Methodical,Strategy-Driven Success______________________Cover Story September 2007
With the continuing explosive growth of online auto shopping, dealers are looking to leverage every technology and process to improve their game. It is getting more challenging as all dealers, manufacturers and vendors recognize that the Internet is here to stay. Not too long ago only 25 percent of dealers had Web sites; now, 96 percent do.
A primary challenge dealers are facing is how
to put an Internet department together. There
are lots of pieces to the technology puzzle, like
Web sites, search engine optimization, lead
management software, CRM software and call
monitoring. Training their teams to be effi cient,
focused and productive is an important step
for any dealership. Then there are staffi ng and
process issues to address as well.
It isn’t enough to have the separate
components; dealers need the solution to be
customized to their store and the way they
do business. All the pieces must fi t together
properly, or else the outcome will be erratic
at best. Often when a dealer is not getting
the results, they look at buying more leads
or changing Web site vendors, when the real
problem lies in the process or the people.
That is a major reason why Internet initiatives
can fail. Dealers buy tools, but do not get the
proper training, and managers do not hold
the employees accountable to perform all the
tasks necessary to earn new business.
Peruzzi Automotive Group increased Internet
sales from 30 to 107 per month in six months
by using a SWOT analysis to identify new
markets of opportunity. The best way to
start the process of building or rebuilding
a successful Internet sales department is
to perform a SWOT analysis (strengths,
weaknesses, opportunities and threats). This
is one area where hiring a consultant can bring
in a fresh perspective and new ideas. Dealers
should look inward at their current initiatives
and then outward at their competition.
One needs to create a vision of where they
want to go, as well as a roadmap to get there.
D.I.M.E. is an easy acronym to remember that
can serve as your guide:
Design: Defi ne the dealership’s vision of
the future. Then design a roadmap to reach the
levels of production and the ease of process
the dealership wants to enjoy.
Implement: After completing the
design phase, it is time to implement. The
implementation phase consists of training
your people, and setting up the technology
and creating promotions to support your
processes.
Manage: Tracking is a necessity to
successful management. Performance must
be measured and monitored on a daily, weekly
and monthly basis.
Evolve: Technology is constantly evolving.
Dealerships need to keep up with the latest
ways to reach customers. Web sites and e-mail
were new at one time and provided a leg up
for the stores that embraced them. Currently,
video search is one of the newest ways to gain
an advantage over the competition. Next year
it will be something new. It is important to
stay ahead of the curve.
Focus should be concentrated on four key
areas: the Products (tools), People, Process
and Promotions at your dealership. Quite
simply, the store needs to fi nd and create
Products, People, Process and Promotions
that are going to personify their own unique
vision. As you review each area, it is helpful
to know where to look and what to look at.
When reviewing your products, the two
hot buttons are Web sites and search engine
optimization. Research has shown that
dealers get the best closing ratios from leads
generated from their own Web site. So dealers
should focus on how to get more traffi c and
more leads from their own site. There are
other ways to generate traffi c that are very
economical and more effective than expensive
Pay-Per-Click (PPC) campaigns.
Social networking costs nothing and will
bring buyers into your store. Go to bestplaces.
net to learn the demographics of the people in
your area. Use this information to determine
how to reach them. For example, if you
have a high percentage of African American
population, go to blackplanet.com* and
establish a presence. Have one of your African
American salespeople set up a profi le and
post all of your videos. Your goal is to become
the automotive resource in your area for this
demographic. It is important to be among
the fi rst in your market to capitalize on this.
Dealerships need to learn how to use these
powerful resources and leverage the existing
video and social networks on the Web. That
— combined with Psuedo-sites, focus sites
and micro-sites — will bring an incredible
amount of incremental traffi c to a dealership
Web site.
The integration of a well-trained staff and a
solid process will make all the difference in the
results obtained. Some dealers still are putting
the wrong people in the Internet departments,
or they are understaffed and unable to handle
the follow-up properly. Often, dealers would
put either an IT/techie or an underperforming
salesperson off the fl oor to be the Internet
manager. Dealers quickly fi nd out that product
knowledge and communication skills are more
important than technical knowledge. Many
technical people are not good communicators.
They are great at sending fancy e-mails, but
do not follow-up with phone calls, and if
a salesperson can’t close a sale, you don’t
get better results by moving him to another
department that involves sales.
Finding the right people to staff your
Internet sales department and utilizing the
latest technology and methods is extremely
important. The normal methods will produce
the normal results. If you pursue new people
the same way your competition pursues new
people, you will get the same quality people
they do.
people. Every store is running newspaper ads
and posting jobs on Careerbuilder.com and
Monster.com. Try something different, such as
broadcast television. Purchase 10 30-second
spots. It will cost you somewhere around
$3,000-$5,000. In the commercial, stand in
front of your store and say something like,
“Hi, my name is Sean V. Bradley and I am the
owner of Bradley Motors here in Philadelphia,
PA. We just completed our new multi-million
dollar customer development center and need
quality people to staff it. If you are currently
working at a dealership and are not happy, or
feel you are not able to earn the money you
want and deserve, if you have no dealership
experience, but have good communication
skills and would like an exciting career in a
trillion dollar industry, call us or go online
and submit your resume. We are growing so
quickly here at Bradley Motors, we are always
looking for good people to help us enhance
our customer experience.”
