DrivingSales
The Power of Performance Reviews
Let’s talk about performance reviews.
I’m feeling some withdrawals right now. Baseball should be in full swing (no pun intended). One of the fascinating aspects of Major League Baseball is the hitting coach. Think about it. You have 
professional athletes making millions of dollars, yet teams still employ a coach to monitor their hitting performance. Regardless of how successful a batter is, they all need feedback to help them improve their game.
The same is true with dealership employees. We all need to be held accountable and given insight on how we can improve. Employees need feedback. They want to know how they are performing. Performance reviews give you a scheduled, standardized process to help you coach your team to success. Remember, process solves operational issues.
In order to conduct a performance review, you’ll want to use the Leadership Cycle. This cycle contains four parts: Measure, Analyze, Plan and Implement.
The first part is Measure. Every successful performance review begins with analyzing current performance against goals, targets, or established benchmarks. Nothing is good or bad until you compare it to something else, and the more you can use cold, hard facts to calculate performance, the more successful you will be.
Next, you need to analyze. This is an extremely important part of the Leadership Cycle. It’s tempting to jump right into the issues the employee may have, and there is a good chance you will be right. The problem with this is that your performance review becomes a 1-way1 way conversation. The employee is not engaged. All solutions will be yours, and you may not even be focusing on the real issue. Instead of jumping right in, use questions to get the employee to open up. You can use this insight to help coach. Think of it as a performance review needs analysis.
Next, you need to plan. A successful performance review always includes a plan. Without this in place, you are really just having a conversation with the employee. Your objective is to improve performance, and current behaviors need to be correct in order for that to occur. Your plan should include the learning practice, role-play, etc that you and the employee agree will help with any performance gaps. In addition, you are going to want to put a deadline to this plan.
The final part of this cycle is Implement. Once you’ve identified the gaps in performance and determined the steps that need to take place for it to be corrected, you need to hold the employee accountable to implement the plan. This is one reason why a deadline is so important. Concrete steps and deadlines are necessary for you to hold the employee accountable.
It’s important to note that a performance review shouldn’t be all about the bad. You need to engineer time in the process to celebrate wins. This is a great opportunity to build rapport and credibility with your employees. You’ll be surprised how far this goes.
Everyone needs performance reviews. Regardless of how high an employee is performing or how successful they are at their job, regular, scheduled feedback can help them identify opportunities to improve.
Processes solve all operational issues. Having a performance review process will help your organization implement other initiatives. Employees become hyper focused on the quotas that they are being held accountable to. Build and execute a performance review process in your dealership.
DrivingSales
RELAYCARS REVAMPS WEBSITE TO INCLUDE AT-HOME, VIRTUAL SHOWROOM EXPERIENCE
RelayCars®, the virtual reality car shopping experience, now allows users to visit a virtual showroom from a desktop device
LOS ANGELES (April 16, 2020) – RelayCars, the virtual reality (VR) car shopping experience, powered by EVOX Images®, today announced the expansion of its website to include their virtual showroom. Up until now, RelayCars’ immersive technology has been accessible via mobile app on smartphones, tablets, or corresponding headsets. This website relaunch comes at a time when many dealerships are closed and individuals are still looking for proper ways to research a future vehicle from home. RelayCars features the most expansive, high-quality VR automotive library on the market, allowing users to take a virtual tour of any vehicle category, year, make, and model from EVOX Images’ extensive database.
Upon visiting the new RelayCars website, users have the ability to:
- Choose make, model, year, and trim for any vehicle in the RelayCars library, starting with model year 2015
- View realistic, interactive exterior and interior 360º views of vehicles in a large screen format
- Select any manufacturer-specific color and view it in three selectable angles
- View standard vehicle data such as trim detail and drivetrain
- Learn about the additional suite of downloadable apps from RelayCars and view trailers for each
“During this period of uncertainty, we are working hard to navigate through the changes in our daily routines and processes,” stated Gina Callari, EVOX Images/RelayCars COO. “While we stay safe at home and wait for dealers to open their doors again, we are excited to make our online car shopping technology even more accessible for customers.”
To experience this new website from home, users can visit vr.relaycars.com. Additionally, users can download the free RelayCars app from both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
About RelayCars®
Featuring the most expansive and high-quality VR automotive library on the market, RelayCars is a virtual reality suite of apps and website experience that allows both enterprise and general consumer users to explore the interior and exterior of thousands of different vehicles via smartphone, tablet, web or VR headset. The app is available for free on iOS, Android, Oculus, Google Daydream, Samsung Gear VR and Microsoft MR. RelayCars is powered by EVOX Images, the leader in large-scale global image solutions with a focus on automotive VR and AR, using its unmatched CGI and photography capabilities. For more information on RelayCars, please visit www.relaycars.com or follow RelayCars on Instagram, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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DrivingSales
Master Class Homework Packet: Building a Professional Training Plan
As you may have heard, DrivingSales is conducting some free Manager Certification training for dealers right now. The first Master Class is currently in session, and here is the homework for Week 1. If you haven't applied to join one of these cohorts, you can click here for more information.
