THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF OREGON IADA
DEALER REPRESENTING ALL AUTO, TRUCK, TRAILER, RV AND
MAY 2019
NEWS POWER SPORT DEALERS OF OREGON
BE THE COACH YOUR PEOPLE
DESERVE ARE YOU A CRITIC OR A COACH? |P A G E 6|
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THE SALESPERSON’S BIGGEST OBSTACLE
SALES MATTERS
| By John Chapin
OVERCOMING
CALL
By far the biggest reason salespeople fail is because they don’t make enough calls – to talk to enough people, to get enough prospects – to make the necessary sales. There are two causes for this: not putting in the hours necessary and call reluctance. While the first one is a problem and needs to be addressed, I find the latter far outweighs it. If you watch your average sales rep during the day, even when they are “working,” they avoid making calls. They do paperwork, clean their desk, check email, service accounts, do research, and find many other ways to distract themselves during the day. Successful people are successful because they get themselves to do the things that unsuccessful people won’t. Similar to homework as a kid, taking out the trash, or doing 40 minutes of intense cardio, there are some things in life we have to do if we’re going to live a successful, fulfilling life, even though we don’t want to. In sales, that means getting ourselves to make the calls necessary for success. Here are some techniques and tricks to make the calls that need to be made. Some may need further explanation, so contact me about any you don’t understand. Although this is a fairly exhaustive list, I’m sure I’ve missed some. Feel free to email me with others. SOLUTIONS TO CALL RELUCTANCE • Get 100 percent sold on what you have to offer. Convince yourself people need what you have and it’s your obligation to “save” them from inferior products and competitors. •F ocus on the ultimate payoff of breaking through and no longer having the fear of making calls. What are all the ways in which you’ll benefit? Focus on the ultimate pain of not making the calls you need to make. What are all the things it will cost you? •B ased upon the dollar amount of your average sale, calculate how much each call is worth. If each call is worth $10, then every time you pick up and dial you make $10, even if someone doesn’t answer or they say “no.” •S tart with some affirmations before you make your calls. •G et motivated: read something positive, watch a motivational video, listen to motivational music, read inspirational stories, etc. •T hink of those you have an obligation to: employer who pays you, kids, yourself, etc.
RELUCTANCE
•H ave someone hold you accountable. •S chedule prospecting time and stick to it. •P rospect every day, or almost every day, to build consistency and momentum. •E liminate distractions and other options. •G et coaching. •M ake a commitment to the people in your life and/or post what you’re going to do on Facebook and other social media sites. •P ost your goals and put up pictures of the rewards you’re going to get as a result of making the calls you need to make. •W rite a check for $500, or more, to someone if you don’t do what you say you’ll do. •R eward yourself for making the calls. •G et to your calls as quickly as possible and have as little time as possible between calls. •F ocus on how good you’ll feel after you’ve gotten yourself to make the calls. •S tart with the most difficult calls first and get them over with, or start with the easy calls first to get some momentum. •P ut yourself in a peer environment where you have to make the calls. •C ompete with someone else. •T alk to people who are successful at making calls and ask how they do it. •B e fully prepared. •H ave a script memorized for all information you need to convey. •R ealize the hard work will pay off. •J ust start. There’s power in momentum. •T hink of everyone who is pulling for you and everyone who is pulling against you. See those people one group on the left and one on the right. Each time you make a call “your group” wins, and the group against you loses. When you don’t make a call, it’s the opposite. •G et angry. Who do you want to prove something to? What irritates you about your call reluctance? What other thoughts, feelings, and emotions can you use to motivate yourself? •T hink of times in the past when you’ve overcome a fear or been successful and look for clues as to how you did it. •H ave a conversation with yourself. What’s really going on? What’s the worst thing that can happen? Realize that nothing can really hurt you. The payoff for making calls is much greater than any perceived sub-conscious payoff for not making calls.
