Have you ever had someone imply that sales is easy? I used to be that guy.  Isn’t that frustrating? Little do people know who aren’t in the game the pressure, rejection, long hours, uncertainty of never knowing how much your next cheque is going to be, and what often seems like a thankless job at times. There’s definitely more good than bad, but the challenge lies in balancing the rollercoaster of emotions. 

I used to be immune to burn out and was your typical workaholic. I felt I could handle everything that was thrown at me and I welcomed it because I took pride in being the busiest person in the dealership.  Until it finally all caught up to me.  For the last 2 years, I’ve lived completely stress-free and it’s changed not only my life, but those who I surround myself with regularly as well.

How do you go from hitting your stress threshold to living stress-free virtually overnight?  First, I’m not a doctor nor claim to be, the following strategies are what have worked for me and I’d like to share them with you in hopes that if you’re in a similar situation or know of someone in this situation, you can free yourself from the mental prison you or someone you know is in.

#1. Protection through visualization

I started visualizing myself every morning with the people I care about most all in a circle of light with everything else dark around us.  All I see is myself and those closest to me in this circle.  When I start to feel stress, anxiety, depression, or any other negative emotion coming on in different situations, it becomes my responsibility to protect that circle of light from those negative emotions with everything I have.  If I let any of that darkness creep into my circle of light, not only do those negative emotions affect me, but they affect those in my circle as well because I can’t be my best for them when I’m stressed.  These negative emotions don’t stand a chance against someone who’s motivated to protect those closest to him with everything he has!

#2. Practice Meditation

This one was a stretch for me because as someone who is active and likes to stay busy, sitting still in silence for 10 minutes wasn’t something I was initially attracted to.  But the more biographies I read on successful entrepreneurs, the more I found a common theme which was the vast majority of them practice some form of meditation daily.  This was enough to convince me to give it a shot.  An app recommendation that kept coming up was one called “Headspace” and I’d like to recommend it to you as well.  It’s the best tool to use for beginners.  In order to maximize antidote #1, you need to put this one in place first and start your day with a clear conscience.  Headphones, darkness, and 10-minutes alone is all you need every morning.  I promise it’s worth the investment in time!

#3. Share Gratitude

Why do we have to wait for Thanksgiving to share thanks around the dinner table? Why couldn’t we make this a common practice?  It’s impossible to be grateful and feel negative at the same time.  So why not give yourself the best opportunity to succeed by being aware and grateful for the little things we tend to take for granted? Tell your spouse without warning that you’re thankful for their support, love, connection, and friendship.  Appreciate your material items, there is always someone who wishes they had what you have.  Be grateful for your health, sight, hearing, opportunity, lifestyle, and anything else that’s easily taken for granted.  Start your morning off by writing down something your grateful for, leave a notepad by your bedside so it triggers your brain to get in the habit of doing this, and tell your spouse and/or children what they mean to you, or text a friend just to check in and see how they’re doing.  All of these things lead to feeling better about yourself, thus reducing stress before your day begins and keeping it under control throughout the day.

I’ll leave you with one last crucial antidote against negative emotions… progression.  Progress somehow physically and/or mentally every single day.  What I’ve found is that progression leads to confidence, sense of accomplishment, and pride. It leaves you with a feeling of achievement at the end of the day and encourages you to do the same for tomorrow because you want that feeling again.  It develops momentum.  I hope this serves you well!

Neither have I, but I'm curious to try one out because it has the potential to be one of the greatest productivity hacks we've ever seen.

Nappucino - Taking a shot of caffeine at 2:00pm before having a power nap for 20 minutes. You’ll wake up feeling like you slept for 8 hours and ready to power through the rest of the day having more energy after the nap then you did when you woke up. The idea behind having a cup of coffee or a shot of caffeine right before your nap is that it takes 25 minutes for the caffeine to take full effect.  So when you wake up after 20 minutes, it's like you get a power boost because not only will you feel rested, but the caffeine has now taken its full effect. Seriously. Check out “When” by Daniel Pink.

I can't make this stuff up!  We haven't tried it at the dealership yet but I'm open-minded and willing to give it a shot to see if it works. Would have to figure out how to make it work at the prime time which is 2:00 in the afternoon.  This is all data backed and based on numerous studies which are the authorship styles Daniel Pink is best known for. 

Who knows, this could be one of the greatest productivity hacks of all-time or not work at all.  But when you read the book, it's hard to argue against the facts!

