Growing up a majority of my youth in Cincinnati, I was a big-time Bengals fan. We didn’t always have the money to attend the games, but on a few rare occasions, we got to experience the orange and black-striped gridiron battle of the Bengals in person.

Boomer Esiason was a force. He didn’t throw the ball the farthest. He didn’t have the best accuracy. He wouldn’t put up the most yards or scramble for the most first downs. But he was a leader of his team, he managed the game, he made big plays, and he pushed his team to win.  Boomer was consistent.

It was a major life event when my father took me down to Miami for the Super Bowl in ’89 where I dressed head to toe in Bengals gear and carried Who-Dey (Hudepohl) six packs for my father around a tailgating parking lot.  We made our way inside Joe Robbie Stadium and witnessed one of the best football games ever – Super Bowl XXIII. Now, the Bengals did lose… and I cried… but it was an experience. And I was a Boomer fan for life. Now, as an announcer, he doesn’t dispense wins. He dispenses wisdom. And a recent statement of his made me like him even more, when discussing the challenge of coaching today’s players.

In an interview with Chicago’s sports radio station, 670 the Score, Esiason said, “Yes you can teach an old dog new tricks if that old dog wants to buy in and become a great player. If that old dog doesn’t want to and is going to resist everything that is happening around him, well then you’re going to have a player that’s impossible to coach.”

As a trainer (read: coach) of players in dealerships, I can say firsthand that the oldest of dogs can learn the newest of tricks. The tenured, surly vet of the floor can continue to be a well-oiled, profit machine on the lot with the right coaching. There is only one caveat: They must be willing to learn. Without the willingness to improve their game, they’ll simply stay an aging quarterback forever. You can’t throw to the same receiver every time and always count on a completion. You can’t give the defense the same looks every time and expect to move the chains after each play. You need to mix up your game. You need to improve. Aging quarterbacks that are unwilling to learn new plays just don’t win games.

Boomer Esiason recognized this. However, he decided his “new plays” weren’t to be on the football field, but were in the commentator booth. He chose to learn new skills in an effort to stay relevant. He did what it took to elevate his game in another arena.  The same way the 25-year-in-the-business salesperson must understand the consumers’ Internet experience if they expect to rule the sales floor.  Or how the 10-year, 10-car-a-month salesperson must understand the store’s Internet technology if they expect to handle Internet leads.  It takes the willingness to learn new things.

It amazes me that more seasoned sales pros don’t peel off the pads, humble themselves, sit down with their coaches, watch some game tape, and listen with open ears on how to make their game better. It is possible. You just need to listen to the coaching.  You just need to be like Boomer.  
Much like DealerKnows, Boomer Esiason knows too.

Growing up a majority of my youth in Cincinnati, I was a big-time Bengals fan. We didn’t always have the money to attend the games, but on a few rare occasions, we got to experience the orange and black-striped gridiron battle of the Bengals in person.

Boomer Esiason was a force. He didn’t throw the ball the farthest. He didn’t have the best accuracy. He wouldn’t put up the most yards or scramble for the most first downs. But he was a leader of his team, he managed the game, he made big plays, and he pushed his team to win.  Boomer was consistent.

It was a major life event when my father took me down to Miami for the Super Bowl in ’89 where I dressed head to toe in Bengals gear and carried Who-Dey (Hudepohl) six packs for my father around a tailgating parking lot.  We made our way inside Joe Robbie Stadium and witnessed one of the best football games ever – Super Bowl XXIII. Now, the Bengals did lose… and I cried… but it was an experience. And I was a Boomer fan for life. Now, as an announcer, he doesn’t dispense wins. He dispenses wisdom. And a recent statement of his made me like him even more, when discussing the challenge of coaching today’s players.

In an interview with Chicago’s sports radio station, 670 the Score, Esiason said, “Yes you can teach an old dog new tricks if that old dog wants to buy in and become a great player. If that old dog doesn’t want to and is going to resist everything that is happening around him, well then you’re going to have a player that’s impossible to coach.”

As a trainer (read: coach) of players in dealerships, I can say firsthand that the oldest of dogs can learn the newest of tricks. The tenured, surly vet of the floor can continue to be a well-oiled, profit machine on the lot with the right coaching. There is only one caveat: They must be willing to learn. Without the willingness to improve their game, they’ll simply stay an aging quarterback forever. You can’t throw to the same receiver every time and always count on a completion. You can’t give the defense the same looks every time and expect to move the chains after each play. You need to mix up your game. You need to improve. Aging quarterbacks that are unwilling to learn new plays just don’t win games.