•B uild up your health and energy and avoid the energy suckers such as negative people and news. •B uild your self-confidence. •V isualization. •F ace and conquer other fears. •C affeine. •O vercome approval addiction. •N eurolinguistic Programming •T apping •T he Peace Process •C an’t Hurt Me – David Goggins •T he Unstuck Process – Robert Middleton •N ot Caring What Other People Think is a Superpower – Ed Latimore •T he Art of Fear – Kristin Ulmer •J ump and the Net will Appear – Robin Crow • Face the Fear and Feel the Power – Stephen Edwards •T he Work – Byron Katie •F eel the fear and do it anyway – just push through. Do what you fear and the death of fear is certain. •F ind your why and ultimate motivation through Facilitated Introspection (John Chapin learned from Steve Siebold). •K eep searching for answers. Ultimately what you’ll do will come down to why you’re doing it. If you have powerful reasons why you must do something, you’ll figure out the how and you’ll endure the pain to get it done. Come up with all the things that are important to you, that you’re willing to fight for, and tie your sales success to those items. John Chapin is a sales and motivational speaker and trainer. He has over 31 years of sales experience as a number one sales rep and is the author of the 2010 sales book of the year: Sales Encyclopedia. For more information, visit www.completeselling. com or email johnchapin@completeselling. com
WWW.OIADA.COM MAY 2019 OIADA 3
MAY INSIDE
2019
03............... The Salesperson’s Biggest Obstacle 05...........How to Earn a Steady Flow of Business 06..................Be the Coach Your People Deserve 08.......How to Build a Better Dealership Website 10................................NIADA Government Report 12............................................ 5 Social Media Tips
ADVERTISERS INDEX
DAA Northwest/Seattle...................................IFC Manheim ............................................................. 11 Manheim Portland............................................ BC NextGear Capital ..........................................12-13 Protective............................................................ 7 vAuto................................................................ IBC
ASSOCIATE MEMBERS ADVERTISING/MARKETING
Autotrader.com 866-836-1455 Used Cars.Com by Dealix 650-599-5616 Cars.com James Lynch 312-601-5052 Carsforsale.com Grant Lockner 605-306-3492 Interactive Financial Marketing Group Travis Weisieder 804-248-0892 ATTORNEY
Byrd Cabrera LLP Robert (Scott) Byrd 310-365-1954 AUTO PARTS
WHAT’S NEW
LIVE WEBCAST OF WAAC M AY 1 0 O N N I A DA .T V Catch all the exciting competition from the World Auto Auctioneer Championship! Auctioneers and ringmen from across the country will vie for the top titles and you don’t want to miss it. Tune in to NIADA.tv on May 10 for the free live webcast.
OFFICE
Oregon Independent Auto Dealers Association 9150 SW Pioneer Ct Ste. H Wilsonville, OR 97070 800-447-0302
NIADA HEADQUARTERS
NATIONAL INDEPENDENT AUTOMOBILE DEALERS ASSOCIATION WWW.NIADA.COM • WWW.NIADA.TV 2521 BROWN BLVD. • ARLINGTON, TX 76006-5203 PHONE (817) 640-3838
For advertising information contact: Troy Graff (800) 682-3837 or troy@niada.com. OIADA Dealer News is published monthly by the National Independent Automobile Dealers Association Services Corporation, 2521 Brown Blvd., Arlington, TX 76006-5203. Periodicals postage paid at Dallas, TX and at additional offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to NIADA State Publications, 2521 Brown Blvd., Arlington, TX 6006-5203. The statements and opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of OIADA Dealer News or NIADA Likewise, the appearance of advertisers, or their identification as members of NIADA, does not constitute an endorsement of the products or services featured. Copyright © 2019 by NIADA Services, Inc.