For those of you in Master Class 1, congratulations. You are on the way to developing em
ployee-management processes that will improve performance and employee engagement.
To recap, you learned:
- The difference between the 4 factors of competencies
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- How to create a quarterly training calendar
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- How to navigate our HCM platform to help you with your training needs
Our goal is to get this training into your employees' hands. However, we need several things from you in order to do that. Also, as part of your homework assignment, we need you to participate in our community to help others learn and share experiences.
There are 4 things we need you to complete before this upcoming Friday:
- Complete your organization’s employee management process assessment. (You may have done this already so please ignore this if you have. If you have not, please use the link below to complete your assessment.
DrivingSales Employee Management Process Assessment
- Download and complete the Training and Development worksheet. This training must fill your organization’s performance gaps. Meaning, where would you like to move the needle? To help you with this assignment, we are giving you access to some documentations with helpful ideas. Once you’ve completed the Training and Development worksheet, email it to your Employee Management Expert. They will upload it for you and walk you through the process of how to assign it to your team.
- Comment and interact on the Building a Professional Training Plan for Your Store blog in the community
- - Participate in the Professional Training Plan forum
Email your homework to homework@drivingsales.com.
Here are some additional resource downloads to help you complete week 1.
- Training and Development Worksheet
- Courses by Job Role: BDC Agent
3 Comments
Centennial Mazda
Enjoyed the first session with DrivingSales! Looking forward to the rest of the course!
DrivingSales
Steve, I'm glad you enjoyed the session. We're just getting started. What was the biggest takeaway for you from the training and development live training?
DrivingSales
Building a Professional Training Plan for Your Store
When it comes to Employee Management, there are two approaches you can take. One is Management by Intent, the other is Management by Neglect. Right now, your dealership is being controlled by one or the other (and in many cases, both).
What do I mean? Let’s look at a simple management activity: setting goals. If you have systems in place to allow employees to set their monthly objectives and processes you’ve implemented to manage to those objectives, you are managing the goal-setting process by intent. If you don’t, then the environment, market, and dealership culture manage those goals for you. Salespeople set their expectations based on their surroundings. You are managing goal setting by neglect.
Effective organizations manage by intent. They establish processes and systems that enable them to dictate the success of their teams. They don’t let the environment take charge of their operations. This is extremely important when managing millennials.
When surveyed, millennial employees underscored the importance of Management by Intent. In fact, 87% rated career growth and development opportunities as strongly important to them in a job. In addition, 76% think professional development is one of the most important elements of company culture. Furthermore, 66% need formal feedback from their supervisor every few weeks to continue to stay at a job.
Every employee has four factors they need to develop. The first is Process. This would include sales process, service process, introduction to F&I process, reconditioning process, etc. Traditionally, dealerships have been successful at building and operating processes.
The next factor is skill. These include building rapport, overcoming objections, active listening, closing, etc. A lot of dealerships hire for skills, and there hasn’t been a deep wealth of training on them.
The best way to differentiate process and skills is to think of a process as a road map. It tells you the most efficient route to get from A to B. Think of skills as driving the car. The better you are at driving, the faster and safer you will get to your destination. Make sense?
The third factor is product knowledge, and this includes the products you sell and the products you use. For example, effectively entering a customer into the system in the service drive would be an example of product knowledge.
The final factor is temperament. The first three factors can be trained, but you should hire for the fourth. Examples of temperament are attitude and resilience. It is extremely difficult to train and manage these temperaments.
A successful development plan can be demonstrated in a Venn diagram, and the bigger you can make the overlap, the more successful your development.
One of the best ways to ensure you are managing by intent is to build a professional training plan, and this means a training calendar.
Begin by determining the product, process, and skills you need to train on. Schedule weekly training that will educate your staff. For example, in a given week you could train on a quality email template, the Silverado walkaround, the four personality types, and your dealership mission statement. Repeat this calendar each week and you’ll be training by intent, not neglect.
The top organizations manage by intent and have automated systems in place that make them more efficient (think CRM). Create a training calendar and implement a process in your dealership to train your employees regularly.
What do you think? What are some of the biggest challenges you foresee when implementing a training calendar in your dealership? How can you find out what your staff needs the most training on? Chime in below. If you aren’t already in a cohort, you can apply here.
36 Comments
Centennial Mazda
Thanks for the first session. Just completed our Quarterly Training Schedule, will email it over to Craig. Looking forward to the next session. Jordan
DrivingSales
Jordan, that's great! What was the biggest challenge that you ran across when building a training schedule and how did you solve it?