Boomer Esiason recognized this. However, he decided his “new plays” weren’t to be on the football field, but were in the commentator booth. He chose to learn new skills in an effort to stay relevant. He did what it took to elevate his game in another arena.  The same way the 25-year-in-the-business salesperson must understand the consumers’ Internet experience if they expect to rule the sales floor.  Or how the 10-year, 10-car-a-month salesperson must understand the store’s Internet technology if they expect to handle Internet leads.  It takes the willingness to learn new things.

It amazes me that more seasoned sales pros don’t peel off the pads, humble themselves, sit down with their coaches, watch some game tape, and listen with open ears on how to make their game better. It is possible. You just need to listen to the coaching.  You just need to be like Boomer.  
Much like DealerKnows, Boomer Esiason knows too.

To this day, a guiding principle of DealerKnows Consulting is that a well-utilized CRM is the most valuable piece of technology in a dealership.  Some dealers bite off more than they can chew, while many others simply don’t want to consume it as much as they should, regardless of how healthy it is for them.

The Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tools of today serve countless needs, but moreover, must serve countless masters.  While every single employee in your dealership should be well-versed and actively using the chosen CRM, every single different position at your store should be using it differently.  Some positions require using it to the Nth degree, while others can use it in a much more basic role.  But it must be used. 

A good CRM should be like a selection of fruits.  Here are the ways a CRM should be devoured by your team based on their role:

Internet Director/eCommerce Director: 
For them, the CRM must be like an Edible Arrangement.  Edible Arrangements are massively constructed bouquets of fruit baskets, whittled into extraordinary shapes.  They must understand it three dimensionally.  It must be able to be viewed in pieces, understood, crafted, and dined on as if it were art.

Dealership Owner/General Manager:  For an owner or GM, the store’s CRM should be a Fruit Cup.  They are looking at macro-level information and will likely not need the more granular reporting approach.  They can fill up easily on CRM and don’t need a lot of it to make decisions.  After all, it is the Internet Director likely sending them over small pieces of fruits to look at anyway.

To this day, a guiding principle of DealerKnows Consulting is that a well-utilized CRM is the most valuable piece of technology in a dealership.  Some dealers bite off more than they can chew, while many others simply don’t want to consume it as much as they should, regardless of how healthy it is for them.

The Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tools of today serve countless needs, but moreover, must serve countless masters.  While every single employee in your dealership should be well-versed and actively using the chosen CRM, every single different position at your store should be using it differently.  Some positions require using it to the Nth degree, while others can use it in a much more basic role.  But it must be used. 

A good CRM should be like a selection of fruits.  Here are the ways a CRM should be devoured by your team based on their role:

Internet Director/eCommerce Director: 
For them, the CRM must be like an Edible Arrangement.  Edible Arrangements are massively constructed bouquets of fruit baskets, whittled into extraordinary shapes.  They must understand it three dimensionally.  It must be able to be viewed in pieces, understood, crafted, and dined on as if it were art.

Dealership Owner/General Manager:  For an owner or GM, the store’s CRM should be a Fruit Cup.  They are looking at macro-level information and will likely not need the more granular reporting approach.  They can fill up easily on CRM and don’t need a lot of it to make decisions.  After all, it is the Internet Director likely sending them over small pieces of fruits to look at anyway.

"Always Be Branding" ~ a mantra from the minds of Joe Webb and Bill Playford of DealerKnows Consulting

There is a famous line spewed melodically from the lips of Alec Baldwin in the genius sales film known as GlenGarry Glen Ross that most car folks can recite. “A B C – Always Be Closing!” This was the key message that Baldwin’s character challenged the sales team with before he gave them the ultimatum. If they were the best in sales, they win… “first prize is a Cadillac Eldorado. Anybody wanna see second prize? … Second prize is a set of steak knives. Third place is you’re fired.”

This has become a mantra for thousands of sales managers across the country. “A-B-C. Always Be Closing.” They preach the goal that a sale should always be front and center in your mind during every interaction. Unfortunately, this no longer is the case. Much like the movie based on David Mamet’s awesome stage play, this mantra has gotten a little older too. While Baldwin himself has stayed relevant over the years, this catchy mantra has passed its prime. So with that, DealerKnows (with the help of a young Alec Baldwin) brings you a new, more enlightened mantra. A-B-B. Always Be Branding.

Imagine during your weekly rah-rah meeting, your manager presented you with a fistful of paper leads? You’d probably have to suppress laughter. The world has moved on. Finding all of the information you need to make a sensible purchase decision can be found right online. Your best leads come right from your own website, or better yet, are emailed from your previous clients. People have already made a decision to buy before they even contact you. It’s now up to you to not mess it up.

