Automotive Sales Training
"Are Your Car Sales Down?"
By: Jeffrey F. Knott
Everyday I get email from salespeople that want to know the same thing. “How can I get my sales up?” Like a clock chiming every hour on the hour they follow this question with their own justification for their situation, “I am doing what I have always done and I am selling less cars then I ever have.” Well ladies and gentlemen in a day and age when the buzzwords on every television news program, newspaper and magazine involves words and statements like, possible recession, high gas prices and the low value of the dollar, things are going to be tougher than they have been in a long time, tougher for everyone. Not just car salesman. However this doesn't mean that you can't make a living in the car business or for that matter even more money than you made last year. However if you aren't hitting your goals anymore it is not because you set your goals to high it is because your process for attaining them has stopped working.
First let me say that I am not one that believes that a salesperson's ultimate success is determined by his environment or circumstances. It is determined by the way he views those things and how he acts on them. Rising gas prices, a recession and the fact that the dollar is not as strong as it use to be will only have an effect on your sales if you let them. That's right, if your sales are down, it is not because of the economic indicators. It is because of how you responded to them. If you responded to them by ignoring them and you kept doing what you've always done then you will keep getting what you were getting. And in this instance I don't mean the same paycheck you have been getting. I mean you will only get the sales that fall in your lap.
If you have been coasting along only selling cars to the people who walked in the dealership or that you were lucky enough to get as a phone up and you continue to garner your sales only through these two avenues then you will only receive the sales that result from them. And in case you haven't noticed this is not the best approach to establishing a consistently successful career in auto sales. If you want to become consistently successful in your career and begin to accomplish the goals that you have set for yourself you need to change the process in which you have been trying to attain them, because it is not working anymore. Times have changed. You need to do the same.
Words like, prospecting and referrals have been preached by sales managers, sales trainers and the like since the beginning of time. However our ability in the car business to step out to the curb and gain instant gratification has enabled many salespeople to turn a blind eye to this subject. That is until now. These days prospecting and referrals are more than just buzzwords and actions that the elite salespeople perform on a consistent basis. They have become tools for survival. In today's market consistent success will only be attained once you take control of your own destiny and refuse to allow it to be governed by chance.
Prospecting is one of the most proactive actions that a salesperson can take to generate business. But you must realize that “Sales” is not a job it is a profession. This means that your work doesn't end when you leave the office. To be great you must be a “Salesperson” not just “Work as a salesperson.” Much like a doctor is a doctor, and a lawyer is a lawyer 24 hours a day and everyone knows them as such you too must be a car salesperson 24 hours a day if you want to achieve greatness. And while I admit that the task of prospecting can take patience before you reap the rewards it is much like the rest of the car business, a numbers game. The more people that you speak with about buying cars, the more cars you will sell. Tell everyone that you come in contact with that you are a salesman and that you want to sell them a car. When you are in line at the grocery store tell the clerk you sell cars and ask if they need one. Do the same with every person that you come in contact with and you will begin to reap the fruits of your labors. If you find that you do not come in contact with very many people in the course of a day you may need to expand your network of interaction within your community. Start patronizing different businesses, join a club or even take up a sport. Simply put, you must become an active member in your community and you will meet more people. Additionally be sure to let them all know what you do for a living and that you want to sell them a car.
Everyone that knows anything about the car business knows that referral business is a salesperson's best business. Not only do you have a common ground with the customer but you are probably being highly recommended or the referral wouldn't have asked for you in the first place. With this being the case it is to your advantage to increase the number of referrals that you receive. Sure, sounds easy enough and whenever I say that most salespeople respond with the same comment, “Sounds easy enough, but I ask all of my customers for referrals.”
Remember what I said at the beginning of this article. If you are not hitting your goals it probably is not because you are setting the wrong goals, it is because the process you are using to attain them has broken down. Remember in a day and age when words like, identity theft, privacy notice, unlisted phone number and do not call lists prevail even your best customers will be hesitant to hand over the personal information of their friends and family members. What this means is that you must focus a more concentrated effort on earning the business of the individuals closest to your customer. You must focus on what their immediate family members are driving and better yet when they plan on replacing the vehicles that they are driving. Sure a newly found customer may not be willing to give you his co-workers name and phone number but he does have a wife who drives and maybe even a son or daughter that is driving or will be soon. Once you discover this information you must implement ways to remain proactive regarding their replacement plan for these vehicles. Find out when these vehicles will be replaced and with what. This will allow you to stay proactive in their entire families buying process.
Sure developing, implementing this process and following through with it may sound like a lot of work but always remember car sales is the easiest, low paying job you will ever have or the hardest, high paying profession you will never leave. Which will it be? You decide.
“You can't run from laziness. It knows you are to easy to follow.”
Jeffrey F. Knott Read More...
Jeffrey F. Knott is the Author of From Zero to Hero, How to Master the Art of Selling Cars and can be reached by email: Jeff@Showroomtoday.com |
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