Centennial Mazda
I`d say the biggest challenge was narrowing down the initial course choices. Seems to be lots of good content. Put some thought into what would be most beneficial to the team initially and started there. Tried to get a good mix that would benefit everyone and keep them engaged.
Jaguar Land Rover / Volvo Metro West
Just submitted my training plan for Q2. Looking forward to tomorrows class.
DrivingSales
Jack, thank you for submitting that. There is no class tomorrow, that's just when the homework was due to give us enough time to load your training schedule. You should be getting another invitation to the Tuesday class, 1:00 PM MST.
Also, what product knowledge did you decide to focus on first for your team?
Davis Chevrolet Airdrie
Excellent course so far. Working on my Week 1 training schedule. It's not easy to set up due to the fact that my technicians don't really do any training other than GM technical training. Hoping to help them excel past just being a technician and more well rounded in this industry.
Davis Chevrolet
Looking forward to seeing what is next, although I would like to see a few more references to the parts department
Davis Chevrolet
Looking forward to seeing what is next, although I would like to see a few more references to the parts department
Larry H. Miller Dealerships
Though I'm not in a dealership world, i'm in a dealer-serving agency role and I still created a plan for my team! this isn't a sales-only training schedule, it's for anyone in management of any team. I loved it! Thanks for the training!
Dimmitt Chevrolet
Thank you for the first session. Our Quarter 1 Calendar is being uploaded. Good news for our Dealership is we do have our sales team fill out monthly commitments forecasts. We do one-on-one meetings with the staff to insure the forecasts are accurate and obtainable. We have also traditionally been a "training" dealership. So I like to think we lead by intent. However, the training has been a "what is the topic for today" type of approach. I think a more organized and transparent process and structure should help.
DrivingSales
@Doug, Well done! You are spot on. We are in the people business. This is for everyone, regardless of the company you work for or your job role.
Centennial Auto Group
Hi guys, I just completed the training schedule. Like Jordan, I was surprised to see the amount of courses that are available and relevant to our industry. Looking forward to Tuesday's course.
DrivingSales
I'm excited to see the Fixed Ops representation in this cohort. Keep it up!
Davis Chevrolet GMC Buick LTD.
Well that was more challenging that I first thought. Developing a plan for three department leaders forced me to prioritize what I believe is most valuable to me, to them and our business. Terrific exercise!
DrivingSales
@Glenn, Well Done! I'm sure you know that if leadership was easy, everyone would be doing it. We're just getting started. If you think that was tough, up next is the scorecards and performance reviews section. Holding people accountable by setting clear expectations is the cornerstone of Human Capital Management.
Centennial Nissan
Found the first webinar informative. Looking forward to the upcoming training.
Sunnyside Acura
Finding the right people to bring on board is obviously one of the hardest aspects of building a great staff. If you are fortunate enough to interview someone with a good attitude, the other areas (process, skills, product knowledge), for the most part, can be taught.
Ryan Honda of Minot
Just sent my training calendar to my coach. Looking forward to his input on how I did. It really makes you think, not only in the sense of what does your current team need for training, but what does a new employee need as far as training. I decided to start with new training because it never hurts to revisit the basics, especially in these times, and really work on the core information.
Ryan Honda of Minot
Good info here. Currently working on my training plan to send to Allison. Just waiting on a return phone call from her to go over a few things!
Mazda of Stoney Creek
Prioritizing was difficult in this exercise. I have a very new sales team. We hire people with zero automotive experience and most currently have less than a year of experience. Also my first Sales Manager role (July 2019 start date). It is easy to be overwhelmed with what needs to be reviewed to build good habits while I do not want to overwhelm sales consultants. Laying out lesson plans with the 4 principals on a weekly basis breaks it down to manageable segments and will promote learning opposed to deterring it. Great approach!
Ryan Nissan
I have to agree with Shaun... It was the prioritizing that was a challenge for me. I have a very new sales and management staff. Where can I begin to ensure that everyone is involved in the training and it be relevant to where they are at with their experience.
Ryan Family Dealership
Found the first webinar informative. Having not been the business for a long period of time I'm finding this extremely interesting but there are times when it is challenging to provide informative answers.
Mark Miller Subaru
Thanks for all of the helpful information! I just completed my training schedule, and look forward to getting more tips on how to implement this. I know how important training is, the biggest issue I foresee myself running into is getting my managers on board, and having them actually commit to the trainings. I need to find a way to get them to buy into training and see the value, so they will stick to a schedule and make it a priority. The excuse is always that they don't have enough time.
Goode Auto Group
This is a great article. As we're building a plan for our stores it's important to already know what if any training is happening in any department on any level.
Brentridge ford
Surprised to see all the options available for training, tried looking at areas that seem to fall apart within the selling process. Choosing courses goes to show that you must make a plan that is measurable to get the full benefit of training people within your store and retaining the staff you currently have. I am looking forward to helping everyone in the store become more successful and hopefully create a larger paycheck for everyone that embraces what this training program has to offer.
