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Let’s Remember Who It’s About: Not You!

Have you ever listened to a profressional salesperson? No, no, really. Have you ever listened to a proferssional salesperson? Those skilled in the trade are fantastic about doing one thing extremely well: allowing the customer to understand that it's about them, what's in it for them and how important they are. Those with truly exceptional skill allow people to talk themselves into buying.

So why in the heck have trainers and consultants been ruining it for customers walking into dealerships by knocking some of the following word tracks and customer approaches into salespeople's heads:

"I will do whatever it takes to earn your business"

"I've received your information, I've checked that the car is still here, I've spoken with my manager about the price and I only need to know right now if you have a trade in"

"I need to know what it will take to get you down here right now"

"I will answer all of your quesitons and I hope to meet you soon"…

In visiting and mystery shopping dealerships all over the country, it is more apparent than ever that salespeople not only like to talk about themselves, they're trained to. The less skilled they are, the more it happens. That's got to be worth everything from the OEM-paid local course, to the $1,500 conference, to the $5,000-10,000 per-day in-house super-duper-trainer with 30 years experience.

Folks, who is everything about? The customer. You will never make it about the customer talking about yourself. Ever! And that is what 3-month newbies to 25+ years veterans do all day long. And if the communication is over the phone or email versus face-to-face, add even more to the irritating factor. Can we all agree that, for the most part, the person that a prospect is talking to is assumed to be their salesperson or at least a sales contact? OK, now that we are passed that, move the focus from you to them…

For the past seven years, the education we bring to dealers and the coaching we bring to sales teams is consistent:

!. Eliminate "I" and change your word tracks to "you"

2. Make everything about the customer, first.

3. Change the delivery to talk about what the cusotmer receives, how it benefits them, when they'll get it, how they'll get it and, absolutely last, who they'll get it from.

Nothing turns people off more than hearing about someone they don't know or care about tallking about themselves, what they're doing, what they need, what they can do and can't do, and how much they want to sell a car. #yawn

Changing communication and contact practices will increase contact, ppointment and how rates. Oh, and that sell more cars. Period.

 

Best Practices: Professional Insight, Powerful Results

September 5, 2014 by Gary May 0
What’s Not Coming In 2014: The Anti-Prediction

2013 brought us so much change that we thought it would be best to provide you with a non-prediction, non-forecast, non-reflective perspective…just to throw you off (and get a few more reads). Cut to the chase right now? Naw…let's tease you a bit:

So we still live in a world hell-bent on immediate gratification. The perfect report. Flawless analytics. Immediate results. Impeccable product. Amazing customer service. And all for less than last year. Or last week…and our clients' clients want that, too.

Our challenges remain the same as they were over 13 years ago when the Auto Industry beckoned to me, selling cars to customers "over the Internet". Customers want a seamless, enjoyable experience that allows them to receive value, benefit and satisfaction. From consideration to contact to confirmation to courting to contract. We seem to fail at the essential points: reaching then, setting appointments and storing/sorting data.

Better websites and SEO and SEM and social media and reputation management, better products and marketing and incentives all show the glaring deficiencies we have as an industry when it still takes about 24 hours to get back to a "lead", make actual contact less than 40% of the time and sell under 10% (really under 8%) of them…

So our prediction is nothing will change; nothing more than a tick on the needle of progress. Oh sure, more dealers will do a "better job", their OEM and vendor suits will tell them so. Yes, for the most part the pie will shift its slices however it won't grow like it should.

More consolidation of vendors will happen. Manufacturers will continue roll out and/or mandate mediocre programs while not selling more cars or knowing how to actually measure a thing. Some of 2013's stars will fade while others will receive the spotlight. "Of course, that's the cyclical ways of commerce" you say…we say bull hooey.

