AutoSuccess July 2015 by AutoSuccess

2015

JULY

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To All Automotive Dealership Leaders:

“Mark taught me how to make 6 figures in the car business and I have been doing it every year since.” My name is Mark Tewart, and I am the President – Bob Wright, Sales Manager - Rob Sight Ford of Tewart Enterprises Inc. My company and I have been successfully training automotive sales and So let me get to the point… management personnel for over two decades and I I have a way to bring this training directly to you for a want you to experience the training risk FREE! fraction of the normal cost and I will take all the risk. Yes, the headline is true! It’s not a gimmick.

I know what you are thinking, “Nothing in life is free”. I created Mark Tewart’s 24/7 Online Training Well, I am going to do the best I can to make this Channel for you. You can bring this training into your training risk free for you. dealership and use it risk free! For over two decades I have trained dealerships of all brands, all over the country and have been extremely blessed to get fantastic, and often, what would seem to be unbelievable results. I have had dealerships increase sales by multiples too many times to count and I have the references to prove it. I don’t wish to sound arrogant but I am just stating facts. You see, several years ago I could tell the marketplace was changing way before the Internet changed our business forever. Because of this, I began to train salespeople and managers in high-performance concepts that really assisted my clients in getting big time results. In extreme examples, I have had dealerships go from selling almost nothing, to record sales at record profits. This training has been done and results have been accomplished with dealerships small and large.

Here’s the deal… I am offering you a two-week FREE test drive of my training. If you like it, subscribe. If you don’t like it, then don’t. As a mater of fact, if it’s not what you wanted, I WILL PAY YOUR DEALERSHIP $100 for your time. “If Mark Tewart adds any more great content to his site, my head’s going to explode” – Danny Benites, GM – Greg Lair Buick I want to make this as simple for you as 1, 2, 3... #1 – Go to www.tewartonlinetraining.com and click “Request FREE Demo”. Or, email me at info@tewart.com with the words “Request FREE Demo”. Or, call me at 888 2Tewart (888 283-9278)

“I have used Mark Tewart and his training to increase #2 – Take your FREE two-week trial. sales by 42% in one dealership and we increased the #3 – Love it and subscribe or say “No way!” and I will bottom line by 7 figures in another!” – Mark Ford, GM pay your Dealership $100.

Mark R. Tewart,

“Mark Tewart’s training changed my career” – Mike Correrra “Mike the Car guy” Author of the Best Seller “How To Be A Sales Superstar”

Online Training Courses 888 283-9278 www.tewart.com | info@tewart.com 513-932-9526 Professional Speaker, Sales Expert, Automotive Industry Expert, Author and Consultant

What is a Detail Depar tment Like This Doing in a Dealership?

Making MONEY! That’s right, a dirty, disorganized, and unsightly detail department not only looks bad, but it is costing a dealership a lot more money than they realize: • • • • •

Higher Labor Costs to Production High Chemical Costs High Supply Costs Inability to Sell Detailing to the Public Slow Turn-Around Time

DETAIL PLUS has been helping dealers for over 30 years set up organized, efficient, and profitable detail departments in dealerships, and we can help you too. Our services include: • On-Site Evaluations • Supplies & Chemicals • Shop Development & Layout • On-Site Management • Equipment Systems • Technical Training YES, there are answers to your questions about detailing at your dealership, DETAIL PLUS has the answers and more. Contact us today! buda@detailplus.com or 800-284-0123 Ext.4

2300 Hurstbourne Village Dr, Suite 1200 Louisville, KY 40299 / p 877.818.6620 / f 502.588.3170 / AutoSuccessOnline.com/AutoSuccessPodcast.com / info@autosuccessonline.com

“That is starting to change. With accelerated profit accessibility, the new reinsurance model makes a huge leap in helping dealers with limited access and poor investment income on reserve. What could that mean for you?”

JodyDeVere FIVE TIPS ON COMMUNICATING MORE EFFECTIVELY WITH WOMEN RudyMartin HOW EASY WILL IT BE TO CAR SHOP IN THE FUTURE?

JoeyLittle I WANT IT NOW: Hurdles That Prevent Instant Gratification in Car Sales, PART 1

CassSuwinski GETTING A CUSTOMER’S COMMITMENT

marketing solution

Hannah Philpott, Media Director hannah@autosuccessonline.com

KEEP IT CLEAN:

“You’re in the people business. And that means you’re in the data business. It means your data has become your dealership’s most important asset. It’s no longer your inventory or your fixed ops.”

JimmyVee & TravisMiller HOW GIVING THE GIFT OF KNOWLEDGE COULD MEAN BIG BUCKS FOR YOU

ScottPechstein AT YOUR SERVICE: How to Optimize Your Service Marketing Initiatives to Reach More Customers...and Keep Your Existing Customers Happy

LarryBarditch WHERE HAVE ALL THE LEADS GONE?

LaneKidd MULTICHANNEL MARKETING

Brian Ankney, Account Manager brian@autosuccessonline.com

“Ultimately, these best practices are tied to routine. If you have a functional CRM, make sure you use the tool. If you don’t, following these tips will still increase your performance overall.”

Dave Davis, Editor & Creative Strategist ddavis@autosuccessonline.com

sales & training solution

Thomas Williams, VP & Creative Director design@autosuccessonline.com

THE DAILY ROUTINE FOR CRM (SALES) SUCCESS AaronHowerton

Why Data Hygiene Determines Your Future Success SeanStapleton

THE NEW REINSURANCE TimByrd

Susie Horne, Account Manager John Warner, Sales-Improvement Strategist shorne@autosuccessonline.com jwarner@autosuccessonline.com

PeterMartin EQUITY MINING IS A JOKE

34 40 42

KellyIdol WASTED MARKETING DOLLARS AND MISSED OPPORTUNITIES: There’s a Solution for That

20 26 32

MarkTewart TO BE BRILLIANT YOU MUST BE RESILIENT

38 44

SusanGivens HOW ONE DEALER PLUGGED THE SALES LEAK HIS PHONES WERE CREATING

08 11 14 16

H GregoryGershman INTERVIEW QUESTIONS THAT WORK

28 36

DalePollak HOW TO AVOID TWO COMMON SINS OF SUMMER IN USED VEHICLES

DealerPanel ENGAGING WITH MILLENNIALS: Millennials at the Workplace, PART 3

AutoSuccess Magazine is published monthly at 2300 Hurstbourne Village Dr, Suite 1200 Louisville, KY 40299; 502.588.3155, fax 502.588.3170. Direct all subscription and customer service inquiries to 877.818.6620 or info@autosuccessonline.com. Subscription rate is $69 per year. AutoSuccess welcomes unsolicited editorials and graphics (not responsible for their return). All submitted editorials and graphics are subject to editing for grammar, content and page length. AutoSuccess provides its contributing writers latitude in expressing advice and solutions; views expressed are not necessarily those of AutoSuccess and by no means reflect any guarantees. AutoSuccess accepts no liability in respect of the content of any third party material appearing in this magazine or in respect of the content of any other magazine to which this magazine may be linked from time to time. Always confer with legal counsel before implementing changes in procedures.© All contents copyrighted by AutoSuccess Magazine, a Division of Systems Marketing, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part is prohibited without express written consent from AutoSuccess. AutoSuccess may occasionally make readers’ names available to other companies whose products and/or services may be of interest; readers may request that names be removed by calling 877.818.6620. Printed in the USA. Postmaster: Send address changes to AutoSuccess Magazine, 2300 Hurstbourne Village Dr, Suite 1200 Louisville, KY 40299.

Susan Givens, Publisher sgivens1@autosuccessonline.com

leadership solution

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SusanGivens

sales & training solution

HOW ONE DEALER PLUGGED THE SALES LEAK HIS PHONES WERE CREATING

Dealerships are always looking for an advantage to make the sale, to engage with customers in a meaningful way to create a relationship that builds repeat business. Sometimes, however, the answer isn’t finding something new, but learning to use existing tools more efficiently. DePaula Chevrolet in Albany, New York, for example, has seen a tremendous growth in its sales, as shown in the Success Story of last month’s issue of AutoSuccess — and they did it by maximizing the use of a technology that was there all along: the telephone. When Paul Lynch, the store’s GSM, discovered that 50 percent of incoming calls weren’t making it to a salesperson — and half of those who did connect with sales weren’t being asked for their contact information — he was determined to improve their internal processes and provide a better experience for callers. By partnering with a call monitoring and management company, Lynch was able to observe the breakdowns and address the root causes. “Before, we had no visibility into how our sales calls were being managed, so we had no idea what we were missing,” Lynch said. “Today, we know what is happening while it is happening. This knowledge has allowed us to make significant improvements in virtually every aspect of our sales and marketing.” With the new system in place, all of DePaula’s inbound calls during business hours are recorded, transcribed from start to finish, summarized, analyzed for up to 30 data points, and an alert is sent within 30 minutes via text and/or email to managers if a sales, service or CSI opportunity is missed. In addition, Lynch is able to view when call volume peaks and examine data for each ad source to identify

autosuccessonline.com/podcast

processes to lower marketing costs, increase appointment rates and improve the average units sold per salesperson by 27 percent.

