All across the Country, in fact probably in Dealerships everywhere, a similar scene has played itself out today: Call every un-sold Customer we’ve had all Month, bump all Trades to get a New retail unit, take that loser deal because we need those last few cars, get an update on every non-funded deal, call emergency C.I.T. meetings, whip the B.D.C. into a frenzy….

So after this madness and mayhem of erasing Thousands of Dollars of profits in an attempt to get deals funded and volume up, the same vow will be made tomorrow: “We need to stay on top of this stuff throughout the Month so we don’t have this B.S. next Month.”

Didn’t you say that LAST Month, and the Month before?

If this in no way pertains to you, great, but I’ll bet we can all see something that is applicable.

The false sense of Urgency created at the end of each Month is born of the very real desperation created by a failure to inspect your processes every day. The end of the Month can be much more pleasant when it’s just “going for extra gravy” rather than a futile last-ditch effort to force into being that which could have been cultivated daily.

Luckily tomorrow is a new Day, a new Month and an opportunity to get it right. You don’t have to have a Title to be a Leader. So when are you going to TAKE ACTION?

Bryan Armstrong

@bryancarguy

All across the Country, in fact probably in Dealerships everywhere, a similar scene has played itself out today: Call every un-sold Customer we’ve had all Month, bump all Trades to get a New retail unit, take that loser deal because we need those last few cars, get an update on every non-funded deal, call emergency C.I.T. meetings, whip the B.D.C. into a frenzy….

So after this madness and mayhem of erasing Thousands of Dollars of profits in an attempt to get deals funded and volume up, the same vow will be made tomorrow: “We need to stay on top of this stuff throughout the Month so we don’t have this B.S. next Month.”

Didn’t you say that LAST Month, and the Month before?

If this in no way pertains to you, great, but I’ll bet we can all see something that is applicable.

The false sense of Urgency created at the end of each Month is born of the very real desperation created by a failure to inspect your processes every day. The end of the Month can be much more pleasant when it’s just “going for extra gravy” rather than a futile last-ditch effort to force into being that which could have been cultivated daily.

Luckily tomorrow is a new Day, a new Month and an opportunity to get it right. You don’t have to have a Title to be a Leader. So when are you going to TAKE ACTION?

Bryan Armstrong

@bryancarguy

A while ago I was privileged to be involved in a podcast Larry Bruce  had organized. On the call were some of what I consider to be the best of the best in our industry. (I was there to observe and learn.) During the conversation Larry said something to me that resonated, “I’d like to find the person who came up with the term Desk Manager and punch em in the face.” Of course we all laughed, but then a week or so later Jeff Kershner sends me an e-mail of the top posts of 2011 on his site DealerRefresh. By the way my favorite was titled Are Your Employees “Coin-Operated”? And if you haven’t read it yet you should…after this.

The point here is that our industry has become one where in large part a title is just part of an en-TITLE-ment attitude. Once our Title is defined as managing a desk we can easily forget that it’s the Salespeople that keep the need for that desk to exist alive.

So if you’re going to ride it, use the position to teach and inspire rather than rule and repress. A few ideas may be:

1. Have each salesperson bring you one “tough call” to make while they listen and don’t cheat and pull the “manager card”. If you expect them to get the customer back in without numbers and quoting price, show them how to do it.
2. Role-play each pencil before you send it out. Then have the salesman repeat it back to you until their delivery is smooth. Ask them what they think the customer will say and how they will overcome it. Throwing out a monster pencil with the advice “Just get me back to paper” is the most cowardice of acts.
3. Review each guest sheet with the salesperson (sold and unsold) after the customer leaves. Tell them what they did well; ask them what they think they could do better. There is no better teaching moment.
4. Personally go out and thank each customer that you penciled sold or not. Quit hiding behind the “green curtain” pretending all the citizens of OZ can’t see you.

Most of all quit relying on spiffs because you think that will allay your guilt at being unable to Lead and Motivate. After all, the only person who actually could be termed a “Desk Manager” at the Dealership is possibly the receptionist... And if you’d listen she could probably tell you how to better run the Store.

Bryan Armstrong

@bryancarguy

A while ago I was privileged to be involved in a podcast Larry Bruce  had organized. On the call were some of what I consider to be the best of the best in our industry. (I was there to observe and learn.) During the conversation Larry said something to me that resonated, “I’d like to find the person who came up with the term Desk Manager and punch em in the face.” Of course we all laughed, but then a week or so later Jeff Kershner sends me an e-mail of the top posts of 2011 on his site DealerRefresh. By the way my favorite was titled Are Your Employees “Coin-Operated”? And if you haven’t read it yet you should…after this.

The point here is that our industry has become one where in large part a title is just part of an en-TITLE-ment attitude. Once our Title is defined as managing a desk we can easily forget that it’s the Salespeople that keep the need for that desk to exist alive.

