of the management team and the dealer, and then the hiring decisions will be made. These presentations will show you a great deal more than the normal 20 minute interview most dealers give.

If you think all this is a lot to do just to hire a few salespeople, you're right! But what is your most valuable asset? Your people!! Spend time in recruiting these assets - the amount of time and energy put in to a recruiting campaign will have a direct impact on the results - if you don't want to do it yourself, it is worth investing in a professional company to run this campaign for you - there are definite pros and cons with this though, I would be more than happy to advise you on this - just let me know.