2014 is the 20th year of the Automotive Internet, however over half of the market is still waking up to their year one. This is not meant to piss on anyone's parade, however it is a wake up call to the still-asleep-at-the-wheel. Those clinging to their manipulated audits while flying the flappy arm blow up man or building-sized animal, swearing that 3,000 people came in with their direct mail piece…

You can buy the new adaptive thingy. Roll out the chat-to-dance app. Boost your presence with the social-speed transmission. Serve mobile burritos to your clients. Then wrap it all up with some pay-per-view ultimate fighting service sauce. Or not change a thing and sell and maintain just about what you did in 2013. Why go through a business existence like this?

We need real education and investment. Not "training" and "cost". Curiosity killed the cat. And fear is the lengthened shadow of ignorance. So what will you do to support success before the next snake oil rep comes in with the "must have" toy or NADA party pass if you sign up?

2014 will not change a thing. Your customers will, if you allow them. Your OEM will not change a thing. Your service manager will, if you allow them. Your inventory will not change a thing. Your new actions will, if you allow them.

#     #     #

Note: we've been quiet for a long, long time here on our blog. The "experiment" is done and we'll be more active again. So if you'd like to see a subject covered, let us know here, on Twitter, Facebook or by contacting us directly (310) 377-6481 or info at imacsweb.com.

A lot is in store for IM@CS in 2014 and we'd love to have you along for the ride. Not making it to NADA? Set up an assessment meeting with Gary, JD or Evelyn (for our Canadian friends), we are honoring 2013 pricing until January 15…

Thank you for reading (and participating on) our blog as we start year six of doing so for the Automotive Industry's superstars: the dealers.

December 29, 2013 by Gary May 0
I fought the law and the law won…? Bullshizzle!

From time to time, it’s good to get a strong dose of
perspective or reality, depending who is describing reality. It’s easy to see
why business owners, and especially car dealers, are so confused when it comes
to doing anything, let alone well, in the digital/online space. Diluted
solutions that favor data over results and backed more by marketing genius than
true muscle are more common than wannabe starlets at Hugh Heffner’s gigs at the
mansion.

Our reality comes in doses while checking out new markets, our
client’s competitors, vendors’ pitch materials or the information the factory
eCommerce rep brings around to dealers, from time to time.

The information age is lacking in one large area for
businesses; in correct information! In a day where so called experts are giving
misleading or incorrect directions, ad agencies are still F-bombing (oops,
errant posts to) client social media accounts, SEO companies are still using
offshore link/content farms and studies show, for some reason, that 2009 data
still needs to be shared on stage as new, not enough people are calling folks
out. No, those companies are still getting hired and you’re still using them!

Reality check is you have to consume large amounts of
correct information at breakneck speed today to keep up. Mind you, we’re not
talking about leading, just keeping up. And most dealers aren’t doing
that.

Sure, everyone knows how to eat an elephant. Right? one bite
at a time. But trying to take a sip of the digital waters, for most, has been
like drinking from a fire hose or the bottom of a waterfall. A little
overbearing! Car dealers…get out of your comfort zone and take a big gulp!!

As you prepare to start 2013, here are a few things to think
about and maybe, just maybe, put to action:

  • Your website should not be the same as your
    closest in-brand competitor. This is not a vendor thing; it’s a content thing.
  • Your emails should not be the same as any local
    competitor. This is not a vendor thing; it’s a people thing.
  • Your social network content should not be the
    same as any local competitor. This is not a vendor thing; it’s a smart thing.

In 2013, the manufacturers clearly want their stores to be
as uniform as possible: experience, showroom, content, website/mobile, email
and more. Fight it tooth and nail.  The
majority of endorsed vendors are not there for you, they are there for
them.  The norm sucks…so don’t settle for
it.

The more consumers expect a unique experience, the more our
industry fights it. Why? Because it’s not easy to do things that way; even
though more of you are just giving in.

The smallest portion of the budgets in our industry, still,
happens to be the digital ones. This is a top-down mentality, starting with the
manufacturers. Oh, and don’t let the desire to govern response times and having
your wrists slapped over a vehicle image with the wrong lug nuts stop you from
having a kick ass digital presence and drive more customers to your front door.
Do things right the first time and get wet. Get really, really, really, really
wet from the digital hose. It’s the only way to lead.