This type of ad will produce several results. It
will help you fi nd the right people to help you
reach your Internet sales goals and catch the
attention of quality managers, salespeople, and
other dealership personnel in your area. This
ad will also be seen by all of the consumers
in your area. You will be the only dealership
they see running ads like this. Consumers will
see that your store is committed to customer
service, that you are growing and that big
things are going on at your store. This will
differentiate you from all the other dealers in
your area in the eyes of consumers.
Once you have the right people, a critical
component is training. A formal training
program can give employees a solid
foundation that provides not only great results
for the dealership, but job satisfaction that
keeps employees from leaving in frustration.
There are many options for training, including
one-day seminars, on-site engagements and
multi-day bootcamps.
Many vendors and trainers offer one-day
seminars and workshops that are great
opportunities to add to the basic Internet sales
knowledge employees already have. The focus
should be on content and not the cost. Make
sure you understand what the benefi ts are and
what the expected learning outcomes will be.
If it makes your department more effi cient or
effective, it has relevant content.
Selecting the right on-site training partner is
important to your store’s success. While it is
inevitable there will be some content overlap
with material out there from all trainers, what
is really important and differentiates the best
is their custom approach to each assignment
and their people.
Every engagement should start with a
thorough analysis of the dealership. Then
a custom solution should be designed for
each dealership. What works for a dealer in
Boston might be completely different than
what works for a multi-point dealership
client in Evansville, Indiana. The markets,
the resources, the staffi ng and the tools are
different with every store, so the training
company needs to make sure the solution fi ts
the needs of the specifi c dealer.
Additionally all trainers need to have
experience and success in Internet automotive
sales. Training isn’t about telling clients what
to do. Effective training needs to show them
how to do it. Trainers should make calls,
book appointments, go along on demo rides
and sit in the fi nance offi ce during the closing
process.
Look for a training partner that provides a
360-degree view of Internet departments and
their customers — someone who works with
vendors and is backed by industry experts
After training, follow-up is important and
dealerships should look for a solution that
monitors their results on a daily basis after
training is completed. The right training
partner will check call to appointment to
sale ratios, monitor all e-mail and phone
correspondence, provide ongoing training
on handling objections and rebuttals and so
much more.
Nelson Mazda went from seven to 80 Internet
deals per month in one year by using the
Design, Implement, Manage and Evolve
(D.I.M.E.) method.
In the past, dealers had to pay trainers to come
to them and spend a week or more explaining
what an Internet client wants and how to sell to
them. Speakers at 20 groups offer great ideas,
but only have a few hours to teach. The best
way to learn what your store needs to know
to be successful is to attend a comprehensive
Internet sales boot camp. Find one that is a
train-the-trainer Internet course.
These are perfect for departments that want to
improve the results they are already getting.
The format is in-depth, and the longer time
frame allows for a greater amount of material
to be taught. Participants also enjoy the
benefi ts of networking and sharing ideas with
other participants. Often, dealerships will
recognize results the same day they implement
what they learned from the session.
There is always a need for one-on-one
training. Video on demand, training, tracking,
testing and certifi cation through an online
virtual training system will work, too. The
number of vendors and trainers are growing
exponentially. Video on demand systems are
used successfully by Sonic, MileOne, Sony
and Disney, to name just a few.
While indeed the Internet is not a new
phenomenon anymore, the landscape
continues to change, and there is always a
need for training to stay ahead. It is just a
matter of how much training is needed. With
the Internet, training is focused on how to
leverage technology to increase sales and
how to best meet the expectations of Internet
customers. Companies that are focused on
improving customer service have always
embraced training for salespeople and
service employees. Those organizations are
constantly evolving their process. Generating
leads for salespeople is expensive. Make
sure these leads don’t fall in to the laps of illequipped
and under-trained people. Investing
in the right people and giving them the right
training is the fi rst step toward success.
As more and more people are using the
Internet, the focus has shifted away from the
20 percent of the market who are shopping
price alone to those who are looking to save
time, checking inventory or looking for a
better way to do business.
Finding new and cost-effective methods for
promoting your dealership can be a challenge.
It seems each year the cost of leads, Web sites
and other Internet based advertising mediums
increases. Google’s purchase of YouTube,
a provider of free hosting for video on the
Internet, cemented video and video search as
the next evolution of marketing. The success
of YouTube and MySpace show the desire for
video on the Internet.
The best news of all is that many dealerships
can get started with what they already have.
They need to collect a library of videos;
local commercials, national commercials,
testimonial videos, walk-around videos, how
to properly install a car seat, what you need
to know to fi nd the right car, secrets of a car
salesperson, and more. All of these videos
are presented by your dealership, with many
recorded at your dealership. Take these videos
and post them on YouTube for free. YouTube
will handle the coding and make them
available to be searched at Yahoo, MSN, AOL
and Google. When people search for videos
on topics related to car buying, they will fi nd
your store.
Call or e-mail Sean for your free strategy
session. This is not vaporware; this is a phone
consultation to go over:
Your four P’s — Products, People, Process,
Promotions
SWOT Analysis — Strengths, Weaknesses,
Opportunities, Threats
D.I.M.E. – Design, Implement, Manage,
Evolve
We will then deliver a custom “Road Map
to Success” with procedures and plans to
improve your bottom line.
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