“I hate to think about how many deals we were losing while we were asleep on this,” Lynch said. “These alerts give us a second chance to win the customer’s business. This is huge because a big part of our growth has come from our how effective his advertising spend is at ability to close the deals we used to completely generating calls and appointments. This fully miss.” After identifying the issues within the integrated solution has armed Lynch with the phone network, Lynch and his team turned right information, at the right time, to focus their attention to ensuring customers were on the areas of opportunity that generate the being handled properly the first time. Managers highest ROI. The results speak for themselves: used the data to review each agent’s calls, • Appointment rates have increased to 57 percent, a 26 percent YOY jump, by utilizing appointments, contact information collection rate and other critical KPIs to provide them the alerts generated from mismanaged with one-on-one training from the library customer interactions and allowing managers to reconnect with uncaptured sales of CallRevu, the call-monitoring company DePaula chose for this vital role. Performance is opportunities in less than 30 minutes. monitored and compared within the dealership • Lost calls have been reduced by 25 percent and against the top 10 percent of the nation’s by adjusting staffing and schedules to match highest-performing sales professionals. incoming call volume throughout the day. Through the use of call monitoring, Depaula • Sales leads are up 7 percent, even with a was able to identify what was working and reduced ad budget, by focusing spend on ad what wasn’t, and to increase sales while sources that deliver the highest appointment actually decreasing its spend for leads. More rates, not call volume; a 5 percent reduction importantly, the dealership was able to better in the budget still increased sales leads. serve both current and potential customers, allowing the sales staff to build relationships • Net profit has doubled in the sales that not only pay off now, but will continue to department by implementing data-driven bring in long-term business. Susan Givens is the publisher of AutoSuccess. She can be contacted at 877.818.6620, or by email at sgivens1@autosuccessonline.com.

DalePollak

leadership solution

HOW TO AVOID TWO COMMON SINS OF SUMMER IN USED VEHICLES

It’s common for dealers to commit two cardinal sins in used vehicles as summer gets underway.

The first sin is the impulse to beef up used vehicle inventory to drive additional sales. Every summer, it seems, I hear from dealers who plan to add 30 to 50 units to their used vehicle inventories. I’ll often ask these dealers a question: “What’s your plan to deal with the 75 to 100 cars on your lot that haven’t sold yet?” In most cases, the question does the trick. It gets dealers to realize that they shouldn’t stock up

PROVEN YEAR AFTER YEAR TO DRIVE MORE TRAFFIC AND SALES.

on additional inventory when the units they own aren’t moving fast enough. In addition, the question helps uncover current merchandising and pricing problems that contribute to the dealer’s less-than-optimal sales performance. Dealers should only increase their used vehicle inventory under the following conditions: 1. You already achieve an annualized inventory turn rate of 15 or 16. Dealers should consistently meet this benchmark before they add more cars. The reason: These dealers have proven their ability to acquire, recondition, merchandise and price each unit for an efficient, profitable retail sale. Their processes can handle the additional vehicles with less risk. 2. You add inventory incrementally. It’s

best to add inventory in five- and 10-car increments. This measured approach hedges the risk of burdening the used vehicle/ service departments with too many cars too quickly. It also helps ensure your annualized inventory turn rate does not fall below 12, the minimum performance benchmark for today’s more volatile market.

The second summertime sin occurs during used vehicle appraisals. As new vehicle sales soften, dealers press their managers and appraisers to acquire an even larger share of their used inventory from trade-ins. The problem: The dealers often don’t hold appraisers accountable for purchasing these vehicles “on the money.” To avoid this profit-damaging problem, dealers should evaluate each appraiser’s performance on a monthly basis. The evaluation should address two metrics: the appraiser’s “Look to Book” ratio and the Acquisition Cost to Market ratio. When I review appraiser performance, I like to see an overall Look to Book ratio around 50 percent, coupled with an overall Acquisition Cost to Market ratio below 80 percent. These benchmarks, which can vary based on the individual and dealership, tell me that the appraiser is properly avoiding the sin of acquiring trade-ins at the expense of the unit’s front-end profit potential, or letting too many retail-worthy cars slip by.

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Dealers who commit these sins of summer will face a disadvantage as fall arrives. They’ll be sitting on aged cars and diminished profitability while their competitors reap the retail rewards that prudence always delivers. Dale Pollak is the founder of vAuto and a best selling author. He can be contacted at 866.867.9620, or by email at dpollak@autosuccessonline.com.

JodyDeVere

sales & training solution

FIVE TIPS ON COMMUNICATING MORE EFFECTIVELY WITH WOMEN

It’s a fact of life in the automotive world: Listening is essential. Too often, when a woman visits a car dealership, she is interrupted, talked over or simply not being heard. Women speak and women buy — learn to listen. 1. Verbal Skills — When it comes to speaking

to your women customers, the three C’s are clear, concise and correct. Don’t try to wow her with jargon, and don’t deny her an explanation because you don’t think she’ll understand. Women appreciate it when you take the time to explain the whole process. You want to explain yourself as clearly as possible while still remaining concise. If you can master the art of the three C’s, you’re well on your way to winning with women.

wear uniforms, but make sure all staff are well groomed and well dressed.

All of these key points will paint a picture for your women customers that you’re a business who takes everyone seriously — and as long as you follow through and provide great work on top of all these excellent tips, you will quickly earn her trust. Jody DeVere is the CEO of AskPatty.com. She can be contacted at 866.849.9973, or by e-mail at jdevere@autosuccessonline.com.

2. Non-Verbal Skills Improve Body Language — When talking to female customers, what you don’t say can be just as important as what you do. Women are storytellers. If you’re helping a woman customer, listen to her as she tells you her needs. She’ll likely tell you about her entire car history, family, her kids, how many trips to school, Tae Kwon Do and soccer practice she makes every week, how many snacks have spilled and how many hours she spends in her car. These are important clues. This is a customer who cares about safety, reliability and easy cleaning. While listening, signify your interest by nodding, smiling and expressing (without speaking) that you’re following along. Repeat back the key points to her before you offer the solution she needs. This signals that you heard every word, and that goes a long way with women. 3. Marketing and Advertising that Resonates with Her — Just painting something pink doesn’t make it female friendly. Women don’t care about the colors you use in your advertising; they care about honesty and reliability. Use the same three C’s in your advertising that you use when speaking, and you’ll earn the trust of women — and men, too. 4. Look and Feel of Your Store — When a female customer arrives, curb appeal is important. Your location should look clean and professional from the outside, or she’ll be nervous about coming in. Similarly, make sure the inside is comfortable and clean, from the waiting areas to the restrooms. Giving her a nice place with a casual atmosphere to sit and wait, with extras like complimentary coffee, Wi-Fi and a safe play area for the kids will speak volumes about your commitment to women. 5. Dress for Success with Women; What You Wear Reflects Who You Are —Finally, as long as you’re dressing your shop or dealership up, dress up your staff as well. You don’t have to the no. 1 sales-improvement magazine for the automotive professional

INSIDE A DEALERSHIP’S LIVE CHAT

SUCCESS More and more car shoppers today — about 80 percent according to a recent global study by Accenture — are turning to the Internet for their research before coming into the dealership. Because of this change in the modern consumer’s behavior toward online research, dealerships are starting to use live chat to add a personal touch and easier navigation to their website’s user experience. Over the past few years of using live chat, many dealerships have seen increasingly positive results in customer satisfaction, lead generation, and sales. To find out what contributes to successful automotive live chat, we asked a few dealerships and an automotive group currently using managed chat services to give us the inside scoop about their experience with chat and what has been the secret to their success:

Case Study No. 1 - Sun Chevrolet Among those dealerships who have found success with live chat, Todd Caputo, President and Owner of Sun Chevrolet, said 25 percent of leads from his website are now live chat leads.

Why do you think more shoppers are using live chat today? “Chat allows shoppers to research and get answers about a car anytime, anywhere. Shoppers can chat at 11 p.m., or while they are at work on Monday morning and don’t want their boss to see they are researching a vehicle. That’s the main reason they use chat — they can talk to someone instantaneously without actually having to speak to them in person. They just type, and if they don’t feel comfortable talking anymore, they just close out of the chat. And if they do feel comfortable, they often come in and buy the car.”

Why did you start looking into managed chat solutions?

Do you promote your live chat service as part of your marketing strategy?

“I tried chat with my salespeople in-house and it didn’t work. They didn’t do a good job handling the chats, which is why I looked into managed chat. We get a lot of visitors to our website each month, and we needed a chat provider who could handle our high volume of chat leads.”

“Yes we do. We occasionally mention our live chat service in our 30-minute infomercials on Sundays. Some people like to use email or phone, some people like to chat. By letting people know they have multiple options for contacting us, we can drive the most business to our dealership.”

What results has your dealership seen from using live chat services on your website?