Best Practices: Professional Insight, Powerful Results

 

November 10, 2012 by Gary May 0
Go Ahead, Keep Rebuilding The Mousetrap. Tip: You’re Trying To Catch A Cheetah

Stop what you're doing. Right now! Look back, quickly. Look back for a while. No, not over your shoulder silly. If you've been at least somewhat involved in the digital realm over the past 3-6 years, take a hard look back. What have you done? Where did your advice come from? How much time have you lost? How much momentum have you gained? How many wins have you had? And how many losses?

Everything changes, we know that. We also know that one man's garbage is another man's treasure. So in your looking back, what have you really learned? This is a little beacon asking you to close the door (or if you're in a cube or BDC or somewhere without a door, pretend to) and think about who, what and to where you were following. This is not a call to go back to basics, which is garbage, however it's a call to think. For yourself.

Too often we go with those that have been penned as the thought leaders, gurus, experts, published authorities, subject matter experts, pros, top of their gamers and the like. So that begs a question: what has been constant in your digital presence for the last three years? Four? Five?

Chances are, not much.

Fact is a lot of people, namely business owners and executive management, are scratching their heads over the past months asking themselves "why did we go down the (fill in initiative here) road?". Is SEO alive or dead? Does social media work or not? Did the new close work or deter customers? Was mobile marketing right or wrong? Great questions. Think about it this way: did your last tent event sell lots of cars? But….that's not digital, right? A tent event or massive offsite lot sale is not, true. Neither should your thinking.

All those things promote traffic, sales, new customers, conquest, retention and more. Of course they do…you can ALWAYS sell. Digital strategies are no different than picking up a good book. They're cause to make you think. Not copy! Short term gains never win over long term thinking. And to think you need to know or be on the path to knowing better.

Sometimes it's funny how operators operate. There's a lot to be said about how dealers are afraid. They're afraid to spend or try new things or go off into unchartered territory. Not to defend them, the truth is they're bombarded. And by everyone that has something to sell from $.02 pens to $20M facilities. And the shiny new thingamabob fits squarely somewhere in between.

So in your reflection, look as specifically as possible at what was done over your foray into the digital world, and what was not done. You see a lot of people are selling new mousetraps and reworking the old ones. Yes, for the most part they work better. You can only be a judge, just like with a book or white paper or study at a conference, after the fact. And quite a few have benefitted over the past years due to their desire and ability to win in the digital realm and congrats to those who have.

Just a heads up that you're trying to catch a cheetah, not a mouse. A cheetah can still run at over 60 miles per hour with a mousetrap clipped onto its paw. That is until it gets smashed to smithereens and the cheetah goes on as if nothing ever happened. There are so few mice in the digital realm today and most have mousetrap detectors.

There are some big things coming. Here is a heads up that the next big thing is not in hardware, software, advertising, marketing, mobile apps, CRM, retargeting or templates. You'll have to think about it. For those that do get it the remainder of 2012 and 2013, as well as going forward, will be easier.

If this was a hard one to understand, keep reading and coming back. And thank you.

If you got this, see you at the DrivingSales Executive Summit October 21-23 at Bellagio in Las Vegas…and please keep reading. We'd love to hear from you, you're our kind of business.

 

Best Practices: Professional Insight, Powerful Results

 

October 9, 2012 by Gary May 0
DrivingSales Executive Summit: Learning Over Listening

One of the things we're most passionate about is education. Above anything else, education moves businesses forward. You can sell them all day long, and most vendors would given the chance, but until education (and support) is part of the equation there is no momentum.

The DrivingSales Executive Summit has set itself apart from other conferences since its inception in 2009 and continues to do so today. This year's lineup of keynotes is incredibly impressive and the team at DrivingSales has set the bar higher once again. However the magic is in the breakouts, along with the innovation sessions, where dealership staff in attendance get to break out their notebooks, tablets and other note-taking technology and build executable strategies.

