Mosley Automotive
Knowledge is Not Power
I want to take a look at a myth that has been a mainstream statement for years – the idea that knowledge is power. I find as I visit stores and conduct workshops across the country, I meet a lot of “know it all” salespeople or worse yet, negative salespeople who want the customer to take all of the responsibility for not buying a car. I also want to reach out to the people that sit in training nodding their head in agreement or taking a ton of notes, only to leave behind the concepts they learned as soon as they leave the session. Here’s the real deal. Unless you can convert knowledge into results, you’ve got nothing! Let’s take a look at three reasons why people don’t convert knowledge into action:
1. Information overload: This is a common trap people fall into because it's easy to acquire knowledge, but not as much fun or easy to apply that information.
2. Negative filtering: Thoughts that hold people back so whenever they do learn something positive, they tend to discount it.
3. Lack of follow-up: An absence of structure and accountability that explains why smokers continue to smoke when they know it’s bad for them. While many smokers have a positive attitude about quitting, they keep smoking because changing habits or behaviors requires a concentrated effort.
Converting knowledge into action requires repetition. Repetition creates lasting change because people need to hear information over and over for it to have an impact. If you didn’t know this by now a major part of my business is selling training. One of the biggest hurdles I face on a daily basis with a dealer is breaking the belief that there is no reason to train employees because they won’t stay or they won’t change. Do you think that there is a connection between a salesperson that has the tools to be successful and stays versus a salesperson coming to work every day trained only to say, “What brings you into the dealership today?” or “Any reason other than price you wouldn’t buy and drive this car today?” or the crown jewel, “great news!” I had a dealer tell me a few months ago that I am the first person to do training at his dealership in 12 years. Question: is it just a coincidence that the dealership is last in the zone in sales and has high sales turnover? If you are a dealer, wake up! As the dealership’s decision maker you must realize that you can’t mandate productivity; it is your responsibility to give your salespeople what they need to succeed (FYI: when I talk about tools to succeed I am not talking about a working telephone and lot full of inventory).
If you are a salesperson, the following are some matters for your consideration. People grow best with an open, positive mind. Seeds planted on good soil produce many times what is sown. An open, positive filtering system can ignite creativity, ingenuity, and resourcefulness. Positive thinkers do the impossible with great regularity. The next time you are presented with something you think you already know, I challenge you to not simply say, “I already know that,” but ask yourself, “How good am I at that?” International thought leader Ken Blanchard coined a phrase known as “green light thinking.” This is when you focus on positive aspects and overcome negative filtering. In order to maximize the follow-through on the knowledge you acquire, you will need structure, support, and accountability. An effective follow up system to implement a new training concept involves: Tell me, show me, let me, and correct me.
Finally I want to leave you with two things:
1. Remember that the human brain and the computer have a lot in common: Both the computer and human brain don’t know the difference between the truth and what people tell them.
2. The golden thread that runs through the life of every high achiever is focus, backed by persistence. In the end, knowledge is potential power when made actionable and sometimes the best tools that will help you sell more cars and make more money are indeed the same tools to improve the quality and success of your life, period.
Mosley Automotive
Knowledge is Not Power
I want to take a look at a myth that has been a mainstream statement for years – the idea that knowledge is power. I find as I visit stores and conduct workshops across the country, I meet a lot of “know it all” salespeople or worse yet, negative salespeople who want the customer to take all of the responsibility for not buying a car. I also want to reach out to the people that sit in training nodding their head in agreement or taking a ton of notes, only to leave behind the concepts they learned as soon as they leave the session. Here’s the real deal. Unless you can convert knowledge into results, you’ve got nothing! Let’s take a look at three reasons why people don’t convert knowledge into action:
1. Information overload: This is a common trap people fall into because it's easy to acquire knowledge, but not as much fun or easy to apply that information.
2. Negative filtering: Thoughts that hold people back so whenever they do learn something positive, they tend to discount it.
3. Lack of follow-up: An absence of structure and accountability that explains why smokers continue to smoke when they know it’s bad for them. While many smokers have a positive attitude about quitting, they keep smoking because changing habits or behaviors requires a concentrated effort.
Converting knowledge into action requires repetition. Repetition creates lasting change because people need to hear information over and over for it to have an impact. If you didn’t know this by now a major part of my business is selling training. One of the biggest hurdles I face on a daily basis with a dealer is breaking the belief that there is no reason to train employees because they won’t stay or they won’t change. Do you think that there is a connection between a salesperson that has the tools to be successful and stays versus a salesperson coming to work every day trained only to say, “What brings you into the dealership today?” or “Any reason other than price you wouldn’t buy and drive this car today?” or the crown jewel, “great news!” I had a dealer tell me a few months ago that I am the first person to do training at his dealership in 12 years. Question: is it just a coincidence that the dealership is last in the zone in sales and has high sales turnover? If you are a dealer, wake up! As the dealership’s decision maker you must realize that you can’t mandate productivity; it is your responsibility to give your salespeople what they need to succeed (FYI: when I talk about tools to succeed I am not talking about a working telephone and lot full of inventory).
If you are a salesperson, the following are some matters for your consideration. People grow best with an open, positive mind. Seeds planted on good soil produce many times what is sown. An open, positive filtering system can ignite creativity, ingenuity, and resourcefulness. Positive thinkers do the impossible with great regularity. The next time you are presented with something you think you already know, I challenge you to not simply say, “I already know that,” but ask yourself, “How good am I at that?” International thought leader Ken Blanchard coined a phrase known as “green light thinking.” This is when you focus on positive aspects and overcome negative filtering. In order to maximize the follow-through on the knowledge you acquire, you will need structure, support, and accountability. An effective follow up system to implement a new training concept involves: Tell me, show me, let me, and correct me.