Biggest factor in his success with live chat:

“We get about 95 to 100 leads per month from live chat, and our average closing ratio is about 15 to 16 percent, with a highest closing ratio of 20 percent.”

We are so successful with live chat because our chat provider’s representatives do such a good job getting basic qualifying information from customers. They’re really good at getting first and last names, email addresses, answering basic questions, and setting appointments. The quality of their conversations is very, very good.

“Chat allows shoppers to research and get answers about a car anytime, anywhere.”

Case Study No. 2 - Penske Cadillac Buick GMC South Bay Another dealership who is having great success with live chat is Penske Cadillac Buick GMC South Bay. We spoke with General Manager - Catherine Sommerville - about her approach to live chat and why she’s so successful: with are willing to listen to our needs and help us develop our online chat into what we want it to be.”

Why did you start looking into live chat solutions?

What results has your dealership seen from using live chat services on your website?

“A lot of businesses today offer live chat on their websites, whether it’s a clothing site or a car site. It’s essential in today’s online shopping world.”

“We close about 10 percent of our sales leads. We tend to receive more service leads than sales leads, so the chat system is helping both departments. It’s just good, all-around customer service. I cannot even imagine not having the chat tool as one of our sources for leads. It’s so important.”

Why did you choose your current chat provider? “We chose ActivEngage because of their professionalism, the ease of working with the support team and the backend tools they provide if you want to drill down on where your leads are coming from. The people we work

Biggest factor in her success with live chat: “Making sure we follow through with the online conversation. Timing is everything because responding to a live chat lead is almost like handling an incoming phone call. The customer has questions and needs information. It’s important we get shoppers the information they need in a timely manner so we can work towards the appointment and bring the customer in as soon as possible.

“I cannot even imagine not having the chat tool as one of our sources for leads. It’s so important.” Case Study No. 3 - Jeff Wyler Automotive Family Lastly, we spoke with Kevin Frye, the eCommerce Director for Jeff Wyler Automotive Family, who tells how live chat can be very successful in automotive groups as well.

Why did you start looking into live chat solutions? “Our goal at the Jeff Wyler Automotive Family is to accommodate the preferred way to communicate by our online customers. Live chat is one of the key ways that online customers choose to interact with us while on our websites.”

What process did you use for choosing a live chat vendor? “We wanted to partner with someone that would provide a first class chat experience for our shoppers, while providing a good value for our marketing dollars.”

What’s unique about your current chat provider?

Are you seeing customers talk more about live chat?

“ActivEngage provides a fully manned chat solution at a great value price. Their service is exceptional — they do a great job at answering our customer’s questions while gathering great information about them that we can use for follow-up as we work the lead — and our online shoppers are able to reach us 24/7.”

“We do see it in the chat dialogs. Many folks are at work while shopping for their car and prefer to chat rather than use a phone. We also see shoppers using live chat in the evenings after our dealerships have closed, but they have questions they want answered immediately.”

What kind of results has your dealership seen from using live chat? “We use live chat across more than 30 websites with a large amount of leads per month. Our closing rate is strong on these leads as we have seen that shoppers typically give us a lot more information via an online chat when compared to filling out a traditional online form.”

Biggest factor in his success with live chat: “Teaching our sales reps to closely read the chat dialogs that come in before responding has enabled us to provide great, personalized responses to these leads, which leads to more sales.”

“Live chat is one of the key ways that online customers choose to interact with us while on our websites.”

RudyMartin

sales & training solution

HOW EASY WILL IT BE TO CAR SHOP IN THE FUTURE? Whether you’ve been in this great industry as long as I have or just a few months, chances are you’ve come across someone who has said they’d prefer a root canal procedure rather than shop for a new car. For validation of what’s driving this widely held sentiment, you need to look no further than the recently published “Car Buyer of the Future” study conducted by AutoTrader. Their research concluded that out of 4,002 consumers interviewed, only 17 — less than one half of one percent — are satisfied with the existing process. That said, this same study also revealed that improvements in the process could have a profound impact on the industry. In fact, 53 percent stated they would buy a vehicle more frequently if the process was simpler, and 66 percent stated they would be more likely to buy from the dealer who offered them their preferred experience. This is certainly good news for the industry at large, and great news for progressive dealers willing to adapt to market-driven forces. The New Customer Experience

While the basic components of the carshopping process will remain essentially the same, how we deliver them in the digital world will be quite different. Emerging technologies will provide in-market shoppers the ability to create a single online shopping account — a shopping cart, if you will — which they can then use while shopping on any Website that is in the network. When registered shoppers locate a vehicle of interest, they will be able to “move” the selected vehicle into their cart with

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a single click. When they log into their cart, they’ll be able to instantly view an accurate price with finance and lease quotes on any selected vehicle based on their personal profile and preferences. Their cart will also display the estimated trade-in value, current outstanding pay-off if applicable, and a self-provided FICO score or the ability to request it. Additional features would also provide single-click access

to other mission-critical pieces of the puzzle, such as consumer-provided vehicle and dealer reviews as well as the ability to reserve a vehicle. And, just like that, all the pain from the process is gone. The time per transaction is dramatically hacked by 75 percent or more and the consumer experience is infinitely improved. What Will it Take to Make This Happen?

Not much, since the technology already exists and retailers like AutoNation and Larry H. Miller Dealerships are either testing or implementing similar platforms. All you need to do is not nod out like those who thought the Internet was a passing fad. This is the future of the car business and the change is going to happen whether we want it to or not. All that is needed is for the dealers of tomorrow to adopt today’s technology to make it happen internally, and not wait for yet another third party to interject themselves between the consumer and you, the dealer.

Rudy Martin is the managing member of AutoMark Solutions. He can be contacted at 866.409.6755, or by email at rmartin@autosuccessonline.com.

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JoeyLittle

sales & training solution

part 1

I WANT IT NOW: Hurdles That Prevent Instant Gratification in Car Sales

Things move fast now, and they are only going to move faster. Today’s consumers are met in the marketplace with tools that provide them near-instant gratification when they want to make a purchase. Nearly everything — from books to travel to clothing — can be purchased online and, within seconds, consumers have confirmation of their purchase. Dealerships are seeing less foot traffic on their lots; cars, however, are still being sold. What is behind this phenomenon? A breakneck pace is being set in the marketplace, and shoppers demand quicker responses to their purchasing needs every day. The term “nowism” refers to consumers’ need to be instantly gratified with their purchases, a phenomenon that affects the way nearly every business conducts itself in the consumer realm. No one is surprised that individuals are flocking to online sites for social connections, shopping and day-to-day entertainment. The thing that is catching some businesses off guard, however, is the fact that online consumerism is taking over the way businesses must react and interact with consumers in order to survive. It’s more important than ever that businesses be in tune with consumers and meet them where they are spending their time. That said, there are still some consumer-serving segments whose processes are not easily modified to respond to this consumer demand. It is simpler to sell and ship clothing via an online outlet, after all, than to sell a car. Why is Instant-gratification Difficult for the Automotive Industry?

Car dealerships don’t intentionally ignore the clamor from consumers regarding speed, efficiency and real-time services. The automotive industry, however, faces unique challenges when it comes to providing the quick service today’s consumers demand.

It’s no surprise that the 2014 Global Automotive Study shows that nine out of 10 consumers in the U.S. want an extremely efficient process when it comes to their carbuying experiences. In fact, U.S. consumers are more demanding when it comes to efficiency than consumers in other countries. For example, when polled, consumers in the U.S. stated they expected the financing portion of a vehicle transaction to be complete in 38 minutes — a true feat for most car dealerships considering the paperwork and details involved. Several factors limit automotive dealerships when it comes to meeting the efficiency standards set by modern consumers. With the continuously quickening pace of consumer/ retailer transactions in nearly every other segment, automotive must think of ways to re-engineer their processes to meet consumers in the middle. The car-buying process is an experience for shoppers, and although a vehicle is likely the second-largest purchase

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e if I’m overthinking this….. most consumers will make, they still demand dealerships meet their need for speed along with quality. The Hurdles

Traditionally, automotive dealerships have been able to stretch the car-buying experience into an hours-long affair, with shoppers knowing that was simply “the way it is.” Consumers now are driven by their online experiences and realtime purchases, and have come to expect that level of service and speed with every purchase. There are unique hurdles dealerships face when it comes to speeding up the sales process and meeting buyer needs:

tossed back onto the lot. It would seem simple enough to hop into a new car and hit the road, but work still remains to be done. Just when everything seems to be wrapping up, both the customer and the dealership must look over the vehicle and check one last time for everything that should be present (keys, headphones, floor mats, etc.). This can add an additional half hour or more onto the end of the buying process. So, there are some of the challenges car dealerships face. Next month, we’ll take a look at five ways you can make your dealership a destination for today’s fast-paced consumer by giving them what they want — when and how they want it.

gy on the market.

