What do I have to do to develop a great sales team?

An ideal sales team of veteran salespeople would allow each dealership to maximize revenue.  In reality, sales departments experience a high level of turnover.  As a result, there is no easy answer to this question.

Focusing on what we can’t control while ignoring what we can is a pathway to frustration and declining success.  Fearing turnover is no excuse for not investing in training your sales staff.  A sales force influencing your income pipelines without intensive training is something to fear.  Smart businesses accept that some turnover is inevitable and still provide proper training.

The practice of “On the Job Training” where a salesperson shadows existing staff is not effective.  Most people cannot absorb skill sets visually and improper training also leads to higher turnover rates.

Effective training for salespeople does not have to be a complicated task.  The key is to provide your people with tools that will foster and encourage success.  Experiencing success on the job increases longevity.

Key Ingredients for Successful Sales Training

• Learn to view you sales staff as an asset and not an expense.  See each member of your team as a protector of your investment.  The best way to protect this investment is to train, train, train.  They will either get better or they will get worse, there is no other option.
• Be sure that your sales training is specific to your goals and not generalized.  Give your team proven ideas, tips and strategies they can use.  Avoid unrealistic goals and promising theories.
• Be consistent in your sales training.  If you have it scheduled for every Tuesday at 11 AM, then be sure and conduct the sales training every Tuesday at 11 AM. Sales training will never be important to your sales staff unless it’s first important to you.
• Be sure to reinforce what you are training.  Nothing will dilute training quicker than not practicing what you preach.  Teach a skill set and have your staff practice, practice and practice this skill set.

What do I have to do to develop a great sales team?

An ideal sales team of veteran salespeople would allow each dealership to maximize revenue.  In reality, sales departments experience a high level of turnover.  As a result, there is no easy answer to this question.

Focusing on what we can’t control while ignoring what we can is a pathway to frustration and declining success.  Fearing turnover is no excuse for not investing in training your sales staff.  A sales force influencing your income pipelines without intensive training is something to fear.  Smart businesses accept that some turnover is inevitable and still provide proper training.

The practice of “On the Job Training” where a salesperson shadows existing staff is not effective.  Most people cannot absorb skill sets visually and improper training also leads to higher turnover rates.

Effective training for salespeople does not have to be a complicated task.  The key is to provide your people with tools that will foster and encourage success.  Experiencing success on the job increases longevity.

Key Ingredients for Successful Sales Training

• Learn to view you sales staff as an asset and not an expense.  See each member of your team as a protector of your investment.  The best way to protect this investment is to train, train, train.  They will either get better or they will get worse, there is no other option.
• Be sure that your sales training is specific to your goals and not generalized.  Give your team proven ideas, tips and strategies they can use.  Avoid unrealistic goals and promising theories.
• Be consistent in your sales training.  If you have it scheduled for every Tuesday at 11 AM, then be sure and conduct the sales training every Tuesday at 11 AM. Sales training will never be important to your sales staff unless it’s first important to you.
• Be sure to reinforce what you are training.  Nothing will dilute training quicker than not practicing what you preach.  Teach a skill set and have your staff practice, practice and practice this skill set.

It’s unfortunate that so many members of the automotive industry when approached with a genuine request to be of assistance, are prone to wondering  “ What do you want from me?” or “What are you selling?”  I blame the all too common and frequent hidden agendas that often occur in B2B and B2C interactions.

We already understand that a single loyal customer is worth more than a hundred hot sales leads.  Most business also embrace the concept that brand reputation goes beyond a logo and into the experience of consumers and their subsequent emotions.  So how can businesses train their sales and management staffs to move beyond the transactional relationship and into a partnership with client opportunities or a Human to Human (H2H) relationship?

