F&I and Showroom, January 2017

www fi magazine com 40 F I and Showroom January 2017 MAD MARV I Its January which means youve probably reflected on the goals you hit and missed in 2016 Im guessing there was an equal amount of regret and praise to go around Just remember its easy to look back and see things we could have done better As the old saying goes hindsight is always 20 20 Still taking inventory at years end is a healthy exercise In fact successful folk dont wait until the end of the year to selfanalyze themselves as theyre constantly looking for ways to improve But the New Year is as good a time as any to reevaluate yourself To ensure you start 2017 on the right foot here are five suggestions you may want to consider 1 See the People Stop waiting for and demanding a formal customer introduction Get out of your office and greet the customer Hey your customers will appreciate meeting the last person theyll see before taking delivery It also works to reset their internal clock Just make sure to put a smile on your face as your odds of making a sale suffer if you come off as unapproachable 2 The 300 Rule In case you havent heard it before the rule simply recommends that you present 100 of your products to 100 of your customers 100 of the time The main message here is to resist the urge to decide for the customer Let them choose the protections they want I guarantee youll be pleasantly surprised 3 Lender Report Cards How often does a bank rep come begging for more business Well before their next visit pull a month end performance report and a make a copy for each rep Review the report with them so they can see how they stack up against their competition Contact Dealertrack or RouteOne if you need help accessing this report 4 Train Others Every manager at my store participates in weekly sales training If your store doesnt make sure to set aside some time to train the people around you including management Remember leading across as well as up will ensure that everyone is on the same page And when you help people get what they want they typically respond in kind 5 You Can Help Sometimes things can get backed up on a busy afternoon And when everyone is spread thin its easy to lose your cool when items are missing from a deal My advice is to handle those issues yourself Yes its the salespersons fault but he or she may now be gassing up the car for delivery So handle it yourself to keep things moving Now here are some suggestions for improving your pitch and yourself in 2017 1 Time Your Presentation You also want to measure how long customers spend in your office Remember time is money so make the proper adjustments so you can make the most of every deal 2 Commit to Formal Training Hey none of us know it all so commit yourself to attending F I and Showrooms annual conference which heads to Grapevine Texas this year www industrysummit com The National Automobile Dealers Association also offers F I sessions at its annual conference and your product providers usually offer classes as well So take advantage 3 Watch Your Chargebacks Reducing your chargeback percentage should be a major focus in 2017 And remember reserve statements arent always accurate so be sure to check them My message here is to be careful when it comes to rate administration especially when working with a customer who has a relationship with a finance source thats aggressive in your market This will help you avoid re fis that can lead to early cancellations 4 Beef Up Your Menu Add a new profit opportunity to your menu with the addition of a new product 5 Dont be a Workaholic Make sure you take time off to decompress Youll be better for it and so will your family 6 Have a Plan How will you know when or if you get there without one So put together a plan for improvement whether its perfecting your closing skills or responding to objections Just make sure to include a forecast in your plan so you can track your progress And remember the best barometer for success is your past performance so dont compare yourself with others My last bit of advice is to make certain you own every decision you make this year because thats the only way you improve Good luck in 2017 and lets smash some personal records ABOUT THE AUTHOR Marv Eleazer is the F I director at Langdale Ford in Valdosta Ga Email him at marv eleazer@ bobit com Taking Inventory His Madness offers up some recommendations for making 2017 a prosperous year maybe even a record setting year BY MARV ELEAZER SOMETIMES THINGS CAN GET BACKED UP ON A BUSY AFTERNOON AND WHEN EVERYONE IS SPREAD THIN ITS EASY TO LOSE YOUR COOL WHEN ITEMS ARE MISSING FROM A DEAL MY ADVICE IS TO HANDLE THOSE ISSUES YOURSELF