So if you’re going to ride it, use the position to teach and inspire rather than rule and repress. A few ideas may be:

1. Have each salesperson bring you one “tough call” to make while they listen and don’t cheat and pull the “manager card”. If you expect them to get the customer back in without numbers and quoting price, show them how to do it.
2. Role-play each pencil before you send it out. Then have the salesman repeat it back to you until their delivery is smooth. Ask them what they think the customer will say and how they will overcome it. Throwing out a monster pencil with the advice “Just get me back to paper” is the most cowardice of acts.
3. Review each guest sheet with the salesperson (sold and unsold) after the customer leaves. Tell them what they did well; ask them what they think they could do better. There is no better teaching moment.
4. Personally go out and thank each customer that you penciled sold or not. Quit hiding behind the “green curtain” pretending all the citizens of OZ can’t see you.

Most of all quit relying on spiffs because you think that will allay your guilt at being unable to Lead and Motivate. After all, the only person who actually could be termed a “Desk Manager” at the Dealership is possibly the receptionist... And if you’d listen she could probably tell you how to better run the Store.

Bryan Armstrong

@bryancarguy

As I monitor all inbound and outbound communication of Dealerships watching for signs of impending C.S.I. issues, new or missed sales and retention opportunities and, I am simply amazed at the amount of time, effort, energy and money that is expended by the Sales dept. to remedy issues. By contrast, Service rarely has these problems, but when they do, it’s from the same root cause. That’s right, the “C” word… Communication… or shall I say the lack thereof.

Recently I listened to a customer whose car had been in the shop for 2 days longer than anticipated, the wrong parts had shown up and it was going to be even longer as one needed component was back ordered. When asked about her experience she proclaimed “Your Service guy is a God!” (Keep in mind this was not a warranty issue, she was not in a loaner car and she was footing the bill herself). This response was so far away from what I had expected that I had to inquire further. Her explanation: “Look, I’m not happy about everything but I understand things happen and he has called everyday to offer shuttle service if I need it and keep me updated. Plus he always returns my calls! As long as he is there, I’ll never go anywhere else.”

No CRM or process can force it; this is a man who’s building for himself a career and a following.

By contrast, I’ve seen customers who were so happy with their experience that they sent in referrals who also bought cars. The salesman failed to follow-up on the $100 referral program check he had pitched to them at delivery. Even though the matter was eventually resolved to their satisfaction, the message from their salesperson had been received loud and clear.

Even if the news is unpleasant a swift delivery with a clear message will alleviate most hassles. “no there is no second set of keys” trumps “I don’t think there are but I’ll look and if they show up I’ll call” every time.

Communicate often, clearly and through the channel the customer is comfortable with. The payoff is huge.

What fail-safe's are in place at your Dealership? How often do you monitor or cross-check to measure that your expectation is being met? Pro-active will beat reactive every time!

Bryan Armstrong

@bryancarguy  

As I monitor all inbound and outbound communication of Dealerships watching for signs of impending C.S.I. issues, new or missed sales and retention opportunities and, I am simply amazed at the amount of time, effort, energy and money that is expended by the Sales dept. to remedy issues. By contrast, Service rarely has these problems, but when they do, it’s from the same root cause. That’s right, the “C” word… Communication… or shall I say the lack thereof.

Recently I listened to a customer whose car had been in the shop for 2 days longer than anticipated, the wrong parts had shown up and it was going to be even longer as one needed component was back ordered. When asked about her experience she proclaimed “Your Service guy is a God!” (Keep in mind this was not a warranty issue, she was not in a loaner car and she was footing the bill herself). This response was so far away from what I had expected that I had to inquire further. Her explanation: “Look, I’m not happy about everything but I understand things happen and he has called everyday to offer shuttle service if I need it and keep me updated. Plus he always returns my calls! As long as he is there, I’ll never go anywhere else.”

No CRM or process can force it; this is a man who’s building for himself a career and a following.

By contrast, I’ve seen customers who were so happy with their experience that they sent in referrals who also bought cars. The salesman failed to follow-up on the $100 referral program check he had pitched to them at delivery. Even though the matter was eventually resolved to their satisfaction, the message from their salesperson had been received loud and clear.

Even if the news is unpleasant a swift delivery with a clear message will alleviate most hassles. “no there is no second set of keys” trumps “I don’t think there are but I’ll look and if they show up I’ll call” every time.

Communicate often, clearly and through the channel the customer is comfortable with. The payoff is huge.

What fail-safe's are in place at your Dealership? How often do you monitor or cross-check to measure that your expectation is being met? Pro-active will beat reactive every time!