STATE MAGAZINE MGR./SALES Troy Graff • troy@niada.com EDITORS Jacinda Timmerman • jacinda@niada.com Andy Friedlander • andy@niada.com MAGAZINE LAYOUT Jeffrey McQuirk • jeffrey@niada.com PRINTING Nieman Printing
AutoZone, Inc. Daniel Narvaez 971-218-2300 BOND & INSURANCE
Hecht & Hecht Insurance Agency Larry Hecht 503-542-1130 Shepard & Shepard Business Solutions Todd Shepard 1-855-396-0488 #8 DEALER AUCTION
Manheim Seattle Auto Auction Ray Priest 206-762-1600
Manheim Portland Auto Auction Alex Fraser 503-286-3000 ADESA Seattle Auto Auction Mark Dumbler 253-735-1600 DAA Seattle Dave Blake 253-737-2200 United Vehicle Auctions Lori Jacoby 503-380-1927 ADESA Northwest Auto Auction Mark Melton 541-689-3901 ADESA Portland Auto Auction Jerry Hinton 503-492-9200 Crosspoint NW Dealer Auction Brian Hardy 503-594-2800 DAA Northwest (Dealers Auto Auction) Mitzi VanVoorhis 509-244-4500 CarMax Sean McDonald 804-747-0422 DEALER SOFTWARE
Frazer Computing Inc Jake Morley 888-963-5369 Motor Vehicle Software John Brueggeman 546-270-6699 FINANCING
Credit Acceptance John Bragg 360-980-2214 Lobel Financial Carla Christenson 503-653-8000
FLOORPLAN
NextGear Capital Robert Torbet 503-358-3911 Floorplan Xpress Josh Chandler 503-621-9260
ONLINE REVIEW MANAGEMENT
Podium Kaylie Smart 801-376-0677
PUBLIC AUCTION
Woodburn Auto Auction Steve Morin 503-981-8185 Petersen Auction Group of Oregon Curt & Susan Davis 541-689-6824 SECURITY
Pro-Vigil Kris Brackin 210-858-1105 SERVICE CONTRACTS
AUL Corporation Jacqueline Swank 800-826-3207 Elite Warranty, Inc Al Ham 503-530-0912 Automotive Business Developers Shannon Meany 541-944-9186 Benchmark Dealer Services Jacob Bangert 360-834-3333 Protective Asset Dylan Doran 818-836-1455
Auto Cap Services (ACS) Michael Smith 800-800-6494
OIADA BOARD OF DIRECTORS President Siamak Lotfi
Secretary/Treasurer Salvador Alvarez Herrera Zamora Auto Sales
Executive Vice President Jim Weaver
Chairman of the Board Gary Sargent
OIADA 9150 SW Pioneer Ct Ste H Wilsonville, OR 97070 Phone: 503-362-6839 Fax: 503-364-7331
1st Vice President Gary Brooks
JOIN OIADA AND RECEIVE THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS IN DISCOUNTS 4 OIADA MAY 2019 WWW.OIADA.COM
Oregon Auto Finance Gary Veum 541-868-0472 The Equitable Finance Co. Brandon Fox 503-808-7939 Pac West Credit LLC John Kiefer 541-868-2595 United Finance Todd May 503-238-6488 Oregon Community Credit Union Rich Black 541-681-6311 Nationwide NW Glenn Wheeler 678-735-0341 Credit Concepts Inc Jason Moon 541-342-8545 Veros Credit John Pierce 714-415-6125 x21131 Reliable Credit Associations David Marx 503-462-3022 Ted Investment LLC Tom Garza 503-213-1109
• $ 1,150 Auction Discounts * $100-150 in Forms Discounts •F ree Continued Education Credits * Discounts on all Classroom Ed •U p to $16,000 with NIADA Discounts * OIADA Staff Support Call OIADA at 503-362-6839 or go to OIADA.com and click on Membership Application.
MARKETING MATTERS
HOW TO EARN A STEADY FLOW OF BUSINESS
REPEAT
| By Kenny Atcheson
AND
REFERRAL
Many independent dealers are reliant upon tax season to make or break their year. Wouldn’t it be great to have the ability to generate an endless, steady flow of customers at a reliable and predictable pace rather than waiting for the annual tax season bump? That’s what an R&R System can do for your dealership. R&R is my abbreviation for Repeat and Referral business. One system earns both Rs because the same behaviors that earn one earn the other. The first step to having an incomegenerating R&R System is to make a decision to put forth effort, devote time, and invest money into a system. System is italicized here to stress its importance. Occasionally asking customers for a referral or to buy again is not a system. That is a random act of marketing. A Repeat and Referral System Provides Stability To illustrate the point, let’s look at things that aren’t so stable. A company reliant upon cold calls likely struggled big time when the Do Not Call list and other similar laws and regulations were enacted. The same thing happened with broadcast fax and later texting. Then there were changes in the marketplaces, such as DVRs and the way media may or may not be delivered. People don’t want to sit through commercials, so they record shows. ACCELERATE
SYSTEM
Newspaper organizations struggle. Yellow Pages are moving from print to digital. An overnight algorithm change in Google can cause your company’s search engine rankings to plummet. Your business could go from ranking number one to disappearing off the first page of Google in the blink of an eye – by one algorithm change. It happens all the time. In 2016, Google AdWords Pay-Per-Click went from ranking 10 ads to four ads on the right side of the first page. If your business succeeded by ranking number five when there were 10 companies listed, your ad likely disappeared overnight when the list dropped to four. Then the world really shifted toward mobile. If your advertisements were geared for people who used desktop computers or laptops, you faced another challenge unless your website was already mobile-friendly. These are just a few laws, rules, and changes. If your company has a great referral system in place that is implemented regularly, referrals and repeat purchases will come at a steady and somewhat predictable pace. Think of repeat purchases as previous customers who refer themselves. Implement the same behaviors and systems to generate referral customers that you use to generate repeat customers. An R&R System is Under-the-Radar “I don’t know why that dealership is so successful while we struggle. We have similar inventory and I don’t think they advertise.”
