F&I and Showroom, December 2020

24 F I and Showroom December 2020 I If your dealership has a Forever Changed by COVID 19 list add leads to it For years we watched the number of leads decline as shoppers did whatever they could to avoid the inevitable sales attack theyve become accustomed to in automotive sales When the pandemic hit the game changed Dealerships upped their online retailing game creating new opportunities for consumers to raise their hand and start a conversation It is critical to look at what happens with your sales team once a lead is submitted It may be tempting to equate an increasing number of leads apply the same sales tactics and assume youll see more conversions The trouble is consumers dont want to be sold they want to start a conversation and that means dealers using old sales tactics are missing sales So where do you start Here are three steps you can take to equip your sales team BY CHRIS MARTIN SALES GETTYIMAGES COM Z_ WEI 1 SHIFT THE PARADIGM TO STARTING A CONVERSATION Shape your teams mentality Lets face it dealerships dont have a reputation for putting the consumer first Recently automotive has made small shifts towards experience but unfortunately not enough to up end decades of customer experiences A shopper who submits a lead wants to start a conversation To win today we must help sales teams think first about establishing a connection versus pressuring immediately for a sale Its up to us to keep that reality top of mind For salespeople to get their desired result they must switch the paradigm Redefine their goal People do what is measured and rewarded To have a team adopt a paradigm shift it must come with corresponding goals Creating goals that hold salespeople accountable to how quickly and how conversationally they engage leads will help your team change their mentality It is critical to look at what happens with your sales team once a lead is submitted Meet the consumers where they are and youll see the sales roll in Help your team build new habits Create talk tracks around each type of lead you are receiving These talk tracks need to be centered around the customers experience Once you have created the talk tracks and have shared them with your team its time to practice Roleplay these conversations with your team to accelerate buy in and create familiarity with what is likely a brandnew approach to each customer 2 FOLLOW THE LEADS LEAD Pay attention to communication channels Gone are the days where you engage every lead with a phone call If a shopper contacts you via email they expect an email back When a customer sends in a chat on your website they dont immediately want you to ask for their phone number They want you to answer the question or offer the information requested within their chat conversation Maximize your dealership technology to respond and engage shoppers in the relevant channel LEADS New Value Different Strategy