Dealership Stresses Employee Togetherness

LOS ANGELES – When forming foursomes for a dealership employee golf outing, new boss Jeff King purposely mixed his sales and service department people together.

That caused a little consternation at first, recalls King, general manager and vice president of Bozard Ford and Lincoln in St. Augustine, FL. “A guy from service said, ‘I don’t know anyone from sales.’ I said, ‘You will.’”

That was the point.

King, a 27-year veteran of auto retailing, arrived at family-owned Bozard four years ago determined to get personnel working as a team.

Too often, invisible walls of demarcation separate the employees. At the least, that can cause cluelessness and misunderstandings. At the worst, it can engender animosities among workers.

“Anything they get involved in that breaks down the silos and helps them become a part of the team is good,” he says at the 2014 Automotive Social Media Summit here.

That includes carving out time in the work day for participating in a fantasy football league. At some dealerships, people could get fired for doing that on company time. “We did it to bring people together,” King says. “The result is that they talk to each other.”

Employee satisfaction leads to customer satisfaction. So Bozard is big on employee recognition programs. Top-rated personnel are honored weekly. The store monthly holds a “Rock Star Friday” event to welcome new workers and recognize existing ones.

Participants wear t-shirts boasting messages such as “Rumor has it I rock” and “My name is awesome.”

King maintains an open-door policy to let staffers know “they can bring something to me and won’t get beat up or told it’s a stupid idea.”

DealerRater.com has named Bozard as the No.1 Ford and Lincoln dealer in the nation in 2012 and 2013 because of its high number of positive online reviews.

Good reviews on social media are powerful. A dealership recommendation from a family member or friend is the most-trusted form of persuasion. Right behind that are online consumer reviews.

Bozard runs with its customer accolades, touting its DealerRater status in radio, online, TV, print and billboards ads.

“Our feeling is that if we are a No.1-rated dealer in the U.S., people will drive to get to your place, just like they will drive extra to buy what’s deemed the best pizza in the U.S.,” King says.

The dealership uses social-media websites such as Facebook to post photos of happy customers, esteemed employees and community-outreach projects.

Letti Bozard, a third-generation member of the 65-year-old family dealership, oversees the employee engagement and community involvement initiatives.

The results are paying off. Bozard’s total department gross went from $2.1 million in 2010 to $8.1 million last year. Retail sales went from 867 to 3,402 units. Used-car sales quadrupled in four years.

Customer loyalty typically leads to repeat business. By one measurement, Bozard’s service-department customer loyalty is 41.3% compared with a national average of 23.8%.

“Quite honestly, I am not happy with 41%,” King says. “I want to make it to 50%     

We want advocates. To make people loyal, you need to get them engaged.”

Various studies indicate:

By that time, consumers will be more informed and in charge of the buying experience. They will expect companies to know their individual needs.   

People don’t work at Bozard because it pays better than elsewhere. “The sales compensation is straight on gross, and you can pick up some additional compensation on volume,” King says. “Our pay plan is as standard as any dealership around, but we get people engaged.”

Heather MacKinnon, a DealerRater vice president, says she’s impressed by Bozard’s business culture and staff. “People are really upbeat at that dealership. You go there, and everyone is enthusiastic and positive.” 

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