The test drive — This is imperative and might be one of the only reasons shoppers even need to visit a dealership. In today’s world, just about everything drivers need to know about a car can be found online — except how it feels to drive it. However, according to Edmunds.com, the test-driving process can take up to an hour — or longer if it’s a busy day at the dealership. Negotiating car pricing and trade-in value — This can be an overwhelming task even for the sturdiest and toughest of shoppers. Enduring hours of grueling back-and-forth involving several different dealership personnel is as enjoyable as a root canal to today’s shoppers.

Joey Little is the vice president of social strategy for Motofuze. He can be contacted at 866.515.6516, or by email at jlittle@autosuccessonline.com.

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Seemingly endless paperwork — From contracts to add-ons to warranties, the paperwork involved in purchasing a new vehicle is drudgery that most shoppers would love to avoid. Signatures and initials eventually blur into unrecognizable scribbles as shoppers simply dive in to conquer the mountain of paperwork. Time-consuming financing — Financing wasn’t included in the above-mentioned “paperwork” portion; instead it was set aside as its own special form of buyer torment. Customers can plan on at least an hour working through the financing details; if it’s a busy Saturday or if a trade-in is involved, it could take even longer. Between finding the right financial institution, landing on the duration of the payment cycle and determining the amount of the monthly payment, shoppers could find themselves in this hotseat for hours. Closing the deal — When it’s finally time to close the deal, consumers are worn down, and yet they still have plenty of work in front of them before they can take the car home. Closing the deal requires verifying that everything they have agreed upon is present and accounted for, both on the car and in the contract. Taking delivery — The customer is finally able to breathe freely, realizing he or she has been released from the belly of the dealership and

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SeanStapleton

marketing solution

KEEP IT CLEAN: Why Data Hygiene Determines Your Future Success

Today, I’m here to talk to you about good hygiene. I know, I know — what am I talking about hygiene for? You’re probably thinking to yourself, “I’m in the car business; if we’re not talking cars, what does this have to do with me?” First of all, rest assured. I’m not asking you to shower or brush your teeth. I’m talking hygiene of a completely different kind. And second of all, let this be the last time you say you’re in the car business. Because you’re not, my friend — you’re in the people business. And the people you sell cars to today are not the people you sold cars to five years ago, or even two years ago. Today’s shoppers are more mobile and more savvy. They’re ready to buy by the time you meet them in person. They’re selfeducated car experts, and they leave an incredible digital footprint. Your No. 1 priority is capturing and understanding a complete data picture of every one of them — what makes them different from each other, what makes them click on your listings, what makes them cross the line from shopping to buying. To know them is to close them; so, if you know cars more than you know people, you’re out of luck. So, say it with me: You’re in the people business. And that means you’re in the data business. It means your data has become your dealership’s most important asset. It’s no longer your inventory or your fixed ops. The dealers who have already embraced this are leading the pack. They get the most return on their marketing and advertising dollars because they practice smart data segmentation and get the right message to the

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right person at the right time. They treat their data like a living, breathing organism. They feed it, they grow it and they maintain good data hygiene. Which brings us to the question of “How do you maintain proper data hygiene?” Fortunately, it’s as easy as 1-2-3. Or, as easy as wash-rinse-repeat. 1. Clean your data — Today’s customer spends 12.7 hours

conducting online research before they show up at your dealership. Approximately 59 percent have done side-by-side vehicle comparisons, and 62 percent have researched competitive pricing. All that activity is critical to capture in your database. Then it becomes a matter of keeping that data clean — in other words, easy to find, easy to interpret and error-free.

Start with the obvious: Clean out duplicate records, incorrect contact information or incomplete fields that can drag down your database’s usefulness. Your data must be razor sharp and accurate in order to help make you successful. Lastly, data hygiene isn’t a one-time undertaking. It should be part of your dealership’s ongoing process, especially as your customer base grows and evolves. 2. … And keep it clean — Think about this: On average, 70 percent of

a dealership’s outbound calls go straight to voicemail. That data tells you you’re reaching out in the wrong ways. Some people live to text, while others prefer email. If you haven’t updated your records, you’ll be making sales pitches to a bunch of recorded greetings.

The key to success here is to find and implement a good data policy for your business. Overwrite outdated customer emails. Update phone numbers. If your customers have moved, stop sending mail to their old addresses. The U.S. Post Office’s National Change of Address database is a great resource for ensuring accuracy. 3. Give it a good home — After you’ve cleaned up your data, where you

store it is critical. Enter your records in a centralized CRM — not just in your DMS. Since your DMS only contains customer data, it doesn’t provide space to log prospect records or any other information. A reliable CRM platform that meets your dealership’s technical requirements will give you access to all records across all operations, from sales to service.

Still Not Sold?

Here’s something that hits home for all of us: Think about your marketing and advertising costs. Not pretty, are they? Same with your margins — life is better now than a few years ago, but it doesn’t necessarily come easy. There’s simply no room in your budget for marketing programs that don’t produce results. If you could eliminate the guesswork and only produce razor-sharp campaigns, what kind of a difference would that make to your bottom line? Now, before you head off to clean up your data, remember this: Data hygiene will help you build meaningful customer relationships — the kind that drive repeat business. And that’s as important as, well…hygiene. Source for all stats: 2015 Automotive Buyer Influence Study, IHS Automotive.

Sean Stapleton is an author, speaker and the vice president of sales and marketing for VinSolutions. He can be contacted at 866.406.6337, or by email at sstapleton@autosuccessonline.com.

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KellyIdol

marketing solution

WASTED MARKETING DOLLARS AND MISSED OPPORTUNITIES There’s a Solution for That Dealerships and marketers today are more reliant on their databases than at any other time in our history. Multichannel marketing requires that we have more contact information for every customer and their families in order to retain them — and the key to multichannel success is clean data. How much mail do you get returned for bad addresses? How many of your emails are returned undeliverable? How much time has sales and service staff wasted dialing numbers that have been changed? How many repairs are delayed or, worse yet, how many repairs are going to your competitors? How much money are you wasting on messages that have no hope of reaching their desired recipients? If you knew that you’re only achieving 70 percent of what you could achieve, would you settle for that, or would you want to get closer to 100 percent? All of the answers to the above questions are painful. Nobody enjoys wasting money or losing to their competitors. And guess what? Your people don’t like wasting their time, either. How do you think the call after three

straight wrong numbers goes? Let’s discuss the facts and then we will move on to the solutions. Approximately 12 percent of the population of the United States moves each year, which means wasted mail. About 30 percent of people get a new email address each year. Are your emails falling into the address they no longer check? This is not only a missed opportunity, but since the spam filters notice when your emails get no engagement, this is also hurting you on the emails you send to the correct address. On average, 28 percent of phone numbers in dealership databases are incorrect. But now, on to the good stuff. There are steps you can take to improve this. There are many services available to verify and update your database. If you get your address, emails and phone numbers right, you will save money. The cost of getting good data is far lower than the cost of using bad data. In most dealership databases, 32 percent of customers can have an email address added. What percentage of your customers have emails in your database? When you get 12 percent more letters arriving at the desired location, 30 percent or more emails reaching their destination, and 28 percent more phone calls answered, how will this affect your business? Do you think you will sell more cars, service and parts? In addition to this business, you can now have the data of people driving your desired makes and models who have moved into your area added, as well. Having the right data is just as important to reaching your goals as is having the right directions when searching for a desired location — try finding a cabin in the woods without a map. Take the necessary steps to get your database filled with accurate relevant information and you will be amazed at how much more effective the marketing dollars you are already spending will be. If you would like a free report that analyzes your database for opportunities, please email me at the address below with “clean data” in the subject line. Kelly Idol is the senior vice president of sales at Relevate. She can be contacted at 866.462.6914, or by email at kidol@autosuccessonline.com.

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TimByrd

leadership solution

THE NEW REINSURANCE

I have a unique business model, in that my company specializes in reinsurance for all kinds of car dealers — from new car franchises to buy here pay here dealers. I spend a lot of time explaining to one segment of the car business the “why” of having a reinsurance company, but, in a nutshell, it comes down to more dealer income and better control.

of the way contracts earn out, would have access to about $70,000 after the first year, and about $250,000 the second year. The dealer can see his reserves increase by around $1,000,000 per year, but can only tap into a small percentage of that.

The premium is ceded to your reinsurance trust account. Premium reserve is guaranteed by the administrator fronting insurance company to always be available for consumer claims until the contract expires.

That is starting to change. With accelerated profit accessibility, the new reinsurance model makes a huge leap in helping dealers with limited access and poor investment income on reserve. What could that mean for you? If your loss ratio is estimated at 40 percent after the first year, you could access $600,000 under the new model instead of $70,000. After the second year it could be $1.2 million instead of $250,000. With these new options becoming available, dealer growth and expansion will greatly improve through this proven capital resource.

Owning a reinsurance company as a car dealer makes sense in so many ways. For months, I have been hinting of a change that is taking place in reinsurance. If you could put your finger on one issue that, as a dealer, you would have in your wish list, it is having access to the money that is reserved so that you can invest back into your business, pay down your floor plan, buy another store, build a new service center, etc. The way administrator obligor reinsurance works — which, in my opinion, is the only way to go — is to begin with a fronting insurance company. When you write a warranty or vehicle service contract, that contact is between the fronting insurance company (also known as the administrator) and the customer. The fronting insurance company issues the policy to the customer and assumes the contingent liability.

