Posts tagged bdc training
Would you like to read my blog now? How about now? Now??
Dec 22nd
It used to be as a Dealer Principal or manager; you would consider yourself lucky to have a salesperson willing to make an outbound sales call, and even luckier still, if the sales person actually asked for an appointment. I have filled out hundreds and hundreds of Internet forms over the past year, and have noticed a new breed of salesperson. This eager, yet untrained, salesperson gladly picks up the phone, confidently dials a number and charges though that call with little or no knowledge of what the customer wants or needs. None of this matters to “Johnny-on-the-phone”, for he is in a race against himself towards an appointment. I am hearing untrained sales people very proudly and abruptly demanding an appointment within 20 seconds of the call. Believe it or not, I see salespeople do the same thing online. Being so bold as to ask for an appointment in an auto-responder. I have even see salespeople ask for an appointment at the end of every email exchanged regardless of the message of the email. It’s fine to focus on an appointment, but don’t charge through your opportunities and ask for an appointment without even addressing the customer’s needs. We appreciate the effort, “Johnny-on-the-phone”. We know you mean well, just… stop.
You need to be prepared to have an actual conversation, via phone or internet. The (again) untrained, but well-meaning salesperson knows this, and will use the weakest technique in the book: “Do you have any questions?” Of course they have questions, why else would they even bother to contact your dealership? Assume what those questions will be and be prepared to answer proactively. Face it… customers are already asking questions; you just might not realize it. They are clicking on buttons with labels like: “Request more info” “Get a Quote” or “Get Financed”. They are leaving comments about their needs. By making them repeat themselves, the customer may think you are playing “hard-to-get” with the information they are looking for, or they will simply think: “Wow. This dealership really isn’t listening.” The 5 little words, “Do you have any questions?” while well intended, can do more harm than good.
Developing rapport over the phone or internet is not easy, so take every opportunity to show the customer you are listening and make a good impression. Be more specific and lead into your questions: “I like the color of this one, what drew you to it?” Be ready and able to engage in an actual conversation about the vehicle by doing some research on it before you pick up the phone to make the call. You must be prepared to build some momentum over the phone and bring the customer to a place where they want to come in.
Having filled out hundreds of those Internet forms, I have had those 5 words thrown at me 75% of the time. My first response is usually: Well I already asked for a question… what’s the price?”. The untrained salesperson usually responds with” “My Internet manager didn’t tell me that.” or “That information wasn’t on there.” Both excuses are Bullshit. Get the information. It exists somewhere and it is up to you to hunt it down. Your contact management tool or Internet lead provider is the best place to start if you are not sure how to find it yourself. If you rely on another person to share contact information with you, make sure you ask the questions: “What form did this customer fill out? Were there any comments with it?” Put yourself in the customer’s shoes. We are in the information age after all, and you are the only one to blame if you are uninformed.
Playing Hot Potato
Oct 6th
I was on-site training a new dealer client’s BDC team last week when I heard the most disturbing thing. The phone rang and the BD agents began a discussion that went something like this…
“Who’s turn is it?”
“Not mine.”
“Not mine either.”
“Well I just had one, like, two minutes ago.”
“So did I.”
“I think it’s your turn so you take it.”
“I’m in the middle of an email. Can’t one of you?”
“But it’s not my turn.”
“Or mine.”
It was about this time, during the 9th ring of the phone, that I raised my voice and hollered, “Someone pick up the (darn) phone! There’s a customer waiting!”
That outburst immediately got their attention and at least motivated one of them enough to answer the call. With a little side-by-side guidance from me, she was able to set an appointment with the prospect. I wonder how many more rings that customer would have waited through before hanging up and calling another dealer.
Your dealership team must realize that the phone is the lifeline into the store. I am of firm belief that if you know how to handle an inbound sales call, you never have to take an up in your life. Maybe it is just the fact that in most Business Development Centers, the phone rings so often it is overlooked. Had that call gone to the sales floor, in this economy, someone is liable to get stabbed by a coworker for the chance to get the lead.
This was a terrible game the BD agents were playing with an inbound sales call. It is the automotive dealership’s version of playing Hot Potato. I see it happen with both phone calls and internet leads now and again during either my in-store consulting or Virtual Dealer Training. When I asked them why that exchange took place, their excuse was that they only wanted to be fair to the other team members. They want everyone to have a shot at setting an appointment. But when do you say enough is enough? I didn’t want to “tattle” on them to the ownership and suggest they might have a crew too passive to be effective as appointment-setters because I feel everyone can be trained. Everyone can get better with some coaching. In this instance, my first lesson to them was that sometimes it is better to be greedy than it is to be fair.
Let it be known that I am 100% in support of having a trained, aggressive Business Development Center team handling inbound sales calls much the same way I believe there is a value to having prepared professionals in an Internet Sales Department managing leads. There is a benefit to having specialized workers with defined skill sets in these positions. I’m also all for having a fair distribution of opportunities (phone and email) between those team members. What I cannot support is when department policy interferes with the level of support you should provide a prospect.
When that phone rings, imagine it is a mystery shop you are receiving from your owner’s 20 group. You do not want to be the reason your dealership scores low marks in front of their peers. That could lead to a job loss if the call is mishandled poorly enough. But let’s look beyond your job security and put yourself in the customer’s shoes. When you call into a place of business, do you want those employees to look at the ringing phone as an albatross? A chore? Of course not! You are a potential customer that wants, nay, deserves a professional greeting, a kind response, and an intelligent answer to your question. Recognize this and handle all calls accordingly.
I know this doesn’t happen in many places, but it does indeed happen. Watch out for it. Listen to how the calls are being handled and make adjustments… for your sake and the customer’s sake. And for gosh sake, please stop playing hot potato with your sales calls.