Imagine a situation where you have a teammate working with you to grow your business and the only time you pay them is when someone buys from you.  This is no risk affiliate marketing.  Having one teammate could potentially lead to 1 new sale for you every month.  But what if you had 5 teammates?  In the first few months, you could potentially receive 5 new sales, but your long-term growth would be exponential because of the power of compounding.  Those 5 new leads will also go to work for you, pending you provide the experience you’re capable of, providing an additional 1 or 2 extra sales per month through referrals.

Start by reaching out to other commissioned sales professionals such as Realtors, Machinery Salespeople, Small Business Owners, and other commissioned sales professionals.  Look within your network and see if you have connections that you should be utilizing right now.  If you don’t have any, check into social media, search relatable hashtags, and see who is active but also aligned with the way you do business.  

You could say something like;

"Hello _________, I'm writing to acknowledge your presence on social media and the obvious success you’re having in your industry.  I wanted to reach out today and ask if I could help promote your message and business to my circle of influence.  I thought I'd share your message with my audience even if it's not as big as yours.  I help people make their second largest purchase every couple of years, their vehicle.  Please let me know what you'd like me to tell my audience about and how I can help."

And see what their response is like.  Think about it from their perspective, this kind of message would be pretty hard to turn down or ignore.  Especially as a commissioned salesperson.  You’re both in the same business and share commonalities in your professions.  This will open the door to a healthy conversation and lead to an opportunity to work together.  You help them promote their business, and they will do the same for you.

There is no structure that will be the same.  You may find that some people may be more demanding than others with what they want, but you have the right to be as demanding as they are if that’s the case.  The goal is to be financially compensated for sending referrals who end up buying to them and vice-versa.  You can promote your affiliate to your clients casually (don’t sell) in conversation when appropriate, and promote them on your social media as well. 

Affiliate marketing can be defined as the process of earning a commission by promoting other people's (or company's) products. You find a product you like, promote it to others and earn a piece of the profit for each sale that you make. 

Leverage this opportunity and see your sales grow!

Goal Setting Outline

What is my main goal for today?
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

What actions are required to produce the result I’m striving for?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

What resources do I have at my disposal to ensure achievement?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Who can help me achieve my main goal today?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

What bad habits must I stop that are consistently holding be back?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

How much time must I dedicate to accomplish my goal today?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

What do I have to learn in order to produce the result I must accomplish for the day?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

How will I set out to prioritize my schedule in order to achieve maximum results?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

How will I feel at the end of the day accomplishing my goal?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Date: _____________________________              Signed: __________________________________________________

*The same outline can be used for 1 month, 3 months, Annual goals, etc.

I personally find that 3-month goals are more effective than annual or long-term goals. An added tool that you can use that has proven effective for me is to create a visual for your goals.

For example: If a goal of yours is a material item such as a new set of golf clubs, then put a picture of the type of golf clubs you want onto a vision board, or set it as the background on your phone. Seeing your reward every day for accomplishing a goal or set of goals, is extremely effective and provides vast incentive.

Set a timeline for your goal and put a daily reminder on your phone. A countdown app is a great resource to use in this situation. Set it for March 31st and the amount of money needed for the golf clubs.

Here’s an example of the reminder to put on your phone; “I will sell 50 vehicles by March 31st which will allow me the funding to buy my new set of golf clubs”

Remember, you have the choice to make it a great day!

Brandin

“Clients do not come first, employees come first.  If you take care of your employees, they will take care of your clients” – Richard Branson

1. Think of who your favorite coach or mentor was growing up.  It could have been a sports coach, teacher, or parent.  What kind of lasting impact did they have on you? 

2. How much do you invest in the personal development of your sales team?

3. Do you hire Sales Coaches or Sales Trainers?

4. Would you agree that the more you invest in your team, the more they will produce for you?

5. Are you doing more than just desking deals?

6. How often do you check in with your teams professional and personal goals?

7. Would you agree that your team has reached their full potential? Or at the very least, on their way to reaching their potential? How so?

8. Would your team follow you if you left?

9. How would you rank your leadership skills on a scale of 1-10?

10. What do you think your ROI would be by taking your 1-month advertising budget and investing it in your sales team instead?

11. Would you agree that as dealers, we’re open to trying new software without question, but when it comes to new coaching programs or personal development seminars, we seem to hesitate?