Last year's DSES delivered some of the most creative and independent means for dealers to lead their markets with digital marketing strategies. One of those sessions was Gary Sanders of Stevinson Lexus of Lakewood (Denver, CO) talking about what he and his dealership did to better set the stage for customers looking at their inventory online and to direct how conversations and conversions would take place.

Simply put, businesses innovating trumps those who simply copy and in today's market it is essential to win. It all starts with the ideas and strategies. As simple as this sounds, most sessions I've attended at the breath of events around the industry center around "you need to be doing this" rather than "this is how you do this".

Come to the DrivingSales Executive Summit in three weeks with an open mind, it will change your business. Yes, you'll be able to learn more than simply listening…

 

Best Practices: Professional Insight, Powerful Results

You can participate (read: actually participate) in the DSES session that Joe Webb and I share on Tuesday, October 23 at 3:55-4:40p Click here for the DSES agenda 
Remember to use code IMACS12 when regsitering for DSES

September 30, 2012 by Gary May 0
Are You Waiting? Still? Well…..Goodbye!

This is officially the beginning of the end for many. December 27, 2011. There will be a moment over the next couple to handful of years in which you'll reflect back to this post (or others like it) and say "oh crap". Or it may be the longer rendition which usually sounds something like "Why did I allow me to get in my way over and over again? Why did I shut down and refuse to change, giving garbage excuses?"

As time went on from December 27, 2011 Acute Death by Delusional Digital Defiance, we'll call it ADDDD for short, you invested more and more in the comfort zone, allowing vendors to do with you money and brand what they wanted and would essentially squandering opportunities while you were convinced you were actually doing something. Your business was actually disappearing at the same time everything looked the same from your vantage point behind the desk or golf cart steering wheel.

And who could blame you? You read the ads in the trades and took advice from your 20 Group and absorbed the Powerpoint presentations. You wrote the checks. You took the training, however often that someone actually showed up and you attended the conferences. It never dawned on you that everything you relied so heavily on was the white elephant in the room. You took the easy way out instead of asking the tough questions and not believing the hype. Simply put you allowed yourself to fail.

Why did this happen? You didn't take the road less traveled when the paths diverged in the woods. As far as you knew, you believed it wasn't supposed to be about "hard work" anymore: you're senior management or, better yet, a business owner. Add to that the whole "Internet thing" was just too difficult to understand and should be handled by young kids and "people who text a lot and surf the web".

So wind it down now so you don't experience the slow, deliberate march of self-induced death. Ignore the articles from Joe Webb prodding the salespeople that you mistreat (http://bit.ly/rVN66B) and from HubSpot on Harvard Business Review about Google changes (http://bit.ly/ub6iOH) that your website company will not talk about, or some trends to capitalize on (http://bit.ly/rU9VAt) and what's going on with mobile (http://bit.ly/smRSOt) from Search Engine Watch. You've been reading all of these…right?

Nope…"too busy running a business". More like "too ignorant to run a business"

So while you idly wait for the inevitable why don't you ask:

Your website company why:

  1. your pages have the same names and metadata
  2. you don't have model and trim level landing pages
  3. you don't have separate tracking numbers
  4. you don't have original content on your pages (heard of Google Panda?)
  5. you don't have a truly optimized mobile presence
  6. you can't track conversions on Google Analytics or your PPC/SEM
  7. they don't truly offer eCommerce
  8. their proouction team doesn't talk with their marketing team (ie SEO to SEM)
  9. they lack in customer support
  10. they're not up to date on what's happening with Google and social

Your CRM company why:

  1. you can't track email opens, bounces, links, shares, etc.
  2. you can't change headers and footers dynamically
  3. they don't append and integrate for text/mobile delivery
  4. you are still on servers and not on the cloud
  5. they don't offer true mobility
  6. they can't make lead duplication management much easier
  7. data "siloing" still existst (lead based: service/sales/finance)
  8. they're not up to date on what's happening with Google and social

Your social media company why:

  1. they don't actually write content
  2. what they do publish is redundant and automated (ie "Caption this photo" of dogs or cats)
  3. they don't create engagement
  4. they sold you on 20+ "social media sites/platforms" when traffic comes from 4-8 of them
  5. they pitch and don't produce (and not actually active on the networks at all themselves)
  6. they are disconnected from the store
  7. they're not up to date on what's happening with Google and social

Waiting? You've been told your entire life that good things come to those that wait. Well, we're here to set the record straight. Only the leaders thrive. You can wing it today, sure. There will be "those" that still make it with no true effort. However, it is a false existence and leads to ADDDD.

