F&I and Showroom, March 2020

www fi magazine com 24 F I and Showroom March 2020 I I need an email address What are the miles Is the wife on the title to the trade in The insurance card is expired Wheres the etch number What color is the vehicle Is there a P O box I need to make sure is on all the paperwork I could continue but as you are probably standing over a trash can eating your lunch while reading this article anyway Ill be brief welcome to finance As a business manager our job is protecting the dealership first and foremost Secondarily we must generate the revenue the store needs to operate and stay in business We need to be efficient accurate personable etc One of the biggest challenges that business managers face is missing or fragmented information In most cases this is not because the salesperson intentionally omits it from the checklist on the front cover sheet of the deal jacket This is not because we havent trained them on the paperwork process In fact this is probably the same issue with the same salesperson on almost every deal The problem is each salesperson has a different deficiency One of them will do the whole deal correctly except he never remembers the in service date The other salesperson will do the whole deal correctly except the miles are missing or wrong every time Collectively every deal can be an ordeal The Why Behind is the concept of not just asking people to do the paperwork a certain way Instead you are educating them as to not only what needs to be done but why it matters how it ultimately impacts the business I know that the old school method is to not allow the salespeople to camp out in finance A lot of business managers are overly protective of their space and their offices I would encourage you to invite the salesperson into your office for a variety of reasons First of all they can genuinely help you better understand the guests you are about to work with by sharing information with you about what these folks are all about The reality is the salesperson just spent hours with two people who went back and forth and up and down I want to hear from the salesperson what the issues are what to be aware of what they said their demeanor all the little nuances that you pick up during a sales process Moreover I want the salesperson in my office with me watching me observing me as I break down and process a deal jacket I want them to see me get stuck on a screen in my DMS when it needs the etch number and yet the etch number isnt written down on the deal jacket where it is supposed to be I want them to see me ready to hit print on the temporary permit but I dont have an invoice and no one put a color in dealer socket so I cant continue I want them to see me stopped while submitting an online enrollment for OnStar because I dont have a cell phone number or better yet an email address None of these issues are life threatening The deal will always get done These are the things that slow the deal down force the salesperson to make endless trips back and forth from the business office to the customer or the car gathering the details they should have already handled So instead of simply asking telling or yelling at your team to get you what you need show them why it matters and what happens when you dont have what you need when you need it Its a good thing once in a while to let a salesperson experience the pain of getting run around but it is time consuming and frustrating to all involved The best thing to do is to create a checklist teach your process and then hold people accountable When there is understanding behind the why it tends to become a habit ABOUT THE AUTHOR Justin Gasman is an ACE and AFIP master certified financial services director at McCaddon Cadillac Buick GMC in Boulder Colo Contact him at justin gasman@ bobit com Instead of simply asking telling or yelling at your team to get you what you need show them why it matters and what happens when you dont have what you need when you need it GETTYIMAGES COM MEDIAPHOTOS The Why Behind FINANCE INSURANCE BY JUSTIN B GASMAN