This is what the head of your competition will likely say when you have a powerful force of referral soldiers who battle every day to send business your way. I am a fan of under-the-radar strategies. It is hard for a competitor to copy a constant flow of referrals, because they have no idea why you are having so much success. Occupy Space in Your Customers’ Minds Your customers don’t spend nearly as much time thinking about your dealership as you would hope – no matter how great their experience was. While tailgating outside a football game, if your customer was asked by a friend if they knew of a great dealership, your customer would probably recommend your business. But if your customer overheard two people talking about needing a good dealership, would your customer go out of their way to politely interrupt the conversation and recommend you? This would require your customer’s escalating motivation to refer your dealership. To occupy space in your customers’ brains at all times – including situations where they are motivated to refer business to your dealership – you must provide great experiences and communicate regularly. Sure, occasional big customer events are great. But continuous communication that offers fun, value, and prizes via print and email newsletters is a continuous method to occupy brain space – including the grey matter that reminds them about your businesses when a situation arises to refer your dealership. Referrals provide stability and consistency. Many behaviors and systems that are implemented to increase referrals also increase repeat purchases. Keep that in mind when you consider the effort or investment it takes to communicate consistently with your existing customers. Kenny Atcheson is the founder and president of Dealer Profit Pros and author of Marketing Battleground: How to Deploy Under-theRadar Strategies to Explode Your Profits. Learn more at www.DealerProfitPros.com.
WHEN YOU CAN’T SELL MORE, SELL SOMETHING BETTER | By GWC Warranty
IMPROVE BACKEND PROFITS
Let’s look at ways you can begin upselling more often and improving back-end profits even when your service contract penetration is right where you want it. Start the Conversation Early Advertising basic level coverage, like with a Certified program, helps plant the seed early on and gets customers on board with the principles behind service contract protection. Once customers are bought in on the ground floor, you then have the foundation needed to get them to a higher level of coverage. Stick with What Works Over and over, you’ll hear mention of the
menu approach and the 300 percent rule. Both are proven tactics that can be repeated in the F&I office for consistent success. Presenting good, better, and best options and working your way down from the top coverage you offer is the best way to help customers see the value in richer coverage. And it’s important that you do this every time, without exception. Practice Makes Perfect Not just with the menu technique but also with overcoming objections, the more you practice, the more successful you’ll be. You can schedule workshops with your team or
work on your skills with on-demand online resources like Virtual Training to ensure you and your team stay sharp in these critical areas. Keep the End Result in Mind Better coverage means increased profits and happier customers. Don’t discount the long-term profit opportunities and repeat business that can come as a side effect to selling better coverage. When your customers are well protected and can avoid out-ofpocket repair bills, they’ll undoubtedly sing your praises to family and friends and on review sites across the web. WWW.OIADA.COM MAY 2019 OIADA 5
BE THE COACH YOUR PEOPLE DESERVE
COVER STORY
MANAGEMENT MATTERS | By Dave Anderson
ARE
YOU
A
CRITIC
Ken Blanchard called feedback the “breakfast of champions,” and rightfully so. We all need feedback to grow and develop to our fullest potential. When done properly, coaching those on your team and giving them quality feedback is one of the highest return uses of your time. However, when it comes to giving feedback, many leaders today are more of a critic than a coach. They point out what’s wrong without offering the individual any coaching that would allow them to adjust and bring better performance day in and day out. Criticism without coaching doesn’t elevate people – it frustrates people. What follows are some key principles of coaching, and some steps to make sure you’re the coach your people deserve, and not just a critic of them. But first, let’s discuss what it means to be a critic and what it means to be a coach so you can better assess your style of giving feedback. A critic is defined as “one who expresses displeasure or an unfavorable opinion about someone or something.” Simply put, criticism without coaching is merely expressing displeasure and leaving it at that – not exactly the balanced feedback “breakfast” necessary to grow, develop, and invest in the people on our team. A coach, on the other hand, is “someone who gives private teaching, a trainer or coach.” Make no mistake, a coach will also express displeasure concerning poor behaviors or performance, but the difference is he or she will also provide instruction on how to improve. With a better understanding of what it means to be a critic and a coach, let’s look further at the differences between them. To improve performance, a coach will provide feedback concerning poor performance and immediately follow it up by redefining a performance expectation. The coach will do this both conversationally and sincerely, without getting personal, profane, loud, or reminding the offender of their past flaws and faults as the critic does. To improve performance a good
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OR
A
COACH?