The grim reaper is coming and his sickle has your business' name on it. Are you waiting? Still? Well…..Goodbye!

Thanks to @HarryHaber and @BryanCarGuy for a little insight on the list of dealer pain points… you're great friends and car guys!

 

Best Practices: Professional Insight, Powerful Results

December 27, 2011 by Gary May 1
Accountability. Denial. Cover Up. A Losing Game.

We all come to proverbial "forks in the road" when it comes to performance, to delivering, to being reliable, to following up and ultimately to understanding what it takes to be better. There are mainly two types of being in business, away from the actual retail transaction if you look at things in very simple terms. Partnership and vendorship. They are both a state of being. Partnership is one thing: a cooperation. Vending is one thing: a delivery mechanism.

Over time all businesses play roles in one or both, likely both. While no person or no entity is perfect, it is in our best interest to actually perform to the best of our ability. It is also in our best interest to acknowledge what is done and undone. In a world where it is standard business to over-promise and under-deliver, when marketing trumps products and services, and reps and salespeople are most concerned with commissions or kickbacks, it is rare for someone to raise their hands and accept responsibility.

Recently I've had to experience both sides of the coin. One as a vendor and one as a partner of the client with another vendor. Watching, as we always do, from the outside, it is interesting to witness companies deal with requests (or demands) for products and/or services. We live it every day. Being first to accept responsibility no matter what. It's a fundamental approach to delivery and client satisfaction. Many argue with that philosophy. In the end, you end up reaping what you sow.

Nobody is wrong in arguing. It is natural to disagree. It is, however, wrong to stay in a position or unbending stance. No matter how comfortable we can become in believing what we vend is completely ideal, there is no such thing. And no company can profess, at least honestly, to no issues of dissatisfaction. This is another thing I've recently had to experience. It is a hopeful thing, just not achievable.

It is in all of our best interest to be teachable, flexible, to listen, ask and confirm as well as validate. In a partnership, these are musts. When these critically important things start to disappear and position is asserted, it is no longer a partnership. Companies need to understand that shouting in order to position or defending their position is detrimental. And not simply because it is being said here, but because most will say and acknowledge the simple fact.

So what do you want to provide? Many businesses seem to want to provide with the opportunity to partner. Some businesses seem to want to partner with the opportunity to provide. No cart or horse here. Not which came first. All of us want to prosper and profit. It is required to continue to provide services. But at what cost? It is true that you can't make everyone happy all of the time. But no business that has more than two customers has never had a squeaky wheel.

Over the next five months, when so much comes down to the pitch, the sell, the flash, the sizzle and the gorilla on the roof, it might just make a few vendors become partners if we all stop and recognize what we're doing this for. Customer service starts with a customer and ends with service. We must be accountable. If your service is operating at 60% efficiency, you might just find that your customer is 40% out the door. If you're paying attention. You can point at anything else that touches what you make, but it's still your responsibility.

Lack of accountability, denial or service, sweeping things under the rug and the like are just a losing game. Oh, it may take time. But it will happen. Businesses today want real. They need honest. They expect more. They deserve what they expect and definitely what they pay for.

Don't you? Act that way.

*No clients were harmed in the making of this post. But many are simply fed up.

 

Best Practices: Professional Insight. Powerful Results.

September 29, 2011 by Gary May 0
Don’t Let Social Media Get In The Way Of Your Success With It

We're bringing a petition to DrivingSales Executive Summit, JD Power Internet Roundtable, SEMA and NADA. But you can be first to sign it here and now. The law we're hoping to get passed in the retail automotive industry is "stop calling it social media and start calling it die without it". It's not something you try, experiment with, make efforts toward or the like. At least no more than you do with sales, service, F&I and your P&L. Do more. And stop thinking so much you can't do much.