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So, if you write a 12-month service contract, it takes 12 months for it to fully earn out. A 72-month contract will take 72 months, which is the majority of the new vehicle service contracts. The fronting insurance company is also on the hook for all claims that exceed reserve. Until now, a dealer who wrote, for example, $1,000,000 in premium their first year, because

It’s time to take a closer look at your reinsurance company. Times are changing, even for reinsurance.

Tim Byrd is founder and president of DealerRE and author of the new book Race to the Finish Line. He can be contacted at 866.347.6022, or by email at tbyrd@autosuccessonline.com.

SPINNER IN AND OUT OF THIS

“Sales have blasted off since we got two spinners.” — Dale Dillon, Tipton Auto Group “It is Great! You gotta have it. It’ll be the best thing you’ve ever done in your market.” — Jimmy Payne, Owner of Payne Auto Group “We got rid of newspapers to get three AutoSpins, and WOW what an ROI.” — Charlie Hicks, Owner of Ed HIcks Nissan, Infiniti & Mercedes “Wish I had this years ago! Wouldn't be without it! Best advertising I’ve ever done!” — David Sloan, GM of Greeley Subaru

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DEALER PANEL THE

JimmyVee & TravisMiller

THE PANEL WILL SEE YOU NOW!

marketing solution

HOW GIVING THE GIFT OF KNOWLEDGE COULD MEAN BIG BUCKS FOR YOU Last week, as we were leaving our office in sunny Orlando, Florida, we noticed business cards shoved into all the car windows parked in our parking lot. Always curious, we grabbed one of the cards to see what it was all about. What we discovered was the ingenious little piece of marketing you see here:

“So what?” you might ask. “How could this little business card possibly be worth a second look?” Well, sometimes, big payouts come in small packages.

Our Dealer Panel gives voice to dealers, GMs and sales professionals to share their experiences — sales techniques, new technologies and ways to motivate staff — giving our readers the benefit of their experiences.

SEE PAGE 28 FOR MORE...

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First, let’s take a closer look at the card. At the top it has an eye-catching headline: “WARNING.” That’s sure to get any passerby’s attention. It stops you dead in your tracks and forces you to read the next sentence. And that’s where the real hook comes in — the very next sentence. Here, the creator of the card not only pulls you in, but gives you information that you probably didn’t have before. Apparently, Florida has a state statute that regulates the brightness of headlights. Who knew? Before we read this business card, we certainly didn’t. And we’re guessing that no one who found this business card nestled in their window did either. Now comes the real meat of the piece. After they educate you about the legal requirements for headlights, they launch right into the pitch, explaining that if you’re receiving this card, your headlights do not comply with the legal standards. This is perhaps the most ingenious aspect of this card — that, through education, it creates an entirely new market of customers for the business. Generally, most people want to abide by the law, but if they don’t know the law, then they can’t. By pointing out this little-known statute, you’ve now awoken a demand that didn’t previously exist. They top it off with a strong offer and a guarantee. The guarantee further positions this company as someone you can trust. First, they offered you free education, now they’re offering you a guarantee. They’re establishing themselves as a trusted advisor — they’re watching out for you and your family. They even say so at the bottom of the card. So why wouldn’t you want to go to them for help with your newly illegal headlights? “Okay,” you’re probably thinking, “but there aren’t any laws that will tell people to get a new car, so how do I make this work in my business.” It’s simple. Even though there may not be laws, there is still plenty of free information and educational materials you can offer to the members of your community. By providing these materials, you become more than a product pusher; you become a solutions provider who is interested in helping people find the answers to the problems that keep them from upgrading their vehicle right now. If you provide this kind of help, you guarantee that these people will choose you over any other dealership. For a complimentary Traffic Scale Report, which compares the quality of your traffic to other dealerships in your area and helps determine whether or not there’s potential business you’re missing out on, visit www.TrafficScale.com and use coupon code ASM1507. Jimmy Vee and Travis Miller are founders of The Rich Dealers Institute and the authors of Gravitational Marketing: The Science of Attracting Customers and Invasion of the Profit Snatchers. They can be contacted at 866.867.9618, or by email at jt@autosuccessonline.com.

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Data Sources: Sales number from IHS Automotive/Autobytel Collaborative Study based on consumers that submitted a lead through the Autobytel network. IHS Automotive is part of IHS Inc. IHS acquired R.L. Polk in 2013. “Over 50 million” leads number from Autobytel internal lead totals from 1997 – 2014. “$275 cost per sale” number based on $22 lead price and estimated average 8% conversion rate. © 2015 Autobytel Inc. All rights reserved.

the dealer panel

part 3

ENGAGING WITH

MILLENNIALS: Millennials at the Workplace

Chris Saraceno AndrewDiFeo Marsh Buice Danny Benites Brian Benst ock As the Millennial generation becomes a power in the automotive sales industry, the way dealerships interact with this younger demographic has to evolve, from both sides of the sales desk. In this issue, we’ll finish our series on Millennials at the dealership by looking at the hiring process and how Millennials can best fit into the dealership culture. AutoSuccess: How has the hiring process evolved for dealing with potential Millennial employees? Andrew DiFeo, GM of Hyundai of St. Augustine: The old 60-

hour workweeks in the retail business are not attractive to the Millennial generation. They like flexible schedules, and the idea of the comfort of a salary versus a commission-based pay plan. As far as what the employer should look for, they definitely need that positive, optimistic attitude and a willingness to learn. There’s also the acceptance and use of technology, and since that’s already part of their daily lives, we don’t have to focus on that as much as with some of the older demographics. Chris Saraceno, VP and Partner of Kelly Automotive Group:

While the tried and true method of handing in a hard copy resume is still active in today’s workplaces, uploading your applications to career sites like Monster and LinkedIn are now becoming the norm. Many large companies actually use third-party sites for job postings and resume submissions. Kelly Auto has done something similar, partnering with Hire The Winners. This company pushed all job postings on social sites as well as career sites. Kelly sees the future as more of a hands-on approach for all team leaders to use social media. Social media, as the name suggest, is about being social or fun. That is what Millennials look for in a workplace: a professional fun atmosphere. Recent studies have shown that most Millennials will leave a boring high-paying job for an exciting lower-paying job. Now, not all jobs are as exciting as fire swallowing, but something as simple as monthly company outings or social building activities goes a long way. Distractions aside, how a leader treats their team members is a major factor for Millennials. They see the ideal boss as one who empowers their employees, allowing them to branch off from direct orders, make mistakes and be given the opportunity to grow. Brian Benstock, VP and GM of Paragon Honda and Acura in New York City: The days of someone working 80 hours a week in

the car industry are coming to an end. You have to look for people who are passionate about the business and have the ability to communicate with both younger and older demographics. You want them to be up to date on the latest technology and media to communicate with customers. When you’re recruiting and hiring, it’s a balance. You want professionalism, but you have to understand that they’re not prepared to work an 80-hour week to push paper. They’re very efficient. You have to have your business environment set up to sustain that. Process is important and training is extremely important for this generation. They’ve come to expect it. They need to be taught what the expectations are and what’s their path to grow in your organization. Marsh Buice, Sales Manager of Mark Dodge Chrysler Jeep:

It’s important that dealerships don’t look through their “old school” lenses and only hire those that they find closely resemble themselves. I love Millennials because they’re not scared of technology and can adapt to changes quickly. Technology, coupled with their enthusiasm, helps them immerse themselves in learning everything they can about the product. They live and breathe the product they are selling and that the

THE

DEALER PANEL

enthusiasm is infectious. Also, their social reach is vast — if they love what they’re doing, they’ll tweet, post, snap and tag their passion. Danny Benites, GM of Greg Lair Buick-GMC: First, Millennials want to be connected and know they are included. We have to convey that we’re a dealership that values the input of our people, and then deliver on that promise. Secondly, we have to expand our thought process beyond the 70-hour work week. This generation values a worklife balance. Thirdly, they expect to be trained. The easiest way to make sure they don’t stick around is to hire them and forget to train them. The average Millennial expects to be at their job less than three years. Drop the ball on training, and it will be three months, if you’re lucky. AS: How have you seen Millennials integrate with older team members? How can leaders make the process go smoothly? AD: We’ve tried to get all of our team members — not just Millennials

— constantly thinking about how the business and the world is changing around us, and that we need to adapt and grow with it. This applies to technology, to the changing sales and service processes, and to coworkers who are joining our team. We’ve positioned the opportunity for some of our more seasoned employees to become mentors to these Millennial candidates and bring them up. It’s an opportunity for them to show management that “I can be a leader,” so when future opportunities for promotion come up, they show they can handle that job description.

