Dealer’s Best Opportunity Just Drove Off Lot

The best opportunity a car salesperson has is the customer who just drove off the lot. 

Salespeople must follow up personally with every customer who takes delivery of a vehicle. Ask for a referral. How you ask is the key to success.

First of all, if you asked 10 people what they’d rather have as a follow up – an email, phone call, or hand-written note – what do you think they’d say? Nine out of 10 people respond either a phone call or handwritten note. Which would you rather receive?

In fact, major retail businesses already know this. When he was CEO of Sprint Nextel, Dan Hesse, said the company would keep in touch with customers through handwritten letters.

He said it’s old-fashioned but in today’s digital world, customers notice and appreciate that we take time to write letters to them.

It started when one Sprint Nextel employee and his team started a letter-writing campaign, thanking customers based upon their longevity. They would do it every Thursday. It mushroomed. It became “Thank You Thursdays” company-wide.

“Our employees sit down with a list of customers, which includes something about the customers, like how long they have been with Sprint, and they hand-write letters thanking the customers,” Hesse said in a Forbes interview.

Yet many salespeople think it’s not their job to follow up with customers after they take delivery of a vehicle. They trust that an automated system will do that.

Others are afraid to make a call because they don’t know what to say or they are worried there may be a problem with the customer or vehicle.

But this follow up represents a golden opportunity to prospect while putting the personal touch back into a relationship. Ask a salesperson, “When was the last time you had contact with someone who bought a vehicle from you?”  Even though a salesperson may say they’ve called repeatedly, the truth is that 90% of the time it was when the customer was at the dealership buying the vehicle.

The reason for the lack of contact mostly is that the salesperson doesn’t really know what to say.

Not only does a personal follow up call improve your image, it cements the relationship with you and the customer and gives you the chance to ask for referrals. 

The only thing a salesperson brings to the dealership is time and talent. The dealer gives them a place to work, product to sell and even brings leads in the door. But, it’s the time and talent that makes a difference. Salespeople who work to cultivate relationships and referrals become top producers.

When following up with a customer, choose words that will guide the conversation to a positive outcome, Never ask a question without knowing the answer and never ask a question with an open-ended answer.  This allows you to control the direction of the conversation, something like this:

“Hi, this is Richard from APB. I am calling to follow up and see how everything is with the vehicle you took home yesterday.  I have to ask you a question.  Do you park the car in the street or in the driveway?”

By asking multiple questions at once and finishing with a question that gives only two possible answers, the salesperson can steer the conversation.

Customer:  “I parked it in the driveway.”

Richard:  “Have any of your neighbors seen it? (Pause) What did they say?” 

Customer:  “Yes, they loved it. Fred asked if he could take it for a spin!” 

Richard: “That’s awesome.  Hey, would you mind if I gave Fred a call?” 

Customer:  “Sure.  Here’s his number.”

Just like that the salesperson got a referral. By asking for it.

This conversation is the beginning of a personal, referral relationship. The most successful salespeople build on this. Every day they look to see who is scheduled to come in for service, and if it’s a customer they’ve worked with before, they make a point to proactively greet them.

They get to know their clients and mark important milestones, such as when the new baby is due or a kid goes off to college. 

They send personal, hand-written notes and cards or make a call to offer congratulations or to send birthday wishes. 

They buy Girl Scout cookies, support their clients in events like Relay for Life, and make it their business to maintain a relationship. They focus on the car, too, and send it birthday cards or they send anniversary cards to their clients marking the years that have passed since the car was new. These are subtle reminders that often lead to sales. (After all, who wants to drive a car they purchased seven or eight years ago?)

As a result, these salespeople close referrals at higher rates than first-time customers walking through the door.

They have a full pipeline of sales leads and referrals, and they’ve gained a reputation as the salesperson to ask for. Most important, they earned a reputation as a transportation specialist, a trusted adviser who can help with transportation needs.

They know success comes not from selling products, but from selling and building a relationship.

Richard F. Libin is the author of the book, “Who Stopped the Sale?” (www.whostoppedthesale.com) and president of Automotive Profit Builders, specializing in enhancing customer satisfaction and maximizing gross profits. He can be reached at [email protected] or 508-626-9200 or www.apb.cc.