Sick and tired of consumer communication and engagement, as well as fundamental business improvement, being hawked, pitched and sold by fly-by-night companies (as well as legitimate ones) with getcha-while-you're-looking tactics, it's time to discuss, use and improve platforms no differently than you would want a CRM or website technology used and improved.

Simple question: Do you want to stay in business? Your answer has to be all the way in yes or all of the way out no. There is no in between. Many (not all) companies that have tried to be somewhere in between over the past few years show up today as the many For Lease or Going Out Of Business signs on your daily drive. Don't think for a second that we're saying that had those businesses been in social media that they'd be vibrant and profitable today. Not at all.

But to sit and wait, guess and judge, delay and save or flat out refuse social media as part of your business strategy every day is the fastest path to demise today. Period. Remember that no one aspect of your business is a silver bullet. At the same time remember you can save yourself to death no differently than you can spend yourself to death. You're not "in" Twitter and Facebook. You're (hopefully) in business using a database/contact management system, a series of processes to sell, track and report, and a solid foundation of online media to showcase your business.

Saying "I'll try Facebook for 6 months and see if it works" is the same exact thing as saying "I'll try selling our services for 6 months and see if it works" or "I'll maintain my storefront for 6 months and see how that goes". If you want to see how things go, get committed or get out. If you truly aren't prepared for success in your own business, do it for someone else and leave the tools that professionals use to…a professional.

Blogs, Wikis, Display advertising/SEM, Review sites/reputation management, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Foursquare, Google Places and more are tools to be a more effective, yes effective, business. Not a trend-setter, not a groupie, not one of the cool places to hang or any other way of minimizing your way to profit. Can your business survive without being on Facebook? Chances are yes if at least for a short time. Can you survive without the fundamentals that have social media thriving and being "buzz" in mainstream media? Not for one New York minute, to steal a great song title from Don Henley.

So please don't let social media get in the way of your success with it, knowing you'll not experience success without it. Even if you don't set up that Twitter page you've been hemming and hawing about for a year… Oh, and one more thing. If you're a car dealership, don't pay $4,000 plus a month for social media services. That is unless you're getting a cut of the profit.

Best Practices: Professional Insight, Powerful Results

October 17, 2010 by Gary May 1
The Shortest Distance Between Two Lines Is A Straight Point

Another day has gone by in our industry and where are we? Did we break a record? Did we start a trend? Did we figure something out? Chances are we're in the same place we were 48 hours ago. While we'll leave the guessing how much other businesses out there have changed to the "experts" (yeah, we've got more of those today than we had yesterday!) but know for the most part we didn't blaze any new paths.

Another month has gone by and another interesting declination from a dealer that needs help (no, not the same one as one of our last posts):

"It's (so and so) from (such and such), is this a good time for you?"

"Uh, no. I'm working on ads for this weekend and Ive got a lot of other stuff to get done. You're either buying something from me or trying to sell me something. If you're trying to sell me something, it's the wrong time."

"That's completely understood."

"You'll have to call me back."

"Considering how busy you are, will you take my name and number?"

"No"

"OK, good bye"

While the distance continues to grow between the dealers that are moving forward and those that aren't grows, it's important to remind ourselves of where we're heading. You know, the road map. Goals set at the beginning of the year rather than two weeks ago. We all have them memorized now:

  • Regular review of website performance, stats, leads, etc
  • Weekly lead status and management
  • Complete (aka 100%) CRM use/integration for all departments
  • Updating of templates and scripts for all customer communication
  • Social media game plan
  • Reputation management
  • Vendor accountability
  • Read and participate more at events and online communities
  • Getting outside help occasionally because you can't staff for everything

It's not easy to look at all of the things thought or talked about considering everything that has to be done just to sell and service cars. Right?!?! Let alone add them to the heaping pile of responsibility that everyone has in automotive retail. Right?!?! Besides, it's hard selling cars today. Right?!?!