CS: It’s the age-old stereotype that the older generation doesn’t believe the younger has what it takes to face the real world. The fact is this world has already changed over to the Millennials’ way of thinking and, in a few years, they will be the ones taking the wheels. Millennials have knowledge that Baby Boomers and Gen Xers alike can learn. The key is to acknowledge, recognize and adapt. BB: Each of us can learn from all of us. There are certainly things senior

members of the sales team and management can teach Millennials about the business, and Millennials have a lot to offer in teaching efficiency, transparency and new technologies to senior members. It’s good to have a team who can cater to any generation of customer. The Baby Boomer may love dealing with someone younger and more passionate about the business. Or, since this is a big transaction, some customers say they don’t want to deal with “a kid.” There’s value in all, but each generation has to be willing to evolve and adapt to the customers they’re serving.

MB: Millennials have no problem working with older team members — most of the time it’s the old timers who are more resistant to change. The amount of information that a salesperson must learn today can be overwhelming, so many OT’s shut down. We’ve found that Millennials slyly “snuggle” up to some of the old-timers and, slowly, a bond is formed. Millennials teach the old timers how to use technology and the OT’s are able to use their experience to help the younger generation. DB: There is no substitute for a great culture. If you play your cards

right, young and old will strive together to create a different workplace. It’s time we stop comparing ourselves to the dealerships of yesteryear. There’s a reason companies like Google and SAS are killing it. If we sit back and complain about how entitled and self-absorbed Millennials are, we’ll miss out on the very future of our business. If you have questions or are a dealer who would like to be considered for the panel, please contact us at thepanel@autosuccessonline.com.

Charlie Hicks, Dealer Principal

Bob Ocañas, Business Development Manager

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AaronHowerton

sales & training solution

THE DAILY ROUTINE FOR CRM (SALES) SUCCESS

I get lots of questions about best practices for customer relationship management (CRM) tools. The questions range from incredibly insightful (“How can I track my daily activity to prove I’m using the system and increase sales?”) to incredibly… delightful (“So you mean I’m supposed to log in to this thing every day?”). Every CRM is designed to help you close more deals. This month, I’m highlighting a few of these practices as they relate to your sales and BDC use of CRM. First, let’s differentiate between CRM and dealership best practices. For example, knowing how many times or for how many days you want to call on a Web lead before marking it dead is a dealership best practice. Requiring every appointment be logged in the CRM is both a CRM and dealership best practice. Having a dedicated administrator for the CRM is a CRM best practice. That being said, now let’s look at those practices. 1. Start your day by reviewing and

confirming appointments. Every salesperson should confirm daily appointments in the CRM. In some dealerships, the manager or BDC rep may call to confirm, or it may be the salesperson. Calling first thing sets the agenda for the day and tells you how much time you’ve got for other activities.

BDC activity. These triggers will automatically add tasks related to open deals, birthdays, service appointments, warranty reminders, etc. Also, for any dealership with history, they should provide some kind of daily task activity for your team. Once appointments are confirmed, move on to these tasks to complete the follow up and potentially generate new deal opportunities from these activities. 3. Double check yesterday’s list. Some days are typically busier than others, and you know the

flow of business through your store better than anyone. Missing a few tasks is possible — even probable — so make sure you go back and get them done. The right activity leads to sales, so don’t forget the activity.

4. Review Your Lead List. If your CRM isn’t doing it through automated tasks, make sure you’re

reviewing your open leads every day and making calls routinely. Look for missed opportunities and keep your lead list updated with current status and potential.

5. Throughout the day, get to new leads in less than five minutes. Your dealership probably has

its own standard, but if you’re not connecting with a lead within the first five minutes, you are missing deals. By the time you get a lead, people are more than 50 percent sure they are buying a car — it’s just a matter of who they are buying from.

6. Daily Review. Before going home, make sure you’ve completed all your tasks and that all of

your leads are in some kind of working status. Touch base with missed appointments and complete any other work that might slow you down tomorrow.

Ultimately, these best practices are tied to routine. If you have a functional CRM, make sure you use the tool. If you don’t, following these tips will still increase your performance overall. Like anything else in life, the final answer always comes down to what you’re willing to do to be successful. Contact me at the address below with the phrase “Best Practices” in your subject line for your free best practices flyer to distribute to your sales and BDC teams.

2. Work through your assigned tasks.

Most CRMs will — or should — have some kind of automation for sales and

Aaron Howerton is the director of client services for Interactive 360. He can be contacted at 866.383.7481, or by email at ahowerton@autosuccessonline.com.

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ScottPechstein

marketing solution

AT YOUR SERVICE: How to Optimize Your Service Marketing Initiatives to Reach More Customers...and Keep Your Existing Customers Happy

• What kind of marketing is best to reach customers who predominantly use independent service and/or repair shops?

dealers against advising staff to communicate with customers on their personal cell phones without the use of a texting platform that tracks conversations, manages opt-ins and opt-outs and integrates into a dealer’s CRM tool. New and stringent regulatory guidelines can lead to hefty fines for violations — up to $1,500 per text message in some cases — so having a technology platform in place for texting is critical.

Studies show that consumers perceive dealership repairs and service as the more expensive option, even though they’d prefer to have their car serviced by factory-authorized dealership technicians.

• How can dealers increase customer satisfaction in their service lanes?

That said, dealers can drive increased business by using digital media to highlight the quality and convenience of their service departments, and by marketing pricing transparency when it comes to repair and service costs. They can also drive business by promoting positive service-specific consumer reviews online, at their desktop and mobile sites and in social media. We’ve found that a number of dealers also offer service and repairs for all makes and models of vehicles which helps them cast a wider net — and generate more business — beyond the existing models in their lineup.

Some of the more innovative dealers on our program have implemented second-tier parts pricing through their OEM aftermarket programs to stay cost competitive. Others have installed quick service bays for oil changes, tire rotations and other light service work, while offering free loaner vehicles to busy customers. Others top off gas tanks, provide complimentary car washes, exterior hand waxing or customer rewards for referrals. And some of the dealers on our program offer repairs and service for all makes and models, not just their brand(s).

I’m often asked how dealers can improve their service business from a marketing perspective. Since service is a fundamental part of a dealership’s bottom line, it makes sense for dealers to want to dial in their marketing to get the most out of their efforts. Below are common service marketing questions dealers have asked me through the years, and I thought I’d share those questions — and my advice — with you.

And don’t forget that texting is quickly becoming a great way for dealerships to market their service centers, since consumers increasingly prefer text communication over phone calls or email. With text message marketing, dealers include keywords and short codes in their marketing materials to drive inbound service requests. Texting can also be a great way for customers to communicate with service managers, get answers to questions and schedule appointments. However, we caution

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“...texting is quickly becoming a great way for dealerships to market their service centers, since consumers increasingly prefer text communication over phone calls or email.”

2. Service advisors can use texting for customers who don’t want to wait in the lounge for service

to be completed.

When it comes to this second point, this means your staff can get to work quickly, leading to more billable hours where they don’t have to take the car off the lift until they get approvals for the work, or for additional work outside of what was quoted. For the consumer, texting is an easy way to get updates on repairs, and to approve that repairs be done. By using a texting platform that helps to ensure you’re being compliant, the customer can simply reply “Y” to repairs, which indicates they agree and then your technician can get to work. This leads to increased customer satisfaction and return visits. Scott Pechstein is the vice president of sales for Autobytel Inc. He can be contacted at 866.423.9019, or by email at spechstein@autosuccessonline.com.

New customer clinics are another great way to enhance customer satisfaction. Clinics enable new customers to have questions about their vehicles answered by trained technicians — and they’re a perfect forum for customers to learn about the importance of routine service and the benefits of turning to factory-trained service professionals. Even small gestures like handwritten “thank you” notes or free coffee mugs surprisingly go a long way in keeping customers happy.

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Millennials rely heavily on peer advice and referrals, so providing a great experience that results in favorable customer reviews of your service department (and then promoting positive, service-specific consumer reviews online, at your desktop and mobile sites, and in social media) is a great way to influence this segment. Mobile is also critically important when it comes to reaching Millennials. They’re always on, and on the go, which means apps, mobile optimized/responsive design Websites, text message communication and text message marketing — with the use of a texting platform that tracks conversations, manages opt-ins and opt-outs, and integrates into your CRM tool — are important when it comes to connecting with Gen Y buyers. The bottom line is that consumers are increasing their usage of mobile devices, but for Millennials, it is almost their exclusive access to the Internet. With that in mind, dealers need to have mobile Websites that are action oriented, easy-to-use, that promote their service departments, and provide the ability to have a text conversation with service customers in a controlled environment.

existing customer base, and identiﬁes

It has two equal benefits: 1. You can use text message marketing in your service materials and you can textenable existing service landline numbers without having to create new numbers dedicated to texting.