Here are six strategies to bring H2H concepts to your sales and management teams:

1. Build Value:  Determine what your consumer finds of value and make genuine offers of assistance.
2. Be transparent: Fully disclose all the benefits.  Holding back something for negotiation leaves your consumer wondering what else you are hiding and undermines the ability to build trust.
3. Collect Data:  Ask questions, frequently and with purpose.  Your questions should reveal more ways you can be of assistance or bring benefits to this relationship you are building.
4. Give Referrals: Offer alternative resources beyond your services, especially if you are unable to meet their current needs. When you go the extra step to find solutions to consumer concerns, even if they are not through your own company, you have broken down the barrier of selling and built a foundation of helping.  The next time they need advice, you will be considered a trust worthy source, increasing your interaction time with your consumer and the likelihood of having a customer for life.
5. Deliver on promises: Delivering on your promises will not only strengthen your relationships, but expand you network of opportunities. Being known as the person to trust tends to nature long lasting relationships and adds high octane fuel to the rumor mill in a positive way.  Your current consumer will recommend you when they find a friend who needs assistance because they know they are in good hands.
6. Build a helping network: It is difficult to soar with the eagles, if you hang out with turkeys.  Build your reputation as a helpful person by connecting with other helpful people.  This will not only strengthen your consumers impression of you, but will give you a network of support, access to answers and the ability to continue to be helpful through referrals to those you know and trust.

Be the individual and the organization that encourages mutually beneficial relationships.  Let your consumers perceive your intentions as a desire to see everyone succeed over the need to close the sale.

About the Author

Stephanie Young is the Vice President of Sales and Marketing for The Manus Group, where she is an active blogger, social media contributor and spokesperson for one of the nation’s leading automotive recruiting and training firms. Stephanie is a former Forestry Queen and still continues to promote her platform encouraging young woman to pursue their interests in STEM field careers.

If you like this blog, please share with others and connect with Stephanie on Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+

Copyright © 2014, Stephanie Young All rights reserved.

It’s unfortunate that so many members of the automotive industry when approached with a genuine request to be of assistance, are prone to wondering  “ What do you want from me?” or “What are you selling?”  I blame the all too common and frequent hidden agendas that often occur in B2B and B2C interactions.

We already understand that a single loyal customer is worth more than a hundred hot sales leads.  Most business also embrace the concept that brand reputation goes beyond a logo and into the experience of consumers and their subsequent emotions.  So how can businesses train their sales and management staffs to move beyond the transactional relationship and into a partnership with client opportunities or a Human to Human (H2H) relationship?

Here are six strategies to bring H2H concepts to your sales and management teams:

1. Build Value:  Determine what your consumer finds of value and make genuine offers of assistance.
2. Be transparent: Fully disclose all the benefits.  Holding back something for negotiation leaves your consumer wondering what else you are hiding and undermines the ability to build trust.
3. Collect Data:  Ask questions, frequently and with purpose.  Your questions should reveal more ways you can be of assistance or bring benefits to this relationship you are building.
4. Give Referrals: Offer alternative resources beyond your services, especially if you are unable to meet their current needs. When you go the extra step to find solutions to consumer concerns, even if they are not through your own company, you have broken down the barrier of selling and built a foundation of helping.  The next time they need advice, you will be considered a trust worthy source, increasing your interaction time with your consumer and the likelihood of having a customer for life.
5. Deliver on promises: Delivering on your promises will not only strengthen your relationships, but expand you network of opportunities. Being known as the person to trust tends to nature long lasting relationships and adds high octane fuel to the rumor mill in a positive way.  Your current consumer will recommend you when they find a friend who needs assistance because they know they are in good hands.
6. Build a helping network: It is difficult to soar with the eagles, if you hang out with turkeys.  Build your reputation as a helpful person by connecting with other helpful people.  This will not only strengthen your consumers impression of you, but will give you a network of support, access to answers and the ability to continue to be helpful through referrals to those you know and trust.

Be the individual and the organization that encourages mutually beneficial relationships.  Let your consumers perceive your intentions as a desire to see everyone succeed over the need to close the sale.