The sale is no longer only made in face-to-face meetings. Deals are not won and lost based on a handshake over a three-martini lunch. The customer isn’t making their decision based on an interaction in-store (though a great customer experience helps). No. The marketplace has shifted online and it is your branding that either influences shoppers toward you or a lack of online brand presence that will make you less relevant in their eyes.

An entire generation has grown up with brands that are not just trademarks, but interactive entities. Look no further than Red Bull. In just 25 years the company went from formulating an energy drink to owning five soccer teams, two Formula One racing teams, a record label, sponsor countless athletes, and recently spun-off a critically acclaimed marketing wing. They now sell 4.5 billion cans of Red Bull a year, nipping away at the heels of Coke and Pepsi.

A-B-B. Always Be Branding. In everything you do. In every marketing dollar spent, every entity online, every email cent, every handshake at a chamber of commerce luncheon… you no longer have to sell. You just have to brand yourself or be able to deliver a clear brand message. Make people want to BUY FROM YOU (your people, your company, your value proposition, your deliverables) based on your brand. You are what is important. Selling is now a step down the road. Branding comes first. If you don’t realize that A-B-B mantra IS the new Glengarry lead of this generation, prepare for Alec Baldwin to give you some new cutlery. Or your walking papers.

"Always Be Branding" ~ a mantra from the minds of Joe Webb and Bill Playford of DealerKnows Consulting

There is a famous line spewed melodically from the lips of Alec Baldwin in the genius sales film known as GlenGarry Glen Ross that most car folks can recite. “A B C – Always Be Closing!” This was the key message that Baldwin’s character challenged the sales team with before he gave them the ultimatum. If they were the best in sales, they win… “first prize is a Cadillac Eldorado. Anybody wanna see second prize? … Second prize is a set of steak knives. Third place is you’re fired.”

This has become a mantra for thousands of sales managers across the country. “A-B-C. Always Be Closing.” They preach the goal that a sale should always be front and center in your mind during every interaction. Unfortunately, this no longer is the case. Much like the movie based on David Mamet’s awesome stage play, this mantra has gotten a little older too. While Baldwin himself has stayed relevant over the years, this catchy mantra has passed its prime. So with that, DealerKnows (with the help of a young Alec Baldwin) brings you a new, more enlightened mantra. A-B-B. Always Be Branding.

Imagine during your weekly rah-rah meeting, your manager presented you with a fistful of paper leads? You’d probably have to suppress laughter. The world has moved on. Finding all of the information you need to make a sensible purchase decision can be found right online. Your best leads come right from your own website, or better yet, are emailed from your previous clients. People have already made a decision to buy before they even contact you. It’s now up to you to not mess it up.

The sale is no longer only made in face-to-face meetings. Deals are not won and lost based on a handshake over a three-martini lunch. The customer isn’t making their decision based on an interaction in-store (though a great customer experience helps). No. The marketplace has shifted online and it is your branding that either influences shoppers toward you or a lack of online brand presence that will make you less relevant in their eyes.

An entire generation has grown up with brands that are not just trademarks, but interactive entities. Look no further than Red Bull. In just 25 years the company went from formulating an energy drink to owning five soccer teams, two Formula One racing teams, a record label, sponsor countless athletes, and recently spun-off a critically acclaimed marketing wing. They now sell 4.5 billion cans of Red Bull a year, nipping away at the heels of Coke and Pepsi.

A-B-B. Always Be Branding. In everything you do. In every marketing dollar spent, every entity online, every email cent, every handshake at a chamber of commerce luncheon… you no longer have to sell. You just have to brand yourself or be able to deliver a clear brand message. Make people want to BUY FROM YOU (your people, your company, your value proposition, your deliverables) based on your brand. You are what is important. Selling is now a step down the road. Branding comes first. If you don’t realize that A-B-B mantra IS the new Glengarry lead of this generation, prepare for Alec Baldwin to give you some new cutlery. Or your walking papers.

The Meet and Greet.  The Needs Assessment.  Getting to know them on the test drive.  Making friends while waiting for figures from the manager.  All of these are associated with the idea that building rapport is the key to selling cars.  Well, building rapport is OUT!  It is no longer a determining factor for many customers when buying a new vehicle.

We all have countless sales stories from our retail days (those of us who’ve done retail at least) of instances where finding a common ground with customers has helped us sell them a car.  It still can go a long way in creating a more comfortable sales experience.  However, I will say it again… “building rapport” is out.

