A fever is never the problem . . .

When someone is sick and they have a fever, they will usually respond with “I have a fever” when they are asked, “what is the matter”. A fever is just an indicator that something else is wrong. Your body is fighting something, and that something could be dozens of things, from a common cold to the flu and more.

Same in sales of virtually any kind. As it relates to the car business, whether in sales or service (nevertheless, all of it is sales), there are indicators that are blamed for a lack of income. If one can see past the indicator and diagnose why it is happening, the “fever” will pass and the results will increase.

I have heard people mention they missed a monetary bonus of some kind because a customer satisfaction survey was less than par, and the person who missed the score was sure they did nothing wrong. I say it is an indicator that you need to brush up on, learn, (or re-learn) advanced people skills.

I have heard sales consultants say that a customer will not answer the phone a day or two after leaving the showroom and that is why they missed their sales targets. I say, the reason a prospective customer is ducking their calls is just an indicator that they missed it when they had the chance in person. They either talked too much, listened to little, did not find out what the customer really wanted to accomplish, or pressed their own agenda on the customer (or all of the above).

I have heard service advisors make excuses on why they don’t seem to sell as much as their peers. “My customers say they can’t afford it”, “my customers want to wait until next time”, “my customers say they can get it done elsewhere cheaper”, etc. That is the indicator that there is a deeper problem. A “fever” if you will. I say they  missed a chance to build rapport, missed a chance to do a thorough walk around, perhaps did not build value, or they were looking to “sell” instead of serve.

If we will all be bold enough to find out why we have the fever, and do something about it, we will have a much more prosperous and joyful year than 2017.

Author: ebtgains

Stephen is a seasoned leader in the automotive industry. He has a unique blend of achieving results, with an extremely high level of satisfaction for both the guest and the employee. Having a solid background in service and parts, there is a daily sense of urgency to maximize each opportunity. He is a process driven GM for a public automotive group with a passion for personal and professional growth. He is always maximizing EBT opportunities and is open and willing to share ideas and results. View all posts by ebtgains