Finally I want to leave you with two things:
1. Remember that the human brain and the computer have a lot in common: Both the computer and human brain don’t know the difference between the truth and what people tell them.
2. The golden thread that runs through the life of every high achiever is focus, backed by persistence. In the end, knowledge is potential power when made actionable and sometimes the best tools that will help you sell more cars and make more money are indeed the same tools to improve the quality and success of your life, period.
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Mosley Automotive
7-Team Building Must Haves
The coaching and development of sales staff always sounds like the right thing to do, but very rarely is it done consistently and, more importantly, properly. Many times, we assume the best person for the job is the one with a manager’s title. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case.
Take a recent conversation I had with a sales manager. He remarked to me that one of his salespeople was on thin ice because he wasn’t closing his customers. I asked about his store’s training program. “We don’t have a formal training program,” he responded, adding that he personally shadows his salespeople and that his experience in the real-estate business served as the only reference his team needed.
Apparently, poorly performing salespeople are supposed to miraculously get better at their jobs. I asked the manager if he could coach his salespeople. “I don’t have time,” he said, which I took to mean he didn’t know how.
See, according to Dr. John C. Hall and John Steuermol — innovators in the field of selection testing — there are seven critical components to becoming a great coach. Let’s examine each one and see if we can turn you into the coach your dealership and your team needs.
1. Be your own ally: The primary focus here is to instill in your sales team a positive and optimistic outlook. You want to keep them from playing mental games against each other and fostering negativity that impedes performance. So, rather than starting another Saturday sales meeting by telling your staff how much they suck, think of a positive way to motivate them to victory.
2. Maximize your return on energy: Coach your sales team to avoid common distractions and unproductive activities, such as coffee klatches, during high ROI times of the day. It is so easy to misuse your time when you work the car schedule, so be sure to provide your team with a game plan for winning the day.
3. Prospect: This is a great opportunity to share and exchange strategies on how to prospect both inside and outside the dealership.
4. Develop a compelling story: Help your team develop sales approaches that speak to the needs of your store’s most common type of clients. All customers are not the same, so why should the sales approach be?
5. Become a master of communication: The core focus here is to help your sales team communicate the brand and dealership’s message effectively. Identify and reinforce particular components of your store’s sales message that add the most value.
6. Sharpen the saw: Although it’s sad to say, the idea of continuous learning among sales professionals is very rarely taken seriously. I’ve been in dealerships all over the country, including some of the largest dealership groups, and can only recall one that had a recommended reading list for ongoing improvement. That dealership also provided spiffs to encourage team members to read and advance their skills. It’s no wonder the store boasted the highest grosses in its area.
7. Keeping Score: Show me a salesperson who doesn’t want to win, and I’ll show you one who isn’t making money or hitting their sales objectives. Top performers who really care about what they do want to know that they are crushing it, so track and monitor your salespeople regularly and encourage them along the way.
We have more technology and widgets at our disposal than ever before, but so does the competition. That’s why your employees remain a critical factor in differentiating your store from your competitors, so be sure to utilize and develop that talent. Change your approach and see what happens. I promise you won’t be disappointed.
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Mosley Automotive
7-Team Building Must Haves
The coaching and development of sales staff always sounds like the right thing to do, but very rarely is it done consistently and, more importantly, properly. Many times, we assume the best person for the job is the one with a manager’s title. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case.
Take a recent conversation I had with a sales manager. He remarked to me that one of his salespeople was on thin ice because he wasn’t closing his customers. I asked about his store’s training program. “We don’t have a formal training program,” he responded, adding that he personally shadows his salespeople and that his experience in the real-estate business served as the only reference his team needed.
Apparently, poorly performing salespeople are supposed to miraculously get better at their jobs. I asked the manager if he could coach his salespeople. “I don’t have time,” he said, which I took to mean he didn’t know how.
See, according to Dr. John C. Hall and John Steuermol — innovators in the field of selection testing — there are seven critical components to becoming a great coach. Let’s examine each one and see if we can turn you into the coach your dealership and your team needs.
1. Be your own ally: The primary focus here is to instill in your sales team a positive and optimistic outlook. You want to keep them from playing mental games against each other and fostering negativity that impedes performance. So, rather than starting another Saturday sales meeting by telling your staff how much they suck, think of a positive way to motivate them to victory.
2. Maximize your return on energy: Coach your sales team to avoid common distractions and unproductive activities, such as coffee klatches, during high ROI times of the day. It is so easy to misuse your time when you work the car schedule, so be sure to provide your team with a game plan for winning the day.
3. Prospect: This is a great opportunity to share and exchange strategies on how to prospect both inside and outside the dealership.
4. Develop a compelling story: Help your team develop sales approaches that speak to the needs of your store’s most common type of clients. All customers are not the same, so why should the sales approach be?
5. Become a master of communication: The core focus here is to help your sales team communicate the brand and dealership’s message effectively. Identify and reinforce particular components of your store’s sales message that add the most value.
6. Sharpen the saw: Although it’s sad to say, the idea of continuous learning among sales professionals is very rarely taken seriously. I’ve been in dealerships all over the country, including some of the largest dealership groups, and can only recall one that had a recommended reading list for ongoing improvement. That dealership also provided spiffs to encourage team members to read and advance their skills. It’s no wonder the store boasted the highest grosses in its area.
7. Keeping Score: Show me a salesperson who doesn’t want to win, and I’ll show you one who isn’t making money or hitting their sales objectives. Top performers who really care about what they do want to know that they are crushing it, so track and monitor your salespeople regularly and encourage them along the way.
We have more technology and widgets at our disposal than ever before, but so does the competition. That’s why your employees remain a critical factor in differentiating your store from your competitors, so be sure to utilize and develop that talent. Change your approach and see what happens. I promise you won’t be disappointed.
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