Brentridge ford
Surprised to see all the options available for training, tried looking at areas that seem to fall apart within the selling process. Choosing courses goes to show that you must make a plan that is measurable to get the full benefit of training people within your store and retaining the staff you currently have. I am looking forward to helping everyone in the store become more successful and hopefully create a larger paycheck for everyone that embraces what this training program has to offer.
Lithia Chevy
Just finished my q1 training plan. There is so many resources to choose from. Really the only issue was to try to make one that is realistic. I was trying to make the training plan that starts a bit basic for the newer people but will still keep the more senior people engaged.
Nemer Motor Group
Excited to have the opportunity and I look forward to seeing what this course has to offer.
DrivingSales
@Jean Hang in there! Judging by your answers in other forums, you'll be just fine. Thanks for your participation.
DrivingSales
@Shaun and Heather. I apologize for the late response to this one. By now, I hope you participated in the Career-Pathing live training module and have learned now to break up the training into bite-size pieces for your employees. Building a training schedule is to help you identify organizational gaps and train the whole team. Look at your department as a whole and ask yourself, where do I see weakness and opportunity in the four factors: process, skills, product knowledge, and temperament?
Baldwin Motors Lincoln & Subaru
I think it's interesting you say, "Traditionally, dealerships have been successful at building and operating processes" because traditionally, my dealership has struggled a lot with this. I would be curious to know how the metrics have changed in recent years with more boomers retiring and millennials entering the workforce since they seem to thrive on completely different types of processes.
One of the biggest challenges I see is a lack of management buy-in. We also have several tenured employees who I expect will be resistant to the change. Many of our processes are dated and need to be updated, which is tough when things have been done the same way for so long.
I'm a big advocate of informal chats with our employees as well as Google Forms. Every few months I send out an anonymous quiz to the entire dealership asking what each person things they need training on and I have more frequent conversations with employees and management about where each department is lacking in terms of training.
DrivingSales
@Mallory You are spot on. Dealerships have been successful at building and operating processes: sales process, finance process, used-car-recon process, reporting process, etc. However, when it comes to people processes, most managers shrug their shoulders and say, "you either have it or you don't." Can you imagine if we ran the whole dealership like that?
When it comes to the metrics, it's getting worse. According to the NADA workforce study they conduct every year, turnover is increasing, engagement is dropping. Our old, non-existent people processes are creating friction points between the dealerships and the modern workforce. Low engagement and high turnover are costing our industry a lot of money. Dealerships that figure this out sooner and do something about it, will have a competitive advantage for a long time. To your point, it's hard to get buy-in.
Change has always been hard, however, you are on the right track. When implementing change, remember that people are not afraid of change, they are afraid of loss. They ask two questions, can I do it and how will affect me? If the motivational factors are in place and you have a good training plan, it should make the implementation process easier.
Phone Ninjas
How has everyone done with these, especially during the pandemic?
DrivingSales
@morgan Hardy
I've had the opportunity to work with numerous stores the past few months and it's been refreshing to see the desire in not just creating the change, but doing the work behind making the changes. A particular dealership I work with have completed several months of performance reviews with their team, and they have seen an increase in open communication leading to a boost in team moral - which I think we could all agree is essential during this time! I would love to chat with you about some of the other changes I've seen!!
DrivingSales
automotiveMastermind Creates a Virtual BDC For Dealers & Offers Increased Support During COVID-19
NEW YORK, NY (April 13, 2020) – automotiveMastermind, part of IHS Markit (NYSE: INFO) and a leading provider of predictive analytics and marketing automation solutions for dealerships and manufacturers, is re-deploying sales and business development managers to prospect on behalf of dealer partners, demonstrating the company’s support and commitment to dealerships during COVID-19 disruptions. The virtual Business Development Center (BDC) program is currently piloting with 215 stores across the U.S.
So far, the program has generated the following results:
- 339 hours worked on behalf of dealer partners
- 283 sales follow-ups and virtual appointments booked
“Never have we seen the ongoing support from a vendor partner as we are experiencing from automotiveMastermind,” said Robert E. Rombs, Jr., vice president at Tysinger Automotive Family. “The virtual BDC has proven to be an invaluable asset, as we have booked five additional sales appointments in just the first two sessions. We are confident in our ability to be successful and to emerge stronger than ever as a direct result of our partnership with automotiveMastermind.”
The combination of Mastermind’s industry experience and the integrated nature of the company’s Market EyeQ sales platform helped inspire the idea of creating a virtual BDC program. With Market EyeQ, each of Mastermind’s remote team members have access to the same data-driven customer insights as their dealer partners, making the process of prospecting and handoff seamless even from afar.
