F&I and Showroom, January 2016

www fi magazine com 28 F I and Showroom January 2016 FINANCE INSURANCE nadaconvention org NADA2016 Jeff Foxworthy Karl Rove Howard Dean Peyton Manning Mike Allen only one that really mattered People buy from people they like they would say That old cliché was drilled into my head on a daily basis And it was true I worked hard at building rapport sold a lot of cars and made a lot of friends Then I got my chance to be an F I manager During my first days in the box I was dependent on the success I had on the sales floor I just adjusted the 10 point system to sell F I products It wasnt long before I realized that selling cars and F I were not the same It became clear to me that credibility was more important than rapport Sure people buy from people they like but getting them to like me in F I especially when they were resistant to the F I process became a chore I realized that all the customer wanted was to drive off in their new car And the only thing standing in their way was me the F I manager GIVE THEM WHAT THEY WANT It wasnt long before I realized that starting off the F I portion of the transaction by building rapport and trying to establish common ground was wearing my customers down In fact the quicker I got down to business the more receptive they became Give them what they want became my motto I learned to match my style with theirs I paid attention to how each customer preferred to communicate and got in step If you are struggling to connect with customers in F I I advise you to get right down to business and engage in small talk only when they initiate it Rapport is just a bonus It is more important to be convincing and believable than to make every customer fall in love with you So why is rapport so important in the showroom I believe its because the vehicle itself is a tangible product the customer can touch feel smell and experience So you should make it fun Im not saying you cant have fun selling F I products but were asking our customers to make sensible pragmatic decisions Thats why credibility is without any doubt the most essential ingredient to F I success As a trainer the two questions I am most often asked are How can I sell more products and What can I do to reduce my customers resistance to the F I process The answer to both questions is the same You need to sell from your customers point of view To do that you have to be aware of exactly what his or her point of view is See it takes credibility to open the IT WASNT LONG BEFORE I REALIZED THAT STARTING OFF THE F I PORTION OF THE TRANSACTION BY BUILDING RAPPORT AND TRYING TO ESTABLISH COMMON GROUND WAS WEARING MY CUSTOMERS DOWN THE QUICKER I GOT DOWN TO BUSINESS THE MORE RECEPTIVE THEY BECAME