Bryan Armstrong

@bryancarguy  

Last month I was honored to be named one of the 5 finalists at Driving Sales Executive Summit in the most innovative Dealer competition. Many of you may know that the idea I presented was for a new review platform called the Power Pen now being marketed by Punchline Advertising. I was honored to be named the 3^rd place winner, but I feel that the focus was placed on the product rather than the concept I was trying to convey.

Finding a small local company that was providing a similar service to the medical profession and working with them to, in essence, create a new market segment product that better fit our needs was the true innovation idea. The product is secondary. We as Dealers have neither the time nor the funds to create every solution we may need and so we rely on existing companies to achieve the results. The Power Pen is an amazing new tool that allows Dealers to gather verified reviews from customers in the store and have them posted to an independent site which ultimately takes up more key controllable real estate in the search results for a Dealers name.

While this is great in and of itself, what is truly amazing is the way it came about. As a Dealer Manager I struggle to find the best vendor products that will enable me to secure key results. This goal is often times contrary to those Vendors internal revenue-generating structure. For example, while DealerRater, AutoTrader, Cars.com are all  good Vendors, I’m unhappy that unless I sign for the top most package I will still have my Competitors encroaching on my SERP’s by means of banner ads and other potential brand leaks.

Rather than be put between a rock and a hard place, what if we all continued to look outside the Automotive vertical for solutions, contact those companies and share with them the insights needed to achieve a viable product that is within our own control? To take it a step further, we then share the information and results and collectively benefit from one another’s efforts. The end result is that we could control our own digital foot print to a greater degree and become even more independent.

Quit being a digital share cropper, leasing your own land and giving your hard-earned profits to the very people you’ve paid to enhance your impact, then turn around and monetize your name and hard fought results. It’s a slower process initially but at the end of the day, you can be the master of your own domain rather than being reliant on a 3^rd party and subject to their whims of change. 

Last month I was honored to be named one of the 5 finalists at Driving Sales Executive Summit in the most innovative Dealer competition. Many of you may know that the idea I presented was for a new review platform called the Power Pen now being marketed by Punchline Advertising. I was honored to be named the 3^rd place winner, but I feel that the focus was placed on the product rather than the concept I was trying to convey.

Finding a small local company that was providing a similar service to the medical profession and working with them to, in essence, create a new market segment product that better fit our needs was the true innovation idea. The product is secondary. We as Dealers have neither the time nor the funds to create every solution we may need and so we rely on existing companies to achieve the results. The Power Pen is an amazing new tool that allows Dealers to gather verified reviews from customers in the store and have them posted to an independent site which ultimately takes up more key controllable real estate in the search results for a Dealers name.

While this is great in and of itself, what is truly amazing is the way it came about. As a Dealer Manager I struggle to find the best vendor products that will enable me to secure key results. This goal is often times contrary to those Vendors internal revenue-generating structure. For example, while DealerRater, AutoTrader, Cars.com are all  good Vendors, I’m unhappy that unless I sign for the top most package I will still have my Competitors encroaching on my SERP’s by means of banner ads and other potential brand leaks.

Rather than be put between a rock and a hard place, what if we all continued to look outside the Automotive vertical for solutions, contact those companies and share with them the insights needed to achieve a viable product that is within our own control? To take it a step further, we then share the information and results and collectively benefit from one another’s efforts. The end result is that we could control our own digital foot print to a greater degree and become even more independent.

Quit being a digital share cropper, leasing your own land and giving your hard-earned profits to the very people you’ve paid to enhance your impact, then turn around and monetize your name and hard fought results. It’s a slower process initially but at the end of the day, you can be the master of your own domain rather than being reliant on a 3^rd party and subject to their whims of change. 

I would be hard pressed to describe the events of the day, but if I don’t take a moment now, this feeling of absolute euphoria I feel may escape me as tomorrow prepare to travel and return to the day to day operations of my Store.

You see, for the last two days I have been rubbing elbows and interacting with the most brilliant and innovative minds from a variety of Industries and I am literally “in the ether” (You know, that state of enamor that we all try to elicit from our clientele? )

As I listen to impassioned people sharing ideas on Culture shifts, Marketing trends and truly connecting with customers in ways heretofore undreamed of in the Automotive Vertical, I have hope: Hope for a better Culture, better Sales and more importantly, of erasing the stigma that so many of even our BEST customers have long held of an Industry I love.

It didn’t matter if ideas conflicted; all were presented, cases stated and the audience left to make their own determination. There was no “pitching” of Products or Services and Dealers and Vendors alike were discussing ideas based on their MERIT alone. Strategies were shared and opinions ran strong and passionate and I remembered again of why I love what I do.