12. Are you in the trap of being good enough?

13. What are each of your Sales Professionals 90 day goals?

As of April 18th, we’re the #1 Volume Dealer in Manitoba for Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram franchises.  This is the first time in our history of accomplishing such a feat and perhaps what’s most impressive is that our dealership is located in a community of 180 people, yup you heard correct, 180 people.  Although our reign at the top is virtually guaranteed to be short-lived, the fact that we achieved the #1 spot is a historical validation for our company.

We did it without a giant gorilla in our parking lot.  We did it without balloons.  We did it without manipulative advertising like $77/month payments.  We did it without promoting price in our radio ads.  We did it without spending more than $1,000 in advertising this month.  We did it without a wacky inflatable tube man dancing out front.  We did it without undercutting our competition on price.  And we did it without sacrificing the integrity and core values of our culture that has been developed over the last 33 years.

Gimmicks, manipulative advertising, and high-pressured private sales may work for some dealers, but it doesn’t work for us.  We tailor our culture to the way our client expects to be treated.  For example, we don’t start our relationship off with a lie by saying they can have any vehicle they want for $77 per month.  Instead, we’ve determined what our values are and aligned those with our advertising campaigns over the years which has led to a transparent and trustworthy experience for our clients.

Because of this, our growth is dependent on word of mouth more than any other form of advertising.  As you are likely aware, word of mouth is the most valuable form of marketing which is why we take our culture and client experience so seriously.  It’s a genuine approach and one that has been established since 1985.  We’re continuously at 170% of our MSR and as of March 31st, we are at 211% MSR Year to Date. 

It’s my belief that the vast majority of dealers get so caught up in the next deal that they forget about the long-term effects of their marketing and the quality of traffic they are driving in to their store.  We’re in this with the infinite mindset, not the one and done mentality. This is what separates us from most other dealers.  They may preach about customer service and relationships with their clients, but their marketing and culture prove otherwise. 

We’ve found that our approach fits well with our clientele and there is an increased morale in the dealership, more trust, stronger relationships, easier deals, higher repeat/referral business, a loyal following, and far less stress.  A lot of this stems from the type of marketing we’re doing.

I sold my first vehicle on the 2nd day of my sales career.  That should have never been allowed to happen.  Although I was excited to get started in sales, I had no business hitting the floor that early and inexperienced.  The message that was sent to me by the dealership was that I would learn along the way and training certainly wasn’t a priority.

They provided some online training, Joe Verde and Paul Cummings, which I took full advantage of when I could.  But there was no reward or accountability for doing the training on my own time.  And they had a trainer come out for a day to help get me going but he was more interested in visiting with the staff than he was training me.

If you're training your sales consultants in a similar fashion, consider improving your development model first, but if you’re “old school” or think what you’re doing is good enough, then I encourage you to have an open mind to add the following 4 elements to your training program.

#1. Provide Resources

Allow them to find their way through multiple resources.  Share your own resources that you use for personal and business development.  Or, if you don’t know where to start, this will get you going.  There are a lot of free and informative Blog sites, YouTube Videos, LinkedIn Groups, and other avenues for effectively educating your sales team.

#2. Think outside the Auto Industry

Not all of the training has to revolve around the automotive industry.  Think outside the box.  There are a lot of similarities between Sales Consultants and entrepreneurs.  Have the consultants follow and study the stories of the most successful entrepreneurs and business owners you know.  Allow them to be inspired by these stories because the inspiration will lead to increased productivity and morale.

#3. Seminars

I found it hard to find the value in seminars before attending one myself.  That was 2 years ago, and the last 2 years have been the best of my life, the seminar was a complete game changer both personally and professionally.  We’ve incorporated seminars into our development programs at Woodworth and the reaction is overwhelmingly positive.  When you invest in your team personally, you benefit from their professional development.  This is the best return on investment for any training in my opinion.

#4. Lead by Example

The best leaders don’t ask their sales team to do anything that they wouldn’t do themselves.  If you’re expecting your team to develop themselves but you aren’t doing it yourself, you’ll continuously find it a challenge to have them fully engage in training, thus leading to a lack in reaching their full potential.  Plus, when you’re developing yourself, you’re able to share more resources with your team which they’ll respect you for because you’re leading by example. 

Make it a great day!