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PeterMartin

marketing solution

EQUITY MINING IS A JOKE

As of late, equity mining your DMS customers with email addresses seems like the holy grail of new customer acquisition. Big names in the industry are boasting about their tools to drill down dealership data until dealers are left with a small segment of ready-to-buy customers to send emails. Equity mining focuses on factors like equity, APR, lease terms, payment and remaining terms. This makes sense when you are sending out a direct mail piece, because of the cost involved, printing, postage, etc. But when it comes to email marketing, equity mining is a joke. For example, a dealership with 10,000 records in its DMS with valid, deliverable email addresses may be left with only 500 customers after the equity mining process. After the email is created and sent out to the 500 targeted customers, with a generous estimate of a 10 percent email open rate, that leaves the dealer with 50 leads that actually see the marketing message. Fifty out of 10,000? Is that really what your dealership is looking for? The key factor that is not being taken into account is the email open rate. While equity mining is a decent way to predict buying habits, there is no exact science in determining whether or not a prospect is ready to trade in their vehicle. What if the prospect just got a job promotion and wants to upgrade to a luxury vehicle? What if the prospect is starting a family and needs a larger vehicle? What if the prospect just has not seen the right price to make a purchase? Equity mining shuts all these variables out and focuses solely on the numbers. The most effective way to use email marketing at a dealership is to market to all of the records in the DMS. Equity mining may determine some ready-to-buy prospects, but it also actively dismisses thousands of other possible prospects. Using a DMS with 10,000 records, a 10 percent open rate generates 1,000 leads. What would you rather have? Fifty equitymined leads or 1,000 sales opportunities? Marketing to equity-mined leads also ignores the service department, because more than 50 percent of your service customers did not purchase from you and you don’t have the purchase data. Most dealership advertising budgets focus solely on new vehicle sales. A satisfied service customer is a great new vehicle prospect because if they were happy with the

autosuccessonline.com

“While equity mining is a decent way to predict buying habits, there is no exact science in determining whether or not a prospect is ready to trade in their vehicle. What if the prospect just got a job promotion and wants to upgrade to a luxury vehicle? What if the prospect is starting a family and needs a larger vehicle? What if the prospect just has not seen the right price to make a purchase? Equity mining shuts all these variables out and focuses solely on the numbers.”

dealership they purchased from, they would still be servicing with them. They are now a great prospect for your dealership, but equity mining misses this group completely. Thus, service department marketing should be a consideration in any sales marketing budget. Email marketing remains one of the strongest channels to reach customers. According to PRDaily: • 61 percent of Internet users access social media • 94 percent send and read emails • 75 percent of online adults report email as their preferred marketing method • Email provides more marketing features and better analytics than social media The best way to use email marketing is to cast a wider net. Though equity mining may result in a highly-targeted customer sample,

you are losing sales if you market only to that sample. The proven recipe for success in email marketing is a comprehensive mass email marketing approach. Effectively market to your entire database by sending one sales and one service email every month. Our studies show that service tips and coupons bring lost service customers back into the dealership. Send the service campaign the first week of the month and the sales campaign the third week of the month for maximum results. When you target your entire DMS, you are reactivating dormant customers and keeping your dealership top of mind. Equity mining is not the answer. If you buy into this trend sweeping the industry, you are actively losing sales to dealerships who are choosing more comprehensive mass email marketing.

Peter Martin is CEO of Cactus Sky Communications, Inc. He can be contacted at 866.859.8052, or by e-mail at pmartin@autosuccessonline.com.

H GregoryGershman

leadership solution

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS THAT WORK

Finding the right person to hire can be a daunting task. The hardest part of the process is asking the best questions in your interview to help make a decision. The key to crafting great questions is by starting with what you are trying to decide about the potential new hire. No matter what the position, the interview is meant to access one thing: What is the amount of risk your business is taking in hiring this person? Each person you hire has the potential to be either a successful longterm employee or a short-term drop out. Interview questions should be designed to decide the odds of success and failure. In our company, we have six factors we consider: longevity, tenure, training and competency, schedule and travel, motivation, and communication. A good set of interview questions will address all six areas, and give you the ability to make an educated guess at the potential for long-term success. Longevity is a measurement of how likely a candidate is to change jobs. One factor is how many jobs a candidate has had in the last five years. This data does not tell the entire story, because sometimes changing jobs is a positive. A good question is, “When you moved from Job A to Job B, what did it do to advance your career?” Tenure is the amount of time a person has worked in a related field or

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position. Candidates with a solid background in related positions can handle difficulties easier, since they will have experienced them before, and are generally able to get up to speed and produce results faster than green employees can. A question to ask could be,“Can you describe a skill you honed in your prior positions that will directly help you in our company?” Training and competency is the amount of true certification and formal training an employee has received. Being a professional in any position includes mastering your craft. The best employees have a thirst for knowledge about their job. Ask for specific examples of formal training the employee has received either through school, work, or sought on their own. Schedule and travel can be a cause for many employees to leave jobs when the schedule or commute get too difficult and outweigh the positives of the job. As an interviewer, you need a complete picture of the outside forces that could impact a potential hire’s job satisfaction and lead to them separating employment. Factors to review are the length of their commute, their spouse’s work hours, planned vacations, hobbies, prior work absences and flexibility of schedule. Motivation can be hard to determine in an interview. While many candidates can show excitement about your job offer, it might not be positive motivation but rather a desperation to gain employment and end the interview process. There are a few ways to get to the heart of the matter. Ask if the candidate has ever received a bonus and, if they have, what did they do with the money when they received it? Another good question: “If you were to receive a promotion tomorrow, what would you consider to be the single greatest perk?” Last, but certainly not least, communication is the cornerstone of all teamwork and interaction with clients. Even technicians need to have solid skills to be able to describe problems and fixes, and be prepared to converse with clients. Many interviewers mistake accent or diction for communication skills. You can have a salesperson with a limited vocabulary and accent who is an excellent communicator; they learn to use an economy of words to say a lot. Judge this on the quality of the answers to your questions. Did they answer completely? Did the candidate give answers that related to being successful in your business? Solid additional questions can include, “What was the last book you read?” or “When was the last time you went out to eat? Describe the experience.” Reading creates better speakers, and having a candidate describe a rich experience like eating out gives you the ability to really feel how they explain something. With these questions, you can really tell how likely a new candidate is to succeed in your store. Happy hunting for your next superstar employee.

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H Gregory Gershman is the managing partner at Recruitment HQ. He can be contacted at 866.918.2150, or by email at hgershman@autosuccessonline.com.

MarkTewart

sales & training solution

TO BE BRILLIANT YOU MUST BE RESILIENT

I have never met anyone who did not want to be exceptionally smart or talented, which could be defined as “brilliant.” However, I have met many people who don’t allow their brilliance to shine bright. I have also met many people who do not allow the flame of their brilliance to shine bright continually because they are not resilient. Successful people know that without being resilient, you cannot be brilliant. bril·liant /’brilyənt/ adjective 1. (of light or color) very bright and radiant. synonyms: bright, shining, blazing, dazzling, vivid, intense, gleaming, glaring, luminous, radiant; 2. exceptionally clever or talented. re·sil·ient /rə’zilyənt/ adjective 1. (of a substance or object) able to recoil or spring back into shape after bending, stretching, or being compressed. synonyms: flexible, pliable, supple; 2. (of a person or animal) able to withstand or recover quickly from difficult conditions. There is some sort of universal connection between struggle and success. Listen to an interview with any extremely successful person and you will hear stories of extreme struggle. You will also hear that success came as much or more from outlasting the struggle as it did doing something great. Nobody goes through life unscathed. If I were to ask an audience of people if they have ever experienced challenges in regards to financial, income, job, career, supervisors, relationships, friendships, debt or health, every single person will raise their hands. If I were to identify the most successful people, I will always find people who not only survived, but also then thrived. A major component of thriving is often first surviving. To survive, you must build your muscle of resiliency. When you are born, you don’t know struggle, but then, every year thereafter, you experience more setbacks and struggles. Each one of the challenges shapes you and defines the person you become. For many, the challenges create everlasting fears that keep them from risking failure to find success. For others, they may start, but then quickly wilt when the self-fulfilling prophecy of struggle and failure comes along. The challenges become excuses to quit and quit early.

“how.” You may alter course, you may leave one opportunity for a better one you discover along the way, but it is all a journey, and each experience is expected. It is a universal truth that what you push will push back. What you embrace, you can master. When you embrace the challenge as part of the journey, you can now master the challenge through resiliency. You are able to easily accept the challenge and start thinking of solutions. If not, you will become so overwhelmed by the challenge that you now begin to wear the challenges and setbacks like it’s a suit of armor. I am often asked what makes great salespeople. Most people equate a great personality or a so-called “gift of gab” as the most important component of success in sales. Not me. I always answer the question with the same answer: “resiliency.” All great salespeople are resilient. Great salespeople are resilient enough to let their brilliance shine and to keep relighting the candle each time a strong wind blows it out. The fact is that everyone at times will have their candle blown out — and likely many times. The key to success, happiness and life is to have the resiliency to relight the candle time after time, especially in your deepest, darkest moments of doubt and pain. Everyone on earth has brilliance of some kind. The question is, will you work enough to find it, light it and keep it lit?