The new focus should be “Fostering Relationships”.  I know many of you are saying “splitting hairs” or “semantics”, but I don’t believe these two phrases mean the same thing.   Building rapport is looking for some mutual understanding or trying to find ways to align yourself with the individual person.  

 involves the development of trust before the handshake, during the interaction, and long after the customer leaves the store.

Building rapport happens mostly in person and occasionally on the phone and email.  Fostering relationships is peer to peer.  It involves creating an evidence of honesty in your interactions with other customers.  It relies on developing ways to grow your relationship further.  It carries with it the idea that a relationship should develop after the sale opposed to just prior to the sale.

I will not tell you to do away with the “Where did you go to school?” or “Where do you work? questions.  I won’t ask you to cease the “How do you use your current car?” inquisitions or the “Yeah, my sister lives in that town” scenarios.

Instead, I’d like you to think of ways to engage the customer before you are engaged.  Reviews, testimonials, video bios and more are all ways to start fostering a relationship with customers before first contact.  What is the difference between building rapport in person or fostering a relationship in person?  The former is asking questions, looking for commonalities.  The latter is discussing how you will serve them and continue to earn their business long after the sale.  (Think “new owner clinic discussions” and “loyalty program talks”.)

Put a strategy into place today (whether it is in your service department, your social media calendar, your CRM follow-up, or your post-sale deliverables) that will allow you to truly foster a relationship with this customer.  In the days of multiple mediums to communicate (especially social platforms), it is more important than ever to maximize your connection with your customers.  This connection shouldn’t just be between the customer, the salesperson and their church, but instead, how your entire organization serves the church, the community, and the individual customer with your personal services.

Stop thinking that building rapport is all you need to sell a vehicle in a 2012 world.  Building rapport is all about completing a short-term action while fostering relationships are about implementing long-term strategies.  You must foster relationships before, during and after, if you truly want to develop ongoing customer satisfaction.

The Meet and Greet.  The Needs Assessment.  Getting to know them on the test drive.  Making friends while waiting for figures from the manager.  All of these are associated with the idea that building rapport is the key to selling cars.  Well, building rapport is OUT!  It is no longer a determining factor for many customers when buying a new vehicle.

We all have countless sales stories from our retail days (those of us who’ve done retail at least) of instances where finding a common ground with customers has helped us sell them a car.  It still can go a long way in creating a more comfortable sales experience.  However, I will say it again… “building rapport” is out.

The new focus should be “Fostering Relationships”.  I know many of you are saying “splitting hairs” or “semantics”, but I don’t believe these two phrases mean the same thing.   Building rapport is looking for some mutual understanding or trying to find ways to align yourself with the individual person.  

 involves the development of trust before the handshake, during the interaction, and long after the customer leaves the store.

Building rapport happens mostly in person and occasionally on the phone and email.  Fostering relationships is peer to peer.  It involves creating an evidence of honesty in your interactions with other customers.  It relies on developing ways to grow your relationship further.  It carries with it the idea that a relationship should develop after the sale opposed to just prior to the sale.

I will not tell you to do away with the “Where did you go to school?” or “Where do you work? questions.  I won’t ask you to cease the “How do you use your current car?” inquisitions or the “Yeah, my sister lives in that town” scenarios.

Instead, I’d like you to think of ways to engage the customer before you are engaged.  Reviews, testimonials, video bios and more are all ways to start fostering a relationship with customers before first contact.  What is the difference between building rapport in person or fostering a relationship in person?  The former is asking questions, looking for commonalities.  The latter is discussing how you will serve them and continue to earn their business long after the sale.  (Think “new owner clinic discussions” and “loyalty program talks”.)

Put a strategy into place today (whether it is in your service department, your social media calendar, your CRM follow-up, or your post-sale deliverables) that will allow you to truly foster a relationship with this customer.  In the days of multiple mediums to communicate (especially social platforms), it is more important than ever to maximize your connection with your customers.  This connection shouldn’t just be between the customer, the salesperson and their church, but instead, how your entire organization serves the church, the community, and the individual customer with your personal services.

Stop thinking that building rapport is all you need to sell a vehicle in a 2012 world.  Building rapport is all about completing a short-term action while fostering relationships are about implementing long-term strategies.  You must foster relationships before, during and after, if you truly want to develop ongoing customer satisfaction.

Back and forth.  Up and down.  Back and forth.  Up and down.  Back and forth goes the salesperson negotiating with the customer.  Up to the sales manager’s desk the salesperson walks and then back down to their desk they go with another price.  Another attempt.  This volley with the customer has become archaic and antiquated.  It is disliked and disgusting.  The days of penciling deals over and over must end.