“We’re a team of passionate auto industry experts, so the decision to create a virtual BDC for our dealer partners during this particular time was a no-brainer,” said Mastermind Co-Founder and CEO Marco Schnabl. “Since the beginning of the COVID-19 challenges, we’ve encouraged our dealer partners to pivot their operations, including remote sales and maximizing their BDCs. We practice what we preach and serving as an extension of our customers’ BDCs is a critical way we can support them.”
In addition to the virtual BDC, Mastermind has developed numerous resources to support dealerships during COVID-19 disruptions, including:
- Mastermind’s Virtual Resource Center – including whitepapers, checklists and videos to help dealerships pivot operations and make sales and service adjustments to accommodate for COVID-19 challenges.
- Free webinars from Mastermind’s thought leaders – topics include maximizing the service drive, creating a virtual dealership and how to kickstart auto leads during and after COVID-19 disruptions.
- Mastermind Gives Back to the CDC Foundation – Mastermind is donating $25 per virtual demo and $100 per deal signed to the CDC Foundation through April 30.
Mastermind is regularly creating new COVID-19 resources for dealerships. To view the full, free resource library, visit www.automotivemastermind.com/covid19.
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About automotiveMastermind
Founded in 2012, automotiveMastermind, part of IHS Markit (NYSE: INFO), is a leading provider of predictive analytics and marketing automation solutions for the automotive industry. Market EyeQ by Mastermind is a single sales platform that identifies, communicates with and closes every buyer in a local market. Mastermind is headquartered in New York City and San Francisco. For more information, visit automotivemastermind.com. Based in London, IHS Markit is a world leader in critical information, analytics and solutions.
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DrivingSales
Digital Air Strike Virtual Retailing Technology Helps Businesses During COVID-19
Technology Provided Free of Charge Allows Businesses to Connect Virtually with Consumers While Adhering to Shelter-in-Place and Social Distancing Guidelines
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., – (April 9, 2020) Digital Air Strike, the leading consumer engagement technology company, today announced a new Virtual Retailing Program that allows businesses to interact and transact with customers through video, AI, social media, and automation. The company is offering its video solution, Video Logix, which helps businesses showcase their services, inventory, and social distancing practices free of charge to businesses for 30 days. Digital Air Strike is also sponsoring a “Video of the Week” contest. Businesses can submit their best videos showing how they can assist consumers virtually for a chance to win $500. Videos can be emailed to video@digitalairstrike.com.
Along with Video Logix, the company’s Virtual Retailing Program includes Response Path AI-powered, multi-channel “chat” that engages consumers automatically, 24/7, asks/answers questions, captures lead information, and alerts employees when human interaction is needed. Response Path is paired with Digital Air Strike’s new Power Texting which allows a business to text information immediately and effectively via SMS message to customers. Customers can reply via text and the AI technology of Response Path engages with customers who respond to the Power Texting messages. The company’s Virtual Retailing technology is especially beneficial to businesses considered essential services, including automobile dealerships and home healthcare providers.
“While many businesses may have physical structures closed to public traffic, there are still many opportunities to transact online and virtually with consumers,” said Alexi Venneri, co-founder and CEO of Digital Air Strike. “Industries that haven’t traditionally offered online transactions need to adapt quickly to the new customer requirement that will likely become the general preference post pandemic. Consumers want the ability to do more online and our Virtual Retailing solutions give businesses amazing new tools to engage with customers.”
The Virtual Retailing Program allows businesses to provide the same level of service even if employees are working from home or much of the staff has been furloughed or laid off. By automating responses to consumers, the limited or remote staff can focus on consumers needing immediate attention. Response Logix, Digital Air Strike’s patented lead response technology, responds automatically to vehicle price inquiries with multi-vehicle price quotes and custom microsites so that consumers can continue to shop online, get pre-qualified, estimate their vehicle trade-in value, and learn about vehicle features most important to them. The technology also automatically follows up with car buyers for six months helping the dealership stay top of mind while pent-up demand is being created.
The Virtual Retailing Program includes a step-by-step guide for businesses on how to continue to operate in all scenarios, marketing assistance with social network strategies, content, and videos that dealers can use immediately, paired with training and new technology to help automate many of the steps.
Digital Air Strike developed a resources page at www.digitalairstrike.com/commitment with downloadable content for businesses, industry updates, and examples of dealerships using video to communicate with customers. The company also hosts free, best practice webinar presentations about Virtual Retailing and how businesses can implement the strategies immediately. The complete webinar schedule and the ability to request previous presentations can be found at www.digitalairstrike.com/webinars.
About Digital Air Strike
Digital Air Strike is the leading social media, intelligent lead response technology and consumer engagement company helping businesses increase consumer response and conversions in digital and social media environments while generating measurable ROI.