I think we can all agree that first impressions are critical to the success of the sale.  Knowing this, we put our efforts and focus more on the script than we do on the mindset of the individual.  And I get it because that's where my focus used to be as well before I began to understand the value in personal development for sales consultants.  

Because the majority of you reading this right now are in a position of influence and authority, it's in your best interest and the interest of your sales team, to invest in yourself first so you can have a larger impact on those you are influencing. 

Leading through action is far more powerful than words.

My question is this.... who are you becoming?

It's not a lot of fun being in a rut.  And it's difficult to know how to get out of it while you're knee deep and gradually sinking.  Your mind isn't clear or sharp, you're focused more on negative thoughts than positive ones, etc.  

In an effort to help you the next time you find yourself in this situation, here is my 5 Step Process for regaining motivation and getting you back on track;

#1. Break down your monthly sales goals – How many units are you going to sell this month?  How many days are you going to work? How many vehicles do you need to sell per day? What’s your process for selling a car? What action steps do you need to take to make that happen?

#2. Share this info with your business partner or spouse – By sharing your goals with someone you respect or love will automatically make you want to stay committed to the goal.  Ask them to hold you accountable.  Have them ask you 3 times per week how you’re making out with your goals and show your progress to them

#3. Set daily affirmations in your phone – Put sayings like this in your phone and have each of them go off once per day randomly: “How am I going to make the most of today?” , “Giving. Loving. Grateful” , “BRING YOUR A GAME!”

#4. Review your why – Why are you in sales? Answer this question if you haven’t already and write it down on a sticky note, leave it in your desk, or put it into the Evernote app on your phone as a reference for when you’re feeling in a rut.  This reminder will bring back the positive feeling of why you’re in sales and will give you an added boost when needed

#5. Dig into your Jar of Awesomeness – Write down your awesome characteristics and things you have done in your life to this point.  It doesn’t have to be automotive related.  Maybe you won an award in high school, or for sales, or maybe you always hold the door open for someone.  It can be the smallest thing.  When someone compliments you for something you did or the person that you are, write that down, put it in a Kleenex box or again, in your Evernote, and review your Jar of Awesomeness to help put yourself back into a peak state of mind.

Do you read? Watch YouTube videos? Listen to podcasts and audiobooks?

Now, do you share the wisdom you’re taking in?

Recently, I started sharing notes that I had taken in the past on classic books such as “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey, and on books that I’m currently reading such as “Mindset” by Carol Dweck and “The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership” by John C. Maxwell with my team at Woodworth Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram Ltd.

Understanding that not everyone has the development state of mind doesn’t mean that you can’t take the initiative to create one for them.  I’ve tried gifting books to the team in the past and gave my recommendations as to what other books to invest in but found that strategy wasn’t effective.  Since the majority of them aren’t active readers, this was more of a chore for them than it was a personal development exercise.  So, I changed my strategy and approached it from a different perspective.

Instead of approaching it as training, I started to look at it as development.  This means that I don’t follow up to see if they read the notes, I don’t force them to read anything, and I don’t make them feel guilty for not reading what I send them.  What I do is leave it up to them to take the proactive approach and make it their idea rather than forcing it on them.  They see what I’m currently learning about because I’m sharing it with them, and what I’ve learned in the past which has contributed to my success today.  Since most of them have been able to see how I’ve developed over the last few years, they get a first-hand look at someone who has benefited from the information I’m sending them. 

With the current Leadership Laws from John C. Maxwell, I recommended that they take the perspective from not only their professional position but from a parent perspective as well.  It’s fair to say that we all want to improve on parenting which has led to a higher engagement in their reading.  What I do is read one chapter / day and take effective notes, from there, I share them with the team.  I email them individually, not as a group, and usually put a quick note at the beginning of the email letting them know how the following notes can benefit them. 

Over the last few weeks, they have proudly shared back with me pictures of books they have taken the initiative to buy and start reading on their own.  They have replied back to some of my emails with messages of how their stress levels have reduced and how they feel more confident in their parenting (leadership) skills.  This, of course, all translates to productivity at work and their intrinsic motivation.  You may have heard me define success before as coming down to having an obsession with everlasting self-development and this is what we are currently experiencing with our team at Woodworth.  I send the email to fixed operations, sales, finance, and management.

It has been working for us and I hope a similar strategy will work for you.  Also, if you have any suggestions or ideas of your own that have proven to work at your dealership, please don’t hesitate to share!