The real time twitter feed became an open forum wherein audience participation abounded and Speakers were commented on and rated by their peers IN REAL TIME. Vendors that are at odds and fierce competitors “on the street” sat at the same table and discussed strengths and weaknesses of their Platforms IN FRONT OF DEALERS!!! We hear the term “crowd-sourcing” bantered about, but with the live feed, twitter and input from different camps I have now seen it in action and come away with a clearer picture of what I hope to aspire to and a knowledge that I am not alone in that dream.

A few years ago, some friends of mine, Joe Webb and Bill Playford of DealerKnows, stated to me in a personal conversation, that they wanted to be “The Justice League” of the Dealer world when it came to Vendor Solutions/Consultants. DrivingSales has for these three days created an army of evangelists that will take the things learned and relationships built and enabled the seeds of such a vision to be spread far and wide.

I know I will be looking back through the #DSES hash tag on Twitter and watching these sessions as they become available on DrivingSales TV to further clarify and define the course in the weeks and year to come until the next one.

Thank you Jared and your hard working Team at DrivingSales.com for continuing to push the bar and set a higher standard for learning and interacting at Automotive Conferences. It may be altruistic and naïve, but I hope to be able to carry this passion with me to sustain me till next year’s Event.

I will be implementing take-a-ways from here and giving feedback in this Community and would encourage all those in attendance now, observing from afar or directed to this post by some well-intentioned friend to do the same and make plans now to attend next year’s event. This is not an Automotive Conference in the Traditional definition of the word as much as it is a trek to the Holy Grail. Come and renew, rejuvenate, be enlightened and re-define our role in the Business world. If you don’t, in the words of Gary Vaynerchuck you’ll be “going out of business within 15 years, and if 15 years is all you need, then fine”.

Personally, I too want to leave behind a legacy and know that I left an imprint of good upon the world through selling cars. After all, being a "car guy" (or gal) is, in my estimation, an opportunity to serve others and thereby better myself.

Bryan Armstrong

@bryancarguy

I would be hard pressed to describe the events of the day, but if I don’t take a moment now, this feeling of absolute euphoria I feel may escape me as tomorrow prepare to travel and return to the day to day operations of my Store.

You see, for the last two days I have been rubbing elbows and interacting with the most brilliant and innovative minds from a variety of Industries and I am literally “in the ether” (You know, that state of enamor that we all try to elicit from our clientele? )

As I listen to impassioned people sharing ideas on Culture shifts, Marketing trends and truly connecting with customers in ways heretofore undreamed of in the Automotive Vertical, I have hope: Hope for a better Culture, better Sales and more importantly, of erasing the stigma that so many of even our BEST customers have long held of an Industry I love.

It didn’t matter if ideas conflicted; all were presented, cases stated and the audience left to make their own determination. There was no “pitching” of Products or Services and Dealers and Vendors alike were discussing ideas based on their MERIT alone. Strategies were shared and opinions ran strong and passionate and I remembered again of why I love what I do.

The real time twitter feed became an open forum wherein audience participation abounded and Speakers were commented on and rated by their peers IN REAL TIME. Vendors that are at odds and fierce competitors “on the street” sat at the same table and discussed strengths and weaknesses of their Platforms IN FRONT OF DEALERS!!! We hear the term “crowd-sourcing” bantered about, but with the live feed, twitter and input from different camps I have now seen it in action and come away with a clearer picture of what I hope to aspire to and a knowledge that I am not alone in that dream.

A few years ago, some friends of mine, Joe Webb and Bill Playford of DealerKnows, stated to me in a personal conversation, that they wanted to be “The Justice League” of the Dealer world when it came to Vendor Solutions/Consultants. DrivingSales has for these three days created an army of evangelists that will take the things learned and relationships built and enabled the seeds of such a vision to be spread far and wide.

I know I will be looking back through the #DSES hash tag on Twitter and watching these sessions as they become available on DrivingSales TV to further clarify and define the course in the weeks and year to come until the next one.

Thank you Jared and your hard working Team at DrivingSales.com for continuing to push the bar and set a higher standard for learning and interacting at Automotive Conferences. It may be altruistic and naïve, but I hope to be able to carry this passion with me to sustain me till next year’s Event.

I will be implementing take-a-ways from here and giving feedback in this Community and would encourage all those in attendance now, observing from afar or directed to this post by some well-intentioned friend to do the same and make plans now to attend next year’s event. This is not an Automotive Conference in the Traditional definition of the word as much as it is a trek to the Holy Grail. Come and renew, rejuvenate, be enlightened and re-define our role in the Business world. If you don’t, in the words of Gary Vaynerchuck you’ll be “going out of business within 15 years, and if 15 years is all you need, then fine”.

Personally, I too want to leave behind a legacy and know that I left an imprint of good upon the world through selling cars. After all, being a "car guy" (or gal) is, in my estimation, an opportunity to serve others and thereby better myself.

Bryan Armstrong

@bryancarguy