A pioneer in digital response, social media marketing and online reputation management solutions, Digital Air Strike deploys industry-specific mobile apps, software, intelligent messaging and managed service platforms to monitor, engage, improve and manage consumer interactions for thousands of businesses in the United States, Canada and 11 additional countries, including working with seven of the largest automotive manufacturers. More information is available at www.digitalairstrike.com and www.facebook.com/digitalairstrike.
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DrivingSales
FCA Announces 'Drive Forward' Initiative, Offering Incentives and Support to Consumers
Under the “Drive Forward” initiative, starting today, April 1, consumers can take advantage of special incentives, including 0% financing for 84 months and no payments for 90 days on select FCA 2019 and 2020 models
New Online Retail Experience (ORE) allows consumers to purchase vehicles from the comfort of their homes via the Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep®, Ram Truck, FIAT and Alfa Romeo brand websites and participating dealer websites
30-second and 15-second combined brand broadcast spots feature OneRepublic’s all-new track, just released to address the current climate, “Better Days;” 15-second individual spots to run across each brand’s respective social media channels
- FCA program of measures to support coronavirus-relief efforts to date includes 1 million face masks for first responders, 1 million meals for school children and technical support for personal protection equipment (PPE) providers
April 1, 2020 , Auburn Hills, Mich. -
In an effort to alleviate shopping concerns and to chart a path for better days ahead, FCA is launching its “Drive Forward” initiative. Starting today, April 1, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep®, Ram Truck, FIAT and Alfa Romeo brands will offer 24/7 support and well-qualified buyers can get 0% financing for 84 months and no payments for 90 days on select FCA 2019 and 2020 models.
“We are all one community and we can help during these unprecedented times,” said Olivier Francois, Chief Marketing Officer, FCA. “We want to both offer consumers support and assist them financially while we all work hand in hand toward better days. And we’ll continue to explore additional opportunities as a company to help as we all navigate our way through this difficult time together.”
“The band's hope is that our new song, 'Better Days,' will bring comfort as we all stay home to combat the COVID-19 outbreak,” said OneRepublic's Ryan Tedder.
“Drive Forward” FCA Online Retail Experience
In addition to around-the-clock support and pricing incentives, beginning today, April 1, FCA is enhancing vehicle purchasing capability with the launch of a new Online Retail Experience (ORE). ORE is a digital retailing solution that allows customers to complete the entire vehicle purchase process online and from the comfort of their own homes. Not only can consumers purchase a vehicle off a dealer lot, they can conduct a vehicle trade-in, apply for credit, receive price and payment estimates and review service protection plan options. Customers can explore the new Online Retail Experience via the Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep®, Ram Truck, FIAT and Alfa Romeo brand websites, where they can begin the purchase process, then connect with a local dealer to finalize the sale, saving time in the process. A call center agent is available to help consumers through the Online Retail Experience.
Once a vehicle is purchased, consumers can work with participating dealers to have their vehicles delivered directly to their homes.
For more incentive and pricing information, please visit Chrysler.com, Jeep.com, Dodge.com, RamTrucks.com, FiatUSA.com and AlfaRomeoUSA.com.
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DrivingSales
CARS aims to #KeepAutoOpen
Cars.com has created an initiative to help keep auto dealers open during the COVID-19 pandemic.
They sent a formal request to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that automotive sales and leasing activities are deemed “Essential Businesses," fighting on behalf of dealerships nationwide to help them maintain their businesses during these unprecedented times. 
In addition, they created the CARS Cares website and are asking dealers in a letter that was sent today to have their voices heard by signing the petition and sending a pre-drafted letter to federal government officials who will be deciding as early as FRIDAY, MARCH 26 whether to include local dealer sales and leasing as “Essential Businesses.”
Cars.com wants to responsibly #KeepAutoOpen during these unprecedented times. If you would like to join this initiative, you can access the petition here. The goal is to collect at least 10,000 franchise and independent dealer signatures by close of business this Thursday, March 26th.
Here is the formal request:
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DrivingSales
UpdatePromise Makes Mass Campaign Tool Free During COVID-19 Crisis
Monday, March 23, 2020, Chino Hills, CA--UpdatePromise today announced that it will be helping dealerships nationwide to communicate with their customers and employees by offering its Mass Campaign tool free for the next 60 days.
Inspired by many communities coming together to support each other and help with business operations during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, UpdatePromise is offering its Mass Campaign tool at no charge for two months to enhance broadcasting communication.
Within the last few weeks, dealerships have shut down portions of their businesses or their entire operations altogether. During these uncertain times, communicating with their employees, vendors and customers can be problematic and nearly impossible.
“We’re very pleased to be making Mass Campaign available to the industry because we feel like we have an obligation to help if we can,” UpdatePromise Curtis Nixon said. “For the next couple of months, we’re empowering you with tools to send mass email or text campaigns for any major updates and announcements to your customers and employees. Our goal is to help us all as we hopefully return to normalcy soon.”
