The development and training of your team can not be a one size fits all strategy.  As managers we hire green peas, show them a thing or two and send them off to learn from others whose numbers are below average.  Even worse is that we take the top 25 – 30 salespeople at the end of one month and promote them to manager the following month. We know they can sell a lot of cars, we think they'll do a great job as a leader, developer and motivator, however we often fail to give them the guidance to properly lead a team of sales professionals.

Here are four suggestions to help you and your dealership move the needle.

1.       Ranking system.

Not all sales people and managers require the same level of training. Develop a system that not only rewards your staff, but motivates them to advance to different levels of certification. I use the Bronze, Gold and Platinum levels inside our dealer group. By learning which level each team member is on allows me to devise a specific plan of attack for each person.  I have also created a bonus program for each level. By applying this method it will allow you to see how long and which struggles individual team members are having and allow you to find a better position for them within your organization.

2.       Make time for training.

It’s important to not only set goals for your team but know where they stand throughout the month. I’d encourage you to set aside time two days a week to train and work with your entire team. One of those days you would have the a.m and p.m shifts come in 30 minutes early. Go over role playing, closing techniques, watch a few videos and have a discussion around what they’ve just learned. On the second day, meet with each team member individually, go over their week/month to date stats and help them re-evaluate their production to stay on pace with their monthly goal. I suggest that you setup your team's goals so they are 100% of goal by the end of week three.

3.       Have an acknowledgment strategy.

How you celebrate your team's success is just as important as the trainings you hold. Not every celebration has to be monetary. One of the dealer groups I worked with developed several ways to award employees for a job well done and achieving a certain level of success. Two non- monetary ways where “Diamond Drops” and the “Pride Award”.

4.       Develop a plan of action for poor performing employees.

You may have a poor performing employee in one department but that doesn't mean you'll have the same results from them in a different department. I’ve seen great success from an employee from in a BDC environment into a Service Advisor role, I’ve seen (You use "I've seen" in the previous sentence. This has also proven successful with a poor performing sales person to a customer concierge.

Does your dealerships currently do any of the above or do you have any suggestions? Leave a comment and let me know.

The development and training of your team can not be a one size fits all strategy.  As managers we hire green peas, show them a thing or two and send them off to learn from others whose numbers are below average.  Even worse is that we take the top 25 – 30 salespeople at the end of one month and promote them to manager the following month. We know they can sell a lot of cars, we think they'll do a great job as a leader, developer and motivator, however we often fail to give them the guidance to properly lead a team of sales professionals.

Here are four suggestions to help you and your dealership move the needle.

1.       Ranking system.

Not all sales people and managers require the same level of training. Develop a system that not only rewards your staff, but motivates them to advance to different levels of certification. I use the Bronze, Gold and Platinum levels inside our dealer group. By learning which level each team member is on allows me to devise a specific plan of attack for each person.  I have also created a bonus program for each level. By applying this method it will allow you to see how long and which struggles individual team members are having and allow you to find a better position for them within your organization.

2.       Make time for training.

It’s important to not only set goals for your team but know where they stand throughout the month. I’d encourage you to set aside time two days a week to train and work with your entire team. One of those days you would have the a.m and p.m shifts come in 30 minutes early. Go over role playing, closing techniques, watch a few videos and have a discussion around what they’ve just learned. On the second day, meet with each team member individually, go over their week/month to date stats and help them re-evaluate their production to stay on pace with their monthly goal. I suggest that you setup your team's goals so they are 100% of goal by the end of week three.

3.       Have an acknowledgment strategy.

How you celebrate your team's success is just as important as the trainings you hold. Not every celebration has to be monetary. One of the dealer groups I worked with developed several ways to award employees for a job well done and achieving a certain level of success. Two non- monetary ways where “Diamond Drops” and the “Pride Award”.

4.       Develop a plan of action for poor performing employees.

You may have a poor performing employee in one department but that doesn't mean you'll have the same results from them in a different department. I’ve seen great success from an employee from in a BDC environment into a Service Advisor role, I’ve seen (You use "I've seen" in the previous sentence. This has also proven successful with a poor performing sales person to a customer concierge.

Does your dealerships currently do any of the above or do you have any suggestions? Leave a comment and let me know.