About the Author

Stephanie Young is the Vice President of Sales and Marketing for The Manus Group, where she is an active blogger, social media contributor and spokesperson for one of the nation’s leading automotive recruiting and training firms. Stephanie is a former Forestry Queen and still continues to promote her platform encouraging young woman to pursue their interests in STEM field careers.

If you like this blog, please share with others and connect with Stephanie on Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+

Copyright © 2014, Stephanie Young All rights reserved.

In most markets, those seeking jobs are also those buying your goods and services.   So how should companies engage with these candidate/consumers while navigating changes in shifting age demographics, new recruiting tools and the desire for a strong positive candidate centric recruiting experience?

Here are four tips to improving your company brand while recruiting for sales and management staff.

1. Enhance Your Brand

A logo, tagline, phone number and website are just the corner stones to creating a powerful brand when recruiting candidate.  It is important to remember that they might be a job seeker, but they are probably also a consumer or potential consumer of your products and services.  Therefore, your communications and engagement during the recruiting process may not only affect your recruiting efforts but also your sales volume.

Start with clearly communicating the job opportunity with descriptions of job duties, benefits, pay, company culture and what makes your company a desirable place to work to job-seekers before they apply.  Being vague means you can miss out on the type of talent you seek.   In addition, step into the shoes of the type of talent you wish to attract and optimize your processes to create a positive experience for those job seekers.  For example, not having a mobile accessible job board in today’s society is like using a carrier pigeon to send messages long distance.

2. Utilize Accountability Metrics

In general, recruiting campaigns have been designed on live in the moment actions that return short-term results.  Not a problem if you plan on having a short company lifespan.

Rumor has it that people will talk about their experience with your company.  In a recruiting campaign, candidate satisfaction becomes just as important as customer satisfaction when your brand image is at stake.  Therefore, take the extra step of creating metrics that hold your company accountable for candidate satisfaction.  For example, most job seekers expect that from the time they apply to offer of employment should not exceed two weeks.  If you time from apply to hire exceeds this number, then it is time to find ways to streamline your process.   Also, track the timing and frequency of candidate communications.  If it takes too long to respond to a candidate, then you are probably losing talent that you have worked so hard to find.  If your inbox is flooded with candidate questions, then maybe your job posting was too vague and needs updating.    Another option would be to create a FAQ page for job applicants and include a link in your job posting.

Ultimately, a more transparent and candidate friendly recruiting process will pay off in the long term.  With just the right candidate experience, finding talent becomes easier as your reputation becomes stronger.

3. Become a Talent Scout

Create your own talent network.  Talent pools allow you to nurture interested potential candidates until they have skill sets to match your job requirements.  With transparent and regular communication strategies, a company can keep candidates invested in their company and potential job, while building a pipeline of active and passive job seekers. This strategy is especially helpful for those hard to fill positions.

Take advantage of social events by creating networking opportunities.  Encourage your employees to invite a friend or two, as birds of a feather tend to flock together and this chance meeting might reveal additional talent sources.

4. Become Known as “The Best Place to Work”

The best company cultures provide environments that attract employees that want to work. Making a visible effort to treat all individuals with respect and consideration can accomplish this goal. Not only will this culture decrease turnover, but though the grapevine, it will also attract the best and brightest and job candidates.

Good employees do not grow on trees and are often hard to find.  If you have an employee that has a good work ethic but struggling in their current position, consider finding a new role based on their skills sets.

When implementing a recruiting campaign, interact with candidates carefully—they’re very likely your customers, too! Poor recruiting can quickly reflect on your overall market reputation.  A company is only as effective as its people and as strong as its weakest link.

About the Author

Stephanie Young is the Vice President of Sales and Marketing for The Manus Group, where she is an active blogger, social media contributor and spokesperson for one of the nation’s leading automotive recruiting and training firms. Stephanie is also the current Ms. Florida Forestry Queen, promoting her platform encouraging young woman to pursue their interests in STEM field careers.