No more No. 2.  No more pencils.  That strategy is done.  It’s finished.  Someone tell your sales managers.  Break into their desks and steal out the pencils and multi-colored Sharpie markers.  The consumer has moved beyond this tired strategy and is ready for new days of selling!  Stop the negotiating with customers and start the educating.

It is time your sales managers and sales people end the rigmarole they’ve used for years and do away with how they’ve penciled deals.  Instead, your managers and salespeople must learn how to overcome objections and negotiate through education.  The consumers are coming in with very specific expectations and very detailed research.  Why put them through the constant back and forth?  Instead, you must utilize the online resources and data at your (and the customer’s) disposal to validate the price you charge.

Dedicate yourself to understanding what all is available to your consumers online and begin using the third-party data as evidence to defend the price you are charging.  I’m not advocating a one-price solution here.  Negotiation is still allowed and going for gross is still acceptable, but be prepared to answer the “WHY?” question when it arises with real data.

We have now entered the era of Validation Selling.  We must prove the reason we price our vehicles by utilizing the data they already have.

Moreover, we must eliminate the tactic of writing down our offer on a half-blank sheet of paper with markers and pens and begin presenting our figures on a fully-printed out pricing proposal.  All figures must be entered into the CRM and printed out as if it were an official contract.  This must happen from the very first offer.  Having it printed and available in a clean format lends credence to the numbers your sales team present.  Certainly more validity than a four-square with $24,995 scribbled across it in thick blue ink.

Get on board with Validation Selling.  (Yes, I'm coining a new term here.) Throw out any previously-held beliefs that the customer still enjoys the ‘back and forth, up and down, crossed-off price here and slightly lower price penciled there’ strategies that you’ve grown accustomed to.  Educate yourself and then educate the customer with online, third-party data – or be prepared to overcome it.  You will sell more vehicles and build a quality customer sales experience at the same time.

This is how to sell vehicles in 2012 and beyond.  Education over Negotiation.  DealerKnows are the Validation Selling Specialists.  Let us explain it to you.  

Back and forth.  Up and down.  Back and forth.  Up and down.  Back and forth goes the salesperson negotiating with the customer.  Up to the sales manager’s desk the salesperson walks and then back down to their desk they go with another price.  Another attempt.  This volley with the customer has become archaic and antiquated.  It is disliked and disgusting.  The days of penciling deals over and over must end.

No more No. 2.  No more pencils.  That strategy is done.  It’s finished.  Someone tell your sales managers.  Break into their desks and steal out the pencils and multi-colored Sharpie markers.  The consumer has moved beyond this tired strategy and is ready for new days of selling!  Stop the negotiating with customers and start the educating.

It is time your sales managers and sales people end the rigmarole they’ve used for years and do away with how they’ve penciled deals.  Instead, your managers and salespeople must learn how to overcome objections and negotiate through education.  The consumers are coming in with very specific expectations and very detailed research.  Why put them through the constant back and forth?  Instead, you must utilize the online resources and data at your (and the customer’s) disposal to validate the price you charge.

Dedicate yourself to understanding what all is available to your consumers online and begin using the third-party data as evidence to defend the price you are charging.  I’m not advocating a one-price solution here.  Negotiation is still allowed and going for gross is still acceptable, but be prepared to answer the “WHY?” question when it arises with real data.

We have now entered the era of Validation Selling.  We must prove the reason we price our vehicles by utilizing the data they already have.

Moreover, we must eliminate the tactic of writing down our offer on a half-blank sheet of paper with markers and pens and begin presenting our figures on a fully-printed out pricing proposal.  All figures must be entered into the CRM and printed out as if it were an official contract.  This must happen from the very first offer.  Having it printed and available in a clean format lends credence to the numbers your sales team present.  Certainly more validity than a four-square with $24,995 scribbled across it in thick blue ink.

Get on board with Validation Selling.  (Yes, I'm coining a new term here.) Throw out any previously-held beliefs that the customer still enjoys the ‘back and forth, up and down, crossed-off price here and slightly lower price penciled there’ strategies that you’ve grown accustomed to.  Educate yourself and then educate the customer with online, third-party data – or be prepared to overcome it.  You will sell more vehicles and build a quality customer sales experience at the same time.

This is how to sell vehicles in 2012 and beyond.  Education over Negotiation.  DealerKnows are the Validation Selling Specialists.  Let us explain it to you.