If you’re an existing UpdatePromise customer, simply access this page to sign up and activate Mass Campaign to start communicating via mass email/text messages to customers and employees
Please do not hesitate to contact us at info@corp.updatepromise.com or call (800) 276-9107 for questions or feedback.
About UpdatePromise
UpdatePromise is a leading technology provider for communication solutions to automotive insurers, repairers, and dealerships throughout North America. Founded in 2009, the UpdatePromise flagship automated messaging system has impacted thousands of businesses and their consumers, delivering unparalleled experiences accumulated through over 200 million text messages throughout the United States. For more information, visit updatepromise.com.
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DrivingSales
Digital Air Strike Joins Forces with GM and Automotive News to Offer COVID-19 Best Practice Webinars
Webinars Provide Crucial Strategies for Dealerships to Leverage Immediately, Including Virtual Retailing, Driveway Test-Drives, Home Service Delivery, and More to Assist Consumers During Coronavirus Pandemic
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., – (March 23, 2020) Digital Air Strike, the leading automotive consumer engagement technology company, today announced two free webinars to help automotive dealers during the COVID-19 pandemic. General Motors and Automotive News, two of the biggest names in the automotive industry, have invited the company to share new social distancing solutions, technology, and best practices for dealerships to offer “no contact” contracting, at-home test drives, concierge delivery for service, and more.
The webinars will focus on how today’s climate calls for a shift in strategy as well as new tactics to employ immediately. The industry has an opportunity to make a dramatic leap forward in many areas while nurturing leads to help maximize future pent-up demand.
“As people are being directed to practice social distancing, and even if physical retail locations need to close, dealerships still have essential services such as vehicle repairs, they can offer,” said Alexi Venneri, co-founder and CEO of Digital Air Strike. “They are also presented with a great opportunity to do things differently and embrace technology. Technology is readily available for consumers to research, shop, buy, and service from home. Our goal has always been to help our automotive industry adopt new strategies. We have developed a Virtual Retailing Program that combines step-by-step instructions on how to continue to operate in all scenarios, marketing assistance with social network strategies, content, and videos that dealers can use immediately, paired with training to and new technology to help automate many of the steps, especially if dealers have less staff available or some working from home.”
Digital Air Strike has a proven track record of helping the automotive industry during times of crisis as the company was founded during the depth of the recession 10 years ago and has consistently demonstrated creative, low-cost ways for dealers and OEMs to engage with consumers leveraging social networks, digital strategies, and innovative technologies.
Each webinar will be led by Venneri:
- March 24 at 2 p.m. EDT: “Help Your Dealership Thrive During Covid-19” in partnership with Automotive News, co-moderated by Dave Versical, chief of Editorial Operations for Automotive News Group. Reserve your spot today here.
- March 26 and April 7 at 1 p.m. EDT: “Top Tips for GM Dealers to Thrive During Covid-19” in partnership with General Motors. Reserve your spot today here.
- Daily: Digital Air Strike is providing helpful tips on how to use video, AI and social media to communicate with customers online and sell more in an easy-to-consume webinar format. View the schedule and reserve your spot here.
Digital Air Strike is also offering its Video Retailing technology free for 30 days and is sponsoring a “Video of the Week” contest. Dealers can submit their best videos showing how they can assist consumers virtually for a chance to win $500. Videos can be emailed to video@digitalairstrike.com.
Digital Air Strike has a proud history of partnering with General Motors and Automotive News. The company was the first Reputation Management vendor approved by GM in 2011 to work with its dealerships and just marked its eighth year of providing award-winning reputation management and social media marketing solutions to GM dealers through the manufacturer’s Standards for Excellence program. Digital Air Strike was also just recognized by General Motors as an approved Chat Partner in the Dealer Digital Solution Program. Automotive News named Venneri as one of its 100 Leading Women in Automotive.
About Digital Air Strike
Digital Air Strike is the leading social media, intelligent lead response technology and consumer engagement company helping businesses increase consumer response and conversions in digital and social media environments while generating measurable ROI.
A pioneer in digital response, social media marketing and online reputation management solutions, Digital Air Strike deploys industry-specific mobile apps, software, intelligent messaging and managed service platforms to monitor, engage, improve and manage consumer interactions for thousands of businesses in the United States, Canada and 11 additional countries, including working with seven of the largest automotive manufacturers. More information is available at www.digitalairstrike.com and www.facebook.com/digitalairstrike.
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23 Comments
Jordan Cronkhite
Centennial Mazda
Just completed our scorecard worksheet, will send it over to Craig shortly. Should give an opportunity for an engaging 2-way conversation. If the sales team members are engaged and focused on the quotas that they are being scored on I do believe that we can identify opportunities for improvement and for coaching as well.
Steve Mckenna
Centennial Mazda
Looking forward to conducting performance reviews using the leadership cycle!
