For those who are uninitiated, this is not a week to week business, but rather a year to date business. There are slow periods and there are highly productive periods. The trick is to level it all out. We need to make hay!
ORGANIZED!!!!!! DISCIPLINE!!!! So, how many of you actually use somekind of organizer? Have your day planned? Are disciiplined enough to stick with what you MUST do on a day to day basis? “If you want to keep getting what you always got, keep doing what you always did.”
First, get that organizer. IF you need to do something, please write it down. I carry a big yellow legal pad and write, and write.
The small seeds you plant now, may take time to grow, but they will grow and bare fruit. Be patient.
If you say you are going to do something, then please do it. Don’t be part of the manana generation.
Do you know the hardest thing in life is putting thought into action?
Day Plan: Get up early! Forget what your manager’s will think, this is for you. Don’t eat a heavy breakfast. You will be asleep by 10AM.
Spend 10 minutes of quiet time by yourself. Practice creative visulization. (Think about putting 5 sets of keys into their new owner’s hands. J)
Dress for Success. Need I say more. Don’t be sloppy. Where a shirt and tie. Maybe even a suit or sports jacket with some nice slacks. POLISH YOUR SHOES!!!!
Take your time getting to work. The automotive industry is like no other. There are very few checks and balances. They will give you enough rope to do what you will with it.
WALK YOUR INVENTORY: Go out there, put your hand on a vehicle and say out loud: what year, model, color and basic description. Do that for ten minutes a day, and in two weeks, you will never have to ask again. How nice would that be?
Say, “Good Morning” to EVERYONE in the dealership. Recognize them. They are your coworkers, whether or not you spend much time with them or not. One day, this little bit extra will come back to you in spades.
Check your appointments for the day and be prepared.
Study your craft and your product atleast twenty minutes every day. This is a profession and you are a professional! Act that way.
Spend time where it is needed. Eating with other salespeople is nice. Eating with the service people will bring you business.
Take time to prospect, every chance you get. Did you know that if you make contact with 5 new faces each day, hand out your card and ASK, and only get a 10% return, in one year you would have sold an additional 130 units? Go figure..
So my questions to you all: How are you spending your day and what are you going to do to improve. What I have done is given you some suggestions. They are good but not the only suggestions. Give me some more. When we make Hay, the Sun will shine for us when we need it to.
Trainers, How many times I have sat there in meeting … Wide eyed,To listen to someone tell you the ins and outs. You go back to the dealership. You work it for a week or two then back to the old you. How do you keep them fired up .. How many trainers instead of talking the talk went back and walked the walk. I mean how many trainers went back to the dealership pulled some files made some calls and sell a few cars. Lets face it we sold cars when times were ok. I hear all the time that was back in the good days 2001 to 2005 that you sold 35 to 40 units per month.. I work with salespeople everyday they say I can’t see how you closed that deal. I tell them it wasn’t me it was the customer that closed the deal . I just listen and he told me how to close it. What we need to teach . Its not the old days its you the salesperson you need to stop thinking and start working. When you kiss your wife goodbye in the morning and you go to work you make someone pay. Stop going to work and talking with the other guys about football and everything that has nothing to do in making you a deal. This is where the trainer comes in you meet him in the morning you pull the files with them you make the calls with them you show them how to dig. Then you help them close. You do that for a month and teach the managers as well. Now you can call yourself a trainer. Stop the talk and do the walk. Now I hope I haven’t offended anyone out there but think about what I am saying. Go back to any of the dealers you trained salespeople how many are still there? 1 maybe two out of ten we failed.
That is one excellent idea. I bet you that can be offered that to the dealer… Have the trainers work for them for one week. Train by example and put the trainers back in the loop.