If you like this blog, please share with others and connect with Stephanie on Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+

Copyright © 2014, Stephanie Young All rights reserved.

In most markets, those seeking jobs are also those buying your goods and services.   So how should companies engage with these candidate/consumers while navigating changes in shifting age demographics, new recruiting tools and the desire for a strong positive candidate centric recruiting experience?

Here are four tips to improving your company brand while recruiting for sales and management staff.

1. Enhance Your Brand

A logo, tagline, phone number and website are just the corner stones to creating a powerful brand when recruiting candidate.  It is important to remember that they might be a job seeker, but they are probably also a consumer or potential consumer of your products and services.  Therefore, your communications and engagement during the recruiting process may not only affect your recruiting efforts but also your sales volume.

Start with clearly communicating the job opportunity with descriptions of job duties, benefits, pay, company culture and what makes your company a desirable place to work to job-seekers before they apply.  Being vague means you can miss out on the type of talent you seek.   In addition, step into the shoes of the type of talent you wish to attract and optimize your processes to create a positive experience for those job seekers.  For example, not having a mobile accessible job board in today’s society is like using a carrier pigeon to send messages long distance.

2. Utilize Accountability Metrics

In general, recruiting campaigns have been designed on live in the moment actions that return short-term results.  Not a problem if you plan on having a short company lifespan.

Rumor has it that people will talk about their experience with your company.  In a recruiting campaign, candidate satisfaction becomes just as important as customer satisfaction when your brand image is at stake.  Therefore, take the extra step of creating metrics that hold your company accountable for candidate satisfaction.  For example, most job seekers expect that from the time they apply to offer of employment should not exceed two weeks.  If you time from apply to hire exceeds this number, then it is time to find ways to streamline your process.   Also, track the timing and frequency of candidate communications.  If it takes too long to respond to a candidate, then you are probably losing talent that you have worked so hard to find.  If your inbox is flooded with candidate questions, then maybe your job posting was too vague and needs updating.    Another option would be to create a FAQ page for job applicants and include a link in your job posting.

Ultimately, a more transparent and candidate friendly recruiting process will pay off in the long term.  With just the right candidate experience, finding talent becomes easier as your reputation becomes stronger.

3. Become a Talent Scout

Create your own talent network.  Talent pools allow you to nurture interested potential candidates until they have skill sets to match your job requirements.  With transparent and regular communication strategies, a company can keep candidates invested in their company and potential job, while building a pipeline of active and passive job seekers. This strategy is especially helpful for those hard to fill positions.

Take advantage of social events by creating networking opportunities.  Encourage your employees to invite a friend or two, as birds of a feather tend to flock together and this chance meeting might reveal additional talent sources.

4. Become Known as “The Best Place to Work”

The best company cultures provide environments that attract employees that want to work. Making a visible effort to treat all individuals with respect and consideration can accomplish this goal. Not only will this culture decrease turnover, but though the grapevine, it will also attract the best and brightest and job candidates.

Good employees do not grow on trees and are often hard to find.  If you have an employee that has a good work ethic but struggling in their current position, consider finding a new role based on their skills sets.

When implementing a recruiting campaign, interact with candidates carefully—they’re very likely your customers, too! Poor recruiting can quickly reflect on your overall market reputation.  A company is only as effective as its people and as strong as its weakest link.

About the Author

Stephanie Young is the Vice President of Sales and Marketing for The Manus Group, where she is an active blogger, social media contributor and spokesperson for one of the nation’s leading automotive recruiting and training firms. Stephanie is also the current Ms. Florida Forestry Queen, promoting her platform encouraging young woman to pursue their interests in STEM field careers.

If you like this blog, please share with others and connect with Stephanie on Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+

Copyright © 2014, Stephanie Young All rights reserved.