coach will show the person what good performance looks like. By redefining the performance expectation with the individual, you’re setting the standard. By modeling and demonstrating the good performance you’re looking for, you’re setting the example. To further reinforce his or her point, the coach will explain why it’s important to perform the task or duty in the manner prescribed. A great demonstration of what you’re looking for, by itself, is not enough to help coach the individual to greater levels of performance. This is why the best leaders in any field explain the “why” behind it. They understand people are more likely to apply the “how,” and live with the “what,” if they first understand the “why.” To test the individual’s comprehension of the feedback and the example demonstrated, a coach will ask the person to perform the task again to demonstrate their understanding of the proper technique. The only way you can know for sure that people get it is to test them, and let them show you they’ve got it. If the person requires further training to be able to perform the task or create the desired outcome, the coach will provide the resources necessary to support the person. Strong cultures understand talent doesn’t arrive fully developed, and a ferocious dedication must be made to training, coaching, and mentoring employees. Identifying and resourcing a team member’s growth by providing tools, experience, mentors, training or additional practice are key ways the coach supports and helps build the skillset necessary for the person to perform well. Once the performance improves, a coach will reinforce the change or improved behavior. This is because behaviors that are reinforced and rewarded are more likely to be repeated. But remember, the longer you wait to reinforce the behavior, the less impact it has. Reinforce often and quickly when you’re trying to influence behavioral and performance changes.
If necessary, the coach will establish consequences for the performer if the poor behavior or performance continues. If you want to change a behavior, you must change the consequence for that behavior. As the saying goes, “If nothing changes, nothing changes.” Even when establishing consequences, a good coach will affirm belief in the performer and his or her ability. This is because the coach understands the consequence being established is something they’re doing for the person, not to the person. The sole objective of a consequence is to improve performance. In summary, a critic is good at finding and pointing out faults or flaws. While a coach does likewise, his or her primary objective is to create the structure and tools necessary to eliminate the flaws. The coach is not just a “finder” but a “fixer.” With these points in mind, are you more of a critic or a coach? If you were to randomly survey team members on your coaching and feedback abilities, would they agree? If not, or if you’re unsure, the good news is you can fix that by bringing more focus to applying the principles shared here and adding value to your people, so they in turn can add more value to the organization. If you have good people who are being hamstrung by criticism without coaching, don’t expect them to endure or stay in your ranks for long. They won’t put up with the abuse, nor should they. Step up and be the coach they deserve – don’t wait until it’s too late to do so. Dave Anderson, “Mr. Accountability,” is a leading international speaker on personal and corporate performance improvement. He is also the author of 14 books and host of the podcast, The Game Changer Life.
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ONLINE MARKETING
| By Adam Tobias
HOW TO BUILD A BETTER DEALERSHIP WEBSITE
3
STEPS
In the increasingly competitive car dealership industry, brand loyalty is more important than ever. It’s also harder than ever to build. Cutting through the noise requires a clear message and focus on the customer experience. Standing out and building a loyal customer base may seem impossible. But small and mid-sized dealerships around the country are punching back and delivering amazing experiences that win lifetime customers. Brand loyalty is still possible for dealerships to attain. And when they do, the benefits are incalculable. EXAMPLE: A
A dealer’s website is their first impression with a potential customer. That’s where our brand loyalty journey begins. The Purpose of Every Dealership Website Dealership websites have one job: Get customers to visit the dealership. Car buyers today spend over 60 percent of their time conducting research online and visit only 1.2 dealerships on average. If your website doesn’t convince a buyer to visit your dealership, you have lost a deal, and potentially a lifetime customer. The problem is most dealers try to do too much with their website. Instead of focusing on their sole job – getting customers into the dealership – dealers load their sites with financial services, their life story, and vehicles that customers don’t want to see. For this reason, most dealership websites are hard to navigate. The customer doesn’t know what to do, so they leave your site and go on to the next one. The best dealership websites – those that effectively drive customers to the dealership – show customers only the information they need to know. Everything else is a distraction. IMPROVING YOUR WEBSITE IN 3 STEPS Here are three elements that matter most for your website. By focusing on these three elements, you can cut out the junk that distracts customers and turns them away.