If you would like the report “The 7 Keys to Brilliance” email me at the address below. Success comes to those who learn to become delusional. You must become delusional in your belief system of success. You must understand and embrace struggle as part of the journey, no Mark Tewart is the president of Tewart Enterprises, and the author of the best more or less than the success itself. Success is seller, How To Be A Sales Superstar. He can be contacted at 866.429.6844,or no longer a question of “if,” but of “when” and by email at mtewart@autosuccessonline.com.

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LarryBarditch

marketing solution

WHERE HAVE ALL THE LEADS GONE?

I personally work with some of the top dealers across the country, and speak to and consult with hundreds of others. I see a common thread of concern on the decrease of lead form submissions. The flip-side to that, however, is that phone calls are way up, and my dealers say that’s just fine with them. Consumers are spending more time researching online, but still desire and need to buy a car from a human being. Many of my dealers experience higher closing ratios (conversions) on phone calls than from actual lead forms. Therefore, equal weight should be focused on the “digital phone up.”

I know, I know — your BDC manager says “I need more leads.” And there are so many lead choices that you don’t know which ones are the best ROI. The fact is, you don’t need more vendors or leads; you need to create better ads, place them in more relevant places and target better audiences. The other cold, hard truth is a true digital dealer’s lead comes from a variety of channels and an actual form submission is the least likely. It makes sense. There is so much information for the consumer online without having to submit a lead form, why would they subject themselves to being harassed by a salesperson? The last action a consumer should take is to print the dealer’s address (to plug into their GPS) and call to make sure the car they saw online is still available. Therefore, all your campaigns should include dynamic tracking numbers and optimized for mobile click-to-call conversions. All inventory photos should have a vehicle overlay with tracking phone numbers. All digital video assets should contain the dealership URL and a tracking phone number. Are you getting the hint? All digital marketing efforts should be created to inspire a phone call and have a human sell the car. There are three main components to increase your leads and closing ratios: 1. Track consumer behavior — Improving

your lead referral sources, landing pages and contact forms will not only help increase engagement but will make for a more efficient spend of marketing dollars.

2. Create bold, unique and relevant messages

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3. Measure the impact of your marketing

efforts — Creating good accountability of your people, processes and programs will help to optimize your success. If you receive the same amount of leads you did from the prior month, but increase your closing ratio by 10 percent, you’ve increased sales.

F PR PR O O OF O

RECRUITING | STAFFING | TRAINING

— Many times we push messages that we think consumers want to hear or see. By studying behavior, and delivering the right messages to the right consumer at the right time, you will be able to increase consumer interaction and conversions.

Larry Barditch is the vice president of digital strategy and innovation for MSA Advertising. He can be contacted at 866.590.1624, or by email at lbarditch@autosuccessonline.com.

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LaneKidd

marketing solution

MULTICHANNEL MARKETING

Today, everyone is talking about multichannel marketing and how important it is to have a consistent message. Modern consumers are exposed to far more than television, radio and print ads. The old lines drawn between Internet customers and everyone else need to be erased. How many consumers visit your dealership without a smartphone? How many of them do you think listened to the radio while driving to your store, or maybe watched television the night before? Today’s consumers are exposed to your message across multiple channels. It is extremely important that you give your customers a creative message that’s consistent across all marketing platforms to increase awareness and generate qualified prospects. Do you confuse your customers with inconsistent messages? Having inconsistent messaging and pricing is a sure way to lose trust and weaken retention. There is a direct correlation between a consistent message and consumers’ buying behavior. Where does traditional marketing fit into a successful multichannel marketing program? It still works. There has been an overwhelming response to direct mail in 2015. Customers still respond to messages that are well timed, personable and believable. That ability to speak to customers individually has helped direct mail stay relevant, even as marketing dollars increasingly shift toward digital media. If you are doing something that you have always done because you can measure that it always works, why change? With a consistent message, all of your channels will reinforce each other and drive more consumers to your store. Where are we headed? Having the ability to target an IP address based on the target’s postal address is a game changer in the way dealers do Web advertising. Although PPC is still popular, it’s losing its effectiveness. Email marketing has never been more effective. Targeted email marketing can improve your revenue stream significantly by placing your dealership on the top of consumer mindset prior to decision time. Deliver relevant information to your customers and don’t overdo it. Too often, dealerships will carpet bomb their customers

and ruin this valuable resource. A couple of correspondences per month is enough. Tell them something of value and they look forward to your emails — and you will always be on top of your consumer’s mindset. Kiosks are also in. They are bigger and have more functionality than ever before. Consumers love to interact with new technology that is fun and intriguing, such as the cutting-edge kiosks of today. Today’s kiosks have interactive touchscreens that stand taller than a person. On your showroom floor, or in your service department, they can run a continuous loop of advertising, integrate with your customer loyalty system, display parts, service and accessory options and even schedule the customer’s next appointment and, most importantly, sell product. Bar codes and drivers license scanners make capturing data easy. Imagine a customer

“The old lines drawn between Internet customers and everyone else need to be erased. How many consumers visit your dealership without a smartphone? How many of them do you think listened to the radio while driving to your store, or maybe watched television the night before?”

waiting in service playing with an app that tells him the value of his trade and options for new vehicles. Now, imagine a manager getting a text to send a salesperson into service to sell this customer. The sky is the limit. This customer could print his trade valuation or a coupon immediately from the kiosk and be directed to the showroom where a manager is waiting to discuss a new vehicle. The ways available for us to interact with our customer continues to grow. By necessity, we now have multiple people creating the content of our message. It is very important that these people work together to keep your message consistent across every channel you utilize. Multichannel marketing is not difficult to master; it just requires planning and communication within your organization. For your free copy of “Making Multichannel Work for You,” email me at the address below.

Lane Kidd is a national account executive at Horsepower 360 Marketing. He can be contacted at 866.852.2754 or by email at lkidd@autosuccessonline.com.

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CassSuwinski

sales & training solution

GETTING A CUSTOMER’S COMMITMENT With average vehicle prices ranging from $18,000 to $80,000, customers are much more educated when it comes to buying a vehicle. If customers really want to find out what a vehicle costs, all the information is available to them online. How many times have managers and owners said, “That customer is crazy — there’s no way they’re going to purchase a vehicle for that price”? And, sure enough, when your salesperson calls the customer to follow up, they find that the customer bought that same vehicle somewhere else for the exact or similar price that your dealership quoted.

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888-998- 8575 Certain aspects of the products and services described on this website are covered by U.S. patents. Please see www.AutoAlert.com/patents for more information. AutoAlert® is a U.S. registered trademark of AutoAlert, Inc. Copyright ©2002-2015 AutoAlert, Inc. All rights reserved.

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If you really want to know how many sales your dealership has lost in the last few years, just look in the service drive and see how many orphan customers are coming there who bought their vehicle from some other dealership. Here is a question for you: Why is the customer willing to service their car at your dealership but not buy the car from you? The customer obviously likes your service department and trusts the dealership. So, is there another way to bring that customer into your family and stop them from buying elsewhere? The answer is “yes.” A retention department, set up the proper way in a dealership, can exclusively cater to the customers coming into the service drive. There are several important reasons to start a retention department: • When a customer comes into the service drive, you have a “captive” audience. • The gross averages of selling to customers in the service drives are much higher, because you are approaching these people before they have had the opportunity to go shop other dealerships or the Internet. • Your customers are happy because they just purchased a vehicle and didn’t have to pay for a service bill. • You have retained a prior customer from going to another dealership, or you have sold a vehicle to an orphan customer who hasn’t purchased a vehicle from you. • Trade costs for your used car department goes down because you don’t have to purchase vehicles from the auction and pay the auction fees. • The fixed operations for the service department will increase over time. Every new vehicle sold out of the retention department means two vehicles sold for the dealership (one sold in retention department and one sold in used cars). • Monthly and yearly sales will increase from 10 to 30 percent with a 15 to 45 percent increase in gross revenue. To set up a truly effective retention department, it is important to have a complete plan for implementation or hire someone to help you. Look for someone who will come into your dealership for 90 days and show your sales personal how to sell to the customers in the service drive and be successful. For your free copy of “How to Find Prospects in the Service Drive,” please email me with “service prospects” in the subject line. Cass Suwinski is the president of Retention Consulting Inc. He can be reached at 866.440.3445, or by email at csuwinski@autosuccessonline.com.

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Empowering Dealers and Vendors with Secure Data Movement

Join the Data Revolution

DealerVault is the first ever easy-to-use platform designed to allow dealerships full control of syndication and distribution of their data to approved third-party solution providers. In addition, DealerVault: • Secures data storage and transfer of DMS data • Provides complete transparency on what data is being transferred and where, along with a full audit history • Significantly reduces setup time with one-time master report setups • Offers $20 million cyber liability insurance protection ®

DealerVault is a simple, secure, compliant, and easy-to-use tool that allows the control of DMS data to remain where it belongs – in the hands of dealers! Justin Brun

Director of Marketing & E-Commerce, Acton Toyota of Littleton

Contact DealerVault to start protecting your data today!

877-834-2451 • www.dealervault.com

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