DIY recruiting campaigns can be cumbersome and time consuming, but it can also put a strain on your company image.  There is a growing chasm between company and candidate satisfaction with recruiting campaigns.

According to two recent studies from the ADP Research Institute:

• While 46% of recruiters think job-applicant tracking “works well,” only 16% of job-seekers feel the same.
• 60% of job-seekers are frustrated over the lack of quality positions, while 52% of recruiters have a similar complaint about the quality of applicants.
• 73% of job-seekers would prefer at least weekly communications throughout the application process and 58 % of applicants believe a reasonable time between an initial interview and job offer is one to two weeks.

In most markets, those seeking jobs are also those buying your goods and services.  So how can companies work smarter and not harder while navigating changes in the recruiting process resulting from shifting age demographics, new technology tools and the move toward a consumer-style job-seeker experience?

A resourceful company should use a recruiting campaign to enhance their brand and expand their customer experience, while sharing their favorable company culture with their candidate/consumers.  Smart companies can also enhance their talent pool for future opportunities and deploy metrics to ensure they are creating positive candidate/consumer experiences.

My next blog will feature the details for strengthening your brand image while recruiting talent in “The Recruiting Campaign-Brand Image Correlation”.

About the Author

Stephanie Young is the Vice President of Sales and Marketing for The Manus Group, where she is an active blogger, social media contributor and spokesperson for one of the nation’s leading automotive recruiting and training firms. Stephanie is also the current Ms. Florida Forestry Queen, promoting her platform encouraging young woman to pursue their interests in STEM field careers.

If you like this blog, please share with others and connect with Stephanie on Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+

Copyright © 2014, Stephanie Young All rights reserved.

DIY recruiting campaigns can be cumbersome and time consuming, but it can also put a strain on your company image.  There is a growing chasm between company and candidate satisfaction with recruiting campaigns.

According to two recent studies from the ADP Research Institute:

• While 46% of recruiters think job-applicant tracking “works well,” only 16% of job-seekers feel the same.
• 60% of job-seekers are frustrated over the lack of quality positions, while 52% of recruiters have a similar complaint about the quality of applicants.
• 73% of job-seekers would prefer at least weekly communications throughout the application process and 58 % of applicants believe a reasonable time between an initial interview and job offer is one to two weeks.

In most markets, those seeking jobs are also those buying your goods and services.  So how can companies work smarter and not harder while navigating changes in the recruiting process resulting from shifting age demographics, new technology tools and the move toward a consumer-style job-seeker experience?

A resourceful company should use a recruiting campaign to enhance their brand and expand their customer experience, while sharing their favorable company culture with their candidate/consumers.  Smart companies can also enhance their talent pool for future opportunities and deploy metrics to ensure they are creating positive candidate/consumer experiences.

My next blog will feature the details for strengthening your brand image while recruiting talent in “The Recruiting Campaign-Brand Image Correlation”.

About the Author

Stephanie Young is the Vice President of Sales and Marketing for The Manus Group, where she is an active blogger, social media contributor and spokesperson for one of the nation’s leading automotive recruiting and training firms. Stephanie is also the current Ms. Florida Forestry Queen, promoting her platform encouraging young woman to pursue their interests in STEM field careers.

If you like this blog, please share with others and connect with Stephanie on Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+

Copyright © 2014, Stephanie Young All rights reserved.

There are probably a thousand reasons or more that customer service and retention is a valuable automotive sales training topic, but here are just nine that affect all industries that should get your attention.