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Element 1: Value Proposition Oli Gardner is a master of building great websites. As co-founder of Unbounce, Oli spends his days thinking about and testing how websites can convert more users into customers. In a recent podcast, Oli discussed dealership websites and the importance of clearly communicating your value proposition to your customers: “If you can’t communicate [your value proposition] quickly, your competitor will,” said Oli. “If you can’t communicate quickly, your competitor will.”
“Amber and the team were extremely helpful. No pressure and they were attentive to our needs. Great experience. We will definitely be back for our next purchase. Amber answered all our questions, even met us on her day off and followed up the next day via text to ensure we were happy. Financing was quick and painless. The whole process was under two hours.” Reviews that seem over-the-top, or even fake, can do more harm than good. Dealerships should encourage customers to leave honest reviews. Never create fake testimonials or encourage customers to write
EXAMPLE: B
Oli said you have less than five seconds to make your value proposition clear to visitors. If you don’t, they will move on to the next site. When a customer first visits your website, they have one question on their mind: What can you do for me? The answer to that question is your value proposition. Dealerships should put their value proposition at the top of their homepage. Remove other messages that might distract from it, including financing deals, weekend sales, and messages from the dealer. Most dealers struggle to do this, but when they do, the difference is clear. The dealership website in “Example A” is easy to read and has a clear value proposition: “Family owned for 35 years. 5 minute approvals.” Your value proposition is a signal to your target customer they are in the right place. Remove clutter from the homepage so your most important message stands out. Element 2: Testimonials/Social Proof Customers are always on the lookout for scams and bad companies. They want to see proof you’ve made customers happy in the past. Testimonials are the best way to put a wary customer’s mind at ease. Testimonials should be honest, authentic, believable and relatable. Here’s an example of an excellent testimonial for a dealership in Oregon:
“favorable” reviews. People can sniff out inauthenticity a mile away. They will steer clear of your dealership and find another. Element 3: Call to Action Button Finally, your website needs a call to action: a clearly-defined next step for customers to take. Most websites look like “Example B.” This homepage has at least 10 different calls to action, with everything from “Shop inventory” to “Claim your Offer!” With so many elements vying for your customer’s attention, the action they’re most likely to take is leaving your site. When it comes to CTAs, clarity is king. Your homepage should have no more than three “actions” for customers to take. Ideally, your website offers a single CTA. Brand loyalty starts with the dealership website. If you promise an excellent car-buying experience, make sure your website provides an excellent experience, too. Dealership websites should be clear, trustworthy, and easy to navigate. Focus on the most important elements of your site and remove the clutter. Dealers who do this will be best positioned to build brand loyalty and earn lifetime customers. Adam Tobias is the co-founder and COO of Dealercue, which provides dealerships with real-time, intelligent, market-driven vehicle appraisal, pricing, inventory management, and sourcing solutions. He can be reached at adam@dealercue.com.
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WASHINGTON UPDATE | By Shaun Petersen
GOVERNMENT REPORT NIADA is your voice in Washington D.C., advocating for independent dealers, the used vehicle industry and small business. Here’s a look at the latest news and NIADA efforts regarding legislative, regulatory, PAC and grass roots activities.
