OF ALL THE CALLS WE SCORED IN THE PAST 30 DAYS, 31% OF NEW PHONE LEADS WERE NOT ENTERED INTO THE CRM

When I was in sales, I remember the sound…it might as well have been a cash register. The phone would ring and like a gun draw straight out of a Clint Eastwood movie, the salesman with the quickest hands would get the up. In my opinion, the phone-up was without a doubt the #1 most sought after lead in the dealership but also the most difficult to master. The customer knows exactly what they are looking for and all you have to do is NOT mess it up and you’re going to have a well-qualified appointment. But after you answer is where we find countless opportunities being wasted. First, let's understand both the Manager and Salesman perspectives. 

What’s the problem?

First, let's understand both the Manager and Salesman perspectives...

The Management perspective:

Managers know how to close deals once a customer is in the store. They have control of the opportunity and they care about the prospective customer because they are directly in front of them. The issue is that a bad phone up (if not tracked) is a real opportunity that was lost before it began and could be costing your store multiple deals a month to a competitor who knows how to professionally handle an inbound call.

It’s not their fault they don’t care, it’s yours…

The Salesman perspective:

Coming from the mind of a former car salesman, if I blew a phone-up, it doesn’t cost me a dime outside of a few minutes, especially if I’m not being held to any sort of a standard (which I was). Sales people who aren’t held accountable will keep making the following deadly sins because honestly, for them…it doesn’t matter. And the sad truth is, the customer is fully expecting a bad experience. Sales people brag when they sell a car but the truth is in many cases, the customer buys a car despite the salesman not because of them and didn’t create any loyalty for future purchases.

First Deadly Sin: Improper (or no) introduction.

I called several stores in the past few months and I could tell right away who I wanted to work with. The best was a standard greeting. “Thank you for calling X dealership, this is X how may I help you today?” The worst was this... “Hello?” This was at a high end franchise. Every piece of research I’ve seen says that the first 7 seconds is how long we have to make a strong first impression. How’s your team’s first impression?

Second Deadly Sin: Not fact finding.

When we get an up on a specific car, our first instinct is to immediately check inventory and pray to God it’s still in stock. How many times have you heard this conversation…”no, that car just got sold, sorry…yep, no problem… bye.” That’s what happens when we don’t fact find. Do we know what had them interested about that specific car? Yes, you have to give them the information they requested but why not make them want to do business with you and your dealership specifically? Instead of “let me check if that car is available” why not ask “while I’m checking on that, what has you interested in that vehicle?” It’s amazing how the conversation opens up.

Third Deadly Sin: Not completing customer information.

The problem isn’t the lack of information a customer is willing to give us but the lack of times we ask for it. Just like a McDonald's cashier asking if you’d like fries with that, we should be asking for the email, second number, and last name…every time. People like to be contacted in different ways so what good is a work number if they communicate 95% of the time through text?

Fourth Deadly Sin: Not giving a call to action

It’s easy to let the customer control the call. They’ll say things like “I’ll try to make it in this week... I’ll definitely ask for you.” They are basically saying they don’t care about you or your time. I think in most cases, there’s a lack of effort to ask for an appointment. The mindset is, as long as they are in the CRM you’re protected, however if they never come because it’s Monday and they said they would come in “sometime this week” (and bought the other car they were looking at in the meantime), being CRM protected doesn’t do much good.

Fifth Deadly Sin: Not putting a new phone-up in the CRM

There are a few reasons why a salesperson wouldn’t put somebody in the CRM. They are taking a quick up in the middle of another task, or they’re on a lead rotation and they don’t want to “waste” their turn. Of all the criteria we score on, in the last 30 days, only 69% of the time is the customer being added to the CRM. This leaves a huge number of people that we can’t market to or follow up with.

What’s the solution?

• Have a process: It doesn’t have to be elaborate but a process will help get more predictable results

• Understand what’s broken: Consistently monitor and understand what part of the phone-up process needs improvement

• Coach: Targeted Training based on what needs improvement

By tracking and improving these 5 deadly sins, you can maximize each opportunity and turn customers from buying a car despite the experience to buying a car because of the experience. If you’d like to discuss this further, I’d love to hear from you!