1.   86% of buyers will pay more for a better customer experience. But only 1% of customers feel that vendors consistently meet their expectations. (CEI Survey)

2.   By 2020, customer experience will overtake price and product as the key brand differentiator. (Customers 2020 Report)

3.   In 2013, 62% of global consumers switched service providers due to poor customer service experiences, up 4% from the previous year. (Accenture Global Consumer Pulse Survey)

4.   It is 6-7 times more costly to attract a new customer than it is to retain an existing customer.  (White House Office of Consumer Affairs)

5.   89% of consumers have stopped doing business with a company after experiencing poor customer service. (RightNow Customer Experience Impact Report)

6.   It takes 12 positive customer experiences to make up for one negative experience. (Parature)

7.   70% of buying experiences are based on how the customer feels they are being treated.  (McKinsey)

8.   A 10% increase in customer retention levels result in a 30% increase in the value of the company. (Bain & Co)

9.   90% of respondents who recalled reading online reviews claimed that positive online reviews influenced buying decisions, while 86% said buying decisions were influenced by negative online reviews. (Dimensional Research)

We all know the importance of customer service, but the priorities, processes and expectations of the management, sales and service teams can complicate the act of rolling out the red carpet.  If you want your dealership to build customers for life, customer retention should be every department’s priority.  In your sales, service and management training programs, include lessons on:

• Creating personalized customer experiences
• Building relationships through positive communications and positive reputation building interactions.
• Providing easy to access and transparent information and assistance.

Remember, it is not about the priorities, agendas, expectations or processes of your sales team, your service lane or even your management staff…it is about your customers and how they feel about doing business with your dealership.

About the Author

Stephanie Young is the Vice President of Sales and Marketing for The Manus Group, where she is an active blogger, social media contributor and spokesperson for one of the nation’s leading automotive recruiting and training firms. Stephanie is also the current Ms. Florida Forestry Queen, promoting her platform encouraging young woman to pursue their interests in STEM field careers.

If you like this blog, please share with others and connect with Stephanie on Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+

Copyright © 2014, Stephanie Young All rights reserved.

There are probably a thousand reasons or more that customer service and retention is a valuable automotive sales training topic, but here are just nine that affect all industries that should get your attention.

1.   86% of buyers will pay more for a better customer experience. But only 1% of customers feel that vendors consistently meet their expectations. (CEI Survey)

2.   By 2020, customer experience will overtake price and product as the key brand differentiator. (Customers 2020 Report)

3.   In 2013, 62% of global consumers switched service providers due to poor customer service experiences, up 4% from the previous year. (Accenture Global Consumer Pulse Survey)

4.   It is 6-7 times more costly to attract a new customer than it is to retain an existing customer.  (White House Office of Consumer Affairs)

5.   89% of consumers have stopped doing business with a company after experiencing poor customer service. (RightNow Customer Experience Impact Report)

6.   It takes 12 positive customer experiences to make up for one negative experience. (Parature)

7.   70% of buying experiences are based on how the customer feels they are being treated.  (McKinsey)

8.   A 10% increase in customer retention levels result in a 30% increase in the value of the company. (Bain & Co)

9.   90% of respondents who recalled reading online reviews claimed that positive online reviews influenced buying decisions, while 86% said buying decisions were influenced by negative online reviews. (Dimensional Research)

We all know the importance of customer service, but the priorities, processes and expectations of the management, sales and service teams can complicate the act of rolling out the red carpet.  If you want your dealership to build customers for life, customer retention should be every department’s priority.  In your sales, service and management training programs, include lessons on:

• Creating personalized customer experiences
• Building relationships through positive communications and positive reputation building interactions.
• Providing easy to access and transparent information and assistance.

Remember, it is not about the priorities, agendas, expectations or processes of your sales team, your service lane or even your management staff…it is about your customers and how they feel about doing business with your dealership.

About the Author

Stephanie Young is the Vice President of Sales and Marketing for The Manus Group, where she is an active blogger, social media contributor and spokesperson for one of the nation’s leading automotive recruiting and training firms. Stephanie is also the current Ms. Florida Forestry Queen, promoting her platform encouraging young woman to pursue their interests in STEM field careers.

If you like this blog, please share with others and connect with Stephanie on Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+

Copyright © 2014, Stephanie Young All rights reserved.