LEGISLATIVE Privacy a priority: Privacy issues have become a high priority on Capitol Hill in the wake of a recent report from the Government Accountability Office that recommended Congress consider enacting a federal Internet privacy law. The GAO found no comprehensive U.S. Internet privacy law governs private companies’ collection, use or sale of users’ data and said Congress should take action to protect consumers. Andrew Smith, director of the Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, testified last month before the House Oversight and Reform Committee’s Subcommittee on Economic and Consumer Policy, describing the FTC’s role in overseeing the data security practices of credit reporting agencies and enforcing data security laws. Those laws include the FTC Act, which prohibits unfair or deceptive acts or practices, the Fair Credit Reporting Act, which requires CRAs to provide consumer reports only to entities that have a permissible purpose for receiving them, and the Gramm-LeachBliley Act, which requires CRAs and other institutions to safeguard nonpublic personal information. Smith testified that the FTC favors comprehensive data security legislation that would give it additional tools such as civil penalty authority, jurisdiction over common carriers and nonprofits, and targeted rulemaking authority. Small business advocate: On March 27, the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship unanimously approved the nomination of David C. Tryon as chief counsel for advocacy of the Small Business Administration. If approved by the full Senate, Tryon will be responsible for educating lawmakers and regulators as an advocate for small business in the federal government’s agencies and rulemaking processes. NIADA was among 30 small business organizations that signed a letter sent to committee chairman Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and committee members in support of Tryon’s nomination. The Small Business Administration is an important ally to NIADA and independent dealerships within the federal government. SBA has participated in the NIADA National Policy Conference and has worked with NIADA on a number of issues relevant to dealers. With Tryon in the advocate role, SBA will be better positioned to advance the interests of independent dealers and small businesses.
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David C. Tryon
REGULATORY On March 7, the Department of Labor issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that would make more than a million more American workers eligible for overtime. The new rule would increase the salary threshold for employees to be exempt from overtime requirements by almost $12,000 per year, to $35,308 per year ($679 per week). Currently, employees with a salary of less than $23,660 per year ($455 per week) must be paid overtime if they work more than 40 hours per week, while workers making at least that salary level can be eligible for overtime based on their job duties. The new rule is intended to update the threshold – last set in 2004 – using current wage data projected to Jan. 1, 2020. DOL is seeking public comment on the rule, and specifically on its proposal calling for periodic reviews to update the salary threshold. DOL said it developed the proposal with extensive public input from six in-person listening sessions held around the nation and more than 200,000 comments as part of a request for information in 2017. The proposed rule maintains the current rule’s overtime protection for police officers, firefighters, paramedics and nurses, as well as non-management productionline employees and non-management employees in maintenance, construction and similar occupations. The proposal does not include automatic adjustments to the salary threshold. NIADA is reviewing the details of the proposal and will submit appropriate comments. We encourage dealers to consider commenting as well. For more information, visit www.dol.gov/ whd/overtime2019. Comments about the proposed rule can be submitted at www. regulations.gov, in the rulemaking docket RIN 1235-AA20.
PAC NIADA-PAC hosted Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) at a business roundtable April 25 at Big Tex Auto Mart in Dallas. A contingent of about 20 dealers and association leaders gave Rep. McHenry a tour of the dealership, explaining how the used car business works, the services it provides and the obstacles faced by independent dealers every day, and discussed many of the issues currently being considered by Congress that impact the industry. McHenry is the ranking Republican on the House Financial Services Committee, whose jurisdiction includes oversight of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. NIADA and our PAC encourage association members to invite your elected representatives – at the federal, state and local levels – to visit your dealership. It is the single most effective thing you can do as a dealer to educate those representatives about what you do, how your business works and how the laws and regulations they create affect you and your business in the real world. Erika and Robert Blankenship
GRASS ROOTS Texas IADA is supporting a bill that has been introduced in the state legislature that would eliminate a form that limits a customer’s choice of where to title a vehicle and give dealers the authority to transfer the vehicle’s title in any of the state’s counties. As part of TIADA’s lobbying efforts, Erika Blankenship testified before the Texas House’s Transportation Committee in support of the bill. Blankenship and her husband Robert are owners of RLB Texas Auto Center in Austin – winner of NIADA’s National Quality Dealer award in 2017. She serves as chair of TIADA’s legislative committee and is a member of the NIADA legislative and regulatory affairs committee. Shaun Petersen is NIADA’s senior vice president of legal and government affairs.
SOCIAL MEDIA TIPS FOR CAR SALESPEOPLE
SOCIAL MEDIA | By Kathi Kruse
PUT
YOUR
PROFESSIONAL
Building a recognizable professional brand opens up professional opportunities. Social media can be very helpful for car salespeople to build authority, engage current and wouldbe customers, and set appointments. Every time you are online, in a meeting, at a conference, networking reception, or even a backyard BBQ, be mindful of the following: 1) What others are experiencing about you. 2) What you want others to experience about you. In each of your engagements, your customers, peers and even friends and family are evaluating you. When you’re solid in your professional brand, there is no difference between #1 and #2. As a car salesperson, being new to this idea of a professional brand can be challenging. However, when you begin to see yourself living through the “lens of a brand,” your
BRAND
perspective will change and you’ll become more mindful about how you approach the professional brand you are trying to define and aiming to live. Customers have changed how they shop: ·9 5 percent of car buying begins online (Google). ·9 6 percent of consumers are influenced by online reviews (eMarketer). ·8 0 percent of car buyers are more likely to turn to social media than a salesperson (Crowdtap). · There is expectation of price without having to talk to anyone (DrivingSales). · The average consumer visits 1.6 dealerships in person (Autotrader). Putting your own professional brand into action allows you to greet the customer where they are and help facilitate a purchase (or a purchase through their friends and family).