Christopher Berglof
Ryan Honda of Minot
Setting quotas is not easy, but definitely feels like it will make performance reviews more meaningful and more doable!
Morgan Hardy
Phone Ninjas
1-way conversations never seem to go well. The employee ends up feeling attacked or belittled. Constructive criticism seems to be a good approach.
Cleimore Perdon
Honda Queensway
Another aspect of looking at performance reviews is find ways to connect with that particular employee to help develop their specific abilities that would benefit the organization as whole. Curious to get others inputs on this.
Jeff McKenna
Centennial Auto Group
One thing I found especially beneficial were the effective questions for performance reviews. I think it's important to ask thought-provoking questions to employees so they too can evaluate themselves. One of my professors in university had her PhD in assessment and she stressed the importance of self reflection and the ability for students to assess their own work with rubrics. The same principle can be applied with our employees. Great questions give more purpose and add value to a performance review.
Jennifer Bueckert
Davis Chevrolet
Setting quotas is not easy, but definitely feels like it will make performance reviews more meaningful and more doable!
Justin Hrappstead
Davis Chevrolet
Sent in the scorecard, Should help for an engaging conversation.
Matt Grubbs
Ryan Honda of Minot
This task was very interesting. It forces you to look at things from a different perspective. I included my coach in this task, and we came up with some great ideas for the different levels, including possible rewards for graduating to the next level. I am interested to see how it turns out.
John Niemackl
Ryan Family Dealerships
I appreciate your suggestion to collaborate with others within the organization. We're a 5 store group and we're trying to create a uniform performance evaluation platform for all roles across all 5 stores. By collaborating with others it creates ownership and that leads to better buy-in of the process.
Wade Harvey
Ryan Chevrolet
this was a good exercise for us to get on the same page as to what our minimum standards should be and to build different levels for our advisors to strive to achieve.
Robert Niven
Sunnyside Acura
Consistent performance reviews are a great way to show where a team member is having success and where they might need improvement. Quick weekly meetings will help to keep team members on track and their eyes on the overall goal. It's easier to make course adjustments as you go than huge adjustments all at once.
Jean Ryan-Niemackl
Ryan Family Dealership
IMO I cannot reiterate enough that a performance review shouldn’t be all about the bad, in fact it should be all about the good. Throughout an employee's day to day if they are, or they are not, doing things that are part of their expectations it should be identified as it is happening. Don't wait for the review to address things that should have been addressed immediately. The performance review should hopefully be all about them overcoming those obstacles or imperfections so it is a positive meeting and something they won't come to dread or be negative about. This is a great time to show your support of them and their value to the company.
Pablo Silvaz
Goode Auto Group
A dialog on performance rather than a lecture is more productive. There is more "buy-in" when the employee helps in creating their goals.
Dan W.
Morrey Auto Group
Agree completely. Both good and bad performance must be reviewed. As the stats show, employees expect and need the feedback. Also, you don't want to condition your team to "expect the worst" if you only review when things are going poorly.
Mandie Baker
Nemer Motor Group
I mentioned I would be conducting regular reviews to my team this week. It's crazy to see the extra effort they have put into everything already. I think this will help hold my employees and myself more accountable. Looking forward to seeing a positive change!
Jason Volny
DrivingSales
@Mandie How do you do PR currently. Is this an ongoing thing or are you introducing a new process? Also, I noticed you're a Development Manager. What are the most important quotas that you're focusing on?
Mallory Orozco
Baldwin Motors Lincoln & Subaru
It's equally as important during these reviews to find out what the employees need from management. Are we giving them all the tools and support necessary to meet the goals we're setting for them? Are we as managers also holding ourselves accountable for and contributing to the success of our teams? I've seen excellent managers come in and turn an entire department around just by showing a commitment to supporting their people.
Jason Volny
DrivingSales
@Mallory I agree. 74% of employees leave because something a manager did or should be doing and they don't. Managers should be held accountable by the same Performance Review process that they hold their people accountable.
Heather Thomas
Ryan Nissan
Very excited to get the scorecards up and going for our auto group!! It's going be helpful in identifying strengths and what processes we need to work on as well as career pathing and promoting from within the organization. Giving not only management but the team clear direction.
Guy Mitchell
Wilder Auto
Just getting our managers going with their suggested Scorecards. This looks like a great and uniform way to review results with the salespeople. I also like the format, all the included training, and the ability to add our own videos is great. If this goes IPO I'm in ;^}
Guy Mitchell
wilder Auto
Guy Mitchell
Wilder Auto
Good stuff! We have beean doing a paper form review that we had designed ourselves and this sytem is quite the upgrade. Love the simple 5 stars and equal review process for all sales team members.
Guy Mitchell
Wilder Auto
Travis Davidson
Wilder Auto Center
I found the scorecard worksheet to be easy to use. Looking forward to putting it to use.