Wrong!!!! As Andy Dufresne put so well in Shawshank Redemption: Get busy living or get busy dying. Sure, you can bury your head deeper in the sand St. Diggerstein, or you can get real and get in business.

The shortest distance between two lines is a straight point. In other words one line is where you're at, the other is where you want to be. And the point is…go get after it. Quit stalling!! Besides, you said you're not going to fall for the banana-in-the-tailpipe.

Best Practices: Professional Insight, Powerful Results

August 19, 2010 by Gary May 0
Resolutions? Who Needs Resolutions? We’ve Got WORK To Do!

It's no coincidence that by using the term 'resolutions' as
temporary markers, we're able to miss our goals and targets. In an industry
that's usually more comfortable with what worked 10 years ago, why waste time
with "I wish"? Fact is, by resolving to do something it means that
you're going to do it.

If you're lacking resolve, find someone that can help you with it. This is not
a plea for you to run out and get a shrink, not at all. Rather being resolute
about how you manage your business, as a GM or a sales person or a porter, is entirely up
to how well you plan your work. And when you think about the work involved with
your entire online presence, business and infrastructure, it's not about being
the 'do it all person'. That method will lead to disaster.

2010 will be a dividing and defining year, but not by the forces
of government intervention, the factory guillotine, lack of the 'perfect' new model or even that location you've been eyeing for years. It will be a year of the haves and have nots: either your 3 P's (plan, people and partners) will provide you with the better option or not. Here is the best starting point that we can recommend rather than spitting out another list of vendors, processes or simple recommendations that can be easily duplicated next door:

1. Where are you? Why are you there? Think about this in terms of where your greatest opportunities are for growth. Some things are completely transparent, like Google rank results, conversion rates and revenue per PO (just as examples) and some are not, like sourcing, third-party expenses and advertising in untracked media.

2. Who's with you and who's not? If you've not weeded out your staff in a while, you're lying to yourself. There is some huge talent out there that can not only move the needle forward, they can likely add some sorely needed spark and sizzle to the rest of the people that claim to love coming to work. 'Stick In The Mud' and 'On The Bubble' are not a fun games to play for two years in a row…

3. What changed that you ignored or missed? Usually a massive change in results comes from more than the other franchise having a stellar month while you tanked. If something big shifted, start with asking your customers, your prospects and those that opted to go somewhere else. The insight will do more for you that pulling the wool over your eyes. This is not a 'social media play', this is a 'get yourself dirty play'.

4. Do you have buy in? Another thing to consider is who's behind you. If it's not a majority or all of your staff voting on how things get done, it's time to be open. Not humor, Not simply listen. It's do or die time and if people don't think you care about them , they won't care about you. (hey, customers think the same way. wow!) The 1976 way of handling sales and staff meetings should be 86'd.

We could go with 'finely tuned engine' or something cheesy like 'firing on all cylinders' but you have to do the things that will really impact your business. Aside from that you MUST fire vendors that don't do their job and stop excusing poor performance.

Today a dealer talked about taking the bold step of letting a vendor go that was so far from doing their job. At a rediculously low price. For something the store didn't really think about. Tomorrow, they're going to take it in-house, spend more money, get the job done right and will likely see the results from their efforts…two to three months from now. What are you doing that, if you'd take five minnutes to think about it, doesn't make sense.

If you can't find anything that's broken, here's another recommendation: Walk into a non-automotive business and whatever you notice that absolutely bothers the $#&^ out of you, ask your employees to stop doing it and take suggestions from them to improve. Why? Because there's a 95% chance that your business is doing the same thing.

2010 is full of promise. There will be those dealerships that hit the ball out of the park. There will be those that barely get on base consistently. There will be those that can't even get the batting helmet on. There will be those that aren't even in the game.

Your chance is to own the whole frickin game…

Best Practices: Professional Insight, Powerful Results

December 31, 2009 by Gary May 0