INTO
ACTION
We call this “social selling.” These five “social selling” steps will help you put your professional brand into action. Look Your Best Your image is just as important in the digital world as it is in the real world. Online, your profile image is the first thing prospective clients will see. Make a good impression with a professional image that isn’t too stuffy but still makes you look trustworthy and friendly. The copy in your bio on any social network has to accomplish everything a greeting, handshake or elevator pitch would do in person. Write every word with your prospect in mind and write in the first person, not the third. And be sure to very clearly share your contact info. Share multiple avenues if there is room.
On a site like LinkedIn, where you have more real estate to expand upon in your summary section, tell a story about who you are, why you do what you do and how you can help. Remember, LinkedIn is different from a resume. Use your headline not just for your title but also for a short phrase or keyword explaining how you help your clients.
of how you should adapt your efforts to deliver even better results. Track these metrics and set personal goals to improve: · Inbound connections and network growth. ·C ontent engagement rate (how many people are engaging with your content each week?). ·F ollower quality (followers who find and engage with your content). Build Your Credibility · Prospect referrals. Your store has a solid reputation, but do · Lead activity. you? Social networks can help you build your Pro tip: LinkedIn has a “Social Selling Index” personal brand. With every Facebook post, (SSI). LinkedIn should be one of your preferred Instagram post, LinkedIn comment or Tweet, channels to prospect. Check out your own SSI you can grow your reputation and establish a at business.linkedin.com/sales-solutions/socialsolid foundation. selling/the-social-selling-index-ssi. It’s a great record of your authentic self and a great place to demonstrate your understanding Monitor Relevant Conversations to Find of your industry and potential clients. Prospects High credibility can be achieved by sharing The most effective tactic to understand what relevant articles about the auto industry and your prospects want and need is to listen to your dealership as well as adding thoughtful them. You can then customize your messaging insights to conversations and solving problems and/or offering based on this knowledge. All your prospects may have. you need to do is pay attention to what your It’s all in the name of establishing trust. When prospective and current customers are saying. you share interesting thoughts, others will reMonitor relevant conversations about your share them, tag you or start a conversation with vehicles to see what issues existing customers you. are experiencing. Maybe they’re venting their frustrations about your service on social Track Your Social Selling Efforts media. Or they could be raving about you but The best way to get better at social selling is mentioning some areas that need improvement. by learning from your existing efforts. Collect You can make use of all of this information to insights from your current efforts and see what’s provide solutions to your existing customers and effective as well as what isn’t. address their issues. So you’ll be nurturing your Based on this data, ask yourself what you should be doing differently and what you can do relationship with them to enhance their loyalty. Pro tip: Participate and engage in Facebook better. This can help you gain clearer direction
and LinkedIn Groups. You can share your valuable expertise and content, ask relevant questions or engage with group members to build a relationship. Find Your Prospects Social networks are a great place to learn more about your potential clients. Pay attention: where do your potential clients turn to seek more information about problems they may have? Do they belong to a LinkedIn group? A public or private Facebook group? A weekly Twitter chat? Plant yourself there, listen to their conversations and get involved. While LinkedIn is the place to turn for business connections, Twitter has a much better search function and has a lower barrier to entry. You can follow anyone you want, from a CEO to a celebrity, and they don’t have to accept your request as they do on LinkedIn or Facebook. They might even follow you back. Once you’ve found some prospects, they may be able to lead you to others. For example, check out whom they are following and start following those people as well. On LinkedIn, some of the best conversations happen in industry-specific groups. Check the profiles of your prospects and see which groups they are a part of, and then join them. Kathi Kruse is an automotive social media marketing expert, blogger, consultant, author, speaker and founder of Kruse Control Inc., which coaches, trains and delivers webinars focused on integrating social media and online reputation management into dealership operations. She can be reached at kathi@krusecontrolinc.com.
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